Caroline's breath was hasty and shallow, her eyes closed. Her body was acting in fear, keeping her plastered to the wall. Her mind was confused, keeping her silent, and it was as if her body and mind were acting in correspondence with her heart which was burning, wanting to keep him this close. Time was lost to her. What had only felt like a mere matter of minutes could indeed have been hours. Caroline didn't know. All she knew was the scent of Klaus, the feeling of his breath on the hair of her neck as his forehead rested on the wall behind her, and the heat rolling off his body into her pores as he hovered over her.

His hand smacked the wall behind her abruptly causing her to shudder. Klaus was clearly frustrated with her lack of response, but Caroline couldn't give him the answer he desired. And even if she could, did he really deserve it? Even if she would never allow herself to actually be seduced by him, did he deserve the satisfaction of knowing that he'd gotten under her skin?

"Caroline"

It was one word, one simple word, her name no less, and the silence was betrayed by Klaus's voice, but his tone was not indignant like Caroline had expected it to be. Rather it was gentle and pleading. She could feel that he had pulled his head away from the wall, and that he was now looking at her.

"Why do you torture me so with your silence?" he finished.

And she opened her eyes to meet his, heavy and earnest. She couldn't keep them closed any longer for fear that her heart might break from the anguish in his tone, but rather it was set to flame by the look in his eyes. He was so vulnerable, so human, so beautiful. Why couldn't he always look like this? If only he could stay like this forever.

As if to spite her thoughts, Klaus pushed away from the wall, releasing her. The edges of his features sharpened, his eyes grew cold, and his expression turned to stone. Caroline's insides cringed at the shift in his person.

"Leave," he stated emotionless.

He turned around to walk away from her, but she reached out and grasped his shoulder. She couldn't let it end this way. Not when she'd just seen him without his mask of villainy. She couldn't let him just put it back on so easily, switch it all off. Maybe he could do that with everyone else, but if he wanted any piece of her he was going to have to prove that it wasn't that easy to just turn it off with her, damn it. He was going to have to feel.

"Wait," she called after him, but before she could say another word he'd captured a hold of her wrist and drawn her tight to his chest.

As he looked down at her, eyes vexed, "You've toyed with me enough for one day," he spat before he threw her wrist from his grasp and once again turned to walk away.

"You can't just do that!" she yelled after him, "you can't just grow cold and storm away when you don't get what you want!"

He turned back around to face her, "I think that you've forgotten who I am, love. I can do whatever I please."

"No," she replied defiantly, "you can't do that with me."

He was angry, but also curious. Caroline could tell that she had his attention, and she was going to take advantage of that.

"You blame me for toying with you," she interposed, "What the hell do you think you are doing to me?" her arms raised and then fell to her sides in order to exaggerate her point. That was it. Caution to the wind, he was going to hear exactly what Caroline had been thinking.

He was stunned now, and was about to say something in his defense when she cut him off, "I'm not done yet," she stated and pointed at him, "You're a hypocrite. All you've done is toy with my head since the day that you waltzed into my room and saved my life with your Birthday speech and snazzy diamonds."

She was walking towards him now, eyes locked with his, warning him not to say another word until she was finished. She stopped a few feet away and let out an exasperated sigh, "My whole world has been flipped upside down, and it's not because I'm a vampire or my best friend's a witch or even that Elena's got a psycho Doppelganger that use to be in love with the exact same brothers as she is," she took a step closer and glared at him, "No, my whole perception of what is true and what is real has gone to hell because of you," she whipped out her arm and gave him a little shove, "You had to walk into my life and not be the psychopathic, evil, villain that you are to everyone else. You had to show me a 'different' version of you, so that it's difficult for me to imagine the other one. You just," she paused to catch a breath, "you can't do this to me anymore. Either you feel or you don't. I can't handle both."

He stared back at her. Blue eyes wide, mouth slightly agape, unable to speak.

She took in his dumbfounded expression, gathered a deep breath, turned around, and headed towards the coffee table where her travel mugs were.

"Caroline," he called after her.

She swiveled around on her heels, "NO, you don't get to talk until you've had time to think," she reached down and picked up her mugs. She headed towards the door, but before she was out of the room she glanced back at him. Her mind was made up, her eyes determined, "You want me to get to know you, fine," she stated and something that looked like shock then hope flashed across Klaus' features, "but you and your personality disorder better come up with a solution as to who the hell it is you are."

And with those departing words, Caroline turned around and left him standing there. Klaus didn't try to follow.

When she was a safe distance away from the house she fell to the curb, and placed her head in her hands. What had she done? She'd just given Klaus a pass into her life. That's what she'd done, and whether or not it came with an ultimatum, which she doubted very highly he would even give a second thought to, she'd given him what he wanted. She knew all along this was what would happen if she set foot in his house. It wasn't a surprise to her, but that didn't make it any less distressing. Caroline was intentionally playing with fire, and she knew she would get burned. She was just hoping she could minimize the scarring.

She was so stupid, but she also knew there was hope for Klaus. That really was the only explanation she had for her foolish actions. It wasn't a good explanation. It definitely wouldn't win in a fight with Bonnie, Elena, Stefan, Damon, Alaric, Jeremy, Tyler, Matt, or even Alaric's psycho new girlfriend. She probably couldn't even convince the anonymous bartender that serve's Klaus his drinks that she was doing the right thing. But she was.

It had to be.

She picked herself up, and began making the journey to Bonnies. She didn't want to think about her problems anymore, so she'd focus her energy on someone else's. Bonnie was a perfect candidate. Helping Bonnie with her problems would numb Caroline to her own like a good narcotic. Even if the effects would wear off, that didn't matter. Given Bonnie's current situation Caroline knew that Bonnie would need her, but the truth was Caroline needed Bonnie just as bad.