Hey everyone! Sorry for the slight delay, editing took a lot longer than I expected! Anyways, enjoy this chapter :)
The slam of Caroline's car door could have been heard from miles away that evening. She stormed up her front stairs, rummaging through her bag for her keys. She was furious. During lunch, she had gone down to the school office to get switched out of Klaus's art class and found that the secretary was surprisingly firm about not letting her switch. About ten minutes into their conversation, she realized that Klaus had compelled every last member of the school faculty to make sure she wouldn't be able to switch out.
Gritting her teeth, Caroline shoved her key into the front door and pushed the door open without even flinching as the knob hit the wall behind it. The moment she stepped in, however, the delicious smell of Italian food flooded her head, making her stomach grumble with hunger. She frowned slightly as she closed the door; her mother was supposed to be at work that evening. Throwing her bag onto a hook, she sauntered into the kitchen. "Mom? I thought you had – "
Caroline froze in the doorway of her kitchen, her eyes wide. Klaus looked up at her and waved with the ladle he was using to stir pasta sauce. "Good evening, love."
"Uh," Caroline walked over to the counter cautiously, as though she was expecting him to jump out and snap her head off. "What're you doing?"
"Making you dinner, of course," he replied, reaching up to open a cabinet door. She gaped back at him as he pulled out a small spice bottle that she didn't even know was in that cabinet.
"What? N-no, you need to go," she said, wringing her hands frantically. Klaus looked up at her, a devious smile on his face. "My, uh, mom's going to be home soon."
"Come on, now, sweetheart," he laughed, adding a dash of spice to the sauce. "We both know your mother's working tonight."
Caroline exhaled heavily, folding her arms across her chest. "Seriously? Why are you doing this?"
Klaus turned around and held out the spoon, asking her to taste the sauce. When she raised an eyebrow skeptically, he shrugged and turned back to the sauce, completely ignoring her question. Growling under her breath, she reached out to pull the spoon out of his hand, glaring at him when he caught her wrist. "You need to go, Klaus."
"Oh, come on," Klaus looked at Caroline through his eyelashes, creating a perfect puppy impression. "You're hungry, and I'm a good cook. Maybe we can do some of that art homework afterwards?"
Resisting the urge to smile at his pleading, she turned her nose up and narrowed her eyes. "There was no art homework, Mr. Mikaelson."
He lowered the heat on the sauce and turned around to face her, his eyebrows raised. "Would you like me to assign some?"
Caroline felt her cheeks flush pink. She didn't know if it was just her or if everything he said sounded like a sexual innuendo, but he sure was good at making her uncomfortable. Clearing her throat, she took a step back, her eyebrows furrowed together. "I actually have homework, so I'm going to…"
"Oh, go ahead, love," he replied airily, turning to the pasta cooking on the stove. "I'll call you once dinner's ready."
Caroline walked out of the kitchen hesitantly, feeling weird about the fact that Klaus the Big Bad Hybrid was cooking her dinner. Shaking her head, she grabbed her bag off the hook and walked into the living room, settling on the couch that let her keep an eye on Klaus. Unfortunately, it was also the couch that let him keep an eye on her.
She pulled out her math textbook and drew absentmindedly on the graph paper, watching Klaus's back with suspicious eyes. She didn't trust him, and she didn't think she ever would. Not after everything he had done to her and her friends.
"Checking to make sure I'm not adding vervain, love?"
Caroline's eyes snapped back to her textbook as Klaus turned around to smirk at her, and she began to do her math homework for real. After what felt like hours of breaking her head over the math problems, she tossed her book down on the sofa and got up to stretch her legs. Eventually, curiosity led her straight to the kitchen to see what Klaus was doing.
To her surprise, he had finished cooking and the smell of the food was wafting towards her, making her mouth water. She followed the smell of the food into the dining room, and her eyes widened when she took the room in. Klaus had gone all out; candles were lit, the silverware was out, and he had actually managed to find nice serving plates for the pasta.
"Dinner is served."
Caroline jumped as Klaus's raspy voice came from behind her, and she whirled around to find him standing behind her, holding a bottle of wine in his hands. He was so close to her that she could see every fleck of blue in his mesmerizing eyes, and she found herself captivated by them, as though he was trying to compel her. Realizing how close they were standing, she stepped into the dining room to distance herself.
Klaus shot around her and pulled out her chair for her, shooting her a smirk as she lowered herself into the chair. He sat to her immediate right, his long legs brushing ever so slightly against hers. She tried to ignore the feeling of the fabric of his pants against her jeans as she clasped her hands together, trying not to dig in right away.
"So are you going to tell me why you cooked me dinner?" asked Caroline, raising her eyebrows at the Hybrid sitting across from her. He leaned his chin into his hand and looked up at her with an amused expression.
"Because I fancy you," he replied simply, shrugging slightly. She glared at him, remembering the night of the Ball, when she first heard him admit it.
"Y-you're not allowed to like me," said Caroline, frowning. "This isn't going to work. I'm never going to like you back."
"Well, now, don't make promises you can't keep," said Klaus, his eyes narrowing slightly. "If you don't have a single ounce of feelings for me, then why does your heartbeat speed up every time I come near you?"
Her eyes widened as he edged closer to her, and just as he had said, her heart began to race. He pulled back with a victorious smirk, but reached out to place his hand over hers. "Take the chance, Caroline, or you'll never know what you could have had."
Suddenly, the doorbell rang, pulling them both out of their intense conversation. Caroline shot up out of her seat and headed for the door, looking back questioningly at Klaus. He shrugged, getting up to follow her. She gestured wildly for him to stay where he was as she wrapped her fingers around the knob, and he leaned against the wall, folding his arms across his chest.
Caroline pulled the door open without even thinking, cursing herself for forgetting to check. To her surprise, Bonnie was standing at the door with a sheepish expression on her face. "Hey, Care."
"H-hey, Bonnie," Caroline's eyes widened as she realized that Bonnie was at her doorstep while Klaus was inside her house. Bonnie clasped her hands together, looking nervous.
"Is it alright if I stay for the night?" asked Bonnie, her eyes pleading. "It's just… it's getting pretty lonely over at my place."
"Of course," Caroline replied automatically, shooting her a sympathetic smile. She looked casually to her right and locked eyes with Klaus, who looked way too amused. She furrowed her eyebrows together pleadingly, begging him to leave. After a moment of thought, he shot her a smirk.
"You owe me," he mouthed, clearly waiting for a response. Caroline took a deep breath, biting at her lower lip. She knew that she was going to regret this for the rest of her life. Who knew what owing meant to Klaus? But looking back at Bonnie, who was starting to look suspicious, she decided that she was going to have to take the chance. Nodding ever so slightly at Klaus, Caroline stepped aside to let Bonnie in.
"Thank you so much," Bonnie smiled, pulling her into a hug. Caroline hugged her back, looking over her shoulder to check if Klaus had left. Sure enough, there was no trace of the Original Hybrid except for the unmistakable scent of his presence.
Okay, so is it just me who was pissed that there was no Klaroline last episode? Hopefully this made up for it! I might be posting again tomorrow if I finish the next chapter. Till next time :)
