"I told you to wait!"
"Until when, until he dies?"
"They're going to find Mikael!"
"He passed out!"
"He was already scared."
"It's not good."
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"Can I say something too?"
"Finish it."
"We can protect him, but he had to know."
"You shouldn't have told him."
"He's fine, ok? He's recovering."
"He's dying!"
"And he could die tonight, Freya! We could have waited."
"Finish it!"
"Who made Elijah our boss?"
"He wakes up."
"Stop fighting."
"Wait, he's waking up?"
"Nik"
"Nik, calm down."
Everything was too loud. He couldn't breathe. He had something in his throat. Caroline? Where was she? He wanted to see her. She was the only one who didn't treat him like a child. Caroline? His head hurt. Bad. Had he died? What had happened? He wanted to sleep. Mikael...prison... Mikael had escaped from prison. Klaus was tired. He wanted to sleep. He should go to bed. Where was Caroline? Where was he?
"Nik"
"Niklaus, wake up."
"It's ok. You're fine."
"I caught you."
"Klaus"
He kept hearing nonsensical voices among the sounds of the machines whose cables were digging into his skin. He was lying on the hospital bed with a bunch of bras tied to him, but they gave him a few extra pillows to ensure his comfort. His vision was hazy, he couldn't recognize any form. The voices kept talking to him, he couldn't catch what they were saying. He was dizzy. And tired. Slowly, the images began to become clearer and Klaus could recognize his siblings above him, looking at him with worried eyes.
"Call a doctor. Niklaus"
"I already called."
"Niklaus, can you hear us?"
"Nik"
"We're here, you're okay, you're safe."
Niklaus stayed in the hospital for two more months, and Marcel increased the number of weekly check-ups he had, gave them a list of what Niklaus couldn't do after he was discharged, and Caroline was offered more money to work an extra hour/day. At this moment Klaus was lying on his bed, half asleep. He had pale, thin skin, yellow fingernails, and bloodshot eyes. Caroline had assured him that he was still handsome, even if he had an entire closet full of just bottles of pills, morphine, and injections ready to be stuck into his skin.
"Caroline…?" Klaus sat up a little higher on the bed, looking at Caroline in the eye.
"Yes?"
"I...will I catch next June?"
"Klaus..."
"Henrik's birthday was in June, but I was in the hospital and..."
Caroline sighed, unable to help but notice the tremor in Klaus' voice as well as the desperate look on his face.
"If your condition doesn't get any worse, yes, I think you'll be able to catch another year...maybe." Caroline told him lightly. It wasn't really a lie, a disease exactly like Klaus's had never been seen before, it was unique, anything was possible. "Are you okay...? Do you want me to fluff your pillows?"
"I'm fine...I just want to sleep." Klaus answered his nurse's question, sinking further into the mountain of pillows and blankets Rebekah had placed on his bed. He pushed his head into a green pillow and his eyes began to water. Was she crying?
"Klaus"
"W-what...?"
"Look at me." Caroline said softly, sitting down on the bed next to her patient, who over time had become more her friend than her patient. "You are loved, Klaus. And everything will get better, soon all the pain will be gone..." Caroline was crying now too. "But until then, we'll make sure you feel as good as possible, your family loves you Klaus...I love you. I love you and I will be here for you until the end..."
They were too close, Caroline realized. Their noses were almost touching. They were too close. Klaus...he was so smart, so honest, and the memory of the tears at the corners of his eyes hadn't gone away yet. Without realizing what they were doing, Caroline and Klaus moved even closer, kissing. Caroline's lips were topped with strawberry lipstick and Klaus's were chapped and dry, but somehow his tasted better than hers. Because they were attached to Klaus, the only man who had put Caroline first.
Suddenly, Klaus pushed her aside, placing his hand between them. His hands were shaking. His breathing was quick.
"You're my nurse, isn't there some rule that involves you doing this?"
"You kissed me as much as I kissed you."
Klaus' eyes began to water again, but his face was more angry than sad.
"I need to sleep. Go away."
Klaus sank further into the blankets he was wrapped in, then closed his eyes clutching a green blanket to his chest. He'd had that blanket since forever and when he'd been in the hospital, Elijah had brought it to him every time, it was his hospital blanket, so he felt comfortable when he was wrapped in it at home. He couldn't take his mind off Mikael. He wasn't well, he wasn't well enough to be with Caroline, he was her patient, and now his mind could only focus on Mikael. Him stepfather was there, somewhere. Free. Nothing and no one could stop him from coming after Klaus, and Klaus was weak, he knew it, with all the machines he was connected to, with all the meds he had to take, he was weak, even if Marcel stopped his treatments which had side effects, after what had happened at the hospital. After what had happened at the hospital everyone had lost hope. Klaus was weak, he knew it, he always had been, Mikael had always been right. Klaus slowly fell into a deep sleep after a while, not noticing when his brother and sister entered the room. Freya and Elijah stood by the door, looking protectively at their baby brother sleeping in bed.
"It's my fault he had to stay in the hospital so long. Kol was right, I shouldn't have told him."
"It's not your fault, sister. It's nobody's fault."
"He's being...administered narcotics now, right?" Freya asked, looking at the IV in Niklaus' arm.
"Yes...for the pain. Freya, I think we should continue our discussion from earlier."
"Okay, but let's go to the living room, I don't want him to wake up and hear us."
"Sister...I met someone, Antoinette, a new coworker...but I don't know if I should start a relationship right now, with Niklaus in this state...he needs extra attention, he needs my undivided attention, I shouldn't start going on dates right now, I know that, but I..."
"He's not a child, Elijah."
"But he is." Elijah said, motioning for Freya to go downstairs so they could talk.
However, as soon as they were out the door they noticed Caroline pacing back and forth in the corridor wondering if she should go back in or not, if he was worth it or not.
"Miss Forbes, good evening."
"Oh hi, Elijah, Freya, I…I was just getting ready to leave."
"It's okay Caroline, you can stay as long as you want."
"Klaus is supposed to get another dose of the main medicine in a few minutes, so I thought I'd give it to him and then leave. Do you want to stay with him while I apply it? It can be quite uncomfortable." that was…Klaus…the hospital...that's why he'd done what he'd done…Caroline realized, she had to tell him.
"Freya and I need to discuss a very important matter in private before it's too late, so we trust you to make him as comfortable as possible, Caroline."
"Yes, of course." Caroline replied, walking into the room without a second thought.
She felt Klaus' eyes on her.
"Elijah talks to Freya about planning the funeral. That's why they don't want me near..." Klaus said, staring blankly from his hospital bed.