Like Fire

by AlexisKeller

Chapter 13

I couldn't stand that seven o'clock was only a few hours away.

I cursed the dreaded time.

God, why was dinner with Kol so daunting?

Alright, I knew why. Because it was dinner with Kol.

"Wow," was the first thing Caroline had to say when I announced my predicament while sitting on the floor next to her and Bonnie among many of Bonnie's books.

It was safe to say I wasn't making the stupid move of keeping the situation I was in all to myself.

Bonnie, on the other hand, turned to focus on me with a glaring scrutiny that I almost struggled under because I had no idea what she was looking for. A moment later, she dragged her thoughtful gaze to the fireplace before advising, "I think you should go for it."

Caroline eyes widened almost comically in shock at that. "I'm sorry, what? You think she should go for it? Are you bonkers?"

"Well, why not?" Bonnie turned to her with her eyebrows raised. "He clearly doesn't want to harm her. He saved her and her mom. I think she should check it out and see what he wants."

"And I think you're right, Bon-Bon," Damon chimed in from where he was lounging on the couch. "It'd be fine. It's dinner. What could the big, bad Original do in a crowded cafe?"

There was silence for a moment and I knew we were all thinking of the many things that a big, bad Original could most likely do.

Yeah, that didn't help.

"Okay, my bad, scratch that," Damon hastened to amend, "What I'm trying to say is what we've already established: Eve's in no danger from him. So I wouldn't say it's a risk. Chill, Blondie."

"B-But..." Caroline spluttered, unable to form her thoughts into words. "He's Klaus's brother."

The grin on Damon's face was downright evil. "Ah, there it is. I bet that's your entire problem, isn't it?"

I wasn't quite keeping up with whatever Damon meant by that, and judging by the look on Bonnie's face, she was just as confused as I was about it.

"What are you talking about?" I decided to ask and found it curious how interested Caroline suddenly looked in the ceiling as she avoided everyone's gaze.

"Just that Crazy Mikaelson has a soft side for Care-Bear," he announced with a smug grin and it felt like Bonnie had sucked half the oxygen in the room with the huge intake of breath she'd just taken.

I mean, we all knew about the dress and the dance they had at the Mikaelson ball, but really?

"I can't tell if we're supposed to take that seriously or treat it like every other weird thing you say," I mumbled.

"Trust me on this one," Damon grinned at me. "I mean honestly, who woulda known?"

"You're good, Care?" I turned to her.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. It's just... weird."

"Did something happen?" Bonnie demanded, finally speaking.

"Nothing really. He just asked me for a drink."

"When?" Bonnie narrowed her eyes and Caroline sighed before launching into the details.

"In the morning. He was talking to Damon about something outside when I got here. Then."

"And right in front of me," Damon snorted. "Guy couldn't wait to take his shot."

Interesting.

"Yeah, well, I said no, so.." She shrugged and the tension slid out of Bonnie's shoulders before she let out a sigh.

"I know I haven't officially met him or anything but something about him just... ugh, I can't help it, I'm wary."

"Yeah," Caroline chuckled dryly. "He has that effect."

"Well, I'd say the Originals are kind of intimidating." I put in.

"That's for sure." The blonde agreed.

Bonnie, on the other hand, just let out another slow breath. "I don't know. Maybe everything's just getting to me."

I could understand that.

She'd been in the same spot in the Salvatore house surrounded by her books for so long, it can't have been good for her. Caroline and I were past worried, but maybe now it was time to get her out and about a little.

She went on, "Or maybe it's because of all we heard through Elijah about him back when they weren't on good terms... I don't know. He just freaks me out."

"Well, you and me both, sister," Damon suddenly put in and Caroline just rolled her eyes at his contribution.

Me, on the other hand, just sighed again as the time ticked by, fast approaching seven.

"So you grew up in Mystic Falls?"

He'd shown up exactly on time, a gray Jaguar parked on the street as he leaned on it while he waited for me. He hadn't bothered to ring the bell and I'd almost given myself a heart attack when I'd glanced out the window to see him there. So it was on seven oh-six that I closed the door behind me and gave him an awkward hello, to which he'd smiled his brilliant smile before nodding towards the car.

Everything was wrong.

Or at least, that's exactly how it felt the minute I stepped out of the house. I couldn't put my finger on just what it was, but I felt it.

Kol, on the other hand, was perfectly cool with everything if his attitude was anything to go by.

Which brought us to now, that is, him making conversation as he pulled the car into drive.

Right then, I decided to roll with it.

"No," I answered him. "Whitmore. My parents divorced when I was fourteen and my mom moved here when she got the job. I lived with my dad because, well, school."

"So how'd you wind up here and get tangled up with the Mystic Falls gang?"

"I met everyone in college," I replied. "Funny enough, it was when I saw Caroline compelling someone that it kind of started. While I didn't get it much in the beginning, I just knew. I remember thinking she had to be someone like me, so I took a chance and well, we had a talk."

Looking back, it had been a lot to take because they weren't quite like me.

A vampire. A witch. A doppelganger.

Yeah, it was a lot.

But years of feeling like I was alone and suddenly, I wasn't.

So yeah, I was glad I'd been at the right place the right time that day.

"And why'd you come here?" He went on to ask.

"They always talked about showing me around where they used to hang out. Camping near the woods, going to the lake, coffee at the Grill. And I'd always wanted to visit mom for longer than a few hours. It kind of worked out when we decided to take the summer off before exams came around."

He hummed in understanding.

The car slowed and I realized we were there. That's when I also realized I was nervous, and the unsettling feeling was back.

Lovely.

"So what's it like?" He asked near the end of dinner. "Being a siren?"

"What's it like?" I countered, sipping my wine. "Being an Original vampire?"

He chuckled. "Touché."

I'd fallen into the lull of casual conversation, good food and mellow atmosphere. I'd been telling myself the entire time to be on my toes, but it felt pointless. With everything that had been going on lately, my mind was relaxed for the first time in a long while.

Yes, it was dinner with Kol Mikaelson, but it actually felt like a break from the madness. And like everything he did, it seemed like that was on purpose. Because he wasn't taking a deep dive into the gritty by addressing questions he had to know I had. He wasn't touching the subject of helping me or mom back at the hospital.

The evening felt like a departure from everything, and I was glad for it.

So with that I decided that the cautionary voice at the back of my head wasn't necessary. At least not right now.

"You had to have picked up a ton of hobbies along the way," I commented.

"Of course. It'd be dreadfully boring otherwise. But then again, I find ways to occupy myself so can't really say I've ever been bored."

Ah, so we were back to suggestive wording again, I noted.

"Back to you, then." He nodded to me, and I sighed as I tried to think of a way to answer that.

"I don't know. It's fine, I guess? I just need to be careful to never sing in public."

"What a thing to remember," he chuckled, the sound all I could hear. Seriously, Eve. "What if you accidentally hum a tune?"

"Then I guess it's Zombie-Town for everyone," I said it like it was a joke, but the truth was, it really wasn't.

It was in first grade in my Music Class that I remembered seeing Mr. Forrester's eyes glaze over during my turn. He hadn't snapped back for a long time afterwards.

I didn't get it then.

But a few jarringly similar incidents later, I finally did.

But it varied, really. It depended on how many people could hear me, how many were actually listening, and how clear their mind was. The muddled their head, the easier it usually was.

"Your friends don't seem much worried about that, though." He deduced, right on the mark.

"Oh, yeah. Bonnie found a spell for that long ago. She can spell you too," I threw out the words casually, before I realized my mistake.

I'd assumed we'd be around each other for a long time.

He paused in his movement of reaching for his wineglass as he considered the words, and before I could quickly laugh on it and take it back, he said, "Yes. Yes, I would like that."

Oh boy.

He had to remember that night with Matt on the balcony at the Mikaelson ball.

I know I did in that moment. How he had stilled when I hummed. How quickly he'd been able to fight the influence.

How he'd practically broken Matt's hand.

Yeah, that was a good wake-me-up.

"The wine's great," I found myself changing the subject and he hummed before taking a sip and lifting his eyes to mine.

"Not my favorite thing to drink, I have to admit," he said quietly as he watched me.

Wasn't that just lovely?

Knowing exactly what he was not-so-subtly referring to, I just sighed. Just like that, we were back on the familiar grounds of him being a vampire and me wondering just what the hell I was doing.

What was I doing here?

"In all honesty, I'd fancy a little something of yours much more."

I raised my eyebrows at that, my attention caught, but at the same time confused at whatever this was going to be now. "What?"

He actually looked surprised that he I hadn't made the deduction on my own yet. "Well, what else, darling? Your blood."

Now that I hadn't expected at all.

I blinked to myself before managing to speak up, "I'm sorry?"

"I'd like some of your blood." He repeated calmly.

Well.

I hadn't envisioned dinner going in this manner at all.

I mean, I had friends who were vampires. I had Damon who'd once told me a papercut I'd gotten smelled good to him.

No one had ever casually stated that they would like some of my blood. What the hell? It was safe to say I was having trouble understanding the sudden turn of events. "Like... hurt me?"

"I don't have to hurt you to taste your blood," he answered very matter-of-factly. "And I wouldn't."

Suddenly the feeling I had at the beginning of the evening was back full-force and I was internally kicking myself for thinking I could relax or be at ease with Kol Mikaelson.

There was silence.

"Just something for you to think about." He shrugged a shoulder like we'd been talking about the weather or something.

Oh wow.

Yeah, I definitely needed to get out and get some air after that.

"Do you want to walk? I kind of want to walk home," I blurted out and he didn't bat an eye.

Shrugging a shoulder, he just went, "We could walk."

"Evie?"

There'd been a good distance between us as we walked to my place, while I berated myself for ever going through with this entire thing in the first place and he did me the favor of being quiet. We'd reached home far earlier than I thought we would and as my hand settled on the doorknob, I turned around at his voice. I wasn't sure what else he wanted to throw at me this time but hoped I was ready.

"It's nothing to stress over. Just something I'd like and if you don't want to, it's fine. Don't look too much into it."

"Right," my tone was disbelieving.

"I mean it." Kol said, eyes aimed at mine, conveying an odd sort of sincerity.

Did I believe it?

I was unsure, but leaning into it.

"Goodnight," I said softly and I felt rather than saw his grin as I turned to my door.

"Goodnight, darling."

HEY EVERYONE! Sorry to leave you guys hanging there, but I'm here to get this story back on track! Hope everyone is well, and enjoying this story! There's so much more to unfold :)