A/N: This is a long but important note, so please don't skip it, or you might just end up confused.
First, I have to thank you all for pushing my fic over 650 reviews and over 300 favs!
Second, let me say that I had anticipated to have this next update written and edited by Thursday, but then 4x13 happened and needless to say I was very distracted, and then on Friday I had some unannounced company. I'm sorry.
I'm glad I waited though, because I think the ending of my update complements 4x13 rather nicely in a way.
This update is a long update; 25,000 words and over 60 pages. No lie. There was a lot of moments/dialogue that I wanted to cover.
With that said, you're probably wondering why this particular chapter is shorter than that. I have decided to split the update into three installments. So basically think of this chapter as part 1 of Klaus's birthday. I wanted to do this to give myself a bit of an editing break, and to give you all a reading break. Don't worry though, I will be posting the next two updates very quickly.
Feel free to review each part, I'd love to know what you think of each, but I'm fine with one final review too. I'm really fine with any sort of review. I worked hard on this update, so I'm eager to know what you think.
As a warning, there is some serious Klaroline fluff in this part with a dash of some graphic adult sexual situations, so if any of that makes you uncomfortable please don't continue.
p.s. I also recently just acquired an account on tumblr. My name is idiot-wind. I mainly re-blog and post about Klaroline. I will never update Love Interruption on that site, it will always be here, but I sometimes post about my progress on new updates and when they have been posted. Feel free to check me out.
When she woke the next morning she was pleased to see that Klaus was still dead asleep.
She watched his calm expression for a few minutes.
After her little meltdown last night, he had assured her they would leave as soon as they could, but deep down she knew it would be easier said than done. Regardless, his words had calmed her down enough to allow him to draw her a bath. By the time she was cleaned up and in fresh pyjamas, he was already asleep in bed.
She assumed it had to do with his wolf transition. They had always taken a toll on Tyler, especially when he was still human. He could sleep for hours. Perhaps it affected Klaus the same but to a lesser degree.
Casting thoughts of Elena and her newly ignited desire to leave Mystic Falls ASAP to the side, she climbed out of bed quietly and headed for the shower. Today was Klaus's birthday and that's what they would focus on.
When she was finished her shower, she rummaged through her hastily packed bag and wrapped herself in the floral robe she brought.
Luckily, Klaus was still asleep despite the sunlight that was peeking through the drapes.
She slipped through his bedroom doors as quietly as she could and headed for the kitchen.
As she descended to the foyer she noticed a few strangers coming in and out of the house with various supplies and props.
She had to remind herself that the Mikaelsons always tended to do everything over the top; Klaus's millennial party was no exception.
When someone walked past her with a palm tree, she had to do a double take.
In the kitchen, she found both Elijah and Kol wrapping up a conversation with one of the presumed hired strangers about hors d'oeuvres and cake.
"Was that a palm tree I just saw?" she wondered bemusedly.
Both Elijah and Kol glanced at her; Kol gawking over her a little less politely than he should.
"Good morning, Caroline," Elijah said with a smile, clearly trying to read her mood for any indication of how the remainder of the night had gone with Klaus.
"Morning," she replied, heading over to the kitchen cabinets.
"That was a palm tree you saw, darling," Kol beamed. "Since Klaus is an old man now and won't come to Vegas, I decided to bring Vegas to him," he proclaimed proudly.
She smirked at the idea. Admittedly, the idea sounded fun. She didn't know how Klaus would react, but she was on board.
Kol smiled.
"I think she actually likes the idea, 'lijah," Kol concluded.
She sighed.
"It could be fun," she relented as she opened one of the cabinets.
Kol scowled.
"It's going to be a party," kol said excitedly. "Speaking of Niklaus, where is he? You're supposed to be keeping him busy," he reminded her.
She nodded.
"I know," she said. " He's still sleeping. Distraction one: breakfast in bed. I just need to find pancake mix and a frying pan, and your fresh blood supply," she laughed.
Kol eyed her with a wide and incredulous smile.
"Why go through the trouble? You look good enough to eat," Kol remarked.
Elijah's eyes widened and he cleared his throat.
She scoffed.
"I'll be sure to tell Klaus you said so," she smirked.
With that threat, Kol backed down.
"I need to go discuss something with the party company," he said meekly. "Just keep Nik busy," he said, speeding out of the room.
"The cookware should be in the big drawers at the bottom of the island, and the mix should be in the pantry," Elijah instructed. "There's still some fresh blood in the fridge from earlier."
"Thanks," she said as she disappeared into the room of a pantry and located the mix.
When she re-emerged, Elijah was sitting at the island, eyeing her with intrigue.
"What?" she asked as she found the necessary cookware items she needed.
Elijah shrugged with a smile.
"Forgive me Caroline, sometimes your oddly conventional relationship with my brother still takes me by surprise," he mused.
"Which brother?" she joked
He chuckled.
"Both, I guess, but I was referring mainly to Niklaus," he clarified. "How are you feeling?" he asked as she began to rummage through the fridge for the blood and pancake ingredients.
"Good as new," she replied.
She started to ready the ingredients for mixing on the kitchen island.
"It must have been quite a surprise to see Niklaus in his wolf form last night," Elijah said.
Her eyes widened.
"More like terrifying at first," she exclaimed. "I didn't know it was him."
"But he obviously knew it was you," Elijah remarked.
She nodded.
"I don't know why he was so afraid of me being around him while he was in wolf form. I mean, for starters his blood is the antidote anyways, so if anything bad were to happen he could heal me. And last night he was more like a domestic dog," she mused. "I thought wolves were supposed to be vicious?"
Elijah shrugged.
"Not towards their mates," he explained.
She swallowed hard as a dusty rose shaded her cheeks.
Elijah laughed.
"As a wolf, Niklaus probably senses you as his mate – even though you aren't a wolf. His instinct is to protect you, not harm you," he clarified.
"Well Klaus wasn't aggressive towards Stefan and Stefan isn't his mate," she pointed out with an immature giggle.
Elijah smirked.
"Stefan wasn't a threat," he reasoned.
She conceded his point as she prepared some fruit.
"So Niklaus was okay yesterday evening after I left you two?" he inquired.
Nodding, she poured the pancake mix into a bowl.
"I expected him to be upset. I know a part of him was, but he held back this time," she revealed.
"Well he's learning from his mistakes then," he concluded.
She agreed.
"I think he understood that I had a rough night with Elena," she said as she stirred the contents of the bowl. "Elena's still having a hard time with her transition, and she and Stefan broke up, so I went to see her to try and talk, but she basically shut me down again," she explained.
Elijah looked dismayed.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Elijah offered. "I know you two were close."
She turned one of the stove burners on with a sigh before readying the pan.
"We were, but I'm done trying to recover our friendship when Elena doesn't even seem to care. She doesn't want to see past what Klaus did. She isn't interested in trying to understand how I feel about him. Oppositely, I've tried to be nothing but supportive of her," she said.
"Perhaps in time she will come around," Elijah suggested.
She shrugged indifferently as she poured some mix into the pan.
"Niklaus likes blueberries," Elijah said randomly.
Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion at his comment.
"In his pancakes," he laughed.
She laughed too as a look of realization spread across her face, and she grabbed for the carton of blueberries.
Silence settled between them as she dropped the blueberries in and debated whether or not to tell Elijah about her decision to leave.
"I told Klaus that I want to leave," she stated with her back towards Elijah as she faced the stove.
An audible sigh of surprised escaped his lips.
"As soon as we can," she muttered, turning back around as the first pancakes cooked.
"The hunter? The cure?" Elijah questioned.
She frowned.
"They aren't our problems," she retorted.
"And Niklaus has agreed to this?" Elijah wondered.
She paused uneasily.
"Not exactly," she said, flipping the pancakes over.
"I'm not sure Niklaus would be agreeable to leaving until the hunter has been dealt with, regardless if he has given up his quest for hybrids," Elijah said.
"I just don't want to be in Mystic Falls anymore," she confessed, as she removed the pancakes from the pan and poured some more mix with chocolate chips this time.
Elijah nodded understandingly.
"What about your other commitments?" Elijah mentioned.
She eyed him quizzically.
"Rebekah, and prom?" he reminded her.
Elijah had a point. Prom had been a huge deal not just for her but for Rebekah.
"I'm sure my sister could pull it off without you, but I get the impression that much of her enjoyment derives from spending time with you," he said, "even if she's not keen to admit it."
She sighed at the thought of letting Rebekah down, especially given the progress she had made in getting along with Klaus's only sister. All of it would be ruined if she bailed.
"Perhaps waiting until after prom like you originally agreed upon would be best?" Elijah recommended.
"I'll think about it," she conceded, assuming that Klaus had filled Elijah in on their previous arrangement.
With a nod from Elijah she returned to the pancakes.
"Speaking of Rebekah, have you seen her yet today?" she asked. "I'm curious to know last night went with Matt."
Elijah shrugged.
"I think she's still sleeping, which is why I should probably go find Kol and rein him in," Elijah chuckled as he stood up.
"I wouldn't worry too much," she said. "It seems like Kol has it under control. I think Klaus will like it," she said. "Would you like some pancakes?" she offered.
He shook his head with an amused smile.
"No thank you, Caroline. I already ate earlier," he explained. "Just try to keep Niklaus occupied today. If he's down here at all too long, we'll never have the place ready in time. He'll take over," Elijah laughed.
"Klaus," he heard a voice whisper.
The voice repeated his name and he realized he was no longer dreaming. It was Caroline waking him.
He kept his eyes closed, stirring slightly when she pressed her lips against one of his ribs.
When she kissed his chest, he opened his eyes slowly, looking down to find her peering back up at him.
Bringing her head up, she kissed his lips lightly.
"Happy birthday," she murmured before lifting herself up onto her knees.
He smirked and proceeded to stretch; trying casually to pretend that he wasn't admiring the sight of her in his bed dressed only in a silk robe.
"Indeed," he said. "It's already shaping up to be better than last year's."
Admittedly, he couldn't remember last year's.
She smiled at him as he pushed himself up.
"What time is it?" he wondered with a final yawn.
"It's almost ten," she told him.
He was surprised he slept that long, but he had been exhausted last night; the transition, the kill, healing Caroline, their unfinished conversation about her desire to leave all had taken a toll on him.
"I slept awhile," he concluded.
She nodded.
Soon, a sweet scent flooded his nostrils alongside the smell of blood.
"Why do I smell pancakes?" he asked. "And blood?"
She laughed, climbing off the bed, enabling him to see a tray sitting on the bench at the end of the bed. On the tray he noticed two plates of fruit and pancakes, as well as two glasses of blood.
"Birthday pancakes," she said, bringing the tray onto the bed. "Every year on my birthday my dad used to make me breakfast in bed," she explained, nudging the tray towards him as he sat up on the other side.
"You made these?" he asked incredulously as he inspected his plate with a fork. "For me?"
She nodded.
No one had ever made him food like this before; well save for compelled wait staff.
"Of course I did," she said, pouring some syrup over her portion. "Who else would I make them for? Well besides me," she laughed as she bit into the first piece.
He shrugged breaking off a chunk of pancake with a fork.
"Blueberries," he observed.
"Elijah helped with that part," she admitted.
He smirked and took a bite.
"Pretty good," he said with a mouthful.
She nodded in agreement.
He looked at her pancake curiously.
"Mine have chocolate chips," she said before taking another bite.
"I've never tried that before," he confessed.
Her face seemed to brighten with his admission.
"Oh my god, you have to try it," she exclaimed.
Cutting off another piece of hers, she extended her fork towards him and he took the morsel readily into his mouth.
His eyes widened as a low groan escaped him.
"That is probably sinful," he concluded.
"I know, right?" she laughed, taking another bite. "Thankfully vampires can't gain weight," she joked.
She traded him one of her chocolate chip pancakes for one of his blueberry ones.
"How in one-thousand years of life have I never tried that?" he asked.
She shrugged.
"Maybe it's a good thing," she pointed out. "It means there are still new things left to experience."
He savoured another bite and considered her words before looking at her.
"You're right," he admitted.
In ways that went beyond just chocolate chip pancakes, he thought.
She seemed to get what he was implying and she lowered her head back to her food with a small smile.
Indeed, she was right. Truthfully over the past few decades he had often come to wonder what else there was left for him to live. His search for the doppelganger had proven futile time and time again and all his siblings had been in boxes save for Elijah whom he had been estranged from. He had nothing; but a simple twist of fate had changed all that. He now had chocolate-chip pancakes and a particular blonde vampire to lust after.
"Are you fully healed?" he asked concerned, reminding himself of last night once more.
She nodded and lifted the hem of her robe a little – no doubt with more sinister purposes in mind – to show him her bare thigh where the horrible wound had been.
While the sight of her exposed skin was momentarily distracting, he could not remove the sight of her as he found her in the woods. Of course, it had only been a close call, but again, he couldn't help but dwell upon the hypothetical; what if he had not been there?
Fate, he reminded himself.
"All healed," she declared positively, reaching for one of the glasses of blood.
Despite her optimism, he could tell last night with Elena was still weighing heavily on her mind. He wondered if she would bring up wanting to leave again. He really didn't want to be here anymore than Caroline did, but he wasn't sure abandoning the hunt for the cure was wise at this point.
"So I know you and Stefan were out in the woods hunting yourselves last night, but how did you find me? Was it just a fluke?" she asked curiously. "Those woods are huge."
He shrugged with a laugh, taking a sip of blood from his own glass.
"I could smell you," he replied nonchalantly.
Her face contorted.
"Smell me?" she mused. "What did I smell like?"
"You have a particular scent. I could smell your blood, your sweat, your perfume, your fear, your hormones," he listed.
"My hormones?"
He snickered.
"Yes, love. Your sex hormones; quite the aphrodisiac for hybrid wolf apparently," he said.
She blushed a little before covering her smirk with her glass.
"Is that why you didn't hurt me, because you knew who I was?" she asked.
"I suppose so," he concluded.
"Why were you so afraid of transitioning in front of me then?" she wondered.
"I didn't know how I would react," he said plainly. "It was a precaution. Obviously I hadn't intended on running into you in the woods."
She nodded, picking through the remainder of her breakfast as he followed suit.
"You were pretty cute," she admitted playfully.
He rolled his eyes.
"But your slobber was gross," she laughed.
"Odd," he said. "You don't seem to mind my tongue on you any other time."
She scoffed at his lewd remark.
"Speaking of which, you have a bit of chocolate under your lip, love," he pointed out.
Her tongue darted out to catch the evidence of her chocolate-chip pancakes but she missed and he jumped at the opportunity.
"Allow me," he offered, leaning over the tray carefully before capturing her bottom lip between his.
He sucked on her lip gently, tasting the chocolate as his tongue darted out against her skin.
She parted her mouth, surprising him with her own eager tongue.
When he deepened the kiss she pulled back.
"If you lean any further over that tray, the whole thing is going to tip over," she warned. "I'm going to clean this up. How about you grab a shower?" she suggested.
He pouted.
"Will you join me?" he proposed.
She shook her head.
"I'm gonna clean this up, and then I'm going to get one of your presents ready," she stated.
Normally her rejection would have disappointed him, but mention of a present intrigued him so he relented with a sigh as he climbed off the bed.
He took his time with the shower allowing himself the extra time as a minor gift to himself.
Despite his efforts not to, last night continued a looped replay in his mind. He had to hold back all urges to storm over to Elena's house and strangle that girl. The problems she had caused everyone, including him were endless. Somehow, though, he knew that despite their final falling out, Caroline would never stand for it. Ironically, however, Caroline's disintegrating friendship with Elena had raised the possibility of a mended relationship between himself and Stefan.
That thought took him back to their race through the woods and ultimately to an injured Caroline. He didn't recognize that wolf he killed. Knowing that it was dead was the only peace of mind he could take from the situation. Typically though, where there was one wolf there was always another. It unnerved him.
He supposed he could also derive peace of mind from the fact that he possessed some level of self control as a wolf; that he was able to protect Caroline rather than harm her.
Caroline's desire to leave crossed his mind once more. Sure, her impatient request made him nervous, but something more poignant was provoking the same emotion. "I just want us. I love you," her soft voice bellowed in his mind. While there was something comforting and impactful about what she said, those three small words made him terribly anxious. She had said it before but they affected him no less; they still made him feel light-headed. He had so much as confessed his love for her, but he had been unable to say those words, as though they were the final barriers protecting him from complete vulnerability; from making this real. It was pathetic really. He hated being scared of anything.
With his shower done, he dressed only in jeans and re-entered into his bedroom hoping his next birthday present was an eager Caroline, naked on his bed waiting for him to join her.
That wasn't the case, however. She emerged from his sitting room abruptly when he entered his bedroom, as though she had something to hide.
"How was your shower?" she asked, quite enthusiastic to change the subject.
"Lonely," he said, half-jokingly, hoping to play off her guilt.
He was about to question her suspicious behaviour when his ears caught the sound of commotion downstairs.
"What's that noise?" he asked. "It sounds like an army has moved in..." he observed, suddenly growing concerned.
It was no surprise that something was being planned for his birthday, but he didn't know what, and that's what put him on edge. With the thought of Kol's involvement his curiosity and panic only grew.
"Nothing," Caroline said sweetly. "It's just party preparation."
"Did I just hear a hammer?" he said, upon discerning a banging noise. "If Kol puts any holes in these walls..." he started angrily as he tore for his bedroom doors.
A speedy Caroline, however, blocked his way, standing in between him and the exit.
"It's fine," she assured him. "Kol isn't going to do anything crazy. Rebekah and Elijah are keeping an eye on him," she explained.
When he thought he heard a power tool, he reached past her for the door knob, but she grabbed his hand.
He growled under his breath.
"I just want to see things for myself," he persisted.
She shook her head with a smirk.
"It's supposed to be somewhat of a surprise. Kol will kill me if I let you leave this room," she confessed.
He shrugged off her unnecessary worry and tried once more for the door, only to have her flush against them.
"I'm serious, love," he said.
"So am I. It's my job to keep you occupied," she mused.
He arched his eyebrow and crossed his arms.
"Well you're not doing a very good..."
Before he could finish his criticism, her lips crashed against his.
Obviously he had spoken too soon.
Any sounds of power tools and hammers were drowned out of his mind by the taste of her still syrupy lips and her hands around his neck.
He explored her mouth a little further with his tongue while his hands wandered over the silky material covering her hips.
When she surprised him by roughly reversing their positions so that he was in between her and the doors, he didn't protest. He liked when she was aggressive with him.
"Do you really think..."
She cut him off with another kiss.
"...you can seduce me all afternoon to prevent me from leaving?" he asked amusedly.
"I probably could," she said confidently as her hand traced over the flat of his chest. "But that's only part of the plan," she said mysteriously, before capturing his lips again.
He groaned into her mouth as her body grinded against his.
His concerns about Kol faded further as her lips descended upon his neck, and one of her hands grazed over the bulge in his jeans, while the other combed over his scalp.
For a few moments he was so flustered by the attention, he forgot what to do with his own hands, but when he tried to pull the belt of her robe loose she slapped his hand away as she smirked against his skin.
Damn her, he thought.
That curse went out the window when she undid his pants and slipped a hand inside while her kisses moved lower.
He leaned back against the door in an effort to hold himself up as her soft hand traced the shaft of his pulsing hard on.
There was a part of him fighting this; a part of him that wanted to defy her and check on what mischief Kol was up to, but it was no match for the part that wanted to submit to her; who could never say no to her – especially not in a moment like this.
His siblings had been wise to appoint her as his distraction for the day.
He watched lustfully as she kneeled in front of him and tugged his jeans down his legs.
More blood rushed to his cock at the sight.
She looked up at him seductively while she stroked him lightly and teasingly.
"Do you really care what Kol is doing right now?" she wondered before trailing kisses along his thighs.
He laughed through a muffled sigh of pleasure, shaking his head in response to her question.
She pumped him a little harder, her thumb sliding delicately over the head, already drawing out some of his pre-cum.
His mind was swimming with desire as she placed hot kisses along his shaft.
She was unbelievable, and just when he thought nothing could rival their tryst over his desk yesterday...
This is part of what he loved about her. No, not just her sexual prowess, or her amazing oral talents, but that she knew what he wanted; that she could surprise him; that things that had grown mundane felt new again with her.
Her tongue ran softly along the length of him before gently tracing itself over his head where her hand had once been.
With her hand holding him firmly at the base, he gasped when her moist lips followed her tongue's lead and wrapped around the aching tip of his manhood.
He groaned louder when her mouth began to completely envelop him.
She took him in her mouth as far as she could until he could feel the back of her throat.
As her lips and tongue ascended, her hand followed along, stroking him tightly while her tongue swirled back around the tip.
He shoved his hands into her hair suddenly when she drew him quickly back into her mouth with a pleasurable sigh – the vibrations of her verbal expression driving him crazy.
He inhaled sharply when her free hand cupped and massaged his balls.
Clearly sucking him off was only part of the plan, because there was no way he could last the entire day with the relentless swirls of her tongue, curve of her lips and movements of her hands on him like this.
When she looked up at him he nearly came then and there.
He braced himself against the door, holding onto the door handle with as much concentration he could muster considering the beauty currently on her knees in front of him.
He had found another image just as alluring as her bent over his desk, he mused as he bit his lip.
"Caroline," he hissed as she continued to stroke him with her mouth enthusiastically.
She moaned against his sensitive skin in response.
His eyes fell closed as he lost himself further in the sensation of her lips gliding up and down his shaft while her tongue caressed the underside.
He was soon meeting her mouth with the slight thrust of his hips, eager to feel her hot mouth each time it left him.
His mind was a complete blank as his body began to sweat and tense in anticipation of his release.
"I want you to cum for me, Klaus," she requested boldly, much like he had of her so many times.
She stroked him faster with her hand.
"Cum in my mouth," she demanded further.
He groaned hard between closed lips at her naughty invitation.
Guiding her lips back to his aching member with his hand, he practically buckled over when the heat from her mouth consumed him once more.
She kept the stroke of her lips shallow, knowing he was close, while one of her hands stroked him at the base.
"Yes..." he murmured as he felt his orgasm build further.
Before he could warn her, it shot through him rapidly like a gun, nearly causing him to lose his balance as his legs and hips jerked with each euphoric pulse of his release into her mouth.
He moaned gratefully as he curled over her, one hand on her shoulder and the other on the back of her neck.
Her mouth didn't leave him until she was sure that he was spent entirely.
She pulled away, leaving him almost dumbfounded as he collapsed back against the door and struggled to recapture his breath. She smirked up at him as she wiped away some of the glistening evidence of his orgasm from the corners of her lips.
He pulled up his pants as she stood up in front of him.
He stared at her in awe for a few quick moments before reacting. At vampire speed he brought her to his bed, pushing her back, eager to repay the favour.
She had other ideas, however. Using her own vampire speed she flashed to the other side of his room before he even had a chance to pin her down.
Glancing from the empty spot on the mattress to her figure standing in the entrance of his sitting area he growled under his breath.
"Don't I get any say in how my birthday plays out?" he smirked, walking around the bed, stalking towards her.
She grinned and shook her head.
"I have a present for you," she said.
"Wasn't that it, love?" he asked, jerking his head towards the doors she had just made him writhe against.
She eyed him incredulously.
"Come see," she urged, disappearing to the corner of the room, standing in front of a nearly flat wrapped rectangular shaped object on the floor propped against the fire place. In her hands she held a smaller wrapped box.
As he approached curiously – and a bit excitedly – she handed him the wrapped box anxiously.
"Open it," she urged.
He mused at the childish paper she had selected to wrap his gifts in. The paper was blue with a variety of colourful zoo animals holding presents and cake with random messages of 'happy birthday' displayed over the print.
She suppressed a laugh as he inspected the paper and began to open it.
With the paper off, he examined the blank wooden rectangular box before opening it.
Contained within were two sets of Windsor & Newton paint brushes.
"One set is hog, the other is..."
"Sable," he finished for her.
She shrugged.
"The guy at the art store said they would complement each other, so I bought them both," she admitted sheepishly.
"These are quite expensive brushes," he observed.
"I may have convinced my mom to let me dip into my dad's life insurance," she confessed.
He closed the box.
"You didn't have to..."
"Yes, I did. I wanted to," she told him flatly. "There's more," she said as she pulled out the flat rectangular object.
Setting the brushes atop the mantle, he kneeled down in front of the strange gift.
"Did you buy me a painting too?" he guessed as he started to peel the paper away.
"Not quite," she laughed.
He was surprised to find a blank canvas staring back at him. He eyed her curiously.
"This is the other part of the plan," she explained cryptically. "You said you wanted to paint me..."
He glared between her and the canvas, a little shocked by her offer. Her insecurities had gotten the better of her when he mentioned it before. He never expected that she would actually come good on their little bet a few nights ago. This was a pleasant turn of events.
"Are you sure?" he asked, standing up from the canvas.
She nodded.
"I want you to," she breathed a little nervously, "and not just to keep you busy this afternoon," she added.
He smiled and she couldn't help but return the look.
This part of his her gift to him had gone over well, which was a relief. He seemed happy, and that put most of her nerves at ease.
"This will take a while," he warned. "I doubt I'll finish it today."
"Well then let's start," she said more so to prevent herself from chickening out than to utilize their time productively.
She glanced around the room anxiously.
"Let me get the paints ready," he said.
"Should I...put on makeup or fix my hair?" she laughed, feeling stupid for asking.
He shook his head with a smirk as he grabbed her chin.
"I want you just like this," he told her, kissing her lips fleetingly before parting to prep his supplies.
While he readied everything, she took the free moment to check her phone for any texts. She checked in with Stefan, deciding to pass along an invite to him for later tonight. He and Klaus had seemed to get along yesterday, plus she suspected he'd want to get out of the house again.
She also took the time to text her mom and check in with Rebekah to see how things were going with the party set up downstairs. According to Rebekah it was on track save for some bickering between her and Kol. She wanted to ask her about Matt, but decided to hold off, knowing she might not be able to respond. It was probably better to ask in person anyways.
There was still commotion to be heard downstairs, but Klaus seemed oblivious to it as he drew the drapes and turned on various lamps, clearly aiming for a particular kind of light.
She had to give herself a pat on the back for distracting him successfully, even if it meant driving her nerves crazy by posing in front of him. No, she wasn't concerned about being naked in front of him – obviously – she just didn't like the idea of him staring at her so long, discerning all her flaws and imperfections and then depicting them on canvas.
"Are you ready?" he asked her, snapping her attention away from her phone.
In addition to the jeans he had put on after his shower, he was also wearing an old black t-shirt that had obviously seen its fair share of paint.
She nodded.
"Do you promise not to stare a lot?" she asked.
He laughed.
"I kind of have to in order to paint you," he explained.
She sighed, knowing that answer was inevitable.
"Where do you want me?" she asked hesitantly.
He gestured over to the chaise.
"Sit on your legs, facing the corner of the back and the arm," he instructed.
She climbed into the piece of furniture, standing on her knees.
Taking a deep breath, she untied her robe and let it fall self-consciously before discarding it on the floor.
Luckily, as she was, she couldn't see his reaction from behind her.
She sat down on her legs, tucking her feet underneath her as he requested.
"Like this?" she asked unsure.
"Look at me," he said.
She glanced over her shoulder slightly to find him behind her.
"Like that," he said as he approached her.
He moved and bent her arms, ultimately resting her forearms across her thighs.
"This will probably get uncomfortable, but I'll tell you when you can move," he told her.
She nodded gratefully, knowing that her neck would be sore if she tried to hold it this way for any extended length of time.
"I like music while I paint, do you mind?" he asked as he tended to his record collection.
She shook her head, if anything the music would be a welcome distraction for her.
"It's not Lady Gaga or anything," he warned, as he placed the record on the turntable.
Shrugging, she smirked at the thought of Klaus listening to a song like Poker Face.
"Otis Redding," he said simply as the sound of soul began to fill the room.
He returned to his easel and the blank canvas she had made for him.
She stayed quiet for a few minutes, listening to the music that made her nostalgic for her grandfather, as Klaus started his work.
When he wasn't looking at her, she was looking fixedly at him, stunned by his serious concentration. He looked like he was in his element; this was more gratifying to him on a level beyond getting to paint a naked girl, she thought.
"Why me?" she asked.
He looked up from his paints.
"Why paint me?" she clarified.
"I like depicting beauty," he stated nonchalantly.
She scoffed in disbelief.
"Is it hard for you to believe that I would wish to depict beauty, or that you would be the subject of that desire?" he questioned, making a few undecipherable brush strokes on the canvas.
Her cheeks reddened, giving him his answer.
"It's unfortunate that you cannot see yourself as I see you," he said. "You're stunning."
She rolled her eyes, looking away from him.
"Why did you have me pose this way?" she wondered.
He shrugged.
"Because it highlights all your best features; your hair, your face, the curve of your breast, the shape of your back and your bottom," he answered.
She stopped trying to hide her embarrassment or protest his response and instead accepted it with a quiet smirk.
"I invited Stefan tonight," she informed him, changing the subject.
He nodded.
"That doesn't bother you?" she wondered.
He shrugged.
"I don't mind Stefan apart from the doppelganger," he admitted.
"You two were close in the twenties..." she said as both a statement and a question.
The second hand information she had heard from Elena about Klaus and Stefan's history was limited and based upon mostly second hand information Elena had received from Damon.
"Not at first," he recalled. "I hated him, actually," he laughed.
She laughed too, wondering how anyone could hate Stefan, until she thought about the kind of vampire Stefan was in the twenties.
"Why?" she asked.
"He was pretentious and cocky," he answered.
"Sounds familiar," she smirked.
He glared at her mischievously.
"Not to mention the fact that he was all over Rebekah," he added.
She had almost forgotten about Stefan's relationship with Rebekah.
"So what changed?" she asked.
"Eventually his arrogant theatrics grew to amuse me and I came to find that he and I had a lot in common besides my sister," he explained.
Troubled sibling relationships were the first thing she thought of on her own.
"We were partners in crime for a while in Chicago until my father tracked Rebekah and me down," he retold.
He hadn't really ever mentioned Mikael to her before. She wasn't about to press the subject, she knew it was a touchy one for him. The last thing she wanted to do was to drudge up painful memories about his childhood on his birthday. From what she knew about Mikael, he was a terrible man.
"I compelled Stefan to forget us. It was easier that way. Dragging him with us would have made us more vulnerable...it would have put Stefan in danger," Klaus said as he continued painting.
"It was good of you to spend time with him last night," she offered.
She could tell it made him uneasy to be associated with anything 'good,' but he nodded nonetheless.
"It was another interesting trip down memory lane," he commented.
"I know you both haven't been on good terms lately, but I think Stefan probably appreciated the company," she said reassuringly.
"He always was the self-loathing broody type when left alone," Klaus observed.
Their conversation almost made her forget that he was currently painting her nude form.
She quickly began sifting through other topics of discussion to occupy her mind from her self-consciousness.
"So where were you before Chicago? Like during World War One?" she asked, finally finding the right time to ask him about his own experiences on the topic they had been discussing in class.
He seemed interested in her question.
"Canada," he replied.
"Canada?" she wondered, dumbfounded by his response.
"That's where I was before the war broke out," he said. "Rebekah and I were lying low. It's a big country; sparsely populated, lots of places to hide," he explained. "Since Canada was a Dominion of the British Empire at the time, when the U.K. declared war, Canada was automatically involved," he continued.
"Did you fight?" she asked.
"The premise of the war was ridiculous. I wanted no part in it, but it truly was a world event, and thus impossible to avoid. For able-bodied men like myself, at the time there was a lot of shame tied to ignoring your duty to serve your country if conscription hadn't already gotten to you. So, to conform with that and avoid my father, I joined the Canadian Corps as an official war artist, and Rebekah tagged along, joining the Canadian Medical Army Corps as a nurse," he revealed.
"Rebekah was a nurse?" she asked disbelievingly.
He shrugged.
"It was something she dabbled in. It's not something she really wanted to do, but it was the only way she could stay relatively close to me; communication wasn't as instant then as it is today," he explained.
"So what did you do?" she inquired.
"I accompanied divisions to various battles. I would stay a few yards back from the front-lines and sketch the scenes and photograph. I then used the photographs and sketches to produce larger paintings. A few of my pieces are in the Canadian War Museum," he stated. "My superiors were always impressed by how dangerously close I would get to the action for a photograph or sketch," he mused. "I was hit a few times with shrapnel and other shell fragments, but always managed to make it out."
She gave him a knowing smile.
"I thought you liked depicting beauty?" she wondered.
He paused from his work to glance over at her.
"There is a perverse beauty about war," he countered.
"Will you show me sometime? The paintings you did?" she asked interestedly.
He nodded.
"We should go in the winter; very picturesque, plenty of winter activities, and warm bodies," he joked.
She scoffed at him with a tiny smirk as he returned his attention back to his latest work.
"When the war ended in 1918, Rebekah and I returned to North America, settling in New York for a while before moving onto Chicago," Klaus continued.
"Where you and Rebekah met Stefan," she concluded.
"Indeed," he replied.
"Speaking of Rebekah, did you happen to see her last night when you were at the Grill?" she asked.
"I did. She was drooling pathetically over that human quarterback," he groaned.
"Hey, that 'human quarterback' is my friend," she pointed out.
"You used to date him," he smirked.
She glared at him.
"It was a part of the research I did," he said defensively.
"Well it was nothing. Things got too complicated once I was turned," she told him. "Anyways, did Rebekah seem happy?" she asked curiously.
"I suppose," he shrugged. "I can't figure out what she sees in him though," he said.
"Matt's a good guy," she replied, standing up for him. "You can't change how you feel," she added, purposely catching his eye.
"I don't want her to get hurt," he admitted.
His blatant confession took her by surprise since it was not often he readily professed his affection for his siblings. While it was clear he cared for Rebekah, his revelation of worry for her cemented that.
"I think that's a risk you have to take for happiness," she stated, watching how her words affected him.
He avoided eye contact, preferring to remain focused on the painting, but she could tell what she said was ruminating in his mind.
After a few hours of posing with short breaks in between, she was uncomfortable and tired.
She fell back against the chaise with a loud huff, but Klaus was so immersed in the painting he hadn't even noticed her move. Obviously he no longer needed her to strictly hold her position.
Looking at the clock on the fireplace mantle she noticed that it was already late afternoon.
"I'm bored," she whined.
He still didn't turn to look at her.
"Maybe we should take an extended break?" she said suggestively, hoping that would catch his attention.
Truthfully, having him staring at her naked body all day wasn't exactly a mood inhibitor. In fact, she was still kind of reeling from what she thought had been her best blow job yet. She had had to suppress her own need for him for the sake of his birthday present and she didn't want to anymore.
His ears seemed to perk up at her suggestion and he looked over at her. Still, his hand never wavered from his paint brush. He hadn't even chastised her for moving.
She sighed.
"Come on, we should probably start getting ready for your party soon anyways," she reasoned.
He remained steadfastly focused on the painting.
"I'll make it worth your while," she teased laughingly.
He reacted slightly, the corner of his lips tugging into a small smile.
"Please," she cooed sweetly. "I can't sit in one spot any longer."
"I'll be done in a bit," he said, still relatively unaffected by the charm she was trying to lay on him.
She scowled and decided to resort to her own mischievous plan.
"I can have fun without you," she declared mirthfully, as she let her hands wander over her thighs and up her torso towards her breasts.
She tried to repress a giggle as she played her game.
But as time passed and he seemed virtually unresponsive to the sight of her fingers brushing over her nipples and in between her legs, she knew he had beaten her at her own scheme.
Either she would have to continue as though unfazed or she would have to physically prevent him from painting and demand that he have her. He was banking on the former based upon her stubbornness, she knew. He wanted her to touch herself in front of him.
Pervert, she thought with an inward laugh.
Knowing her actions were no longer for a joke, she grew self-conscious, but she was too headstrong to stop. Besides, her body was aching to be touched at this point, and if he wasn't going to give in to her, then she would give in to herself.
With her eyes closed, she pretended he wasn't standing feet away from her and she carried on with her actions, circling her nipples with her fingertips before bringing one hand to her core.
She was soaking wet at this point from a combination of her exhibitionism and delayed gratification.
No longer able to hear the swift strokes of his paint brush against the canvas, she could only assume that he had taken to the sight of her shuddering under her own touch.
As she swirled a finger around her swollen clit, she couldn't help but release a genuine whimper of satisfaction.
Her mind raced between thoughts of Klaus taking her over his desk yesterday, to the sight of his satiated face earlier.
She worked her sensitive nub a little faster with two fingers as she listed to his breathing grow shallow, matching her own.
Responding to her desire to be filled, she eagerly thrust her two fingers inside of herself.
The combination of her fingers and the flat of her palm moving rhythmically against her clit was driving her crazy and she wondered if he was going to let her reach her release all on her own.
Her thoughts were answered when she felt one of his hands on her knee.
She opened her eyes to find him almost panting down at her. She stopped her manual stimulation instantly.
"I need you to move back," he said randomly.
In her self-lust induced haze she jumped to conclusions assuming that he wanted her back in the position she was originally posed.
She was about to protest, until he pushed her back against the arm of the chaise and climbed in between her legs.
He kissed teasingly up her thighs, paying particular attention to the area where her wolf-bite wound had been.
She was already practically on the verge of exploding that she had to refrain from rudely pushing his lips exactly where she wanted them.
Her back arched as his tongue flicked out against the tingling flesh between her legs.
She was so sensitive that she almost backed away from him, but she soon adjusted to the feeling of his tongue drawing her into his mouth and concentrated on the pressure building in anticipation of her climax.
"I'm so close," she said almost pleadingly as she curled her fingers tightly in his hair.
And just as she felt ready to let go, there was a few knocks at Klaus's bedroom door.
Her concentration faltered as his movements stopped and she sighed in frustration and defeat.
"Ignore it," he told her, returning his tongue to her centre.
She gasped and tried as hard as she could to focus on the pleasure he was giving her.
"Niklaus," she could hear Elijah's muffled voice say from the other side of the door.
Knowing that Elijah could probably hear everything, she backed away from Klaus.
"I can't," she groaned, sitting up.
She picked up her robe and slipped it on as an annoyed Klaus responded to Elijah's interruption.
At least he had the decency to knock, unlike Kol.
Exasperated, she sat against the chaise and listened.
"Dinner will be soon," Elijah informed Klaus.
Klaus acknowledged him coldly and told him that they would be down in a while.
When the door was shut again, she was already on her feet.
Klaus returned with a pout.
"We can't skip this, it's your birthday dinner," she said with a smirk. "I need to get ready," she said, kissing his cheek as she headed for the bathroom to do her hair and makeup.
She was curling her hair neatly when a now shirtless Klaus emerged in the bathroom to get ready alongside her, brushing his teeth, fixing his hair, applying some hypnotic cologne. He was prepping to shave when she stopped him. She liked his stubble, even if she had a love/hate relationship with it. He acquiesced and she started on her makeup, ultimately deciding to darken her eyes and redden her lips.
For a few moments she had an out of body experience, musing at how domesticated this all was; them getting ready beside each other in his bathroom for his birthday. Just another surreal experience she could add to her list.
Klaus left almost as soon as he came and she found herself envious of the short amount of time it took for him to get ready.
With him gone, she slipped into the black lingerie she had intended to surprise him with, the main feature being the garter belt and stockings with small red bows.
As promised, she put on the black dress Klaus had purchased for her for their catastrophic hunter mission accompanied by a pair of black patent leather high heels and some diamond-like costume jewelry.
When she was ready, she grabbed the other present she had planned for Klaus from her bag.
She found Klaus dressed in her favourite clothing combination of his; a black jacket and dress pants with a white collared shirt underneath. He was standing at the unfinished painting.
"I hope you're not still painting," she said, breaking the silence in the room. "Elijah will never let you live it down if you get paint on your suit," she laughed.
He gazed at her over his shoulder.
"No, just plotting my next move," he informed her as she approached.
She took time to admire his work having not had a chance to earlier.
It almost looked finished to her, but she could imagine to a professional like him it was far from it.
Regardless, it looked perfect to her. It definitely flattered her, she thought appreciatively.
"It looks great," she stated.
"It could be my favourite," he admitted.
She pushed him playfully.
"You're biased," she retorted.
He shrugged nonchalantly with a smirk as his lips pressed against her cheek and ear.
"And you're beautiful," he sighed.
Goosebumps crept over her shoulders and she fought against falling to hard into the moment. They had a dinner to get to.
"Where will you put it when it's finished?" she wondered, not really interested in her naked body being put on display for everyone to see.
Klaus seemed to understand what she was implying.
"Perhaps the front foyer?" he mused.
She glared at him and shook her head immediately.
He laughed at her jokingly.
"Nah, this is for my eyes only," he stated.
As she smiled, she recalled the other present for him she had in her hand.
"Here," she said, handing him a small black bag with white tissue paper.
He looked down in surprise.
"Another gift?" he asked.
She gave him an innocent look and urged him to open it.
He set the bag down on the side table and pulled out a small book made out of coloured construction paper and an envelope. He eyed the book quizzically as he inspected the scribbled children's drawing on the front.
"The Places I Will Go, by Caroline Forbes," he read aloud, looking up at her with intrigue as he sat against the arm of a chair. "What is this?" he asked. "Were you intoxicated when you wrote this?" he laughed jokingly.
She gave him another playful shove.
"I was like eight years old when I made this," she said defensively. "My mom has literally kept every piece of school work I've ever done. It was part of a unit we did in elementary school in conjunction with Dr. Seuss's book, 'Oh, the Places You'll Go!' We had to make our own stories about the places we wanted to go. I thought of it when we talked about where we would go when we left Mystic Falls. Maybe my eight-year-old self could help us," she laughed. "Just read it."
He laughed as he opened the book and began reading her messy printing and almost illegible spelling. Among her childhood dream destinations were Disney World, the San Diego Zoo, the Hollywood sign, the Statue of Liberty, the White House, Africa – no country was specified, and England to visit the Spice Girls.
"I want to go to China, because that's where most of my toys come from," Klaus read aloud, erupting into a fit of laughter at her childhood naivety.
She laughed too.
"My eight-year old self didn't have a filter for political incorrectness, sorry," she mused. "I thought China was one big toy store."
"It's cute, love. I'm sure you're teacher had a good laugh at this too," he commented. "If you want to go to a sweatshop in China, I suppose it could be arranged," he said feigning seriousness.
She shook her head.
He turned his attention towards the envelope and opened it.
"Plane tickets," he observed. "New York City."
"Tickets to New York were about the only ones I could afford," she admitted.
A smile emerged on his face.
"For after prom," he noted. "I thought you wanted to leave as soon as possible?" he questioned.
She shrugged.
"I booked these yesterday before my blow up with Elena. Besides, Elijah kind of reminded me I have commitments to your sister, and I don't want to let her down," she explained. "I want to stick to our original agreement," she added.
"The cure will still need to be dealt with if it hasn't by then," he reminded her hesitantly. "Not even for Elena, but for our safety."
"I know," she nodded. "The trip to New York isn't permanent; we can come back. It's just some time away, for us to be alone."
He set the tickets and the book down on the table alongside the bag and grabbed her hand.
Seemingly ready to say something, he faltered as he opened his mouth.
"I love it," he expressed, kissing the back of her hand. "Thank you."
She sighed almost wanting for something more, but smiled nonetheless.
"Happy birthday," she repeated. "The rest of the trip is on you though. I know nothing about New York," she chuckled.
He nodded with a smile as he stood up and kissed her lips lightly.
"I have one more gift for you," she informed him as she broke their embrace.
"Another?" he asked surprised.
She smirked as she grabbed his hand and placed it along her leg, sneaking it under the hem of her skirt so he could feel the lacy tops of her stockings and the garter straps.
A devious grin appeared on his lips as she pushed his hand away.
"You have to wait until later to open it," she smirked.
A/N: Yeah so I shamelessly plugged my own country in my fan-fiction, what of it? It was easier for me to write about Canada during the time they talked about because I know more about it and it saved research time.
Also, I hope you enjoyed the presents Caroline got for Klaus...
Expect another update shortly.