Hello, my lovely readers. Uncertainty, love and a proposal are in the air. On with the show…

Chapter 3: The Hands-On Approach

Caroline's eye lids began to droop as she watched Kol Mikaelson work. She didn't mean to fall asleep. She just felt so damned tired. Every part of her body ached and she wanted to go home and soak in the tub. But she couldn't. She no longer had a tub. The tub was Josh's, who had first dibs on the tub—where he might want to be with someone—if either of them ever found someone to spend tub time with.

Her thoughts moved to Klaus and she felt a longing that she knew she shouldn't be having. He was her boss. It was wrong. None of her friends were having bad, naughty, sexy thoughts about their bosses. Well, Josh talked about the hotness of their bosses but Caroline did not see him acting on said thoughts. She felt almost positive that Hayley and Rebekah wouldn't either. It helped in Rebekah's case given the fact that Kol, Elijah and Klaus were her brothers. Then there was Marcel and Caroline had no idea what was up with Rebekah and Marcel…

Klaus. Hmmm… He was such a dick. An arrogant jerk. An arrogant, sexy jerk that made Caroline want to drag him into an on-call room and jerk his clothes off. Or take a nice, long soak in a bathtub with. Caroline bet that Klaus had a bathtub large enough for two of them to share. They could curl up together, bubbles surrounding them, his lips brushing her bare skin…

"Forbes, are you with us?" Kol's voice snapped her out of her standing upright nap. Her eyes opened to find Kol's eyes narrowed and boring a hole through her. "I'm sorry, love, am I boring you?" he demanded.

"No. No!" Caroline protested, looking at the nurses who gave her long looks above their surgical masks. Their eyes studied her and Caroline felt sure they could see her cheeks turning pink underneath her mask. Josh's eyes radiated his usual warmth and kindness which she felt grateful for. Finding Kol's eyes again, Caroline forced herself to look alert.

"Good," Kol muttered, returning to his work.

A sigh of relief escaped between her lips and she wondered—not for the first time—if she were really cut out for this work. Would she be the one who failed out of the program? She hoped not. She did not want to end up back at home, marrying some guy she grew up with, and popping out baby after baby. Caroline liked to think she was made for more than just a wedding and childcare, but sometimes—this little voice in the back of her head said that she just wasn't good enough— didn't have what it took to succeed.

Several hours later, Caroline and Josh left the OR. She yawned as they washed their hands and then left the pre-op area. "My feet are killing me," she moaned.

"Mine are, too, but that was great, right? I never thought that watching someone have their nose worked on took that much skill. Kol is awesome. And that poor girl. I don't think I can ever look at a dog the same way again." Josh shivered and Caroline nodded, rubbing the back of her neck.

They walked down the hall to find Kol standing over the nurses' station; writing something on a chart. "Enjoy your little nap?" he quipped, his eyes flicking to Caroline before falling back on the paper in front of him.

Caroline inhaled sharply. "I am really, really sorry about that. It will never happen again," she told Kol who nodded at her, closing the chart. Turning around Kol, thrust the chart at Josh. "Finish this up; will you?" It was less a question and more of a demand. Josh took the chart without an argument.

"You. Come with me," Kol said, waving for Caroline to follow him down the hall.

Caroline looked back at Josh who stood with the chart pressed to his chest while Kol kept striding forward. He turned a corner and then grabbed Caroline by the shoulders and forced her to close the door. "See that young fellow there?" he demanded, his voice low.

Nodding, Caroline stared at the man who looked to be around her age. He suffered from what were probably second degree burns on his face and neck. She couldn't see further down and did not really want to see how far the burns were spread. "Do you know how much that man is suffering?" Kol asked, his hands pushing her closer to the door. "Do you?" he demanded, his voice a hiss in her ear.

Caroline shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes. "No," she said quietly.

Kol turned her around, jerked her away from the door and pushed her against the wall behind her. "He suffers, greatly, every day. Do you know what would happen to that man if, you, a lowly intern happened to take a little nap while working on his skin grafts? Do you know what kind of harm you could do a man like that?" His eyes burned with anger and Caroline felt a tear run down her cheek.

A little whimper escaped between her lips. "Caroline, I do not mean to be cruel to you. You need to understand how important what we do is," Kol said softly, wiping her tear away with his finger. "Come, love, none of that," he whispered, as another tear ran down her cheek. He stroked it off her skin and she looked at her shoes. "Why don't you go and get my dry cleaning? It will give you a break from this." He waved a hand around the corridor.

Nodding, Caroline took another sharp inhalation of air before she moved away from Kol and hurried down the hall. She nearly ran down the steps of the staircase and crashed into Klaus who was coming up them. "Caroline?" he said and she let out a sob, burying her face into his lab coat, throwing her arms around his neck.

"I don't want to be here anymore!" she wailed into his chest. "I suck at this job. I suck so badly."

SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK

Klaus had been lost in thought about his patients and family, so he did not notice Caroline coming down the stairs, until she ran into him. He grabbed her by the shoulders and held her in place. "Caroline?" He felt concerned, seeing her face reddening and her shoulders shaking.

"I don't want to be here anymore! I suck at this job. I suck so badly." Her words were muffled since her face had become buried inside his lab coat and shirt. "Klaus, I don't think I'm cut out to be a doctor," she moaned, her arms wrapping tightly around his neck, her face moving to the crook of his neck.

"Caroline," Klaus muttered into her hair. He pulled back and looked down at her. She titled her head to look at him, misery shown clearly in her expression. Klaus knew how to take her mind off it for a moment. Pressing his lips to hers, Klaus enjoyed the fact that she did not resist his advance, instead she encouraged him, her fingers burying themselves into his hair. He turned her around, pushing her against the wall behind them. His hands moved over her clothes, his lips moving from her lips to her neck and then back to her lips.

After a long moment, Klaus pulled back and looked down at Caroline who had stopped crying. "Are you feeling better, love?" he asked her with a smile.

Caroline nodded, breathing heavily. "Yeah. Umm… Yeah. I think so," she told him, inhaling deeply again.

"This work. What we do every day. It is not for everyone. There are days in which I have left and wished to never see this hospital again. You are new. A babe. You will learn from whatever trial that tested you today and you will become the better for it, because—as much as I might torment you at times—I do see your potential, Caroline, and I do believe that you will prove that you are worthy of being here." Finishing his speech, Klaus watched Caroline's eyes begin to sparkle. A genuine smile appearing on her lips that made his breath catch in his chest. When she reached out and jerked him to her in another heart-stopping kiss—Klaus saw much more than her potential as a surgeon—he saw a life with this girl.

"I have to go pick up your brother's laundry; but maybe we could met up later. Get some coffee somewhere." Caroline looked thoughtful, her hands on his chest as she spoke. "I can find out what Josh's schedule is and maybe we can go back to my place." She looked up at him through lowered lashes.

"Or we could go to mine. None of your friends will dare to come to my flat." Thinking about that statement, Klaus added, "Perhaps Kol might stop by. Or Elijah. Or Sage. Finn. Father. Not likely, but possible. Bekah, if something came up…" Trailing off, Klaus shook his head. "Perhaps a hotel room would be best."

"Breakfast in bed," Caroline said, a smile creeping upward. "But there is one condition." She held up a finger.

Klaus took her finger and kissed the tip of it. "Name your terms."

"We will tell no one. At least not yet. I don't want to be the intern who's sleeping with her attendee," Caroline said quietly and Klaus nodded with a smile.

"I will treasure our stolen moments." Klaus did not mention the list of interns that he knew of who had slept with their attendees, including himself, but that was another story. Caroline would soon find out about her friends' little exploits and perhaps it would make her feel less guilty.

A door opened and Marcel came up the stairs as Caroline took a step away from Klaus. "Hey, you two. Caroline, is Kol done with you? Rebekah's run off and I need a new intern. Unless Klaus called dibs on you already?" His friend's gaze moved from him to Caroline.

"Nope. I'm single—" Caroline blushed deeply. "I mean—I'm free." She looked from Marcel who looked amused to Klaus who tried to keep a smile off his face but a laugh escaped him and she huffed in exasperation before shoving an elbow into his ribs.

"Ouch," Klaus groaned.

Marcel began to chuckle and Caroline narrowed her eyes at Klaus. "I've got to go. We'll talk about that surgery you want me on, later."

Klaus watched the blonde march down the stairs while Marcel looked at him; his eyebrows rising. "Not a word, my friend," Klaus muttered.

"I wasn't going to say anything," Marcel retorted, holding up his hands.

Klaus watched Marcel follow Caroline down the stairs and he felt a smile turning his lips upward. Triumph. Kol came down the stairs. "Was that my intern going off with Marcel?" he demanded.

"Yes. Pick up your own bloody laundry," Klaus snapped at Kol who rolled his eyes.

"As if you don't have Tyler Lockwood fetching you coffee," Kol retorted on his way past Klaus.

"Are you the reason that Caroline was having a meltdown?" Klaus called, grabbing Kol by the arm.

Kol pulled his arm away. "I have no idea what you're going on about."

"Never mind." Moving further up the stairs; Klaus paused. "Remind me to thank you, Kol." Kol did not seem to have a quick response for once and Klaus continued on up the stairs.

SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK&SOWK

"We have got to stop meeting like this," Marcel groaned as Rebekah jerked his belt off and shoved him onto a bed in the on-call room. He watched her pull her scrub top off. Her lips curved into a smirk before she straddled him.

"Less talk, Gerard," Rebekah snapped, her eyes bright with amusement as her lips found his. She was right. They talked far too much. And were in surgery too much. All work and no play made them both boring as hell.

"Oh, sweet… Bekah!" he moaned as she moved on top of him and then the door opened and the lights came on.

"Oh, my God!" Josh cried out, his hand coming up to his eyes. "I swear I did not see anything. Bye, Boobs. I mean Bekah. Rebekah. Shit. I'm… Later." Josh left the room, nearly falling out the door.

Rebekah let out a hiss, falling against the wall with a sheet draped over her. "Blasted hell," she groaned, pushing her long curls back from her face and looking pissed. "That is just wonderful. Now, Josh is going to tell Caroline and Caroline is going to bloody well tell the whole bleeding hospital." Getting to her feet, she bent down to grab her scrubs when Marcel sat up and yanked her back down.

"Bekah," Marcel said quietly, moving her body under his. "Baby, I love you." He murmured, moving his lips to hers and Rebekah let out a little moan as he slipped his hand under the sheet, sliding it up the inside of her thigh.

"Marcel," Rebekah cried out as he kissed her softly. "Marcel, we can't keep doing this. I have a career to think of. A reputation. Please, let me up," she said, pushing at his chest.

"Let me change your mind?" he murmured, watching her eyes as they traveled to his lips. "Please?" he whispered, moving his free hand to tug the bed sheet open and to unclasp her bra. "Bekah…"

Rebekah began to kiss him back and she stopped protesting. He had loved her for a long time now. All he could think about was this little house he'd seen last week. You could smell the beach from it and there was a farmer's market within walking distance with great a school district. All he wanted was Bekah, their little house and their kids running around the yard. And all Bekah wanted was to begin her career. He loved her, he respected her work, and her ambitions, but he wanted more.

"Thanks for that," Rebekah said, pressing another kiss to his lips before giving him a healthy shove off of her. "I've got to get back before one of those fools takes one of my surgeries." She sat up, gathered her clothes and moved out of his reach. He rolled onto his side to watch her dress.

"Rebekah, marry me," Marcel called to her.

Rebekah had been in the middle of pulling her scrub top on. "What?" she said, jerking it all the way on and then tugging her hair out from her shirt.

"Marry me," Marcel repeated, standing up and walking over to her. He pulled her flush against him and looked into her eyes. "Marry me, Rebekah Mikaelson." Taking her left hand in his, he kissed it and watched her.

Rebekah's eyebrows furrowed and she shook her head. "Marcel, I… I can't." She looked away from him. Taking a step back, she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. "I should be going."

"Bekah!" Marcel cried, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her back to him. "Come on. Talk to me…" He couldn't let her go. Not when he just proposed and she turned him down flat; without so much as an explanation. "Why don't you want to me marry me."

"I never said I didn't want to. I said 'I can't.'" Rebekah gave him a scornful look. Her eyes darkening and her lips pursing.

"Why can't you?" Marcel retorted, staring down at her.

"Because you are…" Rebekah shook her head. "You wouldn't understand." She tried to pull away from him.

"Try me." Still holding her, Marcel refused to let her go until she gave him something he could work with.

"You're not a woman," Rebekah spat out before shoving him away. "You have no idea how much harder I have to work to get anywhere. And with my brothers, here, and my father running the blasted place… Everyone here thinks I did not earn my place. They think its blasted nepotism. I have to work ten times as hard as any of the other interns. And you want…" Rebekah choked on the words, tears filling her eyes. "You want to marry me?" she scoffed. "Think of what they'd say then: Oh, look, there's Rebekah Mikaelson-Gerard, sister to the attendees, daughter to the chief, and wife to the one attendee who she isn't blood related to!" Laughing, Rebekah wiped away tears. "I can't marry you, Marcel. Not this year. Or next year. Or the bloody year after that. Please, find another girl to chase because you'll be waiting a bloody long time to find me in a white dress."

Marcel opened his mouth to object when Rebekah turned and fled the room. He felt like someone had punched him in the stomach and he sat down on the bed. Maybe Rebekah was right. Maybe he should move on. A man who did not like heartbreak and who wasn't a fool would run. But he loved her and he wasn't the kind of man who ran away from a problem. If he had to wait, he'd wait, he'd wait until they had gray hair if he had to. He loved Rebekah. If he had to wait for her to be ready, he could, and would be patient.

Thank you for reading, faving, following and reviewing.

Peace,

Jessica