Author's Note: Once again, thank you all so much for sticking with this story and for all your positive feedback. I've had a whirlwind semester so far, trying to finish my two majors, working two jobs, being the president of my theatre society, I just finished assistant directing a show and I'm in the middle of finals. But I really sincerely appreciate your loyalty and interest in this story, and like I said in my last Author's Note, I know where all of these plot lines are going, and I have no intention of abandoning it. It's all just a matter of getting it from my brain into written word... typed word... you get my meaning. Okay, so... enjoy this new chapter! xo a-little-blonde-distraction
CHAPTER TEN
"I can't believe you've worked so intimately with such famous people..." Rebekah said as she cut the pork dumpling on her plate with the side of her fork. The next day after her "date" with Matt, Alaric had called her and invited her to go to his favorite Chinese restaurant for lunch. She told him she had no idea how he'd known about her weakness for Chinese food.
"I've never thought of it so much as 'working with famous people' so much as 'helping someone portray history as accurately as possible'... We tend to get so wrapped up in how we think a person or event should be portrayed or how it's been portrayed before in the past..." Alaric started to explain after taking a sip from his tea cup, "...but they were all people and real occurrences... we have to make sure that we're being honest to the periods... That's why I find that new Sherlock Holmes series so fascinating..."
"The one with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman?! I know, I adore it! They actually did some shooting by my friend's flat in one episode!" Rebekah exclaimed with a smile.
"You don't say?" Alaric said with a cheeky grin, "I love what one of those creator guys said, that the novels were contemporary and modern to the period they were written, and we make them into relics if we keep them Victorian..."
"Exactly! We get the original story that the original readers got! God, I'm absolutely in love with the series... I'm going to die if they keep pushing back Series 3..."
"You're kidding... well that's a darn shame..." Alaric said, pouring himself more tea and refilling Rebekah's cup as well. She thanked him and as she sipped it, he gazed at her and suddenly spoke.
"You know what I don't get?"
"How Moffat and Gatiss can be so cruel to us even after Merlin's been canceled?" Rebekah joking asked with a quirk of her eyebrow.
"What I don't get," Alaric continued with a smile, ignoring her funny answer, "is how a beautiful girl like you can spend her Christmas vacation in a stranger's home and, on top of that, spend her afternoon with an old geezer like me..."
Rebekah nearly choked on her sip of tea. "Oh, well... I..." she looked back at Alaric, whose gaze was boring into her empathetically but firmly.
"I... just... wanted to get away from people I see all the time..." Alaric gaze didn't falter, and Rebekah slowly crumbled under his gaze, surprised at how well this man knew her after such a short time.
"Okay, not people... just one... guy..." Rebekah's attempt to contain her feelings suddenly failed and she began to choke back sobs as best she could, "...an ex-boyfriend who... just got engaged and forgot to tell me..." She hated herself for making a scene and embarrassing not only herself but Alaric as well. Sure he didn't get out much, but he still had to live here. She tried her best to hold back the tears but she felt two escape her eyes.
"So he's a dick," Alaric said plainly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. And surprisingly it was, and it only took an outsider pointing it out to Rebekah to snap her out of it. She laughed.
"As a matter of fact, he is... a huge one..." she laughed in between deep breaths to calm herself down and wiping tears away with her napkin. "How did you know?"
"He let you go," Alaric said just as plainly, "this isn't a hard one to figure out." The elderly man leaned in closer to Rebekah, and she mirrored his actions.
"Bekah..." Alaric started, "in History, you have the biographies and memoirs... now you, I can tell, are a 'Memoirs-Girl'... but for some reason you're letting someone else do the writing and allowing your biography to be written without you..."
"You're right," Rebekah gasped, choking back tears at his speech, "you're supposed to be the writer of your own life for God's sake! Ric... I've been going to a therapist for nearly 10 years... and she's never explained anything that succinctly... That was incredible... harsh, but incredible... Thank you..." she said, smiling and reaching across the table to squeeze Alaric's. The old scholar just smiled back warmly at the lovely young woman who'd been so kind to a lonely old man just looking for company.
"Ugh, seriously, Klaus, you're going to make me loose my lunch..." Caroline groaned as they left one of the exhibits in the Tower of London. Klaus had been describing torture technics in detail to Caroline as they wandered through the dungeons and cells.
"I'll admit, probably not the best laid plan, a Tower tour post-luncheon..." Klaus smirked and shrugged.
"Ughhh last thing I want to do now is go do something like the London Eye... can we go somewhere a little less active? How about Madame Tussauds? Or Hampton Court Palace?"
"Well Madame Tussauds is still here, and then we could go to Hampton Court then be back to Surrey in time for dinner..."
"Sounds good..." Caroline sighed, "...let's get out of this freak show..." She grabbed his hand and practically dragged him out of the exit of the Tower, Klaus chuckling the whole way.
A few hours later, Klaus and Caroline were wandering around the grounds of the Hampton Courts Palace in East Molesey, arm in arm as a light dusting of snow started to fall.
"Well that hit the spot..." Caroline said happily as she tossed her cup, empty of the rich hot cocoa that had filled it until moment ago, into a nearby trash bin. She turned back to Klaus and watched as he nursed his.
"Did you not like yours?"
"No, no, it's delicious, I'm just not one much for hot chocolate..." he said, dunking his biscuit in the hot drink and taking a bite.
"But you like the cookie?"
"Biscuit, love..." he smiled.
"Fine... would you like my biscuit," Caroline over enunciated, "In exchange for the rest of your cocoa?" She dangled the cookie in front of him in the hopes of enticing him.
"Sounds good to me, sweetheart..." he grinned, leaning in to give her a short kiss, before exchanging his drink for her cookie. Caroline smiled, the taste of cocoa and cookies lingering on her lips from his kiss. The hooked arms again and chatted until they suddenly came to hedges.
"Oooh! Oh my god! This is.. this is it!" she squealed and jumped up and down, almost sloshing the rest of her cocoa out of the cup. Klaus gingerly took it out of her hand before she sloshed it all over herself.
"This is what, love?"
"The maze! It's the maze at Hampton Court! I always read about it, I can't believe this is it, that I'm actually here!"
"Where did you learn about this?" Klaus inquired with an amused expression, popping the last of the cookie in his mouth, washing it down with the last of the cocoa.
"I was really into historical fiction when I was younger... I was always fascinated with Elizabeth..." she said, still admiring the hedges.
"You don't say..." he said, smiling warmly watching her be fascinated with the maze.
"You know she was exiled here, for a short time, when she angered her father... she's lucky that's all she got, you know what I'm saying?" she said with a smirk and a quirk of her eyebrow.
"Read you loud and clear..." he said smiling. "So... how about it then?" Caroline turned to look at him and when she looked at him, he motioned towards the hedge with his head.
"Really?!" Caroline was shocked at first, but then a huge smile spread on her face. "Let's do it!"
Before they knew it, they were at the entrance of the maze. Klaus and Caroline walked through the start and Klaus immediately took charge.
"Alright, let's try this way..." he immediately chose a direction and moved towards it. He stopped dead in his tracks though when he realized Caroline wasn't behind him. He turned and saw Caroline walking in the opposite direction.
"Hey... hey! Where you going there, love?" he crossed back to her quickly.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing..." she said assuredly, as she continued on her path, her left gloved hand hovering an inch away from the hedge wall.
"Oh do you? Well let's put that to the test!" he replied with a smirk. "First one to the exit wins..."
"You're on..." Caroline replied smirking, but continuing her patient path. Klaus took off in the other direction and confidently charged ahead, not letting dead ends discourage him. He passed Caroline once or twice, and she was still calmly tracing her left hand around the walls of the maze, even following through dead ends. Finally after 10 minutes of dead end after dead end, he stopped where he was, not knowing where he was, where Caroline was, or which way to go.
"Caroline?! Caroline!" Klaus started to call.
"Klaus?" he heard Caroline's voice in the distance but not too far off.
"Where are you?"
"Just follow the sound of my voice, you have to come to me..." she replied. He knew she must be keeping her hand to the wall and couldn't take it off.
"You've been quite patient, keeping up with that technique haven't you, love?" he said, walking in the direction of her voice.
"Well you know what they say..." she said, her voice getting closer, "'slow and steady wins the...'" Klaus rounded the corner and walked straight into her.
"'...race,'" she finished with a smile, pecking his lips, and continuing forward and keeping her hand to the wall.
"That's a very interesting trick..." he commented, falling in step behind her.
"I learned about it during a segment one of the morning shows did on puzzles and I've never forgotten it... you know, since I was obsessed with Elizabeth the I when I was younger..." she said, glancing over her shoulder to smile at him.
"But we're going in exactly the same direction I came from, it's nothing but a bunch of dead ends..." Klaus said, a slight tone of a whine in his voice.
"Just trust me..." she said, pausing and holding out her free right hand to him. Klaus looked at her and her open hand and took her gloved hand in his and patiently followed behind Caroline as they walked the maze, tracing around the dead ends until they quickly saw the finish in sight.
"Incredible... we made it..." he said, gaping still disbelieving that Caroline's method actually worked.
"Together..." Caroline added with a smile, squeezing his hand. Klaus threaded his fingers in between hers and leaned over and kissed her cheek. The two walked hand in hand until they came to the revolving door that lead out of the maze, and Klaus let Caroline go through first.
"So how does hot cocoa, biscuits, and the rest of Zombieland sound..." she said, turning back to him with a smile.
"Sounds perfect..." Klaus smiled, pulling her close, his hands resting at her waist. "But if you jump me before it's over, I can't guarantee that I'll be able to resist..."
"Well then, I'll just have to get this in now..." Caroline said, raising up a bit on her tip toes to press her lips to his. She pulled on the lapel of his coat with one hand to pull him closer, and pulled his face closer with her other hand at the back of his neck. Klaus gladly submitted to her passionate kiss, tightening his hold on her waist, only sad that he couldn't feel more of her through his coat and hers. They suddenly heard a throat clear and broke away from each other and saw that the noise had come from one of the Palace attendants that had let them in the maze.
"So sorry, but we're going to be closing up shop in a bit... special holiday hours..." he said sheepishly.
"That's fine! We'll get out of your hair... thank you so much for letting us in the maze! Happy Holidays!" Caroline said cheerfully, taking Klaus's hand and walking to the exit.
"Happy Holidays!" the attendant said with a smile, "Have a night night, you two..."
"Thanks, mate..." Klaus said back with a nod and a smile, squeezing Caroline's hand as they left the Palace grounds.
Matt rang the doorbell to Caroline's house, excited to see Bekah, and was surprised when she opened the door and a cacophony of sound accompanied her.
"Hi!" she said briskly, sounding out of breath with a smile on her face. That with the combination of her rosy cheeks looked to Matt like she had just been laughing a lot.
"Hello..." he answered with a smile, but glanced over her shoulder at where the sound was coming from, "I'm sorry, do you have company?"
"Yeah, well I'm having a little Hanukah thing..." she said still smiling from ear to ear.
"What, did you join a synagogue since I last saw you?" Matt joked.
"Ahahaa, no... Ric, Caroline's next door neighbor, wanted me to make some new friends, so he invited some people over and before I knew it, it had become a Hanukah thing... he says he's much more of a Jew in culture rather than in religious practice, but I wouldn't know the difference..."
"Oh..." Matt said, then realized, "Wait, Ric? Caroline's next door neighbor Alaric Saltzman, the historian? He's a legend! He taught at the high school for a few years, until he retired early to write his books and consult on movies and TV shows..."
"Yeah, he's great! Would you like to join us?" Rebekah said opening the door wider for Matt to enter.
"Yeah..." Matt said slowly, stepping in, "...I can spin the dreidel..." Rebekah kept smiling, so glad that Matt turned up.
"Oh, before I forget and end up stealing your mail and committing a federal crime, this is for you..." he said, handing Rebekah a FedEx parcel. "From a little town called, 'London, England'..."
"Oh!" Rebekah had totally forgot that she'd given Damon Caroline's address for him to send her his pages. She wasn't about to try and figure out how to use Caroline's fax machines, so she'd told him just to mail them to her.
"My... friend is writing a book..." Rebekah tried to explain without giving Matt her and Damon's sordid history together, "...and sometimes I give him..." she pulled the pages and saw a notecard from Damon's personalized stationary paper-clipped to the top page of the stack of papers he'd mailed her. Of course it had nothing on it. Without a handwritten note on it, she knew he'd probably had his assistant mail it to her.
Whatever, Rebekah thought dismissively. "...notes," she finished and tossed the contents and envelope onto a small table by the front door. Matt watched her the whole time, reading her face, then returned the smile when she looked away from the pages and gave him another big smile and said, "Come on! I'm sure the food's getting cold and the wine's getting warm!" and led him to the kitchen.
In a matter of minutes, Matt was welcomed into the group of older men at Caroline's dining room table, gathered around a lit menorah, potato latkes, brisket, matzo ball soup and glasses of kosher wine.
"Oh, I think I've had a bit too much of the Manischewitz... you're going to have to cut me off..." Matt joked, taking a sip from his wine glass. The men and Caroline laughed.
"This is one of the best Hanukah's I've ever had... not that I've had many, but..." Matt laughed but said sincerely.
"Ready to convert there, Donovan?" Pascal, one of Alaric's friends, joked. The group laughed.
"No, not yet... give it another hour and I may be singing a different tune," Matt joked as Rebekah refreshed his wine glass. "I just refuse to believe that you were not a ladies' man there, Alaric..."
"Please, Matt, you're among friends... call me Ric..." Alaric said warmly, "...and I never was a ladies' man! I married very young..."
"That's just because he had the most wonderful girl! He had to settle down to get her off the market!" Joshua, another friend of Alaric's laughed, then added sincerely, "Oh, everyone loved Isobel... she had the greatest laugh..."
"What did he say? 'She had the greatest ass?!'" Alaric asked Rebekah, sending the whole table into fits of laughter again.
"'Greatest laugh!'" Rebekah clarified for him with a laugh, and Alaric smiled, "Oh..."
"Although her ass wasn't bad either!" David, Alaric's friend, responded, making everyone laugh uproariously again.
"She had real chutzpah..." Alaric said with a wistful but proud smile, "She was the woman behind the 'great man'" he referred to himself, "making sure the books became reality..." Rebekah smiled warmly at her new mature friend, whom she could still see was deeply in love with the woman even though she was no longer present.
"What about you, Matt," Joshua piped up, hoping to continue the conversation, "You're a catch, so you've got the ladies lining up, I presume..."
"Oh no, guys," Matt said abashedly, "I just a one woman at a time kind of guy..." The men smiled and murmured, furtively stealing glances at Rebekah, who was smiling but pushing food around her plate, her and Alaric the only ones knowing that she wasn't Matt's woman.
"Actually I've been dating a beautiful, talented restauranteur, and let me tell you I have no idea what she sees in me or what I have to offer, but I'm seriously the luckiest guy in the world..." Matt said, thinking of Jules and smiling.
"A restauranteur? Does she own a restaurant here in town or somewhere else?"
"Well not right now, actually she's going to be opening up a new restaurant in Richmond next year in the Spring..." Matt said.
"Well where is she tonight?" David asked with a waggle of his eyebrows.
"Look at him, he's got one foot in the grave and he's still on the prowl..." Alaric said with fake exasperation. The group laughed and David quickly clarified.
"Well I'm just asking since he's here," he said, gesturing to Matt, "then where is she?!"
"Well, you know she's got a lot of prep to do on location so she's been staying with friends in Richmond..." Matt started to explain how Jules was preparing the restaurant and couldn't make it down a lot, but sometimes he got to see her. Alaric half listened and stole a look at Rebekah, whom he could see clearly was captivated Matt even whilst he was talking about another woman, and smiled to himself then cut Matt off.
"Well her loss is our gain..." he said smiling at Matt who smiled back and raised his glass at the elderly scholar.
"Thank you very much, Ric..." he said with a nod, making sure to use his nickname as he was instructed. Alaric nodded back to him with a smile. Rebekah looked between the two and couldn't help smiling like a fool. She'd become so close to both while she was here and she was so glad they got along. Alaric looked back and forth between them then said to his friends.
"Well, gents? I think we should leave these young whippersnappers and get back to our bedpans and coffins..." he joked and the whole group laughed and began to pack it in.
"Pascal, so you're calling me about playing pool?" Matt said, standing up from the table and extending his hand to Alaric's friend to his left.
"I've got your cell, I'll be in touch..." he responded smiling, shaking Matt's hand and the two half hugged and clapped each other on the shoulder. Alaric and his friends left, leaving Matt to help Rebekah clean up and soon Rebekah was walking Matt to the door.
"This was such a great night, Beks," Matt said as Rebekah handed him the last of the brisket, wrapped up in Saran wrap, both leaving the kitchen. "You know Alaric is one of the last great historians from that generation to write about the Civil War and Virginian history..."
"I know!" Rebekah exclaimed excitedly, "the reason he was helping out with the John Adams miniseries is because his friend David McCullough, who wrote the book on the series, was only able to come to a few of the shoots and asked him to fill in for him for the rest... He's so modest..."
"That's amazing..." Matt said, "...and you can tell the affect you've had on him, Beks..."
"What do you mean?" she asked, unaware of what he was talking about.
"Well," Matt started, "I mean, it's been no secret to anyone that Isobel's death rocked Ric's world... everyone pretty much knew that his only company after her death was whatever bottle was in reach... I'm not sure which of his friends came to check in on him one day, but they found him unconscious with shallow breathing... he almost drank himself to death..." Rebekah gasped and her hand flew to her mouth, "That's why he typically has a nurse taking care of him... his friends decided since he didn't have any family to be with him he needed someone to take care of him... Then you show up and he's suddenly... I don't know... more alive than he has been in a while... That's why I was so surprised when you said you were having a party with him... you've really awoken something in him, Beks..." he finished with a smile.
"Well..." Rebekah blushed and looked down, "then I guess we're even, because he's awoken something in me, and I'm very grateful to him..."
"Good... I'm glad..." Matt said, smiling warmly at the kind and lovely woman who'd suddenly come into their lives and affected them all so much in just a matter of days. "Well... I guess I'm off then..." he gave her a peck on the cheek and went to let himself out, but then turned to her with one hand on the door.
"Hey... Bonnie is going to the Christmas tree farm tomorrow to get her tree... would you like to come with us?" he asked, looking very hopeful.
"I'd love to..." she said with a smile.
"Great," Matt said, and leaned in and kissed her cheek again. Rebekah giggled, remembering how he'd been that friendly the last time they said goodbye and Matt groaned again.
"Ugh, okay, I know... I did it again... I swear I'm not normally this much of a lecher..." Matt said, rolling his eyes at himself and hurrying out the door.
"It's fine..." Rebekah laughed, as Matt practically sprinted to his car to avoid her seeing his red face.
"I'll text you tomorrow!" he called over his shoulder.
"Sounds good!" she called, smiling as she closed the door.
Caroline stretched, sleepily noticing her surroundings and realizing that she and Klaus had fallen asleep on the couch watching Zombieland after getting back from a full day of sightseeing. It also dawned on her that they had not had sexual relations in any way shape or form, but instead of being proud of herself, her mind started racing and she bit her lip. What does this mean? I mean am I a hook up now, or what is this? What are we doing here?! the sensible part of Caroline's brain screamed at her. Come on, you're on vacation, you said it yourself you're here to have fun and whether that involves straddling Klaus or cuddling with him, you're having fun, so what's the big deal? You're an adult! Caroline's impulsive fun-seeking part of her brain told her. She groaned at herself and carefully got up and tiptoed up the stairs, hoping that a shower might clear her head and make her feel better.
Caroline had luckily mastered the shower her first day there, after the first time Klaus spent the night, and she stood under the modern shower head letting the hot water trickled down her head to her neck and shoulders and took a deep breath. Suddenly she heard the shower door open and her eyes snapped open and she squealed in surprise.
"Sorry, love, didn't mean to give you a fright..." Klaus said, half apologetically, half smiling.
"Klaus! What are you doing?" Caroline said, instinctively covering herself up as best as she could.
"Same as you," he said, glancing furtively at her naked, slippery form. Caroline blushed and tried not to look at his equally naked self, "just trying to shower..."
"Well you can wait, can't you?" Caroline snapped a little too harshly. She'd been so wrapped up in her thoughts, arguing with herself about how she should address Klaus and their... whatever they were doing that his presence didn't help her mood.
"Why... worried I might distract you, love?" Klaus grinned devilishly, moving closer to her like a predator stalking its prey.
"No... I just want to shower in peace," Caroline said, backing away from him then gasping when she felt her back make contact with the cool dewy tiled wall.
"Well what's the fun of getting clean if you can't get a little dirty first?" he said smirking, inching closer and closer, seeing how it unnerved her.
"Klaus... I'm serious, I..." Caroline started before Klaus's lips softly found her own and she was silenced. He broke away but his lips hovered less than an inch away waiting for her next move, and every logical thought or care left Caroline's brain and she quickly closed the gap, moaning as she invaded his mouth with her tongue. Klaus held her firmly to keep her from slipping and the water cascaded over their bodies. The combination of the cool tile wall at her back, Klaus's lips and hands on her, and the warm spray of water drove Caroline completely mad and she didn't even realize one of Klaus's hands had descended and suddenly parted her folds and began teasing her. She gasped and pressed her cheek to his shoulder, softly biting it as he slipped a finger into her, moaning her name as she moaned his. One turned into two, then three and Caroline's head finally fell back and rested against the tile as her orgasm washed over her body as the water did.
"I need you, now..." she demanded, and Klaus didn't hesitate to hoist her up and, pressing her back against the wall, enter her in one swift motion. Caroline gasped and clung to his back with one arm and the other reaching above and behind her, grabbing the washcloth rack that was just past her. They moved together and quickly Caroline orgasmed again, but Klaus didn't stop his motions, and Caroline began pushing to meet Klaus's thrusts with her grip on the towel rack and her foot which had left Klaus's backside and was using the opposite shower wall for leverage. She felt him so deep and she couldn't believe all the different sensations that she nearly lost it when his head dipped down and took a nipple into his mouth, lightly grazing it with his teeth then paying the same attention to the other breast. Her stomach tightened and she felt a third orgasm building and whimpered.
"Oh... don't stop... don't stop Klaus..." she cried, still pushing with her foot but both hands clinging to his back and her fingers digging in so hard she'd be surprised if she didn't draw blood, she heard Klaus gasp and heard her name fall from his lips and she came undone as he did, both clinging to the other and basking in the aftermath with their foreheads touching, letting themselves be showered in warm water. Klaus kissed her head and let herself dismount and they took turns lathering each other up and cleaned themselves. Through the suds and laughter, however, Klaus saw the smile on Caroline's face but not the reservation and worry in her eyes.
Author's Note: Whew! Okay so next chapter, done! I'm realizing it's almost impossible for me to not include some Klaroline smuttiness, which truth be told I'm only half disappointed in myself about... I just LOVE THEM and LOVE THEIR CHEMISTRY! I hope you liked the chapter, I tried not to make it a filler chapter, but I was inspired to write an upcoming scene earlier on when I first got this idea, so I think it'll either be included in the next chapter or the one right after that! I'll try to update soon, but I wanted to give you guys something to read while I'm in the middle of exams... MORE TO COME! Please R&R, your reviews (good, bad, constructive or fangirly) make me as happy as Klaroline scenes do!
xo a-little-blonde-distraction