So after all the positive feedback, I decided to continue this story! It'll probably end up as a five-shot. Thank you to everyone for your reviews, they make my day! Enjoy :)


"So did you hear that Klaus is back in town?"

Caroline's head snapped in Bonnie's direction at her mention of the Original Hybrid's name, and she had to swerve around another car to avoid hitting it with her silver Nissan. "Unfortunately, yes. He, uh, paid me a visit before I met with you guys for dinner yesterday."

"What?" Bonnie's eyes widened, her mouth threatening to drop down all the way to the ground. "Why didn't you tell us yesterday?"

"Because Elena's going to start to worry, and she'll involve Damon, who's going to come up with another psychotic plan to kill Klaus," said Caroline quickly, looking briefly at Bonnie as the car halted at a stop light. "So don't tell her."

"Isn't that what we want?" asked Bonnie, raising an eyebrow suspiciously. "To kill Klaus?"

"Well, he isn't here to cause any trouble," said Caroline, cursing herself mentally for sounding so defensive. She could feel her friend's incredulous eyes on her, and she cringed under the witch's gaze.

"Then what is he here for?"

Caroline fixed her eyes on the road ahead, refusing to respond. She knew how ridiculous it would sound if she told Bonnie the truth, and yet she couldn't bring herself to lie to her best friend. "He, um, got a teaching job. At Mystic Falls High."

Bonnie's silence signified that she was just as shocked as Caroline had been. "As what? There aren't any open positions now that Alaric's back to work."

"Apparently there was a position open for an art teacher," she replied, shaking her head slightly. "Or he opened it. Either way, now I'm stuck in a class with the Big Bad Hybrid."

"Wait, you're in that class?" Caroline shot Bonnie a glare as she caught the laugh in her voice. "Oh, this is going to be interesting."

"Not for long," Caroline snapped, pulling the Nissan to a stop in her usual parking spot. She got out of the car and gave Bonnie a knowing look. "I'm going to try to switch out afterschool today."


Taking a deep breath, Caroline strolled into the vast upper floor that served as Mystic Falls High's art studio. She didn't realize how loud her heels were until they were clicking against the linoleum of the silent studio, and she looked up to find that the class was already in their seats. Her eyes travelled to the front of the studio, where Klaus was standing with his arms folded across his chest, an amused expression on his face. He was dressed in a light grey vest over a white collared shirt, and Caroline had to admit that he made dowdy teaching attire look hot.

"Miss…" Klaus raised his eyebrows, waiting for Caroline to continue. She raised an eyebrow, trying her hardest not to grit her teeth.

"Forbes."

Klaus looked down at his attendance sheet and checked something, undoubtedly marking her late. He looked back up at her, his baby blue eyes sparkling with anticipation. "There's a seat empty right up front, Miss Forbes."

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes at Klaus's formality, she strolled to the front of her class and flung her bag over the edge of her seat. She was determined to show Klaus, or Mr. Mikaelson as he had written on the board, that she didn't give a crap about his class. Turning left to right, Caroline realized that all the girls in her class were seated near the front, probably for the optimal view of Klaus's Hybrid behind. She smirked as she thought of how many awkward conversations Klaus was going to be overhearing in the semester, and she decided that his class might not be so bad after all.

"So, as I was saying, today we will be doing some simple sketching," said Klaus, his rich accent resounding throughout the room. "The purpose of this is to bring light to the drawing without the use of bright colors. Use shading, stippling, or any techniques that you already know, and try and make your drawing speak. You have thirty minutes."

Caroline frowned, looking down at the blank piece of paper under her elbows. She had never taken an art class before in her life, let alone knowing techniques like shading or stippling. Rumpling her hair in her hand, she picked up her pencil and held it to the paper, hesitating to make a stroke.

"Stuck already, love?"

Caroline exhaled sharply, her pencil making a harsh stroke across her page. She looked to find Klaus only a few inches away from her face, and she involuntarily flinched backwards, regretting it as soon as a smirk spread over his face. His voice was low enough so that only she could hear him, but that didn't stop her from feeling nervous. "You're thinking too much about it, Caroline. Just draw what you feel."

"Then I'm going to need some charcoal," she muttered, edging away from him and trying to block him out by creating a curtain with her hair. She could hear Klaus's gentle chuckle as he walked past her, and she gripped her pencil tighter, resisting the urge to throw it at him.

The brunette girl beside Caroline was hard at work on her drawing, using her fingers to smudge at the pencil. Klaus surveyed her paper with appreciative eyes, leaning closer to get a better look. "That's very well done. Have you taken art classes before?"

The girl looked up and batted her eyelashes at him, twirling her pencil in her fingers. "A few. None as good as this one, though."

Caroline rolled her eyes, turning her body away from the conversation. As much as she hated to admit it, she was jealous of the girl. Sure, she was being pathetic by trying to flirt with her art teacher, but Caroline wished she could draw as well as her. To show Klaus up, of course, not for compliments.

Taking a deep breath, she put her pencil to the paper and began to draw. She didn't realize what she was drawing until a few minutes later, when a very familiar bench appeared on the page. With a start, she realized that she was drawing her favourite bench in Mystic Falls' only park. Bending over her page, she began to create little swirls to accent the trees around the bench, dotting the shade from the trees over the bench.

By the time Klaus had rounded the classroom and come back to the front, Caroline was done her drawing and was just putting down her pencil. As he approached her desk, however, she found herself folding her arms over the drawing, hiding it from view. When he raised his eyebrows questioningly, she looked down at her hands, pressing her lips together firmly. There was something about that drawing that made it too personal for her to share with him. It felt as though she was opening up her heart to him, and that was the last thing she wanted to do.

"Do you know him?" whispered the brunette beside Caroline as he walked away, obviously assuming that Klaus couldn't hear them. Caroline saw his cheeks rise up into a smile though he was facing the chalkboard, and she couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking.

She turned back to the brunette, shrugging slightly. "Used to."

"Huh," scoffed the brunette, looking from Klaus back to Caroline. "That is a lot of sexual tension for just someone you used to know."

Caroline's eyes widened slightly at her words, and she felt her cheeks go red as Klaus turned around to face the class. She could feel his eyes on her as he spoke, but she resisted the urge to look up and instead focused on her drawing. That bench had been her shoulder to lean on ever since she was a child. She discovered it when she ran away the night her father left, and she had returned to it multiple times, including when she was rejected by Stefan, used by Damon, turned into a vampire, left by Tyler and even when Klaus was trying to mess with her mind. Maybe that was why she couldn't bring herself to show the drawing to him; it would be like giving away her last hiding place.

The rest of the class went on without any distractions from Klaus, but Caroline found herself wanting to know what he was thinking every five seconds. Before she knew it, class was being dismissed and the studio was almost empty except for the brunette, who was flirting relentlessly with Klaus at the front of the room. Rolling her eyes, Caroline turned to leave, slinging her bag over her shoulder. But before she could make the dramatic entrance she was planning, Klaus darted past the brunette and grabbed her hand. "Don't go. Stay back for a bit."

She looked past Klaus and stared pointedly at the brunette before meeting his gaze again. Rolling his eyes, he darted back to the brunette and had her under his compulsion in seconds. "Leave."

Caroline watched as the brunette flounced out of class absentmindedly, leaving her alone in the studio with Klaus. She turned around to find him gazing at her drawing, and she ran over and snatched it out of his hands. "I didn't say you could look at that."

"Why?" Klaus took it out of her hands again, grabbing her wrist as she tried to snatch it again. "It's beautiful."

"It's private," she hissed, trying to wrench her hand away. He finally let go of her hand after staring into her eyes for a few minutes, placing the drawing back on the table.

"So is that all I am to you? Someone you used to know?" he asked, looking at Caroline with sad eyes. She tried to ignore the pang of guilt in her heart, tilting her head upwards and folding her arms across her chest.

"You know it isn't right to eavesdrop," she retorted, ignoring his question. The truth was, he was so much more than he ever knew he would be. Klaus was the Original vampire, the Big Bad Wolf, the murderer and the sire-crazed ripper, but he could also be kind, thoughtful, and a complete gentleman. Sometimes, she felt like she was dealing with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. But that always left her wondering which one was the real Klaus.

"It was hard not to," he admitted, looking slightly sheepish. "Especially after something was said about sexual tension."

Caroline felt herself flush beet-red again, and she brushed her golden locks away from her heated cheeks. "Everything must look like sexual tension to her. I mean, she was practically horny the whole class."

"Is that jealousy I detect?" asked Klaus, the sparkle returning to his eyes. She glared up at him, checking if he was joking.

"Don't get your hopes up," she replied, flipping her hair over her shoulder to hike her bag further up. "You're barking up the wrong tree with me."

"Is that so?" Klaus stepped in front of her, blocking her path to the door. "And why do you think that I won't have a chance?"

"Because the way a relationship works is that both people have to like each other," she enunciated, waving her hands around wildly. "But unfortunately, I hate your guts. So I'm afraid this won't work."

"Did you know that a person's heartbeat speeds up when they're lying?" Klaus reached out and placed a hand over her left collarbone, her heart hammering through her chest. "Yours sounds like it's about to jump out your throat, love."

"I have no need to lie to you, Klaus," she snapped, pushing his hand away. "You were going to use me for your stupid sacrifice. And you sent my werewolf boyfriend to bite me. Of course I hate you, you wanted me dead."

"But that was before I knew you," His gaze softened and he reached out to stroke the side of Caroline's face, smiling slightly when she slapped his hand away. "And now that I do, I absolutely adore you."

Caroline felt her face go red, and she looked down to avoid falling prey to Klaus's puppy dog eyes. "I told you before. I'm too smart to be seduced by you."

"And I told you before," Klaus leaned down until his lips were at her ear, whispering into her hair. "That's why I like you."

Caroline rolled her eyes, ignoring the way her heart raced when he moved closer. She couldn't let herself fall for him. She had had her fair share of dangerous lovers, but this was going too far. "Can I leave now?"

"Come on, Caroline," said Klaus, turning around and walking away from her. "We both know that you could have left a long time ago if you really wanted to."

A growl of frustration slipped from Caroline's throat, and she turned on her heel to leave. Partially because of what he had said about her being able to leave, but mostly because of how the way he said her name was making her feel. It wasn't supposed to be like this; the thought of her being with Klaus just wasn't right. But what scared her was that it was so forbidden that it was tempting.


Next chapter should be up Friday afternoon :)