Notes: I know a few people were hoping for smut so I'm sorry to disappoint! This one will stay PG-13. Today's chapter is a Kololine one but I think Klaus should show up in the next one. Thanks to everyone who's still reading!
MARCH – MONDAY
CAROLINE:
Caroline's in no hurry to enter her apartment, her steps deliberately slow as she makes her way down the hallway. She's listening carefully, because if Mrs. Harris makes an appearance she's going to have to book it. Her elderly neighbor had seen Caroline and Klaus leaving last night. They'd been indulging in some elevator PDA when Mrs. Harris had come in from her evening walk with Goliath. Mrs. Harris had deployed some seriously judgmental eyes after they'd broken apart at her pointed throat clearing. Klaus had tugged her away before Mrs. Harris could say anything and Caroline wasn't looking forward to the 'Don't give the milk away for free' speech she's surely going to have to suffer through.
She'll nod and smile politely, of course. She'd been raised right. Besides, the milk had been excellent and Caroline has zero regrets.
They hadn't encountered Kol yesterday, a stroke of luck. He'd been gone, out for drinks with some chef friends according to the note he'd left on the fridge. Caroline had been able to gather the things she'd needed for an overnight stay at Klaus' in peace. She'd been highly tempted to throw Klaus down on her bed when she'd found the apartment empty but had managed to restrain the urge.
Mostly. She'd made Klaus wait in the living room because had he kept giving her the hungry sex eyes her control would have snapped.
Encountering Kol last night, while she'd been in a great mood, might have made things easier. Caroline would have been able to ignore Kol's suggestive eyebrows and patronizing smirks with a smile. A long day at work has tempered her high (apparently the universe had demanded she get a nightmare client dumped on her as payment for the many orgasms she'd had), along with the knowledge that she's likely in for double the aggravation. Kol hadn't had to work today, and he's probably been storing up quips and questions.
She's expecting many, many, sex puns. Possibly a request for a graded rundown of Klaus' performance, because of Kol's startling lack of boundaries.
Caroline gets to her door, fishes her keys out of her pocket. She takes a deep breath and pastes on a smile. It's time for the swift rip off of the band aid. She hikes her overnight bag up higher on her shoulder and pushes the door open.
She's immediately assaulted with some truly fantastic food smells, thinks she even detects a hint of pie. She spots Kol immediately, he's at the kitchen island, dealing with a pile of what she thinks are brussels sprouts. He waves the hand not holding a paring knife, greets her enthusiastically. "Fantastic timing, darling. Dinner will be ready in about a half hour so you have time to clean up. I did the laundry so there are fresh towels in the linen cupboard. Folded them just the way you like them."
Caroline's eyes narrow, her footsteps faltering. Something hinky is happening here. "Isn't it my laundry week?"
Kol's agreeable expression doesn't even twitch when he shrugs, "I had the time, wasn't any trouble."
Yep, something is definitely up. Kol loathes laundry, had apparently blown a good chunk of his trust fund buying new clothes and leaving the old ones behind in hotel rooms as he'd country hopped. He hadn't even known fabric softener was a thing when he'd first moved in. "Well, thanks," Caroline says slowly. She keeps her eyes on Kol as she slips off her shoes and jacket before stowing them neatly. If he'd been overtaken by a hostile alien species she wants to be able to duck and cover if it comes violently hurtling out of his chest. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"I've got everything under control."
Hmm, point for Kol being Kol. Kol's standards aremeticulous and he'd mostly stopped letting her touch ingredients early on, when it had become clear that she couldn't manage a fine dice on an onion (though in Caroline's defense she's weirdly susceptible to whatever chemical onions contain that make people cry). It's hard to see when tears are streaming down her face or concentrate when her nose starts dripping.
Kol had taken pictures, the jerk, posted them on Instagram.
"How was work?" Kol asks.
"Fine," she answers absently, walking into the kitchen. Caroline spies the pie she'd smelled cooling near the window. Its pecan, golden brown and delicious looking, and a quick peek in the freezer shows that Kol had bought fancy vanilla bean ice cream too. There's also a stack of still wet pots and bowls on the drying rack, further evidence that Kol might have been turned into a pod person. He totally milks the 'I cook, you clean' principle, lets insane piles of dishes accumulate whenever he prepares meals. When she glances at him he quickly looks away, his head dipping to focus on his task.
Time to get to the bottom of this mystery.
Caroline crosses her arms, leans a hip onto the counter next to Kol. She kind of regrets ditching her heels, because it might have been easier to interrogate Kol if she could look down on him a bit. "What did you do?" she asks. "Was there a fire or something?"
His head swivels and he blinks at her, a faint flicker or feigned hurt behind the flutter of his lashes. "I'm not sure what you mean, Caroline."
"You did laundry, folded it properly, and put it away." She ticks the points off on her fingertips, studying Kol carefully, looking for a crack in his act. "In all the months we've been living together that's not a sequence of events that's ever happened in a single day. I usually have to bully you into doing the whole task."
"Perhaps I've had an epiphany and realized that's not fair."
Caroline would bet every penny she's ever made that statement is complete and utter bullshit. "You've done dishes. I'm pretty sure the floor's been mopped."
"All of the floors," Kol mutters.
"Ah ha!" Caroline crows. "That's not on the chore chart. You never go off chore chart."
"Can't a man just do a nice thing for his lovely and supportive roommate slash friend?"
She should have expected Kol would be committed and she has to admit his innocent face is top notch. Assumes it's weaseled him out of more than a few tight spots. Kol, Caroline has learned, can be every bit as stubborn as Bekah and Klaus. Luckily, Caroline's no slouch in the obstinacy department and she's just getting warmed up. "You made my very favorite pie."
"I thought it couldn't hurt to familiarize myself with various regional recipes now that it seems like I'll be living in this country for a while."
That's interesting. "Oh? Last I heard you were only sticking around until the money tap turned back on." Which wouldn't be for another year and a half or so. Caroline has kind of come to assume that Kol will stick around; that he's been unknowingly planting roots even as he's complained incessantly about how annoying it is to have his siblings around all the time. She'd thought he was still deep in denial about how much he actually likes having a home base.
"I like this city. And a job opportunity has presented itself."
"What kind of opportunity?"
"At a restaurant. Cooking, and not just being the first pretty face a customer sees."
"What about culinary school?" Caroline asks curiously. She'd helped him with applications a few weeks back but, as far as she knows, he hasn't gotten any replies.
"I did a tour, talked to some people. I'm not sure if I can do a classroom again. If I even want to. Plenty of chefs don't, you know."
Caroline doesn't know a whole lot about the industry but, since Kol's moved in, she's developed a tiny addiction to reality cooking shows. She and Kol never have the same favorites and have spent many hours trash talking each other and the people on the tv screen. The contestants that are self-taught are usually quick to talk about the benefits of such a path, and there have been many. "So you're taking a kitchen job."
"I hope so. Problem is, it's a bit of a pay cut. And there'll be no tips."
The odd behavior is starting to make sense. Kol's income is augmented by the cash he flirts his way into. She's seen him in action and there isn't a woman – from the rich widows, to the bored trophy wives and even the business types with piles of their own cash – that he can't find a way to charm. "Ah. A motive appears," Caroline says knowingly.
Kol generally thinks of shame as an abstract concept so Caroline's surprised when he shifts uncomfortably, turning to face her. His next words come out in a rush, "I was hoping you'd be willing to do me a teeny, tiny favor."
"I'm listening."
"I've been going over my finances. Made a spreadsheet and everything if you'd like to look."
Oooh, Kol knows her way too well. Buttering her up with food and detailed planning? She'd totally have caved even if he hadn't become one of her top ten favorite people in the last few months.
"It's a new restaurant. I'd be helping develop the menu, learning things from the ground up," Kol explains. "With what I'd be making to start I wouldn't be able to afford my share of the rent and food even if I resigned myself to living a pauper's lifestyle. I've looked into some cheaper places…"
"What? No," Caroline interrupts, without even thinking about it.
Kol grins, looking very smug, "My, my, that was emphatic. It looks like I've grown on you. I'm touched, darling. Truly."
Ugh. She needs to nip any ego inflation in the bud. "I've got you reasonably well trained. No need to start the process over again. Plus, if a stranger lived here I'd probably have to start cooking for myself and I really don't want to do that."
"No one wants you to do that. Trust me."
She knocks her foot against his, an aggravated noise spilling out. "I'm not that inept. Geez."
"Debatable."
"Shush, you. Since we've established that we have a good roommate groove going, one neither of us wants to change, you need money, right?"
"Right. And since my lovely siblings have plenty of money…" Kol hints.
"I'm guessing Klaus is the target?" Had it been Rebekah he'd have taken a much different approach. Kol would have invited Bekah for dinner, there'd be classy drinks already poured, and the two of them would have bonded over grilling Caroline about Klaus. She's not sure how they would approach Elijah, probably a Power Point presentation.
"I was going to text him and see if he wanted to come over for pie. Figured he'd jump at the chance to see you and that he'd be all jolly and easy to manipulate since I assume you finally got to clicketing."
She's never heard the term before but it doesn't take a genius to parse the meaning. If anything Caroline's surprised by the matter of factness but maybe Kol's still trying to stay on his best behavior. "Wait, have you been waiting for Klaus and I to… clicket?" Just when she thought she'd gotten used to Kol's creepy tendencies.
"Nope. It's just good timing. I got the final details last night, spent today polishing up my pitch."
Well, that's a relief. "When would this job start?"
"Immediately. "I'd give Stefan my two weeks tomorrow, go to the new restaurant when I can. The hours are flexible; I can work around my shifts at the hotel while I finish up."
"Look at you, giving two weeks' notice like a responsible adult," Caroline teases. She wants to say she's proud of him but Caroline bites the words back. They're a bit too warm and fuzzy for Kol's sensibilities.
She makes a mental note to say them, as gushingly as possible, next time he's annoying her. Which will probably be tomorrow.
"Bekah's my Plan B, no need to piss her off by screwing up her boyfriend's restaurant."
Caroline scoffs, "You don't need a Plan B. Klaus will say yes." She doesn't think she'll even need to plead Kol's case. They snipe at each other but Caroline's positive that Klaus will see how important this is to Kol and will cough up the money with only a minimum of fuss.
She imagines Klaus will fake indecision, hem and haw and ask pointed questions, but he deserves the opportunity to troll a little. Kol had gleefully made things difficult for Klaus for his own amusement. It's only fair that he does a bit of squirming now.
Kol doesn't seem so sure. "I guess we'll see."
"I'd offer to bet you but you're poor now," Caroline jokes. "Wouldn't be worth my while."
Kol cracks a smile at that, turning back to the counter. "I'd offer to bet chores but I know you're an odd duck and you need the stress outlet."
"True. Are you sure I can't do anything to help with dinner?"
He nudges her away with his hip, nodding down the hallway. "If you want to help you can put on something skimpy after your shower. Skip a bra. I believe I've mentioned Nik's a breast man."
Caroline feels her cheeks heat, a stray memory from this morning flitting to the front of her mind. She'd been even later than anticipated to work because Klaus had coaxed her into a shower that had gone on for longer than was environmentally friendly. He'd been very thorough in applying body wash to her breasts.
Kol makes a disgusted noise, "Stop it, no sex thoughts in the kitchen. It's a sacred place."
She lifts a shoulder nonchalantly, "Should have told me that before. I've had many sex thoughts in this kitchen. Like, every time Klaus has come over for dinner."
Kol's expression remains pained, "Am I going to be needing my own jar?"
Caroline reaches up to pat his head, lowering her voice mockingly, "Aw, does someone not like the taste of their own medicine?"
She darts away before he can slap her hand from his head, laughing when she hears Kol muttering about amending the roommate agreement.
She'll consider it, if he promises to actually stick to his end of the bargain this time.