In this chapter, Caroline sings "Untouchable" by Taylor Swift
Where it began, I can't begin to knowing
But then I know it's growing strong
Was in the spring
And spring became the summer
Who'd have believed you'd come along
Neil Diamond, "Sweet Caroline"
23. HOW CAN I HURT WHEN HOLDING YOU?
To be honest, he doesn't know what he is doing here.
Lexi told him, it is time to start living his life and leave behind Mystic Falls. Sure, he still needs to deal with Silas at some point, but then what is he doing tagging along on Caroline's summer vacations?
Surely she did not plan to include him in them, seeing she was coming to visit the doppelgänger.
And now he's got a new ring, he doesn't have to stay here.
Stefan wakes up because he hears her crying, and runs to her bed thinking something has happened to her.
Caroline is having a nightmare.
His doppelgänger is also awake and walking into the room with a mug of coffee in his hands.
"She is still having nightmares? Just hold her hand. It helps."
Still having nightmares...
Is this a normal occurrence? Tom talks as if this happens all the time, and he's only met Caroline for a short time last year.
"Bring him back…"
Bring back who?
"Caroline, it's okay."
"Tell me she can bring him back…"
"Caroline, wake up."
When she opens her eyes, they are glistening with tears.
"Stefan?"
"It was just a nightmare. Everything is okay."
"Oh, yes… right. It was just a dream."
"Do you want some hot chocolate?" Tom asks. Stefan had already forgotten he was there.
Caroline smiles, but it does not reach her eyes. Whatever she saw in her dream, it's still haunting her. "Yes, thank you."
Then it's Tom again who suggests they go to a karaoke bar that night.
He wants to dig into whatever has been troubling Caroline that she has regular nightmares like this, but Tom's presence is turning out to be a bit annoying. Maybe it's time they leave his apartment.
But it's not like Stefan is there because his doppelgänger invited him, he reminds himself. He's there because she would come here to visit anyway.
"Is there anything I can do for you?" He asks.
"No, this is normal. Nothing to worry about."
"If it happens often, I don't think they are normal."
She smiles.
"My dreams sometimes feel… too real. But we can't really do anything about it, can we?"
"Do you want to talk about it?"
She shakes her head and keeps her troubles to herself.
There are things she does not tell him, but she tells Tom.
He listens to them talking in the kitchen, well into the evening when they think he's not in the apartment.
Is it okay to spy on your friend's conversations like this? No, clearly not. He can't help himself.
"You still dream with the girls?"
"Sometimes."
"And there really isn't any possibility for you… you know, for you to have them if you are a vampire?"
"I just think it can't mean nothing. Obviously you really want to be a mom, if you dream with them all the time. If there's anyone I know who deserves to have what they want, it's you, Caroline."
Maybe it is because she has adjusted to being a vampire better than anyone else he's ever known, but Stefan has never imagined Caroline would like to be human again. She's never talked about this, not to him, and now he realizes she's probably never mentioned it to anyone else at home.
He brings it up when they go to the karaoke bar, and she's busy choosing her song.
"Do you like her?"
Tom raises an eyebrow.
"Caroline? Of course I like her, she's great."
What's there not to like?
She shines brightly all the time, and her pains, she doesn't share them with anyone else, to the point it feels as if nothing ever touches her.
He takes a shot of whiskey and stays silent, listening to her singing.
Untouchable like a distant diamond sky
I'm reaching out and I just can't tell you why
I'm caught up in you
"When I met her, all I saw was a young girl who really needed a friend. I grew up without a family, so I figured I also needed a friend like her. Life has a way to bring people together." Tom smiles "I also thought she needed better friends than the ones she has in Mystic Falls. No offense."
In the middle of the night
When I'm in this dream
It's like a million little stars
Spelling out your name
You gotta come on, come on
Say that we'll be together
Come on, come on
Little taste of Heaven
"What I meant was… you like her"
God, why is he even trying to ask about this?
"I know what you are asking" Tom steals his bottle to pour himself another shot "But I, for once, don't fight battles that I know I'm not going to win. She doesn't like me that way."
Like a million little stars
Spelling out your name
They're spelling out your name
Just like everyone else in the bar, they clap when Caroline sings the last verses of her song. She's good at this. No wonder she wants to major in drama.
"So, I told my mom I was going to be visiting LA and New York too. I canceled my flights when I found you, but I was thinking… Silas has no idea you are with me, and he isn't looking for me either, so maybe… Do you want to come with me? What do you say?"
It's a bit irresponsible to be having fun while there's a major threat in the form of the immortal being who put him underwater. But Stefan also knows that it is only because he is having a good time with her that he doesn't dwell on the fact that Damon and Elena are together back home.
He doesn't have to think much to answer. "Yeah, why not? It will be fun."
They stay for Tom's housewarming party, because no one will deny Caroline the pleasure of organizing an event that has 'perfect' written all over it.
"I thought more people would be shocked to see the two of us," Tom says, leaning on the wall right next to him.
"She cooked up some very dramatic story about us being lost twins or something. I've heard her repeating it to a few of your friends over the past hour."
"Oh, that explains it."
Caroline waltz her way to them with a huge smile on her face.
"Why aren't you two dancing or mingling with people? The whole purpose of this is for you to have fun!"
Stefan smirks "I thought the whole purpose of this was for you to have fun."
"Oh, come on! At least go and dance-"
"There's a problem" Tom says "I count two of us and only one of you. Who are you going to dance with?"
Stefan is already straightening himself when, to his surprise, she grabs Tom's hand. "Who knows when we get another chance?"
Whenever he starts liking this doppelgänger, he becomes annoying again.
And yet, it's obvious who she would prefer as a friend if there were a need to choose. After all, Tom is a good person, and he's human. He saves lives, while Stefan struggles not to kill every single day. It's probably easier to see all the ways he is not worth having around when there's an exact replica walking around, but being better than him.
They stare at the city from the terrace of the building well into the first hours of the morning. She's saying goodbye to this little part of their trip.
"We can't leave Tom here unprotected."
It's the last thing he expects to hear.
"There's nothing to protect him from, Caroline."
She shakes her head. "I had this dream…"
He frowns. This thing about her nightmares is affecting her too much. Maybe it's because she did find him in the water after having a bad feeling about it, but now it seems she is willing to let that guide her emotions and her actions.
"A dream is just a dream" He says, putting his hands on her shoulders "What can be a threat to Tom if no one but us knows about him?"
She bites her lips.
"That's not what Silas said."
"What?"
"I don't know. He reads minds and he said my dreams are not just dreams. That he could look into it if he had more magic…"
The way she is saying it now, it's almost as if she wants that to happen.
"There's no way we are letting Silas get into your head. Don't you remember what happened to Bonnie?"
He regrets it as soon as he mentions their dead friend because her face turns somber.
"I'll think of a way, okay?" He says, a bit reluctant but knowing that she's going to be stubborn about this. "To keep an eye on Tom, but forget about whatever Silas told you. He was probably just messing with you."
She looks unsure, but she nods and agrees with him.
"Stefan"
"Yes?"
"I'm so glad you're okay."