Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter! For those of you who haven't already please check out my new story "I Would Wait A Lifetime For You". Enjoy the next chapter!
CHAPTER 8
I decided to keep it casual and go with a pair of jeans and a light weight sweater. When I arrived at The Grill Tyler was already sitting at a table looking at a menu.
"Hi." I said as I sat down across from him.
"Hi." He said as he put down his menu. "How was your day?"
"Fine." I said.
The waitress came over and we gave our orders.
"You aren't very talkative tonight, is everything OK?"
"Everything is fine." I said faking a smile. I was a little nervous about how he was going to react but I had to get it over with so I could relax a little. "There is something I want to talk about." I said. He looked nervous, and that made me even more so. "Tyler I think we should slow things down a little, I mean we kind of jumped into this relationship and…sex." I said whispering the last part.
"What is this about, Caroline?" He asked a little louder than a normal speaking volume. "Is this about that stupid picture in your room?" He asked, obviously talking about the drawing Klaus had given me the night of the Originals family ball.
"Tyler…" I said not really knowing where I was going to go after I said his name. But I didn't need to know because he cut me off.
"This is ridiculous! I break every bone in my body for weeks…in the middle of no where for you. So we could be together without the inconvience of my sire bond to him." He paused. "And then you go off and jump into bed with him!"
"Tyler that isn't what happened." I said holding back the tears in my eyes.
Of course the whole place was looking and talking about us now; I could only hope that they didn't hear the breaking bones and sire parts of the conversation. Tyler stood up from the table and without another word he left. I seriously hated his temper sometimes. Whenever we had a fight he would just leave and it was so frustrating.
I sighed and left The Grill. I felt bad since we did order and I hadn't paid but I couldn't take staying there another minute. I would give the waitress a twenty next time I went in to make up for it. When I reached my house Tyler was sitting on the front steps.
"What do you want?" I asked crossing my arms over my chest.
"I'm sorry I walked out like that." He said as he stood up. "Can we go in and talk?"
"No. we can talk right here." I said. I didn't want to take any chances of this conversation somehow leading to sex, even though it was the last thing on my mind but somehow even when it was the last thing on my mind it still happened.
Tyler sighed obviously not happy about my answer. "Fine. Look Caroline, I understand you wanting to cool things off for a little while, we are young and we shouldn't dive into a heavy relationship so fast. But you have to be honest with me."
I looked away from him for a second then looked back at him, I knew that pretty much said it all but I felt I should say something. "I feel something for him." I said softly. "But that doesn't mean I have stopped caring for you."
"Well, good because I plan on fighting for you. The pain I went through turning all those times was for us and I don't intend to let you go easily."
Tyler left and I headed inside my house. I was somewhat realized that I had gotten everything out in the open…well mostly everything. No one else knew about my feelings for Klaus and I wasn't sure when would be the best time to drop that bomb…if ever.
My mom was actually home tonight. I knew that it sounded stupid but having her there made me feel safe, even though I could defend myself better than she would be able to protect me. I guess that feeling you get when you are with your parents never really goes away, even if you turn into a vampire. She was on the couch about to watch a movie so I joined her. We had a lot of differences but one day she wouldn't be here anymore and I hated to think about it but I didn't want to waste our time together.
"What were you and Tyler talking about out there?" She asked with a bit of hesitation since I normally didn't discuss my boyfriends with her.
"We got into a fight at The Grill and he walked out, he came by to apologize." I paused and decided to continue. "I told him I wanted to slow things down between us…see other people for a while." My mom gave me a small smile then started the movie.
After the movie I went to shower and changed into my most comfortable pajama pants and a plain black tank top then crawled into bed. My phone buzzed a few seconds later with a new text message. 'How was your day, Sweetheart?' I smiled immediately. Klaus could be so sweet when he was just being himself. I hit reply. 'Not horrible. I had dinner with Tyler and it went as well as could be expected. How was your day?' I his send and placed the phone next to me on the bed. 'After you left it was awful. I missed you a great deal' I smiled again and hit reply. 'Tomorrow?' I had honestly missed him too but I felt that I couldn't tell him that just yet. 'Of course, Love. Sweet dreams, Caroline.'
I drifted off to sleep soon after reading Klaus' last text message. A huge part of me couldn't wait to see him, and hoped it would be early in the day.
When I woke up the next morning I already had a text message waiting for me. Before opening it I hoped that it would be Klaus. 'Good morning, Sweetheart. Please come by the moment you are able. I am eager to spend some time with you.' I hit reply. 'I will be over in an hour' I figured that would give me enough time to get ready and make some breakfast. My phone buzzed again so I opened the message. 'Perfect. I have a few questions, what are your top 3 favorite movies? What is your favorite junk food? Dress comfortable!' I smiled at the text wondering what he had planned for the day. I hit reply and thought for a minute. 'Gone With The Wind, A Walk To Remember, and Baby Mama. Anything Chocolate! ;)' I smiled and hit send.
I made some eggs and toast for breakfast. Since I took a shower last night I quickly washed my face and fixed my hair. I grabbed a pair of black leggings from my closet, a long black and green tank and a white jean jacket. It had been about fifty-seven minutes since I had texted Klaus so I was running a little behind.
As I walked out onto my porch I spotted Tyler getting out of his car. He ran over to me and quickly made his way under the roof of my porch, so he wouldn't get to wet with the rain. "Hey." He said.
"Hi."
"I was hoping we could have lunch today." He said.
I bit my bottom lip. "I'm sorry, I have plans today." I paused. "How about tomorrow?" I asked.
"Wow he sure works fast." He mumbled under his breath. "Sure tomorrow will work." He said with a small amount of disappointment in his voice.
"Great." I said.
"I'll see you tomorrow than." He said before walking back to his car. I stood there for a moment longer after he left then walked to my car and drove to the Mikelson mansion.
I walked up the front walkway and was about to knock when the door opened before my hand could make contact. I jumped slightly but smiled when I saw Klaus standing there. He immediately stepped aside to let me in.
"Hi." I said as he closed the door behind me.
"Hello." Klaus placed a feather light kiss on my cheek.
"Sorry, I am late." I said. "Tyler came by. He didn't know I had plans."
Klaus didn't say anything mean or give off any clues that he was upset about Tyler coming by my house. It showed how mature he was being about this whole thing.
"Ah well, you are here now. So, given the horrible weather I thought we could just hang out inside today and watch some movies."
I let out a small laugh. "That sounds perfect."
Klaus led me up his long staircase. Instead of turning right towards his room we turned left and walked all the way to the end of the hall way.
There was a giant flat screen T.V. on the wall the windows were covered with the darkest and heaviest black curtains I had ever seen. The seating was very unique it looked like three levels of mattresses with pillows long each back. There were a stack of about three plush blankets at the end of each row; it looked so incredibly cozy; I was excited to start the movies.
"This is amazing." I said.
Klaus went up to the second level and held out his hand to help me up. There was a tray with two glasses and a bottle of wine in an ice bucket. There was also popcorn, a bowl of Hershey kisses, a bowl of chocolate covered strawberries, and a plate with double chocolate chip cookies. Klaus poured a glass of wine for each of us and grabbed the remote control. I slid my shoes off and tossed them on the floor. I got myself comfortable and sipped my wine.
We started with 'Gone With The Wind' and then started 'A Walk To Remember.' I grabbed a chocolate covered strawberry and took a bite. "These are amazing; aren't you going to have any?" I asked
"I actually don't care for strawberries." He said.
"What? Are you insane?" I grabbed a strawberry from the bowl and turned so I was facing him. I scooted closer and rested my arm on his shoulder. I brought the strawberry up to his mouth and ran it along his bottom lip. "Come on, they are soooooo good." Klaus took a small bite and I pulled the rest of the strawberry away. "See, didn't that taste incredible!"
"Not really." He said with a smirk.
I ate the remainder of the strawberry and we continued to watch the movie. Klaus made no move to sit closer to me or touch me. I found it odd but refreshing. I don't think I have ever been on a date where the guy didn't try to at least put his arm around me. The amount of respect he had for my personal space definitely proved that he wasn't from this time. We were about half way through the movie; I moved his arm out of the way and cuddled into his chest. He relaxed instantly and pressed a quick kiss to the top of my head.
I took a sip of my wine and grabbed a small handful of Hershey kisses. "Do you want a kiss?" I asked holding up a chocolate in front of him.
"If the chocolate ones are all you are offering, sure." He said as he grabbed the kiss from me.
I sat up and turned my head towards his then leaned in so I could capture his lips with mine. We kissed for a few seconds until I broke away and cuddled back into his chest to enjoy the rest of the movie.
I was getting a little warm so I sat up a bit and took off my jacket, then tossed it beside me. The credits of the movie started to roll so I took that down time as an opportunity to talk a little. "So what made you think of having a movie day?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "It was less than desirable weather out, and I thought you could use a relaxing day."
"I would love to see more of you art." I said.
"Really?" He asked with more surprise in his voice than I had ever heard.
"Yes, you are an amazing artist and I love to look at your work."
"I could show you some now and we could save the last movie for later." He paused. "Unless you have other plans."
"Nope, no other plans. I had planned on spending the entire day here." I said as I sat up.
I followed Klaus down the hall to his room. "I have a lot of drawings, so tell me when you get bored." I rolled my eyes and sat on his chair. "Here." He said handing me two black portfolios.
Klaus started to walk away. "Wait. Will you sit with me and tell me about them?" I asked as I stood up.
Klaus took a seat and I sat on his lap. He placed his hand gently on my leg and I opened the first folder. The first picture was of Stefan and Rebekah.
"This is Stefan and my sister at an underground bar in the 1920's." He said as he looked at the drawing as if he was remembering the day. The drawing was beautiful, they were dancing and they looked so happy with together. I turned to the next picture and it was another scene from what looked like the same bar. "The next several are actually all from that night, just of people that stood out to me."
"These are all so beautiful." I said as I neared the end of the first portfolio. The next picture surprised me. It was Elena but she was wearing a dress similar to the one I had worn when I was with Klaus in the past. "Is this…"
"That isn't Elena." He said before I could finish my question. "That is Tatia. The original Petrova."
I didn't really want to ruin the day with talk about Tatia so I decided to ask more about that another time. I closed the first portfolio and placed the second one on top. Klaus' hand had not moved a single inch on my leg since he has placed it there. I flipped open the folder and was immediately surprised. There was a nude women lying in a field filled with flowers.
"Wow." I said. I turned to the next drawing and it was a different woman, also nude except she was lying on an old fashion couch. "I didn't realize you drew…"
Klaus laughed at my uneasiness and nervousness. "You don't have to look at them if you don't want to." He said.
"I mean they are beautiful." I paused. "So were these women you're…" I had no idea what word to use. "Um…girlfriend sounds so…high school so I am not really sure what to call them."
Klaus laughed again. "No need to call them anything, Sweetheart. They were all models; I had nothing to do with any of them besides drawing them."
"Oh." I said softly. My mind started to wander, I wondered if he had ever wanted to draw me like this, not that I am even sure I would want to do this. I think I would be a little embarrassed.
"What are you thinking about, Love?" He asked.
I turned my head to look at him. "Honestly?" I asked half laughing. "I was just thinking…about what it would be like to pose for something like this…and how I probably wouldn't be able to do it." I said as I dropped my eyes back to his drawings.
He placed his finger under my chin and moved my head so I was looking back at him. "Why not?" He asked softly. I continued to stare at him saying nothing. "I would love to do a nude drawing of you." I rolled my eyes and looked away as I shook my head "Caroline, you are beautiful. I would never pressure you into doing this but if you would allow me to draw you; you have my word it would be one hundred percent professional. Artists like to draw beautiful things, and Caroline you are the most beautiful women I have ever seen."
I bit my bottom lip. I couldn't believe that I was actually considering this but it would be kind of fun to model for a picture and I did trust him to act like a gentleman about the whole thing. "OK." I said softly.
"Are you sure?" Klaus asked surprised. "Please know I did not show you these drawings to get you to pose for me."
I smiled. "Yes, I am sure. And I know, I don't think that."
"Tomorrow afternoon then?" he asked with a smile.
My face fell immediately I felt awful that I had made plans already but we had agreed that we weren't a serious thing yet and I was going to continue to see Tyler once in a while but not as seriously as we had been. "I can't." I said as I looked away. "I told Tyler I would have lunch with him tomorrow." I paused and looked back at him. I could see the hurt and jealousy in his face. "How about tomorrow night?" I asked.
"Actually it would be better to do it in the afternoon because of the lighting. We can do it the next day, its fine." He paused and looked into my eyes, his face got extremely serious. "I'm not going anywhere." He assured me.
I nodded my head. Part of me wished that I had never promised Tyler I would have lunch with him tomorrow.
Don't forget to review! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and the ending wasn't too "Titanic" lol. BTW I have always wanted a house with a "movie theater" like the one in Klaus'!
