Hellooooo everyone :D Thank you so much for the support I got on the first chapter! I'm so glad you guys are enthused about this, and I hope I will not disappoint you :D

Again, special thanks to the best beta in the world my sister who listens to my nonsense patiently and puts up with all the rant even though she does not ship Klaroline nor care about it to begin with! LOVE you sis :D

And there is a brutal scene in this chapter, you'll know what to skip when it comes if you are not into it.

ENJOY!I had a blast writing this chapter :D

Chapter two: Reminisce

My heart is pounding so loudly that I can hear the thuds of its beats drumming in my ears. I do not know if the reason behind my extreme nervousness is the unexpected, nonetheless more than delightful, reappearance of a certain Niklaus Mikealson in my life or by the sheer fact that I might be more than a little bit likely to have a serious beat-up from my unlikable husband.

Hastily, I make my way through the door. The phone is ringing off the silence of the house. I have missed the call on the head of the hour now and there is no going back. He will call me every fifteen minutes today for the simple fact that I have been inconsistent with answering his possessive and more than a little unnerving calls.

'Hello' I answer cheerfully.

'Where the hell have you been?' comes his angry growl.

I'm definitely in on some pain today, but I still sincerely believe that it is worth it. This job might actually be my only shot at getting the hell out of this mess of a life I have.

'I was at the grocery store' I lie causally, as though I do not know how completely forbidden it is for me to leave the house 'I needed a few things for dinner'

'Grocery store?' he scoffs 'I thought we made it perfectly clear that you tell me what you need and not act on your own accord'

'Yeah, well, I did not know that I needed stuff until you left' I mutter, my sentence more than a little showing my nerves. Even though he has more than several hours before he can do any actual harm, my whole body tingles with pain already. I remember how painful it feels when he pulls my hair, or twists my arms or kick me in the stomach and what would happen after the beating would be even more painful than it usually is.

Gosh, I hope this job is worth it.

'Make sure it never happens again' he snaps.

'Sure, sweetie, sorry' I apologize even though I normally shouldn't need to do that.

He does not reply, but immediately hangs-up. This is his normal attitude when he is in for doing some serious damage.

Considering how pitifully I am used to the pain and humiliation that is yet to come, I nearly forget it as soon as I put the receiver down. It is not at all difficult to preoccupy myself with other thoughts as someone else's image is all that I can think of. Despite all effort to erase his smile from my mind, all effort to stop inhaling his scent, he is all I can think of. I can't stop thinking of how great it was to see him again, or how warm it felt to have his arms wrapped around me like many months before, too many months before. For a second there, when I stood before him, gazing into his ocean-deep blue eyes, I felt like nothing ever happened between us. I felt like I am back three years before, like I was that college student in that mini-red-dress again in that loud bar, that one shiny night when it all started. I felt myself like I have not felt in so long. And talking to him, I almost forgot Tyler, almost forgot the fear and the stress and the worries, almost forgot the pain of each night and day of having to be Tyler's wife and Nik's not-so-much-of-an-ex and not the other way around. Although, little do I know of how Nik actually is in a relationship. His charming self could be just as much of a vacant mask as Tyler's when I fell in love with him.

I try to convince myself that I do not really know Nik, but I still miss him. Because he smells of home, because he reminds me of all the good days even though they held an awful lot of pain with them, because I can feel my heart singing with joy at the mere sight of his face.

I sigh. I should not be distracted by him, but the feeling that seeing him gave me has other plans. The memories that are acutely aroused in my head have other plans, too.

. . .

'So you'd think that my brother would be right on time, because he makes it sound like he's the most accurate person on the planet, but in fact he always makes the other person wait, albeit if it's a lady' Rebekah pouts, downing her second Tequila shot.

I laugh 'You have to give the guy a chance his plane landed only four hours ago'

'Dear God, Nik!' Rebekah exclaims far too loudly, but everyone is too drunk to notice her 'she hasn't even met you yet and she's already defending you!'

I laugh again, downing anothe Tequila shot myself.

'Gosh I always knew that he has his own ridiculously strong demand over women, but I did not know it was that powerful' she giggles.

'I'm already too drunk to meet that brother of yours' I slur, giggling, too.

'Me too!' she beams 'what you say we ditch him and walk back home?'

'Nah' I shrug off 'I'm having too much fun getting drunk'

'We can resume getting drunk at home' she suggests with a wide smile.

'Yes, but it'll be fun to vomit on your brother's pants than in an actual bathroom' I enthusiastically tease

'Touché!' she squeals 'I knew I was friends with you for a reason'

'Gosh, I'm so drunk' I say between hysterical giggles 'Not to the point of forgetting everything about this night, though'

'Then let's get to that point!' Rebekah cheers.

We reach for more Tequila but realize we have none left and burst into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

'I'll go get some' I say, rising to my feet. I'm slightly unbalanced, but I can walk without falling.

Not without tripping, though, I think as I stumble with my own foot.

'Watch it' I hear Rebekah say between laughs 'You look funny drunk-walking'

'You look funnier, 'cause you're drunker' I shout back at her, unable to stop my laughter, either.

'We need more Tequila' I tell the bartender, rudely cutting off some other guy's order

Oh the beauty of being drunk!

'Right away, Miss' the bartender flashes me a cheesy grin and I roll my eyes.

'Bring it to that table' I point at the table where Rebekah was still giggling about something.

'Sure thing' he confirms.

I squeeze my way out of the crowds at the bar and expectedly trip forward, but strong pair of arms prevents me from falling.

'Be careful, love' the voice of whoever steadied my footing says.

'Always I'm' I say with a high pitch, lifting my eyes to meet his.

Oh wow! Was all I can think of. I'm drunk, he's hot, bad combination. And I think I might ditch Rebekah and her brother guiltlessly.

'Doesn't quite look like it, sweetheart' he smirks, seeming to have no intention in loosening his grip on my arms.

'Whatever' I mutter, shaking his hands off because even though he's hot, I have to be the one in control of the situation.

I am drunk, but not drunk enough to miss the way he was looking me over. His eyes wandered to all the wrong places, lingering a little too much on my chest and lips.

'Eyes up here, pal' I scoff snapping my fingers at him.

He does not seem the least bit embarrassed, instead insolently smirking at me and wiggling his eyebrows.

Gosh he has the cutest dimples! I think I'm so drunk! I also think

'You make it hard to keep my attention to your eyes, miss' he has the audacity to say.

I'm about to seriously snap at him, even though I quite like his comment because I'm so drunk, but something interrupts me.

'NIK' Rebekah shouts from her seat 'Stop eye-sexing with Caroline and get your ass in here'

The man looks towards the source of this inhumane screech, then back at me.

'Oh great' I scoff 'You're Nik, then' I raise an eyebrow at him with a wide grin.

'I'm guessing you're Caroline' he says, reaching his hand for a decent handshake. I take his hand, unable to stop myself from giggling for some absurd reason, and he tries his best to turn his seductive smirk into a polite smile.

'Come on you guys' Rebekah calls after us again 'I'm getting bored here!'

We silently head back to the table where Rebekah seems drunker even though the Tequila was yet to come. I trip repeatedly and from the corner of my eyes I see Nik smirking to himself. I roll my eyes.

'You look drunker than before' I comment, sitting down

'A gentleman sent me a drink' she grins and points to a brown-haired man at the bar who flashes a grin and winks.

'Oh dear' Nik huffs 'I should have known you would be drunk by now' he rolls his eyes, sitting next to his sister.

'You have no one other than yourself to blame, brother' she slurs 'You are the one who was incredibly late'

'Yeah' I comment 'like an hour' I shrug

'I got held back by Elijah' he explains quietly obviously unhappy by having two drunken girls as his company.

'I like Elijah' I protest 'He's always on time'

'Yes' Rebekah nods firmly.

'And he always says nice things about our looks' I think I say that or something else that goes along the lines.

'Yes' Rebekah says again, nodding.

'Well, Caroline, I had no idea you would be that beautiful or that sexy' Nik smirks, resting his elbows on the table, and looking me over again.

'Things that don't make me want to slap him across the face' I mock

Rebekah laughs 'I told you not to try your cheesy lines with her! She is too tough for you, brother' she turns to me talking at the top of her lungs as though her brother does not exist 'And I told you this dress would give the wrong impression' she slurred.

'Whatever' I shrug 'I like it' then turning to an amused Nik I explain myself 'I didn't wear this dress for you. I know you're involved with that Tatia slut'

'Slut?' he raises an eyebrow at his sister.

'Ooops' she mouths between giggles.

'Sorry, Bex, my bad' I apologize quickly

'Don't be. He knows that I don't like her' Rebekah shakes her head.

Nik sighs 'I think I'm no longer involved with her, though'

'What?' Rebekah's mouth hangs open, and for a second she actually seems sober 'You broke-up?' she does no effort to hide her happiness.

'I think we did' he vaguely says.

'What do you mean you think?' Rebekah grumbles.

'Forget it, Bex,' I comment 'We are too drunk for this conversation'

'Yeah, tell me everything when I'm sober' she agrees. He says something to his sister and she snaps back at him, but I'm too drunk to focus and I could not bring myself to care anymore.

Our Tequila arrives as Rebekah and I cheer enthusiastically.

'I don't think that this would be necessary' he tells the waiter who is about to place the drinks on our table, giving him a meaningful glance.

'No!' Rebekah protests fiercely when the waiter leaves 'Why did you do that?' she snaps at her brother.

'You've had enough for tonight, sister' he firmly says.

'You're a fun killer' I mutter.

Gosh, I'm saying a lot of stupid things! I'm so drunk! I think, giggling again

'What? Are you my father?' Rebekah frowns at him.

'No, but your father doesn't care. Someone should' he sighs deeply.

'He's deep' I comment sarcastically.

'Yeah, it's time to go home now, girls' he commands, rising to his feet.

I say something that makes Rebekah laugh and makes him roll his eyes, but I'm not sure what it is. However, what I say puts both Rebekah and I in an uncontrollable fit of laughter.

Nik silently drives us back home.

. . .

I shrug off my thoughts, no longer enduring the pain those memories arouse. Sometimes it's beyond my understanding how vividly I remember that particular night even though I was inappropriately drunk. But there was something that night in his blue eyes and playful smirks that drew me in, even though I was not willing to acknowledge it at first. There was something about him that made me feel that his presence in my life would be dominant. I could not quite comprehend it and it still is slightly confusing for me when I think about it.

There is one thing, though, that I know for a fact; Nik always chooses the wrong time to appear in my life… Always.

I quickly dial Rebekah's number. I have to talk to someone about the latest events and no one is better than Rebekah when it comes to Caroline, even though we have been avoiding talking about Caroline for the past three years.

'This has to be good' Rebekah answers quickly 'Because I'm in the middle of watching Grey's Anatomy'

'This show again' I sulk rolling my eyes

'Just because you're an inhumane creature who's incapable of human emotions who happens to be my brother that doesn't mean that I am, too' she huffs.

'I don't understand why you're so defensive when it comes to this show' I tease.

'Nik, I swear if you don't say what you want right now, I'll hang up on you' she threatens.

'Fine, fine' I give up 'You won't believe who came in for an interview today'

'Who?' she inquires almost-carelessly

'Try to guess' I know that she is mighty annoyed now and wishes to just reach through the phone and slap me across the face.

'Well, if I won't believe it with you saying who, how can you expect me to guess?' she impatiently says.

'Just try' I insist

'Nik' she warns. Her tone indicates that she will hang up on me just then.

'Alright' I sigh 'Caroline came in for an interview today'

There is a long silence on the other end, far too long of a silence.

'Rebekah, are you still there?' I ask. I expected this sort of reaction. The memory of Caroline is something very special to my sister and I am terribly sorry that I was the one who caused their friendship to come to an unlikable route.

'Caroline Forbes?' she finally mutters.

'Yes. Who else would it be?' I try to say lightly

'You saw Caroline today?' she almost disbelievingly inquires I can hear the shakiness of her voice on the other end, and I can almost guarantee that her eyes are forming tears.

'Yes' I simply say.

I hear her sigh either contently or sadly 'How is she?' is all she can ask.

'She…' I clear my throat. How do I tell her that her friend looks like a complete mess since the last time she saw her? What do I tell her that would not make her mind go as wild as mine has gone calculating what it is that have happened to her? 'She looks fine' I mutter lastly.

'You're lying' she immediately accuses.

'She's married' I deflect

'She is?' I don't know if Rebekah's squeal is of excitement or of horror 'who's he husband?'

'I don't know' I loudly swallow 'she is still going with her maiden name'

'That's weird' she murmurs

'I know' my eyes wander to the contract that still lay on my desk. Thinking about her has been tormenting me the whole day. I can still smell her sweet scent. I can still feel her in my arms. I sigh. 'Truth be told, she did not look OK at all' I give in. It is not only because Rebekah deserves the truth, but also the fact that I can no longer keep anything to myself. I feel like my head is about to explode from all those questions and that my heart is about to burst from all those emotions.

'Why would you say that?' Rebekah's voice comes concerned

'For a lot of reasons,' I vaguely explain 'she is too thin and there's something about the way she behaved that is very unlike her. She did not have that spark in her eyes and her laughter was too quite. Something has happened and I do not know what it can possibly be' I utter my worries without hesitation.

'Well, that does not sound good for either of you' Rebekah says absently

'What do you mean?' I frown

'I mean, Nik, that by the way you are describing her she does not sound good. And also by the way you are describing her you sound like after all those years you are still not over her which isn't good for you' she calmly explains

I lick my upper lip 'I don't want to talk about that'

'Neither do I' she coldly says.

I sigh profoundly. Rebekah still hates me for what have happened three years ago and I think she will always hate me for it.

'It gets weirder' I try to change the subject 'she wants to write for the cooking column'

'No way' Rebekah exclaims in disbelief 'Caroline hates cooking'

'Correction: hated' I quickly note 'She doesn't want us to put her real name. And she will be working from home, too'

'Whoa, hold on a second. Are you sure we are talking about the same Caroline?' Rebekah sounds just as confused as I am.

'It almost felt like she was somebody else, except that her scent is still the same' I absently mutter

'Snap out of it buddy' Rebekah scoffs 'You sound like a high-schooler'

'Sorry' I murmur, chuckling

'Did you ask her what is wrong?' Rebekah asks after a short moment of silence

'Of course I did no such a thing' I immediately dismiss 'Given the circumstances, she wouldn't have liked my interference'

'I see' Rebekah says 'Do you happen to know her phone number?'

'Yeah' I quickly answer. I know that ever since coming back from England the only thing that she truly wanted to do is get back in-touch with Caroline.

I give it to her quickly, and she unhappily comments that it isn't a cellphone number.

'You should talk to her, Bekah' I finally say 'I think she misses you, too' I admit, remembering the way her eyes formed tears at the mention of my sister's name.

'I will' she confirms and hangs-up.

I am left alone to the emptiness and quietness of the office. The heavy feeling in my chest hovers over me as I walk out of the office and into the dark night sky. I can't shake off my feelings, seeing her brought no relief at all, only reminded me of how much I miss her, of how much she still dominates my heart.

I hop into the car and turn the key in the engine, a special memory taking over my mind. I remember that night. If all nights could be forgotten, this one will remain untouched; no matter how long I shall live.

. . .

'The problem is, men objectify women and think of them as their own sex tools' Caroline says as-a-matter-of-factly. We are sitting in a quiet corner of a random pub. This one is not as loud as the one I saw her getting drunk with my sister in the night before

'Do we?' I playfully ask shaking my head at the blonde lightly

'Yes' she confirms 'Want me to give you an example?'

'Yes, please do' I challenge her, my eyes quickly scanning the place to see Rebekah talking to some random man by the bar. I inwardly roll my eyes.

'Pornography' she says simply 'You make us go through the pain of doing such a thing on camera and it actually turns you on' she accuses

'I don't make anyone do anything, love' I chuckle 'Women come to me'

'Don't you watch porn?' she asks, raising an eyebrow at me.

'I'm not answering that question' I quickly shrug off, sipping from my scotch.

'That's a yes' she smirks.

'But don't you think that you are being a little unfair?' I change the subject.

Who is this woman? I think, stunned with her confidence.

'How's that?' she asks, leaning forward on the table so that her low-cut top reveals even more of her breasts and my eyes involuntarily wander.

'Some of us actually like women with brains' I almost scoff.

'But women with brains aren't what you are looking for' she retorts 'Your initial thought of a woman is merely physical'

'Not necessarily' I insist.

'Really?' she raises an eyebrow 'Like right now you're not thinking of how big my boobs are nor last night taking me back to your place wasn't your first thought when you saw me?'

I chuckle nervously, dropping my gaze to the table in almost-embarrassment 'You caught me' I admit and she smirks 'But in my defense you can't be that beautiful and dress like that and just expect me to think of your brains' I innocently say.

'Oh God, Nik' I hear Rebekah say from behind me 'I thought I told you that Caroline was off limit' she scolds, dropping to the chair next to her friend.

'We were just talking about how men think of women' Caroline explains.

'Yes' I confirm 'Now I get why you have been chatting my ears away with all those feminist thoughts'

Rebekah shakes her head 'You make it sound like I've never cared about that before'

'Well, no you didn't. Not until Caroline made that horrible influence on you' I explain and Caroline laughs lightly.

'Whatever,' Rebekah shrugs 'as I said Caroline is off limits please don't try to flirt with her again, will you?' she teases

'I don't think you'll have to worry about that' Caroline assures her, then grins at me adding 'I frighten him'

'You intrigue me' I quickly correct with a grin of my own.

'That's just a synonym to "frighten"' she insists

'Believe whatever works for you, love' I smirk at her, my eyes locking with her flirtatious look intensely that I can feel the heat of our unspoken words and hear fireworks in the background. For a long moment we stare at each other like nothing else exists in the world, completely ignoring my poor little sister. Alas she breaks eyes contact and giggles. Her laugh is so adorable that it doesn't take me long before I start laughing, too.

'What have I said about flirting?' Rebekah glares at me.

'Don't look at me, she's just as guilty as I am' I protest between chuckles

'I thought you weren't interested in my brother, Care' Rebekah immediately shifts her attention to her still-laughing friend.

'That was before I knew he broke-up…'

'Or thinks he broke-up' Rebekah adds sarcastically

'with slutty Tatia' Caroline simply finishes 'And he's hot'

I smirk 'I thought we were the only ones who objectify women'

'Well, I'm not exactly interested in your brain' she seductively says, flashing a not-so-innocent smile.

The way she says that enthrall me and for a second, I think that I will lean in and kiss her. I refrain, though, considering the fact that my sister is still sitting with us.

'Oh God' Rebekah huffs 'Get a room'

Caroline and I both laugh. From that moment, I knew that Caroline will be so much more than my sister's best friend.

I am nervously pacing the length of the room back and forth. Tyler will be there any minute now. Despite myself I start wondering what he has as tonight's punishment and I shudder repeatedly.

The phone unexpectedly rings. I eye it suspiciously. Could this be some sort of an angelic salvation? Could it actually be that, for once, I will be spared from Tyler's wrath by his job?

'Hello' I answer far more shakily than intended.

'Hello' comes a very familiar, very old voice. I gasp, immediately recognizing the caller. Hearing her voice feels far more splendid than I thought it would feel that I find myself at loss of what I should say 'Caroline? Is that you?' she asks again and I can feel the tremble in her voice. I'm about to say yes it's me, Bex, your best friend who missed you so much, but just then I hear the key turning in the lock and immediately hang up, cursing Tyler inwardly for interrupting a-long-awaited phone call.

I put a mental note to call her fist thing in the morning when I remember that Nik have already given me her number.

'I'm home' Tyler says from the hallway.

'Hey honey' I stride towards him with my usual smile

'Hey' he says drily taking off his jack.

Gosh, I know that attitude.

'How was your day?' I ask cheerfully, as though blissfully unaware of what would come.

'Bad' he briefly says.

'Oh' is all I mouth. If I ask him why, his anger would maximize a billion times, if I say nothing his frustration with my silence would earn me an earl beat-up 'That's too bad' is what I settle for.

He walks past me into the kitchen and I follow him.

'You should go wa…' but my sentence is cut short for he turns around and strikes me across the face with the back of his hand. The power of his blow forces me to stumble backwards and fall to the ground. My cheek stings and I taste blood in my mouth.

This will leave a mark, I think. But it doesn't, it never does, not when his blows are on my face, anyways.

He crouches next to me, grabbing my hair and yanking me up so that I was in a semi-seating-position.

'What did I say about leaving the house without telling me?' his intolerably disgusting face is inches away from mine as he spits through gritted teeth.

'I'm sorry' I mutter as my tears stream down my cheeks. They make my wounded cheek sting even more 'I wanted to make you a cake as a surprise' I lie between sobs.

'Stop crying!' he thunders, yanking at my hair even harder 'You know I hate it' he hisses.

'I'm sorry, but you're hurting me' I miserably try to swallow the rising lumps in my throat but repeatedly fail. Just because I'm used to the pain, it doesn't mean that it hurts any less.

That earns me a throwback to the ground and a kick in the stomach. A shooting pain in the lower part of my ribcage steals my breath.

'Please stop' I beg shamelessly 'I'll never leave the house, I promise'

He kicks again in the exact same spot and I have to bite down on my injured lip to suppress a yelp.

'That's just so you would know better next time' he snaps then strides off to the bathroom slamming the door behind him 'Get that fucking table ready, already. I'm starving you stupid bitch' I hear him shout from behind the bathroom door.

I grab my side and struggle to rise to my feet. I keep gasping with pain while I snatch the grilled salmon and steamed vegetables. It takes all my power to stay conscious. Even more, it takes colossal strength to stay away from thinking that I might have a broken rib or two.

. . .

His blow on my face does leave a mark. My lips are swollen from one side in extension to the slight swell in my right cheek. There's a purplish-blue bruise right where he kicked me the night before, and I feel sharp pain whenever I inhale. His activities after our dinner increase the damage to my injuries and add a couple more pain spots. They hurt even more than my maybe-or-may-not-be-broken ribs and enflamed lips.

When he finally leaves the house, I collapse to a couch and curl in a ball, breaking into an uncontrollable fit of sobs. It isn't just the physical pain, which is more than a little excruciating, but the mental damage that he manages to further every day. All hopes of romance and love were shattered by him. All hopes of ever having a life that is halfway through decent were destroyed by his ugly face.

The phone rings, interrupting my gloomy thoughts.

I strive to get to my feet, and by the time I make it to the phone, I'm pretty sure that whoever is calling has reached the ultimate level of impatience.

'Hello' I hoarsely greet.

'Hello' her voice comes confused 'I'm sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if Caroline Forbes is available? I've called last night and whoever answered immediately hung-up on me. I thought that I have dialed the wrong number, but it keeps referring me to your house' she hurriedly explains herself.

'Hey, Bex' I greet her through my tears and wide smile 'it's been a long time'

Maybe there's still a tiny beam of hope left, after all.

Thanks for reading! Please share your thoughts :D

The mention of Grey's Anatomy is an honory mention for my beta AKA sister! Unhealthy obsession :D

Until next time!