A/N: Hi you all! Thanks for all the reviews. I honestly expected to have about five only. Your reviews left me in such a great mood and I had so much motivation to type so here's a new chapter!
And to Vivianne, yes, I do remember you. Thanks for the support and the brilliant long review you left! ;)
After finishing her plate of fries and beer, Caroline set off to Elena's house. It was no surprise to see Damon and Stefan there as she walked into the house greeted by the aroma of food.
"How's everything going?" asked Stefan as Caroline joined them in the kitchen. It seemed as though they were preparing lunch.
"Not good. Klaus is pissed with me now just because I agreed to be Kol's date for Rebekah's party tomorrow." replied Caroline.
Damon's head emerged from the fridge and smiled. "Well, it seems to be going really well if that is the case."
He closed the fridge door as Caroline stared at him. "Were you even listening? I'm saying Klaus is mad at me."
"I heard you, Blondie." smirked Damon.
"Damon means that Klaus is getting jealous and possessive." chipped in Stefan.
"Have fun seducing him tomorrow at the party." said Damon playfully. "We'll be there to watch how you do it."
Elena glared at him as she threw an apple at him. "Don't pressurise her."
"I hear tomorrow's party is going to be casual. You know, the normal parties with beer and a band. So, don't overdress." said Damon.
Caroline nodded and turned her attention to Elena, "So, which Salvatore brother are you bringing?"
It was obviously an uncomfortable subject for Elena and Stefan but Damon seemed unfazed.
"Yes, pray tell, Elena, will it be me or Stefan?" Damon asked and smiled.
Before Elena could reply, Caroline said, "I think you should bring Stefan."
"Hey, I'm still here, you know." retorted Damon.
"I know." replied Caroline as she smiled at him a little too sweetly.
"I think we should all just go together. Our main point is to look out for Caroline tomorrow, okay?" Elena said.
Picking up an apple and biting into it, Caroline frowned. "Why do you guys have to look out for me? I mean, I appreciate that but I can look out for myself. I was fine the other time at the ball as Klaus' date, remember?"
"Ah, ah, ah, that's where you're wrong!" Damon said in a sing-song manner. "Don't forget that this time, their mummy is gone so I believe the originals won't be on their best behaviour."
"Don't worry, Caroline. We won't be too obvious. We'll still be there to have fun and keep a look out for you in the meantime." Stefan said.
"Don't worry, you'll be fine." Stefan said as they reached Klaus' mansion the next evening.
It was eight and it seemed as though the entire school had already turned up as they reached Klaus' backyard where the party was being held. It was huge and there was an enormous fountain situated in the middle. People were milling around, plastic cups in hand. Bonnie had decided not to come as she was using all the time she has to work on the spell.
"I wonder which band they compelled this time." muttered Caroline.
She was starting to get nervous. Her friends were right. This time Esther was no longer around to control her children.
"Here, drink up." Damon said as he handed her a plastic cup of beer.
Caroline took a sip and spat out in horror immediately. "What the hell? Are you trying to kill me?"
She was about to shove Damon when Stefan who was standing beside her leaned in and whispered, "A little vervain mixed inside. We don't want Kol or any originals to compel you."
"Oh." was all Caroline could reply as she shot Damon an apologetic look.
The music from the band was pounding as Damon pulled Elena away for a dance.
Caroline drank her beer in disgust and discomfort as she clutched on to her stomach. She finished the last drop and threw the plastic cup to the ground as Stefan put an arm around her to keep her from writhing in pain.
"Are you okay? Did Damon put too much in?" Stefan asked.
Caroline unclenched her eyes and exhaled. "Y-Yes, I'm okay."
Caroline gave Stefan a smile but Stefan's attention was on something or rather, somebody else. Kol was walking towards them, grinning.
"Ah, hands off my date." said Kol and Stefan withdrew his hand.
Caroline scowled at Kol as Stefan remained calm.
"Come now, Caroline, let's get you some beer and let's party!" Kol said as he dragged her away from Stefan.
Kol handed her some beer and Caroline gulped it down. Where was Klaus? There was no point if he wasn't here to see her "enjoying" her time with Kol.
"Are you looking for my brother?" asked Kol as he threw the cup away from Caroline's hand and dragged her to dance.
The band was now playing a slow song and Caroline wanted to gag as Kol placed his hand at her waist.
"No. I don't care where Klaus is." replied Caroline as they swayed along with the music.
There was no reply from Kol as they continued dancing. Caroline could see Elena and Damon not too far away dancing and noticed that Damon would glance towards her direction once in a while.
"Where is Rebekah, anyway?" asked Caroline, breaking the silence between them.
Kol shrugged. "Not sure. With Matt, I suppose. I saw them together a while ago. I'm surprised he would still come considering I almost broke his hand the other time."
Caroline glared at him. Why was Matt here again with that evil blood slut? She didn't want Matt to be sucked in to all of these. People who got sucked in never got out and all there is waiting for them is trouble. Just like Elena, Bonnie, Tyler and her.
"I need to go to the bathroom." said Caroline as she broke apart from Kol.
"Make it quick! I'll be waiting here then!" Kol shouted after her as Caroline disappeared into the mansion.
Caroline closed the door behind her and the music was drowned out by the silence immediately. Where was Matt? She needed to find him. She couldn't see or hear him and Rebekah outside which means they should be here. Caroline walked past the familiar ballroom as she strained her ears trying to listen for any signs of Matt or Rebekah. She couldn't hear any talking but she could hear someone walking around. She raced towards the sound immediately to find herself standing in front of Klaus' work room where all his paintings were kept.
"Caroline." greeted Klaus, surprised.
At that very moment, Caroline wished she had a pail of vervain to pour it over herself instantly. She was looking for Matt too anxiously to notice where the sound of the footsteps were bringing her. Klaus was sitting at his workbench, pencil in hand.
He seemed to have noticed the surprise and flustered look on Caroline's face as he said, "I hope you are not surprised to find me here. This is my house after all."
"W-Well, I was just looking for the bathroom." stuttered Caroline as she turned to leave.
"Wait." said Klaus as he flashed in front of her, blocking her way.
Caroline shot him a questioning look and he took a step back. He seemed to be contemplating as to what he should say before he said, "Let me show you where the bathroom is."
Caroline didn't argue and followed in step right behind him as he led her upstairs.
"Wait, isn't there a bathroom on the first level? I remember using that one the previous time I was here." said Caroline as she walked up the staircase.
"I happen to catch two humans scandalizing in there just now. Someone is cleaning that bathroom now." explained Klaus annoyed. "I am going to kill Rebekah."
Caroline couldn't help it as she let out a chuckle.
"What's so amusing, love?" Klaus asked as he turned around to look at her.
Caroline stopped laughing immediately and she didn't miss the look of delight in Klaus' eyes.
"I can't imagine how your face looks like when you saw them making out."
"Definitely livid." replied Klaus, smiling as he led her to the first bathroom he saw.
Caroline went in and locked the door as she stared at her reflection. She couldn't believe herself. All through this week she couldn't find any reason to laugh and one small comment from Klaus had sent her chuckling away. She shook her head trying to make her thoughts of Klaus disappear as she opened the door. Her plan failed as soon as she saw Klaus standing outside the bathroom waiting for her.
"Don't you have some sketching to get back to?" asked Caroline.
"Don't you have Kol to get back to?" retorted Klaus.
Caroline glared at him and walked back down the stairs. Klaus fell in step beside her immediately.
"As a matter of fact, yes, I'm getting back to my date now." Caroline replied haughtily.
"Caroline," Klaus said seriously as he grabbed onto her arm. "You should leave Kol alone."
Caroline raised her brows at him. "It's Kol who wouldn't leave me alone."
Caroline stalked off before Klaus could reply. She knew he was following her and that is what she wanted. How far should she push him? She opened the door that led to the backyard and once again, her ears were filled with pounding music again. She spotted Kol by the side talking to a few girls she recognised from her school and she walked over immediately. She could sense that Klaus had stopped following but was certain he was standing by the door looking at her.
"My date is back so you have to go, girls." Kol said and smiled impishly as he waved the girls away.
Caroline rolled her eyes as Kol shifted his attention to her. "What took you so long?"
Caroline chose not to reply as she grabbed a cup of beer and drank deeply. Kol didn't question further.
"Let's go dance!" said Caroline as she downed the last bit of beer and pulled Kol to the dance floor.
Kol seemed delighted at her enthusiasm as he gladly complied. Caroline could feel the deep pounding of the music as she danced. She knew she had a little too much to drink and the alcohol was slowly fogging up her brain but at that moment, she didn't want to care. It had been so long since she had let loose. With all the craziness with the originals and Tyler leaving recently, she didn't have time to have fun.
She felt a plastic cup being pushed into her hands and looked up to see Kol grinning down at her. Without a second thought, she polished off the cup of beer again as she danced with Kol.
"I like drunk Caroline!" She heard Kol say as he pulled her towards him by the waist.
Caroline was about to push him off when everything happened in a blur. She didn't manage to see what happened but in the blink of an eye, she saw Kol lying a few feet away on the ground, snarling. She felt woozy but a firm arm was holding her firm.
"Klaus." whispered Caroline as she looked up.
The music and crowd was too loud for anyone to notice the small commotion they had caused. Without another word, Klaus had grabbed Caroline by the waist and whizzed her into a room. Confused, Caroline looked around and noticed a gigantic bed in the middle.
"My bedroom." Klaus said as he deposited her by the edge of the bed.
Caroline frowned as her head throbbed. "Are you seriously trying to… to take advantage of me?"
"No!" spat Klaus, furious. "I told you to stay away from Kol, didn't you understand?"
Caroline could feel the room spinning and gave no reply.
"What is wrong with you tonight?" asked Klaus a little more gently as he walked towards her. "Why have you been drinking so much?"
Caroline looked up and glared at him. She tried to stand but felt her legs give way so she decided to sit back down again.
"It's all your fault." muttered Caroline. "If not for you, Tyler would not have left."
"So it is all about Tyler, is it…"
Caroline bit her lip. She didn't mean to let slip about Tyler. She was supposed to be seducing Klaus, not pushing him further away. Klaus was now staring at her, as though deciding what he should do with her. Caroline could feel her eyelids getting heavier by the second and her brain shutting off.
"Klaus…?" she heard herself whisper. "I'm tired."
"Then go to sleep, sweetheart."
That was the last Caroline heard as she felt her head hit the silk sheets of Klaus' bed.
Caroline cracked open her eyes and darkness enveloped her. She could still feel her head pounding as she reached into the darkness trying to locate her digital clock. She frowned as her hand hit onto something or rather, someone when she heard a groan. She yelped in surprise and in her hurry to sit up, she felt herself losing her balance and fell backwards and onto the floor instead.
"That was my face, love." She heard the familiar British voice said.
He sounded sleepy but Caroline could trace the amusement in his voice. Caroline stood up and her hands went to her chest immediately. Good, still clothed which means nothing happened. She panicked as she heard him shuffling around. Her eyes had gotten used to the darkness and she could make out his outline. He was still on the bed but was now crawling towards her. Before Caroline had a chance to react, she felt his hand on her wrist pulling her down onto the bed with him.
Caroline squeaked in surprise as Klaus had pulled her into his embrace, her head tucked underneath his chin. He was so close she could smell him. He smelled of soap and worse of all, he smelled nice.
"K-Klaus?" she whispered.
She was tempted to shove him away but she couldn't deny the warmth of his body next to hers was sending tingling reactions down her spine, and how his hand was on the small curve of her back pressing her body into his.
"Sleep now and think tomorrow." She heard him say.
Well, her head was still throbbing and she was still tired and it was too late (or was it too early?) to return home for she knew her mother would question her whereabouts. That's right, she would just sleep now and think tomorrow, she decided as she drifted off into a slumber.
The next time Caroline woke up was when she heard the twittering of the birds. Her eyes shot open immediately and as the events from last night played out in her mind, she leapt out of bed as she cursed.
The bed was now empty and Klaus was not in the room. She took a look around the room, surprised to find the simplicity of it. She had expected heads hanging from the walls or skeletons strewn on the side. A few frames above the bed caught her attention and she peered at it. Love letters, it seems to be like. But they were all written by girls addressed to other men. None of them belongs to Klaus, she realised. Now, why would Klaus keep the love letters of others? Shaking her head away from the thoughts, Caroline dug into the pocket of her jeans to retrieve her mobile phone.
18 messages received. 21 missed calls. The phone displayed. It was eight in the morning, she realised. Caroline groaned as she bolted out of the room. Once she was out of the room, she tried to listen to any voices that might have belonged to any of the originals. There was no sign of any sound as she tip-toed down the majestic staircase. Still no sound. She sped towards the big front doors and reached out and wrenched them open and sped off towards her house.
It wasn't before long when Caroline reached to find Stefan, Elena and Damon pacing at her front porch.
"Caroline, where have you been?" asked Elena worriedly.
"Sorry, I got drunk last night and…"
"And?" probed Stefan.
Damon smiled, "Oh, what did you do? Or rather, who did you do?"
"Oh, shut up, Damon." Caroline replied as she opened her door. "I was just drunk, okay? And you guys promised to look out for me, where the hell were you?"
"I'm so sorry, Care, Katherine showed up and we had to deal with her." apologised Elena.
"Hey, Caroline, are you okay?" asked Stefan. "You were not hurt or anything, right?"
Caroline nodded as they followed her upstairs to her room. "I'm fine. I just came back from Klaus' place."
"What?" came Elena's and Stefan's voice.
"Good work, Blondie!" Damon said.
They all reached their room and Caroline sat down on her bed immediately.
"Why were you at Klaus' place?" Elena asked.
Caroline sighed. "Well, I was drunk and Kol was starting to feel me up when Klaus stopped him. He brought me to his room and I think we had an argument, I can't remember what it was about though and all I remember is that I was really sleepy and just fell asleep."
"Wow, nice going, but maybe the next time you're in there, you might want to just have sex with him already." replied Damon.
His comment earned him a glare from Elena and a pillow thrown at him from Caroline.
"So Klaus was being a perfect gentleman the whole time?" questioned Elena, her eyebrows raised.
Caroline blushed but she quickly turned away towards the window. He wasn't with all the cuddling but despite of that, Caroline could not deny a small part of her liked it.
"Yes." she replied to which Elena sighed with relief.
"Well, at least there is some progress there." said Stefan. "But remember, Caroline, stay safe. If you think he might be on to something, just stop and come to us, okay?"
Caroline nodded. They all left soon after with Damon whining about how he needed a drink and Elena wanting to check up on Bonnie's progress. The entire house was empty as Caroline's mother had gone to work. Caroline showered and wrapped a towel around herself preparing to go over to Bonnies'. She walked back to her room as she hummed a little tune. The moment she stepped into her room the figure sitting at the edge of her bed greeted her.
"Good morning, sweetheart."
Caroline jumped in surprise, almost letting the towel that was around her fall to the ground. She clutched on to it tighter than ever as she glared at Klaus.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed. "Don't be such a pervert!"
Klaus grinned, his eyes raking over her body. "I didn't know you were in just a towel, honestly."
Caroline glared at him. She refused to walk past him but her clothes were on the other side of the room.
"Go away, Klaus. Stalk someone else." Caroline growled.
Klaus simply chuckled at her. "Don't you want to get dressed?"
"Yes, I want to but you're in the room and my clothes are over there." Caroline pointed out.
Klaus picked up her clothes which consists of a denim skirt and shirt and handed it to her. "There you go."
"I need you to get out of the room, Klaus." She said but took her clothes from him anyway.
Klaus smiled. "Alright, but first you have to go on a date with me."
"No." came Caroline's immediate reply and she regretted it instantly. How could she forget that she was supposed to gain his trust?
Thankfully for her, Klaus isn't one to give up so easily.
"Don't forget that I saved you last night from Kol." reminded Klaus.
"I didn't need your saving." retorted Caroline. "I could have handled him myself."
"You against an original? I highly doubt that." smirked Klaus. "Come on, Caroline, just one date. Give me a chance. Give us a chance."
Caroline pretended to ponder over it for a moment before finally saying, "Fine. Just one date."
"Great. I'll pick you up tomorrow at seven?"
Caroline nodded and in a flash, Klaus was gone. Caroline shut her windows and curtains as she changed quickly. She seriously needed to get some window grills already.
A/N: So what do you think? Next chapter will be focused on their date! Anyway, please continue to leave a review as they motivate me to update faster and the reviews are the ones that I look forward to the most whenever I open my email. Til' then, my lovelies! ;)
