Prompt: 6x15 - "Caroline? Sorry to barge in, door was unlocked." and she is there!
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He walks in, looking around and the place seems empty. But then he looks to his right and finds her sitting on the couch, and Elena is standing and looking at him. He looks at Elena with a questioning look, then back to Caroline.
Her hands are collided together in her lap, fingers stroking her own skin. She doesn't look up, her gaze remains directed on her hands. So he looks back to Elena, and her face worries him even more. And so he titles his head with furrowed eyebrows.
"I uh, I'll just go." Elena says, and as she walks to leave her eyes remain on Stefan. She even stops in front of him, her eyes trying to tell him something, her lips are a thin line. And she nods to him and maybe he understands that whatever needs to be done, he can do it.
He stands in his place, waits till she closes the door behind her. His hands don't leave his pockets as he looks at her, insure of what to do. He looks down before walking around the chair, then sitting on it, his knees almost touching her own.
"Hey." He says and his voice is awkwardly low.
She doesn't answer, nor even look up, but he sees her swallow and her jaw appears as she clinches it.
His hand goes up to her shoulder, brushing her hair away then resting on there. And then she looks away, taking a breath. And he hates how it looks like his touch annoys her.
"You okay?" He says it, and he doesn't mean it as a bad thing. But he doesn't know that it takes her to hours earlier when he said the same words, only to walk away.
She nods absently, then looks around her.
"Can you leave?" She doesn't even look at him.
"What?"
"I just wanna be alone for tonight." She stands up and starts walking to the stairs but he stands, too. His eyebrows are still furrowed, confused with her words.
"No, you don't." He says confidently. She stops in her place, her back facing him. "Not tonight, not ever… But specially not tonight."
She stays quiet for a long moment, closing her eyes as she speaks. "Stefan, leave." She starts walking again.
"Listen, what I said today, it was wrong." He shakes his head, wishing if he can see her face. So he walks to her, taking big steps and standing right behind her even though she shifts in her place.
"I uh, I left you when you needed me most." He nods to himself.
"It's okay, I don't need you now." She whispers.
He holds her hand in instant, now able to see the side of her face.
"But I need you, always have and always will." He says. "And… I want to be here for you." He swallows, tries to catch any kind of reaction. He wants to know that he's not too late.
"I almost turned it off." She says and he freezes, his mouth hanging open as he blinks, all the while his hand tightening around her hand more. "I still want to." Her voice is louder, steadier and stronger.
"Caroline-"
"It's okay."
"No, listen… I- I was scared, I started to think that maybe… Maybe it's better if we stay like we are, because we were always there for each other, and I wanted to be there for you and-" He lets out a short breath. "And I just didn't know how to be there for you." He shakes his head, moves around her so he's facing her. He holds her other hand as well, and looks down to meet her gaze.
And she does look at him, and he sees her, his Caroline, with all her cracks and insecurities and fears. He opens his mouth, then closes it. He knows he has to say something, but he doesn't know what to say. Because in his mind there are thousands of lines he came up with while walking to her house. And in his mind he is so sure of what he feels. He just doesn't know what to say.
"I like you, Caroline." He smiles, his fingers moving against her hands. "I don't know when it became more than friendship… but it did and- and it scared me." He lets out a breath, and one hand comes to her cheek.
Her eyes are wider than usual, filled with water and uncertainty.
"I'm sorry if I made you question that, but I'm not leaving again. I'm here, I will always be here." He nods.
Her hand leaves his grip to hold his other hand on her cheek, her lips tremble and she suddenly feels tired. So her head falls to his shoulder, her other hand hugs him and he's already wrapping her in his arms.
And the thing is, she doesn't know if he's right. She doesn't know if he means it, and she definitely still has thousands of question marks in her head. But all day, she's been faking strength and it hurts. And he's here, and his shoulder is so tempting to cry on, to fall apart and break.
So as she cries and sobs against his shoulder, as she lets him comfort her, she doesn't care which category he belongs in. He's Stefan Salvatore, her best friend, the one she's in love with and the only person in the world who can hold her in his arms and take away her pain.
So she cries, and lets him comfort her.
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