Chapter 19
This was why affairs were dangerous – although Caroline didn't exactly know what to define her and Stefan's relationship at this stage. Caroline went into defensive mode:
"Elena ... This isn't what it looks like." Caroline stuttered guilty over each word.
Elena's face turned up into an evil grin, her eyes turned a wicked shade of brown as she took in the sight of the pair.
"Elena's boyfriend with her best friend in the bathroom ... a locked bathroom? What is it supposed to look like?" She said with her hands on her hips.
Wait a second? Elena's boyfriend? It can't be, Caroline thought.
"Katherine." Stefan answered for Caroline.
A tinge of relief flooded over Caroline, but it lasted a second when she realized who they were dealing with. Perhaps it would have been better for Elena to have caught them.
"Hello, Stefan." Katherine smiled coyly at him, twirling her hair seductively around her finger as she looked at Stefan.
Caroline wanted to vomit at the flirtatious attempt. Katherine was technically her sire, she would of thought that she would feel some kind of pride towards her like Tyler did with Klaus but instead she felt annoyed and irritated at the sight of the doppelganger.
"Did I miss a memo or something? Aren't you supposed to be on the run?" Caroline rolled her eyes at the brunette.
Katherine finally turned her gaze away from Stefan and looked at the blonde before her. Katherine couldn't deny it, Caroline was pretty in her own way. Luminous skin, golden blonde hair that fell in mermaid waves around her oval face. Then there were her eyes, eyes that instead of looking grey and dull; they looked almost silver, silver like how the moon shines in the navy background.
"Well Damon filled me in on the circumstances. Elena is now Klaus's all you can eat hybrid buffet. He needs my help. By the sounds of it you all need my help." Katherine gloated at the pair.
Stefan ground his teeth together. Damn it, Damon! His idiot brother had really gone and done it now.
"Then why aren't you with Damon right now?" Stefan asked annoyed.
She was Damon's problem now, not his. Especially when things had nearly gotten out of hand with Caroline yet again; he didn't know what to make of what had nearly happened and this time it wasn't the ripper that had wanted her.
"I had to look you up; you're my favourite Salvatore brother after all. Don't you agree, Caroline?" Katherine turned the tables on them and glanced at Caroline expectantly.
Caroline glanced to the floor.
"I don't know what you're talking about." She mumbled out, barely audible when there was a fill scale party going on in the Grill.
"Oh come on, we both know Damon's tricks in bed but Stefan definitely delivers doesn't he?" Katherine toyed with her.
Caroline shifted again uneasily; Stefan pushed her back behind him and almost growled at Katherine.
"Enough, Katherine." He said angrily.
Katherine tilted her head to the side;
"Did I hit a nerve?"
Caroline moved behind Stefan so that she could see Katherine.
"You're just reading too much into it. I was upset ... Stefan came to comfort me." Caroline lied.
"He's good at that too, isn't he?" Katherine smirked, not buying the story.
Stefan noted this and decided to try leading the conversation elsewhere.
"You've found me now so what did you want?" He asked.
Katherine sighed and flipped her hair over her shoulder. Subtly she glanced over her shoulders to make sure no one was listening before continuing:
"The plan is in action. We're leaving tonight. Everyone's been looking for you. Is there something wrong with your phones?" She whispered.
"Why are leaving tonight?" Stefan asked puzzled.
He had only just found about Damon's plan, he hadn't expected the plan to be moving at the speed that it was.
"Klaus is getting paranoid. My inside source tells me he'll be heading back into town soon. Better to leave in the evening ... get a jump start before he's alerted that we've left. That's where I come in, Klaus Survival One on One. After all I'm the expert when it comes to him."
Caroline realized the implications. This was really happening? But she couldn't go with.
"I can't go ... Tyler he'll get suspicious." Caroline knew that Stefan was talking sense about Tyler and his sire bond to Klaus.
"Sorry Blondie, you have to go. Klaus will try and lure us back with you as his bait. Besides Stefan can keep you company." Katherine smirked deviously at the blonde.
"What about Caroline's mom ... Alaric?" Stefan asked, ignoring Katherine's statement.
"The history teacher has already escorted her and Matt to their secret location an hour ago. Elena's demands – no one gets hurt and no one gets left behind."
Stefan glanced at Caroline and was glad to see that she seemed to be calm at the news of her mother and Matt's safety. He knew that Caroline wouldn't go anywhere if her mother wasn't safe and protected.
"Where are we meeting everyone then?" Stefan asked.
Katherine grinned.
"Damon, Elena, Bonnie and Jeremy have left already. I'm the designated driver for you two."
By the time Caroline and Stefan had reached her house to pack, Caroline's calm masked had snapped. She was moving back and forth between her cupboards and bags, mumbling to herself that she had no idea what weather to expect and therefore she didn't know whether to pack her parka or strappy dresses.
Stefan found the whole spectacle adorable, despite the circumstances that they were in.
"This is just so Damon. He messes everything up. My mom is who knows where and we have to jump in a car with a crazy psychotic doppelganger bitch." Caroline growled out frustrated when her bag refused to close due to the overflowing capacity of her clothing.
"Relax everything's going to be alright." Stefan moved behind her and closed the bags for her.
"Stefan ... It's not going to be alright, what about us? How can we pretend that there is nothing going on between us, what almost happened ..." She turned around and stopped breathing, he was right on top of her, their proximity so close, and even now she could feel the hunger stirring in her loins again. Was this feeling ever going to stop between them? It seemed to be just expanding, constantly like a balloon and she couldn't help but wonder when it was all going to explode in their faces. It almost did tonight.
"Do you regret it? What we almost did?" Stefan asked nervously. He didn't want to hear her utter her words of regret. He didn't want her to regret it.
"No ... but it's not right, Stefan. Were not exactly doing this the right way, it's the worse timing ever for something like this to happen right now when there is so much at stake." She whispered as she reached for his and took it between hers.
Stefan smiled sadly at the contact. It was more than a friendly gesture, it was something more entirely.
"I don't regret it, Caroline and yes it's not the most convenient of times but I don't regret it." He stroked the back of her hands with his own.
"What about everyone else? We can't throw this curveball at them ... not now." She sighed at the contact.
"When we've sorted this whole Klaus mess up we'll do what's right. We will tell them the truth." He replied.
"But Damon and now Katherine already know something or they think they know something." Caroline broke the contact and moved towards her window that overlooked their backyard.
The full moon was out tonight, lighting the back yard with its white light. Last year she would have been helping Tyler with his transformation but now he didn't need it and clearly he didn't need her but it still didn't change the fact that this whole thing was just plain complicated between them.
"Damon's not going to be focusing in on us, not when Elena's life is at stake." Stefan moved towards her, so that he was beside her.
"And Katherine. She did catch us red handed. What if she tells them?" Caroline asked worried.
"We don't know for sure if she knows, but there are ways of keeping Katherine in the dark and out of the loop."
Caroline nodded and stared back into his green eyes. She broke the silence that had fallen around them.
"Okay. I guess we're almost together then? I mean do you want us to be like that? Together as a couple, boyfriend / girlfriend status?" She asked hopefully.
When all was said and done, they could be together. If they got through this and found way to defeat Klaus, they could be with each other, no complications just them.
"I want whatever you want. The only thing that I want is you." Stefan placed his hands on either side of her face and tilted her head back so that he could look into her eyes. He knew he would always find answers and solace in those eyes.
"So you don't think there's something else going on? Like some witchy hocus pocus stuff?" Caroline whispered as her hands fell on either side of his chest.
"No. This feels to right to be something other than a trick." Stefan smiled softly and dipped his head and captured her lips with his.
Outside Katherine stood shell shocked as she saw the unusual pair locking lips, through the blonde's bedroom window. Katherine turned her gaze to the full moon and then turned her eyes back on the pair.
"It can't be." She whispered horrified.
An: So it wasn't Elena who discovered the pair ... Although Katherine knowing isn't exactly ideal either and what does Katherine know about the sudden pairing of these two? All will be revealed but much later on. Again I just want to say that you guys are so awesome and I really appreciate the reviews it encourages and gives me motivation to keep going with Steroline. Hope you all have a fabulous week and weekend