6th chapter
In the following days, Caroline repeated her routine, even on the weekend she got to her desk and worked just to occupy her mind. Whenever she had nothing to do and time to think, she felt lonely. She desperately needed someone to talk to, not necessarily about the whole vampire thing, but about John and her life in general.
The day before Christmas, she went into the library, Heidi talked about. She was a bit shocked about the huge number of books in that room, and to think that they had far more libraries, astounded her even more. Heidi told her, that that library and the south wing was in the area, she was allowed to explore. Since Caroline wasn't too much into reading, she just strolled through the different aisles and let her eyes wander over the countless spines of the books. She didn't care about the time she spent there and so, after a while she left the library to get to know the south wing.
Caroline tried not to think too much about being almost alone in a huge castle. The three guards, that were staying made sure to stay away from her and she was glad about that. She didn't know if they had lesser self-control or whatever the reason for that was. She kept thinking further; she didn't know if that whole self-control was even a thing. To be honest, she knew close to nothing about the vampire race, which must be their intent. The lesser she knew the better for them. Caroline remembered the day she had the encounter in the restroom. The man, God-forbid she already forgot his name, didn't seem to be bothered by her accidently cutting herself. So maybe they weren't such bloodthirsty monsters that lost complete control over a drop of blood. Then again, she couldn't be sure about that, she had to be careful. Maybe good control was an ability, as Aro said some had, or it was trained over years.
A sigh left her lips as she thought about the possibilities, but then her mind got back to Aro and his ability. He said, he could read every thought by touch, which meant that it was an ability exclusive to him, so not every vampire could do that. Heidi told her, that she had some kind of enchantment or attraction, which Caroline felt first-hand. Her mind wandered, on what other abilities could be around. Mind-reading and attractiveness, but no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't think of another possible ability. Maybe she was too close-minded. She shrugged and continued her walk until she reached a dead-end, then she turned around and kept walking in a slow pace. Once she reached her room again, she changed into more comfortable clothing and went to the couch. She didn't even look at the still intact photo on the table, as she walked by. She put on the TV and covered herself in the blanket she took from her bed. She zapped around until she found a program that wasn't in Italian. As the deep monotone voice of the narrator talked about the Canadian wildlife, Caroline slowly drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
On the next day, Caroline was glad that nothing in the castle reminded her of Christmas. There were no decorations, no Christmas tree and no happy music around. It was just a normal day. Even though, it was a cold winter day, it didn't snow, which she was thankful for. She liked the snow, but she tried to convince herself that that day was just as normal as any other day. Caroline kept her routine and went to her workplace, she answered the few mails and put out the trash. The phone didn't ring once, but that was to be expected. She cleared up her table and tried to do everything in a very slow manner, so the time would go by. Unfortunately, it was 1pm when she was done with everything, so she decided to hide away in her room for the rest of the day.
She settled herself on the couch again, the blanket still on it. She made herself a coffee and took the cushion from her bed as well. When the coffee was done and she was comfortably snuggled under her blanket, she zapped through the programs again. The good thing about holidays, there are many movies on the TV, no matter if you wanted to look a cartoon or an action movie. It didn't take her too long to find more programs in English and she settled for an old classical animated film. "Who needs a man if you can live like that," she said to herself as she just enjoyed the very moment. Typical for a classical animated movie, it was a love story, that wasn't allowed to be, but it was true love and the pair lived happily ever after. At first, Caroline wasn't sure if that kind of movie would be good for her at the moment, but it brought back childhood memories and she couldn't help but smile.
The following days, Caroline stuck to her routine of working, wandering around and watching movies. She almost felt like a princess, hidden away in a castle, all on her own, to an extent at least. She giggled at the thought as she washed the dishes. Some fine princess she would have been. Dressed in an oversized sweater with a big famous mouse on it and a pair of plushy, padded, dark green slippers. Caroline didn't light the fire place once, though she wanted to, she wasn't too sure if she was even allowed to do it, maybe it was only for decoration purposes. She pushed the thought away, as she got back onto her more than comfortable couch and continued watching the movie.
On New Year's Eve, Caroline couldn't help herself, but feel bored. She didn't want to go outside, not yet. She wanted to wait until everything was back to normal, so in three days at the earliest. She groaned and wandered around until her eyes finally fell on the photo again. Anger filled her heart, when she thought about her ex and a thought arose immediately after. Tonight, at midnight, she would welcome the new year, by burning her past. A satisfied smile spread on her face and she went into the kitchen.
Caroline wasn't too sure, how she got fresh stuff to eat in there, without her noticing, but it was free and she wouldn't dare to interfere. Though, it was a bit creepy that others would roam in her private chambers while she wasn't around. After a moment of silence, a hearty laugh escaped her throat at the thought. She lived under a roof full of vampires, even if she locked the door, they could easily enter. In God's name, they could kill her with a snap of their fingers and she could do nothing to protect herself. The thought of being helpless, should concern Caroline more than it actually did, which gave her the creeps sometimes. She didn't know, why she trusted them to such an extent or was she just not afraid of death at all?
Truth be told, Caroline wasn't afraid of death itself, she was afraid of dying painfully. In a car accident, with her limbs broken and a pain too much to bear; or in a fire, hoping the lack of oxygen would make her unconscious before she would feel the burning heat; or drowning in a lake, not being able to hold her breath and sucking in the water until her body couldn't take it anymore. Caroline shuddered at those thoughts, that was what she really was afraid of. Death itself seemed peaceful, she never thought if there could be an afterlife or something, it didn't matter to her. Death was something everyone would face sooner or later. Well, at least most.
She wondered what it would be like to live forever, like the vampires occupying the castle. Was it boring after a while? Another thing she didn't know about their race. Did they even need to sleep? Would they die in the sun or from holy water and crosses? A small frown formed on her face. She hoped she would get some answers, when they returned.
The next time, Caroline took a look at the clock, it was already 8pm. She made herself something to eat, when sadness came over her once more. When she was a kid, her parents prepared the dinner on New Year's Eve on that time. They always had the same dinner on that day as a sort of celebration. They always made fondue with oil, some salads, bread and sauces. It was a relaxing meal and she couldn't wait for the end of next year to get that dinner again. They mostly watched some comedy show and just enjoyed the evening, before her dad and Caroline took the fireworks to properly welcome the new year.
Caroline breathed deeply, she made herself some pasta with a quick tomato sauce. Every Italian would scold her to even think of it as a tomato sauce, but she was no chef. Since she only had to cook for herself, she made easy food, nothing fancy.
Caroline sat on the couch, watching a countdown to start the new year, when she looked at the clock again. Only 25 more minutes, she thought and got up and walked to the refrigerator. She took a bottle of champagne and glass out of the cabin next to her. She filled the glass halfway and put both on the small table in front of the couch. Next, she took the photo and the lighter from the large table and placed both on the smaller one as well. She sat down and took a sip from the champagne, when she got up again. Caroline took a large plate from a cupboard in the kitchen and put it on the table as well. It was just a precaution to when she would burn the photo. She could lie it on the plate so it could burn to ashes without accidentally lighting up anything else.
"Five, four, three, two," the woman on the television counted in a loud and happy voice. Caroline took her glass and held it up in front of the TV. When the fireworks went off, she raised her glass and took a sip before setting it down on the table again. Next, she took the photo in her left hand and looked at it for a few seconds. Without looking away, her right hand felt for the lighter. Her eyes were glued on the man she had loved when she activated the lighter and held it to the bottom right of the photo. It immediately started to burn and slowly but steadily, the fire began to erase her past, at least metaphorically.
Caroline didn't look away; she had her eyes glued to the face of the man until it was burnt completely. Only then she put the remaining of the photo on the plate she got earlier. She couldn't help herself, as a small smile appeared on her face. She felt as if one heavy burden was lifted from her, though she still felt a slight bit of anger towards him. For the last days, she had tried to convince herself, that she shouldn't care about him anymore. That he was just a man from her past and she had to move on. He should be irrelevant to her. He would marry that Natalie, fine. He would be a father soon, so be it. Caroline wasn't defined by a man, she would make a new future for herself, she didn't need any man.
She felt proud at her thought and took a large gulp from the champagne in her glass. She refilled her glass once more and turned her attention back to the TV with a pleased smile on her face. She felt free. Caroline emptied half of the bottle of champagne before she fell asleep on the couch again.
She awoke at around 11am and groaned heavily. Her neck hurt from the uncomfortable way she lay on the couch. She stretched herself and went into the kitchen, she refilled the water in the coffee maker and put it on to warm up. In the meantime, she went into the bedroom to change out of her clothes and get a new pair of underwear. Before she went into the bathroom for a shower, she placed a new cup in the coffee maker and started it.
With a relieved sigh, Caroline stood under the shower. She slightly massaged her neck and started to wash her hair. She really enjoyed the shower, especially the showerhead which had a function to activate the rain shower. A deep sigh left her throat and a happy smile spread on her face. Off to a new start, she thought.
The next day, Caroline was sitting at her desk again, when she heard some noise. She furrowed her eyebrows and stopped her typing. She concentrated on the sound, but it was too distinct, as if it came from somewhere under the castle. After a minute of silence, she returned to her work again. It wasn't much to do, so she sorted the pamphlets on her desk. She restocked a few, when suddenly the door to the hallway opened and a woman entered. Not expecting to be interrupted, Caroline jumped a little and turned around. She looked to be around the same age as her, her wavy-black hair bounced slightly as she stepped into the room and her red eyes looked at the human with curiosity. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to scare you." Her voice sounded smooth and the small smile on her lips showed her honesty.
Caroline tried to even her breath and turned to the woman completely, and she smiled at her as well. "My name is Caroline, I'm the new secretary. Pleased to meet you." Her voice sounded calmer as she expected it to be, but she was glad about it. The other woman made her way over to her and extended her hand; eager to greet her. "My name is Corin," she started and shook her hand. Her eyes wandered over the human in front of her, which made Caroline a little bit nervous. "I've heard a lot about you, you know. Apparently, you are special." A small laugh escaped her mouth at her words and Caroline wasn't sure how to react. "Since we're back now, I wanted to introduce myself. We might see each other from time to time for the tours."
Caroline couldn't help it but nod, she was a little taken aback by her constant talking, after being all on her own for around two weeks. "I hope your trip was successful and all of you returned unharmed," Caroline said with a smile and Corin sighed slightly. "Not as expected, but all of us are back in one piece." Her eyes wandered around the floor, before she spoke up again. "Oh, Aro wants to speak to you. I'll take you to him."
Corin turned around to the door and Caroline took a moment to realize what she said. She quickly trailed after her and soon she noticed, they were on the way to the throne room. She wondered if Heidi would check up on her as well, she desperately needed some answers and to be fair, she enjoyed talking to her. All too soon, both women faced the huge double doors and entered the room. Caroline immediately noticed, that Aro was the only one the small podium. There were no signs of the two other masters. Once she stepped through the door, she saw two men standing on each side of the door and she recognized one of them. It was the one, she met in the restroom. In an instant, her heartbeat increased and she rubbed her hands dry on her jeans and wetted her lips in a nervous manner. She wondered, if he told him about her lack of discipline and if that would be the reason she was there for.