Thank you thank you thank you for all your lovely words and reviews for the last chapter. It definitely renewed my love for this story! Not that I was hating it...but you know how it goes sometimes...

More notes at the end, I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

Klaus was exhausted. He never thought pretending to be someone's boyfriend would take so much energy. It seemed like it was worse than actually being a boyfriend. It was even worse that he couldn't drink. That was another part of his punishment for his behavior in the bar. No more drinking in public. What was it people said about good deeds always being punished?

It was painstaking to sit there for two hours and try to think of things to say to Elena, and to act interested in anything she talked about. They had absolutely nothing in common. He tried picturing her naked, like he usually did with hot, boring girls, but even that wasn't working. Brunettes didn't do much for him anymore. His current preferences seemed to be favoring blondes.

The elevator dinged and Klaus stepped out into the hall. He was more than ready to sit down with the tiny bottles of Jack he had nicked from the plane and perhaps do some sketching until he passed out. He halted though when he saw Caroline standing in front of Elena's door, shifting back and forth on her feet. She looked over at him, her eyes registering his appearance in the hallway. He half expected her to dash away again, but her shoulders slumped and she stayed put watching him as he walked toward her.

"Looking for Elena?" Klaus inquired. Caroline nodded. "She's grabbing a drink with Jenna. I think they're comparing dates."

"Oh," Caroline said, her tone deflated. She turned away from Klaus, heading back towards her room, with a hiccup and a stumble.

Klaus reached out to steady her, not touching her, but holding his arm out just in case.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"Fine," she hiccupped again.

A tiny smile twitched at the corner of his lips. "You're drunk."

She gave him a wry stare. "No I'm not."

"Caroline…"

"Klaus…" she mimicked.

He chuckled. "Well if you are going to be drunk, then come with me," he said taking her arm. He led her over to his room, her feet shuffling on the carpet. They stopped in front of the door as Klaus unlocked it.

"Look I may be drunk but I'm not that drunk," Caroline said. "There will be none of that anymore."

Klaus slipped his key in the lock and glanced back at her. "Any of what sweetheart?"

She groaned. "Don't make me say it."

He laughed, leaving her out in the hall for a moment before returning with something hidden behind his back. She leaned up against his doorframe.

"You're not going to give me the whole alcohol doesn't solve your problems speech are you?"

"No love," he said, knowing he was the last person in the world who would ever give someone that speech, "but I will say that you should never drink alone." He removed his hand from behind his back, waving a bottle of merlot in the air in front of them with a smirk. "Come on."

Klaus led her downstairs, through the lobby, to a large empty banquet room near the back of the ground floor. It was late. The room was empty. The hotel staff had already finished their cleaning. Fresh linen table clothes covered the round tables. Every fancy upholstered chair was reset in its place. The flowered centerpieces had been changed for the next day's event. It was dark in the room, except for the light shining in through the windows, and then a small lamp that someone had left on over the grand piano in the front of the room.

He walked over to the piano, sliding down onto the bench and setting the bottle of wine in front of him. Klaus pulled a corkscrew that he had nicked from the bar earlier and opened the bottle of wine. He let it breathe for a moment, before passing it to Caroline, who still stood beside him.

"Here," he said, urging her to take it. Caroline stared at the bottle for a moment, before wrapping her fingers around the green glass neck and putting it to her mouth.

Caroline strolled around the piano, trailing her fingers across the reflective black surface and taking a few sips of wine. Klaus began to play, his fingers wandering across the keys, the sound of the music filling the room.

"Won't we get in trouble for being here?" Caroline asked.

He shrugged. "I doubt it."

He played a few random bars and then slipped into an actual song.

"David Bowie," Caroline announced, recognizing the song. Klaus looked up at her. Impressed. She grinned. "I told you I liked the 80s."

"I believe this one was from the 70s," he replied.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "You always have to be smarter than everyone."

Klaus smirked and turned his attention back to the keys, shifting into another song. He played a few bars and watched Caroline's mouth twist in thought, as she tried to guess again.

"Rolling Stones?" She asked. Klaus nodded, surprised again that this bubbly girl new The Stones well enough to recognize them on the piano.

"Ok, clever girl, how about this one?"

Klaus turned into another song, slower this time, more melancholy. Caroline took a slow sip and sat down next to him on the bench. He could see her ears stretching, trying to figure out what song he was playing as she stared into space. She still hadn't guessed as he played through the chorus and then ended the song. He looked over at her and she gave him a look that said she didn't have any guesses.

"The Smiths," he answered.

"Can't say I'm very familiar."

"Well no one is perfect," he quipped. Caroline gave him a wry look in return.

"So where did you learn to play piano?"

"My mother," Klaus said, "another artistic venture of hers. I always hated classical composers so she taught me how to play contemporary songs."

Caroline smiled passing the wine bottle to him. "What about your father? Is he artistic too?"

Klaus took a sip of the wine and let out a breath. "Why were you getting drunk alone this evening? Does it have any reason to do with why you were looking for Elena?"

"It's just girl stuff," Caroline replied, "just needed a friend. That's all."

Klaus put a hand to his chest, feigning offense. "Am I not a friend?"

"No," Caroline jibbed, "seriously you wouldn't understand."

"Come on," he said, "I dare you."

Caroline laughed, taking the bottle from him, trying to cover another hiccup. With another swig of liquid courage she took a deep breath and decided to bare her soul.

"Ok well don't get too excited," she began, "Tyler and I got into a fight. He saw a story on the news about the bar fight and flipped out on me."

"What story?"

"It mentioned me, and you keeping me from getting drugged. Guess it helped you out, making you looking like a hero instead of a drunk psycho," Caroline grimaced. Klaus swore under his breath. He was going to kill Elijah for this. "We broke up."

Klaus managed to keep his face neutral. "And was that his decision or your decision love?"

"His—mine—I don't know," she sighed, "it's so stupid. He broke up with me because he thinks that I think that I'm better than him."

"Do you think that?"

"No. Not in the way he thinks." Caroline stood up, needing to move, to pace. She was feeling worked up again. Restless. That feeling that kept coming up every since she left Mystic Falls. Like she was being pulled in every direction all at once and she didn't know which way to go. "It's just that I've been here and everywhere else and experiencing all this stuff. I thought getting out of Mystic Falls would just get all this out of my system, you know? That urge to go and see things and experience the world?"

"I believe they call that wanderlust," Klaus said.

"Wanderlust," she repeated, "I thought it would go away. But it's just gotten worse. I miss home, I really do. But when I think about going back, I just feel…sad." Her shoulders slumped, as if she was admitting defeat when she admitted that the idea of going home made her unhappy.

"You don't have to go home Caroline."

"I do though. Don't I? I mean what else is there? I have a life, a job, I used to have a boyfriend," she laughed without humor, taking another drink of wine, "Tyler's right. I just don't know what I want."

Klaus watched her gulp more wine, her brows knitting together and her forehead wrinkling in frustration. She was working very hard to solve a problem right that second that had no easy answer. Before he could say anything she continued.

"How do people figure out what they want? Elena knew she wanted to be an actress, so she became an actress. Bonnie knows she wants to be this kickass surgeon, so she went to med school. Jeremy's going to be this great illustrator. Who am I going to be?"

"Who do you want to be?"

"That's the problem. I don't know. I thought I wanted my life in Mystic Falls. Coach cheerleading and get married and be a mom and plan fundraisers and bake sales. But now it's like—I don't know—this whole massive world out there of anything and I don't even know where to start. How do I choose?"

Her eyes questioned him, but he didn't have an answer. He never had a choice to make. They sat there for a moment, Klaus trying to think of something to say before she leaned forward and captured his lips with hers. Klaus placed his hand on her hip, kissing her back briefly, before pulling away. This was what he wanted, what he had been thinking about since the night before but now something seemed off.

"What are you doing love," he said trying to keep his voice light.

"I'm making a choice," she replied. She set the wine bottle down on the piano and took his face in her hands, kissing him again. Her body shifted forward and pressed into his. Klaus could feel the softness of her breasts against his chest, and he wanted so badly to wrap his hands around her waist and pull her even closer. But instead he pushed his hands against her arms and detached from her.

"What's wrong," she asked, her lips swollen and pink from the wine. Another little hiccup chirped from her lungs and it was so damn cute that he was ready to throw her on top of the piano and ravish her right there. Damn anyone who might walk in on them!

He dragged a hand over his face. "Of course now is the moment I start developing morals," he muttered.

"What?" She gave him a confused look.

"I think you should go back to your room." Her eyebrow rose in suggestion causing Klaus to hate himself even more. "I mean alone."

"Why?"

He groaned, hating the way she pulled her lip between her teeth. "Don't make me explain Caroline. I'm trying to avoid something I know we'll both regret."

Caroline nodded, but she didn't move. Neither did Klaus. They were both anchored to the moment. She knew he was right. She should leave. She should go back to her room and shut her door and go to bed. Alone. But she just couldn't make herself walk away. She was tired of making good decisions. What had making good decisions gotten her lately? If Tyler was going to blame her for fooling around with other guys, then she was going to at least reap the perks of the punishment.

"I wouldn't," she murmured.

"Wouldn't what?" Klaus asked.

"Regret it. I wouldn't regret it." One last attempt. She leaned forward and kissed him a third time, opening her mouth and letting his tongue past her lips. Klaus place his hand behind her head and deepened the kiss, enjoying the taste of the wine on her tongue. Her hands went to the buttons of her blouse and she loosened each of them, one by one, revealing a pink lace bra underneath. He felt her movements as he kissed her and regained enough of his senses to push her back as he realized they were going too far once again.

"Caroline don't," he said standing and moving away from her. Undaunted, she stood up from the bench and removed her shirt, letting it fall to the floor. Her creamy skin seemed to glow under the yellow piano lamp and she stepped toward him, her hips swaying. Klaus gritted his teeth, his hands twitching at his sides, trying to keep the selfish male part of him take control. But the way she was walking her fingers across his chest wasn't helping. He pulled her hand away. "I'm serious. Don't."

"Please Klaus," her voice sounded raw. Vulnerable. He wanted to give in. He had been thinking about it just a few hours ago. How he didn't care about her boyfriend or her life at home or any of the consequences of sleeping with her. Nothing mattered but getting her into bed. But that wasn't true. None of that had mattered before, when she was just a stunning blonde in a bar, without a name. But the minute she had taken his hand and introduced herself with that coy smile, everything had changed.

"Is this what you really want?" He asked her, "cheap, drunken revenge sex on a table with someone you aren't entirely sure you don't hate?" Her face changed and he could see the pain of rejection wash over her features. "I want you Caroline. But you're better than this. You want more. You deserve more. You're worth more."

Her eyes flicked down to their feet and she took a step back from him. "You're right," she said, "what am I doing?" She looked back up and him and continued to back away. "I'm gonna go."

Caroline bent down and grabbed her shirt off the floor, quickly putting it back on and closing it up as she rushed out of the banquet room. Klaus gritted his teeth and grabbed the bottle of wine, the taste now reminding him of her kiss. Now his evening plans included getting drunk, sketching, and cold showers. Bloody fantastic.

The morning sun streamed in through the window, a yellow beam shining right across Caroline's eyelids. She groaned. She had forgotten to shut the curtains last night before she fell into bed. She had spent a good half hour crying from embarrassment, then another half hour feeling pathetic before she fell asleep. She didn't know what she was going to do now that she was freshly single. But one thing she did know for sure: No more drinking.

She had come on to Klaus last night. She had kissed him. She had taken her clothes off in front of him. And he had rejected her. Half of it was because of the alcohol and the other half was because she knew she was just a big idiot. She was acting like the bratty desperate for attention mean girl she had been back in high school and she hated it. How was she ever going to face him again? God, she hoped he didn't tell Elena or Elijah what happened. Her hands covered her face as she felt a wave of embarrassment attacked her, even though no one was around to see her.

She rolled over and checked the time on her phone. It would be afternoon in Mystic Falls. She should call Tyler. She should try to smooth things over with him. He would be calmer now that he had a chance to sleep and ready to talk things out in a rational and grown up way. Caroline could imagine him going to bed angry and then getting up that morning, still a little pissed, but going for a run or lifting weights to blow off steam like he always did. By now he would understand that he was overreacting and they would mend things.

Her thumb brushed over her phone to unlock it and she pulled up Tyler's number, hovering over it. She hesitated, a brief moment of the night before flashing in her mind. Of Klaus and his dimples and how sexy he looked playing piano, his lips slightly stained by the wine, the collar of his shirt open revealing his lean chest, the way he had denied her when she started taking her clothes off.

You're worth more.

A knock at her door interrupted her thoughts and she put her phone down, trudging toward the door, debating whether or not she should answer. She looked through the peep hole to see that it was Elena—and not Klaus—standing on the other side. Caroline opened the door and let her in.

"Morning," she said as Elena walked in with two coffees.

"Sorry I wasn't around last night," Elena said passing Caroline one of the cups, "I was with Jenna. I saw Klaus downstairs this morning, he said you were looking for me last night."

Caroline almost choked on her coffee. "Did he say anything else?"

Elena shook her head. "No," she sat back in the easy chair across from the bed, "What'd you need?"

"Just some girl chat," Caroline said, sitting back down on her bed and folding her legs underneath her, "Tyler and I kind of broke up."

"What?" Elena's eyes widened. "What happened?"

Caroline explained the story to her, about her phone call with Tyler and their fight and his overreaction. When she was finished, Elena looked apologetic.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know that your name would be brought into the whole thing," Elena said, "I'll talk to Elijah about keeping you out of the press."

"It's not your fault," Caroline said.

"No. But it isn't ok that he used you to spin the story."

"True," Caroline said, "but the damage is done."

"Well Tyler overreacted. He should know that you aren't going to cheat on him or whatever insane ideas he has in his head. I mean the only guys we've been around are Elijah and Klaus. Not like you're going to go for either of them."

Caroline laughed uncomfortably and nodded. "Yeah I mean Elijah is like a 60 year old man sometimes and Klaus is…"she struggled for a word.

"Awful. Alcoholic. Asshole." Elena provided, "and those are just the A's."

She nodded again and took a sip of her coffee as an excuse not to continue talking about Klaus. Elena's phone rang and she pulled it out of the back pocket of her jeans, making a face when she saw the name on the caller ID.

"What was that?" Caroline asked.

"Nothing," Elena said slipping her phone back into her pocket, "just Damon."

Elena took a sip of her coffee, her eyes flicking away. Caroline regarded her carefully. Something seemed fishy to her.

"Why is your ex-boyfriend's brother calling you?"

Elena shrugged and the phone rang again. This time she pulled it out of her pocket and immediately denied the call, banishing Damon to voicemail. She switched off her phone and put it back in her pocket.

"He's being quite persistent," Caroline observed, "are you sure it isn't an emergency."

"It's not an emergency."

"Well I just can't think of any other reason that—"

"We kissed!" Elena exclaimed. Caroline almost choked on her coffee for the second time that morning.

"You what?! When?"

Elena grumbled and put her hand to her forehead. "About a year ago."

"A whole year? Must have been some kiss," Caroline muttered. She did a quick calculation in her head. "Wait, weren't you still with Stefan about a year ago?" Elena nodded slowly and Caroline's jaw dropped. "Ok spill."

Elena sighed, knowing she wasn't going to get out of it now. "Stefan and I were just fighting so much and he was gone doing his thing all the time and Damon and I started hanging out more. He would go to events with me that Stefan had to miss. And then one night we kissed."

"Did you guys…?"

"No!" She said quickly, "Not until later. Stefan and I broke up not long after and then I started seeing Damon for about a month."

"Why didn't I know any of this?" Caroline was a little hurt. They knew everything about each other. There had never been any secrets between her and Elena and Bonnie too. They new every dirty detail about each other's lives since the first day of kindergarten. Or so Caroline thought. But then, she shouldn't be the one making judgments about secret keeping. Pot and kettle anyone?

"We kept it a secret. We didn't want to hurt Stefan's feelings. Not to mention dealing with the press gossip and on top of all Mystic Falls knowing."

Caroline nodded. She didn't know which would be worse. Slanderous words from entertainment news shows about Elena coming between two brothers or gossiping old biddies in the Mystic Falls town square.

"So why didn't you two ride off into the sunset?"

"I ended it with him. Damon was just very intense and controlling. And I just couldn't deal with Stefan knowing and getting hurt even more."

"But he's still calling you?"

"He hasn't for a while until last week. I'm guessing he's heard about Klaus. He was always hoping that after some time alone, I would want to get back together with him."

"And you don't?"

Elena shook her head. "No. I feel bad. I know I needed to break up with Stefan and I feel like, looking back on it, I just agreed to be with Damon because I was bored. I wanted attention that Stefan wasn't giving me anymore. And I ended up hurting more people because of it. I should have just been honest with Stefan and not dragged Damon into it."

Caroline took another sip of coffee, relating to Elena's words more than her friend knew. She understood being bored. She hadn't realized she was bored until she went on this trip. Even though the thought of leaving Mystic Falls permanently terrified her, she still didn't want to give up the chance to experience a different life.

Tyler didn't understand that. That was what the whole fight was about right? He didn't understand that she wanted to try something else. He was too worried that something else wouldn't include him. But when she thought about it, she wasn't sure it would either. She tried to picture him coming along with her around Europe and she just couldn't see it. She couldn't see him going with her to museums and site seeing. He'd get just as bored as she did and would let her quit. He wouldn't challenge her. He didn't motivate her. It wasn't that she felt bored with Tyler she just needed… more.

So if you guys read my drabbles, that Klaus/Caroline scene might look a little familiar. I wrote it in a drabble a while ago and decided to repurpose it in this fic because I loved it so much and it just seemed to fit. It was also partially inspired by Pretty Woman (piano sex scene..yes please!)

And if you want to know the songs Klaus plays are:
Lady Grinning Soul - David Bowie
Paint It Black - The Rolling Stones
Please please please let me get what I want - The Smiths

Secondly, a couple of you have asked why Elena didn't speak up and tell Elijah about Klaus saving Caroline at the bar. Well, two reasons. One) She REALLY doesn't like Klaus at all so mostly she just sees that Kol was Klaus's friend and it was his fault that he was there in the first place and Two) Elena is a little self absorbed in this fic if you haven't noticed. I think she tends to be on the show too. Not that I'm an Elena hater, I'm not a hater of any character, but I think it's just one of her character flaws.

And I had to add that bit about Elena/Stefan/Damon (I'm a Delena shipper in case you are wondering) but I just thought it would be a nice parallel to Caroline's inner struggles about making good decisions and how/when to choose to be selfish and what consequences can result.

Anyways...analyzing and theorize and review about what shall happen next!

Also, don't worry! Klaus will be confronting Elijah in the next chapter about his little story slip!

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