A Closer Walk with Thee

Hayley gazed down at the streets in awe. So this was New Orleans. Somebody dies and the entire city erupts into a chaotic celebration with booze and sex on every corner. The people down here needed their livers checked desperately.

She wrapped her arms around herself and sighed. The encounter with Mikael earlier was still tormenting her. Was he right? What would happen after she had this baby? What would Klaus do to her? To the both of them? She tried to push the thoughts out of her head and let the ruckus on the street flood into her mind. As noisy as it was, she found the blaring jazz and loud laughter rather soothing. I guess this place really was starting to feel like home.

Hayley heard footsteps coming down the hall and stop in her doorway. The faint odor of a familiar cologne entered the room and it gave her confirmation as to who she thought might be checking up on her. There was no doubt she had probably scared him earlier, and she was a little nervous to see what he had to say. However, he said nothing as he stood silently behind her. Typical.

"If I died and someone threw a party, I would be so pissed," she said looking out into the street. She smiled to herself knowing that was a blatant lie. Hell, she would want the entire state of Louisiana to go all out. She didn't deal with death and grief very well, so she certainly didn't want others crying over her. She sucked in a breath as the footsteps continued and led to the feeling of a presence close behind her.

"You almost did."

Elijah's voice and words sent a shiver down her spine. He was right. She had brushed death yet again today, and she wondered how many more times she was going to have to worry about losing her life- and her baby's. Being in the company of the Mikaelsons- hell, being anywhere near this city was like asking for a death wish. Still… there was a certain comfort knowing that the most powerful vampire family of all time was hell-bent on protecting her.

"In a thousand years, I can't recall a time I felt so...frightened," he said. Hayley's heart hammered in her chest at his revelation. There had been so many… moments between the two of them that she had wondered about. She had worried that perhaps he didn't feel what she felt since he never made a move, but eventually realized it was just his damn noble code he lived by that stopped them from being together. There had been so many close calls, so many times when their faces were mere inches from each other, but it was always him who broke away. And now, he had confessed that he had never been more afraid in his a thousand years of life. Because of her.

But here he was basically declaring what he felt. If neither Celeste nor Katherine could scare him as much as she did, that had to be a sign. She heard Elijah begin to walk away, taking her silence as a sign of rejection, and she whipped around. He faced the door with his head slightly bent, but had not left the room completely.

"Elijah..." she breathed. He turned to Hayley with questioning eyes and waited for her to say something. The deep brown irises stared at her wondering what possibly could be going on in her mind. Truth be told, she didn't know. Her mind felt blank, but her skin was tingling. There was an electric current between the two of them that was stronger than ever. Maybe it was her close call today or maybe it was the fact that he finally admitted his feelings for it. Whatever the reason, it was pulling her to him like a magnet.

She realized she had to finally say something or they would keep doing this annoying dance around each other. This was it. She tried to think of what she could possibly say to him at this exact moment, but words didn't cut it. There was nothing she could say to him that she hadn't said already and to be frank, she didn't want to talk anymore. Who knew if her next brush with death would be her last, so screw it.

Hayley walked towards him and pulled his face to hers. She kissed him hard and felt the weight of the world drop off of her shoulders. Elijah returned the kiss with equal fervor, reassuring her that he had been waiting all too long for this moment as well. Their hands touched each other's faces as they lost themselves in the moment. He tasted like home to her and ignited something deep inside of her that she had never felt before.

There was no doubt that she was sexually attracted to him; she had felt that many times with many guys. Even Klaus. But this… this feeling was something that completed her. Hayley always thought something was missing in her life, but here with Elijah, she found what was missing. It was him.

Elijah broke away slowly and looked into her eyes, silently telling her that he needed to leave. She understood. He had to be the gentleman that he was and leave her before things heated up. There was no way he would do anything to her until she had the baby, and she was okay with that. He searched her eyes for confirmation in his departure, so she nodded.

Elijah grinned in a way that Hayley had never seen before. It wasn't his signature ghost smile or stern expression as usual; it was pure happiness. He kissed Hayley's forehead and squeezed her hand before disappearing, leaving Hayley with the exact same smile on her face that he had.