This drabble was written as a response to a prompt I was sent on my Tumblr (venomandchampagne): Could you do like a longer drabble where Klaus finds out about Caroline's break up and texts her please?:) thanks!

For the sake of differentiating between Klaus and Caroline, we're going to pretend that Caroline is still stuck in the habit of the 'old style' of texting. I imagine she's the sort of person who was an avid texter at a young age and it's a tough habit to break ;)

(Feel free to send me prompts on Tumblr or PM me them here.)

The phone felt heavy in his hand, heavier than the hunk of plastic and metal that it was should. He continued to stare at it as his mind whirled, the events of the day weighing greatly on him. Tyler was there, in New Orleans, and not back in Virginia where he should be; with Caroline. Klaus could hardly wrap his mind around it. Why was the mutt anywhere besides in the beautiful blonde's arms? It was certainly a concept that was beyond Klaus' comprehension.

He swiped his thumb across the screen and scrolled through his contacts, seeking the familiar name. He often found himself staring at it, remembering, but never actually planning to call. Until now.

His palms felt sweatier at the thought, his thumb hesitating over the 'call' button. Well, perhaps calling wasn't the best idea, he thought, swallowing the lump that always seemed to appear in his throat whenever he thought about speaking with her. No, hearing her voice… He wasn't sure if he would be able to stop himself from racing back to Virginia, back to that cursed town, forsaking everything in New Orleans, just at the sound of her voice.

But there was another option.

Klaus wasn't a big 'texter'. He found the whole idea to be a further example of the current generation's seemingly inevitable devolution into mindless technologically-addicted zombies. He would admit that it had its uses when it came to ordering minions around, but that was as far as his appreciation for the technology went. But he supposed it wouldn't hurt to embrace the trend in this case.

It took him more minutes than he would ever admit to decide what to send. He hadn't felt this nervous about something since, well, since anything involving Caroline, he imagined. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he clicked send, feeling both ridiculous and hopeful.

Hello, sweetheart, how are you?

Klaus nervously licked his lips as he stared at the screen, waiting for a response. After the first minute he double checked that he had sent his message to the right number. After the fifth minute he started pacing. After the eighth minute he was about to throw down the phone in frustration when he heard it chime. He almost dropped the phone in his rush to read the message. Klaus secretly thanked his lucky stars that no one else was home to see him in such a state.

klaus? is that u?

Klaus smirked at his success. She was talking to him, which was a step in the right direction. And why wouldn't she, he thought, they were friends, weren't they? He made himself count to ten before he answered her, determined not to seem too eager, even if he most certainly was.

Of course, love, who else would it be? Did you lose my number?

He smirked as he vaguely thought that this would be an appropriate situation to use punctuation symbols to convey emotion, but he had enough trouble with emotion in face-to-face situations, let alone via technology, so he decided against it. Her response came faster this time.

no i just nm.

whats up?

Klaus frowned as he read her message. What did "nm" mean? He supposed it wasn't important, she was still willing to converse with him and that was all that mattered.

I had an interesting run in with someone today and thought I should see how you were.

Her answer came immediately. Klaus tried to suppress the rush of giddiness he felt at her quick response.

what who? what r u talking bout Klaus?

He only hesitated a moment before typing his response. Tyler was a delicate subject, but it was too late to turn back now. Plus Caroline deserved to know the truth about the mutt, and Klaus was more than happy to pass on any information that painted Tyler in a not so nice light.

Your boyfriend Tyler paid me a visit. Said he was going to stop at nothing to ruin my life.

Klaus wondered if he had chosen the wrong wording after a minute passed and she had still not replied. He started to form a new message, trying to salvage the situation when she finally responded.

hes not my bf nemore. he said he was going 2 c u, but I didnt think hed actually do it. im sry I didnt tell u.

It took him a moment to decipher her shorthand, but when he did Klaus' mouth opened in surprise. He wasn't surprised that they weren't together anymore, Tyler had practically told him as much. Well, he was surprised, actually, what with how hard Caroline had fought for the hybrid, but if Tyler had decided to throw that all away Klaus wasn't going to argue with him. Nor was he surprised that Caroline had known about Tyler's plans. What surprised him was that she was apologizing for not telling him. Maybe she truly did consider him her friend after all.

That's alright, love. I am sure you did not mean any harm.

Klaus hesitated for a moment before he began composing another message, not waiting for her response.

I'm sorry that Tyler left you. I meant what I told you before, I would never have let him hurt you if I had my way. I would never hurt you like that.

He held his breath as he hit 'send'. Maybe that was too much. Would she be upset? She had never responded very favorably in the past when he had vocalized his affections. He let his breath out slowly as the now familiar chime sounded.

thank u klaus. i kno.

Klaus smiled. He had never expected their conversation to go so well. It was this good feeling that led him to give her some information he knew she was wanting to know, even if she had yet to ask.

He is fine, by the way. A bit roughed up, perhaps, but no worse for wear, really.

He could almost hear the relief in her response.

really? thank u for not killing him. we may not b together nemore, but that doesn't mean I want him 2 die.

Klaus found her answer to not bother him as much as he expected it to. Of course she didn't want him to kill the traitorous pup, even if he deserved nothing else. But she didn't launch into a tirade of how he shouldn't kill him in the future or beg for Tyler's life. That surprised him a bit. Not that he was complaing.

You're welcome, love. I will do my best to avoid lethal action should he make the same mistake in the future, but I'm afraid I can give you no guaranties. I will do my best though, for your sake.

He hoped that was a sufficient compromise. He had no wish to lie to her, and promising to never harm Tyler would most certainly be a lie, especially if the mutt persisted on his foolish mission.

i really appreciate that i kno its not really ur thing 2 b lenient, but thanks

god i feel like all im doing is thanking u lol

Klaus vaguely recalled Rebekah once telling him that this "lol" meant something about laughing. He supposed that was a good sign, Caroline feeling comfortable enough to joke with him.

Don't worry about it, sweetheart.

I would do anything for you.

He almost smacked himself in the forehead after he sent the last line. He was pushing her, he knew that, and he was probably going to ruin the lovely repartee they had developed. Yet he still felt he needed to say it, to remind her that he was there for her, only her.

um ok I kno ur just being ur usual charming self, but i feel like i should tell u im not rdy yet

4 the whole last love thing

Klaus was stunned as he read and reread her text. She wasn't ready yet. Yet. Did that mean…? His fingers flew across the screen as he composed his next message.

Of course, love, the move is yours to make. But can I take it from your words that it's more a question of 'when' than 'if'?

He once again held his breath as he waited for her response. She made him feel like a young man again, full of nerves and sweaty palms. He stared intently at the screen, awaiting her reply.

lol ud like that wouldnt u? the almighty hybrid will just have to wait and c ;)

Klaus grinned widely. It wasn't an admission of love, but it certainly wasn't a "no" either. He could hardly have hoped for such an encouraging response, and now that he had it he was overjoyed.

Whatever you say, Caroline. :)

He hoped he had used the proper punctuation symbols. He was so caught up in his joy that he couldn't help himself. Hopefully Caroline would understand.

omg klaus did u just use an emoticon?

He frowned at the text, not understanding. Klaus idly thought he would have to put more effort into becoming more familiar with the slang of today. Even though the butchery of the English language perturbed him somewhat, he disliked being confused even more.

I'm not familiar with that term, love.

He hoped Caroline would just let the issue drop and move on to more mannered subjects, but he should have known her better.

lol omg klaus! this is hilarious!

Klaus' frown deepened as he became increasingly frustrated. Not knowing something put him at a disadvantage and that was not a place Klaus ever liked to be.

I fail to see what is so humorous.

Why would she not let it go? Klaus vaguely wondered if this was what others felt in his presence when he had clearly gotten the better of them.

lol thats exactly why its so funny

Klaus rolled his eyes and sighed. She was like a dog with a bone. He staunchly refused to consider the irony of that statement as he made one last attempt to end this textual torment.

Caroline…

He gritted his teeth, willing himself to control his temper. Klaus never was one to allow others to get the better of him, and it was only the fact that it was Caroline in this case that helped keep him somewhat calm.

okok ill stop lol

so how goes ur conquering of new orleans neway?

Klaus smiled faintly at her acquiescence, glad to be moving on from his shortcomings. He was, however, surprised with her new subject. She couldn't possibly be interested in what he was doing down in NOLA, could she? Caroline was probably just being polite. He wouldn't force her to speak to him if she didn't truly desire to, Klaus did not need a pity conversation.

You don't have to make conversation with me if you don't want to, love. I will just call it a night and let you head off to bed or studying or whatever you were doing before I interrupted.

He placed his phone down on the table, sure the conversation was over, when he heard the chime go off once again. He tried to ignore the flutter of hope he felt and assured himself that she was only saying "good night" as he picked the phone up once more.

no i dont mind. tell me whats up with you. ive never been to nola u kno

The grin returned as he read her reply. She truly did wish to talk to him. Well, at the very least she did not mind it, and Klaus would take what he could get at this point.

Well, you're always welcome to come and visit. I promised you I would show you around if you ever wished.

He knew it was a long shot, but perhaps reminding her of her options would eventually spur her to start living her vampire life and forget her silly notions of playing human.

well maybe ill take u up on that sumtime

Klaus' smile widened, dimples clear on his face. He was suddenly very glad he had made the decision to text her tonight.

I would be delighted, sweetheart.

Klaus texted back and forth with Caroline for another hour, talking about anything and everything. They talked about the city, about her school, about the new brand of supernatural trouble she had found herself immersed in this time. He gave her some advice and made her promise to call him if anything happened that she couldn't handle.

I mean it, Caroline. You are quite capable, especially for a vampire of your age, but you cannot handle everything. You are immortal, not invincible. Promise me, love. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you.

Klaus insisted that she be realistic in regards to her capabilities. He didn't say how he trusted her judgment, but not so much that of her friends. Caroline would do much better on her own without that rabble to constantly put her in danger. Mentioning such an opinion would surely cause an argument, however, so he kept that opinion to himself.

He could practically see her smirk through the phone when she responded, telling him that she appreciated his concern but she could handle herself, and if he didn't believe her, he could come and visit and she would give him a firsthand demonstration. The vague invitation sent a thrill up his spine, and he cheekily told her he "might take her up on that sometime".

Finally, as the hour grew late, she admitted she should go, having a paper to finish. Klaus reluctantly agreed, giving one last attempt at pushing the boundaries of their relationship, whatever it was.

Good luck with your paper, sweetheart.

Would it be alright if I were to contact you again via text message in the future?

He waited impatiently for an answer, hoping that she wouldn't laugh at the very idea, wouldn't scorn him. He got his answer a few seconds later.

thanks! of course u can klaus, thats what friends do :)

Klaus swore his heart started beating faster in his chest. She did still consider them to be friends, and as ridiculous as it might sound, having a friend made the 1000 year old hybrid smile in genuine happiness. It wasn't a declaration of love, of returned feelings, but it was a start. He could work with that.

I'm glad to hear. Goodnight sweetheart, pleasant dreams.

night klaus ttyl :)

It physically hurt to write some of that text speak lol ;)