I am literally so blown away by the response to the last chapter - aside from it being the most reviewed chapter yet, all comments were positive and enthusiastic (I had literally been so scared to take the virgin Klaus direction with this story).
The song Wet Dreamz by J Cole inspired this story from the get go, a fact I've been waiting to share with you guys since the beginning, but I didn't want to ruin the plot twist.
I have one more plot twist planned (so far), one which I hinted at in Chapter 10 ;)
That's enough from me - happy reading!
To Feel - Part 11
I was equal parts giddy and nervous when I pulled into the school parking lot on Monday.
I hadn't seen Klaus since I fell asleep next to him on Friday night. When I woke up on Saturday morning, it took me a second to remember that he had gone to bed with me. But he was nowhere to be seen.
I had gotten up and twisted my hair up into a bun, walking out of my room in search of him. He wasn't in the bathroom or in the hallways. I could smell something cooking, so I went down to the kitchen.
And there was my mom.
"Good morning, Care," she had said, smiling over her shoulder as she poked at the breakfast sausages.
"Morning, mom," I had said, trying to sound as casual as possible, but feeling my face pale and my stomach drop.
"How was the game?" She asked, turning back to her cooking. I take the chance to quickly glance around – no Klaus in sight.
"It was good. We won."
"That's good. Did you go out to celebrate?"
"Uh, no." He wasn't in the living room or in the laundry room. "I was kind of exhausted so I just came home, dropped a friend off at her house on my way here."
"Elena?"
"No, Rebekah Mikaelson."
I could have sworn I saw my mom tense up. But it only lasted a second, so I couldn't be sure.
"Oh, she's new in town, right?" Her voice sounded normal enough.
"Yeah, her family moved here from England a few months ago."
"Well," she turns around to serve the sausages on our plates. "It's great that she's already making friends."
"Yeah," I nod and sit down to have breakfast.
We talk about some general topics while we eat – mom's work, my school and cheerleading, plans for Thanksgiving break. All the while, I'm careful with what I say, and I keep a close eye on my mom's demeanor. She seems normal.
By the time we've done the dishes and we split up into our rooms to get ready for the day, I've figured that Klaus was able to get out of the house before my mom got home.
My suspicions are confirmed when I turn on my bathroom light and find the clothes I lent him folded neatly on the counter, a small note laying on top of them.
Thank you for your hospitality,
K
At first, I couldn't stop smiling at it. Honestly, since I hadn't seen him and there was no trace of him when I woke up, I had reached the conclusion that I had probably made the whole thing up.
But the note had confirmed otherwise.
As the weekend dragged on though, the note made me anxious.
Had he left early in fear of getting in caught, or had he just not wanted to deal with me in the morning?
"Thank you for your hospitality"? That was all he had to say? Why couldn't he have written something else, something a little more personal?
Why just sign it with a K? Why not his whole name?
I had talked myself into believing that he wanted nothing to do with me.
I then talked myself back into believing that he actually wanted a relationship with me.
So now, Monday morning, I had no idea what to believe. I just hoped for the best.
I was on edge all day, looking for Klaus around every corner.
I didn't see him until Art.
I was sitting at the front of the class, my usual seat, when he walked in. He glanced at me, gave me a barely there smile, then walked to the back of class and sat in his usual seat.
My face was burning. I felt embarrassed and uncertain and confused and slightly angry.
Class went on as usual. When the bell rang, I got up and picked up my things, heading out of the class without looking back.
I didn't expect for someone to grab my elbow when I was halfway down the hallway. I certainly didn't expect it to turn around and see Klaus. But there he was.
"Are you alright, love?"
"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. How are you?" I asked, turning back to keep walking. He was right beside me of course, walking in the same direction although I knew he was supposed to be walking the other way.
"I'm alright," he answers. I don't look at him but by his tone I can tell he's slightly confused. About what, I'm not sure. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"I said I was, didn't I?" I stopped at my locker, abruptly cutting him off. He stands by me while I scroll in my combination.
"You did," I can see him staring down at me from my peripheral. I drop off my Art History book and exchange it for my English textbook and novel. We're reading Macbeth.
I close my locker and turn to him. He hasn't said anything, he's just staring.
"Did y-" The late bell rings, cutting him off from whatever he's about to say.
"I have to get to class," I say and try to get around him. But he grabs me by the arm and stops me, forcing me to look back up at him.
"Will you meet me at the White Oak after school today?"
That was the last thing I expected him to say. What was he getting at?
"Blink twice for yes," he says, sounding a little…desperate?
I can't help but smile, remembering the time when I had said something similar.
I blink twice and he nods, letting go of me.
"See you then," he says, and then he's gone, leaving me much more confused than I was before.
The way I see it, one of two things can happen.
One, he can tell me that he changed his mind and that he doesn't want a relationship with me for any number of reasons.
Or two, he'll tell me that he's still interested in me.
I'm really, really hoping for the latter as I walked to the White Oak tree after school. I've already changed into my practice clothes since I'll have to probably run over there after I talk with Klaus.
He's there, leaning against the side of the tree, his hands shoved into his coat pockets.
When he sees me he pushes away from the tree and stands straight. I walked right up to him, stopping a few feet away.
Neither of us says anything for a while, and I wonder whether I should say something or wait for him to speak.
"Did you change your mind?" He suddenly asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"About what?"
"About me," he shrugs. He looks cool, collected, serious. Like nothing can affect him.
I squint, staring straight into his eyes, looking for cracks in his armor.
It takes me a while to speak. I know the answer, but I'm afraid to say it.
Why was this so much easier Friday night? Why is it so hard now?
"No, not at all."
His reaction is unexpected.
He lets out a sigh, his eyes turn warm, and he reaches out to me, pulling me into his chest.
"Good," I hear him say, his chest rumbling as he speaks. The vibrations soothe me and I close my eyes, willing myself to react.
"You didn't change your mind about me?" I ask, tentatively wrapping my arms around his waist.
"No," he says, sounding appalled. He pulls away a little, enough so that we can look each other in the eyes. "Why would you think that?"
"It's just-" I take in a deep breath and let it out, working up the nerve to tell him. Here in his arms, all my worries seem ridiculous to admit out loud. "It's just that the note you left was so ambiguous that I didn't know what to make of it – like, you're welcome and everything, but was that all you had to say? And then today!" I can feel myself getting exasperated. I scoff. "Today you barely even looked at me so I thought that you had changed your mind and wanted nothing to do with me."
"Breathe sweetheart," he says when I finish, a small smile on his lips. I take in an exaggerated breath and let it out. He chuckles, his amusement evident.
"The note I left you was ambiguous because I didn't want you getting into too much trouble with your mother if she found it before you," he explains, but I still don't get it. He continues. "I wanted to explain in the note that I had to leave early because I didn't want to get caught by your mother. I wanted to leave my number, tell you that I would miss you and that I would see you Monday. But imagine if your mother found a note with all that incriminating information on top of a pile of men's clothing?"
I wince, imagining the scenario.
He laughs at my expression, his arms tightening around me. "So you see – I still wanted to leave something, but not so much that you would have some explaining to do if your mum saw it first."
"Smart," I commended. What he was saying made perfect sense.
"As for today," he starts, reaching up to run his thumb over my cold cheek. "Although we said that we would give this relationship a try, I didn't know whether you wanted to show it or not. If you want to keep this a secret, it's fine with me."
My heart aches at his words. I reach up and loop my arms around his neck, getting up on my tippy toes to press my forehead to his.
"I don't want to keep this a secret," I say, running my fingers through the short hair on the back of his head. "Don't ever think that, please."
"Okay," he nods slightly, our noses rubbing against one another. I close my eyes, lost in the sensation of his skin against mine.
"Good," I say, tightening my hold on him as he does the same.
We stay like that for some time, both of us now immune to the chilling November air as we bask in our warm embrace.
A bit of angst to keep things interesting, and of course some fluff cuz you know me.
I haven't written the next chapter, so I apologize in advance if I take a few days to update.
And again, thank you so much for your reviews :)