Hi, everyone! Merry Christmas, happy new year and happy Klaro-anniversary! Congratulations on making it through 4 years of tears, anti-shipper bullshit, the worst EP in the history of ever and all other trials and tribulations that come with having a flawless OTP. I didn't have time to run out to the store for cake so here, have a chapter :)

xx

~ Two weeks later ~

"Klaus?"

Tentatively she stepped inside, pushing the door open.

"Klaus?" she called out again.

She went further inside, tuning her hearing around the house. She was glad she had experience with entering Klaus' house uninvited because she'd probably feel pretty awkward otherwise.

Hearing a heartbeat in the living room, she headed there and immediately caught sight of the Original hybrid himself.

Maybe it was because he hadn't replied and thus she hadn't expected him to be here, but her breath caught as her gaze swept over him.

He was slow to look up from his sketchbook but held her eyes once he did.

"Hi," she said softly. He didn't say anything. "You didn't answer."

"I didn't want to be disturbed."

"Oh." She shifted, feeling awkward. "Um… should I leave?"

He seemed to size her up.

"Do you require my assistance with something?"

He looked so good.

His burgundy Henley had an extra low neck, his various necklaces swung across his chest and he was sprawled on the sofa with his legs spread.

"Um," she cleared her throat. "I thought we could talk."

"I don't have anything to say to you, Caroline."

Her heart sank.

It had taken every inch of her courage to come here after he'd been ignoring all her calls and texts for days and she supposed she'd assumed he may be a little more receptive if she came here in person.

"Right, yeah, of course. I got that." There was a fleeting look of regret in his eyes and she took it as an invitation to step closer. "I wanted to talk. To you."

He hesitated, searching her face, before sighing again as he placed his sketchbook on a side table. He gestured towards the spot beside him on the sofa.

"Go ahead."

"Thanks," she smiled a little, letting out a breath of relief before sitting.

He hesitated for another quick moment before turning back to face her and mentally she withdrew a step. It had been two weeks without his presence and now they were less than an arm's length away from each other, his scent infiltrating her sanity. She couldn't let her attraction ruin things again.

"Bonnie's ok," she began, gathering her thoughts.

He nodded mutely.

There was a long moment of silence and she swallowed, debating whether she should still go through with this or not.

She wanted to, she really did, but not doing it would be so much easier.

"I've been thinking about us a lot," she began again as he stared straight at her. "And everything that happened. Everything you did; I did… he did."

He looked away with an annoyed breath and she winced.

"I know you probably don't wanna hear me talking about him but it's kinda unavoidable… There are some things I never told you about, mostly because I didn't get the opportunity."

At this he looked back at her with a frown and she began to wonder whether he was ever going to say anything.

"I was thinking about staying."

His eyes grew so round that in any other situation she might have smiled at how comical it was.

"He actually asked me to marry him."

"He what?" he growled.

Without thinking she put a hand to his wrist and they both stared at it for a few seconds.

Then, remembering every time he'd had his hand curled around her wrist, she quickly pulled back as if she'd been burned.

"I want you to know that I considered it because of you. Not you you, but…" she cut off, frustrated.

She'd never been particularly awesome at articulating her feelings. She'd always been the one between her friends to put her foot in it with normal everyday things.

Now she was trying to explain to a one thousand year old vampire the mix of emotions she'd felt regarding him and his human counterpart, something it had taken days to figure out for herself.

Taking a deep breath, she decided to start again.

"I hated it there." He smiled genuinely – it was a flash and then it was gone, but she took it as encouragement. "The food, oh my god the food, the clothing, your awful parents…" Again he smiled a little. "I have never hated the past more. But I was really considering staying there, living my way back to the present, or whatever the hell I would've done, because of you."

He looked confused so she continued.

"I considered his proposal because of you – you you, um, William you. I wasn't sure that you'd ever forgive me, even once we came back here, and I thought about staying in that godawful time because… well, because I honestly couldn't stand the thought of living without you."

His eyes actually went wider than they had been earlier and he swallowed heavily.

"But you didn't stay."

"No. I didn't." She looked down at her lap, trying to put her thoughts into words. "You were wrong, you know." She looked back up. "You are the same person." He searched her eyes wildly. She could tell a protest was near but she continued: "You're different, yes, but that doesn't make you a different person. You're him with so many more layers and life and pain, but you're still him. And that's what I saw in him. I saw all the parts of you I wouldn't let myself fall for, without all the parts I'd always told myself I couldn't stomach."

"Caroline – "

"You said you had nothing to say, now please let me finish."

He blinked in surprise then nodded slowly and she drew a long breath.

"When we were together there you brought down those walls, but with him… I just forgot to put them up right from the start. He was all of the good without any of the bad, which was so tempting to me, you have to understand that. He was the guy I could metaphorically take home to meet my mom, not the guy who met my mom when he came by to save me from trying to kill me."

Klaus' jaw clenched as he looked away.

"But it was three days."

Hesitantly his neck swivelled back, his eyes uncertain.

"I didn't fall in love with him in three days, Klaus. It took me a while to understand that. But I only felt the way I did about him because of the way I already felt about you. And that's why I didn't stay – it felt wrong. Because if I'd stayed I wouldn't have been with the right guy, the one I love."

All his features slackened in shock.

She sympathised – she was in so much shock herself with all the honesty pouring out of her mouth that she was trembling everywhere.

"I love you." She smiled a little, nervously, her heart thumping almost painfully. "And I'm really hoping you love me too, if only because I'd feel like a giant idiot right now otherwise."

She kept smiling hopefully but he just kept staring.

And staring.

The smile slid off her face as he rearranged his features and his eyes grew distant.

Quickly she ducked her head so he wouldn't see her cry.

It was stupid because he could definitely see the way she was shaking, but she couldn't leave either because she didn't think she was capable of moving.

She wiped her face then looked back up.

He was staring off behind the couch, not looking at her. She felt stabs of pain in her stomach, so sharp she wanted to double over with how much it all hurt.

It had been a risk and she knew she'd hurt him but she'd hoped he would be able to forgive her.

It was clear that wasn't going to happen though. He'd known full well what he was doing when he'd ignored all her attempts to contact him and had only let her speak now because she'd already been inside his house.

It had finally actually happened. He was over her.

Biting down on her lip to counteract the pain, she slowly tried standing. She needed to get out.

Her legs seemed ready to buckle but through sheer willpower that came from her not wanting any more humiliation, she made it up.

She shot him one last look before making her way past him. He was still staring off, his expression unreadable.

She was about to pass him when she caught sight of the sketchbook on the table beside him and came to a surprised halt.

It was her.

She didn't recognise the moment – it seemed to be just a random second when he'd caught her smiling. She was in one of Rebekah's awful dresses and there was a blissful glint in her eye as she looked at a person not on the page. Even though she couldn't remember the moment, she knew it was him.

She was looking at the person like she loved them.

It only brought fresh tears tumbling down her cheeks and she wiped them away quickly too.

She took one last look at the sketch before beginning to move again, ready to leave.

But fingers wrapped around her wrist, stopping her.