A/N: Hey there, I'm back with an update!
I apologize for the wait. Writer's block and then a hectic work schedule delayed this update.
You'll be happy to know that I basically have the next chapter following this one complete. Another update will be quick!
Thank you so much to my beta livingdeadblondegirl for being supportive and patient. I definitely don't deserve her.
Please let me know your thoughts on the chapter. I hope my delay hasn't discouraged you from reading.
She had slept well that morning despite the constant dull ache she felt in her chest over the loss of Elijah and Elena, in addition to the list of everything that needed to be done.
Grayson was not the one to wake her up this morning, it was the opposite actually; she had to wake him up.
Technically speaking, she supposed he had slept through the night despite his earlier interruption. It was one thing her mind could stress less about.
She had changed him before bringing him downstairs, forgetting in those moments that Klaus had been assigned to the couch for sleep.
It was then she was also reminded of their interaction last night.
Not only did Klaus put in a genuine effort with Grayson - changing his very dirty diaper - but they had also reached an agreement of sorts.
While the specifics were tentative at best, they both conceded that raising Grayson together - however that might look - was what Grayson needed most.
Klaus would stay here for six months until they could obtain permanent custody and then they would go from there.
They had decided to become co-parents of Grayson.
It was an overwhelming decision that was going to take awhile to fully process.
She, Grayson, and Klaus would forever be connected as a result of the tragedy that happened less than forty-eight hours ago.
Part of her felt relieved to know that she wouldn't be in this alone, even more so now that Klaus had put an effort in, but there was another part of her that felt a keen sense of anxiety. She would have to adjust to becoming a mother overnight and she would also have to learn how to manage her new relationship with Klaus. Not only would she have to put their past behind her for Grayson's sake, she would have to consult Klaus when it came to everything concerning Grayson.
Despite that, she still believed the decision they made last night was the right one.
Elena and Elijah had specifically suggested both of them in the will, and regardless of all her concerns, it eased her mind to know that they would try and honour their final wishes.
Grayson needed them both; they had acknowledged that last night.
Just the fact that they had discussed it and made a decision took a lot of weight off her shoulders.
She was still dreading coming face to face with Mikael and Esther Mikaelson, but it was comforting to know that she and Klaus had made some unified decisions regarding Grayson prior to confronting them. She was certain Mikael and Esther would still give both her and Klaus the third degree, but at least they were on the same page now. They could stand up against his parents together.
Even the thought of Mikael and Esther made her cringe. The first and last time she had met them had left the most bitter of tastes in her mouth.
Confronting them was just another added stress. She tried to reassure herself by recalling what Klaus had suggested they do; deal with things as they needed to be addressed.
When she and Grayson appeared downstairs earlier in the morning, Klaus was already awake. He had coffee brewing and the television in the family room turned on at a low volume.
He was shirtless yet again and she had to scold herself for giving him a careful second glance. Sure, his body was attractive, but she was not attracted to him. Eventually the shock of encountering a half naked man every morning would wear off and she wouldn't think anything of it. That, or Klaus would start learning how to put a shirt on.
She hadn't stayed downstairs that long. After she had made Grayson a bottle, Klaus offered to take him so she could get ready for the day.
Klaus taking initiative was still a new concept to her, but she wasn't about to refuse his offer. She hadn't showered since Friday before she arrived at Elena and Elijah's to take care of Grayson; she was in desperate need of one.
By the time she was done and dressed, both Bonnie and Kol were awake downstairs.
Kol had decided to make them breakfast. Kol in the kitchen had made her wary at first, but Bonnie reassured her that it was alright. It turned out that Kol had a knack for making the most delicious pancakes.
After breakfast, Bonnie retreated upstairs to get ready while she offered to help Kol clean up. Klaus was on the floor in the family room with Grayson.
She watched the pair from a distance out of both concern and amusement, while she began to load the dishwasher.
Grayson had a bin of toys in the corner of the room that Elena and Elijah kept downstairs for convenience.
Currently Klaus had him occupied with a train that boasted stackable blocks, lights, and music.
"I think Nik likes playing with the toys more than Grayson does," Kol remarked with a snicker as he continued to pre-rinse and wash some of the dishes they used.
She laughed at Kol's comment absently as she watched Grayson try to shuffle his body across the floor in excited pursuit of the colourful locomotive.
"He looks so much like Elijah," Kol mentioned with a sigh, handing her some dishes to load into the washer.
Refocusing on her task and Kol, she nodded in agreement. While she could see Elena in Grayson, there was too much of Elijah there for her to ignore.
They fell silent as they both reprocessed - for the millionth time - that Grayson had lost both his parents.
"I couldn't imagine being asked to do what you're doing," Kol said, "which is probably why I wasn't listed as a recommended guardian in the will," he chuckled, "but I think you're doing the right thing."
She glanced at him questioningly as she fit some more dishes onto the racks.
"I think that you and Nik are doing the right thing by Grayson," Kol conceded further.
His acknowledgement was a little surprising to her given his pessimism regarding Klaus the previous evening.
"He seems to be coming around to the idea," Kol observed, nodding his head past her towards the family room.
Klaus and Grayson were laughing for an unexplained reason she couldn't decipher.
She smiled.
"It seems like it," she confirmed.
"You'll have to give him some time to adjust," Kol urged as she sealed a soap cube in the dishwasher and shut the door.
"Grayson or Klaus?" she mused.
"Well both, but I was referring mostly to Niklaus," he clarified. "Grayson is much more adaptable than he is. This won't be easy for him."
"This won't be easy for either of us," she retorted. "Becoming an unwed single mother wasn't exactly a goal of mine to reach before I turned thirty."
No, it had most definitely not been a goal of hers; famous dress designer? Yes. Married? Maybe. Children? Probably not by the time she was thirty.
She leaned against the kitchen counter as Kol finished the last of the dishes from the sink and placed them in the drying rack.
"You have Nik," Kol reminded her.
Her brows furrowed in his direction.
"You know what I mean," she said.
Kol shrugged and smirked at her mischievously.
"Like I said, you have Nik," he repeated as he let the water out from the sink and turned for the family room.
She scowled at his suggestion and stated to rinse the sink out as it finished draining.
Grayson's pleased squeal grabbed her attention and she glanced curiously over at the three. Kol had picked him up while Klaus was still seated on the floor, staring in her direction.
"What about this one?" Bonnie asked, holding up the dark navy blue dress.
She peered out from inside Elena and Elijah's closet and looked at the dress indifferently.
"It's too dark," she said, continuing to fish through Elena's clothing rack apprehensively.
They needed to find appropriate clothing for both Elena and Elijah to be buried in to bring to the meeting with the funeral director.
Elijah's favourite gray suit had already been selected twenty minutes ago, but choosing what Elena would wear had proven to be a much more difficult and emotionally grueling task.
Deciding what your best friend would be buried in wasn't exactly easy. She didn't want to make the wrong decision. Moreover, this whole process had only served to solidify the reality of their deaths even further.
She hadn't even set foot in this room since she was last in it with Elena and Grayson before she and Elijah left.
A pile of Elena's clothes were splayed out on the bed beside Bonnie as she sorted through them.
She wiped a hand over her forehead stressfully, continuing to pick through the dresses. Elena had so many; probably more than she did herself.
"Ugh," she sighed. "This is so hard."
Her eyes were beginning to sting with the threat of tears but she managed to hold back.
Bonnie stood up from the bed and approached the closet doorway.
She thumbed a hand over a modest three-quarter sleeved purple dress.
"What about that one?" Bonnie suggested.
Chuckling, she shook her head.
"No," she denied. "I made this for Elena as a project in college. It's so poorly done," she reasoned.
Bonnie shrugged as she reached for the dress.
"The dress is flawless, Caroline. You're being too hard on yourself. You know Elena loved this dress," Bonnie reminded her.
She glared at Bonnie incredulously.
"I'll put it in the contenders pile," Bonnie decided.
Following Bonnie out of the closet with a defeated huff, she eyed the pile of potentials anxiously.
"What time did Grayson get you up this morning?" Bonnie asked her as she laid the dress out beside the others.
"He didn't actually. I had to wake him up this time," she replied, feeling her mood shift instantly with talk of Grayson. "It was probably because he was up at one in the morning with me and Klaus, but technically he slept through the night," she said, unable to contain her enthusiasm.
Grayson being able to sleep successfully was a sign that she - and Klaus - were doing something right.
"Why were you up with Klaus?" Bonnie asked with a suspicious arched eyebrow.
"I wasn't. Grayson woke me up. Klaus came upstairs to check on Grayson when I did. I showed him how to change a diaper," she said, laughing under her breath at the thought.
Bonnie seemed both amused and stunned by her response.
"How romantic," Bonnie snorted sarcastically.
She shook her head disapprovingly.
"And you were the one warning me not to make this set of circumstances into something more," she pointed out, lifting up a floral dress from the bed to examine it. "If we're going to raise Grayson together, he has to learn how to change a diaper. I'm not going to be the one to do it all the time," she argued.
"I'm just bugging you," Bonnie replied with a smirk. "It's good to see Klaus taking initiative with Grayson; especially if you decide to raise him together."
She nodded in agreement looking at Bonnie apprehensively - the way she usually did when she wasn't giving her friend the full story.
"You're going to do it with him aren't you?" Bonnie concluded.
Her eyes widened at her friend's choice of words.
"Bonnie!" she exclaimed.
"I mean raise Grayson together. You've decided it?" Bonnie inquired.
"We're going to share custody," she confirmed.
"I thought you and Klaus were acting differently around one another this morning," Bonnie mentioned.
"What?" she asked.
"I don't know. You just seemed more relaxed around each other? More amicable?" Bonnie tried to explain.
Bonnie seemed to describe the atmosphere that she had felt this morning perfectly. She had been less tense around Klaus. He had been less tense around her. They had talked casually - mostly about Grayson - but they had conversed nonetheless without the awkward bitterness that had seemed to dominate their encounters prior to the night before.
This was a step in the right direction for them, she believed. As co-parents of Grayson, they both needed to be positively and actively involved without letting their personal concerns regarding each other or Elena and Elijah interfere.
"We talked about Grayson last night when we put him to bed. We both think that raising Grayson together is what's best for him."
Bonnie stared at her questioningly.
"Is it what's best for both of you though?" Bonnie interjected.
"What's best for Grayson is what's best for us," she explained. "Living together in this house isn't going to be a permanent thing," she added, "after the estate is handled and we carve out some sort of working arrangement, we'll both move forward with Grayson and our individual lives," she stated.
She put the floral dress back down as Bonnie dropped her hands to her sides.
"Well, if that's what you two decide, then I'll support you," Bonnie assured her.
She smiled, grateful for her friend's encouragement.
"Thanks, Bonnie," she said. "It means a lot to me. I know that not everyone is probably going to agree with our decision."
"Mikael and Esther?" Bonnie guessed glumly.
"Yes them. I'm dreading their arrival," she groaned.
Mikael and Esther were due to arrive in town with Rebekah later this afternoon. Just thinking of their inevitable conversation about Grayson later on made her stomach feel queasy.
"You and me both," Bonnie seconded her sentiments. "They hate the idea of Kol and me together. They're elitist and I suspect a little racist. When Kol and I visited them last summer when I went to England they were so unwelcoming."
She recalled Skyping with Bonnie after that particular meeting. Bonnie was nearly in tears despite Kol's personal reassurances.
"They're terrible people," she reaffirmed. "I can't believe they're even coming to Mystic Falls given the way they have treated Elijah and Elena in the past. I know Elijah is their son, but they were never parents to him - or any of his siblings - in the ways that count," she argued.
Bonnie agreed.
"How do you think they'll react to the terms of the will?" Bonnie inquired curiously.
She held up the purple dress again.
"Uh they are probably going to freak out," she sighed, running a hand through her hair. "They probably believe that they are the executors and guardians of Grayson by default. When they discover someone else is they'll be angry. When they find out that it's Klaus and me, they will be furious," she guessed.
"Do you really think they'll be that upset? They don't seem like the type of people desperate to be guardians of their grandchild?" Bonnie suggested.
"I doubt they want to take care of Grayson, but I'm sure they would love to take care of his trust fund. They seem like those kind of people," she clarified. "I'm also confident they'll have a lot of negative things to say about Klaus and me as guardians of Grayson. I'm sure they'll use our history together against us the first moment they get the opportunity. I mean, our history is a legitimate concern - you and Kol both brought it up - but they'll be purposely malicious about it."
Bonnie sighed knowingly as she took the dress from her.
"Kol and I will be there as buffers. Maybe we can deflect some of the heat off of you," Bonnie wondered. "Rebekah will be there too."
She nodded hopefully, but she was still visibly discouraged.
"They won't be here long. They'll be back in England before you know it," Bonnie offered. "At the end of the day, it's yours and Klaus's names in the will, not theirs. Elijah and Elena wanted you and Klaus to take care of Grayson, not Mikael and Esther. There's nothing they can do about it," Bonnie argued.
"They can contest the custody arrangement," she said pessimistically.
Bonnie's positive expression seemed to fall.
"For the next six months Klaus and I only have tentative custody of Grayson. It's like a trial period. If our interviews with CPS go well, then we'll be granted permanent custody of Grayson by September. In that sixth month time frame though, anyone can contest our custody of Grayson - including Mikael and Esther."
"Do you really think they would do that?" Bonnie asked.
She opened her hands uncertainly.
"I wouldn't put it past them. They'd probably do it just to spite us," she thought.
Bonnie shook her head in disbelief.
"They're horrible, but not that horrible," Bonnie reasoned.
She glared at Bonnie incredulously.
"Yes they are," she argued. "Besides, I'm sure contesting a custody arrangement is nothing to Mikael. He probably knows some high priced family lawyer who could snap their finger and make Elijah and Elena's will pertaining to the custody of Grayson null and void," she worried.
Bonnie put the dress back down on the bed and wrapped an arm around her.
"You're stressing yourself out about something that hasn't even happened yet, Care. If you let this weigh on your mind along with everything else, you're going to overwhelm yourself even further," Bonnie predicted. "Don't let something that is only a possibility get you down. Confront only what needs to be dealt with in the immediate future," Bonnie recommended, shifting her gaze down to the group of dresses.
She nodded and looked down at the dresses fixedly, determined to follow Bonnie's advice. Their first priority was selecting a dress for Elena to wear. That was what she had to deal with right now.
"I don't want to pick the wrong dress, Bonnie," she said.
In part, she had been avoiding the decision in an effort to fend off the reality that her best friend was never coming back, but she was also avoiding it because she hated that she was unsure about what Elena would want.
"One of Elena's favourite colours was purple. She loved that dress. She loved you for making it. I think she should wear it. I think she would want to," Bonnie urged.
He took a drag of his cigarette off the back porch numbly. He was physically numb from the cold and emotionally numb in lieu of everything that had happened today.
The meeting with the funeral director had been so conventional and routine that he felt like they were planning some mundane every day event.
Elijah and Elena had already made most of the prearrangements. There were few decisions he and Caroline actually had to make, aside from how to pay for it until they were able to sort out Elena and Elijah's accounts.
The director went through everything as though it was some normal protocol - certainly for the director, as his job, it was. For him and Caroline it was not.
They discussed caskets and burial plots as though they were securing cars and real estate. Caroline gave the director Elijah and Elena's clothing as though they were being made over in lieu of more positive or happy circumstances.
It unnerved him and made him feel sick.
Elijah and Elena wanted no visitations or a public funeral. They wanted their burials to be private and confined to close friends and family. Following the burial, instead of a funeral, they wanted a public celebration of life to be held. They didn't want everyone's final memories of them to be contained within a drab funeral home.
As much as he understood that, the idea of celebrating and having fun following the burial of his brother and his sister-in-law made him uneasy. How could he enjoy himself and reminisce happily about fond memories of them after just watching them be lowered into the ground?
After the details of the funeral arrangements had been settled, they decided upon the Grill to be the place they would hold the so called, 'celebration of life.' Caroline made the phone call to the new owner. Given the circumstances and people involved (apparently word of Elena and Elijah's death had travelled around town quickly) Matt Donovan - the waitress's brother - was more than accommodating, allowing them to reserve a portion of the bar and restaurant for the event.
While the idea of holding a celebration of life was unsettling, he supposed it would be better than a visitation or formal funeral service in a funeral home or church without access to alcohol. He wouldn't be celebrating tomorrow with a drink in hand, but at least this way he could brood with one.
The sudden opening of the backdoor startled him.
Caroline emerged on the porch without a coat and a garbage bag in hand.
"Where did Bonnie and Kol go?" she asked.
"They took some things over to the Grill for tomorrow and to put the final plans in place," he informed her.
She frowned slightly.
"I was going to do that," she stated.
"You can't do it all, love," he said casually.
Rolling her eyes at him, she extended the bag of trash to him.
"Well then maybe you'd like to take the trash to the garage and perhaps put the garbage can out at the curb?" she mused. "Tomorrow is garbage day and I don't want to forget."
He gave her a small half smile as he put out his cigarette. Reluctantly, he took the bag from her before trekking off towards the garage.
When he returned inside after lingering in the garage and completing his chore he found a frazzled Caroline scurrying around the kitchen. Grayson was in his high chair with a half-empty bottle in hand and a jar of baby food on the table in front of him.
"Your mother just called," she said once she noticed him.
"What did she say?" he asked.
"Your parents and Rebekah just got into town. She booked an early dinner reservation at the hotel for all of us," she sighed. "We don't have a lot of time. Grayson needs to eat and be bathed. We need to get ready."
He grimaced.
"You told her that we would go?" he questioned.
She shrugged and nodded.
"What was I supposed to say?" she wondered.
"No?" he suggested.
The last thing he wanted to do was have dinner with his parents. He was hoping he could limit their interaction to a few hours tomorrow.
She scowled at his response.
"We don't want to make them hostile," she said as she opened the fridge. "Perhaps if we humour them they won't be antagonistic when they find out about the will. Besides, I already texted Kol and Bonnie and told them about it."
"Sweetheart, humouring my parents will achieve nothing," he said confidently, knowing his parents would react negatively either way.
She shot him a glare.
"Well would you like to call her back and cancel then?" she countered.
He considered it at first, but knew the effort would be futile. They could make up some excuse about how Grayson wasn't feeling good, but his mother would just insist upon visiting them at Elena and Elijah's instead. There would be no way of avoiding them tonight. At least if they went to dinner they could decide when to leave. Besides, Bekah was with them and he hadn't seen her since the summer. Having her, Bonnie, and Kol there would help diffuse the situation.
"Fine, we'll go," he relented, even though he could already sense that this was going to be a shit storm.
If he didn't agree, he had an inkling Caroline would decide to go on her own with Kol and Bonnie - she was persistent like that. He wasn't going to let her face them by herself.
His father would inevitably ask about the will because that was the kind of intrusive person he was. He would be curious to know if he was listed as a direct beneficiary or not. When it would be revealed that he was not, he would ask about Grayson. No, he wouldn't ask because he genuinely cared about his grandson, but because he wanted to know who would be managing the assets left to him.
The real storm would start when it would be revealed that he and Caroline would be taking care of Grayson. His parents had wicked senses of entitlement. Despite their minimal relationship with Elijah and Elena they would still expect to be listed as Grayson's guardians. To be honest, he was actually kind of looking forward to seeing their reactions, even in lieu of the insults he knew his father - and to a lesser extent, his mother - would toss their way.
At the same time, his parents discovering the arrangement made him a little anxious. Although he knew he and Caroline could fend off his parents in the immediate present, his concern was the future. If his father was feeling vindictive and greedy enough, he would contest the custody within the next six months. It was not outside the realm of possibility.
He supposed they would find out eventually, they might as well get it over with.
"Maybe they'll come around?" she hinted suggestively.
"Don't get your hopes up," he replied, looking curiously between Caroline at the kitchen island and the jar of baby food. "You're giving him a bottle and this?" he wondered, nodding towards the jar.
"I wanted to try and get Grayson to eat some after he was finished his bottle, but then your mom called. I'll probably just put the jar away and try another time," she explained. "We'll be here forever trying to get him to eat it."
He scoffed dismissively with a small smirk as he sat down in the chair closest to Grayson and grabbed the small jar and spoon.
"I bet you a week of diaper changing that I can get him to eat this," he mused.
She returned his amused but dismissive expression as she folded her arms.
"We don't have a lot of time," she warned.
He shrugged and picked up the jar of baby food. It was apple.
Grayson eyed him curiously as he dipped the spoon into the jar. His bottle was soon forgotten as his eyes fixed themselves on him.
"Do we have a deal?" he asked, glancing at her over his shoulder.
"Fine," she sighed.
He put a bit of the food on the spoon and brought it to Grayson's lips.
Grayson whined and turned his head away.
"Come on, mate, try some," he urged as he examined the container. "This is like gourmet baby food - top of the line shi...stuff."
He nudged the spoon a little closer to Grayson's sealed lips.
"It's delicious," he stated, bringing the spoon to his own lips and pretending to try some.
Grayson was watching him intently.
He returned the spoon to Grayson, but he still wasn't having it.
"I told you he wouldn't eat it. Elena said he was eating baby food, but I guess now he doesn't want it for some reason," she shrugged.
Deciding to try another tactic, he stood up and washed his hands off in the sink.
"Giving up already?" she laughed.
"Not exactly," he said, returning to the table and sitting back down with Grayson.
He dipped his index finger in the jar of mush and brought it to Grayson's mouth.
Grayson tipped his head back and refused.
"Open up little guy," he pleaded.
There was no reaction.
Desperate times call for desperate measures.
He fed himself the baby food instead.
"Mmm, this is delicious," he exclaimed.
It wasn't the best thing he had ever tasted, but it certainly wasn't the worst.
Caroline laughed from behind him.
Grayson's hands reached out for the sleeve of his shirt.
"Do you want some now?" he asked animatedly.
He put some more food on his other index finger and dabbed a little bit of the food on Grayson's lips intentionally.
At first he was worried Grayson would erupt into a fit, but when his tongue darted out instinctively and took a taste of the food, he smiled. Grayson appeared to smile as well.
"See? I told you it was good," he said, looking back at Caroline victoriously.
"A tiny bit from your finger doesn't count," Caroline began to say, just as Grayson wrapped his little lips around his finger and took the rest.
He sneered at Caroline and gathered up some more food on his finger and Grayson accepted it readily.
The feeling of Grayson's gums and tiny tongue against the tip of his finger made him chuckle, but it also gave him pause. Sure, he had given Grayson a bottle before, but this was a little different. He was literally feeding him. It made him realize how dependent Grayson now was on both him and Caroline. He really did need them in every possible way. That realization terrified him, but it also gave him an odd and unfamiliar sense of satisfaction.
"I suppose the spoon will take some work," he admitted, "but it looks as though you'll be changing diapers for the next week, sweetheart," he declared as Grayson continued to eat from his finger.
Caroline sighed in annoyance.
"Well at least you got him to eat," she concluded.
He held the jar in front of Grayson who proceeded to dip his own tiny fingers into the food.
Grayson giggled at the sensation.
His hand of food ended up mostly on his face rather than in his mouth, however.
He could already feel Caroline's panicked concern.
"He's going to make a mess," she said, stating the obvious.
Grayson laughed some more as he clenched his fist and some of the remaining food fell onto his bib and the surface of the high chair.
"You said he needed a bath anyways," he said with a shrug. "Besides, he's having fun," he reasoned, watching amusedly as Grayson rubbed his hands together.
"Yeah, well Bonnie isn't here, so you're going to have to help me," she said.
While a part of him was concerned about carrying out the new task, he found himself eager. He wanted to see Grayson's reactions to the water and the bath toys he had to move out of the way yesterday when he took a shower.
After Grayson was done eating, he followed him and Caroline upstairs.
"Have you done this before?" he asked her as she handed Grayson to him once they entered the main bathroom.
She shook her head.
"No, but Elena bathes him right in the big tub. Ever since she and Elijah started taking him to baby swimming lessons at the community centre he doesn't like the infant tub anymore," Caroline informed him as she began to locate all the necessary items they were going to need.
"He takes swimming lessons?" he asked. "What do they teach a six month old? Diving techniques?" he chuckled.
She rolled her eyes as she inched closer to him.
"It gets them comfortable being in water. It gets parents comfortable with their kids being in water. It's mostly about the sensory experience," she explained.
He tensed briefly, before she knelt down beside him unexpectedly and began to rummage through the cabinets underneath the sink.
"You can start undressing Grayson if you want. I'll get the bath ready," she offered as she stood back up.
He stood there awkwardly for a moment, a little taken aback by his unexplained reaction to her approach.
Luckily she seemed oblivious, even when he tried to head for Grayson's room and she tried to head for the tub at the same time and they nearly bumped into one another.
Suddenly his face felt hot, but he quickly brushed it aside.
As he undressed Grayson and disposed of his wet diaper, he could hear the bathtub being filled.
When he returned to the bathroom with a very naked Grayson in hand, Caroline had the sleeves of her blouse rolled up past her elbows and was busy securing her hair in a clip.
She took Grayson from him, giving him the opportunity to roll up his own sleeves in preparation.
"Are we ready to do this?" she asked him nervously.
"It's just water, sweetheart," he mused. "You said he liked the water?" he reminded her.
After a deep exhale, she brought Grayson to the tub of water.
"The temperature is good; I checked it. You hold him or keep your hands close to him while I attempt to wash," she instructed as though she already had the whole situation mapped out.
He wasn't about to interfere with her plan, even though he could tell she was already debating it.
"Maybe I should hold him and you should wash?" she wondered aloud.
He had come to learn a lot of things this weekend. The fact that Caroline Forbes was still a control freak was one of the more trivial things.
She was angling for what role could give her the most control over the situation.
"I'll wash him," he offered.
She glared at him.
"You can hold him," she decided.
He smirked having predicted that response from her.
She kneeled down on the towel beside the tub and lowered Grayson into the water cautiously.
Grayson squealed with delight as soon as his feet touched the water and he sat down.
A look of relief crossed both his and Caroline's faces.
He kneeled down beside her and reached his hands into the tub, resting one on Grayson's back while the other lingered near his front.
Grayson was too preoccupied with the floating rubber ducks by his feet to notice his hands or Caroline readying the small cloths and soap.
"You technically changed his diaper," Caroline said slyly after a few moments of silence.
He nudged one of the ducks by Grayson as he splashed his hands haphazardly in the water.
"I suppose payment of the bet can commence tomorrow," he said.
She nodded as she anxiously but gently dabbed a wet cloth against Grayson's face. Once his face was washed she used some soap and began to wash his torso.
"Sorry," she murmured as their hands touched awkwardly in her attempt to manoeuvre hers around his so he wouldn't have to let go of Grayson.
That tugging reaction in the pit of his stomach returned and faded as they broke contact.
"Shit," Caroline said quickly, forgetting like he almost had earlier that Grayson was right there. "I keep thinking tomorrow is Sunday. I'll have to make sure the girls know not to open the store tomorrow," she reminded herself.
"People actually work for you?" he joked.
She shot him a glare in response to his sarcastic tone.
"Two people," she clarified.
"What's your turnover rate?" he laughed.
She grimaced before splashing her free hand against the water and sprinkling his arm and shirt sleeve.
Grayson quickly mimicked her by bringing his hands down on the water with a sharp giggle.
"You're teaching him bad habits," he warned teasingly.
"I don't think splashing you with water qualifies as a bad habit," she snickered.
Caroline returned to washing Grayson's lower half while he kept his hands near Grayson guardedly as he watched him bat his hands at a few of the floating fish.
"So how is business?" he asked genuinely.
"Spring is almost here. Business will pick up through until fall. I have a lot of custom work to do," she told him. "What about you?" she asked politely.
Business for him had been steady, but it hadn't been the kind of business he wanted.
"I've done a few commissioned pieces by request this year, but it's not something I like relying upon for money. I'd rather create the painting or drawing first from my own inspiration and have someone connect well enough with it to want to purchase it. I've sold a few pieces like that recently, but I have to supplement to afford my studio and gallery," he explained.
"Doing commissioned work is basically my bread and butter," Caroline sighed as she lightly scrubbed Grayson's feet. "I would love to be able to just make dresses and there be people who wanted to buy them on a consistent basis."
"Commissioned work is usually the best kind of advertising for your original work," he shrugged, "especially commissioned work for high profile people."
She gave him an intrigued look.
"I remember Elijah saying you sold a painting to the Mayor of New York. What other high profile people have you done paintings for? Celebrities?" she asked curiously.
He laughed.
"Some minor celebrities, but most of my high profile work is localized - confined to big name Wall Street hot shots who think their knowledge of money and numbers also makes them certified art connoisseurs. Their knowledge only affords them the ability to purchase it. "They couldn't tell a Matisse from a Malevich, or a Cézanne from a Picasso," he critiqued.
"So you take advantage of them then?" she sneered amusedly.
"No more than they take advantage of us," he shrugged. "I'll humour their self-proclaimed knowledge if it means I'll make a sale."
"I can't tell the difference between those artists either," she chuckled.
He smirked.
"Yes, but you admit that. They pretend to know what they're talking about," he told her.
"I'm about to start a dress for Carol Lockwood for the annual Masquerade fundraiser. That's about as high profile as I get," she mused.
Her mention of the Lockwood family made him cringe.
"Isn't that weird for you?" he wondered.
She eyed him questioningly.
"She's your ex's mother?" he clarified.
Shaking her head, she removed the cloth from Grayson and draped it over the edge of the tub.
"Not really. I mean, every now and then she'll talk about when Tyler and I dated, but I think she gets that we're not going to get back together now. Carol and I have been working on Miss Mystic together, too."
He gave her a disbelieving look.
"What?" she asked as she put a tiny bit of baby shampoo in the palm of her hand. "It's not like Tyler's mom cheated on me. Tyler is the asshole."
Her eyes widened with embarrassment as she looked down at Grayson.
"Maybe you should put that shampoo in your mouth," he laughed.
She covered her mouth with her free hand and gasped before laughing nervously.
"Grayson is going to have a colourful vocabulary," he teased her.
"Please don't listen to anything I just said," Caroline winced. "This no swearing thing is hard," she said to him. "We need a swear jar or something."
He held his hands against Grayson as she stood up on her knees and leaned over the tub to wash the small amount of hair on Grayson's head.
Grayson began to get antsy during this part.
"He clearly doesn't enjoy people messing with his hair," he concluded as Grayson slipped and wiggled under his hold.
Caroline nodded amusedly as she ran Grayson's thin hair through her fingers.
"Grayson likes his hair in a baby faux-hawk though," she said, "I did this with him the other day."
He laughed at the sight of Grayson with a small tuft of hair sticking up with help from the water and lather from the shampoo.
"He's a punk," he stated.
"I need to take a picture of this," Caroline awed, leaping up from the floor.
She grabbed her phone from the bathroom counter and readied the camera feature.
"Look in the camera, both of you!" she laughed. "Grayson," she said in a sing-song voice to capture his attention.
Truthfully, he hated having his picture taken, but decided there was no harm in humouring her. He pointed to the camera and urged Grayson to look in that direction as he fixed his drooping soapy faux hawk. He heard her camera shutter as it took the shot.
Caroline smiled and he found himself smiling in response.
"That is adorable," she cooed.
She showed him the photo and he couldn't help but grin wider even though he could feel a small pang of guilt in his chest.
"Can you imagine when he actually starts wearing his hair like this when he's a teenager?" Caroline thought as she put her phone back and returned to the tub.
They both paused as the reality of their guardianship began to sink in further. This guardianship wasn't temporary. They would be in Grayson's life forever - even when he inevitably would decide to start rebelling. It was hard to process what things would look like for all of them in sixteen years.
Caroline grabbed a small red cup from the edge of the tub and filled it with a little rinse water.
"As long as he's not acting like an idiot, then I don't care how he wears his hair," he decided.
She smirked and nodded in agreement.
"Head back, Grayson," she instructed as she tipped his head back gently and started to rinse his hair out with the cup of water despite Grayson's feeble protests.
He held Grayson tighter as he fought against his grip to escape.
"He was good today," she noted, "at the funeral home. I was so nervous he was going to decide to get a little fussy."
She rinsed Grayson's hair for a second time.
"He didn't fuss because he was asleep almost the entire time," he remarked.
"Yeah and because of that, I doubt he's going to want to sleep at the restaurant," she sighed, the anxiety over dinner was clearly getting to her. "I loathe the people with crying babies in public places. Now I'll be one of them," she laughed. "Not to mention the fact that your parents will probably be there appraising our every move."
His parents scrutinizing his every move had been his entire life. He was used to it.
"So then it won't be any different than the last time you were around them," he said humorously, trying to ease her mind.
"Yeah, except this time if we make a wrong move it could be all the evidence your parents need to contest the custody arrangement," she frowned.
So that possibility had apparently crossed Caroline's mind as well.
They were both searching for something to say to restore their confidence, but they were interrupted by a playful shriek from Grayson and an unexpected splash of water as Grayson slammed both of his fists into the water.
Caroline bore the brunt of the surprise splash as she had been leaning over him to carefully rinse the remainder of the shampoo residue from his hair.
"I didn't think he could splash that hard," Caroline scowled as she looked down at the soaked front of her shirt.
He laughed at her.
"It's not funny," she protested half-seriously, splashing some water in his direction as she pulled back from the tub.
His laughter stopped when he noticed the sheer nature the front of her blouse seemed to take on. He looked away quickly and took over with Grayson, ensuring that he was completely rinsed off with one hand while holding his slippery body in the other.
She stood up and disappeared behind him.
"I should have changed before," Caroline chastised herself.
"Can you hand me a towel?" he asked her.
He glanced over his shoulder, somewhat startled to see her now in only a white tank top that she had been wearing underneath. It had gotten wet too, making the lace embellishments of her bra entirely visible to him as the shirt clung to her slender torso.
A brief memory of how her waist fit perfectly into his hands crossed his mind.
Cringing with embarrassment as he turned back to Grayson, he desperately hoped she didn't notice the lingering glance his eyes had stolen.
He scolded himself. Kol's warnings about repeating history began to ring like alarm bells in his mind. He tried to reassure himself. He wasn't hung up on her like Kol had suggested. It was just a look. It meant nothing. There was nothing wrong in thinking she was still attractive. He had slept with her after all; of course he thought she was attractive on some level. It was an innocent fact that he would have to get used to being confronted by if they were going to live together for six months.
"Klaus?" Caroline said, recapturing his attention.
Snapping out of his daze, he grabbed the small towel she was offering him.
"It's a bear towel to wrap him in. There's a hood with ears," she explained as he examined the awkwardly shaped towel.
"I'm going to change. You can dry him off and put a fresh diaper on him if you'd like," she explained.
He nodded and she slipped through the other door into the bedroom she was occupying.
After figuring out the towel and giving Grayson a moment to dry off, he somehow managed to successfully put a new diaper on Grayson on his own. He supposed it was easier this time when he didn't have to worry about a dirty one to replace.
When Caroline appeared in Grayson's room from the bathroom, she was dressed in the same black pants, but was now wearing a more modest beige sweater.
She had definitely noticed him staring at her earlier, he thought.
He waited while she selected something for Grayson to wear - a plain white onesie with a tiny pair of jeans and a knitted zip up red and grey sweater.
She helped him change Grayson before quickly disappearing back into the bathroom, stating that she would clean up before she finished getting ready.
He couldn't help but get the faint impression that she was trying to avoid him.