1.
From the front window of her mother's modest home, Caroline saw the car pull up, "Bye mom!" she yelled over her shoulder as she grabbed her bag from the pegs in the front hall, "I'll see you tonight after practice."
The blonde sixteen-year-old trotted down her porch stairs and out to the waiting car, "Hey, Bekah. Hey, Nik!" she beamed at her two friends before turning to the boy occupying the back seat, "-Kol." She slid into the back seat, slightly annoyed that she was stuck back there with Kol again; he was always such a perv.
Rebekah, Niklaus, and Kol Mikaelson were siblings. They moved here from Wales about a year ago, and Caroline and Bekah had become instant friends since they were on the cheerleading squad together.
Caroline and Bekah were sophomores, Kol a junior, and Niklaus, or Nik as he liked to be called, was a senior at Mystic Falls High. She caught rides with them since she didn't have a car yet, her mother being a single parent and a police officer, didn't afford them much expendable cash, but the Mikaelson's, on the other hand, were loaded.
Her friendship with Rebekah wasn't entirely selfless, though she would never admit it. Caroline had befriended the other blonde because she was already half in love with him from the day she first met Nik.
Caroline was so nervous for her first year of high school. Sure she had friends coming over from her middle school, but this was the last four years before she would be an adult, expected to go off to college, have a career, a family…all of that was so scary and seemed so far off. Still, standing in the front of Mystic Falls High, Caroline felt her future looming over her.
Along with the feeling of dread about growing up, she also felt someone knock into her. "Hey, watch it!" She yelled from the sidewalk as a guy on a skateboard unapologetically waved her off. With a huff, she started to gather her books from the ground when she heard his voice.
"Here, let me help you with that."
Looking up to see the voice owner, Caroline was stunned by the good-looking boy assisting her. He had short curly sandy blonde hair, stormy blue eyes, and an English accent that made her melt. She could tell that he was older by the blonde stubble that painted his cheeks and chin. He wore dark jeans, a short-sleeved V-neck shirt, and Converse shoes.
Still unmoved, and indeed looking foolish with her mouth stuck in the shape of an O, Caroline finally snapped out of her daze and went about collecting her things again, "Oh, thank you, but it's not necessary."
He reached down, grabbing her elbow and helping her stand, "That ars should be watching where he is going." Releasing her as soon as she was stable on her own two feet, he shifted his backpack and stuck out his hand, "I'm Nik."
Shoving a few more things back into her purse, Caroline wiped her sweat and dirt covered hand on her denim skirt, "Caroline." she shook his hand, "You are new in town," she stated before mentally slapping herself in the forehead. "Cause I don't recognize you from middle school, and well, the accent gives it away… I'm sorry, I'm rambling."
He couldn't help but chuckle at the young blonde. He knew he had this effect on the opposite sex. Back at his old school, he would have a different date every weekend if he so chose.
Just then, the bell rang. "It's quite alright." Nik said, shifting his bag again and heading for the doors to the school, "I'll see you around Caroline," he called before disappearing into the school.
It was later that day when Nik picked Rebekah up from cheerleading try-outs that Caroline decided to try and strike up a friendship with the brooding fourteen-year-old blonde.
The Mikaelson family was large and often chaotic. Their mother, Esther, was American, their father, Mikael, an Englishman. After spending almost thirty years in Wales and many failed businesses ventures under Mikael's management, they decided to move back to Esther's hometown, where her family owned a large estate.
Rebekah had a hard time adjusting to the move to America, and Caroline would like to think that she made the transition a little less painful, since now they were joined at the hip.
Every morning on the way to school, Caroline would try to steal glances with Nik in the rearview mirror while fighting off Kol's advances and gossiping with Rebekah.
She loved it when Nik came to her rescue and threatened Kol's physical pain if he didn't stop harassing her. This always earned her a smile and wink through the mirror.
They had their flirtations throughout the years. Nik had even taken her to one of the homecoming dances, though she felt it was more or less him taking pity on his kid sister's friend since no one had asked Caroline to the dance.
There were the late-night sleepovers where they would all gather in the Mikaelson's basement media room and watch scary movies. Somehow Nik and Caroline would always end up sitting next to each other. When the bad guy would pop out from behind a corner, Caroline would jump and grab on to Nik, just out of instinct.
The first few times this happened, she would blush from embarrassment and quickly remove her hand. Caroline would then shift in her seat, creating more room between them so that she wasn't tempted to reach out for him during the next scary scene.
Nik never mentioned anything about these little interactions. He saw a lot of good in Caroline, not only for taking to his sister and his whole crazy family so quickly, but she just had this inner joy that radiated out of her. That is why he liked being around her, because she seemed always to bring out the best in whoever was around her, himself included.
During winter break of that first year, the Mikaelsons went back to England to visit family for the Christmas season. Caroline missed them but was able to talk with Rebekah over IM chat.
They returned a few days before school started back up, and Caroline threatened to ride her bike over to her friend's house, even though there were over two feet of snow on the ground. Finally, her mom had agreed to drop her daughter off on her way to work.
Caroline's mom sometimes worked nights, and it was agreed that Caroline would stay with Rebekah on those nights. Liz and Esther had gone to school together before the latter ran off to England for university and met her husband.
So tonight, Caroline would catch up with her friends and have one last slumber party before school started for the spring term. She practically bounced down the walkway up to the home's stately door. She didn't even have to knock before the massive door swung open, and Rebekah was attacking her.
"Oh, I missed you so much, Care!" Rebekah said as she hugged her friend.
"Me too, Bekah," Caroline answered, returning the hug.
Caroline's mom honked the car horn from the driveway, waving bye to the girls before heading to the station. The two blondes hurried inside with Caroline's overnight bag, and they went straight for the kitchen.
"Mom is making pizza tonight," Rebekah called over her shoulder.
Caroline waved to Kol, who was sitting in the kitchen's eating area. She knew that they had two older siblings, Finn, who was married and still lived in Wales with his wife, and Elijah, who was at university in London. Rebekah had one younger brother, Henrik, but he had died of cancer a few years before they moved back to the states.
Esther was a typical homemaker. There was no way for her to have time for formal education or a career with so many children. Caroline envied her friends; to always have a mother around, to have a warm meal prepared every night and just the company of a large family.
She had always wished for a sibling, but her parents had divorced before that could happen.
"Everything smells delicious, Esther," Caroline commented, going over to hug the woman who was like a second mother to her. "I'm going to run upstairs and put my things in your room Bekah."
The other blonde waved from the table where she was fighting with Kol over which side of the plate's fork.
The Mikaelson home was huge, being one of the oldest estates in the county and passed down through many generations of Esther's family, and it was built to accommodate a large family.
Rebekah's room was in the 'kids wing' of the house, which consisted of six bedrooms with adjoining baths down the north side of the home. Mikael and Esther had their wing on the south side of the estate.
She quickly went to the last room on the left and placed her bag on the large bed. She paused to look around the professionally decorated room. It had become a second home to her, and she couldn't imagine her life without them in it.
As Caroline turned to leave the room, she jumped, "Nik! You scared me." She placed her hand over her heart, which was racing in her chest, "What have I told you about lurking."
He gave her his signature smirk, "I can't help myself. I love seeing the blush that comes over you when you are scared."
Caroline's breath caught. He was flirting more than usual. Determined not to let him see his effect on her, she pushed back her shoulders, "How was your Christmas?"
"Cold, and yours?"
"Same."
They laughed together, relaxing into their usual banter.
Nik seemed to be debating something in his mind before he finally spoke, "I have something for you." He quickly turned and walked from his sister's room, going back down the hall to his room.
Caroline followed but paused at the doorway. She had been in his room before, but she never entered without being invited. When he looked back at her and nodded his head, she walked across the dark wood floor over to his desk.
He pulled a small notebook from his backpack, which still had the airport tags attached to it. There was a thin red ribbon tied in a bow around it, "Here."
Giving him an unsure look, Caroline took the gift, carefully pulling at the ribbon and placing it on his desk, "Thanks for the…journal?" Caroline didn't understand why he was giving this to her, sure she kept a diary, but he didn't know that…or she hoped he didn't know that because it was filled with filthy thoughts of him.
The smirk was back again, "Open it."
She did as she was told and opened the simple black leather cover. The first page was just for her name, which was written in a scrolled font. She ran her finger over her name before turning the page.
Her breath caught. On each page was a drawing, sometimes of her and others with Rebekah, or just scenes from around town. He had captured candid moments and some sketches from memory, like her with her ridiculous up-do from homecoming.
"Nik, this is amazing…a little creepy…but still amazing." She smiled up at him, "Thank you."
His eyes were burning into hers; she felt her skin heat up and blush formed across her pale chest. Before she could react, his lips were on hers, entangled in a passionate kiss.
This was everything she hoped for, everything she dreamed it would be. She had spent many nights thinking about what his lips would feel like, how long would Nik wait to deepen the kiss, or where he would put his hands.
It was all too much, though. It didn't matter how much Caroline cared about him because she cared about Rebekah more. His sister was her best friend, and if she kept on with him, if they ended up dating, it would only end in pain. He was set to go off to college at the end of the school year, and Caroline would be left behind. If their relationship went south, it could hurt her friendship with Rebekah. She didn't want that.
As her mind screamed at her body, Caroline drew the strength to push him back. Breathing hard from his intense kiss, she kept her eyes closed, leaning her head against his chest.
Nik peppered the top of her head with kisses, rubbing his hands up and down her arms. He had just crossed so many boundaries that he was unsure if there was any going back from this. All he knew was that he cared about Caroline and wanted her, only her.
Finally, taking in a few calming breaths, Caroline lifted her head, unshed tears in her eyes, "I can't do this," was all she said before running from the room.
He was left standing there, confused and discouraged. Seeing the journal that he had just gifted to Caroline sitting on his bedroom floor, he picked it up and threw it across the room. It landed with a thud at the back of his closet.
Dinner that night was awkward. Caroline and Nik refused to look at each other. Esther explained that Mikael had stayed behind in England to take care of some business while Rebekah went on and on about everything she had done on their three week holiday.
"I showed a friend of mine your picture, and he wants to meet you." Rebekah started, but when she noticed that Caroline wasn't listening, she tapped her friend on the arm, "Hello, earth to Caroline."
"Oh, sorry…I was thinking about something…" Caroline tried to control her blush, "What were you saying?"
Rebekah huffed, "I was saying that my friend, Peter, wants to meet you. Just think, if we go off to Uni together, you two would be perfect for each other."
Nik snorted, "Doubtful…and who says she wants to go to school in England?"
"Hello, she's never even been out of this state…of course she wants to go to school in England!"
He changed a glance at Caroline, who was busy studying her dinner plate, while Rebekah continued about all of the colleges back in their home county. Having finished his dinner, he roughly pushed back his chair and excused himself, placing his dishes in the sink on the way out of the kitchen.
"What's stuck up his ars?" Kol snickered.
Esther reached out and slapped the back of his head, "No, cursing at the table."
This, in turn, made Rebekah laugh, "It's probably puberty."
"That's enough, both of you." Esther pointed at her two younger children. "Now, do the dishes before you settle in for the night."
Both Kol and Rebekah did a chorus of "Ah man," in protest, but did as they were told, rinsing the dishes before loading them into the dishwasher.
Heading back upstairs, they passed Nik's room on the way to Rebekah's. There was loud rock music coming from behind the closed door, "Something has him upset; he only listens to that album when he is doing his 'angry painting.'"
Caroline tried to act as if she didn't care, shrugging her shoulders and following her friend. They each took showers and changed into the pajamas before painting each other's toenails.
"You want to go watch a movie downstairs?" Bekah asked.
Wiggling her newly painted pink toenails, Caroline nodded.
"Sweet, I'll go down and get everything started, including popcorn and ice cream. You go see if Nik and Kol want to join."
Before Caroline could object, Rebekah was already out of the room and halfway down the hall. She collected her thoughts with a massive sigh; she would ask Kol first, saving Nik for last, if there was a discussion that she didn't want to be overheard.
Kol was easy; he had already made plans to meet up with the guys from the soccer team, so he was on his way to the Mystic Grill to shoot some pool. That left Nik. She stood in front of his door for a few moments, wanting to lie to Rebekah and say that he didn't want to join, but she knew that her friend would see right through her.
So with a shaky hand, she knocked. A moment later, the door cracked open. "What?" He asked in an annoyed tone.
Caroline looked to the floor, "Bekah and I are going to watch a movie. She wanted to know if you wanted to join us…but I guess you are busy." She didn't even bother looking up at him before she tried to turn and leave.
His hand wrapped around her arm, and she was jerked into his room. Caroline's back was up against his closed door.
"Please don't kiss me," she almost whispered.
"Trust me, sweetheart. I wouldn't dare." He sneered the words out at her.
She looked up at him, expecting to see anger, but all that showed in his eyes was hurt. "I'm sorry Nik, I didn't mean to run away like that earlier."
"Oh, I'm sure you could have come up with a better way of rejecting me."
Caroline was taken back by his words, "Rejecting you?"
"Usually, when a girl runs away from you crying saying, and I quote, 'I can't do this,' it is a rejection." Nik continued his deep gaze, "Do you flirt and lead guys on as a rule, or is that special treatment just for me?"
"Me, leading you on? Seriously?" Caroline did everything in her power to keep her voice below a yell, "I have practically worshiped you since the day we met, and while you have been kind to me, you have treated me more like a sister."
He was not expecting her to be so honest about her feelings, "So you like me?"
"Yes, you idiot!"
"Then why did you push me away?" He stepped closer to her, reaching up to pull a curl over her shoulder.
Caroline sighed, wanting nothing more than to lean into his touch, "Because of Rebekah."
"What about her? Does she disapprove?"
"She has never said anything about it, one way or the other, but if this goes south, I can't risk our friendship, I love her and your family too much to lose any of you."
Leaning into her even more, he placed a soft kiss to her cheek, "She doesn't have to know."
"That's not the point." Caroline stepped around him, not liking being pinned between the door and his tempting body.
He turned away from the door to face her, "So you are rejecting me…again."
She groaned and mentally kicked herself. The guy of her dreams was right in front of her, offering himself to her on a freaking silver platter, and she had to say no. "For now… I'm afraid so."
Not wanting to cry in front of him, she tried to hurry past him to the door, but he caught her arm again.
"You have given me a reason to hope," he softly placed his lips on hers, feeling her relax under his touch.
As quickly as it started, Caroline parted from him, giving him a sad smile before walking out of the door.