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Chapter 9
He paced up to the door, he got there faster than he thought possible, but now he was there the nerves began coming again. He regretted not planning some kind of speech before he got out the car, as now he didn't know what he was going to say. He knew once he saw her face, he would start fumbling his words and she wouldn't get the message he was trying to give her. This was why he wrote letters instead, he knew that now. He thought about writing a letter there and then on the doorstep but thought better of it.
He had to be the bigger man and speak to her. She was just a normal human being after all, she wouldn't bite him. But it wasn't that he was afraid of, he was afraid of saying the wrong thing and losing her forever. The night went so perfectly to begin with, they talked, they laughed; he didn't know what went wrong. It wasn't until the last minute that all hell broke loose. Klaus understood, the money and all the luxuries must have been overwhelming but at the time she never complained. If she did, he would have just stopped straight away and maybe they would have met sooner. But he assumed she understood why he was doing all this, he explained it in his DVD and yet she seemed offended.
Thinking about all these things was making him more anxious then he was when he had nothing to say. He stood there for a moment, hoping that his mouth wouldn't fail him. Taking in a deep breath; he pressed her doorbell.
Caroline knew she was wrong to shout at him like that, he meant well. She knew completely why he needed to challenge her; she knew that he was making sure that she could cope with his lifestyle. Truth is the money did bother her but not as much as the idea of dating a man in the Secret service. She had to admit all these dangerous and risky challenges were helping her, she felt more confident in herself but she was nowhere near ready to defend herself from killers. She was too young to die, she didn't want this lifestyle. She didn't want to have to hide away from people, and live life as a lie. She wanted to be normal.
She did like Klaus though; he was more than she could ever dream of. It's hard to find men like him and she did want to see him again, she wanted to be with him. But it was his baggage that scared her. She had been analysing the pros and cons since he left her at the doorstep. Caroline had been avoiding the temptation to look outside the window to see if he was coming back but she knew he would be long gone by now.
She upset him; she wouldn't be surprised if he never wanted to see her again. She was just plain rude. He did all those things for her, to show her that he appreciated her and she just hit him in the face. The ice cream was out, as she began spooning her way down the tub. Every mouthful was a sweet reminder that everything was going to be okay but soon enough that mouthful would disappear and she would have to keep stuffing her mouth to feel even a moment of happiness.
She messed up. That was it; there was no other way round it. Her eyes were blurring over as she just stared at the chocolate frozen mess, so this was what her life now resulted to. She had to admit, all those challenges, made her excited to start a new day. It made her happy, to be doing things. But now that was all gone, she missed her chance. If she saw him again, she would say sorry a hundred times and admit that she loved him. Her heart stopped, 'love' she loved him.
She knew now that he wasn't worth losing, the way he made her feel, she wanted to be with him. It was as if reality finally hit her, as long as she was with him, all the baggage he had wouldn't matter. They would help each other. She was ready.
Ring
Ring
The door bell rung, Caroline had lost all faith that it was anyone important. It didn't even bother her that she had chocolate all round her mouth and was wearing her old tracksuit bottoms and a vest. Whoever it was, she didn't care that she looked like a tramp, she didn't care what they might think when they saw her, she was miserable; she wanted people to know that. Bringing her ice cream with her; she continued shovelling it into her mouth as she opened the door
"What'd you want?" she said, still trying to rake the chocolate from the sides of the tub. There was no answer for a while, so she looked up
"Klaus!" her eyes widened, then she remembered what she looked like. Shit she thought to herself, she knew he definitely didn't want her now. He was just looking at her eyes, as she began to wipe the chocolate off her mouth the best she could. She laid the ice cream on the porch table
"Caroline, you didn't let me finish what I wanted to say earlier. I want to apologise -"
"No, Klaus, I should be the one apologising. I was so wrong to act like I did. I made it seem like that tonight meant nothing to me, but the truth is, it meant more than anything. Seeing you and being with you was all I've ever wanted. It was amazing, I want to thank you. I was just a bit spooked about what would happen afterwards, you know with your life and everything. How would I fit into it, it just scared me. But I'm so sorry and I completely understand if you never want to see me again, I know I was rude and well I would –"
before she could rush into saying anything else, his lips were pounding down on hers. Who said British men can't kiss, because man can they kiss, thought Caroline as she continued wrapping her arms around his neck. As soon as she starting getting into the kiss, he pulled away and smiled.
"Now, maybe I can actually get a word in" he chuckled as she gave a dreamy nod "Don't worry about fitting into my lifestyle love, I wouldn't let anything happen to you. I was worried that maybe you didn't feel the same way about me. If the money is a problem, I'll give it all away to charity anything, just to have you in my life is more than enough. I thought it was you who wouldn't want to see me again. I thought I upset you so much that you hated me" there was silence for a while, as Klaus searched her face for a reply "Please, Say something"
"Kiss me again" he began to chuckle
"Were you listening to anything I just said?"
"Yes of course I was. Truth is, I love you" they both stood staring at each other. Caroline was shocked she was able to say it to his face and Klaus was surprised to hear her say the words he longed so much to hear
"I love you too, Caroline"
"Do you want to come in?" smiled Caroline as she moved out of the doorway, letting Klaus walk by.
They were both sitting on the sofa. Caroline was wrapped in Klaus's arms, as they snuggled near the roaring fireplace. It was like being in a typical romantic movie; she didn't want the night to end. Her head rested on his shoulder, as his kissed her head gently every so often
"I don't want you to ever leave my side, do you hear me? I'm not letting go" his grip was tightening ever so slightly around her fragile frame, just to prove his point. But Caroline didn't mind she liked being close to him, feeling the warmth of his body radiating onto hers, like they were one person
"I promise, I won't, If I do I give you permission to kill me" he looked down at her
"Well, you know I couldn't do that. If anything happened to you, I'd kill myself" they were sharing such an intimate moment, the most intimate they had ever been. It was weird how two people could bond so much from the start. It was like they were fated to be together and to share this moment that could possibly change their lives
"Like Romeo and Juliet. Star crossed lovers"
"But you're not my Juliet" she broke from his arms and looked at him, he smiled as he continued "You're my Caroline" she smiled as she reverted back to her original spot. They spent the whole night, cuddled up in each other's arms. By the end, they both understood what went wrong and how they both felt about each other. It was surprising how miscommunications could affect everything. She was glad he came back; he reassured her that he never left.
Before they knew it, the sun was rising and it was morning. She awoke to a gentle kiss
"Morning, love" he smiled down at her, as she the word 'morning' struck her, she leapt out of his arms and ran into her bedroom. Moments later she returned back in his arms
"Sorry, morning breath" he rolled his eyes as he welcomed the missing part of him back
"Are you ready for Challenge number six?"
"What, there's more?" she gave an exaggerated sigh, as though she was fed up of all those challenges, but they both knew, she was started to feel lost without them
"Of course, but there's one difference" he winked at her
"I'm coming with you"
© Ms Zola, Aug 2012
