I know. I know. I did NOT dye. I did NOT quit. I moved into a new apartment, with new roommates, at a new college, in a new place, trying to make new friends. I started classes, including a writing course that has taken up my priorities along with the rest of my homework. I'll apologize. But I stated at the beginning of this that i wasn't going to update as often as my other stories.

Thank you for all the reviews and I'm sorry that I gave such a wait in return.

Elijah felt the slow thumping of Hayley's heart against his chest. He never expected any human to be so relaxed in his presence. She was fast asleep. Her body was completely resting against his own. He never planned on going to sleep, he couldn't. But there was no way he would be able stay. Now that Elijah knew where the doppelgänger was, he had to finish what he started. She and the Salvatore brothers all believed he was dead. It would be an advantage. But vengeance and his emerging love for this young woman were conflicting even more than before.

Elijah wanted to leave her while she still looked peaceful, to sneak away without seeing the hurt in her eyes that she could hide so well. But he'd made a promise to her. And he owed Hayley much more than she would ever realize. He couldn't leave without saying goodbye. Elijah would only allow himself one night of her sleeping in his arms. And in the morning, he would have to say goodbye once again. It had to be done.

Hayley woke up, confused as to why she wasn't in her room. Then her heart dropped when she realized Elijah's arms were around her. The night's events came flooding back to her memory. She quickly sat up to see that Elijah was awake. She guessed he'd never gone to sleep. Then Hayley found herself wondering what it would be like to see him asleep. Her heart fluttered at the thought.

"Good morning." Elijah said, trying to hide a smirk.

"Hi." She replied consciously. Her fingers immediately combed through her hair, making sure she wasn't that much of a mess.

"You sleep like the dead." He pointed out to her.

Her eyes flickered up. "That's not usually the case." Most of the time she couldn't sleep at all. She saw Elijah tilt his head, wondering what she meant.

"No?" He asked her to elaborate.

Hayley was embarrassed for saying anything, now. She looked down at the bed spread instead of him. "I…ugh…I've realized that I sleep a lot better when you're around." She muttered quietly, almost hoping he wouldn't hear her answer. But she underestimated his heightened sense of hearing. Elijah's eyes brightened at the explanation but she didn't notice. Now that Hayley was awake, he realized that he had to say goodbye before the day ended. But he didn't want to just yet. He couldn't bear to receive the negative action he knew she would give him.

"Would you like something to eat?" He offered. She scooted away from him, putting an abnormal space between their bodies. Both of them felt it.

"Is Charles going to make it?" She asked with a smirk.

"If you wish." Elijah replied.

Hayley then got off the other side of the bed and looked at him. She tossed her hair into a messy bun and was still wearing her sweatpants from the night before. "No, Mr. Wayne, I don't want your precious butler making me breakfast." She sighed and left the bedroom without another glance.

Once she was gone, Elijah allowed himself to smile at her mockery. He could have all the money in the world and she wouldn't care at all. After a few seconds, he quickly got up and followed her out of the room. There was a small kitchen in his wing of the house. He didn't really need it, just like the rest of the manor. Elijah found Hayley rummaging through the cabinets. Then he heard Charles coming into the opening of the wing.

"May I be of assistance?" He asked Hayley even though he saw Elijah standing there, watching over her. Hayley jumped at the sound. Charles was almost as quiet as any vampire.

"Oh, gosh. I'm fine. Thank you though." She said ever so politely, more politely than she had ever spoken to Elijah. Charles looked saddened by the lack of help needed. He looked over at Elijah, waiting for any other instruction.

"Charles, will you please see if there is any coffee hiding around?" The vampire asked his helping hand. Charles nodded before briskly leaving. Hayley looked annoyed with Elijah for giving him commands. But then her face softened and she allowed it to.

"Thank you…for letting me stay here." She didn't know what she would have done had he not shown up. The power would have been out and maybe she would have gone to Janet's or another friends' house. But it wouldn't have been the same.

"I will always try be there for you." He muttered quietly, seeing the sincerity in her appreciation. Then he heard her heart speed up a little.

"But you can't promise something like that." Hayley said seriously. "I don't want to expect the impossible." Not that she ever did.

Elijah looked away from her sad eyes. He hated that she had such little hope for anything in this world. But that was the result of how she grew up and how she had learned to see everything around her. He never said he could be there for her always, because if he made a promise or gave his word, he would keep it. But being a vampire and an original at that, he couldn't do such a thing. And a part of him knew she never expected or wanted to constantly depend on anyone. She was independent and would do anything to never become the damsel in distress.

Hayley moved so she was sitting on one of the chairs at the kitchen counter. Elijah stood with his hands in his pockets on the other side. "I never promised I would, I promised I would try." He corrected.

"I don't want you to promise anything. People don't know how to keep promises these days. It's feasibly impossible." She stated bleakly. Then Elijah caught her gaze as he realized he should tell her that he was leaving. She seemed to immediately know what he was about to say, for he could hear her heart beating even faster. "You have to leave again, don't you?" Hayley whispered.

"There is something that I must finish." It was all he needed to say.

"You're going back there." She stated, needing no assurance. "You're going back to that town for the sacrifice." Her sadness turned into irritation. "So you plan on killing an innocent girl for the revenge on your brother?" She accused.

"It is the only way." He confirmed evenly.

"You told me she was just a teenager. Would you do it if it were me?"

Elijah's jaw clenched at her judgments. "Our lives may be intertwined but never in such a way." He justified. "I would never allow such a thing to happen." Then he saw that she still upset. "I have means of bringing her back to life. I never planned on truly killing her. She is an innocent and practically defenseless."

Hayley looked at her hands that were folded together on the counter. Then she looked up, her eyes the saddest he had ever seen. "You don't have to go." She whispered. "Killing him won't bring them back, Elijah. Stay here. Stay here with me, where it's safe." Her voice shook slightly as she finally told him how she really felt. She didn't understand where it was all coming from.

"It is what they would want. Their deaths can only be avenged by my brother's demise. There is no other way." Elijah explained, unable to look up at her. He could see that she had nothing else to say. But he wasn't able to see how she felt for him. Hayley was so good at hiding how she suffered that sometimes she didn't see it herself, making it even harder for Elijah to read her. "Would you like me to take you home?" He offered, not knowing what else to say.

"What? You don't want me to stay here this time?" She teased him through her hidden desolation and frustration. Elijah barely gave her a smirk at the remark.

"You know that you could if you wanted to." He stated softly.

"You don't have to drive me home. I can get there myself." She muttered.

"Absolutely not." Elijah stated, leaving no room for any argument. Hayley just shrugged her shoulders. She was too upset to let her stubbornness take over. And in all honesty, she didn't want to leave his side just yet.

Almost an hour later, Elijah had taken Hayley back home. She got out of the car and looked at the house. She could almost feel the emptiness from outside. Then she felt him at her side. For some reason, she had a bad feeling about him leaving. Maybe it was a sixth sense; maybe it was intuition.

The two of them now stood next to the front door. She didn't bother asking if he wanted to come inside. She knew he was going to leave as soon as she was inside. "I've never been this person…the person who waits around." Hayley said roughly, her voice coarse from the mixture of just waking up and attempting to hold down her emotions. Even when she was younger, she didn't wait for Elijah's return. But when she was a child, it all seemed so magical, like she couldn't control it if she tried. "But I guess I don't have any other choice." Hayley added quietly.

Elijah nodded. For once, he truly didn't know what to say. He was sick of continuing to say these goodbyes. But there was not a doubt in his mind about whether he would return from Mystic Falls. The Salvatore brothers were young and thoughtless vampires. With them and a crowd of other teenagers, it would be almost effortless to do what Elijah pleased. The only risk he took was with his brother. But if all went according to plan, he would kill Niklaus before the inactivated hybrid even knew what was happening.

But Elijah wasn't at Mystic Falls yet. Instead, Hayley was looking back at him and showing no emotion. She hid it well for he could not see the sadness from thinking about him leaving again. When she woke up this morning in his arms, she realized something. Hayley had never experienced the feeling of waking up next to someone that she felt something toward. It was warm and comforting and something she had never known was possible until Elijah came into her life.

"Don't die. I know you said it's basically impossible. But…just come back. Okay?" Hayley said quietly to him without looking up. Elijah watched her closely. He noticed how she put a strand of hair when she lost her exuberant confidence, just for a second. Or how her blue-green eyes would flicker to meet his and be the only thing allowing Elijah to catch any emotion she refused to show.

"There is no need for you to worry, Hayley." He tried to comfort her.

"I'm not worrying." She lied quickly. Then she turned to open the door, completely set on proving her lie by refusing to give him any sort of official goodbye. But just as Hayley took a step in, she stopped with her hand frozen on the handle. Her racing heart was the only thing Elijah was able to perceive. But then she quickly turned around and walked back to him, not stopping until their faces were barely an inch apart from one another. There was barely a beat of hesitation before her lips crashed onto his. Hayley still believed that the feelings that grew weren't mutual, but she didn't care. She had no idea when she would see him next so she was going to make sure she gave him something to remind him to come back. But Hayley couldn't help but start to believe that this was becoming shared desire, for she could feel Elijah's strong hands grip her waist and his lips kiss back. Then, he pulled away. Not because he wanted to, but because he didn't want to give himself another reason not to leave her.

"Sorry." Hayley whispered, not even bothering to be convincing. She didn't actually regret kissing him. But she felt the need to say something, scared that she had completely misread their relationship.

"I wish you would not apologize for things you should not be apologizing for." Elijah said, his voice deep and husky. He read the stunned expression on her face from hearing him say such a thing. But he had tortured himself enough; he needed to go. Hayley sensed their time coming to a close. She wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his expensive suit.

"I will come back. I give you my word." Hayley heard him say softly into her ear. She felt a kiss on the top of her head. And then he was gone. She was left standing on the front steps alone.

The incessant ringing of her cell phone woke up Hayley. She couldn't stay asleep for more than an hour the entire night. A week had passed since Elijah left to go back to Mystic Falls. And it was like her body could feel Elijah's distance growing bigger and bigger. She fumbled around to grab the cell phone in her dark room, due to all the shades being down. Her eyes squinted as her phone didn't read the number as anyone in her contact book.

"Hello?" Her voice rasped.

"Morning Sunshine." A male voice replied.

"Who is this?" Hayley questioned as she rubbed her eyes to wake up.

"The handsome stranger you keep running into." Then she heard the accent. She sat up quickly, causing a headache to immediately start. Just one week with Elijah and she forgot about everything else that had happened when he was gone.

"…Nick?" She questioned nervously.

"So to speak." He replied charmingly, completely ignoring the fact that he had obviously just woken her up. "May I also remind you that it is almost 1 o'clock in the afternoon?" She could hear him smiling through his words.

"So was there a purpose to calling me or did you just want to find something to judge me for?" Hayley asked dryly. She was not in the mood to playfully fight with basically a stranger. Her mind was on other things, other people.

"Meet me somewhere." Nick commanded.

"Excuse me?"

"Hayley…" He started to say angrily, then stopped himself before he could ruin any chances of getting her out of her home. "Will you please grace me with you ever so lovely presence?" He asked with mock charm that he knew she'd catch.

But Hayley didn't smile at his efforts. Her eyes scanned around the room and it reminded her that she would be left alone in this house for yet another day if she ignored Nick's invitation. She took in a deep breath and let it out, allowing him to hear it on the other end. "Where am I meeting you?" She asked. He muttered something quickly that she somehow caught enough to understand and remember.

Klaus looked over at Hayley to see slight shadows underneath her eyes. He assumed it was from lack of sleep. For what reasons, he did not know. All that he could guess was that it had something to do with his brother. One of his many witches was keeping an eye on Elijah's whereabouts. If he had still been near Hayley, Klaus would never have asked her to come today. He was smarter than that. If his older brother knew of his contact with her, there was no telling what Elijah would do. Klaus knew his brother hated him. And he assumed the reason for him constantly trying to track him was because he wished to see revenge for the destruction of their family.

"What could possibly be filling that head of yours?" Klaus finally broke the silence that was lingering between them. The two of them were sitting at a picnic table in the middle of the park. The grass was holding onto its last green before winter took over, sucking away its vibrant color. The late fall weather made it cold enough for jackets but warm enough for humans to be outside.

Hayley was wearing a grey sweater dress with tights and combat boots. Klaus tried not to notice how red it made her blonde hair look or how the shadows kept bringing his attention to her blue-green eyes. He was wearing dark jeans and a black leather jacket, even though the cold didn't affect him.

"Hmm?" Hayley finally broke out of her thoughts. She only heard him say something but didn't know what exactly.

"Something on your mind, sweetheart?" He chided with a smile.

Then she snapped to attention, glaring at him. "What did I say about calling me that?" She said evenly. "And nothing is on my mind. I'm just tired. I don't really sleep very well." She sighed.

"Why not?" He continued, wanting to see if she would actually tell him.

Hayley then say up straighter. "Why are you asking me so many questions?"

"I thought you were supposed to be teaching me how to converse with those around me…" Klaus replied smoothly.

But Hayley's eyes only narrowed further. "Interrogating me is not what you're supposed to be doing." Then she glanced down at what was in front of him. There was a piece of paper with her face lightly sketched on it. Hayley ripped it away, staring at it. "Why are you drawing me?"

"I apologize. I didn't know it wasn't allowed." He smirked even though it was obvious she was quite upset with him.

Hayley took in a deep breath, seeming like she was about to give him an angry lecture of some sort. But then she stopped herself. Her eyes looked around the park. And for a moment, she appeared exhausted and sad. "Why did you ask me here, Nick?" She sighed, tossing back the drawing so it slid perfectly back into place on the beat up picnic table.

"I believe both of us know that you would never have come alone to my place…being as you still see me as a stranger." He raised his eyebrow at her.

"So you do live here." Hayley clarified slowly. "Please tell me you don't live with your parents or something weird like that." She thought he appeared too old to be in college or to not be living on his own.

"No. My mother is dead and I don't have any idea where my father is." Klaus informed her without saying it with any emotion. He caught a flicker of sympathy in Hayley's composure, but she quickly regained her remoteness.

"You don't talk to your dad?" She asked him quietly as she tried not to sound too interested in such personal matters.

"My father and I don't really have a relationship. In fact, we hate one another." Klaus said composedly. He believed he sounded heartless and as if he didn't care. But Hayley knew the act too well not to recognize it for what it truly was.

She watched him silently. But her racing heart gave her away. She understood now, what drew her to him in the first place. The way he talked about his parents, the way he acted when she brought them up, it all felt so familiar. She started getting lost in her thoughts and Klaus instantly noticed. Then Hayley looked up to find him watching her closely.

"Sorry. I was just thinking about my parents too." But then she realized she'd told something personal about herself and immediately stopped talking.

"I'm starting to see that you and I have more in common than either of us ever originally noticed." Klaus stated with a small laugh. But Hayley's eyes narrowed, pretending to act like she didn't know what he was talking about. "I'm rather observant, Hayley." He started. "You never talk about them. They never call you. I don't believe they even live in the same house as you."

Her jaw clenched under such observations. In her mind, she was trying to think of some elaborate lie to ruin any confidence Klaus had in his theories. But then she looked over his shoulder to see someone taking a jog their way. It was clearly a young man who wasn't wearing a shirt. Once he was closer, Hayley's eyes narrowed and she immediately recognized it as Luke. Klaus saw that her attention had been diverted and turned around to look. He rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically as he recognized the teenager.

Luke instantly caught Hayley's stare and walked over with a small smile. But as soon as he recognized Klaus, a glare gripped his face. Hayley got up from her seat on the picnic bench to meet him.

"Taking a run?" She asked lightly.

"Yeah. I texted to see if you wanted to join but you didn't answer." He replied as his eyes kept switching between her and Klaus, who still sat at the table.

"Oh, sorry. I haven't looked at my phone in awhile."

"Why are you hanging out with him?" Luke blurted out. He didn't see the point of trying to bring up the subject smoothly.

"He's my friend, Luke." Hayley snapped quickly. She could already tell what would follow. "Look, I don't understand what your problem is and I don't know why you believe that you can tell me who I can hang out with."

Luke looked as if he was about to say something but Klaus was now at Hayley's side. She looked at him quickly, wondering how he'd snuck up on her like that. "I think you should watch what you say about me, mate."

Luke then shoved past Hayley so he was right in Klaus' face. "I'm not your mate. And I'll say what I want about you. Why are you so interested in her?" He almost spat into the vampire's face.

Meanwhile, Hayley watched horrified at the hostility that had unfolded so rapidly. She didn't understand why Luke was so against her friendship with Nick. Luke looked at him as if he was some kind of mass murderer. It was like he knew something about him that she didn't. But no matter what it was, she had to make sure this situation didn't get any worse.

Hayley tried to shove in between the two of them, her hand gently pushing Luke's bare chest back. She could practically see the fury in his eyes. But as soon as she tried to push them apart, Luke shoved her without even thinking. Hayley gasp when she swore she saw his eyes flicker a different color. But before she could convince herself that it actually happened, they had already gone back to normal. Plus, Nick had jumped in front of her. Hayley got a weird feeling at how protective the action felt. Her eyes whipped over to Luke who looked disgusted with himself.

He took a step toward her. "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to."

But Hayley didn't accept his apology. Instead, she looked at him from over Nick's shoulder, feeling like she was watching a stranger. Without saying anything to either of them, she grabbed her bag off the table and quickly walked to her car. She hoped neither of them followed her. Something weird was going on and she was going to figure out. But until then, she wasn't going to get involved in this. Except, she couldn't deny that, for a moment, her mind had been taken off of him. Maybe that's why she tried to be friends with Nick. She just wanted to stop the missing Elijah, just for a little bit. She didn't want to replace him, just talk to a friend.

Both Klaus and Luke calmly watched Hayley get into her car and drive swiftly away. They didn't stop her because they wished to say things that she could not yet hear. Klaus raised an eyebrow, showing that no matter what this young and stupid boy said, he wouldn't be scared. After all, he was the ultimate alpha.

Luke took a step closer once again. "I know what you are." He hissed. "Stay away from her." But when he saw that Klaus smirked at his threat, he only became even angrier.

Klaus put his hands behind his back. "You're not a werewolf, but I can smell the stench on you." He stated with interest. "I guess that means your father's one." His grin beamed when he saw the shock on Luke's face at the statement. "How precious, a young pup who has yet to enjoy the thrill of killing that would activate his curse." Then Klaus snapped into a different emotion, smile gone. "Don't ever mistake me for just another vampire." He enjoyed hearing the slight jump in his heartbeat. "I know all about your pathetic existence…more than you would ever like." Klaus took a step closer. "Next time you try to warn Hayley to stay away from me, I will kill you. But not before I kill your entire family right in front of you."

Luke's jaw clenched at the threat. But something also told him that Klaus meant every word he said. He took a step back. It was the only thing that showed a peace offering since he refused to say anything to him.

Hayley knew exactly when her life got complicated. Obviously, it all started with Elijah. But then all of this stuff with Nick and Luke was confusing. She felt like it should stand on its own, but she also couldn't help but feel like there was some relation between the two.

Hayley lay on the carpet flooring of her bedroom. The backs of her hands were tossed onto her forehead as she stared up at the ceiling. Her cell phone lay just a foot away from her. She scrolled through her contacts to call her sister.

Hayley was lonely but she refused to ever admit it to anyone, especially herself. The sensation made her feel weak and she tried her hardest not to become of a victim of it. But with the way her life had turned out, it was inevitable. Hayley inhaled as she dialed her sister and listened to the ringing. But no one picked up.

Hayley was about to toss the phone to the side and continue staring at the ceiling, but something in her contact book caught her eye. She read his name. Hayley tried to remember if it she had ever met anyone else by the name of Elijah. But her mind came up blank. Her finger lingered over it, wanting nothing more than to press it. She took in a deep breath and called the number before she could have any second thoughts. The call was picked up on the second ring. Hayley realized she was holding her breath. The pessimist inside had convinced her that it wasn't really him.

"I wondered when you would find the number." Elijah answered calmly.

Hayley instantly smiled at the familiar voice. She exhaled deeply.

"I guess I dialed the wrong number. I was looking for a different Elijah." Hayley said with a smirk. She knew he'd be able to tell it was a joke. And she could almost feel him smiling at her teasing.

There was a beat of silence. "Is everything alright?" He asked her gently.

Then a layer of tears covered her eyes and blurred Hayley's sight. It was the strangest thing. She never cried, ever. But just the simple sound of his voice made her realize how much she missed him. Then she began to see that her feelings for Elijah weren't temporary. In fact, Hayley didn't think they'd ever go away. But it felt like she had finally admitted to herself that she actually did care for him.

She didn't let the tears fall, but the moisture started to make her nose run and her throat seemed to be tight. She sniffled quickly and cleared her throat. "Yeah, everything is fine." She assured him quietly. "I just wanted to make sure you were alright." She confessed honestly.

"There is no need to worry." Elijah comforted her.

"Yeah, but you always say that. No matter how many times you tell me not to, I'm still going to worry. And I know you'll never tell me how if there's any danger."

Elijah's smile disappeared from her serious response. He didn't reply to her statement because they both already knew that it was true. He wouldn't tell her how dangerous anything ever was. Just last night, he saved Damon Salvatore's life by ripping out two werewolf hearts and broke the neck of another. But that was never something he would tell her. Even though he'd thrown her into this unknown world. He wanted to keep her ignorant to it as much as possible. She would be safer that way and remained unchanged by it. No matter how old she grew, he could never forget Hayley as a child and he wanted to protect it more than anything.

"I'm sorry if I shouldn't be calling you." Hayley then rushed.

"There is nothing to apologize for, Hayley."

She then let out a compulsory and nervous laugh. "You'd think I'd be used to you being gone after all this time. But now I feel like it's different…harder." She waited for him to say something, but there was only silence. Hayley didn't recognize Elijah couldn't say that it was even harder for him.

"I miss you." She finally revealed.

"I miss you as well." Elijah immediately replied calmly. But Hayley was able to hear the sadness in his tone and was glad that she wasn't the only one who seemed to be feeling these things.

Hayley continued to stare at the ceiling. "Elijah…" She whispered. "What's going to happen after this sacrifice…after everything is done?" It wasn't like anything would be normal. He would still be an original vampire and she would still be a human girl. Hayley didn't know where they would go from there.

"I won't have to leave you ever again." Elijah responded. That was all he could tell her, because that was all he knew. His life had never allowed him such freedom before. He was a thousand years old and until now, his life had been completely run by vengeance. Elijah looked over at the door to see Jonas and Lukas who had just walked into the room. He knew they had news of Elena and the fools she called her friends.

Hayley somehow seemed to sense that he had to leave. "I'll see you soon." She muttered, sounding like she was actually trying to convince herself.

"I will return to you as soon as possible, Hayley." He replied definitely.

I'm going to TRY and update as soon as possible. But I can't make any promises. Now that I'm in school again, my free time is very limited.