Just some shameless fluff I wrote when I really needed a distraction and some fluff in my life.
Sorry for any errors I may have missed!
Klaus quietly lets himself into the room and notes that she's a left a light on for him even though they both know he doesn't need it. He looks towards the bed and shakes his head amusedly when he sees Caroline soundly sleeping and, despite the size of the large bed, she's managed to plant herself in the middle, taking up most of the space.
Of course.
He takes a moment to just take in the beautiful blonde currently asleep in his old bed, in one of his Henley's no less, and just like that, he feels some of his frustration from the day ebb away.
It's been over a year since she decided to take a chance on them and yet he doesn't think he'll ever get over getting to come home to Caroline. Especially during days such as this one.
To think only a week ago, life had been as perfect as it gets.
They'd spent the better part of the last year visiting different parts of the world. She'd wanted to visit Tokyo first where they'd stayed a month. They had spent the days exploring all of the ins and outs of the city and the nights were spent exploring each other. Most nights, after they lay a tangle of sweaty limbs basking in the afterglow, they would share stories. He would trace little patterns on her body and ask her questions about herself, yes he would ask about her wants and her dreams and everything she wanted in life now that she was immortal and though she would tease him, she would also indulge him. She would ask him questions and he would regal her with stories of his life, the history he'd lived and the world, the places he'd been and how they had changed over the centuries. Once he'd felt he'd shared enough for one night, he would peel the thin sheet away from her body and they would lose themselves in each other once more.
After Tokyo, they'd gone to Buenos Aires, where he fondly remembers those warm nights dancing close together on those lively streets. Fondly remembers the feel of her warm body moving perfectly against his, tempting each other until one of their controls would snap. Sometimes they wouldn't even make it back to their place and they'd end up taking each other in a darkened and secluded area under the stars.
From Buenos Aires they'd gone to Russia where he'd finally shown her his lone painting after she'd insisted. He'd almost regretted ever mentioning that painting to her in a moment where he was overcome with nerves (not that he would ever admit it) as they came up to where his painting hung, but her reaction had been honest and everything he could have hoped for and more and it'd been all he could do not to kiss her in the middle of that museum, not trusting himself not to get carried away.
She'd picked Italy next, wanting to celebrate her first Carnevale there and after deciding she wanted to hang around the ancient city for a while longer, they had been staying at one of his villas for the past couple of glorious months until he'd gotten a call from his family. He'd tried to convince her to stay behind, they had argued about it in fact, but in the end she'd refused. He'd been more than a little frustrated but in the end they'd agreed on a compromise of sorts where he was satisfied that she wouldn't be directly in any line of danger should it arise.
So the two had returned to New Orleans that week and already he'd had the urge to go on a killing spree more times than he can count. The fact that he hasn't is a true testament to his drastically improved self-control. And to miracles.
Today had been one of those days but he tries not to let his earlier frustrations get to him now.
He sighs quietly and moves to turn off the lamp when he finally notices the picture frame Caroline placed on the nightstand. In it, is a picture of them.
He picks it up and sees it's a picture of them in Venice. He's got his arm wrapped around her but he barely spares a glance at himself, his eyes focused on her, on her smile that seems to light up the entire picture. That same smile he's drawn too many times to count.
She looks so happy here and it gives him pause to think that a monster like him could make anyone this happy. But somehow he has and he won't question his undeserved good luck, all he knows is that he'll do whatever it takes to always make her as happy as she looks in this picture.
He sets the picture back in its place and glances back at the sleeping blonde once more before he turns the lamp off and quietly strips out of his clothes and slips into bed beside her, careful not to wake her. Still, she shifts closer to him, murmuring something incoherently as she curls into him but never opens her eyes. He feels a small smile pull on his lips and he can't help himself from pressing his lips lightly against the top of her head and breathing her in for a split second and as he does, he feels the tension leave his body for the first time since he left that morning.
"You're home," she murmurs sleepily just then and he looks down at her only to see that her eyes are still closed, making him wonder if she's talking in her sleep. "Good," she breathes out as she wraps an arm around him.
When she doesn't say anything else after a moment, he assumes she's fallen back asleep and he smiles a little. He wraps an arm around her too, pulling her closer. While he's never considered himself a cuddler by any means, he'll never give up an opportunity to hold Caroline, to feel her in his arms, especially not when he waited so long and had to hold out hope against hope that they might one day have this.
As he lies there, he thinks about the events of the day and the latest threat facing them and he instinctively tightens his hold. He's never had sleep come easily to him since he turned but he wonders if any sleep will come to him tonight at all as he focuses on Caroline's steady breathing, the familiar weight of her head resting on his shoulder, thinks about all the nights they've fallen asleep just like this, and he thinks about his family, the ones still here and the ones he's lost, all the while his mind reminds him, he's never had more to lose.
xxx
Caroline wakes up feeling more rested than she has in days though a quick glance at the clock on the nightstand tells her it's not even 7 in the morning. Deciding she can afford to stay in the warm and ridiculously comfortable bed, listening to the sound of the rain falling outside for at least a little while longer, she turns on her side to reach out for Klaus (he may not like to admit it but she had amusedly discovered that the original hybrid definitely liked to cuddle), but she's disappointed to find the bed empty.
Frowning, she sits up and finds the room is empty too.
For a second, she wonders if he came home at all but before she can panic, she notices that the light she left on for him has been turned off, and can see the sheets rumpled on his side of the bed letting her know he had lain there at some point last night.
Sitting up completely now, she wonders if he's gone for the day and feels a stab of disappointment that she didn't even get a chance to say goodbye, especially since she hadn't seen him since the previous morning and even then, it had only been briefly. Much like the day before that.
With a sigh, she decides to get up too, the too large bed no longer seeming as appealing without her hybrid and she resolves that after this whole problem is dealt with, she's going to steal him away for at least a month, just the two of them.
She's barely reaching for her phone to send him a good morning text and check that he's okay, knowing he's been under more stress than normal these past few days, but before she can type a message, she gets an incoming message from Rebekah asking, or more like demanding her to get Klaus to stop calling at that hour or threatening to get Freya to turn him into a cat until this entire thing was solved and promising that the latter would be very easily persuaded given Klaus wouldn't stop pestering her too.
Not exactly keen on having a cat for a boyfriend (though she was a little tempted to see him as one), she quickly texts Rebekah back and she's about to give Klaus a call herself when she hears movement coming from the man in questions study.
Seeing that Klaus' family had all moved out and the protection spell that Freya had put in place made it so nobody outside of Caroline and the Mikaelson's including Marcel and only those they invited in could come inside, she knows exactly who's inside that study. With a small smile automatically forming on her lips, she sets her phone down and makes her way to the familiar studio instead.
The door's open and she finds the original hybrid sitting at his desk, intently focused on whatever he's reading. Since he hasn't noticed her yet, a surprising feat actually, she leans against the doorway, just taking him in, wondering how long he's been in here, if he's even slept at all.
After a minute, he seems to finally take notice of her, his eyes lighting up the way they always do when he sees her despite the clear tension she sees in them and in turn, she feels a smile form on her lips, just like it always does.
"Good morning, love," he greets warmly.
"Morning," she smiles as she starts making her way inside the room. "Don't you know it's rude to leave your girlfriend alone in bed?" she chastises teasingly. "And on a Saturday morning too? Everyone knows that Saturdays are for sleeping in."
He smirks a little at that, his eyes roaming over her as she walks towards him, still only in his shirt that she slept in and she feels a shiver run down her spine under his stare.
"My apologies," he says with a hint of a smile as he finally looks up at her, his eyes darker than they had been moments ago, as she stops right beside him and leans back against the desk. "What can I do to acquit myself?"
She leans in and steals what's meant to be a quick kiss, that morning kiss that seemed so trivial to some but was important to her, but she feels him bring up a hand to cup the back of her neck and she allows him to deepen it for a moment before he pulls back, and she gives him another quick peck before she looks down at him.
"Well that's certainly a good start," she smiles as she leans against the desk again. "What are you reading?"
"It's one of the grimoires Marcel and I retrieved yesterday," he explains and she immediately notes that she doesn't hear the same level of excitement in his voice that she heard earlier the previous day when they talked on the phone.
"Haven't found anything helpful yet?" she guesses though she hopes she's wrong.
"Not yet, not in this one or any of those," he sighs with frustration, motioning towards the other books on the desk. "I'm starting to suspect this has all been a bloody waste of time. Tracking these bloody things down. Dealing with those insufferable witches. All of it."
"How long have you been in here working?" she asks with a slight frown. "Did you even sleep at all?"
"A little."
She knows that with him, 'a little' can be anything from 10 minutes to a couple of hours tops.
"Maybe it's time for a break," she suggests. "You know, come back and attack it with a clear mind?"
She can see he doesn't look convinced but she's not surprised. Klaus could be even more stubborn than her. Not that she was saying she was stubborn or anything.
"Besides, didn't you tell me yesterday that you guys were still waiting to hear from Kol before doing anything else?"
When he reluctantly nods, she leans over and takes the heavy book from him and sets it on the desk behind her.
"Okay then," she says. "Take a small break. I'm not saying the whole day or anything. Just, clear your head so you're not so frustrated when your family arrives later because we all know none of you do well when you guys begin snapping at each other."
That was putting it lightly.
"And given that I've already had Rebekah text me this morning, I think your siblings might be in favor of you taking a break too."
He rolls his eyes but glances back at the grimoire and she sees the torn look on his face so she decides it's time to distract him, knowing he won't stop stressing over this otherwise.
She moves onto the chair and settles so she's now straddling his lap and she feels his hands drop down to her hips, gripping them gently. He looks up at her, watches as she gently pushes his hair back before she wraps her arms around his neck and leans in to kiss him.
She kisses him softly, slowly, and even though she can tell he's distracted at first, he still responds and with every press of her lips against his, she feels some of the tension leave his shoulders until he's wrapping his arms tightly around her as he deepens the kiss. She sighs contentedly as his tongue slips against hers and she holds him closer.
She pulls back after a moment and rests her forehead against his.
"There's still time," she says softly and feels him sigh. "And you don't have to figure this out on your own you know? You have awesome people helping you, like your family and your awesome girlfriend, who found some things that might be useful," she adds teasingly as she pulls back to meet his eyes.
"Did she?" he asks and though she hears his slightly amused undertone, she sees the intrigue in his eyes.
"Yup," she confirms. "It's not a ton or anything, but I showed it to Rebekah yesterday and she agreed with me that it could be handy. I can show it to you too and if you take a break with me right now, I'll even let you help me with more of my research later."
"Is that so?" he asks with a hint of a smile.
"Uh huh," she nods as she gently runs her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck. "Besides, you still owe me for this morning remember?" she adds with an arched brow, doing her best to maintain a serious expression.
He concedes with a small chuckle and she almost smiles triumphantly at the sound, but she forgets what she was thinking about when he looks up at her with those mesmerizing blue eyes she's come to love so much.
"What did you have in mind for my penance?" he asks as he starts rubbing small circles on her hips with his thumbs.
"Well," she pretends to consider it. "I was thinking, breakfast sounds nice."
"Does it?"
"Mhm," she nods again. "After breakfast I was thinking a shower might be nice too."
"Would you by chance require any assistance with that?" he asks as he starts tracing a pattern along her bare thigh and it's hard not to react to the simple touch.
"Maybe," she tries to say nonchalantly, not wanting to make this too easy for him. "There's always that one spot that's hard to reach on your own."
"I'd be more than happy to help you reach that, and any other hard to reach places, love," he smirks as he continues tracing that pattern on her skin though he moves his hand higher.
She shakes her head and wrinkles her nose.
"Your lines are still terrible," she says laughingly. "You're lucky you're so cute."
Now it's his turn to wrinkle his nose and she laughs, knowing Klaus' derision for the word cute when applied to him.
She leans in and kisses him again and it's not long before she gets lost in him. In his taste, the feel of his strong arms wrapped around her, his scent, all of it and for a moment, it's like another one of their quiet mornings back in the villa. Just the two of them basking in being with each other.
But she knew when she agreed to be with him that it wouldn't all be sunshine and exotic trips, there will always be enemies, old and new, but she knows that with him or for him, she's willing to fight to hell and back. And even though this situation isn't exactly ideal, she knows there's nowhere else she'd rather be.
She smiles into the kiss and feels him pull her closer.
She's not sure how long they sit there, wrapped up in each other as they kiss, slow but deep, their tongues dancing lazily against each other. She's well aware she's dressed in nothing but his shirt and panties, and she knows he's aware of it too, the evidence of his growing arousal she can feel certainly attesting to the fact too, but neither one attempts to do anything more than kiss, both content with enjoying this quiet moment with each other, especially given how rare these moments have become since their return to the Big Easy.
She's missed him, missed these quiet moments with him and by the way he's holding her, she thinks he has too.
Even when they break the kiss, they don't pull apart. She keeps her arms wrapped around his neck, keeps playing with the hair at the nape of his neck and he slips his hand under her shirt, rubbing soothing circles with his thumb on the small of her back.
They exchange smiles and laughs when he reaches that ticklish spot he'd been thrilled to find months ago, and they exchange what feels like a dozen more kisses and somewhere in the back of her mind she mentally pats herself for effectively distracting him but that just feels like an added bonus.
When he looks up at her, his gaze warm and happy and full of a love she'd never thought she'd receive, she suddenly feels her throat clogged with emotion and maybe she feels her eyes grow a little misty because even though she knows how he feels about her, it doesn't lessen the effect any less when he looks at her this way.
Noticing a change, he raises a brow slightly, looks at her questioningly but she quickly shakes her head and gives him a blinding smile before she kisses him again, hoping to pour all the love she'll never fully be able to convey with words into that kiss.
She feels him smile into the kiss and soon she's smiling too, which makes it hard to really kiss effectively and the two end up pulling away, the sound of their quiet laughter filling the air as they do. He looks up at her with that dimpled smile that matches her own and she rests her forehead against his, closing her eyes and he does the same, both just relishing in the other's company.
There are still things to do, they are definitely going to get to breakfast and that shower, though maybe not in that order anymore (the feel of his hands on her skin and lips against hers have certainly made her hungry for something that's not food), but with nothing but the quiet sound of their breathing and the rain pattering softly outside, neither one is in a rush for this quiet moment to end.
Thanks for reading! :)