AN: Heeey I'm back! I'm sorry I haven't uploaded in over a month, but I had final exams and then I came to visit my parents for the holidays. I'm going home tomorrow to study for even more finals, but I should be able to keep writing. Wish me luck, I'm preseting my thesys soon!

Anyway, I wish this chapter was longer, but I thought it should end there and the rest should be in another chapter. Still, I hope you like it.

And as always, DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!

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"Don't you know it, love? Tragedy brings the lovers closer."

Klaus woke up that morning with his arms wrapped around Caroline. It had been a couple of days since the last time he woke up next to her like that. He missed it.

He didn't move, decided to let her sleep as much as she could. They could skip work if they wanted since he was the boss, and he was sure Caroline could use a couple of days off to mourn –even though she would prefer having something to distract her, like her job-.

But Caroline was already awake, and Klaus didn't notice until she let out a heavy sigh. When he looked down he noticed her eyes were red and swollen, breaking his heart immediately. His arms tightened around her waist, indicating her that he was awake. Caroline's arm, which rested across Klaus stomach, tightened its grip as well.

"Hey." He whispered before kissing her forehead.

"Hi." She said almost inaudibly.

"Are you okay?" Klaus asked, wincing as he realized it was a stupid question.

"Not really. I think I spent the last hour thinking of all the people that I loved that left me." She said. Klaus frowned at that and started rubbing her arm up and down in a comforting manner. "My dad, my mom, Tyler, now Spots… Everyone I love leaves me." Caroline finished, her voice breaking.

Klaus sighed and held her tighter. He moved lower on the bed so they could face each other.

"I might not be among the people you love… In fact, you might hate me right now, but I promise you, I'm not going anywhere love." He said. "You're stuck with me now."

"I don't hate you." She whispered while her hand played absently with one of his necklaces, something Klaus found incredibly endearing. "I'm far from hating you." She looked up at him and Klaus knew something had changed in her eyes. She loved him, just as much as he loved her, even of none of them were strong enough to say it out loud at that time. They just knew.

Klaus let out a breath and leaned to kiss her softly. He was relieved to find her kissing him back. He had missed those lips.

"I've been an ass." He mumbled resting his forehead against hers.

"Yes." She said without hesitating. "But I haven't been very understanding either." She said with a cute little pout.

"We can work things out, right?" he asked softly, almost hesitantly.

"Of course."

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"The trial against Genevieve and Hayley just started. We should hear from the judge and the court soon." Alaric said as they sat down at the conference room.

"What should we expect?" Klaus asked.

"Considering the repercussions for the company are less than first expected, since you found the money and took it back, they won't get more than four years in prison."Alaric replied.

"We think they'll only get two. The judge might feel inclined to be merciful to them because they're women and because they didn't expend the money they stole." Elijah said.

"You must give your testimony for to court, I'll represent you." Alaric told Klaus.

"Testimony about what?"

"About how you found out about the missing money."

"Would they need to contact Caroline once I tell them she figured it out first?"

"Perhaps. But it's too soon to tell." Alaric replied.

"Speaking of Caroline, will she be alright?" Elijah asked. "Rebekah told me about her beloved dog passing."

"She'll be fine eventually I guess." Klaus replied.

"Poor girl, hasn't she suffered enough?" Alaric said.

"More than I can imagine." Klaus agreed.

"Let her know she's in our thoughts." Elijah said. "And she'll be welcomed whenever she decides to come back to work."

Klaus nodded at his brother's kind words.

"How are things between the two of you?" Alaric asked.

"We're getting there. I guess it was a matter of time before we had our first fight. But it won't be the last. We'll make it work." Klaus replied.

"Did you start painting again, like I suggested?" Elijah asked curiously.

"I did. I must say I'm rusty, but I'm getting better."

"I can't name one single woman who wouldn't be flattered to be pained by an artist." Alaric commented.

"She's quite humble, but I hope you're right." Klaus said. "However, there's something else I'd like to do for her, and since the three of us are gathered here today, I might as well take my chance and discuss a project with the two of you."

Elijah leaned on the table looking at his brother.

"I'm listening."

"I noticed the company helps doctors and scientists on their research, but always an investment." Klaus continued.

"That's what we do." Elijah said making a face.

"Yes, we do everything for a price. I was thinking maybe it's time we do some charity."

Elijah and Alaric looked at each other in surprise. Niklaus Mikaelson, talking about charity… Caroline Forbes must have been a very strong influence on him. Or maybe he was just madly in love with her.

It was both.

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Caroline looked at the little jar in her hands. It was brown and it had two golden drawings of pawns on the lid. Inside were Spots' ashes. She still couldn't believe he was gone, or that what used to be his entire body now fit in a small jar.

She would've cried if she wasn't out of tears. After two days of crying she was seriously considering she could be dehydrated.

It all brought her bad memories from around the time her mom died. Between the diagnosis, the treatment, the mourning and the funeral, a big black hole formed in Caroline's chest, draining her from any energy. Now she felt something similar. Drained, tired, broken. She needed to close that hole. She knew that the pain never leaves, not entirely, but she had to find a way to make it more bearable.

The memories of her mom intertwined with Spots' gave Caroline an idea. At first she thought it was madness, that she just couldn't do it. But the more she thought about it, the more she was convinced it was the right thing to do. It was time.

She would go back to Mystic Falls.

The thought of going back terrified her. She left that town under such bad circumstances, it would bring her a lot of bad memories and she never thought she would go back. Could she face all the people she once called friends? Would people even remember her? Of course they would, it was Mystic Falls…

Yes, it terrified, but it was time to face it.

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It was odd, coming home from work and not find Spots there, wiggling his tail. Coming home without Caroline was odd too, and not finding her in the living room, opening her arms for him was even odder.

"Caroline, sweetheart?" Klaus called out. "I'm home."

"In here!" he heard her replying from her bedroom. When he reached the door, he froze in surprise. Caroline was folding her clothes, a suitcase open and half filled resting on the bed. Was she leaving? Klaus' heart sank. She told him they could work things out, yet she was leaving.

"What's going on?"

"I decided I wanna go to Mystic Falls. It's been long enough. I can do this." She said, more to herself than to Klaus.

He felt his jaw clenching.

"So that's it? Are you really that mad at me for what happened with Hayley and Genevieve that you decide to pack your things and leave? That's a tad dramatic, if you ask me." He practically hissed.

Caroline quickly straightened and looked at him weirdly.

"What are you talking about?"

"You're leaving!"

"For a few days!" She said shaking her head and shrugging.

Klaus stood there, not knowing what to say. Caroline laughed nervously after a few seconds and sat down on the bed.

"Come here." She said patting on the spot next to her. Klaus sat down with his face turned towards her. Caroline smiled softly, took a breath and laid her hand on top of his. He instantly gave her a gentle squeeze. "I want to bury Spots' ashes next to my mom."

"I see…" Klaus mumbled, and Caroline knew he was embarrassed for his previous outburst.

"And I think it's time I leave my past behind and face the people in Mystic Falls. I kinda disappeared in the middle of the night, I'm sure there are some questions that need to be answered." Caroline added.

"When do we leave?" Klaus asked.

Caroline chuckled and shook her head.

"You're not coming." She said, and Klaus gave her a weird –and maybe slightly offended- look. "Don't get me wrong, I know it will be hard for me and I'd love to have you there for support, but I feel like I need to do this alone." She explained. Klaus nodded his head slightly and looked down to their hands together. "Besides, you're needed here. I called Elijah to ask him if he was okay with this and he mentioned that the trial against Genevieve and Hayley has started."

Klaus rolled his eyes, annoyed at his brother.

"Alright, when do YOU leave?" He asked.

"Tomorrow, at noon. I'll come back in a couple of days. I promise."

Klaus smiled softly at that. He lifted Caroline's hand and kissed her knuckles. He was going to miss her. It wasn't all bad, since now he had some time to himself so he could paint. The idea of surprising her with his paintings started to form in his head.

Caroline got up and continued packing. She looked excited to him, even if very deep inside she was scared.

"I'll drive you to the airport. Just promise me you'll call when you land." Klaus said. Caroline smiled widely and nodded.

"Promise!"

"And you'll call if you get sad, or overwhelmed, or anything like that." He added.

Caroline's hands stopped folding her clothes and she turned back at him.

"Even if it's 3am and I'm crying like a crazy person?"

"ESPECIALLY if you're feeling sad at 3am. Just because I'm far away doesn't mean I'm not with you."

Caroline smiled and walked to him. Klaus was surprised to see her sitting on his lap. Her hands traveled up his arms to his neck slowly. His hands instinctively moved to her hips. They looked into each other's eyes for a moment before she kissed him deeply.

They made love that night, the first time since they fought.