Elijah stared into Caroline's wide, bright eyes, and felt the urge to lean in. Their bodies were close, brushing against each other with every breath they took, and the pull to close that gap was strong. He recognized the urge that threatened to overwhelm him, and knew he'd need to feed before he made another historic indiscretion.

He stepped back, though it wasn't without a smile. It was clear that Caroline felt more overwhelmed than anything; she would need to feed soon as well, and it was showing.

"More dancing later," he suggested. "Dinner first."

She gave a nervous laugh. How exactly would she avoid this?

But Elijah seemed to understand. He knew that she preferred not to feed from humans, and that was fine. How exactly she would get fresh blood in her system was beyond him; but he could leave her to think on it, for now.

He pulled her back away from the dancing crowd as another loud, upbeat song filled the air.

"Get yourself a drink," he told her, "I'll only be a minute."

Caroline nodded. Despite being parched, she had to admit feeling relieved – the expectation that she join in the hunt was clearly nonexistent. Which she appreciated.

"Great," she said. Though she felt anything but, and would need to find some form of true sustenance before too long.

Before walking away, Elijah gave her hand a light squeeze. It was barely noticeable, but so very there. It made her wonder what he thought of her, because he seemed to be going above and beyond to show her a good time.

Right, Caroline, she told herself sarcastically, The honorable and dashing Original finds you interesting. Forget that he's lived a thousand years and you've only been here for two days. No, he must be in love.

But more importantly, why did she care? Maybe the bloodlust was clouding her judgment.

Yep, that's it.

…

Elijah searched through the crowd of people, everyone moving to the jazzy music, and all he could hear was the steady thrum of dozens of pulses. He needed to feed before he let the lust get the better of him, that was for sure.

He spied a young woman in the corner, separate from the dance floor, sipping her martini with a decidedly uninterested expression on her face. She was the very opposite of Caroline: long dark hair, stocky build, and clad in a simple black wrap dress. But her skin had that same glow, which promised good health, and that made for a better feed.

It only took a few steps closer for him to catch her eye, and she visibly perked up. If there was one thing Elijah could always count on, it was that inevitable peak of interest he'd receive after only a brief eye contact. It happened every time, and was that single indication that he could count on feeding soon.

"Hey handsome," she purred when he approached.

He smiled back, though it was forced.

"We're going outside," he told her, and while he couldn't see as his pupils dilated in compulsion, he knew it was working. "You'll be fine."

The girl only nodded happily, and held out her hand in a confident manner. "Take me."

Her pulse beat rapidly, throbbing against his palm when he grasped her wrist; it took conscious effort to keep his fangs from appearing in that exact moment. Elijah had greatly underestimated just how on edge he'd become in the last few minutes.

The dancing with Caroline had been a bad idea – at least, to dance before he could feed and steady himself. She was lovely, and bright, and it would have been so easy to let a fleeting desire take him over and pull her in… but he couldn't do that. She was young, and naïve, and though she'd done a remarkable job of moving on from that morning's events, he could see the shadows of pain in her face. If Elijah had kissed her, he would have only been taking advantage, and he needed to remember that. He needed to let her heal.

He vaguely recognized the irony of thinking on Caroline through the entire act. There was an alley to the side of the club, and with the overly-flirtatious way his dinner clung to him, he knew that no one would bat an eye at seeing the couple disappear into its depths. It didn't look dangerous. Which was good.

He led her all the way back, behind a dumpster that would sufficiently conceal them from view, and pressed her shoulders into the brick. His breathing had become ragged.

"You'll feel no pain," Elijah assured the girl, "and you won't remember this when I am finished."

"I'll feel no pain," she dully repeated. "And I won't remember."

Finally, unable to contain himself any longer, his fangs unsheathed and the veins rippled from under his eyes. Elijah pulled on her dark hair, exposing the lean muscle of her neck, and he bit in.

The relief was immediate, and the flow of blood would return him to his usual self, able to hold back from the temptations of a rare beauty like Caroline… but as he drank, and relished in the act, he imagined how she herself would have tasted, and how she would have felt under those same strong hands.

…

Back inside the restaurant, Caroline watched Elijah guide the young woman out, feeling quite uneasy. Because she suddenly wanted to go too. She wondered what the Original was like when he fed – was he calm and collected? Or was he ravenous and passionate?

Caroline never thought she would feel this way, but she found herself wanting so badly to join in the feed. Besides, the alternative was to stave off her hunger until she snapped. That wasn't a risk that she could take, nevermind the embarrassment she would feel if Elijah witnessed it. Why would she pass up a safe, controlled environment, with a highly experienced vampire to chaperone and make sure she wouldn't kill anyone?

No Caroline, she thought. You have morals. Don't let him shake you.

Then she saw him; a dark man, watching her from the bar. His eyes glinted a piercing blue, and under that scrutiny Caroline felt instantly uncomfortable. He looked grungy; clean, yes, but his shoulders hunched and his face tipped downward in a way that made him look slightly predatory. His black hair fell into his eyes, adding to the look. He needed a haircut.

He was a predator, she realized. She could feel it. He wasn't looking at her with intrigue or even keen interest, he was looking at her and judging whether or not she'd be an easy lay.

Caroline smiled at him, unable to stop herself. Who better to risk killing, than a guy like this?

The man removed himself from the bar, never breaking that eye contact, and weaved through the crowd of dancers.

Oh no, she thought to herself, now wishing he would go away. She needed time to sit and think and restrain herself from making this decision, but instead she was rushing right into it.

Too late.

"Hi there," the man greeted her. "I'm Jacob."

She smiled politely. "Caroline."

What could she do? She could feel the need rising in her throat. It would be so easy to follow Elijah's lead, but even if she did – where was he? And how could she count on him to help when she didn't know where he was?

But before she could stop herself, she looked at the man called Jacob squarely in the eyes.

"We're leaving now."

He only smirked in return, and Caroline tried to ignore how off-putting it was. She turned and made a beeline for the doors.

Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck, her mind reeled. What am I doing?

The veins rippled beneath her eyes, and she felt the tips of her fangs begin to break through her gums. Panicking, she covered her face and bolted toward the nearest alley. Her ears then picked up the soft gasps coming from Elijah's prey, just before he broke away at Caroline's arrival.

They stared at each other in the near-dark. A mortal wouldn't be able to see the blood on Elijah's jaw, or the deep burgundy color that filled his eyes, but Caroline could. And she could smell the sweet, enticing flavor of blood wafting through, and it begged her to come forward.

He took one look at her face, at the mix of pure bloodlust and utter desperation, and his breathing quickened. She was voracious, and terrified of it.

"Help me," she breathed, as her chosen prey stepped up beside her. She turned to him slowly, fangs now fully released. And pounced.

Elijah caught her before she reached the man, moving faster than the human eye could see, and she snarled angrily as he swept them back to the depths of the alley. She fought hard, pushing and clawing in the direction of her food, but Elijah held fast. Just as with the human before, he pushed Caroline firmly against the building, gripping her small shoulders with more force than he'd expected to need.

Somewhere during this intervention, the bloodied girl scurried off and Caroline's man let out a scream. The crowd on the sidewalk soon joined in at the sight of the mauled young woman.

Caroline growled, giving Elijah a glare.

"We need to leave," he said, watching the chaos at the end of the alley. "Now."

By some miracle, she seemed to comply; Elijah pulled quickly on her hand and led her, vampire-speed, through the maze of unexplored backstreets and passageways between the buildings there. At the opposite end of the block, after hurdling a barbed fence, they came to an abrupt stop. It was enough distance to sufficiently separate them from the crime scene.

Evidence of their vampirism had drained from both of their faces, aside from the red staining Elijah's jaw, but Caroline continued to gasp and tremble. The mad dash had shaken her back to herself.

"I'm so sorry," she said, voice barely above a whisper. "I can't – I can't –"

He grasped her shoulders again with that same firmness, but it lacked the force from before. He studied her face, all the pain she'd endured that day so evident now. She refused to meet his eyes.

"Caroline," Elijah said. "Feed from me."

Her green eyes met his at this delicate command, wide with a mix of uncertainty and surprise, but Elijah saw a hint of something else. What was it? Hopefulness? Or was he imagining that?

He rolled up the sleeve of his dress shirt, noting that she watched carefully, as though she didn't know exactly what to do. When she looked back up, her gaze had softened considerably.

"Thank you," she whispered. Then her face changed, and even in the vampirish state he found her stunning. When she raised his wrist to her mouth and bit in, the twinge of pain was barely noticeable, lost among the bewilderment Elijah felt that the night's events had led him to this.

In all his years, there had been very few occasions when he gave his own blood to another being. Every one of those times, it had been for some explicit reason – that he needed a certain human to live, usually. But this… this was different. Had he ever let another vampire feed on him? No. So why now?

But he was beyond ignoring his own desires by this point. No, he did not understand why Caroline Forbes affected him the way she did, and that frustrated him to no end. But she did, and it was time to stop pretending that she didn't.

As she drew in his blood, Elijah pulled her close and held her to his chest. He recognized the slight drain of energy, but it was replaced with the invigoration of having her so near.

She only fed for a few long seconds. Then as Caroline finished, instinctively giving the wound a lick as it instantly healed, she looked back up at him. She didn't know where in the short time he'd drawn her in, only that now they leaned into the brick wall beside them, bodies pressed together from feet to waist to chest. And when she tipped her chin up to him, she could feel his soft breaths against her face.

Elijah placed his hand delicately on her neck, combing up through her hair with a tantalizing slowness, and kissed her.

It started gently, their lips meeting with a certain amazed hesitance – neither could quite believe what was happening. But soon after all thoughts left them, replaced by an insatiable need for more.

Caroline's hands found the collar of Elijah's shirt, and she pulled him in further. He returned by deepening the kiss, wrapping an arm around her waist as she arched her back, pressing fully into him. She pushed him against the wall, where he had no escape. Not that he wanted one. His fingers raked softly into the silky material of her dress, marveling at the lean muscles that laced her back and shoulders.

The intensity picked up; he spun them, trapping Caroline against the wall with his strong, unyielding arms. For the brief moment their bodies separated, each breathed heavily, eyes alight with a particularly untamable desire.

Elijah attacked her neck with kisses, sucking and nibbling at her skin, which elicited a small gasp from Caroline's lips. The sensation was incredible. Almost subconsciously, she wrapped a leg around one of his own, her hands in his hair, pulling tightly at his scalp. His hand found her knee, which he hitched up around his waist in a demanding way that sent shivers through Caroline's spine; it wasn't just bloodlust that she felt anymore. She wanted him, and she wanted every part of him.

The sound of sirens nearby halted them, and when Elijah lifted his head to peer toward the faraway street, Caroline took the opportunity to bite sweetly at his neck. His body was rigid now, alerted by the sound, but at her continued advances he closed his eyes in enjoyment. Only for a moment.

"We can't stay here," he said, and he despised every syllable. Caroline paused against his neck, breathing deeply.

Elijah pulled away slowly, every fiber in his body willing him not to. But he must. He took in the sight of Caroline, traces of blood still on her lips, face flushed, enticing curves of her body still poised in arousal, and he felt a powerful urge to take her right there. Fully aware that he could not, Elijah glared down the alleyway, damning the untimely interruption.

Caroline watched him in amazement, wondering just how she'd ended up in this position.

And wondering how to get there again.

…

Alright, I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I did! ;) Please leave me a review, since this is basically the introduction to anything seriously intimate in my story, I would really like feedback. If you feel like there are things I should change or keep in mind for the future, please let me know.

Moony240