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"Caroline, we need to talk."
Caroline rolled her eyes at Klaus's words and took a small cardboard box out of her car. She wished Elena and Bonnie hadn't gone to the boarding house that night and stayed with her to help avoid the problem that was Klaus Mikaelson. Caroline begged and pleaded to go stay with them for the night, but her friends wouldn't allow her to abandon her responsibilities. She had to unpack tonight or she was going to be even more behind and it would be super annoying to have Elijah on her back.
"Caroline..." Klaus started.
Caroline's brain tried to convince her that she had no intention of replying him. At the same time, she didn't want Klaus to start shouting at the top of his lungs and cause a scene. Making people start leaving their rooms to find out what was up, was the last thing she wanted.
"Caroline!" He shouted and she slammed her trunk shut in annoyance. Klaus stopped a few feet in front of her, but she didn't look up at him. She just put the box down and took out her new phone that Elena and Bonnie bought her. Caroline checked the time, it was half past ten. "Where have you been, love? You're very late. I thought something had happened to you."
Caroline scoffed and put her phone back into her jacket pocket. Like he actually gave her a second thought that day. After she walked into that elevator, his undivided attention was given to that bitch.
Klaus quieted his voice and grazed her hand with his fingers, but irritation still lingered in his tone, "look at me."
She moved backwards to get away from his incredibly electrifying touch. Caroline couldn't be caught off guard by his very distracting features, she had to stay mad at him. He deserved it. "If you haven't noticed, I'm kind of busy. It's dark and I have to take these boxes to my room. So if you don't mind," Caroline motioned for him to move out of her way, but he didn't budge. For a few seconds she tapped her toe repeatedly on the pavement, giving him the benefit of the doubt, but it was no use. "Seriously? Move!"
"Where have you been?" Klaus asked a second time.
Caroline would've laughed at Klaus's question if she wasn't so fucking angry. "I'm anything but obliged to tell you where I've been. Now get out of my way and call Rebekah down for me or something. I need someone who has a bigger attention span than a puppy with ADHD."
She knew that the problem was partly caused by her disability to resist getting jealous and her attention seeking tendencies. Tyler was always thinking about something other than her and though she wouldn't admit it to herself, it was a little nice to have someone so into her. Then came Camille, the spotlight thief.
"I'm anything but obliged to follow your orders, sweetheart. Where are the friends you forbade me to contact, Bonnie and Elena?"
Caroline wondered if she should tell him or not. It wasn't like her friends were breaking any rules, but she rather not talk to Klaus more than she needed to. "They're at the Salvatore's house which must be nice since they're miles away from you."
"What took you so long? I expected you to be back at five at the very most. Instead you show up here at half past ten and directing all your bottled up wrath at me who is, quite frankly, getting indignant with your unjust treatment."
Caroline set her box down so she didn't accidentally break it, "all my 'wrath' is going in the perfect direction, Klaus. Now let me be."
"I've let you be plenty! It's time to finally buckle down Caroline."
She furrowed her eyebrows and crossed her arms. Buckle down? He wasn't her boss or whatever. Who gave him the right to tell her to 'buckle down'? This was unbelievable. "When have you let me be?"
"Twice today actually. When I listened to you and didn't go tearing down Mystic Falls to find you and when I didn't stop you from leaving in the first place."
Caroline opened her mouth to protest, but let her eyes fall instead. He shouldn't have let her go the first time so easily, it didn't seem like he was respecting her wishes. Just like he didn't care now that Camille was there. "Tearing down Mystic Falls, huh?" Caroline scoffed and kicked a loose rock across the road, "I bet you didn't think of me twice until Elijah, or Rebekah, or even Kol asked."
"Why would you say that?"
"I don't know, Camille just looks like that type of person. The type that grabs all your attention and holds on to it super tight."
"Is all this fury because of petty jealousy?" A shadow of a smile ghosted his lips. "Love you have nothing to be jealous about, I'm solely interested in you."
"I'm not your 'love'," Caroline snapped, ignoring the flutters of her heart when she heard his words. "I'm also not jealous of you and Camille's or whatever you call her weird relationship."
It was weird. Who in hell gets along with their exes that well? Caroline asked herself silently. I guess Elena and Stefan do. And Elena and Matt. Matt and I get along too, along with me and Damon as well, but these are different. Way different. We have the same friends and we're forced to hang out with each other. Very different... Right?
Klaus's expression darkened in annoyance, "then why do you remain angry with me?"
"Because I-" Caroline started and realized she couldn't pin point the exact starting point of her anger. Was it because of his New Orleans friend? Maybe because of her fear of Tyler breaking up with her after he finds out that Klaus was hitting on her and she let him. Perhaps Caroline was afraid of Tyler leaving her and telling everyone that she stayed with him after he fucked her over and over like a little bitch. Or Klaus just wormed his way under her skin.
Caroline picked up the box and opened her car's trunk. She was too exhausted to unpack today, maybe she'd call some mover tomorrow. Bonnie and Elena should've let her come, she wanted to be anywhere but here. Shoving the box into the back of her minivan, Caroline sighed. "Will you leave me alone? I'm tired and stressed out and I just want to go to sleep."
"Come to our guest room," Klaus insisted and closed the trunk of the car for her, "we'll clear this lousy excuse of a mess up there."
"No, I don't want to talk! I don't even feel like looking at you, damn it! I prayed that you had forgotten about me and were busy fucking Camille so I could unpack in peace and quiet, but no. You had to stay here, waiting for someone who doesn't even want to see your goddamn face!" Caroline purposely left the word 'sexy' out the last sentence so her rant didn't boost his ego.
"I don't think of Cami like that, Caroline," he gritted out of clenched teeth. "I stayed here because I didn't know where you were or if something happened to you."
Caroline pushed past him, stormed through the open gate and began to head towards Katherine's room. With every step, she could hear his footsteps approaching close behind her. "You should have stayed in your room, it would've been easier than to put up with Camille two point '0'." Biting her lip, Caroline wondered if that showcased her jealousy more than she wanted it to. It felt like she had put her jealousy on a silver platter and handed it over to him.
"Why don't you want to resolve this silly little quarrel that you're dragging out?" A small smirk appeared on his lips. "You know how much I fancy you, I would dread for it to go on like this."
Why did he have to keep on telling her that? Caroline was sick and tired of the word 'fancy', especially in that context and from him. Sick of hearing that charming word roll off his tongue in the most pleasing accent. Tired of hearing the sincerity and truth baked into that goddamn word.
"I just don't want to!" Caroline heard his footsteps slow to a halt and she slowed down as well, but she didn't stop just yet. "If I'm mad at you, then you'll go away and forget about me. I could live in peace without the fear of what Tyler would think crawling up my back whenever I'm with you."
"Tyler isn't here, he can't hurt you."
"I'm not afraid of Tyler!" Caroline felt her voice crack at the lie more than she wanted it to as she stopped walking.
"Then what has your knickers in a bunch?" Klaus's words were supposedly joking, but they came out as seriously as the ones before. Caroline clicked her tongue while shaking her head and sighed, Klaus was being unbelievable. "What are you afraid of?"
The blonde finally turned around to face him, "you!" Caroline took a deep breath, "I'm afraid of you."
They stayed there in silence for hours. Caroline was too unsure to anything else as Klaus's eyes bore into hers. His gaze was dark, but not cold. It felt longing and it took most of Caroline's willpower to stop herself from biting her bottom lip. In reality, all of that only lasted for a moment.
"Wouldn't it be more accurate to say you're afraid of yourself?" Klaus queried rhetorically while slowly making his way to Caroline. "You're darkest desires?" She let out a way too shaky breath at the truth in his words. Her body tensed as Klaus was only inches away from her, and a flicker of a smug smirk replaced his expression for less than a second. "I'm right, aren't I? Deep down you long to have your perfect feathers ruffled, beg to have your spotless record tinted by the worst possible person you could choose. You're body is telling you to rid Lockwood from your thoughts and do what you really want, but you can't seem to follow instructions."
"No," Caroline lied in almost a whimper, "it's not true." She could feel the forbidden arousal pooling in her lower belly as the deadly assassin tucked her blonde locks behind her ear and let his lips brush against it. He's dangerous Caroline, he's really dangerous, don't let him do this to you.
"Then again, you might be right. There's so much to be afraid of. The vicious monster I indulge in being. The detrimental actions I enjoy doing to people. If you refused to be afraid of me and did accept the beast in a human body, the most lethal creature that roams the Earth, the thing that lesser men fear, you might end up in a metal asylum."
Caroline didn't realize how gentle his words were until he stopped talking. She blinked back the tears in her eyes before meeting his. He hid it well, but Caroline could see the hurt behind Klaus's eyes. She didn't intend for him to take it like this. It wasn't her fault she was scared. Was she even scared? "Klaus-"
"This has been quite the fun evening, but think it's time you leave. Go to Katherine's dorm or Mystic Falls for all I care."
"No, you don't just get to do that to me. I am not one of your stupid one night stands that you can boss around and tell when and where to go once you decide you're done with them. I'm your friend, or at least I was your friend until you drove me away. Your doing again now by telling me how dangerous you are. Earlier, you weren't doing it intentionally, now you are and it's even worse. You think just because Tatia didn't love you, no one else will!"
Klaus backed away from her with daggers for eyes, "who told you about Tatia?" Caroline couldn't tell him it was Bonnie. It looked like he might kill whoever told her. "Was it Elijah? Kol? Rebekah?" Klaus paused, "was it my mother?"
"Maybe it's not Tatia at all," Caroline growled, ignoring Klaus's questions. "Maybe you're trying to make me hate you because your dad hated you and you think it only makes sense that everyone does! You act like the world has to revolve around you and everything has to go your way or there's no world at all! People other than you have issues and problems that you just disregard because of your selfish habits!"
"Caroline," all previous emotion in Klaus's eyes was now vanquished by the disturbingly calm, murderous look that sent shivers down her spine. "Who was it?"
"It doesn't matter who told me!" Caroline hollered, shoving the question of how much her voice was quivering down. "The point is that if you keep on pushing people away because you're afraid to get hurt, soon enough, you'll have no one to go back to! I'm sorry Tatia or your dad or whatever has impacted your life so greatly, but you're not unloveable! At least not yet. You sure are getting dangerously close."
Klaus looked down at his feet, then slowly met her eyes. A flicker of an unfamiliar emotion appeared and disappeared behind his blue green orbs and Caroline instantly regretted her harsh words, "be out here tomorrow by six am. I'll be waiting." And then he was gone. Vanished.
Caroline stayed in that same spot, realizing what she had just done.
"Niklaus, just the person I hoped would not arrive home," Kol welcomed Klaus as he passed the lounging area. He was on an massive velvet arm chair with his feet on a coffee table and his nose in a book. That was certainly a surprise, why would Kol still be in there house? Did he not have a stripper club to be at or a friend to annoy? Tonight was most definitely not the night for Kol's mischief.
"I assure you Kol, I am not in the mood for silly mind games and I believe you don't want to be the first victim of tonight's mass murder," Klaus growled. Perhaps he would start off with the remaining bodyguard who threatened Caroline.
"Mass murder?" Kol snapped his hard cover book closed and looked up at his brother when he assumingely discovered interest in their conversation once he heard those two words. "Please allow me to accompany you!"
"Though you are quite the partner in crime, I believe it would be best for me to go alone," Klaus admitted.
"Please don't leave me out of this brother! I am begging you. I've been tethered to this house for the entirety of the day, completely bored out of my mind! A quick killing spree would really hit the spot, mate."
"Why are you even here at this time of day? Should you not be doing the things you enjoy?" Klaus asked as he began up the stairs to his room.
"Mother caught me asking around about Caroline and placed a house arrest on me for it, most likely because she was peeved off that you didn't show up to her office as arranged," Kol joined him on the stairs. "So I'll just be a minute. Let me change into my psychotic killer clothes and we'll-"
"An arranged meeting with my mother? There was no such-" Klaus paused and cursed under his breath.
Fuck.
Klaus had completely forgotten that Elijah had informed him that his mother wanted to come to an agreement with him about Caroline. With Camille showing up out of no where and Caroline vanishing, there was no time to think about it.
"Has she come to a decision about Caroline's fate on her own then?"
"Though Caroline is quite the extraordinary beauty," Kol muttered some more adjectives to describe her, "I was much too focused on my personal well being."
"Yes because it would be the end of your life if you didn't play video games one night out of the many," Klaus hissed. No matter what Caroline said to him, she didn't deserve to die even though he had full intent to track down that useless guard and kill him for some half-arsed threat. There was no alternative, that Klaus would admit at the moment.
Kol lowered his voice and his tone switched to a serious one. "Nik, be careful. The reason I didn't want you home was because mother is in a dangerous mood and you seem to be in one as well. You two, in the state you're both in, arguing about a more than touchy subject without Elijah there to calm both of you down, is bound to ruin my sleep schedule."
"If you haven't caught on yet," Klaus started up the spiral staircase again, "just because you are on house arrest, doesn't mean you are unable to sneak out. So if your sleep schedule is so important to you, leave!"
"Great idea brother, only before I leave, I should tell room service to deliver my head on a silver platter!" Kol shouted in a whisper.
"I think she prefers gold!" He hollered back, whispering as well.
Klaus walked down the hallway towards his mother's room but before he could reach it, Rebekah caught him. "What the bloody hell do you think you're doing? Kol told me about how mother put him on house arrest. I had to climb three floors to sneak in through the bloody window so she didn't see me. Once you go in there, she'll be asking about me, then Caroline and Stefan will be executed!"
"Mother actually wants to talk about the Caroline situation, but I have no intent to debate about Stefan's survival. I don't desire to have both Caroline and Stefan dead so you best hurry along to Katherina's place of living."
Rebekah eyed him head to toe and crossed her arms, "what's wrong Nik?"
Great, Rebekah's sisterly instincts have kicked in. I forgot to try to hide my emotion.
Telling Rebekah the truth, about his argument with Caroline had a possibility of resulting in her murder, so that was anything but an option. Klaus sighed to give himself more time before his little sister got suspicious.
An idea fluttered into his mind and Klaus tried put on the face he made when utterly devastated which was surprisingly already on his face. "Nothing Rebekah. Tomorrow is just-"
His sister nodded slowly and told him he need not say anymore. "I get it, and I would say I'm sorry if it helped, but we both already know it bloody doesn't. Goodnight Nik." Rebekah kissed her brother's cheek and Klaus returned the favour while he wished her a good night as well. Rebekah closed the door slowly and quietly so their mother wouldn't hear.
Klaus finally reached his mother's office and knocked three times. "Enter," was the only thing he heard from the other side of the door. He opened it without hesitation and Esther glanced up at him. She motioned for Klaus to sit across from her and took off her reading glasses.
"Hello mother," Klaus greeted as he sat down. Esther started to pack away the files she was reading before he arrived. "What vile plans have began forming by your will today?"
"Welcome Niklaus," Esther folded her hands on the mahogany desk in between them. Though her aura and attitude remained calm, Klaus knew it wouldn't remain that way. To keep Esther as calm as possible, Klaus decided not to bring up Caroline. "My plans may be vile, but it is all necessary."
"So Camille did come to Virginia for important matters, why?"
"I'm assuming it was you who brought Camille to my office earlier today."
"Tell me why she is here? Did you track her down after the Caroline fiasco just to torment me?"
"Why would I torment you my boy? You have done nothing wrong. Marcel sent her to deliver some files to me, that's all." Esther said fluently causing Klaus to put a fake smile on his face.
"Bullshit-"
"Niklaus, I had only found out about your intimacy with Camille O'Connell in New Orleans today while we conferred. She thought you would inform me of your relationship, it's unfortunate she thought wrong. I'm surprised you held back from telling me about her. Camille seems nice."
Klaus kept his smile on and shrugged while sighing, "perhaps it is because I enjoyed Camille in one piece. I would of loathed it if you got a hold of her like you did with-"
"Do not speak her name Niklaus. Keep the past in the past, that girl was a disastrous abomination, nothing more than a treachery. There is no reason to hurt Camille, she is an exemplary assassin, strong and confident. A considerably reasonable choice for you."
When Esther finished her statement, Klaus nearly let out a laugh that contained no joy. "Mother, you fail to see just how biased you've become. She was a bartender when I was in New Orleans, I doubt that you would've accepted her then. Now Camille has changed considerably. Her spunk, her fear, her curiosity, all replaced by a stone cold, nearly emotionless at times, attitude."
"Though I am not aware of her life story, I know now she has made an effort Niklaus, an effort that meant something. Unlike the woman you came here to discuss."
Klaus let the smile on his face fall, knowing in his mother's eyes, Caroline had made anything apart from an effort. He hated thinking about her, the words she said in the argument they had, they way she acted, nearly made his blood boil. Klaus was merely trying to look out for her after she stormed off. The situation was not Klaus's fault, but the fault of Caroline's independent character suddenly transforming into a immensely jealous one.
"I will say this only once so allow yourself to listen mother. I am not going to kill her. If you touch her with a malicious intent, conspire against her, or threaten Caroline again, you will severely regret it. I will continue to see Caroline because I will be training her to be one of us. Those are the only terms I will agree to."
Esther clicked her tongue and shook her head. "Niklaus what you fail to realize is that whether you choose to accept it or not, former agent Lockwood owns Caroline Forbes' heart and mind. She is the enemy and I forbid you from falling into the trap she's leading you to."
"You heard what Tyler did to her out in the open!" Klaus growled loudly, "I thought at least you would understand the pressure of an abusive relationship considering you took part in one longer than she has!"
"Do not raise your voice at me," Esther ordered sternly. "My son, it is not the same. Caroline Forbes has the opportunity to leave-"
Klaus reluctantly obeyed, "and you didn't? You hated him to the point of allowing yourself to love another man. I am the product of your unfaithfulness and you let Mikael beat me until I was nearly dead for it, but I'm guessing that wasn't good enough of an opportunity. If I recall correctly, I had to murder Mikael to create an opportunity for you."
"My boy," Esther placed her hand on his, "I am only doing this to protect you. You know nothing about this girl but her loyalties to Tyler."
"You cannot change my mind about her," Klaus retorted while swiping his hand back as he stood up. Klaus headed for the door knowing his mother wouldn't dare stop him.
"Do not fall in love with her Niklaus," Esther finally said when he opened the door.
"Goodnight mother."
Heart aching, Caroline walked into the room and kicked off her shoes. I shouldn't have said anything. I should've ignored him like I wanted to. Now instead of being mad at Klaus, I'm mad at myself which is anything but fair. I just need to shower and head straight to bed. Hopefully Katherine was passed out so she wouldn't need to deal with any late night scolding for walking in on her and Elijah.
Caroline didn't encounter her on her way, to the bathroom, so she figured it would be safe to assume her friend was fast asleep. She slipped out of her clothing and into the shower and got out as quickly as possible. Being in the shower let Caroline think, that was the last thing she wanted do.
It was hard to admit that she was partly in the wrong, but if Caroline said anything otherwise, that would be a lie. Jealousy clouded her judgement and analysis and feelings and she had no right to be jealous. Caroline was in love with Tyler, or at least she thought she was.
The second Tyler left her alone, Klaus had swooped in, saved her life and kept it safe without a warning. Being loyal to her boyfriend was the right thing to do. The Caroline thing to do. She always did what was right. Caroline couldn't just break the rules now and give into the danger of falling for Klaus. It was wrong, so horribly wrong that it hurt to even think about the possibility.
Caroline was unknowingly pushing him away. When he pushed back, her heart began to ache so she buried her feelings in fury and anger and blamed it all on him. She had to be the worst friend in the history of friends, just terrible.
When she realized that all her pyjamas were still in the car, Caroline found herself knocking on her roommate's door. She was surprised to find Rebekah in the doorway, but that didn't clear all the thoughts flying through her head.
"Sweets, are you alright?"
"What?" Caroline asked before realizing how depressed she must've looked, "oh yeah. I just need something to wear. I left my clothes in my car."
"Where's Nik?" Rebekah questioned after poking her head out the the door, probably waiting for a sneak attack from Klaus.
"Yeah, I thought after he told you he was in love with you, you'd be at it like bunnies in the heat." Katherine sashayed to her closet and paused before saying anything else. "Do bunnies go into the heat? I mean they're way too cute and innocent."
"Well I'm cute and I'm positive I can go into the heat."
"But you, my friend," Katherine stopped rummaging through her closet and handed Caroline a purple tank top and shorts, "are anything but innocent. They do say going at it like bunnies though. So does that contradict?"
Caroline sat down on Katherine's bed after she changed into the clothes while they bickered mindlessly. Klaus can't love me. Not yet, not at all. He is incapable of love. Tyler on the other hand, loves me with all he has. With all his heart. He was even going to propose to me if Klaus hadn't been there. Klaus is terrible, he has no heart. So I won't even think about falling for his lovely words, handsome blue eyes and dimpled smile that makes your heart flutter. You have a heart. Tyler has a heart. Klaus does not.
"Caroline?" Rebekah asked quietly, "are you sure you're feeling great? What's on that pretty little head of yours?"
She didn't answer her friend immediately. Caroline felt the bed sink next to her as Katherine joined to two blondes on her newly washed sheets that were blacker than the night. She looked out of the window on one of Katherine's walls. Caroline wondered if her boyfriend was still out in the hell-forest. She prayed Tyler was okay if he was still there. "Klaus told me he fancied me this afternoon," Caroline finally said in a tone that was barely louder than a whisper.
"He did?!" Rebekah jolted up in shock, "that bloody bastard didn't mention a word about it to me!"
Katherine let out a short squeal while clapping in excitement and she smirked at her, "what did you say to him?"
"I got mad at him for it," Caroline answered with regret soaking into her words. God, how she wished she had calmed herself down. Katherine stopped clapping and Rebekah slumped against the wall. "I told him that he was trying to cause problems between Tyler and I and that I had no intention of even thinking about him that way. Then I got jealous of his ex-girlfriend so I walked out on him and hid out for the rest of the day. When I finally came back, he was waiting for me with his ex. I got mad, again and we fought. I said some things I regret and now I think I ruined our friendship."
"Oh, Care..." Katherine let Caroline fall on her lap and she ran her fingers through her hair. "I'm sorry, I know how much you like him."
"I don't-" Caroline stopped, "I can't like Klaus. Not like that. It's just a recipe for disaster. I'm in love with someone already, I can't fall for him."
"But are you in love with Tyler?" Rebekah sighed, "I mean after all the bloody things he's done to you. When was the last time he's done anything for you that didn't end up in bloody flames?"
Katherine agreed with a nod, "and just because you say you can't like Klaus doesn't mean you won't."
"I can't," Caroline pushed as she sat up and debated whether to say what was on her mind or not, thinking it might be offensive to Rebekah and Katherine as well. She didn't direct it to them specifically, but a killer? Could she love a killer? Maybe. Could a killer love Caroline like she could love them? She didn't know. "Klaus is-"
"An assassin?" Caroline looked down in shame at the sound Rebekah's voice, it wasn't surprised or shocked or anything like that, it was just sad and hurt. "A murderer, serial killer if you must. We all know that Nik can be a terrible person. He gets impulsive and angry, closed off and cold. He can look you in the eyes and tear every single shred of happiness away from you just in spite, but the key word here is can. Nik fancies you Caroline, he won't hurt you like he hurts other people-"
Trying to think about anything other than how right Rebekah's point was, Caroline cut in, "that's the point! I can't have him hurting other people, I don't want him to. I can't like someone who revels in the blood of others, it's wrong!"
"What about your friends? That pretty Bennett girl, she's murdered without a second thought. I can't wait to see the face on doe eyed Elena when she kills someone for the first time, but after a while, it won't be as fun because she will get use to it. There's also that buff boy with pretty blue eyes and Kat's brother." Caroline wished Rebekah wasn't right, but she was. "What about the bloody Salvatore brothers? The legend that is Katherine Pierce? What about your bloody-"
As if she knew what Rebekah was going to say next, Katherine gave her the 'shut the fuck up' look. The blonde questioned Katherine's interference and she answered with "if Klaus hasn't told her yet, then I'm pretty sure you have no right."
Caroline had no clue what was going on, but she knew if she asked, they'd shut her down. Zoning out was easy as her friends' voices toned down to a hushed whisper. She tried to center her thoughts around Tyler, but all she could think about was the extent of her stupidity. How could I lash out on him like that? Who knows if Camille was somewhere hidden, watching me or eavesdropping on me being a complete piece of shit and treating her ex like garbage. Seriously? Seriously, Caroline? Why are you so impatient and bossy and such a green eyed monster?
"So Caroline," Rebekah's voice brought her back from her thoughts, "what do you have to say about your allegations?"
"I met all of those people before I knew about ... all of this. I loved them before I was aware of any of this and I can't just cut them off because of it. I can't stop loving them because I know who they really are without all the-"
"What about me? You knew I was an assassin when you spoke your first word to me. We're friends now, are we not? I know you might not care about me as much as Elena and Bonnie and the Salvatore Brothers and Katherine, but-"
The hurt and betrayal in Rebekah's voice were prominent now. There was not one single time where Caroline spotted Rebekah with anyone but Katherine, Stefan, Elijah, Kol and Klaus.
As they wandered aimlessly in the Amazon, Klaus told her that he always kept Rebekah within reach. He had the overprotective trait that he learned to despise when his mother used it on him. Based on what Klaus had said, Rebekah had more trouble making friends than her brothers had. So most of her childhood, she clung to Klaus and he didn't mind. As she got older, Rebekah learned how much she wanted friends, but she wasn't like all the other girls because of her life at TVD and that resulted in the opposite of her wanting. She was the most expressive Mikaelson. Rebekah looked like she felt more than Elijah, more than Kol. Caroline would say more than Klaus if she didn't know him or think she knew him.
According to Katherine and Rebekah's exchanged whispers, Klaus was still hiding something from her. Another reason why Caroline shouldn't, couldn't and wouldn't fall for him. She could never trust him to be completely transparent. Why should he be? Why should Klaus tell her anything? They were barely friends, it was her own fault she broke down in the Amazon. Caroline didn't have to show how she really felt, she chose to and she couldn't force Klaus to do the same.
"Rebekah, I care about you just as much as I care about all my other friends. I'm honestly just trying to find a reason that you two might consider valid. You two don't understand that I can't and I don't want to be in love with Klaus. Even if I wanted to, I don't think my heart could handle it."
"What about me? I love him. Not because he's my brother. Not because if I leave him he'll hunt me down and kill everyone I care about as a consequence. Nik has torn my heart out of my chest and shred it into two and yet each time I find myself forgiving my beloved bastard brother. We're alike, you and I, and not because of our hair. We can't stay mad at him, I can tell."
The aching returned to Caroline's chest as the words she said to Klaus replayed in her head. How could I bring up Tatia? How could I bring up his own father? Am I that insensitive? God, why was I being such a bitch?
The thing was, Rebekah was completely right. She couldn't stay mad at Klaus, but could Klaus ever not be mad at her? Caroline unknowingly let a sad sigh fall from her parted lips. She only realized it when Rebekah answered it. "He won't stay angry with you either. I know at the moment, it seems like Nik never wants to see you again, but my brother is only reacting this way because the anniversary of the death of his father is tomorrow. In a couple of days, good old flirty, sex god Niklaus will be back."
The anniversary of Klaus's real dad's death is tomorrow and Caroline had said all those horrible things about him being hated by his other dad. She had just reminded him of his miserable childhood without his real dad. Caroline wasn't anywhere close to even deserving anything but his wrath, let alone her forgiveness.
Caroline coughed a bit and cleared her throat before changing the topic, not wanting to think about the pain she might of made him relive. "No matter how much you try to convince me, I can't love him like I love Tyler. I don't think my heart could handle it." It was true. Klaus had Caroline's heart on a tight leash and whenever she tried to pull away or resist, she got hurt and crawled right back to him. The two barely knew each other, they only met about a week ago. It was completely wrong that Caroline was already depressed because of Klaus and they were only friends. If she fought with him while they were dating, Caroline could possibly resort to extreme measures to control the pain. "I'm already overwhelmed enough with this whole assassin thing."
"I know, this is hard for you Care, but you have to come to terms with it. Death and murder can't be a touchy subject anymore," Katherine told her while closing her eyes. Caroline thought Katherine fell asleep, she was awfully quiet today. Maybe Kat was being considerate. Though Caroline doubted it, if Katherine was trying to be kind, she was grateful. "I know that it sounds like I'm making it sound easy because I'm the Katherine Pierce, but no matter the difficulty, you have to do it."
"You are an assassin-" Rebekah started before Katherine rudely cut her off.
"Soon to be," Katherine corrected her friend with a smug smile across her perfect pink lips.
"I personally don't see a difference, you wench. The point is, in two months at most, you're going to be professionally assassinating people if you don't pussy out and my mother kills you or if my mother kills you before, just for kicks. Klaus will train you to be ruthless when you kill people. You will have to learn to rid yourself of your morals and forget about your conscious when you prepare yourself to drive a knife into someone's neck or fire a bullet through their brain. But we'll be here when you need us. Klaus will be there even when you don't need him."
Caroline didn't respond. Of course Klaus was training her, it was so like him to pull a stunt like that, being the possessive and protective person he was. She didn't want to think about it. Any of it. Caroline just wanted to fall into a sleep where she could hide from all her problems. Soon enough, she did.
As Klaus finished up his run, he was less than surprised at the absence of the fiery blonde he walked out on yesterday night. He sat down on a bench by the track with a sigh. Klaus intended to meet Caroline, specify the wrongs of her actions, then clarify that she had no reason to be jealous of him and Camille. Though all of those events came to pass, they happened in a less subtle manner than Klaus had desired.
The moment he stormed out on Caroline, Klaus didn't intend to cause harm to her feelings, he half expected her to follow him, but she didn't. After his 'negotiation' with Esther, Klaus watched Caroline's feet drag her soulless body to where she was to stay and it was obvious how hurt she was by his action. Rebekah's empty room's window that faced the training field had been strangely useful to him for once in his lifetime. Caroline had walked away from Klaus plenty and he brushed it off. Did Klaus have more of a hold on her than she did he?
Klaus did understand why she didn't follow him. Caroline was resilient, hot headed and impeccably stubborn. There was no reason for her to chase him after she clarified how she felt or rather how she thought she felt. Describing Klaus's feelings with the adjective 'frustrated' was a complete understatement. Caroline's arousal and allure to him was radiating off her. Klaus could tell how undesired and intrusively forbidden the feelings were, but they were there. Did it matter if Caroline was drawn to him or not? She wouldn't leave Lockwood if worms had begun to eat through his skin and make of it their home. Caroline's bright and purely good radiance reminded him of how bad he was for her. It exposed the monster he was, brought it into the light. She made him remember the easier days where his creators were calm and collected. Almost nonexistent. Now the demons that created the monster he was roamed his mind freely.
As he thought of the piercing words from Caroline's lips that she had screamed the prior night, it triggered unpalatable subjects and memories that Klaus believed he had forsaken long ago.
His fathers were what someone would call a 'touchy subject'. Klaus attempted to shut out the horrid memories and unanswerable questions that came along with his fractures of fathers. This method reduced the time wasted with ineffectual thoughts roaming around his head and ultimately distracting him from the bigger picture.
It wasn't as if Klaus didn't talk about them at any expense. He would occasionally crack a quick 'joke' with only a few hearing about the merciless torture he received from Mikael and how his real father supposedly watched from the sidelines, allowing Mikael publicly shame and humiliate him. Klaus didn't mind mentioning or briefly conversing about his fathers, but when people tried to dig up too much of the past, he would cut them off.
Finding ways to avoid thinking about the men who called themselves his fathers usually wasn't too difficult. But whenever the anniversary of one of their deaths came to be, the horrendous recollections came through the floodgates.
Like the one where Klaus discovered that he wasn't truly a Mikaelson. He was solely the product of his mother's sinful deeds. Klaus was brought to tears, thinking that his brothers and sister would no longer accept him. Elijah assured him that he was wrong, and he was. After that, Mikael began beating him more relentlessly, for he was a walking reminder of his mother's unfaithfulness.
Another memory that unfortunately etched it's way into his brain was the day of his biological father's death. In the dead of the night, Klaus alone was awake, carving a figurine and caught Mikael returning home with another's blood dripping off his crimson stained clothes. Once everyone including Mikael was fast asleep, Klaus followed the trail of blood and it lead him to his real father. He matched the description and was identical to the photo his mother had showed him once out of pity, except he was drenched in blood and was carrying a piece of wood through his chest.
Though Klaus had never met his biological father, the shadow of pain and sorrow hovered over him nonetheless. Klaus had preferred to the day like every other year, which were typically spent alone or with Rebekah and sometimes Elijah. Kol was much to hyperactive for Klaus to willingly choose to spend time with him on the particular day. Finn was never there, his mother was grieving by her lonesome.
This year, he was stuck training the beauty who had unexpectedly peaked his interest more than she should have. That beauty also broke the rules and continuously lied to him, lied to herself. When he thought of her, everything else seemed to fade even as she spit hostile words that were far too empty for him to dwell on. Except when Caroline mentioned his father and past lover.
Either his mother, Rebekah or Kol told her about Tatia. As he pondered on her words, Klaus decided it would be ludicrous to think Elijah would sit down and converse with Caroline, about Tatia of all people, when she was this behind on learning the art that is assassination. The two brothers also preferred not to bring up the disaster that was Tatia, so it only left their siblings and mother. There was a good chance his mother might have been trying to frighten her into leaving or succumbing to her deadly tactics. Rebekah couldn't keep her mouth shut for the life of her, but Kol would most definitely find joy in sharing Klaus's pain with another person.
"I'm sorry I'm late," a familiar voice apologized and he turned around to see the voice's owner approaching him. Klaus didn't attempt to hide his eyes scandalously taking her all in. Caroline wore black leggings that highlighted her curves and a sports bra that dipped dangerously low, giving him and all the other males quite the view. Her blonde curls were tied up in a high ponytail to keep them from getting in the way. "I was just unsure what to wear because I had no idea what we were actually doing today and Elena doesn't train with you and Matt wasn't picking up his phone. Matt trains with Alaric so I have no idea why I even tried to get ahold of him. I guess I miss him. Anyways, I decided to wear something simple that Katherine could lend me and I'm here now. Am I rambling? God I'm rambling..." Caroline's voice was softer than usual, more unsure. She probably felt the irritating stings of guilt. Klaus was no longer angry with her, so he hoped Caroline would catch on soon enough.
"Five laps on the track to warm up," Klaus gave her a dimpled smile, "hurry on now, you're late. You said it yourself sweetheart." He heard her breath hitch as he looked up from the grassy ground, his gaze laying on her. "Is everything alright, love?"
"Oh, sure," Caroline cleared her throat awkwardly and picked up her hand to pull back a strand of hair that wasn't there, "I was just hoping maybe we could talk?"
Klaus pursed his lips and held his hands behind his back, "warm up, I assure you, after our training lesson, you'll so exhausted we'll have plenty of time to sit down and discuss."