And we have come to the end of this story! Aww

But I have one more Kalijah idea I wanna do but idk when I'll get it done...actually two now that I think about it, but one of them is fully plotted out.

Thing is, I'm going to try to focus on Revenge and The Originals for now until I can see my way. But I wont be publishing anything until I'm finished. Meaning finishing season 1 and Revenge. I dont think ill publish it till I finished re-plotting season 2 though.

Once I see my way through those two, then I can think about Senior Year.

Plus I got other work to do.

Thankfully, my second semester doesnt start till feburary so I have some time!

At some point I'll do a cover for this story lol

On to the story!

He bought an engagement ring.

Elijah never woke up and decided he was going to propose to Katerina. It wasn't a thought at all. In fact, considering that his last attempt at marriage ended the way it ended and how quickly it ended, one would think he wasn't in much of a hurry to get married.

But one day, he had invited Katerina to go out with him for lunch, but her sister had a last minute appointment of some sort and she called her sister to babysit. Of course he re-scheduled their lunch date for another time. He dropped her off at her sister's house but before he headed back to work, he opted to pick up something to eat.

On his way back to his car, he passed a well known jewellery store and something made him stop in front of it.

Elijah was never a guy for jewellery. The closest thing to it he ever wore was cufflinks. He never actually noticed the store on his way to the food establishment, so why did he notice it on the way back?

He eloped in Las Vegas with Tatia; at the very least he could've kept tradition.

Instead, he walked in the store and looked around. There were nice enough watches—hell they even had cufflinks—but what really caught his eye was the collection of rings they had.

But one ring caught his particular attention. Even as he walked past it and looked at the others, his mind never left it alone until he walked back towards it. It screamed Katerina in many ways.

It was a silver and rose gold ring, with a shank, rising to a single diamond to the top, with a halo of smaller diamonds surrounding it. One of the shank splits and twist with one part of in rose gold and the other in silver, accented with small diamonds. It was a hidden gem amongst the rest. The others were silver with accented diamonds or Rose Gold or even gold rings, but that particular ring somehow stood out to him. It screamed out her name to him.

He realised many things in that moment.

He realised that one can never say something may never happen again. He told himself he would never rush into something as serious and important as marriage again. He promised himself he would think long and hard before even considering such a commitment to another woman again. Yet here he was, not even a year into this new relationship he found himself in and already being tempted to make sure that she remains a part of his life, for the rest of his life.

He also realised that he could not picture a moment where she was not in his life, and when he did, he found he was right back into the dreaded, dark vicious cycle. When he pictured that moment, he realised he dreaded to return to that. It was now his worst nightmare to wake up, and realise that the entire year since moving to New York was but a dream that may never see the light of day. He felt a sense of impending doom of the idea of one day waking up and not having her in his life anymore.

He's never met a woman like her before. She was a roaring fire, an exquisite beauty, an intelligent mind...he's never been happier in his life than in the months that had passed.

Some might consider him mad to fall for a woman who would poison him with weed and steal his sperm.

At first, he felt it truly odd for someone to go to that length for a child. She was in her mid 20's. She was of prime fertile age for child bearing. She never discussed with him any desires to be a mother, nor did she ever mention to him any physical complications that would prevent her from experiencing such a blessing.

But after that day, he began to notice things that had always been there; but he often brushed them away as superficial jests that she usually would make.

She's always considered herself to be far older than she actually is. He'd often catch her in the mirror mentally searching for some kind of sign that her youthful body was deteriorating. She would make comments about almost thinking she had found a grey hair, or that she was getting old based on the fact that she'd experience some pain in certain heels when she stood or wore them for too long. He would often tell her that she was either seeing things or making more of something than it was. Mostly, he always assumed it was just her sense of humour.

But he had realised that she truly felt she was at the point in her age, where finding a sperm donor was definitely an option, but more importantly, there was insecurity there; that she wouldn't find someone to be with in time to have an actual family. He knew she saw family as important as he did. He felt odd about it because by that logic, she believed their relationship may never evolve to such a state where they would be happily married, and desired to have their very own family. It left him to internally question whether she saw him as a potential life partner, or did she not have enough confidence in herself that she felt he didn't see her as a potential life partner.

He knew where her stance was where marriage was concerned and he understood it. She mostly dealt with divorces and custody battles and it would scare and frighten any human being to such a commitment, knowing what would happen should it fail.

He knew that should they be married and their relationship failed, it would be a divorce to rival all divorces.

But he had no doubts where she was concerned. He didn't care for what society deemed to be 'wife material'. All he knew was that he was in love with her, he loved her and he couldn't envision a life where they didn't exist.

So he had the jeweller show him the ring from a closer point of view. Upon having a closer view of it, he bought it immediately.

When he walked out of the store, he realised that it was mid January, about two weeks since he confessed his feeling to her, and she had yet to return them.

In that moment at the New Years office event, it never bothered him one bit. He understood that he should not expect her to love him in the same exact time that he loved her. He didn't want her to say it because she felt obligated to; he wanted her to say it because she felt it. Even if she felt it but feared to say it, he would prefer she confessed her love for him when she found the courage to, rather than out of fear.

But now, even as he purchased the ring, he realised that proposing to a woman who may not feel the same way he did would crush him. The more he thought about it, the more he realised...if she were to reject him in such a moment where he would bare his soul to her, he might not be able to handle it.

Mikael has returned.

There was a bittersweet moment when he welcomed his father back to the firm. Though he was glad he—and his mother—had travelled back safe and sound; his job as a stand-in C.E.O was no longer required. It meant that even if he stuck around in New York, he wouldn't be able to see Katerina as much as he was accustomed to.

Yet it was much deeper than just that. With the weight of the ring he had bought and kept on him in his dress jacket since its purchase, and his father returning, he felt as if he had been experiencing a high since he arrived and now he was experiencing the fall from it. Things had to be said, decisions had to be made and the time he felt he had, he no longer had.

He knew it was never a question of whether he would return to England now. He had planned to do so before he had met her, but now...how could he leave?

Every day was a new surprise waiting for him when it came to Katerina. She never fell into a routine with him. She always forced some kind of change on a daily basis in his life. It was never really forced, but where he would fall into a routine, she would whirl into his existence and change things up. It was a very welcomed change.

Either she would have food brought to them, or they'd go out for lunch, or they'd be so preoccupied in each other to remember to eat. He'd either go over to her house, or they'd end up at his apartment. Even when he would return home or she would return home; she'd find a reason to call him when he knew she just wanted to talk to him. There was always some reason. Either she wanted to know something work wise, or ask if she left something over there or even to tell him something that she somehow managed to forget to while she was in his presence. Regardless, she would then quickly change the conversation to something less formal and far more intriguing.

Each day was different, exciting...and it was addictive to him. He simply couldn't fathom the mere thought of not having her in his life at all.

Elijah sat Mikael down for the entire morning and brought him up to speed on everything involving the company since his father's absence. He mainly discussed the major clients the company took on and any other priority case topics that needed to be discussed. He also made sure to let his father know that Katerina having told the news of what had transpired between him, Niklaus and Tatia had a positive effect on the company, as in those few months following the breakout of the news, their income—and clients—increased. Elijah had to deal with a number of people sharing their condolences with him.

Mikael had asked to see some of the client's files—more specifically, the Lockwood file—for reasons Elijah didn't care enough to question so he removed his dress jacket to roll up his sleeves and make himself more comfortable. It seemed Mikael was determined to go through everything with a fine tooth comb.

When his jacket dropped on the desk, he had turned away from it, but he heard when an item seemed to have fallen out of it in the process.

It took a second for Elijah to realise that the item that might have fallen could perhaps be the ring.

When he turned to verify, to his horror, his father had the velvet black box in his hand with a worrying, yet puzzled look on his face.

"Father..." he warned, hoping he wouldn't open the box.

There was no mystery behind what could be in the box. It was too small to be a watch and too expensive looking to be earrings. The box screamed a ring.

His father ignored him and opened the box. He saw for a flicker of a second when his father's eyes widened a little bit and then looked up at him for a briefer moment before returning to the ring in the box.

"I suppose congratulations are in order, though I must impress upon you the seriousness of what this ring means."

Mikael closed the box and stretched his hand out to Elijah for him to take it. Elijah took it and swiftly shoved it in his pants pocket.

"No one understands the seriousness of such a commitment more than I." Elijah replied as he took the box from his father "But it doesn't matter now because I might be returning to England...for good."

Mikael's eyes widened and he flew out of his chair instantly "WHAT!"

Elijah was a confused by his father's reaction. Mikael knew that Elijah had originally planned to return after the year was over and he was back in the States. Things have changed due to the fact of his current relationship with Katerina, but he's not truly sure where she stood anymore when it came to him.

"Are you barking mad?" his father asked "You're not going anywhere. You will stay right here and propose."

Elijah rolled his eyes "I'm not sure Katerina and I are on the same page father and as such, it would be ill advised."

Mikael pointed at him "You're staying and that's final."

"Father..." Elijah warned.

"You will not ruin 3 years of planning out of insecurity."

Those words caught Elijah's attention immediately. "What...? What planning?"

Mikael shoved his hands in his pockets "Did you really think I'm needed to oversee the construction of a building? Do I look like a construction worker? There are foremen for that. All I do is oversee the design and pay for it. You should know this. I paid Klaus and Kol to keep their trap shut about it and I made damn sure you were available to meet her. I left the company in your hands just so you two can fall in love for Christ's sakes, so you can make an honest woman out of her and make her my daughter-in-law. You will not screw with years of planning and hundreds of dollars of money spent so you can chicken out."

Mikael then leaned forward over the table "You will get on bended knee and propose...even if I have to break your knee caps."

His father then turned around and walked towards the door, but he stopped for a moment and twisted his head to the side, as if signalling to him but not completely turning around.

"By the way, your mother is pregnant."

Then he left the room, leaving Elijah to mull over his father's confession alone.

When Mikael returned, Katherine was glad to have her best friend back. She missed him and the routine they had at work. She missed the gossip they shared and their shopping trips. She especially missed their talks. At times she felt that Mikael had more of an understanding of her than anyone else...though that could be due to the fact that she mostly opened up to him more than anyone else. She never really missed him that much because she spoke to him every day since he left the country, but seeing his face after so long in person made her realise how much she truly missed him.

In celebration of his return, Katherine took the day off, Elijah held down the fort and they went out shopping—on Mikael of course.

They quickly fell back into their routine when they shopped, she had so much fun and the fact that she hadn't done it in so long made her miss it that much more when he was gone.

They were in a shoe store, trying on shoes when suddenly, she was feeling the conversation turn deep.

A conversation about how he got Esther pregnant despite the fact that logically, she should be on her way to menopause by now, somehow turned into a conversation about her and how she and Elijah managed to get involved.

In speaking with Mikael she realised something...

The idea of them coming together wasn't as farfetched as Mikael wanted her to think he thought it was. He might express disbelief of it, but she could tell it wasn't out of the realm of possibility for him as he wanted her to think he thought it was.

He then flat out asked her how they went from Pot brownies to making out. She knew it was simply a matter of time before he started digging into the schematics of what went down when he was gone. She had hoped that his disinterests of her affairs in the past would've come out to play...obviously she gambled and lost.

"Okay, so I misjudged him, it happens. So I decided to be the bigger person—"

"He wasn't the one who did the poisoning my dear."

She shot daggers at him because the point of the story wasn't who was being Petty Betty.

He put his hands up in surrender; she rolled her eyes at him.

"—and wave the white flag. I stay out of his way, he stayed out of mine. It worked, for a time, until we had to consult at times for some cases. The more I was around him, the less I disliked him, considering as you well know your family has his predilection for being charming..."

Mikael gave her a cheeky smile at her words.

"One thing led to another and before we knew it, we were...friends. Or at the very least, friendly...then things began to get a little flirty, next thing I know we were dating and now...we're an actual couple. He's just so different than what I thought he would be, he's so...moral; and a gentleman, and insightful, intelligent, romantic, passionate...and so...understanding." she paused for a moment as she hesitated on her next words "Sometimes...sometimes I feel like he can see what I'm really feeling no matter how hard I try to hide it."

Once she realized the weight and the openness of what she had said to him and recalled who he was to Elijah, she quickly turned to him "Repeat that to anyone, and I'll skin you alive."

Mikael chuckled "What happens in the shoe store stays in the shoe store. Have you said the words yet?"

"Why? Has he said anything?" she quickly asked in reply.

Katherine knew exactly what words he was referring to; the dreaded three words that is more often than not, the turning point to all relationships, the three words that have been the downfall of her past relationships.

Mikael shook his head at her question "No, as you pointed out, Elijah's quite the patient and understanding man."

She internally sighed in relief.

"You know what happens when I spill my guts. Hell you've been there through the 2 Litre of Ben & Jerry's and my gym session to burn it off. Those three little words are the beginning of the end for me."

Mikael completely turned himself to face her "You truly believe that your relationship will fall apart because you love him?"

"Absolutely..." She then turned to him "So don't jinx it."

She then got up and handed one of the store clerks the pair of shoes she had in her hands to put with the other shoes that she had put aside to purchase. There was a particular suede ankle boot with red bottoms she wanted to try on to see how it would look on her before she was finished.

Mikael got up behind her and she rolled her eyes because she knew he was going to involve himself. She should've known better, Elijah's his son.

"Katherine, I try my best to avoid having these conversations because I know they make you quite uncomfortable and trust me, I feel the same way. More so, I believe you to be intelligent enough to come to what I'm about to say on your own without my involvement. But before you came to my firm, I was a man you would've despised. I was well hated among my own family. My children couldn't stand to be within spitting distance of me, and my wife feared my very shadow. I was a monster because I allowed the past to rule the present and determine my future. I realised before it was too late that if I had continued on, I would've never experienced the happiness I have now. So take this from someone who's done the same thing you're doing and stop. You can't allow the past to determine your future. You can't live in this constant fear for the rest of your life, or you will find that the very thing you fear to happen will happen."

Katherine was looking at a pair of shoe as if she could see her very future before it, but she was listening to Mikael.

Klaus and Kol had told her at one point—very briefly—that Mikael was once a person that one could easily describe as a monster. She never took it too serious as she never met him before then and she found it hard to believe when people described the person he once was to her.

She then felt a hand touch her arm and she turned around to face Mikael.

"What if he proposes?"

She let out a breathy laugh and scoffed "He's not going to propose to me Mikael; he's smart enough to know I'm not wife material."

She saw that Mikael was about to protest, but she turned and put a hand on his shoulder "Elena got married at 19. We're both 25 and she's on her third child. I don't survive the 'love' part of relationships long enough to be proposed to and trust me, I've had way too much chances. It's like my skin is allergic to proposals or something."

Mikael wanted to protest again but she spoke before he could "Even if he was in the ring shopping mood, I'm sure my body will sense it and repel him immediately."

Ugh, her voice broke at the last sentence and she knew Mikael caught it.

"Kat..." ugh, she can hear the 'I feel sorry for you' in his voice.

"It's okay." She stopped him.

He gripped her arm tighter in comfort "No it's not. I really think you should tell him how you feel. Has it ever occurred to you that your subconscious knew those guys weren't meant for you and its making way for the right guy?"

Weeks Later...

Katherine would like to believe that she knew Elijah well enough to know that something was bothering him.

It wasn't big changes in his behaviour really, it was little things. He'd often be in his head when he was being spoken to, she'd find that at times he hadn't truly been listening to a word someone was saying. She would find him staring at her more than usual, which is how she knew whatever was bothering him; it had something to do with her. It had her anxious. She had a feeling it had everything to do with the fact that she hadn't yet told him she loved him. She knew all the talk of patience and understanding...he was a man. If she was in his shoes—because she gave it far too much thought—she would be going mad wondering if he loved her back or not.

It was one thing if she didn't love him back yet, but it's another thing entirely to punish the guy because of her fears. What if he decided he couldn't wait anymore and ended the relationship because of it? What if he demanded to know and won't like her response? At this point, she was beginning to feel stupid just holding back. Lesser men would've ended things just after New Years, but he's being so patient and understanding and such the gentleman.

They were few times she came close to bearing her soul to him, but visions of her past would come to her and she would chicken out.

Though she knew the fact that her lack of the infamous three words were beginning to bother him, he never let it show around her. It was as if their relationship was better than ever. It was a true test to her sanity. She would see him at times and feel like there was something weighing on him like a heavy load, but then there were times when they would share together and she could swear he had not a worry in the world—quite like the person she knew Mikael to be.

The last time she saw the weight on him was just in the meeting after lunch. He was having an open dialogue with his father about a particular issue that happened with a client and one of their employees and different ways they could've gone about to solve it when he just disappeared for the briefest moment in his thoughts. She saw the way his eyes glazed over, she could tell he wasn't in this world anymore. It made her stomach sink because she had that annoying little bug in her stomach that was telling her it was entirely because of her.

So the next morning, she woke up with the courage and the determination to tell him as soon as she saw him. She even wore his favourite colour—every guy's favourite colour really—red. She wore a red dress with a black dress jacket and her red pumps.

When she got to work however, she had gotten pulled in every direction possible.

Firstly, the moment she arrived, Caroline, Mikael's secretary bombarded her with countless instructions Mikael had left for her, stuff she already knew, but Caroline told her that Mikael threatened to say everything to her or else he'll pull her Christmas bonus. Katherine was never in the business of getting in the way of women and getting their money.

Then Kol showed up and today of all days he wanted her to help him plan an actual lingerie party he plans on hosting with actual porn stars for an actual launch of a new game. When she heard of what the game was about, she understood his concept. He told her he actually created a porn game. Usually Kol always called her to show her his creations before deciding to go public with it. It was odd of him to launch a game she never actually saw in action, but she never truly put too much thought to it. She helped him organize everything for the party.

Then Klaus showed up—she found that especially odd because it was rare for most of the Mikealson siblings to be in the same city—hell the same continent—at the same time unless it was a family event. He decided that today of all days he was going to make a move on Caroline. He chickened out about a dozen times and wasted all of her morning before she threatened to tell her he was in love with her and show her proof of it. He suddenly grew the balls to invite her to a showing at his New York gallery as his date. She fully intended on showing her everything...when they're married with three kids or something.

By the time she went in search for Elijah, Mikael told her that he went out on a special errand for him and he would be back after lunch.

By the time lunch had passed and he finally walked back into the office, she wasted no time by walking towards him. She won't let a soul stop her and distract her.

When she approached him, he seemed different...on edge almost, but she ignored it slightly.

Before she could get a word out, he spoke.

"Katerina, might I have a moment of your time?"

Her stomach sank so hard it ranged in her ears. He was way too formal with her...something was wrong.

She knew it! She didn't even get to say the words yet and already it had taken a turn for the absolute worst.

How could Elijah fricking Mikealson not be the right guy? Am I destined to be with some jackass or something?

She can already feel the tears slowly beginning to well up and the dark sinking feeling in her stomach getting worst.

She wasn't about to make herself an idiot by confessing her feelings for him to break up with her. She nodded and turned so he could follow her to somewhere more private—because she refused to let him break up with her publically—when a hand grabbed hers. She turned to find it was his.

Oh no, he's not cruel to publically break up with her...is he?

No...

She turned back around, her hand shook in his.

She tried to pull her hand back gently, but his grip tightened on her.

"Katerina, I have been extremely patient because I know everything will fall into place. However, as of recent, my patience has been wearing rather thin. I barely eat, barely sleep, I think about you so much I make stupid errors in my paperwork. I often write your name or something you say instead. I can't seem to focus even when I'm not around you. You have this unique power of removing me from my composure to a state of maddening insanity and I'm rather addicted to it. Whether you are as madly in love with me as I am with you or not, I genuinely don't know, but my pocket has slowly been growing rather heavy as the days passed."

She was confused by that, when he used his free hand to pull a small box from his pocket.

Suddenly, a new feeling filled her stomach, it wasn't a sinking darkness, but a chaotic fluttering as the weight of what was about to happen fell upon her.

Her new suspicions were confirmed when he released her hand and fell to one knee before her.

He opened the little box before her, she gasped at what she saw.

She looked back at him, not believing what was happening before her now.

He was nervous. She could tell. His hand that presented the ring to her was slightly shaking.

"I'm not a man of public displays, but you and I share something that I simply cannot allow to pass. With that being said, I come before you with the blessing of your sister—"

Her sister...? Elena? He spoke to Elena?

"—on bended knee, humble—and slightly desperate—and ask—nay beg—you to do me the absolute honour of allowing me to burn in your fire for the rest of our lives by becoming my wife."

Her ears were ringing with white noise as it sunk in what was happening at this very moment.

The man of her dreams was on his knee, with the most gorgeous ring she had ever seen in her natural born life and a proposal...

Her ears could not stop ringing with that annoying dead silence sound.

Wait...

She briefly allowed her eyes to move away from the man kneeling before her to realise that the entire firm went silent at the scene. Everyone was watching; including the smug bastards she knew as his brothers and his father who she just realised knew what was happening the whole time and was distracting her.

Through her blurred vision, she turned around and saw that her sister was standing among the crowd with a beaming smile on her face. Damon was to her side with the children with an annoying smile on his face.

She turned back to the man before her, suddenly; she felt her cheeks were wet. When her hand touched the wet feeling, she realised tears were falling from her eyes.

"You think I don't love you..." she whispered to him in the dead silence "What a small thought..."

He let out a shaky laugh as a tear fell from his eye. He really was nervous, it was the first time she ever saw him in such a state.

"You insult me while I'm on bended knee."

"I dare not." she quickly replied "Just because you had a small thought, doesn't mean you're small minded."

They both let out a laugh before she could even finish the sentence.

"Yes you lunatic."

She saw the biggest grin appear on his face at her answer and her heart swelled at the sight. She wanted to see that smile all the time.

He got up from his knee and she fell into his arms. They shared the most passionate kiss one could share after being proposed to. He held her like he had no intention of ever letting go.

In the background, she heard the entire room up roared into a series of applause and whistles.

Meanwhile, Mikael let out a breath in relief "Thank god."

...

Katherine's POV

And so I said yes.

Why you might ask? The answer is actually pretty simple, because I love him.

I can actually hold an intelligent conversation with him, he treats me like I'm the only woman for him, and he makes me feel...myself. I can be me, 100% me. He'll accept me exactly as I am, loves me as I am...sperm-stealing crazy-pants and all.

He loves me unconditionally.

You might think I said yes so I can finally be married, truth is, I said yes because I couldn't envision a life without him.

So at one point I thought my life completely turned around for the worst the day Mikael and I went shopping; but that day was the best day of my life, and I didn't even know it.

This was not a fairytale

There was no Princess or Prince,

Or a King and a Queen,

This was about a man and a woman

Who found each other in the last place they'd expect to

This was not a fairytale

This was not a movie...

This wasn't even a story...

This was an autobiography.

This was the autobiography of the future Mr. & Mrs. Mikaelson

I hope you liked!

See me The Prince & The Wedding Planner

Meanwhile, I'd like to write a story about Kennett but I need inspiration, maybe couple from shows or a pairing that reminds you of them for me to think of? This story was inspired by Being Mary Jane and I couldn't help but see the similarities between Mary Jane character and Katherine.