A couple things: I did something I don't usually do. I went back and changed a detail in an earlier chapter. *SHOCKED GASP*...it's tiny though. I just realized that there should be a little more time in between the breakup and Caroline heading off to Chicago. So a week goes by instead of just a day or two.

Second, this is the LAST CHAPTER! Crazy right?! I didn't even realize it myself until after I posted last time. There will be an epilogue following this though. So we aren't quite at the ending yet.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! I absolutely loved reading them all. In fact, your comments and thoughts sent me into rewrites and you guys influenced how this chapter finally turned out.

So pat yourselves on the back...

...or maybe not ;)

Enjoy!

"What time is your flight?"

Caroline looked up from her cheese fries at Matt. She's stopped by The Grill to grab a bite to eat and say goodbye to Matt before she headed out to Chicago.

"It's at two," she replied, "I need to get going soon if I'm going to make it on time."

"Well good luck with the interview," Matt said, "I'm sure they'll love you."

"Thanks," Caroline said, "but I doubt they were impressed with my audition video blog. It's kind of hard to be perky and engaging when you want to crawl under the covers and never get out."

Matt offered her a sympathetic smile. "Sorry about Klaus."

He had heard they broke up. Even though the rest of the world had yet to be privy to that piece of knowledge, her close friends still knew. No one knew the details, because she hadn't wanted to rehash the story to any of them, but they were well aware that Caroline and Klaus were done. It had been a week since that horrible morning. She was dreading the day the media found out and the circus over their breakup began. Dealing with it personally was bad enough, she had no desire to suffer and be humiliated publicly. Not wanting to have to accept the help of Elijah, Caroline had let Elena call in Jenna's services, free of charge just in case she needed them.

Caroline had decided that whether or not the magazine job worked out, she would stay in Chicago with her dad and Stephen. It was time to move on from Mystic Falls, time for a brand new start. She hoped in Chicago she could lay low. She hoped soon she could make people forget that she was Niklaus Mikaelon's Small Town Whirl-wind Girlfriend and just go back to being Caroline Forbes: Nobody Special.

"Excuse me," a female voice said next to Matt. Caroline saw Katherine standing there. The other woman was about to speak, but she stopped short, giving Matt a not so discreet once over. "God you're hot."

Matt blushed and chuckled. "Can I get you something?"

"Yeah," Katherine smiled, "a diet coke. Two cherries." Caroline rolled her eyes as Matt smiled and walked away. "Is this seat taken? I come in peace."

Without waiting for an answer, Katherine slid into the booth across from Caroline.

"What do you want?" Caroline asked, in no mood for Katherine or anything she had to say. She couldn't fathom the reason as to why Katherine was seeking her out. Part of her wanted to reach across the table and smack her across the face. Or better yet, hold her down and force feed the her the rest of her cheese fries and let the fatty food wreak havoc on her perfect body.

"I didn't sleep with Klaus."

Caroline scoffed. "Wow you don't beat around the bush."

"I thought you should know that," Katherine said.

"Well thanks I already figured that out," Caroline replied, "so now if you wouldn't mind…I need to catch a flight and I'm sure you have other lives to terrorize…"

"No so fast," Katherine said, "how did you figure it out?"

"I just did. I know Klaus."

Katherine cocked her head to the side. "You really do love him don't you?"

"Not that it's any of your business," Caroline said, "but yeah I do. Did." Caroline wasn't sure yet whether or not the feeling was past tense yet, even if it should be.

"I loved Elijah," Katherine said, her eyes shifting around the room in a rare moment of vulnerability. Caroline was stunned enough by the unwarranted admission to stay in her seat and wait for Katherine to continue. "Look I know you heard the whole story about me and Elijah and Klaus from the Golden Girl, and I just wanted you to know that I really did love Elijah. It's the only time I've ever been in love with anyone."

"So then why did you sleep with his brother?"

"Because I was scared. Elijah can be so…so distant. He never showed any passion toward me when we were dating. I was so in love with him and so angry with him for not loving me the way I wanted him to. I was hurt. So I decided to get back at him. Klaus and I were drunk together one night and I went for it. Klaus didn't care about me, he just liked the attention, and not to mention he was on this serious spiral of self-destruction, I knew that. The morning after Klaus and I had spent the night together, Elijah came over," Katherine's voice seemed to break a bit, "he brought flowers and told me he was sorry for being so distant lately and wanted to make it up to me and take me on a vacation. Well at that moment, Klaus decided to come out of my bedroom wearing nothing but a sheet."

Caroline thought back to the morning two days ago, when Katherine had slipped out of Klaus's bedroom.

I guess we're even.

"You were sabotaging Klaus because he sabotaged your relationship with Elijah," Caroline said.

"If he would have just kept his damn mouth shut, things with Elijah would have been perfect. No one would have ever known. We could have been happy. But no he ruined everything. Even though he said it was his brotherly duty to expose what how untrustworthy I was to Elijah."

"I'm guessing that's why you continued working for Elijah. You were hoping to get him back?"

"Elijah hasn't been in any sort of relationship since we dated," Katherine told her, "I thought maybe that meant he still loved me, he was just waiting for the right moment after seeing he could trust me again. But then he goes to Europe and comes back dating Elena-Fucking-Gilbert and is happy. And I realized that Elijah never did love me. He never treated me the way he treated her or got as jealous the way he did with Elena and Klaus. That wasn't even real and he couldn't stand it! And then Klaus was with you..." Katherine threw up her hands in frustration, "Why should Klaus get a happy ending and not me when he's hurt people far worse than I ever did?"

"So you hurt me to get back at Klaus?"

"Don't take it personally," Katherine said, "I like you. You just got caught in the crossfire. I just wanted to make Klaus miserable the way he made me miserable."

"Yeah I'll try not to take it personally that you used me to get to someone I care about."

"I like you Caroline I really do. You're a little too perky for my taste, but that's why I'm telling you the truth."

Caroline was skeptical. "Why the change of heart?"

"Because it really didn't make me feel any better in the end," Katherine said, "and I decided to quit working for Elijah. It's time for me to move on." Caroline was still angry with Katherine, but at the same time she felt some sympathy for the woman. It was clear that she had gotten her heartbroken, even if she had had a hand in breaking it herself. Before the other morning, she had actually thought that Katherine had been warming up to her. Not that she ever wanted to be best friends with the woman. Especially not now since her vindictiveness seemed to outweigh her loyalty. However, she figured, maybe everyone deserved a second chance. Maybe that was just how it was with Katherine. Liking and disliking her in equal measure.

Just then, Matt came back with Katherine's diet coke, two cherries. Katherine switched gears fast, going from vulnerable, heartbroken girl to full force seductress. She took one of the cherries from the soda and popped it suggestively into her mouth.

"Thanks," she said to Matt, giving him a flick of her eyebrows.

"You're welcome," Matt laughed, blushing again and heading off to check on another table.

Katherine turned her attention back to Caroline. "His eyes. They're just so…blue."

Caroline laughed. "He's single you know."

Katherine seemed to consider for a moment before stepping out of the booth and heading toward Matt, who was back behind the bar now.

"Hey Katherine," Caroline called to her. The brunette turned around, her wild curls spinning around her like a curtain. "He's a nice guy."

Katherine gave her a saucy smile. "I can fix that."

Caroline smiled, shaking her head. She sincerely hoped she wasn't going to regret that.

"So it's settled then," Elijah said, "we'll fly out tomorrow."

Klaus nodded, not paying much attention as his brother relayed the final details for their trip to Portland the next day. In his hand was a glass of scotch. He stared out the window down the street, as Elijah conversed with Elena, his back to them. It was about time they left Mystic Falls. Klaus was sick of this insipid small town. He wished he could go back to L.A. before filming. He needed the myriad distractions of the city. Being in this town with nothing to do and nowhere to go left him with too much time to think. At least filming would begin in Portland. He could throw himself into work and forget all about the summer and Mystic Falls and anyone connected to either of those things.

"Okay well I'm going to go," Elena said. Elijah must have finished up whatever he had been droning on about. "Caroline is flying out today and I want to see if I can catch her before she leaves."

"Oh that's right," Elijah remarked, "for the job in Chicago."

"Yeah, she's pretty much decided on moving there though, whether or not they hire her for the magazine."

"I'm sure they will," Elijah offered in encouragement.

Klaus shut his eyes, wincing at the mention of her name. He recalled the way she had looked just the other night when she had walked out the door. The pain in her eyes after she had told him she loved him and he rejected her. She had spoken the exact words that should have allayed all of his fears, but instead he chose to shut her down. But it didn't matter now. He wouldn't regret it. She was moving on and so was he. It no doubt would have happened either way. In no time at all, their brief interlude would be a thing of the past, not worth any further reflection. He turned toward the couple behind him, putting on an easy smile.

"Well give her my best if you see her," Klaus said raising his glass, "I'm sure she'll be very happy in her new job. And with Stefan. He was your ex correct? I certainly hope there won't be any hard feelings."

"Stefan? What does he have to do with anything?"

"Well he got Caroline her job opportunity. I'm sure you know how it goes between colleagues," his gaze slid between her and his brother. Unable to keep his bored and alcohol hazed mind from wandering, Klaus had spent plenty of time over the past two days conjuring scenarios in which Stefan and Caroline lived happily ever after, in their normal life, with career and family and romance. Everything she wanted. Everything he couldn't give.

Elena glanced at Elijah, who didn't seem to have anymore understanding than her about what Klaus was saying.

"First of all," Elena said stepping toward him, "Caroline got the opportunity on her own merits, she just had some help making a connection. Secondly, it was Stephen, her dad's partner, not Stefan who helped her. And thirdly-not that this is any of your business whatsoever-Stefan has a girlfriend named Lexi, who he just moved in with two months ago so I don't think he has any intentions of trying to make any moves on Caroline."

On the inside, Klaus immediately realized his mistake. Or Katherine's mistake, rather. A simple mix-up of names and a severe misunderstanding. It was almost too Shakespearian that he wanted to laugh. But on the outside, Klaus didn't falter at this revelation. His expression remained indifferent. What difference did it make that he had gotten the wrong information? They were done.

"None of that matters to me," Klaus said, playing to the opinion that Elena held of him, "I don't know why you think it would."

Elena scoffed at his silence and nodded, grabbing her purse off the table. "I'm gonna go. Call me later Elijah?" Elijah nodded once and Elena walked forward, giving him a short kiss goodbye. Before she left she stopped and turned back toward Klaus. "Caroline saw something in you, but she was wrong. You really don't deserve her."

With those last words, Elena left.

Klaus tossed back the rest of the alcohol in his glass, his gaze falling on Elijah's watchful eyes. "Do you have something to say brother?"

"No," Elijah replied, "I just haven't seen you hitting the bottle this hard in a long time."

"Well I'm sure we can attribute that to me being heartbroken can't we?" Klaus snapped back, "Now that the angelic influence of my life is gone I'm acting out irrationally."

Elijah gave him a slight shrug. "What do you have to be broken hearted about? You were the one who ended things, if my facts serve me."

Klaus ignored him, heading over to the counter where he had left the bottle and refreshing his glass.

"You could call her," Elijah suggested, "make amends and admit your mistake. I've noticed that Caroline can be very forgiving."

"My mistake?" Klaus said resenting the criticism.

"You're telling me that you didn't lash out at Caroline thinking she was choosing to go to Chicago and be with another man instead of following you? Or perhaps you were simply trying to beat her to the punch, and ending the relationship before she did?"

Klaus glowered at Elijah. His damn brother was too perceptive. But he wouldn't admit to making a mistake. This time Elijah didn't know as much as he thought he did. Klaus took another sip of scotch, watching his brother type something into his phone.

"Regardless," Klaus said filling the silence, "she wants a normal relationship. With a normal man. She's not made to tolerate the obstacles of living life in the public eye."

"On the contrary, I think she's been quite resilient the entire summer and over the past few weeks especially."

"Well they were her words," Klaus said, "from her lips to Elena's ears."

"Elena told you this?"

"I had the pleasure of overhearing their conversation the other night."

Elijah nodded, removing his cell phone from his coat pocket and beginning to type. A few moments later he pressed a final button on his phone and then set it down on the table. He moved closer to Klaus. "And your feelings and wants don't matter? You usually make those a top priority."

Klaus frowned. "Watch yourself Elijah." He turned his back from him, concentrating on his glass as he set it down, the counter below him, his hands gripping the sides.

"Well it's probably for the best, I'm sure you're right," Elijah said, "you know Katherine quit today."

"Good riddance."

"Elena was relieved. As you can imagine she didn't appreciate having her around after she learned out our history." Klaus didn't answer, continuing to nurse his drink, more concerned about his alcohol rations and if he would need to venture into town to procure more.

"Well it's about bloody time."

"She asked me," Elijah said, "Elena asked me, when I told her the story, why I was so calm about catching the two of you together? Why I didn't lash out?" Elijah grabbed the bottle and took a sip. "I told her it was because I wasn't like you. That I didn't hurt people when I was afraid of being hurt. That I could recognize a car crash when I saw it."

Klaus sneered. "So that's all I've ever been to you? A car crash?"

"No," Elijah said, "you're my little brother. My spoiled little brother who, in spite of caring deeply for his family, can be incredibly selfish. Who has suffered fierce rejection as a child that no one should suffer. Who doesn't know how to accept anything good into his life. You're the little brother who I've been following around for far too many years, cleaning up after your messes, and never letting you learn your lessons because I never wanted you to feel anymore pain."

Klaus turned to face Elijah, a cutting retort ready on his tongue, but he was cut off as Elijah's fist connected with his jaw. The force of the punch caused Klaus to stumble back, grasping out for the island counter to steady himself. He felt blood pool in his mouth where his teeth had clamped down on his cheek as the hit landed. He leaned over the counter, his face throbbing, and glanced up to see Elijah shaking out his fist and readjusting his suit.

"And people always call you the noble brother," Klaus said, spitting out some of the blood in his mouth.

"You've deserved that for weeks," Elijah replied, unapologetic about the sucker punch, "but never more than you do now."

"Is this payback? For Katherine? After all this time?"

"No," Elijah said, "I never loved Katherine. That was why I could forgive you for being a relentless ass in screwing my girlfriend and allow her to keep her job. That was for Caroline. I watched the both of you fall for each other over the summer, and—all I've ever wanted for you is to be happy Niklaus. I've wanted that for you since our mother died. I haven't seen you truly delighted about anything since she's been gone. Not music, not family, not evening painting which you used to love, until Caroline came along." Elijah took a step closer to him, close enough that Klaus could get his own hit in now if he chose. "I've watched you throw away a lot of things Klaus, but this, I can't stand by and watch you this time."

"So leave," Klaus snapped.

"I won't leave Klaus. That's what you always expect. You try to push all of us away. But Rebekah and I will always stand by you, because we're your family. Caroline…she doesn't have the commitment. She has a choice. If you push her hard enough, she'll go."

"She's already gone," Klaus replied, pointing toward Elijah. "This all started because you, in one of your attempts to 'clean up my messes'. Making me pretend to date Elena Gilbert in effort to change my life."

"No I was trying to change your image," Elijah said, "it was someone else who changed your life."

With nothing more to say, Elijah left Klaus, who scowled at him as he walked out the front door. He pushed away from the counter with a growl, heading toward the bathroom to check the damage to his face. It was Elijah's fault that he had changed. If it wasn't for him he would have never met Caroline? What good had she ever been in his life?

He clicked on the bathroom light and stared at himself in the mirror. His reflection was as handsome as ever. His blue-gray eyes assessed his appearance, noticing a bit of redness under the scruff on his jaw. Perhaps if he avoided shaving for a few days more, his beard would cover any bruising. Other than that he looked healthy, even if a little sleep deprived. He didn't used to care about hiding the signs of a fistfight on his face. He couldn't believe Elijah had hit him. It made him wonder what Caroline would have said about it.

"Well what did you do to deserve it?" Klaus said to his reflection, imitating Caroline's American accent. He chuckled to himself, before he realized his lapse.

Elijah was right. Caroline would be happy. She would move on. She was intelligent and kind and beautiful and someone would take notice of that. Maybe it would take a week, or a year, or even as little as a day, but she would find someone who could give her all the things that she wanted. That would appreciate the amazing woman she was. That would love her unreservedly the way she should be loved.

But no one, he decided, more than him.

Without a chance for second thought he rushed from the bathroom, grabbing his jacket off the back of the couch. In it were his keys, phone, and wallet. He tore open the door and saw Elijah standing there, leaning up against the opposite wall of the corridor.

"I knew it," he said with a gleam in his eye, "you are in love with her."

Klaus blinked at him. "What?"

"I was just trying to help you admit it to yourself." Klaus stood there, unable to respond, confused. Elijah straightened up again. "I called a car for you, it's waiting downstairs to take you to the airport." A sly grin broke out over his face and he clapped Elijah on the shoulder. "You better get going. The plane will be leaving soon and I'm sure it's going to take a lot of groveling to get her back."

"I'm sorry we missed each other," Caroline said to Elena over the phone. She was currently browsing through one of the many airport bookstores, trying to decide on a book to purchase for her flight. Elena apparently stopped by her house to say goodbye, but the two of them had missed each other, since Caroline had decided to leave Mystic Falls earlier than planned. "We'll get together again soon. Maybe you can come stay in Chicago?"

They made promises and plans to keep in touch and Caroline hung up the phone. She noticed the time, realizing that she would need to make her way through the security lines soon if she was going to make it to her gate on time. Her eyes flicked up to a rack of magazines and she scanned the selection, thinking maybe she'd buy one of those instead of a book since it was a short flight. Her eyes landed on one with Klaus's face plastered on the cover and the headline "Sources Say: It's love."

She scoffed, rolling her eyes in effort to clamp down on the tears threatening to rise.

"What sources are those?" She muttered to herself. One shelf down, there was another picture of him and her, holding hands and walking through Mystic Falls. She was wearing her favorite blue flowered dress. She remembered that day, because she had begged Klaus to tell her about the date he had planned for her back in Paris before Tyler had shown up and they had been interrupted.

"Please, come on, just a hint," she had begged, wrapping her arm tight around his.

He had chuckled. "Not even a hint. I might still want to put that plan into action one day."

It was the first time he had hinted at a future. The first time she had heard him make any distant plans when it came to her. The first time when she had thought maybe…

She shut her eyes and stopped the memory replaying her mind. It was just another thing to add to the list of moments that she wanted to forget. Which would have been easier to do if he wasn't constantly on magazine covers, or her TV, or everywhere she dared to go on the Internet. It wasn't going to be like a normal breakup, where she could slink away and pretend things never happened; where disposing of old pictures and presents and physical reminders of him would help her forget and heal. No, the entire entertainment industry was a giant reminder that she had been dumb enough to let herself fall for Klaus. She hoped that when the story broke the media would be kind, lose interest in her quickly, and let her move on with her life until her time with Klaus became nothing but a fond memory.

Taking a deep breath, she turned away from the magazine rack and pulled her carry on bag along towards the security line.

"Can't you just go round the other way?" Klaus barked at the driver. Just as they reached the airport, they hit a patch of traffic, cars coming and going and backing up along the rode. Klaus looked at the time. He was just in reach of her. He didn't want to miss her.

As the car jerked along, he opened his phone to her number and pressed send. It rang once before going to voicemail.

"Come on damn it!" Klaus shouted at the traffic, willing it to move along. The message signal beeped. "Caroline. Please. Do not get on the plane. I need to see you."

He hung up with growl as the car continued to inch down the airport road. He wasn't sure if it was two minutes or two hours later, but they made it to the curbside drop and he leaped from the car, dashing through the automatic doors and running up to the boards, searching for the flights scheduled for Chicago.

Caroline felt her phone vibrate in her bag. She retrieved it, seeing Klaus's name on the caller ID. Her thumb hovered over the ignore button for a moment before sending the call to voicemail. A few short moments she heard her phone ding with a new voicemail. From Klaus. This time her curiosity got the better of her and she listened to it.

"Caroline. Please. Do not get on the plane. I need to see you."

The message ended. She played it again.

"Caroline. Please. Do not get on the plane. I need to see you."

An impatient throat cleared behind her. "Miss…" the stuffy businessman said to her, indicating that the line was moving and she was holding things up. She gave him an apologetic half smile and shuffled forward, dropping her phone back into her bag. Reaching the front of the line, she hoisted her bag onto the conveyer belt and dropped her purse and her shoes into one of the white plastic bins, waiting her turn to step through the metal detector.

She went through in a daze, Klaus's voicemail playing over and over again in her mind.

Caroline.

I need to see you.

Need to see you.

Her feet slipped back into her shoes and she lifted her bag off the belt.

"Caroline!" She heard shouting behind her. "Caroline!"

Her head whipped around and she saw Klaus running toward the security line, trying to get as close as he could. The TSA official standing nearby stepped toward him and asked him to stand back if he wasn't passenger. She stood there, her hand gripping the handle of her rolling suitcase, and she shook her head.

No. He was too late.

She turned away from him and headed toward the gates.

Klaus cursed. Walking away from the security line and around to the other side in attempt to get closer to her. There was a glass wall that divided between the security area and the regular part of the airport. A few people lingered there; still waving goodbye to loved ones. Klaus walked along it, following Caroline's path toward the gates.

"Caroline. Listen to me." He called to her, shouting, his voice muffled by the glass.

She stopped with a huff, stepping closer to the glass wall and doing her best to give him a hard look Klaus. "What? What do you want to say?"

Klaus stared at her through the glass; his eyes flicking back and forth across her face. He couldn't think of what he wanted to say, all he could think of was what he wanted to do-if it wasn't for the damn glass in between them.

"I'm here," Klaus said, as if that explained it all.

Caroline nodded, looking off to the side. She noticed the wary glances of the airport security.

"Yeah, you're here," Caroline said. "You know people always say actions speak louder than words, but it's a bunch of crap. Sometimes you really just need to hear the words."

"What should I say?" Klaus asked.

Caroline gave him an annoyed look. "If you can't figure that out on your own, then there's no point in me telling you." She picked up her bag and started away again.

Klaus pressed his hands to the glass, feeling his chance slipping away. "An apology?"

"That would be a start," she said shaking her curls away from her face. She looked at him again, only for second before nodding her head. "Goodbye Klaus."

"Wait Caroline…Caroline!" Klaus banged his hands against the glass in frustration, pushing away from it and pacing in a small circle. He dragged his palm over his hand, watching the arriving passengers pass through the open doorway just around the other side. Caroline continued walking away, through the gate, without so much as a backwards glance.

"To hell with it," he said.

With a passing look at the security officers that had begun to linger around them, he darted back down the wide corridor and around the glass wall, pushing his way through the sea of arrivals and dashing towards Caroline. Behind him he could hear security shouting for him to stop.

Caroline heard the commotion behind her and started to turn around when she felt a hand grab her arm. In the blink of an eye she was being spun around and she realized it was Klaus a half second before he was crushing his lips against hers. His hands cupped her face and he kissed her like she had never been kissed before. He kissed her because his lips could not find the words to explain how much she had come to mean to him. As his mouth moved against hers, he realized that he understood why people wrote love songs and books and made films all about this one earth shattering, life ruining, redeeming emotion. The touch of his lips, soft and demanding, was his way of telling her that he would spend every day making her happy. Nothing else in the world mattered to him, as long as she woke up beside him every morning, smiled at him, fought with him, chastised him, and continued to love him like she said she did.

Klaus kissed her again before separating from her, pulling back to gage her reaction.

She opened her eyes and looked into his, stunned for a moment, lost to the weightlessness of the kiss before gravity settled upon her once again. He lost her gaze, as her eyes flicked around the area of the terminal, a crowd gathering and noticing the drama unfolding. Cameras started clicking and a dull roar of murmurs and whispers erupted. Her brow furrowed at the attention. Klaus willed her to ignore them; they didn't matter. They would never understand anything as important as what was happening at that moment. She just needed to look at him again. He needed her to look at him again. When she met his eyes finally, the hope he felt died in his chest. Klaus saw it play out across her face. He was losing her.

"Please Caroline," he implored, "don't get on the plane."

"I—"Caroline stammered, her eyes leaving his and glancing behind him, but he didn't dare look away from her face. She took a few steps back, out of Klaus's reach. "I have to go."

Caroline turned away, one final time, and rushed toward her gate.

Klaus's hands fell to his sides as he watched her retreat. Two security guards pulled his arms behind him, slapping cuffs around his wrists, but he barely noticed. All he saw was Caroline as she walked away.

Klaus sat in a metal folding chair in the detention room of the airport. His hands were folded across a brown square table in the middle of the room. Under normal circumstances, he would have been arrested for breaching security, but because of who he was they were just detaining him instead. He had been in the room for just over an hour according to the clock on the wall. It made him wonder how long they would keep him there, like a child in time out.

His fingers traced random patterns across the surface of the table. What he wouldn't give for a finger of whiskey right at the moment. Not that alcohol was going to solve his problems. He needed to figure out his next move. Klaus wasn't about to let Caroline walk out of his life that easily. He had been persistent when she had been nothing but a passing fancy to him, but now that he knew he loved her…he would be a force to be reckoned with.

A few minutes later, the door opened, the white blinds swaying back and forth and clanging against the frosted window.

"Mr. Mikaelson, you're free to go," the security employee announced.

Klaus stood from the chair and walked out of the room, the guard walking behind.

"My effects?" They had taken his jacket, along with his phone, keys, and ID when they had detained him. The guard left and came back with his jacket. Klaus checked his pockets for the rest and then put it on. "Thank you."

"You're welcome Mr. Mikaelson," the guard said, "sorry about the arrest, procedure though. We're all big fans."

Klaus gave him a nod, and then headed in the direction of the exit. He opened the door that led to the security office hallways, pulling out his phone. The battery was almost flat. He hoped it would last long enough to make a call to Elijah and catch a cab back to Mystic Falls.

"Hey."

Klaus's head snapped up to see Caroline there in front of him. Her carry on suitcase was parked next to her feet. She stood from her seat on the bench across the hall and stepped toward him. "I finally convinced them that you were some terrorist so they'd let you go," she said, "not that I really needed to. They know who you are."

He blinked at her, wondering if he had somehow imagined this whole scenario. Or maybe Elijah had hit him so hard that he was lying on the floor of his kitchen, knocked out, and dreaming of this moment.

"You didn't get on the plane," he said stopping in front of her, relief flooding through him. He wouldn't have to chase after her or make any grand gestures. She was already here to give him his second chance. In his relief, Klaus missed the solemn expression on her face.

"Before you get too excited," Caroline said, "I'm taking a later flight. I'm still going to Chicago. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

Klaus walked forward, reaching for her, but Caroline put her hands against his chest keeping some distance between them. Her eyes shut, her forehead wrinkling as she attempted to keep her composure. Klaus took her silence, and spoke up before she had the chance. He wasn't going to let her talk herself out of whatever conflict was going on inside of her head.

"I love you," he said. It was simple as that.

Caroline, her eyes still closed, replied. "I know. I know you do."

Klaus listened to her words. They were again what he wanted to hear, but he wasn't feeling any sort of happiness at hearing them. Her eyelids opened again and she looked up at him. "When I first met you, I had this conversation with Elijah about you. He said that he had been taking care of your messes your entire lives and I thought to myself, maybe that—for all his wonderful intentions-wasn't a good thing." She cupped his face, her thumb running across the red spot where Elijah had hit him. "We forgive you for all these things you do and brush them under the rug because we care about you Klaus, but we can't keep doing that. I can't keep doing that."

Her eyes were filled with tears. Klaus's throat felt tight. She was really doing this. Really telling him goodbye.

Her words echoed what Elijah had said to him earlier. About taking care of him, about protecting him from experiencing consequences and feeling pain. Caroline was becoming another consequence of his stubbornness and impulsive attitude. He would learn the lesson, he promised, but he didn't want to learn it this way. Not now.

"Caroline," Klaus's voice pleaded with her to reconsider, "I can be the better man."

"I know you can," she replied, "and I know you will."

Caroline stretched onto her toes, so that her lips could touch his. She kissed him. A solitary, chaste kiss. Her lips warm and wet against his; her eyes closed to hold back the tears threatening to spill over. As she pulled away her hand trailed down to his chest, stopping over his heart. Caroline couldn't look into his eyes, scared that she would lose it if she did.

"Be happy," she said, "I love you."

Without allowing Klaus another response, she stepped away from his arms and rushed down the hall, turning around the corner and disappearing from his sight.

Anyone feeling terrible? Good. It was painful to write, but necessary I feel. I know a lot of you would agree. After reading your reactions to the big fight and discussing it with some of you, you guys really felt that Caroline wouldn't just give in that easily. I agreed after I reread a lot of what happened. So she didn't. It makes me proud that you readers encourage the ladies to stand strong and not give in! :)

I loved wrapping up Katherine's story with Klaus and Elijah. Maybe you still dislike her...maybe you understand what happened a little bit better. There's always multiple sides to every story, it's been a little bit of an underlying theme in this fic. It hurt not to be able to have my Kalijah in this fic, but she'll be happy and she'll continue to be her troublesome awesome self ;) Also had to pay homage to one of my earliest crackships...Matherine!

Elijah's hit! That was another thing I loved including. Elijah has wanted to punch Klaus through this entire story (probably their entire lives). So it was about time in my opinion.

Ugh, okay I'll be done with my commentary and let you guys tell me what you think.

Stayed tuned for the epilogue in a day or two! It's done so I'll be quick to update!

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