Hi guys! Welcome back

Someone commented on the previous chapter that when I mentioned that Caroline was going numb that something was gonna happen to create more drama and they were slightly disappointed… Well, you were on the right track. I mentioned Caroline feeling numb in her chest to ease up to the events that will be happening in this chapter.

Speaking of this chapter—phew! SO much is happening and so much will happen in the next chapter as well! But then, we will be doing a time jump to 2019! Be patient and enjoy, my lovelies.

Disclaimer: I do not own the vampire diaries!

*February 17th, 2016*

Niklaus Mikaelson smiled with pride as he buckled the baby car seat into the back of his car. First time putting a baby seat in a car and it was a success. Now, he is just got to go get the baby. His baby.

His newborn daughter was three days old now and the baby and Caroline are healthy enough to return home from the hospital. Elena and Bonnie were able to go home the next day, but for some reason Caroline's blood pressure was too low and they wanted to monitor her for a few additional days.

As Klaus was locking his car, his eyes caught Tyler Lockwood's from across the parking lot. Tyler seemed to be at the hospital with Olivia for a check-up appointment for their own babies—twins, due in less than a month. Klaus sent a nod in Tyler's direction, and Tyler raised his hand as a greeting in return.

Klaus entered the hospital and made his way to his wife's room, only to see her walking down the hallways with their daughter in her arms.

"Caroline!" The blonde male exclaimed. "I was just about to get to the room! Why didn't you wait for me?"

Caroline shook her head. "I saw your car outside, so I decided to start making my way downstairs."

"But we need to put Elizabeth in her baby carrier. I just got the car seat all set up. Plus, you left your bag in the room," Klaus stated as he frenzied back towards her room.

"Right," Caroline said. "I must have forgot. I'm all disheveled. I just want to go home and take a nice hot shower in my own bathroom," she pouted as she followed her husband back to her hospital room.

Klaus chuckled and turned towards his wife. He cupped her face and brought her forehead to his lips. "I think you deserve a nice, long, warm bath. With wine and perhaps bubbles?"

Caroline gasped. "Wine? You read my mind, mister. And you'll get some special daddy-daughter time," she said as she gazed down at their sleeping daughter.

"And I cannot wait," Klaus grinned.

…

Jeremy woke up to the feeling of a giant earthquake shaking the bed.

Except it wasn't an earthquake, it was his six-year-old daughter.

"Emma," he groaned as he grabbed the young girl and started tickling her.

"Daddy!" she shrieked, laughter filling up the room.

Jeremy glanced at the clock and saw that it was 11:49 in the morning. He immediately jumped up and looked around for Anna.

"Where is Anna?" he asked the young girl.

"In the living room," Emma answered. "She made pancakes for breakfast!"

Jeremy shook his head as he followed his daughter down the stairs and when he reached the bottom, he saw Anna wrapped in the blanket, watching a movie.

"Hey baby," he kissed the top of her head. "How are you feeling?"

Anna has been feeling weak the past few weeks. She has been bleeding for the past few weeks. They knew it was a symptom for the placenta previa, but they were not expecting there to be so much blood. Anna was expecting spotting, not bleeding as if she was on her period.

Anna shrugged. "I'm fine, Jer," she rubbed the hand that was resting on her shoulder.

"Weeeee!" Emma interrupted as she jumped on the couch next to Anna, being extremely careful to not hurt Anna's baby bump. She knows to be careful of baby bumps anyway, but she understands that Anna has complications. Emma feels bad about what is happening to Anna and the baby. She feels sad about it. She knows how sad her dad is about it, so she tries to be happy when she is with her dad and Anna, to make them happy.

Anna gave a small smile to her stepdaughter. She admires how much Emma not only loves her, but Kol as well. She is miraculously well adjusted for a child her age. Hope is, too. When Anna was little, she hated every man that Pearl brought home. She is sure a lot of children felt that way. But not Emma or Hope. The young Gilbert loved Kol and Anna before the thought of younger siblings even came to the child's mind. She loves her baby brother a lot, and she already loves her sister.

Kol and Bonnie had their baby three days ago, and while Emma was there for the birth of her brother, the day that her mother and stepfather brought the baby home Jeremy took Emma home for a few days. That was the original plan for the following days after the wedding, but now with a newborn baby he wanted to give the newlywed couple some space for a few days. But Emma is set to go back to Bonnie and Kol's on Friday to help with the baby once they have gotten into a routine. Today was Wednesday, and they have had Emma since Sunday night.

"What are we going to do today?" Emma asked.

"Well, it's quite chilly outside. How about we stay in, make some hot cocoa and watch some movies?" Jeremy suggested.

"We can bake cookies!" Emma cheered. "Can we drop them off at mommy's and Kol's? And Auntie Elena and Uncle Damon's! And Auntie Caroline and Uncle Klaus'! Auntie Caroline is coming home from the hospital today!"

Jeremy and Anna both chuckled. They knew that Emma wanted excuses to see her baby brother and baby cousins.

"Yes, we can do that," Jeremy said as he leaned forward to start another tickle war with his daughter.

…

"Oh my god, this room is beautiful," Caroline smiled as she entered the nursery for Elizabeth. The walls were an off-white color, with pink elephants painted walking across the wall. The crib was pure white, with light pink blankets and a teddy bear holding a heart. All of the furniture was white. The rocking chair had a pink pillow and a stuffed elephant. The nursey had been done before she went into labor, but for some reason she really appreciates it now. Klaus painted everything and she was beyond grateful.

"You saw this room before you went to the hospital," Klaus chuckled as he placed Elizabeth's carrier on the ground. The walls may have been off-white and the furniture pure white, but the rug was a shade of light pink.

"I know, but it's truly beautifu—" Caroline was cut off by Elizabeth's crying as Klaus had released her from her cage.

"Shhhh…" Klaus hushed as he wrapped the baby into his arms. "Your mommy's—" the baby continued wailing. Klaus looked at Caroline. "I know you want to take your relaxing, much deserved bath, but I think she needs to be fed."

Caroline felt her heart race speed up. She shook her head. "I can't."

The blonde mother has had a tremendous amount of trouble feeding her child. Elizabeth will not latch on to the nipple and even when she manages to, she barely gets any milk. The nurses said that Caroline had plenty of breast milk to feed her daughter and gave her tips on how to do it successfully. They also suggested that the environment of the hospital can upset both mother and child, and that once they are home the nursing should go a lot smoother.

"Love…" Klaus kissed the top of her forehead. "The nurses said you would have better luck at home. Would you like to be the first to hold our daughter in the rocking chair?"

Caroline could feel the love and support illuminating from her husband and so she nodded. She felt a lot better when she had his love and support. She moved the toy elephant so he was off to the side and positioned the pillow so that she could sit comfortable in the chair. Klaus placed their daughter into her arms and she immediately stopped her wailing. She was whimpering, but the wailing had ceased. Caroline lifted down her shirt so that her breast was available to the hungry child. Elizabeth was able to latch onto the nipple, which made Caroline proud. Things are already looking better—

Elizabeth pulled her head away from the boob and started wailing again. She was unsuccessful in getting breast milk. Caroline felt her heart drop to the floor. She could not believe that the breastfeeding issue was still the problem. She bets her mother did not have this problem.

The blonde looked up at her husband with big, sad eyes. She did not know what to do.

Klaus kissed the top of her head. He had anticipated that the first days home with the baby would not be the smoothest sailing. For multiple reasons. It was Caroline's first child, and his too as he never got to take care of Hope while she was a newborn. He also anticipated that she would let in some fear about being a mother without Liz here to help. At least that is what Bonnie told him when he had stopped by to see her and Nate before Kol took them home from the hospital.

"I bought some formula just in case," he whispered. "Would you like to feed her before your bath?"

Caroline shook her head. "I've done enough damage for one day," she muttered.

"Hey…" Klaus stopped her from getting up, their daughter between them. "Do not blame yourself, okay? It is perfectly normal for mothers to use formula—"

"No mother that I know!" Caroline cried. "Elena, Bonnie, Sage, Katherine, Rebekah—they've all breast fed. I can't. I am a failure as a mother—"

"Love, it is only day three. You can't say that."

"Yes, I can!" she shouted, which cause Elizabeth to cry even louder.

"Shhhh…" Klaus whispered as he reached to take Elizabeth from Caroline. "Why don't you go take your bath? You feel stressed and probably gross from the hospital—although, you are glowing, you look beautiful. Your perception of your mind and body is probably contributing to this issue. A bath will relax you and relax your body."

Caroline nodded as she made her way to stand up. "I love you," she whispered as she leaned forward to kiss her husband on the lips. "You are so special." She glanced down at her daughter, who had tears pooling around her eyes. Caroline felt tears pooling in her eyes at the sight. She did that to her daughter because she is incapable of feeding her. Her heart was breaking by the moment. "I love you too, baby Lizzie," she whispered faintly as she kissed the top of her daughter's forehead.

Caroline exited the nursery and smiled as she heard Klaus talking to their daughter and trying to calm her down. She went into the kitchen and looked at their wine collection on the shelves. She decided on a classic Pinot Noir from Burgundy, France. She poured a heavy serving into a wine glass and headed for the bathtub. She saw that Klaus had installed a stereo and already laid a plethora of rose petals across the floor. Her heart melted at his romanticism. He really did know her. She put on an Ed Sheeran album and drew the bath. She stripped off her clothes and looked at her post-baby body. It certainly was not the body she had before her pregnancy, but she did lose a lot of her baby weight. She is amazed at how much her body could change from an actual human being exiting her body.

When she saw that the bathtub was full, she dropped some rose scented bath bombs and sat in. She was embraced by the warm water.

Her first thought as she tried to breathe with the relaxing environment was how she was already failing as a mother. She tried to shake the thoughts, but next in line was how she was a horrible daughter. A horrible friend, a horrible wife. She feels like she is letting everyone down.

No, no, stop. She tried to clear her thoughts, but she could not think of anything else.

You were a complete bitch to your mother for so many years. Sneaking out. Going to parties. Dating boys way too old for you. Dating boys who were bad for you.

You ruined Bonnie's wedding.

You stole Elena's boyfriend.

You cheated on Matt.

You drove Tyler away.

You broke Klaus's heart time and time again before you finally gave him a chance.

For a split second, you hated Hayley and Hope. How could you hate a young girl? A girl who did nothing wrong except being born.

You are not worthy of your little girl. You cannot even feed her. She knows you are a failure.

You were never enough. You were everyone's second best. Your dad chose another family, your mom chose her job, Damon chose Elena, Matt chose Elena, Stefan chose Elena, Tyler chose Vicky, Elena chose Bonnie, Klaus chose Hope—you are nothing and your daughter knows that. Your mother knew that.

You will fail as a mother.

Caroline kept shaking her head violently, hoping that the voices would stop.

Your mother is dead. She is gone.

Caroline broke the wine glass in her hand from squeezing too tight. She heard the glass shatter as it fell to the floor. She saw the mixture of red wine and blood run down her arm and drip onto the white bath rug. She shoved her hand under the water, hoping to wash it off. She buried herself beneath the water, feeling her face and hair get damp and feel the warmth. She tried to hold her breath as long as she could, but she eventually came up for air. The blonde took in a deep breath, but then let out a series of sobs. She curled herself into a ball, underneath the water and just let herself cry.

…

Damon sat in his daughter's room, admiring the rise and fall of the little baby's chest. In the distance, he could hear Elena tossing a ball with Christian in the front yard. His son shrieking as he jumps to get the ball. The oldest Salvatore brother smiles as he recalls how lucky he is to have this little family of his.

He heard the front door open and close and it was only moments before Elena came peaking her head around the doorframe to the nursery.

"Hey dad," Elena grinned as she entered the room and made her way over to her husband. Damon grinned back and grabbed her waist, pulling her onto his lap and kissed her cheek. She giggled at the movement.

"Hey mom," he whispered. "Can you believe we made that?"

She smiled. "She's absolutely beautiful. Takes after her daddy," she said, at which Damon rolled his eyes because that's his line to say about Elena. "We also made that little monster in the other room. Now he definitely takes after his dad," she grinned.

"What made you guys come inside?"

"Jeremy texted me that he and Emma are dropping off some homemade cookies. Christian was too excited, so he ran inside. He said something about hopping in the shower in order to get his cookies."

Damon laughed. "He hasn't taken a shower in a couple of days. He knows we wouldn't let him have cookies unless he takes a bath."

"We raised our boy right," Elena could not help but smile even wider. She wrapped her arms around Damon's neck and kissed him. "I am so happy to have this little family with you."

"Right back at you," Damon smirked as he hugged her closer.

…

Bonnie collapsed on the couch and took a deep breath. "Finally!"

Kol chuckled as he collapsed next to her. "That is one tough baby to put to bed."

Bonnie shook her head. "I want a nap. Or a glass of wine. Or ice cream."

"Or sex?" Kol smirked.

Bonnie smacked his shoulder. "You know it is best to wait a couple of weeks. The doctor said I could have complications up to two weeks after giving birth, but it's best recommended to wait four to six weeks."

Kol dropped his head. "I am not waiting six weeks," he chuckled. "I can wait two, though." He ran his hands down her curves and she shivered. "I have this really pretty wife and I just want to love her."

Bonnie smiled and cupped his face, bringing it closer to hers. He closed the distance between them and kissed her. This must be their first romantic kiss since the baby was born. It was only a few days, but their bodies missed each other.

Ding Dong.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Kol muttered as he rolled off Bonnie. He walked to the door and opened it, finding a Jeremy and Emma Gilbert holding a Tupperware of cookies.

"KOL-EY!" Emma shrieked as she gave him a hug.

Bonnie made her way to the door. "Is that my little monkey?"

"Mommy!" Emma ran to give her mom a hug.

"I am sorry to intrude, but Emma wanted to bake cookies and drop some off to you guys and Elena and Caroline," Jeremy explained.

"Did you guys stop by Caroline's?" Bonnie asked. She knew her best friend was coming home from the hospital today but has not gotten any updates from her at all. She was expecting a ton of Instagram pictures and was getting concerned.

"Yeah we went to Damon and Elena's first, and then Caroline and Klaus's."

"How was Caroline?"

Jeremy sighed.

"Not good?"

"Not from what I could tell."

Bonnie shared a look with Kol.

"I am going to give my big brother a call," the youngest male Mikaelson said as he stepped outside.

"Where's Nate?" Emma asked with big eyes.

"Aw, honey, he's sleeping. I just got him down after a horrendous three days," Bonnie said. "You can't see him, I'm sorry."

Emma pouted. "But I'll get to see him Friday?"

"Of course! Why don't you get us some bowls of ice cream and you and your dad can stay for some ice cream and cookies?" As the little girl made her way into the kitchen, Bonnie directed her attention to Jeremy. "What happened at Care's?"

"We didn't stay long, we just dropped off the cookies and spoke to Klaus for a minute. Klaus was holding Lizzie and it seemed like Caroline was just in her room. He explained that Caroline went to go take a bath with a glass of wine, but the glass shattered, and she cut herself. She is just trying to rest."

Bonnie sighed. "How is Anna doing?"

Jeremy shrugged. "Same old, same old. She is feeling weak and she is bleeding. Nothing more concerning than what the doctor had warned us, but it is pretty scary."

Bonnie reached out to touch her old boyfriend's shoulder. "I am so sorry."

Kol entered the room again and the two adults turned their attention to him.

"What did Klaus say?" Bonnie asked.

Kol sighed. "Care's having a tough time breast feeding and is beating herself up over it."

"I should call her—"

"No. Klaus said she needs a few days by herself. At least that is what she said she wanted. You'll get to see her on Sunday at family dinner."

Bonnie nodded. The now awkward conversation was saved by Emma running over and saying it was ice cream time.

…

Klaus slept soundly, listening to his wife's breathing next to him and his daughter breathing on the baby monitor. It is weird how the sound of someone you love breathing creates such a calming atmosphere.

Until he hears the whimpering of a newborn baby.

He sighs and turns on his side to face Caroline. It was her turn.

"Caroline…" he nudged her shoulder.

"Hmppp?" she mumbled.

"Lizzie is crying."

"You get her." And with that, she turned away from him.

He was taken aback by the fact that she snapped at him. This will have been the fifth time he has gotten up in the middle of the night for the baby. And it was only Elizabeth's first night home.

Granted, he knows that Caroline lost approximately nine months' worth of sleep due to her pregnancy symptoms and the baby kicking. The least he could do was be the one to get up in the middle night for a few weeks.

It was just… it was not the fact that she told him to get the baby, it was how she said it.

She has not been the same since she came out from her bath. First off, she comes out of the bathroom with eyes puffy and red and barely relaxed. There are cuts all down her arm, and he walks into the bathroom to see a mixture of red wine and blood covering their white bathroom titles and tub. He felt bad that this had to happen to her when she was finally getting to relax. She said it was her fault and she would clean it up, but being the good husband Klaus is, he insisted that he would clean it up.

When he finished cleaning the bathroom, he was expecting to come out and see Caroline holding the baby and being nurturing and in love, but when he came out all he saw was his wife laying on the couch on her phone. Lizzie was asleep in her bassinet, so he supposes maybe Caroline did hold her until she fell asleep, but he could not believe she just put her back in her bassinet once sleep hit. Most mothers love holding their newborn baby for hours. They could do it for days, according to Katherine and Rebekah.

Klaus sighed and kissed Caroline's shoulder. And then he got up and made his way to the nursery.

…

Another Sunday night, another Mikaelson Family Dinner. They skipped last Sunday because it was the day after Kol and Bonnie's wedding, and the day that three little miracles had been born. It was also Valentine's Day. If you remember the schedule, you would know that this week was supposed to be Klaus and Caroline's weekend to host; however, since the couple has a newborn baby they get to skip a few turns—Bonnie and Kol will get to as well. When Jonathan was born, Rebekah and Matt got to skip a few turns, and so did Finn and Sage when Lydia was born. So, if they are skipping Klaus and Kol's turns, it was Rebekah and Matt's turn tonight.

Klaus pulled up to his sister's house and put the car in park. Based on the five cars in the driveway, he knew he was the last to arrive. He sighed and looked over at the empty passenger's seat.

That is right. Caroline stayed home tonight.

"Can I get Lizzie out of her seat?" Hope asked her father, breaking him out of his trance.

"How old are you again?"

"I'm nine," she answered.

"Then nope," he chuckled. "You can carry her inside though."

He got out of the car and helped unbuckle the baby carrier from the car seat. He turned around and was almost spooked by how fast Hope climbed out of the vehicle and ran to the other side of the car.

"Can you hold it okay? Is it too heavy?" he asked as he gently handed the carrier to his older daughter.

"It's fine!" she exclaimed.

Klaus breathed out a small laugh and then gestured for her to lead the way inside.

"Klaus!" Bonnie greeted. "Hi Hope, Hi Lizzie," she smiled at the little girl and baby. Bonnie's smile fell when she saw Klaus shut the door behind him and there was no perky blonde best friend in sight. "Where's Caroline?"

Klaus sighed. "She doesn't feel too well, she stayed home tonight."

"Is she okay?" Finn asked.

Klaus made no sound or no movement. He didn't know what to say.

But Hope did.

"Caroline's been really sad."

"Because of her mom?" Matt asked.

Klaus slowly shook his head. Elijah took that cue as his brother was really upset about something. He figured Klaus didn't want to talk about what was bothering Caroline with all of the children in the room.

"Hope, Emma, why don't you guys take Tate and the twins into the nursery to play until dinner?"

Once the kids have cleared out, Elijah gestured to his brother to begin speaking. Katherine picked up her goddaughter and held her.

"What is going on with Caroline?" Bonnie pressed Klaus further. "I have not heard from her all week—Elena, Matt and Stefan haven't either. What's up?"

"Like Hope has said, she's sad. I think it's a cross of now being able to deal with her mother's death, and also she's been having a tough time connecting with Elizabeth."

"Yeah, you said she was having trouble breast feeding?" Kol remembered.

"She's taking it to heart—she feels like she's failing as a mother already and she wants absolutely nothing to do with the baby—" his voice started choking. "She doesn't even want to hold her."

"A lot of new mothers have a hard time bonding with their baby in the beginning," Sage spoke. "It doesn't last long. I think my baby blues lasted ten days."

Finn nodded. "When Tate was born, Sage was really upset because he would cry every time she would hold him. It was not either of their fault."

"I remember you were having a tough time…" Klaus said softly. "It only lasted ten days?"

Sage nodded. "It came out of nowhere. Baby blues is more common than you think."

"I had it," Rebekah spoke.

"You?" Klaus raised his eyebrows. "You were the most excited woman to become a mother that I know."

"Yeah. That doesn't mean I wasn't sad. Entering motherhood for the first time is very isolating and scary, and I think not having your own mother makes it worse."

"But we saw you when you came home from the hospital," Elijah pointed out.

"Yeah, and you didn't see me for almost a week later. Those five days I was a mess. Hell, I am still a mess."

"Rebekah had a difficult time sleeping, even when Jonathan was sleeping, and was very impatient with me and would cry if I made her macaroni and cheese with the spirals and not the elbows," Matt agreed.

"I would love to say that Caroline will be better in one week," Sage added, "but with the death of her mom, I think this lies deeper than baby blues."

"It's postpartum depression," Katherine said. "Baby blues is common in a lot of women, but it only lasts a few days up to two weeks. Anything longer than fourteen days is postpartum depression. I had it after I gave my daughter up. I mean, it was definitely more to do with the fact that I gave my daughter up for adoption, but still. I did a lot of research. Only thing I had better to do was cry. I read that hormone changes can cause it—baby blues. The different hormones from the pregnancy and after, along with the totally uprooted lifestyle, can cause a lot of irritability and anxiety."

"Caroline isn't irritable or anxious, she's just a zombie," Klaus snapped. "She's not doing anything. She just sleeps all day and all night and wants absolutely nothing to do with her daughter." His voice choked. Rebekah reached out to hug her older brother, who welcomed her embrace and let out a sob into her shoulder. "I don't know what to do."

The Mikaelson family did not know what to say or do to help their brother/brother-in-law. It was surreal for Kol, Finn and Elijah to see their brother, perhaps the toughest of them all, to break down in Rebekah's arms. Bonnie and Matt were also thrown off my Klaus' vulnerability, but they were heartbroken hearing what their best friend was going through. Caroline was always the cheeriest of them all, always had something nice to say, and always saw the good in people and in situations. It was hard for them to hear what was happening to the smile they had known since before kindergarten.

…

Klaus woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside his window and he could not help but smile. Those birds and how the try so hard to stay alive. How fast their hearts beat. It makes him thankful that he does not have to try so hard.

He looked over at the alarm clock and noticed it was ten o'clock in the morning. He jumped up. Elizabeth has not woken him up since four. He noticed that Caroline was not in bed next to him and immediately ran into the nursery.

Elizabeth was sound asleep in her crib.

Caroline was sitting in the rocking chair staring at the wall.

"Caroline, love?" He rubbed his eyes as he yawned and entered the bedroom. "Everything okay?"

The blonde nodded her head. "The baby was crying so I came in and sang her a few songs," she smiled.

Klaus mimicked her smile. It was small, but it was start. "That's great," he said, hoping that this meant that she was overcoming her depression. It has been two and half weeks since he expressed his concerns about his wife to their family. He was hoping this was the turn of the leaf.

"Anyway, now that you are awake, you can watch her. I am going back to bed," Caroline said as she stood.

"Wh-what?" Klaus stuttered. "Why would you go back to bed? Stay up and spend the day with me and your daughter—"

"Maybe tomorrow. I have a headache and I feel nauseous," the blonde spoke.

"You've been saying that everyday for three weeks, Caroline."

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know what you want from me."

"What I want?!" He began raising his voice and immediately regretted it when the baby started crying. He closed his eyes and took a breath. He knows that getting angry at Caroline is not going to help her situation at all. "I am sorry, I did not mean to raise my voice," he whispered as he reached to pick up his daughter.

"Were you talking to me or the baby?" Caroline snapped.

Klaus closed his eyes and took a deep breath once again. Bonnie taught him yoga breathing years ago when he was stressed about Esther. Never thought he would have to use these techniques against the love of his life.

"I was talking to both of you," he answered. "I love you."

Caroline's tough exterior melted for a split second. "I love you, too… But I don't see how you can love me when I am a failure and a disappointment. I am a neurotic control freak who is always second best."

Klaus' heart broke as he heard those words come from his wife's mouth.

"Why would you say those things?"

"BECAUSE THEY ARE TRUE!" Caroline shoved all of the baby toys and clothes off the bureau. "The voices are right! My mom knew it and so does the baby!" Caroline shook her head repeatedly as she paced the room.

Klaus stood frozen as he saw the love of his life crumble before his eyes, onto the floor sobbing, reaching for anyone to hold her. This woman, the strongest woman that he knows, is so weak. His heart was breaking as he witnessed this psychotic break. She has been thinking these things for weeks and he didn't know how to help her.

…

*March 12th, 2016*

"Jeremy!" Anna shouted from the bathroom. "Get in here!" she shrieked.

Jeremy ran at full speed up the stairs, fearing the worst. But when he reached the upstairs bathroom, he just saw his girlfriend in front of the mirror with her shirt lifted over her pregnant belly.

"I am actually big!" Anna squealed. "I've barely looked at myself because I've been so sick but look at me! There's a baby in there." Anna grabbed his hands and placed them on her stomach. "See? She is kicking. This is a good sign."

Jeremy grinned and kissed her forehead.

With all of Anna's complications, they have not been able to feel the baby kick. To feel his daughter kicking made his heart leap for joy. It was a sign that the baby was okay. And he did have to agree that Anna's stomach had gotten a lot bigger. The last time he noticed her stomach she was tiny. Her pregnancy was tiny to begin with. He tries not to look at her stomach because if he did, he would feel guilty about what the pregnancy was doing to her, but at this moment he was filled with so much hope that he did not care.

"You look beautiful," Jeremy kissed her forehead again. He cupped her face in his hands and just kissed her face all over. "I love you so so so much."

Anna smiled against his touch.

Jeremy bent down and kissed Anna's stomach. "Only two more weeks until we get to meet you, baby."

Anna smiled at his confidence as he said "we." At first, Jeremy held a lot of resentment towards her for going through with this pregnancy when she could very much die. The though of raising this baby without her scared the living shit out of him. It scared her, too. Eventually, Jeremy became the optimistic one. That Anna and the baby would both get to live. Anna has to cry to herself when he is gone because she has this feeling like she is dying, and she will not survive this.

"Jer, I think I heard the timer beep," Anna announced.

The boy laughed and stood up and kissed his girlfriend one more time. "Dinner is ready in just a few minutes," he told her as he made his way out the bathroom and down the stairs.

"I'll be right down!" Anna shouted. She turned around to look at herself in the mirror. She had just gotten dressed after taking her shower when she noticed the bump and shouted for Jeremy to come to the bathroom. She picked up the hairbrush to continue brushing her hair.

Drip. Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Anna frowned. Did I forget to turn the shower off all the way?

She walked towards the shower and widened the curtain, but the dial was turned all the way off. When she turned around she saw what the dripping sound was.

Blood.

She must have started bleeding. Blood was smeared all over the floor.

She started to feel lightheaded. "JER—" she tried to shout but started losing her balance. "Jeremy," she whispered as she collapsed to the ground, her head hitting the side of the sink.

Downstairs, Jeremy vaguely heard Anna calling his name so he started to make his way up the stairs. He heard a clang and ran the rest of the way.

He arrived in the bathroom to see his pregnant girlfriend, collapsed on the floor, covered in her own blood. Blood was soaking her hair too because she hit her head on the sink.

Falling to his knees and crying, he managed to get his phone out of his pocked and call 911.

…

"How is she?!" Elena cried as she ran through the doors of the Mystic Falls General Hospital. She immediately ran to her baby brother, who was a mess on the side of the hallway. He was waiting outside of the surgical room where the doctors were performing an emergency C-section.

"They are doing an emergency C-section…" he whimpered, "Oh, god, Elena, there was so much blood."

Elena sat down beside her brother on the hospital floor and wrapped her arms around him. Although tears were streaming down her face, she knew she had to be tough for him. That is their whole life. No matter what is falling apart in her own life, or both of their lives, she always protected Jeremy, because that is what big sisters do.

Elena was the first one to arrive at the hospital, so the two Gilbert siblings sat in silence. Elena let Jeremy sob into her chest as she held him tight, as if he were still a baby and could fit in her lap. The two didn't even notice when more of their friends and family began to arrive. Jenna, Alaric, Katherine, Elijah, Kol, Bonnie, Damon, Matt, Rebekah, Pearl, and even John. They all noticed how much of a mess Jeremy was and they were not expecting any recognition from him that they were there. They let him cry into Elena's arms.

"Jeremy Gilbert?" A nurse came out of Anna's hospital room.

Elena helped Jeremy stand up and the younger Gilbert composed himself to hear some news about Anna and/or the baby.

"Would you like to meet your daughter?" the nurse said as another nurse exited the room with a little pink bundle. Pearl gasped with a bittersweet smile and Elena grinned through her tears.

Jeremy was in awe as his newborn daughter was placed into his arms. His worried faded away for a moment.

But only a moment.

"Is Anna okay?" Jeremy asked the nurses.

The first nurse nodded. "Her vitals remain stable. The pregnancy complications and the severe blood loss from the pregnancy are not going to cost her her life—however," the nurse tried to get in the however before her patient's friends and families took a breath of relief. "When she collapsed, she hit her head and there's been some severe blood loss from her head and trauma to the brain. We were able to stop the bleeding and stabilize her, but she is in a coma and it is up to her to wake up."

"If she hadn't hit her head, would she be awake and well right now?" Jeremy asked softly, only audible to the nurse who he was speaking with.

The nurse shrugged her shoulders. "It is difficult to say, but most likely, yes."

…

"Is she going to wake up soon?" Emma asked as sat in Anna's hospital room, looking up at her father.

Because they weren't sure what the hospital was going to look like when they got there, Bonnie and Kol dropped Emma off with Tyler and Liv before they went to the hospital the night Brooke was born. Once they found out Brooke was healthy and alive, and Anna is on her way to that too, Bonnie texted Liv that they and Emma were able to come to the hospital. Liv had gone outside to where Emma and Tyler were playing catch and announced that Anna had the baby, because they did not want to tell Emma that Anna was having the baby if there could be sincere complications and perhaps death. Emma was ecstatic and ran towards the door, dragging her Uncle Tyler behind her, shouting, "LET'S GO MEET MY BABY SISTER, MOVE IT OR LOSE IT LOCKWOOD!"

Tyler had just laughed while Olivia smiled at him. Liv's due date was just a week away and it still seemed unreal to them.

Back in the present, Emma was cooing at her baby sister in the bassinet and had assumed that Anna was just sleeping—until, Jeremy sat next to her with a serious look on his face. She did not like when any of the adults in her life had their serious face on. It meant something bad had happened.

"Anna had hit her head just before we came to the hospital. She is alive and well, it's just we have to wait for her to wake up," Jeremy explained to his six-year-old daughter.

"Is she going to wake up soon? Can't we just tell her to wake up?"

Jeremy shook his head. "No. She cannot hear us."

Emma frowned. She turned towards Anna's direction and jumped as she finally noticed all the wires hooked up to Anna's face and the large bandage on the side of her head. The child guesses that she was so excited to see her baby sister that she just completely ignored the girl in the hospital bed.

"I hope you wake up soon, Anna," Emma spoke. "Because Brooke here needs you, and daddy needs you, and I need you. Your baby is really beautiful."

Jeremy let so many tears fall from his eyes as he grabbed his daughter and held her close. He couldn't imagine a better little girl than the one he has in his arms at this very moment and a better big sister for the tiny baby asleep in the bassinet next to him.

…

Caroline sat in front of the piano, letting her fingers dance along the keys. The melody made her feel serenity and peace and her heart begin to open, one note at a time.

When she was nine, Liz signed her up for piano lessons. However, two weeks later, she begged her parents to let her quit so she could join the community cheerleading squad instead. She remembers her mother being disappointed, but ultimately let Caroline do what she wanted because a child should get to choose what they did for their past time. The blond knows that her mother wanted her to become a piano prodigy, and so playing makes her feel closer to her mother somehow. Of course, with only two weeks of playing when she was nine years old, she absolutely sucked at playing the piano. But during these last few weeks, she taught herself and today was the first melody that she has memorized, and it sounds beautiful.

If only her mother could hear it and be proud of her.

Although, there is an Elizabeth right in front of her who loves the music she is playing. Caroline came to the end of the song and turned to look at her daughter. Caroline really feels some strong bonding with her baby when she is playing music or singing as it is the only thing that helps Lizzie go to sleep. Maybe this baby will be a singer.

Elizabeth looked up from her bassinet and giggled at her mom. Caroline took that as applause.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," the new mother laughed.

"That was beautiful," Klaus spoke.

"God!" Caroline screamed as she jumped out of her seat. "You scared me!"

Elizabeth started wailing.

"Oh no, honey, mommy's sorry, please stop crying, I didn't mean to yell—" Caroline sighed as she tried to fix the blanket around her daughter.

Klaus felt bad that he snuck up on Caroline like that and appeared to have ruined her moment with their daughter. Caroline playing the piano is the only time she seems to enjoy having the baby as company.

Klaus approached Caroline and Elizabeth.

"Honey, I don't think you scared her, I think she's hungry," Klaus told his wife.

Caroline shook her head. "Of course. I am so bad at reading my own baby, I mean—" she leaned back on the bench and let out a little sob. "I'm failing so bad at this."

"No, no, no," Klaus tried to comfort her, but she pushed his hand away.

"I am going to go for a walk. Don't wait up," she snapped and then she way out the door.

…

*March 17th, 2016*

Tyler groaned as he heard the doorbell ring. He'd barely been home twenty-four hours with his newborn babies before he had visitors.

Not to his surprise, he opened the door to find Elena and Bonnie with muffin baskets and huge smiles on their faces.

"We come bearing gifts!" Elena exclaimed.

"And some snacks and a couple of homecooked meals," Bonnie added. "Having a newborn baby is tough, but two? You guys won't be wanting to cook for weeks."

"Save some money on takeout," Elena smiled as she walked into the kitchen to place some their gifts on the counter. "Until each of your parents arrive in a couple of days," she smirked.

Liv, who was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee, snorted. "The twins came two days early and my dad and Tyler's mom are having mental breakdowns from across the country, trying to get here."

"How are the little ones doing?" Elena asked.

"Good," Tyler answered. "Maya's been down for a nap for an hour, but we just got Lukas down."

"He's a little handful," Liv added. "It seems like girls are easier."

"They always are," Elena said dreamily while Bonnie said bitterly.

Liv took their responses as Chris was a nightmare, but Stefanie is a dream, and Nate is absolute disaster, but Emma was a breeze.

Her phone began to ring, and the caller ID said Luke, so Liv excused herself from the kitchen, leaving the childhood friends to themselves. They decided to move to the living room.

"Have you guys heard from Caroline?" Tyler asked.

Elena shook her head sadly.

"How about Jer?" Bonnie asked. "How's he doing?"

Elena sighed. "Anna is still in a coma. Jeremy's fighting as hard as he can and trying to be the best dad that he can to Brooke, but he's not as tough as he thinks he is. I worry about him. You know, he's lost too many people in his life and he can't lose Anna too."

"Klaus texts me about Caroline every so often," Bonnie spoke. "The only time she enjoys spending with the baby is when she's playing the piano. Klaus says she's gotten really good."

"Caroline can play the piano?" Tyler raised his eyebrow. "Didn't she quit lessons after like two weeks when we were nine?"

"She's been teaching herself," Bonnie explained. "Klaus assumes it makes her feel closer to her mother."

"I can't believe she hasn't reached out to either of you," Tyler shook his head. "You three have been inseparable since preschool. It's bizarre to me that she's trying to get through this without you."

"It's bizarre to me too," Elena agreed. "We told her on the night we were all in labor that we were always there for her and we'd help her with anything that she needed and then it was like silence. I feel at a lost. I don't know how to help someone who doesn't want my help."

"I text her everyday that I love her. She never responds but starting last week she actually opened the message. Hopefully, one of these days the little three dots will show up or maybe even words," Bonnie said. Elena grabbed her best friend's hand and squeezed.

"And 'Lena," Tyler began speaking, "Jer's gonna be fine. He's a lot stronger than you think."

"Yeah," Bonnie agreed and squeezed Elena's hand back. "You always look at him like he's still a baby. He may be your little brother, but he's not so little anymore."

"Of course, you would know that, Bonnie," Tyler smirked.

"Ugh, gross," Elena groaned, while Bonnie lifted up a pillow to hit Tyler in the face with it.

"Hey, I at least got you two laughing!"

Bonnie and Elena just shared a smile.

…

Caroline returned from her walk, feeling numb. For a while, these late-night walks made her feel good, walking through nature and feeling everything that it had to offer. But tonight, all she felt was numb. She entered through the back gate and on her way into the house she stopped to stare at the pool. It looked inviting.

There was something drawing her towards it.

She stepped away. No, it was too cold. She can't go swimming.

Who said anything about swimming?

She took a step forward, another step forward, another one…

Until she was falling.

She felt her body break the surface of the water and felt her body sinking to the floor of the pool. She just stood there. She didn't breathe. She let the pain engulf her lungs and it felt good. It felt real. She could actually feel something.

Lizzie.

She thought of her daughter and how all she wanted to do was to get back into the house and hold her. But her legs and arms wouldn't move. She felt like a prisoner trapped inside her own body, pounding to get out.

SWIM.

Her brain was yelling at her muscles to move but she was frozen. She started screaming under water.

And then she was grabbed by an angel and brought to the surface. She engulfed a large amount of air and cried out. Her guardian angel was taking her to the side of the pool and laid her down on the grass. She looked up to see her husband looking over her.

"You need to get help!" he cried. "Caroline, love, please, I love you so much," Klaus cried as he brought her closer to his chest. "I want you to get help. You need to get help."

All Caroline could do was nod and silently cry into his chest. But she did something she hasn't done in weeks. She wrapped her arms around him and cried into his shoulder. She let him comfort her.

And there we go. Caroline's going through some tough times… and what will happen to Anna?

I hope to have the next chapter up soon. It is all outlined, the scenes just need to be written. Originally, I was going to have both chapters complete and post them within a few days of each other, but I've taken so long to actually sit down and finish writing this one that I want to let you guys have this chapter to hold you over.

I hope you guys are having a great summer, wherever you are, and staying safe.

Please remember to review! I got so many reviews before I took my four-year long hiatus—so, I guess it's my fault. But reviews let me know that someone besides me is enjoying this story. Of course, I see all of your follows and favorites, and I appreciate that so much (welcome, my new friends!), but reviews are nice so I know that I am not completely butchering our favorite characters.

Stay safe and I love you all… xoxo