Destined Chapter 5
"Oh come on you totally made that up" Caroline choked back a laugh as she swallowed the last of the wine in her glass after swirling it around a little in her fingers. "Look here old man, I know you've literally walked with Dinosaurs but.." she ducked her head to miss the napkin that was pitched in her direction whilst giggling and tried to continue "b-but you were not there Paris when.." She was cut off this time as the breath was quite literally stolen from her lungs and unspoken words kissed away her lips.
This had become a familiar routine for the past three hours. When Klaus started to drive the car out of the school parking lot and Caroline had her gotten over her giddy excitement/shock she started to panic and where they were actually and going and what they were going to do. She hadn't actually answered Klaus, a date? A DATE? But as the car sailed past the welcome to Mystic Falls sign and past any nearby towns her heart rate started to calm down and she eased back comfortably in her seat. She stole glances at Klaus while he drove between looking out the window and texting her mom, god knows when she'd be home tonight.
The atmosphere in the car was strangely comfortable, neither saying much, Klaus occasionally flicked through the radio stations then a after a short while would let out a frustrated groan and switch it off again when he wasn't satisfied with the current selection of songs. She took the time alone together in a confined space to really look at him, he's quite a beautiful creature in his peaceful subdued state. To anybody else who just so happens to glance into the car all they would see was a normal, nothing out of the ordinary man, but there is always more than meets the eye to Klaus, Caroline has always known that.
His sandy coloured messy yet perfectly styled hair and matching fuzz on his jaw strikes him as your typical twenty-something piece of eye candy. His striking blue eyes that crinkle slightly at the corners with the littlest up turn of a smile and the smile its self, starting out a smirk or a grin and evolves into a glorious display of pearly whites, these features set him off as an average guy with an average heart. His casual, un-bothered yet sexy appearance and dress sense brings the typical bad boy exterior and to the unknown eye many would not see past that, see deeper, for what and who he is. Caroline being a vampire or not, she has always seen inside who he really is, knowing, hoping to unveil more. When Caroline looks deeper into those eyes and past the devilishly handsome grin and features, she sees the torn soul that hides behind the façade of the mysterious man who lives in a small town with his troublesome family.
She sees the beast hiding, waiting to be unleashed at the slightest flair of anger that sits ready in the gooseflesh of skin when conflict arises. She sees the good and wholesome purity of his heart, sitting on the sidelines, trying to break free. In that moment she gets him, its fight or flight, its self preservation, he hides behind the monster that he has created and perceived to protect the very last part of his humanity.
As her eyes come back into focus and she shakes her head from her musings, she realises that the car is slowing down, with a glance at the clock on the dash she notices they've been driving for 40 minutes, wow. She risks a glance at Klaus and he's still concentrating on the road ahead, but a slight grin plays at the edge of his mouth, maybe she wasn't so subtle in her observations. She looks at him again and notices the glimmer in his eyes, it looks something like regret and guilt and then she feels it, remembers the pull in her veins and the familiar delicious tickle in her skin, reminding her that he's just there, their marks are close, and she realises that he could feel it, he felt the thoughts she was having. This bond does nothing for rules and boundaries.
They pull into a secluded parking lot, surrounded by trees and rose bushes that are strewn with tiny white lights that would twinkling beautifully so when the night falls. The sky is still a bright a blue, with almost no clouds, the air warm with the hint of a cool breeze and the sun still high and golden. At the edge of the parking spaces in a long narrow gravelled pathway that is guarded by plants and flower beds on either side, Caroline can just make out a small building on the opposite end of the walkway, but can't see past anything else, just beautiful bright, vivid colours and greenery and the scent in the air is sweet. Right in the distance Caroline can just make out the silhouette of a hilltop that meets the skyline.
"Shall we?" She pulls her gaze away from the window and turns to find Klaus looking at her expectantly, his face showing promise and also something unsure and unknowing, and she gets it, he's still testing the waters with her, he's trying, he doesn't know what to do and how soon. Everything he does is with confidence and also a lack of. He has one hand perched on the door handle, waiting for the go-ahead that this ok. She smiles and turns to open her door but in a blink the door is opening and Klaus is on the other side with a hand outstretched.
They walk down the long path silently, admiring the view and the smell, and even the atmosphere is blissful here, although there were a handful of cars parked in various other spaces there is nobody sight. Caroline should feel, nervous, unsure, frightened, she knows this, but she's not, she's comfortable, safe, at peace and she's perfectly aware of how strangely satisfying that feels. Their hands and fingers and legs brush lightly as they reach the end of the walkway. When they get to the entrance of the small building and Caroline reads some notices and signs that are hung up on the wooden pillars of the beautifully constructed porch. There's some white, metal French style patio tables dotted around the front lawn and water features that trickle in the most serene way are dotted around along with, garden statues and sculptures. Klaus disappears into the building whilst Caroline reads a sign that is picketed into the grass about animals and quiet zones, and she realises where they are. Klaus returns not a minute later with a wicker hamper in one hand and extends the crook of his elbow to Caroline with a tilt of his head. She links her arm with his and they walk around the back of the cabin and onto the lush of green, there are many pathways steering off into different directions but they continue on their own path over the blades of grass, heading towards a guard of large trees, oaks and pines and only then can she start to hear the tell tale sign of water rushing.
The nature reserve must have been made of nearly a hundred acres of land, in every way you look all you can see is distance and scenery and sky, its quiet save for the occasional birdsong and buzzing and humming and the waterfall from the reservoir that sits just down the edge of the small hill. There are swans swimming lazily on the water surface with their young following behind, lights and lampshades placed neatly and hanging from the branches of the tallest trees and as the sky starts to redden and the sun starts to slowly drop they start to brighten.
Klaus took out a blanket from the hamper and placed it neatly on the edge of the grassy hill within perfect view of the water. They were surround by trees and colours and nothing else and it was perfect, breath taking. Occasionally Klaus would pull out new contents from the basket and make Caroline giggle with the cheesiness of it all. When the bottle of wine and glasses were pulled out there was a slight protest of having school the next day but with soft words and whispers and promises of just one drink she found her glass full and in the middle of a conversation about Klaus's school life as a kid way back when, god knows when. It was all very interesting and, normal and just..easy. There were no misconstrued feelings or words, no-one around to pass judgement, no whispers or prying and spying eyes, just the woodland creatures that hid beyond the trees. The conversation moved gracefully and not at all awkward in anyway until the start to dip and hide behind the scattered clouds, slowly descending behind the distant hilltops.
There was no time to think, no time to realise that Klaus was being, perfect, he was being who she always knew he could be, and in return she was giving what he deserved in that moment, all of her. Eventually after a few shuffles from both bodies they finally closed the gap between them on the blanket. She could literally see Klaus's body shaking, feel the vibration within his skin, he was trying to hold back. So she helped him out, as he placed his glass down beside him and turned back to her with a question poised on his lips she pounced, he froze, allowing his brain to catch up to the movement of their joint mouths, then with a grin and delicious growl he reciprocated. And that's how it had been ever since, polite conversation, feeding each other strawberries, all that sickly adorable stuff until the moment was ruined by one of them unable to keep their hands of each other. All Caroline could think about was savouring the moment while it lasted.
Now Caroline lay on her back, all thoughts of Klaus disturbing the peace in Europe hundreds of years ago completely gone from her brain, as she concentrated on the weight on top of her. Klaus was sitting just to the side of her leaning slightly on his side but with both arms resting on either side of her head, his chest weighing down but gently so on top of hers, his legs were spread out before him and their ankles were brushing, trying to entwine but the angle wasn't right. Caroline didn't think it could be like this with him. She didn't think he could be so soft, so tender and caring, she was expecting ripped clothes and hurried movements and gasping for breaths. She wouldn't mind if at a later date things turned in that direction, but this for now was perfect, it felt right. It also hasn't skipped her attention that he's chosen to bring her here, somewhere secluded, he knows her concerns about the general reaction when people find out about the bond, and she's well aware that he won't be willing to hide from it for much longer, but against his own opinions on the matter not only has he found somewhere they won't be seen but somewhere utterly beautiful.
Klaus's right hand moved from where it was resting and slowly started to move up Caroline's writhing body, her hands were on his face, scratching lightly at his stubble, teasing his earlobe, their foreheads resting against the others. Then suddenly something that felt like a small electric shock, but a not so painful one, had them frozen and startled but unable to separate, they both looked down to find Klaus's hand resting on its side over Caroline's collar-bone, his mark sitting perfectly over the top of hers which was now on show thanks to his wondering fingers pulling down at the neckline of her tee. The letters completely aligned together, and the blood pumping under the surface almost made it look like the words were beating like they had a pulse, the boldness and preciseness of the black letters kind of looked like they were glowing proudly against the nude skin.
They looked up and caught each other's eyes at the same time, mouths agape and trying to swallow back the dry of their throats.
"W-what does that mean?" Caroline's voice was small but confident, her eyes glimmering with interest, nerves and both the sheer thrill and worry of what was coming next.
"Well, I think we have just unknowingly and successfully joined our soul marks" he looked back at her with the same soft features she was showing, something between excited and unsure.
"Ok I'll ask again, what does that mean?" Her voice was a pitch lower than usual, raspy and her grin was betraying the serious expression she was trying to display. Her fingers slowly found his and they curled around each other. His answering low growl grumbled up through his chest and his throat and he moved forward again eager to close the gap between their bodies once again.
"The bond is fully established now." His voice was a hoarse whisper as he pushed gently at her shoulders, urging her to lie back down. His lips found her pliant ones, and the battle for dominance between their lips and tongues was non-existent. She was submissive, accepting, allowing and giving herself over to him. And he could feel it, he pulled away for just a second and breathed against her jaw, allowing himself to calm while he swallowed a couple times, his muscles flexing, trying to form the words on the tip of his tongue, the words that meant everything.
"It means our bond is going to be a hell of a lot harder to hide now"