Vampire Diaries 1. Chapter 1

The problem with happy hour, Caroline Forbes was learning, is that it only lasts for an hour.

"Another, please." She tapped the bar, twirling her empty shot glass between her fingers.

Caroline wasn't normally much of a drinker. Sure she enjoyed a glass of wine here and there but working as a paralegal for one of Chicago's top law firms meant long hours and not a lot of time for getting drunk. But today was an exception. Today, Caroline was going to get completely and utterly wasted until the memory of her failed relationship was nothing but a distant haze.

This was the first bar she had come across after her lunch with Tyler- the lunch where he publicly dumped her. She had to give him points though, for doing it in a public place so she couldn't make a scene. Instead, she'd stood up with as much grace as she could muster and walked off. She just kept walking until she came across this bar. It was a pretty nice place, dark blue booths and solid oak surfaces. A TV blared, tuned in the news giving updates on the current heat wave and possible power outage.

The place was nice but the service, however, was dismal.

"Another, please." Caroline said louder this time, waving her hands to get the bartender's attention.

The man glanced over with a frustrated look before coming to stand in front of her. For a moment she was distracted by his iridescent blue eyes and five o'clock shadow stubble. And then he opened his mouth. "Maybe you should slow down there, love."

Caroline, who was a little bit tipsy and in no mood to take lip from any guy, responded "maybe you should do your job and pour me another drink."

The man just shot up one eyebrow before reaching for the tap and pouring her a beer. It wasn't what she'd asked for but there was no way he was giving her anymore hard liquor. She was at least four shots deep already and was quite the lightweight by the look of her.

He slid the drink towards her and Caroline took it, taking a swig before dropping the glass back onto the counter with a disgusted look. "I hate beer," she muttered.

"Then why are you in a bar?" He asked. In her pencil skirt and silk blouse, she wasn't exactly his normal clientele.

"Give me the hard stuff." She said, slamming her hand on the counter in what he was sure she meant to be aggressive but came out sort of cute, in a pouty way.

"You've had enough of the hard stuff." He looked down the counter at a couple waiting to be refilled and shot the blonde one last look before returning to his job.

Caroline sat sulking, sipping on her beer, for another fifteen minutes before the cute bartender appeared in front of her again.

"Still working on that one, sweetheart?" He gestured to the glass of beer that had barely been touched.

"I'm not your sweetheart." She muttered, putting her elbow on the countertop and dropping her chin into the palm of her hand.

He just chuckled, shaking his head. "So what has you getting drunk at 5:00. Work trouble? Boyfriend trouble? Family trouble?" It was the big three and any girl getting drunk this early in the night, especially one so clearly out of her comfort zone, had to be dealing with one of the three.

Caroline sighed and looked up at him. "Why do you care?"

"Because I'm the bartender; don't you know it's customary for you to unload your problems unto me?" He responded with a smirk. "What's your name?"

"Caroline."

"Well, Caroline, I'm Klaus." He put a hand to his chest as he said his name. "Now why so cross?"

Caroline sat contemplating for a moment before deciding to just tell him. It wasn't like she'd ever be seeing him again anyway. "Boyfriend troubles. Or I should say ex-boyfriend trouble. Now can I have another shot?"

"No," Klaus said definitively, "but go on."

"My entire relationship just self-imploded. Two years just poof gone. And now a certain bartender is refusing to serve me!" Caroline said with a shake of her head.

"Hold that thought." He replied, walking off to tend to other customers.

Left to wallow in solitude again, Caroline let out an audible groan. Her head was starting to feel pretty damn fuzzy but the memory of Tyler giving her 'the talk' was still pretty poignant and what she needed was more shots to chase the image away. She looked around for another bartender, one that would be more willing to serve her, but it seemed that Klaus was the only one working. He came back over, wiping the countertop as he moved, and stood in front of her.

"You were saying?" He said, motioning for her to continue.

"I was saying something along the lines of I want to speak to your boss about you refusing to serve me."

"Well, here I am, love."

Caroline sat up straighter and shot him a confused look. "What?" It took her groggy mind a second to deduce what he was saying. "You own this place?" She looked around at the spacious bar.

"Why so shocked?" Klaus asked, pretending to take offense.

"Nothing. Just –" Caroline looked around again. "If you own this place then why are you the only bartender here? Don't you have employees?" She asked, now a bit skeptical of his claim.

"I sent them all home early. In case you hadn't noticed, which you clearly haven't, there's a blackout warning going around."

Caroline glanced up at the TV to see the news saying the same thing and looked around, noticing she was one of the last few people still in the bar.

"Well this day just gets better and better." She moaned, attempting to stand from the stool but stumbling and catching herself against the counter.

"Woah, there." Klaus said, reaching across the counter to steady her. "Sit down, sweetheart, I'm calling you a cab."

"I'm perfectly capable of hailing myself a cab." She said, attempting to put a hand on her hip but landing more along her thigh.

He nodded, patronizingly, before lifting the phone and calling her a cab anyway. "Sit down, they'll be here soon."

Caroline contemplated her options before deciding he was probably right and dropping back onto the stool. "I'm not even the dumper." She mumbled, crossing her arms on the counter. "I got dumped. I'm the dumpee!"

Klaus smiled at her, "well there's no accounting for stupidity. I'm sure when you're not an incoherent drunk, you're a real catch." Although, he thought to himself, she was pretty cute even drunk.

"Thanks." Caroline muttered. "I think."

On the news, an anchor was warning everyone that the blackout situation had just escalated into the red zone.

"Okay, bar's closing." Klaus called out, watching as the last remaining customers groaned and filed out the door.

Caroline moved to stand from her chair, but Klaus caught her arm. "Not you. Your cab should be here soon."

"Don't be ridiculous." Caroline said, swatting his hand off. "I can hail a cab outside."

She'd stumbled halfway to the door when the room went pitch black. There was silence for a moment before she yelled, "you have got to be kidding me!"

Klaus groaned, feeling around beneath the bar for the flashlight he kept stored there. Once he got it on, he saw Caroline standing by the door, looking out into the street. The streetlights had all cut out and cars were ramming into each other left and right. Some people were panicking, others were already looting places.

"Get away from there." Klaus pulled Caroline back before proceeding to lock up the bar.

"What are you doing?" She asked, watching him close up with confusion. "I have to get home."

Klaus shook his head. "Well that doesn't look all too likely now does it?"

"Uh." Caroline watched him secure all the doors and windows. "Well I can't just stay here."

Once he was done he took her hand and pulled her along behind him. "You haven't got a choice love."

"Where are we going?" Caroline asked, struggling to stay up right as he led her through the darkness. When he didn't respond, she just kept talking, desperate to fill the silent darkness. "You know, he said it was because he wasn't having fun."

It took Klaus a moment to realize she was talking about her ex-boyfriend again. Well, at least she wasn't panicking.

"I'm fun okay! I'm a ton of fun."

"I don't doubt it, sweetheart." He said, leading her behind him up a flight of stairs. She paused and waited as he pulled out a key and swung the door in front of them open.

"Come on." He pulled her in behind him.

From the glow of the flashlight she could see they were standing in a living room of sorts.

"You live above your bar?" She asked, squinting to get a good look at her surroundings.

"It would appear so." He led her to the couch and gestured for her to sit before walking off.

Caroline was working on not panicking in the blackness when Klaus returned with candles and a glass of water.

"Here," he handed her the water before putting down the candles. "The sooner we sober you up, the sooner you can find a way home."

Caroline chugged the water before handing the glass back to him. While he went off to refill it, she took a moment to admire her surroundings now that there was candle light. She could make out a glass table and a flatscreen tv, as well as a bookshelf and an easel in the corner. "He paints." She said to herself with a chuckle. "The bartender paints."

Klaus returned and handed her another glass of water before saying "I need to make a few calls" and wandering off again.

She cradled the glass of water in her hand and leaned back on the couch. A few hours ago she had been unceremoniously dumped by a guy she had only ever dated because he was the safe choice. She let out a scoff at that thought – look where safe had gotten her. But if Caroline was good at anything, it was making lemonade from lemons. There was a citywide blackout, she was in the apartment of a hot bartender who showed no signs of being a serial killer, and there was candlelight happening. What she needed was a good old fashioned fling to get Tyler out of her mind, and fate had handed her the perfect opportunity.

Klaus returned, taking a seat on the couch beside Caroline, and was shocked when she promptly threw her legs over his and straddled him.

"Woah," he said, dodging Caroline's face as she attempted to pull him in for a kiss.

"What?" Caroline slumped forward a little. "You don't find me attractive?" She whispered and Klaus could see the embarrassed flush taking over her face.

"Trust me, that's not it. But I do prefer for my lovers to be 100% sober." He gently lifted her off his lap and placed her back on the couch beside him.

"I'm sober." Caroline muttered beneath her breath.

"You're most certainly not." Klaus replied, standing and reaching for the empty glass again.

He took his time in the kitchen, trying to get his faculties under control again. She'd only been in his lap for less than a minute but that was all it had taken to have him hardening beyond belief. It's not like he had any lack of women in his life, so why did this one girl have him feeling like a teenage boy who'd just gotten his first glimpse of a naked woman.

Taking in a calming breathe, he picked up the water and returned to the living room. After handing it to her, he took a seat on the chair opposite the couch, careful to put as much distance between them as possible.

His choice in seating was not lost on Caroline and she felt her cheeks flood with embarrassment again. She wasn't sure why she had thought he'd just go for her – it had seemed like they were flirting earlier but then again she was still a little out of it.

The sound of rioting out on the streets drifted up through the windows and Caroline looked across the table at Klaus before finally breaking the silence. "Blackouts make me nervous and the silence isn't helping."

Klaus just smiled and began talking. He filled the silence, asking her questions and telling her stories, until she slumped back against the couch, clearly asleep. He picked her up, carried her into his bedroom, and pulled off her shoes before placing her on the bed. For a minute, he watched her sleep – her chest rising and falling methodically. He'd be suffering a case of blue balls tonight but he'd done the right thing not taking her up on the offer. His dick would hate him but it was the right thing all the same.

Turning to head back to the living room, he stripped down to his boxers before making himself comfortable on the couch. After a while, he was able to tune out the noise outside and fall asleep. A few hours later, Klaus blinked awake at the feel of small hands running lightly across his chest. His eyes popped open to find Caroline straddling him in nothing but a bra and panties.

"Caroline." He breathed out, his heart racing at the feel of her bare legs against his.

"I'm 100% sober." She whispered, leaning forward to kiss him.

Before she could, he grabbed her shoulders, holding her a few inches away from his face. There was silence for a moment as they stared at each other before Caroline pulled away.

"Forget it, this was a bad idea." She said, moving to get off his lap.

Before she could slip away, he yanked her back down, rolling the two over so he was lying on top of her before crushing his lips against hers. Caroline moaned into his mouth and worked her hips up against his. His hands raced franticly across her bare skin, desperate to feel every inch of it. He would have kept kissing her but nature demanded that he stop for breath and he pulled their lips apart only to run his lips along her neck.

When he remembered where they were he stopped and stood up, lifting her in his arms with her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck.

"Aren't I heavy?" Caroline whispered against his lips.

"Light as a doll, love. I'm just an unrepentant show off."

She giggled against his lips before running her lips along his neck, and nibbling on his ear. He let out a groan as he dropped her onto the bed and followed her down.

She pushed him back on the bed, and he let her, bemused by this show of assertiveness. But who was he to argue? He lay back and watched appreciatively Caroline she straddled him. He hissed in a breath as the core of her came up flush with his groin, making him harder than he could ever remember being before. wanted more. He wanted to bury himself inside of her and lose himself entirely. He wanted to make her scream his name. He wanted to taste every inch of her body. He wanted her in every possible way, all night long.

Caroline settled against him, her wild blond hair falling forward, making her look like some kind of goddess. His goddess_, _he thought and stretched out his hands to test her hips, the indentation of her waist. He pulled a long strand of hair to his mouth, rubbing it over his lips. She smelled like rosemary and wine, and the feel of the long blond waves was like raw silk. But she batted his hands away, leaning down to taste his chest. Her tongue was soft, wet, maddening. He tangled his fingers in her hair and urged her up to eye level, taking her mouth with a swift possession.

He loved the taste of her mouth and devoured it until he felt drunk from her. Wildly, fantastically drunk, and more than happy to stay that way. But she had other ideas. She reared back up, and pulled her lower lip between her teeth as she reached down to strip him of his boxers. When he moved to pull her close again, she shook her head at him. He was mesmerized by the silken fall of her hair across her shoulders, the way it teased her breasts.

"Just lie back," she said, bracing one hand on his abdomen, as if she thought she could keep him there against his will.

"And think of England?" Klaus asked dryly. "I'm afraid that's not my style."

"It can be a brand-new experience for you," Caroline replied with a smile.

He sat up, holding her flush against his hips, and only smiled against the delicate skin of her neck when she made a sound of protest. When she had settled against him, her arms loose around his shoulders, he let his hands skim down her back, expertly unhooking the bra with a single hand, then caught a hard nipple with his mouth as he pulled the garment free of her flesh. Klaus cupped her breasts in his hands, dragging his thumbs slowly across the peaks, making her head fall back as she moaned out her pleasure. He heard her breath stutter as her body tensed and then shook beneath him. He tasted one breast, then the other, taking his time, learning her. He traced a path from her breasts to her collarbone, pressing kisses against her as he went, tasting her with his tongue, his lips, his teeth. He reached her mouth and took it in a hard, deep kiss, holding her face between his hands, his fingers deep in her wild mane of hair. Growing impatient, he swung her around and then rolled her under him in a swift, simple move. She blinked up at him, her eyes molten with passion, her generous mouth faintly damp from his.

"You aren't letting me take control of this," she chastised him through lips puffy from his kisses, her breasts pressed against his chest, the rigid peaks sending pinpricks of desire shooting through him, straight to his hardness.

"No," he agreed, his voice rough with desire. "I am not."

He propped himself up on one elbow, then traced a lazy pattern down her torso with his hand, stopping to worship each breast in turn. He continued on to her navel, testing that shallow valley, before he reached the upper edge of her lacy panties, pulling slightly on the elastic that held them in place. She let out a slight moan, her legs moving restlessly against his.

He looked down at her, smiled—then slid his hand beneath the lace, to hold her wet heat in his hand. She gasped and shuddered, bucking her hips against his palm, her eyes drifting closed. She was so wet, so soft, deliciously, meltingly hot.

"Are you sure?" he taunted her gently, his fingers stroking her silken folds, then pressing inside.

"Rebound sex." Caroline said on a gasp. "Best cure for heartache." She threw her head back and moaned.

While Klaus didn't love being relegated to the unsavory position of 'rebound sex', he was too far gone to stop now and if she was willing – he would accept all the goods she had on offer.

Caroline made some incoherent noises, her head moving against the bed linens, her hips meeting his hand, matching him stroke for delicious stroke.

"I want you to come," Klaus whispered, his mouth against her ear, delighting in her long, slow shudder, the way her hand speared into his hair, holding him as he held her.

He used one hand deep in her heat, his fingers moving to an age-old rhythm within her, and his mouth bold and demanding against her breast. One breath, another. Her head tossed back and forth against the pillows while her body tightened, her back arching and her hands curling into fists.

"Now, Caroline," he whispered, moving to her other breast and circling the nipple with his tongue. "Now."

One tug on her nipple with his mouth, one hard rocking motion against her groin with the palm of his hand, and she convulsed around him, shattering into pieces, her face flooding red and her mouth parting on a long, high sob. She was the prettiest thing he'd ever seen. And he was only getting started.

When she came back to herself, he was braced above her, that cocky smirk still in place.

"Pay attention, Caroline," he murmured, amusement and passion in his low voice, bringing himself down against her chest, his skin like hot satin over steel, rubbing against her taut breasts, making her sigh as the aftershocks still rolled through her.

And then he thrust inside of her. Caroline felt the leftover pleasure from her last climax coalesce and shiver through her, kicking into her as he began to move, slow and sure, building her up again when she would have thought she was more than sated.

Klaus rolled over, keeping himself deep inside of her, but bringing her on top of him. Dazed, Caroline could only stare down at him for a moment.

"I thought you wanted control," he said, pressing kisses to her jaw, the corner of her mouth, her neck. "By all means, take it."

"Does it count if you decide to forfeit control?" she said, amazed that she could speak at all— astounded that she could hang words together, no matter how breathless her voice sounded.

"I don't much care for boundaries," he said, pushing her hair back from her face, teasing her lower lip with his teeth. "Unless I set them."

He was so hot and hard within her, so uncompromisingly male in a way Tyler had never been, and Caroline felt suddenly restless, urgent. Unbelievably, she felt that tightening, that coiling desire, begin to pull taut inside her all over again. All that mattered was that feeling. She sat back, settling herself against him. Then she rolled her hips into a slow, steady pace and watched his eyes go dark with passion. At a certain point, his hands gripped her hips, and Caroline could no longer think, she could only feel. And when she shattered one more time, he spurred her on, his thrusts wild and urgent until he followed her over the edge.

Caroline lay on top of him in the aftermath, her limbs left feeling limp from pleasure.

"How was that for rebound sex?" Klaus asked, working to get his breath under control.

"I think I've forgotten just what I'm supposed to be rebounding from." Caroline moaned, collapsing in his arms and falling back asleep.

Klaus watched her for a moment, stroking her hair idly as her breaths slowed to the shallow sounds of sleep. He'd done this a thousand times - a veritable connoisseur of one night stands – but he couldn't fight the slight sense of melancholy that crept in. Eventually the power would come back on, and she'd be gone.


	2. Chapter 2

"Just forget him."

Caroline jumped a little at the voice drifting from behind her. Her friend and coworker, Elena, circled around her cubicle to stand in front of Caroline.

"Stop thinking about Tyler."

She eyed her friend in confusion. "What makes you think I'm thinking about Tyler?"

"You've had that dazed look in your eyes all day. The same look you've had since the day Tyler…you know." Elena said, reluctant to use the brutal word dumped.

"Right." Caroline responded with a nod.

The truth was she hadn't thought about Tyler at all these past few days. In fact, she'd been thinking about **_him_**. Klaus. And she thought of him more often than she liked. It had been four days since the blackout and if she had to guess, Caroline would say she had thought of her night with Klaus 80% of that time. She'd snuck out of his apartment at the crack of dawn, completely embarrassed with herself. She'd basically thrown herself at him until he took pity on her and finally gave in. It was pity fuck. Caroline Forbes had been reduced to a pity fuck and that stung more than Tyler dumping her had. Her face turned red just from the remembered embarrassment.

But despite the mortification she associated with that night, Caroline couldn't help but admit that it had also been the best sexual experience of her entire life and all she could think about was repeating it. Again and again and again. And maybe if she could stomach her mortification, she could repeat the experience. After all, she knew just where to find her miraculous lover.

Before she could lose her nerve and change her mind, Caroline turned to Elena and said "let's go out for drinks."

"Uh, okay." Elena said, confused. The Caroline she knew was a strictly home to her bed and her DVR kind of girl. But she chalked it up to her friend still dealing with the break-up blues and decided to go along with it. It had admittedly been a while since she'd went out and had a good time.

"I know a place." Caroline said, already standing from her chair and collecting her things.

As soon as they entered the bar, Caroline scanned the place for the face that had inhabited her dreams for the past few nights. The bar was far more crowded than the last time she had been here and she assumed that was because there was no blackout warning circulating tonight.

"There's a free booth." Elena gestured to the back of the bar.

"You go grab that. I'll get us drinks." Caroline responded, already moving towards the bar.

She weaved through the crowd and reached the bar only to find that Klaus wasn't there. In his place were two other bartenders, a blonde woman and an admittedly attractive man that wasn't Klaus. Caroline didn't want to acknowledge the disappointment she felt at finding he wasn't here. It was probably for the best; she wasn't sure what she had been thinking coming back here. After ordering a drink for herself and one for Elena, she made her way to the booth Elena had slid into.

Caroline had just left the bar when Klaus came out of the back, carrying a box of bottles. Stefan and Lexi had their work cut out for them tonight as the bar filled up with people celebrating the end of the week. Stefan lifted the box from Klaus and began stacking the bottles of liquor behind the bar.

"Have I told you yet that you really need to hire a new bartender?" Stefan turned to ask Klaus who was just as much his friend as he was his boss.

Klaus rolled his eyes, checking the beer tap. "Only every weekend," he responded nonchalantly.

"And yet, there is still no new bartender." Stefan said as he slid a glass of scotch down the bar to the suit-clad man who'd ordered it.

"Maybe if you talked less and tended to the bar more, we wouldn't be so swamped as to require another bartender."

Stefan laughed but before he could respond a group of girls in their early twenties waved to get his attention. As Klaus turned away from Stefan he caught sight of a familiar face in his peripheral vision. He whipped his head to the side but the crowd shifted and he lost sight of her. Had he become so obsessed with Caroline that he wasn't only seeing her in his dreams but hallucinating her in his bar as well? Shaking his head to clear the image, he focused instead on mixing and serving drinks.

"And it's like I'm talking to myself…"Elena muttered as she sat across from her clearly distracted friend.

"Mhm." Caroline just muttered with a nod. She had spotted Klaus and been lost to the conversation ever since. Prior to this night, Caroline never thought the mere sight of a guy could have her tummy tightening and her core heating in need.

After failing to get a genuine response from her friend, Elena followed Caroline's gaze to land on a man behind the bar.

She watched the lust swirling in the other girl's eyes before saying, "Caroline, the bartender, really? You just ended a two year relationship less than a week ago."

Caroline turned her attention to Elena. "I didn't end anything. Tyler did. And you know what, I'm glad he did because if he hadn't I'd probably be stuck in that same rut until God knows when and I wouldn't have had the hands down best sex of my life with –"

Elena cut her off, almost choking on her drink in surprise. "Wait, you've already slept with him?! When?"

"Four days ago." She muttered beneath her breath and caught her friend's astounded look. "What?! I was cleansing post breakup."

"Well I'd say by the look in your eyes, you're clearly not done cleansing." Elena said, looking over her shoulder again at the bartender. She had to admit, you could certainly do a lot worse.

"I think we need refills." Caroline said. She stood and Elena followed suit, wanting to get a closer look at the bartender.

They made their way over to the bar and came to a stop in front of Klaus. Caroline expected him to take a moment to remember her (she imagined he did the one night stand thing often) but the recognition in his eyes was instant and followed by a smirk.

"Caroline." He said her name and she felt her stomach flutter at his husky tone.

Careful to hide her body's immediate reaction him, she responded with a "Hi" and a small smile. There were a few moments where they did nothing but stare at each other before he called over the other male bartender she'd seen early.

"Stefan, man the bar." Klaus said, clapping the other man on the shoulder. "I'm going to catch up with a friend." He shot Caroline a slow smile.

"Hear that Lex?" Stefan shouted down the bar. "I'm in charge," he mocked playfully and received an eye roll from the blonde bartender in response.

"Try not to burn it down, mate." Klaus said as he walked around the bar and took Caroline's hand in his.

He led her through the crowd and to the secluded staircase that led to his apartment. He flipped the lights on and Caroline got her first real look at his apartment. It was surprisingly tidy for a bachelor pad and the earth tones gave the place a masculine, sophisticated vibe. Her eyes were still scanning the area when they landed on an open sketchpad lying on the wooden coffee table.

"Is that me?" Caroline asked in surprise, walking over to pick up the sketchpad.

Klaus watched her, still pleasantly surprised to see her in his apartment again. "You'll have to forgive any discrepancies; I was sketching from memory alone."

"You're really good." She said with an astonished tone.

"Why so surprised?" He asked, crossing his arms behind his back.

Caroline looked up from the sketch and over at him. "I just didn't picture you as the artsy type." She said with a shrug.

Klaus put a hand to his chest, pretending to take offense. "First you don't believe I could own my own bar and then you doubt my artistic abilities. I'm beginning to get the impression you think I'm just a pretty face, love."

"So sorry I ever doubted you." She said with a laugh.

Klaus continued to study her. No matter how hard or how long he studied her, her coloring was a source of continual fascination to him: that glowing honeyed hair and those cyan eyes enhanced by cheeks that occasionally flared a soft rose pink. "What're you doing here, Caroline?" He asked.

She paused to think. Caroline hadn't fully considered her plan beyond coming here and seeing him again. And now that she was here with him, she wasn't sure what came next. "Can I have a drink please?"

Klaus left and returned, handing her a glass of water. She didn't have the nerve to tell him that she had expected to receive an alcoholic beverage. "I've been thinking." Caroline said but trailed off.

"What about?" Drinking water from the bottle he had pulled from the fridge, Klaus rested his lean hips on the edge of the cabinet opposite him. He knew she hadn't been expecting water but no way was she having another intoxicating drink. She'd either come here to talk or fuck and he preferred she be sober for both of those things.

"Do you remember when I said rebound sex was the best cure for heartache?" She asked.

Vividly. He'd had his hand buried in her heat at the time, her naked body pressed flush against his. There wasn't a moment of that night that he was likely to ever forget. "I do," he replied.

"Well I figured it was time for a second dose." The truth was she was more or less already over Tyler but if keeping up pretenses would get her what she wanted then she'd do just that.

So she was still upset over her ex-boyfriend. Klaus wasn't quite sure why that ticked him off a little but he knew it did. It didn't, however, change the fact that there was a beautiful woman in front of him all but begging to be ravished. "Are you propositioning me, love?" Klaus asked with a smirk, walking over to her.

"That depends, are you saying yes?" Caroline felt her pulse race the closer he came to her. She could practically feel the electricity bouncing between them.

Her tongue darted out in an anxious flicker over the soft underside of her bottom lip and Klaus found himself envisioning that moist pink tip drawing an erotic path of exploration over his bare skin. Again he was startled by how quickly he could get hard around this woman.

Klaus drew to a stop right in front of her, bringing a hand up to stroke her cheek. "You're a very odd girl, Caroline."

She sucked in a breath at the feel of his skin brushing hers. "I know what I want and I'm going after it. Guys do it all the time, why can't I?" She asked, leaning in closer to him.

He lifted his other hand and gently smoothed his fingers down the side of her neck. She watched, mesmerized, as he slowly dipped his head toward hers, and her heart thumped erratically in her chest. At first, she thought he was leaning in to kiss her, but he skirted her parted lips and grazed his jaw along hers, until his lips came to rest against the shell of her ear.

She heard him inhale deeply, filling his lungs with the scent of her skin and hair before releasing it in a long, slow exhale and murmuring into her ear "And you're sure I'm what you want?"

"Absolutely," she replied with a small smile meant to reassure him.

That knowing feminine smile that appeared to suggest that she was aware of exactly the effect she was having on his libido tensed every muscle in Klaus' lean body. He was hit with an intense sexual hunger that had a mixed effect on him. Stiff with aching arousal, he wanted to behave like a caveman and thrust her back against the wall and crush those plump coral lips under his again and again and again before he burying himself in her. But while his hot-blooded reveled in the rare heat of his desire for her, his intellect was in direct opposition. He liked to be in control, he always liked to be 100% in control.

"You won't be thinking of that worthless ex-boyfriend of yours while I'm in you Caroline, will you?" He lowered his mouth to her neck and took the taut skin there between his teeth.

There was zero chance of that but Caroline didn't bother reassuring him with words, instead grabbing his hair and pulling his mouth up to hers. The sweet, unbearably stirring invasion of his tongue into the interior of her mouth made her heart jump and tightened her every muscle. All of a sudden all of her nerves were alive and throbbing with near-painful excitement and hungry for more.

He pulled away from her lips, nipping them a few times in the process. Fingers fanned wide, he skimmed her jaw, her throat, the slope of her shoulders. Placing small kisses across her eyelids, along her jawline, his mouth explored her slowly. Every sense was heightened. Every sense was filled. The hardness of his muscles. The sound of breath catching. His dark, thick lashes as they swept against his cheeks. The planes and angles of his stubble-shadowed jaw. Unable to take the light brushes of his mouth against her skin anymore, she dragged his lips back to hers.

Klaus caught her by the hips and molded her flush against him, his mouth wide and hot as he ran his hand under her silk top and up her back. He made a low sound of approval when he discovered nothing but bare skin. Gliding his hand up her bare torso, cupping her breast, he stroked her with his thumb. His touch made her gasp, and she made a helpless sound against his mouth. Klaus tightened his arm around her back and yanked his mouth away, his breathing labored. Her heart racing and her pulse thick and heavy, she turned her face against his neck, the warmth of his hand filling her with a heavy weakness.

"You feel so good," he whispered raggedly, dragging his fingers against her hardened nipple. Her whole body trembling, Caroline turned her face tighter against the soft skin of his neck. Freeing his hand from her top, he slid it under her hair to cup the back of her neck, holding her even closer. "We could continue this here but," he said with a hint of amusement in his voice. "I have a perfectly good bed."

Like the last time, he lifted her into his arms again but this time she was prepared for it, jumping to wrap her legs around his waist. He moved them both into his bedroom and flipped the light on. He released her just enough to let her slide down his body, groaning when any body part touched the hardness beneath his pants zipper. Once her feet touched the floor, he slid both hands up her rib cage and under her top. Drawing an unsteady breath, he eased away from her and watched intently as Caroline slid her shirt over her head.

Klaus went very still, his lips parted on a sharp intake of breath, making her feel feminine and sexy and completely wanton. She stood before him, letting him look his fill, purposefully drawing out the anticipation.

"Cup them for me, Caroline. Lift them up."

Her nipples hardened immediately and she moaned softly, shocking herself at the heat that radiated off her skin when her palms curled under her breasts.

"You're beautiful," he said softly.

Klaus' hands went to her waist, as he drew her toward himself, she arched her back, thrusting her breasts out even more. When his hot mouth tugged on her hard nipple, she felt a tugging, throbbing sensation in between her legs. He released her nipple to lave and torment the other tip, until Caroline was gasping. Hooking his thumbs in the waistband of her pencil skirt, he stripped the garment from her, jamming her breath in her chest.

His breathing ragged, he wrenched his tee shirt free of his pants and jerked it off in one instant he was free of his shirt, he roughly whispered her name and hauled her flush against him, and Caroline lost a whole piece of reality when he rubbed his chest against her breasts. She wasn't sure what she'd been doing before this but if this was what sex was always supposed to be like, Caroline had been missing out. Catching a handful of hair, he brought her head back, covering her mouth with a kiss that she felt from head to toe. Adjusting the fit of his mouth against hers, he absorbed the sounds she made, running his hands up her rib cage, rolling her hardened nipples with his thumbs.

Attacking his mouth with hers, she fumbled to release the buckle on his belt, then ran her fingertips up the thick, hard ridge under his zipper and molded her hand against it.

Klaus grabbed her wrist and yanked her hand away, making a hoarse sound deep in his throat. Bringing her arms around his neck, he tempered the kiss. Then he eased away from her and undid the front of his pants. He caught her in his arms and placed her onto the bed; before she had time to react, he had his pants off and was beside her.

Drawing air through clenched teeth, he dragged her against him, and Caroline's senses went into overload when his body connected with hers, the feel of him thick and hard and fully aroused at the juncture of her thighs. He quickly covered her mouth with another searing kiss, his fingers tangling in her hair. Klaus scooted downward and her world turned on its axis. Kneeling between her spread thighs, his lips drifted along her quivering belly. His breath was warm on her skin as he kissed and nuzzled his way lower, until he reached the barrier of silk and lace. He nipped playfully at the fabric, teasing her.

"Take them off," she ordered, shocked at hearing the demanding tone of her voice.

Giving in to her urging, he tucked his fingers into the waistband of her panties and slid them down her thighs and off, then repositioned her legs so they remained open, giving him an unobstructed view of the most intimate part of skinned out of his boxer-briefs and heat curled through her as she remembered how he had felt in her, so thick and huge. He moved up and over her, the slide of his hard frame along the length of hers made her pulse leap higher and faster, as did the way he fit his lean hips between her still trembling thighs, which forced her legs high around his waist. He took control as easily as he made her gasp, pinned her beneath him so that he could have his wicked way with her.

His chest crushed her breasts as he braced his forearms on either side of her head, and his dick, so hot and eager, channeled along her sensitive flesh and found the soft, slick entrance to her body. Before she could let out a breathless sigh at the feel of him, he drove into her, high and hard and unexpectedly deep. Klaus withdrew and surged forward with a quick movement of his hips, then he slowed, thrusting hard and deep when he was to the hilt inside her.

"Don't stop," she said hoarsely, feeling that gradual steady climb her climax.

"Never crossed my mind, sweetheart." His eyes blazed hotly, and the smirk that curved his lips was a heady combination of seductive intent and primal desire.

She managed a laugh that turned into a breathy moan when he rotated his pelvis against her, generating a stimulating pressure that was as possessive as it was arousing. Wrapping her legs tightly around his waist, she urged him to a faster rhythm. Thrusting in her, he gave her what she was asking for, increasing the pace and riding her with a wild, fierce aggression. Capturing her lips with his, he kissed her, his mouth and tongue just as demanding and as insistent as the way he was claiming her body. His thrusts grew stronger, deeper, harder. His hips urged her into lifting her own, meeting his in an uncontrollable response as he powerfully buried himself in her, over and over, until her orgasm crested in a fiery rush of pleasure. He was right there with her, tossing his head back with a low, feral growl, his hips grinding against hers as his own climax rumbled through him. After one last body-racking thrust, he slumped against her and buried his face in the crook of her neck, apparently trying to gather his faculties, which she completely understood because she was struggling to do the same.

They lay there for a while as nothing but the sounds of their heavy breathing filled the room. When she was confident she could move her legs again without collapsing, Caroline stood from the bed and retrieved her skirt from the floor.

"So that's it then?" Klaus asked, leaning back against the headboard with a smirk as he watched her dress. "If you're going to use me so blatantly, next time maybe take me out for dinner first."

Caroline rolled her eyes with a smile. "Somehow you don't strike me as the dinner first kind of guy."

Klaus continued as if she hadn't spoken. "Not even a courtesy date first and here you are, rushing off so quickly after I satisfied your every carnal need."

"And somehow you don't strike me as the cuddling type either." She smiled, pulling her shirt over her head.

"I'm beginning to feel cheap, Caroline."

"Ugh, you're so high maintenance." She said laughingly, walking back towards the bed to retrieve her shoes from where she had kicked them off.

Before she could grab her heels, Klaus pulled her back down onto the bed beside him, cupping her face in his hands and pressing his lips to hers. When they finally pulled apart, Caroline struggled to regain composure while he just smirked at her.

Standing again, she pulled on her shoes before turning to face him again. "So I guess I'll be seeing you around." She said, suddenly nervous and unsure of how to behave now that the deed was done. Caroline had never been a casual sex kind of girl but Klaus brought it out of her in spades and she owed it to herself to just have fun for once.

"You know where to find me." Klaus smiled, watching Caroline back out of the room.

She made it to the door before back tracking a little. She checked to make sure he was still in his bedroom before picking the sketchbook up off the table and carefully tearing out the drawing of her face. Caroline folded the picture into a small square and placed it in her pocket. She contemplated for a moment before snatching up his drawing pencil and scribbling her number onto the blank page of the notebook. Smiling to herself, she dropped the sketchbook and left.


	3. Chapter 3

Contrary to what some people thought when they looked at her, Caroline had always been a bit of a good girl. People looked at her, saw the blonde hair, blue eyes, cheerleader figure, and assumed she was some vixen of sorts**.** But in reality, she was far from it. She had the same boyfriend throughout all of high school and she could count the number of guys she had been with on one hand. Before Klaus, she had never even had sex outside of a relationship. And all of this made her current situation that much stranger. She'd had more knockout, head dizzying, heart racing sex in the past two weeks with Klaus than she'd had in any of her other relationships combined. This wasn't her – casual sex with a man she'd only met less than a month ago. But she'd been good and safe most of her life and Caroline was entitled to a month or two of bad. If she wanted to have casual, meaningless sex with a hot bartender who was the exact opposite of boyfriend material than she damn well would do it.

Caroline could feel that now familiar tingle in her belly at just the thought of Klaus and she shook her head with a smile, trying to draw her focus back to her work.

"That new Ryan Gosling movie comes out today." Elena appeared in front of her friend's cubicle, tapping her fingers lightly on the surface. "Want to go see it after work?"

She grinned up at Elena, dropping the folders she had been shuffling. "I can't tonight. I'm hanging out with Klaus."

Elena's eyebrows shot up as she looked skeptically down at her friend. "That's the fifth time this week."

"That's the thing about shark week." Caroline said with a smile, "it tends to last all week."

She wasn't sure which one of them had suggested it but shark week was now a thing for Klaus and Caroline. It had started this past Sunday when Caroline had switched on the TV while they lay wrapped in each other's arms after a series of explosive orgasms. Then on Monday when she had gone to his place only to decide once she got there that she was too tired for sex, they curled up on the couch and watched shark week again. On Tuesday he threw together a meal for them while she rummaged through his things for a tee-shirt to wear. Then she joined him on the couch, clad in his Smiths' tee-shirt, and the two ate and talked while they watched TV. On Wednesday she discovered he gave a great massage when she threw her legs over his lap while they settled in to watch and he kneaded her calves and feet to the point where she had to hold in her moans of appreciation.

"So are you trying to convince me you've been spending all these nights at this guy's place just to watch shark week?" Elena asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Well one, we do more than just watch TV," Caroline said with a playful smile, "and two, I never spend the night." Elena shot her a disbelieving look but it was true. Spending the night would be too intimate so Caroline always went back to her place at the end of the night.

"So are things getting…real between you two?" Elena asked and the smile fell from Caroline's face as she fervently shook her head no.

"You spend all this time hanging out together, you have sex like lust crazed bunnies – sounds a lot like you two are seeing each other to me."

"We're friends," Caroline said vehemently, "who happen to scratch an itch for each other."

Elena, who wasn't buying it, just continued to fix that skeptical look on her friend. "Girls and guys are never really just friends. Especially the ones who are sleeping with each other."

"Girls and guys can to be just friends. Haven't you seen When Harry Met Sally?" she said.

Elena let out a laugh. "Harry and Sally end up together in that."

Caroline frowned. "Okay so I never finished that movie. But still, I know girls and guys can be just friends because Klaus and I **are** just friends."

"Whatever you say." Elena said in a sing-song voice, backing away from the desk.

Caroline had just looked down to return to her work when Elena spun on her heel and walked back over to her.

"I have to ask," she said, looking down at the seated blonde, "why are you so strongly opposed to this turning into something?"

Caroline had to admit to herself there had been one brief moment a few nights ago when she contemplated asking Klaus out on a real date, but she had shut that thought down as easily as it arose. Monogamous Caroline was gone. The Caroline who didn't feel complete without a boyfriend was officially deceased. She and Klaus had a good thing going and she wouldn't turn it into another doomed relationship.

She looked up at her friend and let out a sigh. "Elena, I've been in a serious relationship basically every day since I was fourteen. First there was Matt throughout all of high school, then Logan throughout all of college and then there was Tyler. I want to just be single for once. I **need** to be single. Single Caroline is a free woman. She can go out when she wants and not have to worry about some guy calling, she doesn't have to be one half of a Halloween couple's costume, she doesn't have to concern herself with what some guy thinks about her wardrobe." Caroline was really getting into this now. She hadn't realized she felt this way until she'd voiced it. "And most importantly, single Caroline is free to flirt with whoever she wants. Guys get to be womanizers and playboys but I'm destined to jump from relationship to relationship until I wake up one morning and I have 2.5 kids, a dog, a white picket fence, and a dull sex life? No, Elena. I'm seizing my right to be sexy and carefree and single!"

"Amen." A voice came from the cubicle beside them and Caroline looked over at her co-worker tapping away at her computer.

Elena just laughed, drawing Caroline's attention back to her. "Well, I'm happy for you but, Caroline, like you said, you're used to having a boyfriend. How long do you think you can keep this up without developing real feelings for this guy?" She grinned teasingly down at her friend.

Caroline's mouth formed an O in false shock. "Is that a challenge, Elena Gilbert? Just you wait and see."

Elena just smiled, muttering a "We'll see." She turned to leave again but Caroline called her back.

"You're right though. I've been spending all my time with Klaus. Let's go see that movie tonight."

"Great." She replied with a smile.

"I'll call and cancel now." Caroline said, pulling her phone from her pocket. She had just begun to dial the number when she stopped. "In fact, I'm going to text him. Because this is so far from being a relationship that we can cancel on each other via text and it's not even a problem." She smiled, tapping away on her phone.

* * *

Klaus pulled his phone from his pocket and scanned the message from Caroline before sliding it back into his pocket. No sooner had his phone left his hand than Stefan appeared beside him behind the bar.

"Let me guess, Caroline?" He asked, stacking boxes of liquor. The bar was closed today so Klaus could take inventory and catch up on some paperwork.

He just smirked, not bothering to answer his friend.

"Careful there," Stefan said with a grin, "she may end up making an honest man out of you."

Klaus scoffed. "She just got out of a two year relationship and I don't think she's looking to get into another one."

"So the two of you spending all this time together has just been…"Stefan waited for Klaus to explain.

"We're two people who happen to be attracted to each other and we act freely on that attraction. Caroline and I are on the same page when it comes to what we want."

Wiping down the bar, Stefan shot him a disbelieving look. "As a guy who knows a lot more about the female mind than you do, it sure looks like you're heading towards something serious. Let's see - have you cooked for her?"

Klaus thought back to Tuesday night when he'd whipped them up a makeshift meal so they could keep their stamina up for the night's real highlight event.

"And does she wear your clothes?"

Again he thought of a few nights ago when Caroline had strolled out of his bedroom clad in his Smiths tee-shirt. He'd never understood the appeal of a woman in a man's clothes – until Caroline. The sight of his t-shirt hanging off her delicate frame had him hardening on the spot.

"And -here's the key part when it comes to you – do you things other than fuck like bunnies?"

Stefan had a point; Klaus wasn't exactly known for spending quality time with a woman but with Caroline he didn't mind just hanging out and talking. There was that one night she had come over and looked so strikingly tired (though even tired she still managed to look stunning) that all they had done was curl up on the couch and watch TV. Spending a night with a woman that didn't include sex was certainly a first for him.

Klaus was surprised to find that he didn't feel so much as an inkling of panic. In the past, the moment a woman began to make herself comfortable in his life he would cut ties immediately. Klaus wasn't a boyfriend kind of guy and he never hid that from the women he slept with. Even the thought of settling down used to have him tensing in revulsion but as Stefan pointed out the signs of a relationship between him and Caroline, that sense of panic was notably absent. He didn't necessarily relish the idea but it didn't have him running for the hills either and that in and of itself was surprising.

"You over-analyze things." Klaus finally spoke. "It's your tragic flaw."

"Just calling it like I see it." Stefan smirked.

"Calling what like you see it?" Lexi appeared from the back, having just shown up for the start of her is shift.

"Klaus here is entering into a real adult relationship."

Lexi's eyes widened while she tied her simple black apron around her waist. "You're kidding."

"He is." Klaus said, shooting a glare at Stefan.

"Who's the lucky girl?" Lexi asked anyway.

"We aren't doing this." Klaus said, pointing to his two employees. "Remind me what is it that I pay you to do and get to work." He said, walking away and heading to his office.

Stefan and Lexi shot each other knowing looks before turning and getting back to work.

* * *

"Is there another specimen as perfect as Ryan Gosling on this planet?" Caroline asked as they strolled out of the movie theater, throwing her arm over Elena's shoulder.

Her friend just laughed, wrapping her arm around Caroline's waist. "None that come to mind."

"So, what now?" The blonde asked as they stood out on the street in front of the theater.

"Well Herbek's been riding my ass with this Filson case so I've got an early morning ahead of me. I should probably call it a night." Elena frowned.

Greg Herbek was one of the senior partners at their firm and a complete pain in the ass to every paralegal who had ever worked there.

"Oh come on," Caroline said, bumping her shoulder against Elena's. "Those legal blowhards dictate our days; we can't let them control our nights too. Let's go out for a drink."

Elena's eyes widened in an understanding look. "You're only saying that because you want to see your bartender."

"Maybe." She replied, shooting her a coy smile.

Elena rose one eyebrow and just stared expectantly at her friend.

After a moment Caroline let out a slight giggle. "What can I say? He's awakened the beast." She said with a licentious grin.

"Caroline, you dirty girl." Her friend replied, slapping her shoulder playfully.

"Seriously Elena. Think of the best sex you've ever had. And then multiply it by ten. When I'm with him it's like every individual nerve in my body starts sizzling until they all crash together in this explosive bang."

Elena watched her friend's gaze cloud with remembered lust and she felt a bit like a voyeur just watching Caroline relive those steamy nights in her head. "Wow, all of that? Maybe I should take him for a test run." She joked.

The smile fell from Caroline's face and she threw her friend a stern look.

"Oh, is that jealousy I detect? But I thought he was just a friend who scratched an itch." Elena asked with a teasing grin.

Caroline narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "Just come on." She said, flagging down a cab.

When they reached the bar, Caroline was surprised to see that it was empty. She made for the door but a blonde woman, she recognized her as one of Klaus' bartenders, appeared and shook her head.

"We're closed." She shouted through the glass door.

"Well that's that." Elena said, crossing her arms over her chest to guard her body from the wind.

The two girls were turning to leave when Klaus appeared, flinging the door open.

"Caroline, what a pleasant surprise." He smirked, gesturing for the two friends to come in.

Lexi looked from her boss to the bouncing blonde before turning to shoot Stefan a look. Her friend just nodded, a grin on his face. So there was a lucky girl after all.

Klaus strolled back over to the bar, Caroline and Elena following close behind. The two girls slid into bar stools while Klaus went about mixing the White Russian he knew Caroline would want.

"And for you?" He asked, turning to Elena after he slid Caroline her drink.

"Just a beer."

"My kind of girl." Stefan said with a grin, popping the cap from a bottle before passing it to Elena who took it with a grateful smile.

Stefan returned the smile before grabbing himself a beer as well while Klaus poured himself a glass of scotch and joined Caroline on the other side of the bar.

"Oh, this is my friend Elena. Elena, Klaus." She said, having forgotten to do proper introductions. The two had seen each other briefly last time Caroline had brought Elena here but names hadn't been exchanged.

"I'm Lexi and this is Stefan." The other blonde jumped in, shooting Caroline an easygoing grin. "He doesn't like to admit it but we're his friends."

Klaus just scoffed, taking a sip of his drink before saying "you're the people I pay to make my life easier."

"He's really sentimental when no one's looking." Lexi joked.

"I'd fire you if I had the patience to deal with the paper work." He replied, pointing at Lexi with the hand still holding his glass.

She just rolled her eyes before turning to face the girl who, according to Stefan, was going to make an honest man out of their boss. "So, Caroline, what do you do?"

"I'm a paralegal. We both are." She gestured to Elena. "Cromwell & Swaine."

Stefan pretended to frown with faux distaste. "Spending all day with stuffy lawyer types, must be fun."

Elena groaned. "You have no idea." She was already thinking about her early morning with Herbek.

"I think lawyers are sexy." Lexi butted in, looking at Caroline. "You're a lucky girl – you get the pick of the litter."

Klaus glowered at her. "Lawyers aren't her type."

"I don't have a type." Caroline responded, spinning in her stool to face him.

Klaus turned from Lexi to her, the scowl falling from his face to be replaced with a smug look that clearly said he didn't believe her.

Caroline's lips formed into a playful smile and she took another sip of her drink. "What makes you think you're my type?"

"I'm everyone's type love."

"You're not mine." She said, running her finger around the tip of her glass.

"And yet, here you are." Klaus gestured to where Caroline was sitting.

She just laughed, shaking her head, her blonde curls bouncing. "Well, you have your uses."

Klaus put a hand to his chest and turned to the others. "There she goes again, reducing me to some boy toy."

"I like you." Lexi said, grinning at Caroline.

She giggled to herself but somewhere in the back of her mind, Caroline knew 'boy toy' was the furthest thing from the truth. Klaus ran his own successful business and he wasn't exactly hard on the eyes. And more than that, he was a cultured man who painted in his spare time and collected vinyl records. Far from being anyone's boy toy, Klaus was actually a real catch and she was sure many girls before her had fallen for the man. And maybe he wasn't her type now but if she wasn't careful he could be.

Caroline was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of Elena speaking.

"How long have you two been dating?" She asked, looking between Lexi and Stefan who had been shoving each other playfully.

The two spoke at the same time, laughing and shaking their heads.

"Oh we aren't." Stefan said.

"Ew, no," were Lexi's words. "We're just friends."

Caroline shot Elena a smug look, reminding her of their earlier conversation about girls and guys being friends. Not that the other girl even noticed, she was too busy eyeing Stefan now that she knew he was single - or at least not in a relationship with his hot blonde coworker.

"To friends." Caroline raised her glass and the sounds of beer necks and tumblers clinking filled the room.

"Dance with me, friend." Klaus said, standing from his stool and holding his hand out to Caroline.

She took it and followed him out to the floor. The two swayed to the music, Caroline's arms around his neck. Laughter drifted over from the bar and she looked over to see their friends still chatting with each other.

"You know," she said turning to Klaus, "if we were serious about each other, meeting the friends would be a big deal. But it's not – because we're just two friends with an understanding."

"Absolutely, sweetheart." Klaus replied with a smile, spinning Caroline before pulling her close again. "Friends."

Caroline grinned back, giving a curt nod. "Friends."


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed.  
**

* * *

"Okay, now you're just making things up."

Caroline sat cross legged on the couch, causing her knee length pencil skirt to bunch up around mid-thighs, chopsticks in one hand and a Thai food container in the other, and laughed at Klaus' disbelieving look.

"I wish I were." She replied with a grin.

About an hour ago Caroline had shown up unannounced, as always, and Klaus welcomed her with open arms, as always. They ordered in, after a lengthy debate about what to get (a debate Caroline was proud to have won), and somewhere along the line they had gotten to talking about Tyler. One thing led to another and suddenly Caroline was opening up about all her ex-boyfriends.

Klaus arched an eyebrow and stared expectedly at Caroline.

"I'm not kidding." Caroline said, slurping up some noodles as she relived the days of her college boyfriend Logan. "It was the strangest quirk. He had to name everything he owned. And I mean everything. But the worst part was the way he'd always refer to inanimate objects like they were girls. Like when his car would breakdown it was always 'she's having a rough day' or if his phone wasn't working it was 'she's got bad reception'. It was like I was competing with a bunch of other girls."

Klaus chuckled as he watched her explain. He didn't get how anyone could be with Caroline and not shower her in attention.

"So why'd you stay with him for so long?" He asked the obvious question.

Caroline shrugged. Because I was afraid to be alone, she thought to herself. Out loud she said, "well the sex was good."

Again Klaus' eyebrows shot up and a slow smirk crept on to his face.

"Is that so?" He asked lightly, placing his container on the table and gliding closer to her.

Caroline sucked in a low breath as Klaus took her container from her hands and placed it on the table beside his. Smirk still in place, he brushed his hands along her thighs, down to her knees, before uncrossing her legs. Feeling her body tense in anticipation, Caroline leaned back against the couch and in one swift move, Klaus slid between her spread legs, laying on top of her.

He leaned down but before his lips could meet hers, he turned his head and brushed them up her neck and along the shell of her ear.

"How good was it? This good?" Klaus whispered, sliding his hand down between their bodies and slipping it under her sensible pencil skirt. He loved it when she came over in her work clothes. The prim little button up shirts and tight pencil skirts were a turn on he never realized he had.

So far as Caroline was concerned, no sex was as good as the sex with Klaus. In fact, she was thoroughly convinced no one in the world was having the level of explosive sex they were having.

"Not quite." Caroline gasped out when his teeth sunk into her neck.

She didn't have to look to know Klaus had a smug look on his face. His stubble rasped along her soft skin and Caroline let out another moan.

Klaus lifted his head and was inching his lips closer to Caroline when a loud, violent noise erupted from her. Furrowing his eyebrows in confusion, Klaus elevated himself on his hands and stared down at her.

"What was that?"

Caroline just shot him a confused look. "A sneeze."

"Sounded more like the wail of a demon." Klaus joked.

Caroline rolled her eyes and wrapped her fingers in his shirt. She was about to pull him closer when she felt another tingle in her nose and flung her hand up to cover her mouth.

Klaus couldn't help but laugh at the gruff sound that exploded from her. "How can such a big sound come out of such a small thing?"

Again, Caroline rolled her eyes before bringing up both hands to cover her face.

With another chuckle, Klaus dropped a kiss to her forehead before climbing off of her. "You're beginning to look contagious, love. Wait here, I'll make you some tea." Klaus spoke as he walked off toward the kitchen.

"I don't want tea. I want an orgasm!" Caroline called out, letting out a dramatic huff.

Klaus ignored her, returning a few minutes later with a mug of steaming tea.

"Drink it all." He instructed. "It's my mother's concoction. It'll kill the cold before it really starts."

"I'm fine." Caroline replied, taking the mug he shoved in her hand. A few sneezes did not a cold make.

Klaus just shrugged. "Better safe than sorry, love."

Caroline lifted the mug to her lips to hide her grin. No guy had ever tried to take care of her before. The last time she had been sick, Tyler insisted he couldn't be around her because he had a low immune system and a presentation to give at work that he absolutely couldn't be sick for.

Klaus glanced from Caroline to his watch and back again.

"Drink up, we have to head down to the bar."

It was nearly ten o'clock on a Friday night, Stefan and Lexi would be swamped. As much as he wanted to stay hidden away up here with Caroline, he still had a business to run. Once she finished her tea, Klaus took Caroline's hand in his and led her down to the noisy bar. He walked her over to her usual stool and Caroline slid onto the seat, waving to Lexi and Stefan at opposite ends of the curved bar.

"Maybe try to control yourself." Klaus spoke directly into her ear to be heard over the noise, a smirk on his face.

She was a lightweight so one white Russian too many and he'd have to escort her home. Caroline rolled her eyes with a smile and waved him away.

Klaus circled around to the opposite side of the bar where he could keep half an eye on Caroline while tending to the masses. As he mixed drink after drink, Klaus slipped into the zone. This was his favorite part of his job. The paperwork and the general upkeep were things he had had to learn to get used to but behind the bar was where he naturally excelled. A swoosh of the glass there, a twirl of the bottle here. Exact proportions of alcohol and mixers. Klaus knew how to make a perfect drink and he looked damn good doing it too. It was the reason he had sunk all of his savings into opening up his own bar.

When Klaus glanced over at Caroline again, he furrowed his eyebrows at the sight that greeted him. A dark haired man clad in a suit leaned against the bar, chatting with Caroline.

It took Klaus a moment to place the feeling that gripped him. Jealousy – not something he was well acquainted with. As he watched Caroline laugh at something the man said, Klaus gripped the bottle of Johnnie Walker in his hand. He wasn't entirely sure why he was so upset – Caroline was free to flirt with whomever she pleased, they weren't dating. And Klaus absolutely didn't want to date Caroline. The more he got to know her, the more he found himself attached to her and a relationship would only jeopardize that. Klaus wasn't boyfriend material and that was something he rather liked about himself. If he dated Caroline, he'd inevitably mess things up or lose interest and then he'd lose her. He thought what they had right now was perfect. Neither of them wanted a relationship and both of them loved the sex. It was the ideal situation for a man like him. Or it was, before he was some undeserving prick all over her.

"Hey there." Klaus turned to face the pretty brunette woman that had appeared in front of him.

She shot him a seductive smirk. "Can I have a screaming orgasm?"

He arched one eyebrow before reaching for a bottle of Stoli vodka and a bottle of Kahlua. She just kept that suggestive smirk trained on him while he skillfully mixed her drink. Some might say her approach was a little obvious but Klaus loved a woman who knew what she wanted.

Caroline flipped her hair as she laughed up at Nathan, the ad exec from New Eastside.

"You laugh now, but mark my words, high waisted jeans are going to make a comeback. It's what the people want." He said with a grin, showing off a row of perfectly white, straight teeth.

"And is that your professional advertising executive opinion?" Caroline asked, polishing off her drink.

"It is." He continued to smile at her and Caroline looked away to hide the blush on her face. "Can I buy you another one?" He nodded at her now empty glass.

Caroline looked at the empty glass and smiled, remembering Klaus' earlier warning. "I'm good thanks."

"So do you always drink alone?"

She let out a half-laugh, half-scoff. "Wow, you sure know how to make a girl feel special."

Her admirer blushed a little and shook his head quickly. "That isn't what I meant."

"I know." Caroline replied with a small laugh.

"What I was trying to say was, you must have chumps like me lining up to buy you drinks all the time."

She grinned again and was about to respond when he held up a finger. Nathan reached into his chest pocket and pulled out a vibrating phone.

"I have to take this." He said with a small frown. "You aren't going to disappear on me are you?" He said playfully, his frown turning into a smile.

Caroline just beamed and shook her head. "Guess you'll just have to wait and see."

He grinned back before walking off. Nathan had been gone all of two seconds when Lexi appeared in front of her, a reprimanding look on her face.

"What are you doing?" The other blonde asked in disbelief.

Caroline shot her a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"I mean the guy in the Bond suit all over you."

"I know, he's hot right!" Caroline grinned, happy to have someone to share this with.

"I don't know, I was busy noticing how not Klaus he was. You know, Klaus, the guy you're already sleeping with."

At the mention of his name, Caroline instinctively glanced around in search of Klaus. "We're just friends," she said with a shrug, turning back to Lexi when she couldn't find Klaus. "I'm allowed to flirt with a hot guy."

Lexi arched both eyebrows and ignored the two men coughing to get the bartender's attention. "Are you seriously buying your own bullshit about this being just friends?"

"What do you mean?" Caroline asked. She got enough disbelief from Elena, and now Lexi too.

"I mean, you two can't really be just friends."

Caroline huffed. "Why? You and Stefan are just friends."

"Stefan's not my type." Lexi said with an easy shrug.

It was Caroline's turn to raise her brow. "What – hot guy is not your type?"

"No. _Guy_ is not my type." Lexi replied with a smirk.

"Oh." Caroline said with a nod.

Lexi grinned. "But if you're just friends, then that shouldn't bug you." She nodded behind Caroline and she turned her head to see some woman dancing with Klaus.

Though Caroline wouldn't exactly call it dancing. The brunette looked about moments away from fucking him on the dance floor. Her hair whipped around as she ground her body against him lasciviously.

"Someone get her a pole." Caroline scoffed out.

"I think he _is _the pole." Lexi tilted her head to watch the woman rub her body all over Klaus.

Caroline wanted to turn away, tried to turn away, but her eyes stayed glued to the spectacle unfolding before her. She knew what it was to be jealous. She'd experienced it with Matt, Tyler and Logan. But not like this, never like this. She wanted to claw the woman's eyes out. Caroline wasn't prone to violence but part of her was willing to resort to brute force to get this skank off of Klaus. The other part of her, the logical part, caught herself. She had no claim to Klaus – he could dance with whoever he wanted. This was, after all, exactly what she had asked for. Plain old friendship with a bit of no strings attached sex on the side.

She must have been staring pretty hard because Klaus looked up and their eyes locked. He whispered to the woman before walking toward Caroline. She spun in her seat to face the bar again and was sipping on her drink when Klaus appeared at her side.

"Where's your friend?" He asked, standing where Nathan had been a few minutes ago.

"Taking a phone call." She replied, nonchalantly. "That's quite the dance partner you have over there." Caroline nodded towards the dance floor.

Klaus just trained his gaze on her, staying silent for a moment as if he was trying to read her before saying, "she invited me back to her place."

Caroline sucked in a breath and nodded. They stayed silent for a moment longer as Klaus continued to stare at her as if trying to gauge her response.

Finally, Caroline spoke. "Well she looks like a lot of fun."

Klaus wasn't sure what he had been expecting, but that hadn't been it. "Caroline –" he began but she cut him off.

"Go get 'em, buddy." Caroline punched him lightly on the shoulder.

He didn't get a chance to respond when a pair of arms wrapped around him from behind, hands stroking his chest.

"Ready to go?" A sultry voice whispered in his ear.

"Juliet, this is my friend Caroline. Caroline, Juliet." Klaus introduced the two, his eyes not breaking from Caroline's.

The brunette waved from behind Klaus and Caroline forced a smile.

"We're going to head out." Klaus said, waiting for Caroline to stop him. Wanting her to stop him.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Caroline muttered, breaking their stare down to look at her drink. When she glanced up again, they were gone.

* * *

The next morning, Caroline woke to the sound of banging on her apartment door. She laid there for a moment, assuming her roommate Olivia would get it, before the sleep fogging her mind cleared out and she remembered Olivia had moved out last week. She would have to find a new roommate by the end of the month. Maybe Elena? Though her friend was probably attached to the apartment she shared with her friend Bonnie.

The sound of the banging ripped her from her thoughts again and Caroline groaned before throwing off her sheets and climbing from the bed.

"Good morning, sweetheart." Klaus grinned at her as he stepped into the apartment.

In his right hand he held a bag of bagels and in his left, a container holding two cups of coffee – one black, the other half hazelnut, half French vanilla with whipped cream swirling at the top.

"You're lucky you brought coffee." Caroline said, reaching for the whipped cream top coffee. "Not all of us run our own businesses and can sleep in all week. Some of us look forward to sleeping in on the weekends."

Klaus just ignored her, walking into her living room and placing the bag of bagels on the coffee table. The truth was he was here so early in the morning because he hadn't been able to sleep last night. After fucking Juliet, Klaus had immediately left (Caroline was the only girl he had actually ever 'slept' with after she got over her rule of not spending the night). He knew it didn't make any sense but a small part of him felt a little guilty. So he'd rolled out of bed after a sleepless night, stopped at a bakery for coffee and bagels then made his way over to Caroline's place.

"So, how was your night?" Caroline muttered as she dropped onto the couch beside him and snuggled into his side when he threw his arm over the back of the sofa.

He just shrugged. "Nothing special."

She smiled into her coffee cup at his description and snatched up the remote, turning on Saturday morning cartoons. Half an hour later, Caroline was still yawning into his shoulder.

"Look what you've done. I'm gonna be exhausted all morning." She complained lightly, though they both knew she was happy to have him here.

"You poor thing. Let me make it up to you." Klaus grazed his fingers under the hem of her shirt and furrowed his brow in confusion when she pulled his hand away.

Caroline stood and picked up the two empty coffee cups. "I've been thinking about it and I think we should stop sleeping with each other." She said casually as she moved toward the kitchen.

Klaus sat there on the couch for a second before standing up and following her into the kitchen. "Is this because of Juliet?" He asked with a small frown as he watched her throw out the cups.

"No." Caroline said quickly. "Though they do say when you sleep with someone you're sleeping with everyone they've ever slept with so there's that…"

Klaus brushed off that statement and asked, "then why?"

Leaning against the counter, Caroline propped a hand on one hip and smiled shyly over at him. "Nathan, the guy from the bar, he asked me out last night."

"And you said yes?" It was out before Klaus could stop himself.

Caroline just rolled her eyes and moved past him, walking back out to the living room. "Yes I said yes. Why wouldn't I?"

"What happened to being done with relationships and wanting to be free?" Klaus asked, leaning against the doorframe and watching Caroline curl up on the couch again.

"I _am _done." She replied. "I'm not looking for anything serious but I want to date. I miss dating. It was always one serious relationship after the next. So now I'm going to explore dating." Caroline said with a Cheshire cat grin that had the oddest effect on Klaus.

He supposed he should have seen this coming. It had been months since she'd broken up with Tyler and Caroline was bound to start dating again eventually.

"So no more sex?" Klaus strolled over to the sofa and sat down again beside her. She immediately swung her legs up, throwing them over his lap.

Caroline shook her head no. "No sex. It'll just complicate things."

He nodded and Caroline smiled over at him.

"It's been a while. I'm going to need your advice on getting back in the dating pool."

Klaus threw his head back and laughed. "I haven't got any advice to give. I don't date on principle."

"Oh right, because that would ruin your suave Lothario image." Caroline teased lightly, causing him to chuckle.

"Taking a woman on dates only gives her false hope that there's a future there." He explained.

"Love 'em and leave 'em." Caroline said in a dude's voice.

"They know what they're in for." Klaus replied with a shrug. "And your guy impression is terrible, sweetheart."

"What do you mean?!" Caroline asked with false indignation. "Bros before hoes." She said, again breaking out her fantastic impression of a dude in a locker room.

Klaus rolled his eyes and laughed, causing Caroline to descend into laughter as well. A few moments later, she nudged him with her leg and Klaus looked over at her again.

"That applies to us, you know. Bros before hoes." She said, her voice serious now.

Klaus just furrowed his eyebrows, throwing her a confused look.

"We're bros." Caroline said as if it should be obvious. "Promise me no Nathan or Juliet or anyone else is going to come between us." She locked eyes with him and for a moment there, Klaus wanted to promise her everything in the world.

"That should go without saying, love." He replied, staring back at her. "But I promise."


	5. Chapter 5

"So how did it go?"

Caroline glanced up from her spot lounging on the sofa and accepted the plate of Thai noodles Klaus held out for her. He sat down beside her, his own plate in hand, and Caroline turned to sit cross legged on the couch facing him. She brought a forkful of noodles to her mouth to put off having to answer his question. The "_it"_ he was referring to was her date last night with Tomas, a journalist she had met through a friend.

Six short weeks ago, Nathan had been just the beginning of what Caroline was starting to see was a dating spree. They were all perfectly suitable guys but none made it past the first or second date. Tomas had been an exception, making it to the fourth date.

"I don't think it's going to work out." Caroline replied after she swallowed, shrugging a little.

Klaus arched his brow and paused to stare at her. He didn't need to speak for Caroline to know what he was asking.

"I don't know. He's a journalist. Every date feels like the Spanish Inquisition." The lie slid easily off her tongue. The truth was, Caroline didn't know _why_ it wasn't going to work with Tomas. She just knew it wouldn't. A little voice in the back of her head, one she had taken to ignoring, whispered that it wouldn't work out with Tomas because Tomas wasn't Nik.

Klaus just let out a short laugh and the conversation moved on but when there was a lull in the banter, he couldn't help but bring _him _up again. Tomas. Klaus wasn't a fan, but then again he hadn't been a fan of any of the guys Caroline had gone out with. He had taken solace in the fact that none of them seemed to last very long. Up until Tomas anyway. And Klaus wouldn't consider himself a masochistic but there was something nagging at him and he needed to know, for better or worse.

"Did you sleep with him?" He tried to toss the question off casually but from the corner of his eye, he noticed Caroline's body tense just a little.

"Why do you ask?" She replied quickly, tilting her head and throwing him an inquisitive look.

"Well he seemed to be hanging on longer than the last few. I was just wondering if things had gotten serious between you two."

Caroline pursed her lips and shook her head no. "Nope. Nothing serious."

Klaus just grinned down at his plate.

Caroline let out a dramatic sigh. "Now that I think about it, it has been a while. A girl has needs." She said, tossing her head back over the top of the sofa.

Klaus felt his body tighten and his dick harden – something that wasn't exactly an uncommon occurrence in Caroline's presence. "I'm not one of your girlfriends, Caroline." He growled out, his eyes clouding with lust. "You can't talk about things like that with me and not expect me to react." He bit out, unable to stop his eyes from trailing down her body.

Caroline sucked in a breath at his words and the action caused her breasts to rise and fall enticingly. His eyes roved up from her tantalizing chest to rest on that delicate collarbone and Klaus restrained the urge to bury his face there and taste her skin. It had been a month and a half since they'd last slept together but Klaus could still clearly remember her delectable taste (he would likely never forget it) and he was itching for a just a tiny, little nibble.

Heart racing, Caroline watched Klaus' gaze form into that all too familiar look. The look that said he was going to do salacious, unforgettable, sinful things to her body. Before she could think twice about it, her body was reacting. Caroline placed her plate on the table before leaning in closer to Klaus, loving his addictive scent.

"I'm thinking we should suspend our no sex agreement. For just one night." Her breath came out husky and Caroline blushed a little at how painfully clear her desperation for him was.

"One night." Klaus whispered, afraid to break the moment. He cupped his hand behind her head, his fingers clutching on to her hair and pulling her closer. He wanted more than one night and taking her up on her proposal would only intensify that wanting but if one night was all she was offering, he wouldn't turn it down. He was a desperate man and he would take what he could get.

Fingers still wound tightly in her hair, Klaus pressed his lips to her softer ones. He pried her lips apart with ruthless efficiency and stabbed his tongue into her mouth, swallowing her corresponding moan. Itching to get closer to him, Caroline swung her leg over his lap, straddling him. Klaus groaned as she came into contact with his hardened length, unable to stop himself from thrusting up a little. He pulled away from the kiss and Caroline threw her head back, grinding down onto his body. With a growl, Klaus tugged the straps of her shirt down, baring her lace covered breasts to him. His lips glided along her smooth neck, moving steadily down, down to the hard, sensitive tips of her breasts. When his mouth covered one tight nipple through the lace of her bra, her pussy clenched and she dug her nails into his shoulders. His tongue rasped over the tender tip, his mouth sucking at her with a strong motion that left her quivering in his arms. When he nibbled at the tiny bud, the slight pinch drove her arousal higher and Caroline couldn't for the life of her remember why they had ever stopped doing this.

Klaus moved his head higher and she felt his lips at her shoulder, his teeth scraping deliciously over her skin as his hands reached beneath her on either side to cup her full, swollen breasts. His skilled fingers tugged at her nipples, pinching lightly as she moaned at the hot little flare of pain. His tongue dove into her mouth again, his soft lips slanting over hers as he turned the caress into a shameless carnal feast. Her hands clutched his shoulders, her body arching to him as she groaned into the kiss. His lips ate at hers hungrily, his tongue plundering her mouth sinfully as his fingers worked her body like a fine tuned instrument. His hands drifted lower to her belly, softly stroking the muscles there before wrapping around her to grip her ass.

Klaus used his grip on her derriere to press Caroline against him. He lifted and lowered her body, mimicking the rocking of fucking. Her hands ran wildly along his chest before reaching down to pull at his belt. Before she could free him from the constraints of his jeans, Klaus flipped Caroline back onto the couch, landing gracefully on top of her. She shoved her hands up his shirt, her fingers stroking along his chest and causing Klaus to growl into her mouth.

The doorbell rang and it took them both a moment to clear the haze of lust clouding their minds and realize what the shrill buzzing was. Klaus pulled away from Caroline with a groan, finding it unbelievable that they would be interrupted just when he was preparing to play out every fantasy he'd had over the last few weeks. He dropped his forehead onto hers and tried to catch his breath. The incessant doorbell rang again, the shrill sound filling the otherwise silent room.

"Are you going to get that?" Caroline said with a smile, her lips brushing his as she spoke.

"I'd rather not."

The bell sounded again and Caroline laughed. "I don't think they're going to go away."

With a final huff, Klaus pushed himself off of Caroline and stormed over to the door, adjusting his clothes as he moved. Using a bit more force than necessary he yanked the door to his apartment open, more than prepared to send whoever it was away and return to his one night with Caroline. Unfortunately, that plan would have worked with just about anyone except for the one person who it turned out to be.

Caroline shot up on the couch as a gorgeous woman with pin straight blonde hair sauntered into the living room, trailing a carry-on sized suitcase behind her. She felt her stomach drop and fought the urge to vomit. It was one thing to know, in the back of her mind, that Klaus got around. It was another thing entirely to have his flavor of the week show up just as they were about to…well. Caroline couldn't stop the direction her mind went in. She immediately found herself comparing herself to the blonde bombshell that had just strolled in. It had been a bad idea to even consider suspending their no sex rule. Caroline didn't want to compete with all the girls Klaus brought home – and she shouldn't have too, she thought indignantly.

"Rebekah, what are you doing here?" Klaus asked as he walked into the room behind her.

Caroline was adjusting her shirt, already standing up from the couch.

"I'll leave you two alone." She said, unable to keep the snide undertones out of her voice.

Klaus and Rebekah spoke at the same time, both turning to face her.

"Caroline, wait." Klaus said, moving to block the exit.

"And who is this?" The woman, Rebekah, looked Caroline up and down with tangible distaste. "And on the couch, Nik, really?"

Caroline just scoffed, snatching up her purse from beside the table. She really wasn't the catfight type of girl and she saw no point in starting now.

Klaus rolled his eyes. "Caroline, this is my sister Rebekah. Rebekah, Caroline." He motioned between the two.

Caroline froze and immediately felt horrible for jumping to conclusions.

"Right." She said softly, throwing Klaus a sheepish smile. "It's really nice to meet you." She turned back to Rebekah, holding out a hand.

The other blonde gave the proffered hand a sardonic look before shaking it lightly.

"So where's my room?" Rebekah turned away from Caroline to face Klaus.

"You still haven't told me what you're doing here?" Klaus strolled forward to come face to face with Rebekah. He wanted to get a good look in her eyes, he'd seen enough to know the telltale signs.

Rebekah rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her hip. "Is that any way to greet your favorite sister?"

"Well you'll have to forgive my surprise, little sister. It's my understanding that you're generally not supposed to leave rehab until you're rehabilitated."

"So I checked myself out a little early." Rebekah shrugged lightly, "I'm fine, Nik. I just need a place to sleep, I'm exhausted." She feigned a yawn.

Klaus ran a hand down his face, his mind racing a mile a minute. "And you want to stay here? Above a bar? I may not have a ton of experience in this department but I don't think recovering addict and bar scene go well together, Rebekah."

His voice was stern and Rebekah's face immediately fell. Klaus knew his sister well. He knew that more often than not, the cool, sarcastic façade hid a confused and frightened girl. Klaus knew that look in her eyes very well. It was the same look that had him beating up boys in the schoolyard and threatening ex-boyfriends or dealers with the promise of unbearable pain. Rebekah was the type of girl that fell into trouble easily but it was Klaus' job to protect her. That had always been his job and he took it very seriously.

"Where else am I supposed to go?" Rebekah asked softly, wringing her hands together.

Klaus knew she had a point. Elijah was too strict with her, having more the standing of a father than a brother in Rebekah's eyes. If he sent her off to Elijah it would only be a matter of time before she rebelled and found herself in a bad place again. Kol was an even worse option, a bit of a hedonist himself, completely lacking in self-control and guaranteed to send Rebekah off the rails in a matter of hours if not minutes. Rebekah had come here first because she and Klaus had always been the closest of the Mikaelson siblings. He looked out for her without judging her. And, whether or not he chose to acknowledge it, she looked out for him too – in the small ways that she could.

Running a hand through his hair, Klaus considered his options. The bar was doing well but leasing another apartment somewhere for Rebekah would put a substantial dent in his funds. He supposed he could rent out this apartment and move into another one with Rebekah but he didn't relish the idea of some stranger living above his bar. Not to mention it would put a new kink in what was currently the smooth running of his establishment.

He ran a hand over his scruff covered chin, holding back a growl of frustration.

Caroline, who had been standing uncomfortably off to the side deciding just how she could leave the room without interrupting the strange sibling reunion, caught the telltale sign of Klaus' frustrations even though he hadn't voiced them out loud. He hadn't told her about his sister, or any of his family members for that matter, and Caroline knew virtually nothing about this girl other than her apparent stint in rehab but she found herself speaking before she'd really thought the plan through.

"She can stay with me."

Both Klaus and Rebekah turned to look at Caroline. Klaus knew Caroline's roommate had moved out a few weeks back and she'd been looking for a replacement (but like her taste in men, Caroline was also picky when it came to choosing a roommate and no one had yet to meet her high standards) but given how his sister had just treated her, he couldn't imagine why Caroline would want to live with Rebekah.

"You don't have to do that Caroline." Klaus said, shaking his head.

"I want to." She replied, realizing as she said it that she genuinely meant it. Klaus was always a bit of an enigma to her and this was a chance to get to know another facet of his life. Besides, she was sure if their situations had been reversed, he would do the same for her. "And I'm going to go before you try to talk me into changing my mind." Caroline said with a grin as she walked past him and toward the front door.

"I'll leave you two to talk and you can come by whenever you're ready." Caroline said with a wave as she opened the door.

Rebekah waited until the door had shut behind the girl before addressing her brother again. "You're not seriously going to send me to live with some girl you hardly know, are you?!"

"Caroline's a friend of mine." Klaus replied, walking away from Rebekah and toward to the kitchen to see if he could find anything for her to eat.

Rebekah followed close behind. "A friend? Is that what you're calling your whores these days?"

Klaus slammed the fridge shut and spun around, his eyes livid. "Do not talk about Caroline that way." He spoke slowly, his voice borderline menacing.

Rebekah stepped back, a little stunned by his reaction. This wasn't the first time she had ever called him out on his philandering behavior. "So she's just a friend? The kind you fool around with on the living room couch?"

Klaus stepped closer to Rebekah, hands clasped behind his back. "Caroline's a good friend of mine and we're lucky she offered. So you're going to behave, you're going to find a job and start paying rent, and you're _not going to get involved_." He spoke firmly. Rebekah had a somewhat volatile approach to the women in her brothers' lives and Klaus wanted to shut her down before she'd even begun to plot.

"Why can't I just stay here?" Rebekah said, conscientious of the whining tone her voice had slipped into.

Klaus cocked an eyebrow. "You know why. And why did you leave rehab early, Rebekah?"

She shrugged again, avoiding looking him in the eye. "Does it really matter? I'm fine."

"Of course it matters."

"Maybe I just missed my big brother." Rebekah said, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's not like you came to visit me or anything."

Klaus' jaw tensed and he couldn't quite bring himself to respond. After all, she was right – he had never gone to see her. But that wasn't because he didn't care about her. If anything, it was because he cared about her too much and seeing her like that – the way she had been – it was more than he could handle. It was a constant reminder that he had failed her, that he hadn't kept her safe like he had always promised he would.

Satisfied that she had distracted her brother from questions of why she checked out of rehab early, Rebekah hopped up onto the counter, legs swaying as she watched her brother. "Well _**I **_think it'd be more fun if I stayed here. It could be just like old times."

Klaus arched an eyebrow as he eyed his sister. 'Old times' like when she would show up at his doorstep a complete mess or like when she'd wake up some mornings and not remember what she'd done the night before.

Rebekah must have read the direction his thoughts were taking because she shook her head. "Or it could be like completely new times. We can create new memories." She drummed her fingers together and shot him her best smile.

"Well if that's what you want," Klaus said and Rebekah perked up, "then show me you can handle it." Her shoulders slumped again as he continued. "Stay with Caroline for a while. I can cover your half of the rent for a little while but you need to find a job. Stay out of trouble and we won't have to talk about you going back."

A small part of him felt horrid threatening to send Rebekah back to rehab like that but the much larger part of him wanted to see to it that his sister got better and if she hated him for it in the end then so be it.

"Ugh, fine." Rebekah threw her head back before hopping off the counter. "But can I at least stay here tonight? Catch up, just the two of us?" She asked, grinning wide.

Klaus couldn't stop the smirk that took over his face. All things considered, it was nice to have his sister back. He wouldn't be getting his one night with Caroline but at least he'd have a night to start rebuilding things with his sister.

* * *

**Excuse me while I shove the Klebekah down your throats. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Filler chapter but things pick up again soon. **

* * *

It was barely past 7 o'clock and Caroline was prepared to pass out, maybe even go into hibernation for the next few days. Fumbling with the keys to her apartment, Caroline finally got the door open and stumbled in, half asleep on her feet. She'd been about to make a beeline for her room and her warm, fuzzy bed when a voice stopped her.

"Hey."

Caroline almost leapt out of her skin; her tired brain had momentarily forgotten that she had a new roommate. Rebekah had moved into the apartment's second empty bedroom four days ago but oddly enough they'd seen very little of each other. Or not all that odd considering the hours Caroline had been working these past few days at the firm. She was out by 8 in the morning and not back until almost midnight, hence the lack of sleep and fatigue taking over her body. But the major case had been wrapped up today and Caroline had come home early to find Rebekah sitting there waiting for her.

Caroline took a few steps back to look into the living room where the voice had come from.

"Hey." She shot back tentatively, one hand perched on the living room archway.

Rebekah just tilted her head and watched the other blonde. Nik had told her to stay out of it and she had done that for four days (more so because she rarely saw her new roommate, not so much by choice) but he couldn't very well expect her to live with the girl and not find out Caroline's intentions with her brother.

Caroline, not at all affected by the other girl's dissecting gaze, just strolled into the room and collapsed on the couch opposite the chair Rebekah sat in. There was a brief moment of silence before Rebekah finally spoke. She crossed her legs and leaned forward, arms propped on her legs while she stared at Caroline.

"So. You and my brother." Rebekah said and waited for the other girl to respond.

She just arched an eyebrow. "Is there a question somewhere in there?"

Rebekah shot her a slow smile, one that reminded Caroline a lot of Klaus' smug grin. "How do you know my brother?"

"Why don't you ask your brother?" Caroline shot back quickly with a slight shrug of her shoulder.

"I already did. Now I'm asking you."

Caroline paused and contemplated just what to say. She had no idea what Klaus had told his sister about their relationship and she wasn't quite sure what to say about it either but finally opted for just the truth – at least the very basic truth. "We're friends."

Rebekah let out a cross between a snort and a laugh. "The type of friends who fool around on couches like a pair of horny teenagers?"

Caroline couldn't deny the position Rebekah had caught them in and she didn't see any reason why she should have to explain so again she just shrugged nonchalantly. "Do you always interrogate your brother's friends or am I special?"

Again Rebekah just laughed. She liked this girl, she had a bit of spunk. Standing from the chair, Rebekah walked over to the bookshelf, looking at the pictures perched there.

"I just thought you should know, Nik can't be fixed." She said, drumming her fingers lightly on the wooden surface of the shelf.

"What?" Caroline asked as she threw her head back against the couch, too tired to decipher riddles from Rebekah right now.

"Girls get this notion," Rebekah spun on her heel to face Caroline again as she spoke, "that Klaus is this beautifully damaged man and they all embark on these doomed missions to fix him. Well, let me disabuse you of any notions right now. Your life is not a Nicholas Sparks movie and my brother can't be fixed."

Caroline didn't take any offense to Rebekah's forward approach. The protective little sister act wasn't one she'd ever had to deal with before but it definitely wasn't anything she couldn't handle. But Caroline felt some of her fatigue slip away at Rebekah's words. Her weariness was replaced by curiosity.

"Your brother doesn't seem the least bit broken to me." Caroline pointed out.

Rebekah just laughed. "Oh, he's broken. We all are." She whispered the last part more to herself than to Caroline but the other girl caught it all the same.

"Well, I must be a little broken too because I hadn't noticed."

Rebekah stared at the other girl for another moment before smiling a little. The smile was brief before Rebekah turned again to face the bookshelf, now toying with the little trinkets Caroline had placed there.

"He never talks about us, does he? His family?" Rebekah spoke softly, her fingers trailing lightly over old pictures of Caroline with her high school friends.

Caroline wasn't sure how to respond but finally just said "no. Not really."

Rebekah snorted. "You mean 'not ever'." She knew her brother loved them but she also knew Nik still held on to an awful lot of demons when it came to the family and what exactly it even meant to be 'family'. He had had quite the cross to bear growing up in the Mikaelson household.

"**You** could tell me about them. Your family." Caroline said, trying to coax the information out of her.

Rebekah threw her head back and laughed. "Yeah and Nik could chew me out for it."

Caroline just rolled her eyes, standing from the couch. "Tease." She muttered beneath her breath as she moved for the door.

"Where are you going?" Rebekah asked hastily, following Caroline out of the living room.

"To bed."

"Bed? It's hardly 8 o'clock. Come on, I've been cooped up in this apartment for days scouring newspapers for job ads and I know no one in this city aside from Nik. Can't we go out and do something?" Rebekah said, her arms crossed over her chest.

Caroline paused in the hallway and put a hand on one hip. Now that she thought about, Rebekah wasn't the only Mikaelson she'd had no time for in the last few days. "Okay, let me change. We can go to your brother's bar."

"That's not what I had in mind." Rebekah said as Caroline walked away. "But whatever. Quickly, please!"

Caroline just rolled her eyes again, disappearing into her room. Five minutes later she walked back out and the two girls headed out. The cab ride was surprisingly enjoyable as they matched each other in snappy comments – it had been a long time since either girl had had another person try to out bitch them.

They'd been seated at the bar for all of five minutes before Klaus made his way over to them.

"What are you doing here?" He asked his sister, eyeing the clear liquid in her glass.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Relax, it's water."

Klaus fought the urge to dip his finger into the glass and find out for himself. He'd have to remember to let Stefan and Lexi know not to serve her. Without realizing he was doing it, Klaus went about mixing Caroline's favorite drink and slide it in front of her in a matter of seconds.

"Where've you been?" He asked, smirking as she lifted the glass to her lips and downed half of it in one go.

Caroline coughed a little as she lowered the glass and Klaus let out a slight laugh. She was cute when she was on a mission to get drunk. But then again he was biased because Caroline appealed to him in everything she did.

"It's been a long week. I'm going to need another one of these." She tapped the half empty glass on the bar surface.

"Take it easy, sweetheart."

"Are you going to cut me off?" Caroline teased. "After the week I've had?"

"Tell me all about it." Klaus replied, leaning against the bar. "Remember, I'm the bartender, it's my job to listen." He smirked, reminding Caroline of the first night she'd come into his bar. The night of the blackout. It seemed so long ago now.

Thinking back to that night, Caroline just grinned, toying with her glass and Klaus just smiled back.

"Ugh, you two make me sick." Rebekah said, standing from her stool and moving to the opposite end of the bar.

Klaus paid his sister no mind and focused on Caroline. "Well I know it's not boyfriend trouble, and it's likely not family trouble so what's going on at work?" He asked, leaning closer to her over the bar.

Caroline had been about to respond when she caught sight of someone entering the bar. Her eyes widened and Klaus tried to follow her gaze to see what it was that Caroline was reacting so viscerally to.

"It's Tyler." Caroline finally managed to say after swallowing the shock of seeing him here months after the break-up.

Klaus felt his body tense as an inexplicable burst of anger gripped him. "Tyler the ex-boyfriend Tyler?"

"The one and only." Caroline said, bringing the glass to her lips to take another sip. Honestly, she expected to feel more. Tyler had dumped her, rather unexpectedly and in a public place of all things, but Caroline hadn't thought about him months and she was surprised to find that the sight of him didn't hurt in the least bit.

Except, it appeared to be hurting Klaus who eyes were still roving trying to figure out just which guy was Tyler. Caroline grinned, and fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"Stop looking for him, you don't have to defend my honor. It was months ago."

"Which one is he?" Was Klaus' only response.

Caroline was almost surprised by the gruff tone his voice had taken on. He'd been a little protective of her with the few guys she'd gone out on dates with but this seemed tenfold that.

"I'm not going to point him out to you." She said, shaking her head.

"Caroline," Klaus growled and threw her a look.

"What? The past is in the past."

"No, the past is in my bar. Where is he?"

"No." She said again sternly but all her efforts went to waste when a voice sounded beside her.

"Caroline."

Clenching her jaw, she turned slowly in her stool to face her ex-boyfriend who now stood beside her. "Tyler." She said curtly, feeling the weight of Klaus' glare on them.

"I can't believe this. What are the chances huh?"

Caroline clicked her tongue. "Well, believe it."

"I've been wanting to talk to you but you never answer my calls."

Before Caroline could respond, Klaus spoke. "He's been calling you? And you never mentioned this to me?" He asked, fixing his stare on her.

She just shrugged one shoulder. "I didn't think it was important." Caroline said to Klaus before facing Tyler again. "And I never answered your calls because I don't want to talk to you."

"I was just thinking –" Tyler began but Klaus cut him off.

"I believe she just said she doesn't want to talk to you mate." He growled leaning forward on the bar.

"And who the hell are you?" Tyler asked, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Okay," Caroline jumped in quickly, "let's cut the pissing contest short before it begins guys."

"Could we maybe go somewhere and talk?" Tyler asked, placing a hand on Caroline's shoulder.

Klaus had never truly understood what it meant to see red but the moment Tyler's hand landed on Caroline's body, he swore a fuzzy red glow took over his vision. Klaus felt his body tense and his blood boil and before his brain could register what was happening, he had leapt over the bar and his fist was connecting with Tyler's face. The satisfying sound of bones breaking rang through his ears and if Caroline's shocked scream hadn't ripped Klaus from his fury fueled daze, then he might have thrown a few more jaw-breaking punches.

Caroline jumped from her stool and watched in shock as Tyler fell to the floor, blood spurting out of his nose. Klaus' bouncer, Alaric, made his way through the thin crowd and came to a stop in front of them.

"Get him out of my bar." Klaus growled and Ric just nodded, reaching down to yank Tyler to his feet.

Paying Tyler no mind, Caroline grabbed Klaus by the elbow and pulled him along behind her, weaving through the slight crowd until she reached the door that led to the back office. Once inside, she shoved him against the desk and lifted the hand he used to punch Tyler between her palms. Still silent, she walked over to the mini fridge there and yanked it open to pull out a few ice cubes. Wrapping them in a paper towel, she walked back over to stand in front of Klaus. He watched quietly as she took his hand in her soft ones and iced his bruised knuckles.

"You don't have to punch ex-boyfriends for me." She finally said, breaking the silence.

"He touched you." Klaus responded, the memory alone making him want to hunt Tyler down and finish what he'd started.

"I'm a big girl, I can handle myself."

"He. Touched. You." Klaus growled slowly.

"And I had Tyler under control."

"He touched you." Klaus repeated, taking her hand in his. "I'm not going to apologize, Caroline."

She gave him a slow smile, her head shaking a little. "I don't want you to." See Tyler get punched had been oddly satisfying, even if it had been completely unnecessary.

Klaus laughed and there was another moment of silence before Caroline spoke again.

"Though you know, if Tyler hadn't invited me out to lunch to dump me then I wouldn't have stumbled across your bar and we wouldn't be here right now so I guess we should be grateful to him."

Klaus just snorted. "How do you know?"

"What?"

"How do you know we wouldn't have found each other anyway?" He asked softly, lifting his un-bruised hand to cup her cheek. "Do you believe in fate, Caroline?"

She sucked in a breath, unable to tear her eyes away from his. "I don't know."

"Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine." He whispered with a smile.

Caroline grinned at the Casablanca quote, her smile affecting something in Klaus that he couldn't quite pinpoint. They stood there like this, face mere inches apart, for another few silent moments before Caroline spoke again.

"I should go." She practically whispered.

"You could stay." Klaus responded, his thumb tracing an idle pattern on her cheek.

Caroline knew exactly what would happen if she stayed. They hadn't talked about the almost sex that had happened the night Rebekah interrupted but Caroline was even more sure now that staying just friends was the right thing to do. Because somewhere along the line she had blinked and Klaus had somehow become an important fixture in her life. The more Caroline thought about it, the more she realized she needed him in a way – and she was pretty sure he needed her too. Sex would only complicate things and inevitably tear them apart. Not a risk Caroline was willing to take, no matter how badly she wanted to succumb right now and let him kiss her in that way that made her toes curl and her nerves electrify.

"I have work in the morning. I should probably get some sleep." She finally responded and Klaus held back a sigh.

He had seen the internal debate in her eyes – had been so close to just kissing her until she forgot all her initial misgivings. Klaus wanted Caroline, badly, and he'd always been very clear about that. He knew he could use the same bag of tricks he'd used for years to talk girls out of their clothes and into his bed. But this was Caroline. He didn't want to charm her. He didn't want to manipulate her. He just wanted **her**.

"Okay." Klaus replied with a nod, his hand dropping away from her cheek.

"I'll see you later." Caroline gave him a quick hug. "And take care of that hand." She said, pointing at him as she walked backward out of the room.

"Goodnight, Caroline." He replied and she gave him a small smile and a wave before slipping out the door.

Klaus sat in his office for a few more moments, thinking to himself in the silence. This was unfamiliar territory for him – wanting a girl he couldn't have. He couldn't help but wonder just how long he could stomach just friendship. And what would happen when he couldn't take it anymore?


	7. Chapter 7

"Congratulations, you've proven me wrong."

Caroline looked up from the salad she was poking at and caught sight of Elena's twinkling eyes.

"Of course I have, I'm always right." She replied with a smile, leaning back in the plastic break-room chair. "But what exactly was I right about this time?"

Her friend laughed before dropping into the seat across from Caroline. The break-room was empty except for the two girls and the refrigerator hummed lightly in the background. Caroline pushed her lunch away, leaning forward on the table.

"You and Klaus. It's been months now. I didn't think it was possible but you, Caroline Forbes girlfriend extraordinaire, have kept it friendly."

She kept the smile on her face but it was forced now. "Yup, just friends."

"And since you're free…I hear the new junior partner was asking for you specifically."

Caroline furrowed her eyebrows and shot her friend a confused look.

"Galen Vaughn. Sheila says he asked for you specifically for the Patterson case."

"Oh." She replied with a disinterested nod.

"Oh?" Elena asked. "Why do you not sound surprised?"

"We met earlier." Caroline said with a shrug, thinking back to this morning when she'd happened upon a lost and confused Galen standing in the lobby. "He's nice."

"Nice?" Elena asked incredulously. "Rumor has it that he's the definition of sexy."

"I guess." Caroline delivered another careless shrug.

"You guess?" Her friend asked, arching her eyebrows.

Standing from her chair, Caroline tossed her salad in the trash before facing Elena again. "My break's up, I should get back to work."

Caroline raced off before Elena could say anything else, making her way back to her cubicle. There was no way she'd be able to explain to her friend why she wasn't the least bit interested in Galen Vaughn. He was attractive, successful and the accent certainly didn't hurt. But lately Caroline found she just wasn't all that interested in guys. Or rather – she was only interested in one guy. And that one guy was off limits – as per her own rules. And it was moments like this that Caroline had to remind herself why she'd put those rules in place. She and Klaus had a good thing going and sure she could flip a coin and hope for something even better with a relationship but that meant risking losing it all and that wasn't an option Caroline was ready to consider.

* * *

Klaus had just slid a drink down the bar to a customer when he looked up to see Rebekah sliding onto one of the stools in front of him. He hadn't noticed her come in and shot her a disapproving look before speaking.

"I can't imagine you're getting too much job searching done if you're spending all your time here." Klaus pointed out even as he filled a glass with Dr. Pepper and placed it in front of her.

Rebekah just rolled her eyes and let out a huff. "Relax big brother, I've got it all under control."

"Do you?" He asked, arching an eyebrow.

"I do." She shot back, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "And with all these complaints, I'm beginning to get the impression you don't enjoy my company Nik."

Klaus shot her a disbelieving look. "We both know you're not here for me."

He was well aware of his little sister's rather obvious interest in Stefan.

"I'm just looking." Rebekah said, glancing over Klaus' shoulder to the other end of the bar where Stefan was working. "A girl's allowed to admire."

Klaus was about to rebut that claim when Lexi appeared in front of him, slamming her hands down onto the bar countertop in excitement.

"My girlfriend's coming in because she wants to meet you guys so everyone on their best behavior." She said, pointing at Klaus.

"Girlfriend?" Stefan parroted, walking over to join them. "Did I hear something about a girlfriend?"

"Her name's Juliet." Lexi grinned. "And things are new but going well so don't ruin this for me." She said fixing Stefan with a playful glare.

"I'll see what I can do." He shot back with a wink.

* * *

Caroline was just snatching up her purse and preparing to leave when Elena appeared in front of her cubicle, drumming her fingers on the surface.

"Hey do you want to go out for drinks? Klaus' bar?"

Klaus had long since given Caroline an open ended pass at the bar and the two girls had no problem taking advantage of it.

"Sure." Caroline nodded. "Let me hand this off and we can head out." She said, tapping a folder against her hand.

They reached the bar and Caroline waved quickly to Stefan as her eyes scanned the bar for Klaus. She spotted him sitting in a booth with Lexi, Rebekah and a brunette girl she didn't recognize. As she drew closer, she noticed Lexi had her arm thrown around the unfamiliar girl and breathed a sigh of relief that the woman wasn't with Klaus. Not that it should matter to her who Klaus did or didn't have drinks with.

"Caroline." Klaus looked up with a grin as she appeared beside him and slid over to make space for her, his arm thrown over the top of the seat.

Smiling back, Caroline dropped into the booth beside Klaus while Elena slid in beside Lexi and the unfamiliar girl. Rebekah sat on the other side of Klaus, spinning her straw around her glass of water.

"Juliet, this is Caroline and Elena. Guys this is my girlfriend, Juliet." Lexi said with a wide grin, gesturing between the girls.

The group sat talking and laughing, all but the Mikalesons enjoying some type of alcoholic beverage. It was a weeknight so at 11:00 Stefan called last call and waited for the last few stragglers to clear out before joining them.

"What's so funny?" He asked, pulling a chair from a nearby table and placing it at the end of the booth.

"Just sharing work horror stories." Caroline said with a smile, taking a sip of her drink.

Stefan grinned. "Work horror stories, huh? Well, let me tell you I have a few of those myself."

"Careful Stefan." Klaus said, pointing at his friend. "Or you might wake up tomorrow morning and find you have work horror stories but no job to go to."

Stefan just held his hands up in an 'I surrender' pose and the group laughed.

"Well, I've got early morning job hunting to do." Rebekah said, climbing out of the booth. "So I'm going to head home."

"I'll drive you." Stefan said, standing up quickly.

"Oh, I'll be fine." Rebekah waved him off with a small smile.

Stefan just shook his head. "I insist. It's safer this way. And I'm sure your brother would agree." He said, throwing Klaus a look.

Rebekah had grown up in a house with four older brothers who had taught her a fair deal about how to protect herself so Klaus pitied the fool that would try to attack his sister but Stefan seemed concerned with a lot more than just Bekah's safety so Klaus just nodded. "Yes, it's safer."

"Alright then." Rebekah said, trying to contain her smile.

Caroline waited for the door to close behind them before turning to Klaus and saying "those two look cozy." She waggled her eyebrows, her body really feeling the effect of all the drinks.

"My sister's love life is high on the list of things I don't want to talk about Caroline." Klaus shot back, rolling his eyes.

"All the more reason for me to bring it up." She teased, nudging him with her shoulder.

For a split second she forgot that there were other people in the booth until someone spoke. "You two are so cute, how long have you been together?" Juliet asked, looking from Klaus to Caroline.

Elena and Lexi shared amused looks but before anyone could correct Juliet, Caroline spoke.

Normally, she would have set the record straight and moved on but all the alcohol in her system had Caroline going a different route. "Almost six years now." She said with a straight face and a nod.

She didn't have to turn to the side to feel Klaus' stare on her.

"Wow. That's a long time." Juliet said, leaning forward on the table.

"Yeah, well, I just can't seem to get rid of him." Caroline said teasingly, nudging Klaus with her shoulder again and grinning when he laughed lightly.

"How did you meet?"

"Well, it's a funny story." Klaus cut in.

"Hilarious." Caroline added before taking another swig of her drink.

"You always tell it, let me tell it." Klaus said, pretending to chastise Caroline. She just waved her hand for him to go ahead. "It was at the laundromat." He began, looking back at Juliet. "There's me, just trying to get in and out as quickly as possible when this stunning blonde walks in."

Caroline felt her skin flush when he referred to her as 'stunning' but quickly blamed it on the alcohol.

"Anyway, this beautiful girl walks in with her clothes and she's just staring at me while I'm sorting my laundry. Literally just fixated on me."

Caroline rolled her eyes with a laugh. "That is not how I remember it."

"Shh." Klaus said, waving her off before continuing. "So she's staring at me and finally she saunters over and says 'I don't think you're doing that right.' Now let me keep you in mind, I'm a self-sufficient man. I know how to do my own laundry. But I have this gorgeous woman standing in front of me telling me I'm wrong so of course I let her instruct me on how to do it the right way. An hour later, my load comes out of the washing machine and everything has these stained blue tinges to it – all of it destroyed. Turns out, Caroline hasn't got the slightest clue how to do laundry."

Caroline shoulders shook as she laughed, enjoying his fabricated story. Lexi rolled her eyes as her girlfriend listened to the story intently and Elena just tried to keep the knowing grin off her face.

"Okay, but you must have known she was doing it wrong. Why let her ruin your clothes?" Juliet asked with a smile on her face.

Klaus just grinned at Caroline. "Because I just wanted to talk to her."

Caroline's laughter died down and the two just stared at each other for a moment before Juliet's voice sounded again.

"So six years and you haven't proposed yet?" She asked in a shrill voice.

"Oh I did." Klaus said, tearing his eyes away from Caroline to look at Juliet again. "She said no, broke my heart." Klaus said, putting a hand to his chest.

"Yeah, I don't believe in marriage." Caroline said, happily carrying on with the charade.

"Well what about if you have kids?"

"Little Nik Jr." Caroline said with a dramatic sigh at the end. "Hyphenated last name of course."

"Forbes- Mikaelson." Klaus cut in.

"It has a nice ring to it." Caroline nodded along.

Lexi laughed before polishing off the rest of her drink. "Okay we're done here Mr. and Ms. Forbes-Mikaelson. Ready to head home?" She asked, holding a hand out to Juliet.

The two departed and Caroline waited for them to disappear from sight before descending into uncontrollable giggles.

"Okay love, you're done for the night. Let's get you to a bed." Klaus said, standing up and pulling Caroline up with him.

He turned to Elena and asked, "do you need a place to crash?" His apartment didn't technically have the extra space but Klaus knew Caroline would be upset is he didn't at least offer her friend a place to stay.

Elena shook her head no. "I'm not as drunk as Caroline over there." She said, nodding towards her friend who had wandered over to the bar stools and collapsed onto one. "I can just grab a cab."

"Well, let me call one for you." Klaus said, pulling out his phone. "You can wait here until they arrive."

"Thank you." Elena said with a smile.

After he called for a cab, there was silence for a moment before there was a loud "OW" resonating through the empty bar. Caroline leaned over on her stool to rub at her shin after banging it against the bar stool next to her – something that could have been avoided if she wasn't hell bent on finding out just how fast she could spin around on one of these things.

"You should put her to sleep before she really hurts herself." Elena said with a teasing smile as she watched her friend.

"I will." Klaus responded, his eyes locked on Caroline as well.

"And it'll be just sleeping, right?" Elena asked slowly.

Klaus tore his eyes away from Caroline and shot her friend a confused look. He was spared from having to respond by the sound of honking out front.

"Your cab is here." He said, holding the door open for her.

Elena waved a goodbye to Caroline before ducking outside and running to the waiting taxi. While Klaus locked up, Caroline continued to spin around and around on the bar stool. She was moments away from falling off when a strong arm wrapped around her waist. Klaus pulled Caroline to his side before leading them both to the back of the bar and up the stairs to his apartment.

"Déjà vu." Caroline said with a laugh as he led her inside.

Klaus just smirked, thinking back to the only other time he'd seen her this drunk – the night they met and he'd taken her up here to sleep it off. Klaus led Caroline to his room, sat her down on the bed and knelt down to pull her shoes off. He walked over to his dresser to get a shirt for her to sleep in and when he turned back around, Klaus saw Caroline struggling to get out of her shirt. Her arms were trapped above her head and her face was obscured by her shirt.

A small part of Klaus wanted to laugh at the ridiculous picture she painted. But most of him couldn't help but be turned on. It'd been about three months since he and Caroline had instated the no sex rule (one month since Rebekah had interrupted them just as they were about to break that rule), not that he was counting. The vision of all that creamy, bare skin on display was almost more than he could take. Sucking in a deep breath, Klaus walked back over to Caroline and freed her from her shirt. She just laughed, reaching for the strap to her bra before Klaus stopped her.

"Put this on first please." He said, his voice hoarse with desire.

Caroline just shrugged before pulling his shirt over her head. She slid her skirt down her legs and stepped out of them. Strategically avoiding staring at her, Klaus picked up her discarded skirt and top, folded them and placed them on the nearby chair. When he turned back around, Caroline was pulling her bra out from under the shirt and Klaus realized he had to make his exit now before his dick got any harder.

"Where are you going?" Caroline asked, crawling beneath the sheets.

"To the couch." Klaus said as if the answer should have been obvious.

Caroline let out a drunken huff. "You've seen it all before. Just because we agreed not to do _that _anymore doesn't mean you have to sleep on the couch. I think we can manage to share a bed."

"Speak for yourself." Klaus growled, unable to stop himself from imagining Caroline under those sheets in nothing but his tee-shirt.

"Please?" Caroline asked, her eyes already closed and her hand haphazardly waving him over.

Letting out a sigh, Klaus pulled off his jeans and tugged his shirt over his head. Taking a fortifying breath, he climbed into the bed beside her. Klaus made sure to leave a decent amount of space between them but Caroline just rolled over and snuggled into his side.

Klaus swallowed back a groan before slowly wrapping his arm around her. He was pretty sure he wouldn't be doing much sleeping tonight.

* * *

**I finally know where I want this story to go so things should pick up pace soon. Reviews are always nice and since I haven't said it yet - thanks to everyone who reviews.**


	8. Chapter 8

Caught in a daze somewhere between sleep and awake, Caroline was aware of two things – the soft Egyptian cotton sheets she was lying on weren't hers and her limbs were entangled with a toned, lean body. Her eyes blinking open slowly, Caroline trailed her gaze up from Klaus' chest where her head was pillowed to land on his face. His eyes were closed and his chest rose and fell in a slow rhythm that almost lulled Caroline back to sleep. Her eyes were drifting closed again when consciousness settled in and she realized where she was. Caroline's eyes flew open and for a brief moment she panicked at the thought that she'd drunkenly slept with Klaus. Seconds later, the foggy memories started to come back and she let out a soft sigh of relief.

Fully awake now, Caroline was careful not to move too much – not wanting to wake Klaus up. She shifted a little to stare up at the ceiling as she sorted through the drunken haze of the previous night. Trying to ignore the hangover feeling creeping into her head, Caroline sifted through the memories of meeting Lexi's girlfriend. She remembered liking the woman, all them joking and laughing together. When she recalled the faux relationship they'd convinced Juliet of, Caroline turned her head to stare at Klaus again with a small smile. Leaning up on her elbow, she gazed down at his sleeping form. It was unfair that a man could be that damn attractive just lying there. Caroline took in his strong jaw, covered in day old scruff. Her eyes trailed down to his perfectly shaped lips, free from their usual teasing half smile or sardonic smirk. Her gaze flew up to his messy bed-hair and Caroline fought the urge to run her fingers through the blonde curls.

Eyes still locked on him, Caroline let her mind drift back to last night. She had enjoyed being his pretend girlfriend a lot more than she should have for someone claiming to want nothing more than friendship. Before she could stop her mind from going down that path, Caroline was picturing what it would be like to tell their "how me met story" (their **real **how we met story) years from now. She wanted to be able to lean into his side and laugh as he told the story of the blackout night. She wanted to be able to joke about the names of their future kids. She wanted _him_.

Still watching him sleep, Caroline contemplated why she had always been so vehemently opposed to dating Klaus. When they'd met, on the heels of her break-up with Tyler, Caroline was positively done with defining herself by the man in her life. She didn't want to be just someone's girlfriend. But Klaus had never made her feel that way. He made her palms sweaty and her skin tingle. He made her heart race and her stomach flutter. She could be with him and still be **her. **

Assuming that was something _he _wanted.

Peeking down, Caroline grinned at the tent in the blanket. She didn't know whether or not Klaus wanted to be with her the way she wanted to be with him but little Nik was definitely reacting to having her body wrapped up in his. Before she could think about it any longer (and inevitably over think it all together), Caroline swung her leg over his body until she was straddling him. She felt his hardened length press against the apex between her thighs and chewed down on her lower lip. Leaning forward, Caroline brushed her lips lightly across his chest, loving the coarse feel of the hair there. Her hands trailed up his side and gripped his biceps.

Klaus' eyes shot open and he was certain he was having a dream. A phenomenal dream he didn't want to end. Caroline's silky blonde curls hung down, brushing his chest and making his dick harder than it had already been. Her perfect pink bow of a mouth slipped into a coy grin as her hands stroked up and down his chest. Without thinking, Klaus gripped her waist between his hands and rocked her body up and down on his. If this was a dream, he intended to fully enjoy it while he could.

Caroline leaned forward until her lips were brushing his and whispered a soft "hey."

Klaus didn't respond, simply let out a low growl before flipping them over so he was lying flush on top of Caroline. He stroked a hand over her thigh, lifting her leg to wrap around his waist. Klaus dipped his head and his mouth moved closer, past her mouth, skimming over her jawline, his lips just brushing her flushed skin. He nipped at her earlobe, eliciting a full-body quiver that sent chill bumps racing across her flesh.

"Am I dreaming love?" Klaus muttered into her ear.

She let out a soft giggle and replied, "no." Then Klaus' finger was pressing against her soaked panties and Caroline wasn't laughing anymore, letting out a low moan as her hips rocked up against his, craving more of that delicious friction that solitary finger was providing.

Klaus felt Caroline writhing behind him and shut his eyes on a groan, struggling to get ahold of himself. "Are you sure?" He asked, nibbling on her ear again and loving the way her nails racked down his back in response to the teasing action.

Caroline thought to herself that if he was going to ask her that question he should have done it before sliding his finger into her lace panties because there was certainly no going back now. Not that Caroline would have anyway. This was what she wanted.

"Yes, I'm sure." Her voice came out breathier than she had expected and she gasped at the shiver that raced down her spine when his chest brushed against her swelling breasts.

That was all the reassurance Klaus needed. Sliding his hand around to her nape, he gripped her head, crushing her soft lips against his. His breath whispered over her face, hot and rapid. Klaus slid his fingers higher, into her hair, wrapping the silky strands around so his grasp on her was even tighter. The kiss was rough and demanding. Klaus kissed her as though he were starved for her. Like he'd been held away from her by invisible chains and had finally broken free. It was the kind of kiss that Caroline was sure belonged only in fantasies. It'd been a while since she'd been with Klaus like this but Caroline sunk back into the haze of desire with ease - no one had ever made her feel so consumed. It wasn't just a show of dominance. It was a plea for capitulation. He wanted her and he was showing her just how much. If there had been any doubt in Caroline's mind as to whether they would work together or if Klaus would eventually tire of her, she was convinced now. Heat like this didn't just disappear.

Caroline let out a shameless moan when Klaus finally pulled away, his hand still wound tightly in her hair. His breaths were sporadic and his chest heaved as Klaus stared down at her. His eyes burned brightly with lust, enough to make her tremble with the raw heat emanating from him.

"I wonder if you have any idea just how much I want you," he said softly, his forehead tipped against hers.

"I want you too," Caroline whispered.

"Oh, you'll have me, love. In every conceivable way. Again and again and again."

The rasping promise slid over her like silk, warm and inviting. Husky and so sinfully sexy like the man himself. He loosened his hold on her hair and then placed his palms on her hips. Eyes still locked on hers, Klaus trailed his hands up along her belly, lifting her shirt up and pulling it over her head before tossing it to the side. His hands lingered around her waist again, toying with the edges of her panties, before sliding upward until he cupped her breasts. He held them in his palms for a moment, fingers caressing the soft skin, before he lowered his mouth, sucking one nipple between his lips.

Caroline groaned and shivered beneath his expert touch, tossing her head back as he ran his tongue around the puckered crest. Alternating between the perfect mounds resting in his hands, Klaus teased and toyed. He licked and sucked, nipping lightly at the taut peaks until they were rigidly erect and straining outward, desperately seeking more of his touch. It was only a matter of seconds before Caroline was a writhing mess beneath him and Klaus reveled in it. He released his hold on one breast and trailed the tips of his fingers down her rib cage, and then lower to her belly and between her spread thighs. Klaus fingered her panties lightly before tearing them off in one swift motion and leaving Caroline completely bare beneath him. His touch was teasingly delicate as he delved through the curls and to the sensitive flesh of her pussy. One finger danced over her clit, and her entire body immediately tightened in response. He teased over the damp flesh, languidly circling her entrance with a finger while his thumb gently stroked the tiny bundle of sensitive nerves.

"Nik" she whispered, his name coming out more of a moan.

Klaus' mouth on her breast, sucking at her tender nipple, was thrilling and erotic, fueling her already out-of-control desire. His finger slid inside her and she moaned again, louder this time. Knowing just how to set Caroline off, Klaus used his thumb to apply more pressure to her clit, moving in a circular motion as his finger stroked deeper. Then he nipped at her breast, grazing his teeth roughly over the puckered ridge.

Caroline's hands flew to his shoulders, her fingers digging deep almost to the point of breaking skin, anchoring herself more firmly against him. She stirred beneath him restlessly, her orgasm building. It was impossible to remain still while he worked her body over with consummate skill. Her entire body was taut, tension coiling low in her abdomen and signaling her impending orgasm.

"Come for me, Caroline." Klaus groaned.

His finger slid deeper, pressing against that one spot he knew drove her crazy. She threw her head back and gasped as his thumb pressed over her clit and he sucked her nipple into his mouth again. Caroline closed her eyes and cried out his name as the first wave of her orgasm swept over her. Tumultuous and overwhelming. Toe curling and eye rolling.

"That's right, sweetheart." Klaus growled, his fingers working faster now. "My name, Caroline. Say it again. I want to hear it." He loved the way his name sounded falling from her lips – all wanton and breathy.

"Nik," she breathed. Caroline would have said anything he wanted to hear in that moment – anything to keep him from stopping.

She arched up, frantic as he relentlessly pushed forward, taking her higher as she rode out the waves of her orgasm. It wasn't until her body was limp from pleasure that Klaus slowly withdrew his hand. Caroline's body was still quaking when she felt the head of his cock push into her swollen heat. Klaus paused for the briefest moment before he surged fully into her, burying himself to the hilt.

Her gasp mingled with his, her nails dragging down his back. The shock of his entry nearly sent her over the edge and somewhere in the back of her mind Caroline wondered how she could possibly come again so soon? The sensation of him inside her was overwhelming her in a way it hadn't in the past. It felt different, more intimate than it had ever been before. She was filled. Completely. Caroline was clenched so tight around him she wondered how he could possibly even move. Or how he'd managed to go so deep. His fingers dug into her hips, gripping her tightly to him for a moment, and then his touch gentled, almost as if he were reminding himself to take care. Klaus stroked and caressed, gliding his hands to her belly and then up to her breasts, palming them and tugging at her still tender nipples. Just when Caroline's body began to thrash restlessly, Klaus withdrew and thrust forward again, jolting her body with the force of his reentry.

His gaze seared into hers, so intense that it sent bolts of electricity dancing across her skin. His voice was guttural and so damn sexy as he rasped out his next words. "Extraordinary. You're extraordinary."

Klaus called on a wealth of restraint he hadn't realized he possessed to go slow. He wanted this to last, **needed **this to last. He wasn't sure what had come over Caroline this morning but if this was the last time he was ever going to be buried in her like this he wanted to enjoy it for as long as he could. He wanted to savor every nuanced clench of her soaking core around his dick. He wanted to commit the feel of her tight, hot heat enveloping him to memory. A memory he'd likely call on every night from now until whenever she let him have her again like this. Because there was no doubt in Klaus' mind that he would always want her.

He reached down, grasped her legs and pushed them upward to wrap around his waist and Caroline moaned up at the ceiling at the change in angle. Klaus took a moment to caress her thighs before his hands slid down, underneath her ass, and he began to push into her. With that intense gaze still trained on her, he set a hard, forceful, steady rhythm that sent waves of pleasure singing through her body. It was instinctive to reach for him, one hand gripping his shoulder, the other buried in his unruly hair. She needed something to anchor her in the crushing storm that was his possession of her. Caroline's pulse accelerated, nearly exploding, tripping erratically at the penetrating, ravenous stare he fixed on her.

He pounded into her again, shaking her body with the force of his thrusts. Caroline's eyes shut and she didn't bother trying to hold back the loud cry that broke free.

"Eyes," Klaus snapped as he drove into her. "On me, Caroline. Keep your eyes open and on me. I want to see everything you have when I'm inside you."

Her eyes flew open, locking with his instantly, her breath exploding in a violent rush. Again, Klaus withdrew and then surged forward, his hands tightening on her ass. She'd definitely be wearing his fingerprints all day. He held her tightly, spread her even wider as he thrust into her faster now. Caroline knew she couldn't last. Wouldn't last. The look in his eyes, the feel of him taking her. It was all too overwhelming. It was too…everything.

Sensing her impending orgasm, Klaus slipped a hand between them, quickly finding her clit and stroking as he continued to thrust into her.

"Come," he demanded. "Just one more, love. Give it to me, Caroline. I want to feel you fall apart around my cock. So soft and silky. It's heaven."

She let out a loud cry, her hips flailing up as her arousal hit a fever pitch. Her orgasm crashed over her, explosive and intense, hitting even harder than before. He was impossibly deep, buried so far inside her that she could feel nothing else but his pulsating hardness as it drove through her snug tissue. Caroline arched into him, wanting more, needing more. And still he thrust, his face a mask of strain as he eased his way in and out.

Klaus' eyes glittered, a hint of triumph there as she writhed beneath him, her orgasm quaking through her body with an intensity Caroline hadn't thought was possible. For the second time, she went completely limp on the bed, boneless, exhausted and sated as he continued to press into her. Klaus slowed his thrusts, returning to his earlier leisurely pace as though he wanted to savor every moment. He closed his eyes, alternating between stroking deep and then shallow. Caroline watched on in fascination as he pressed his lips together and began to move with renewed power. Deep. Hard.

Her fingers were fluttering erratically across his shoulders and back when Klaus finally went taut against her, every muscle in his arms and chest straining, coiled tight.

"Caroline," he gritted out. "God, this is perfection."

She went slick around him as he pulsed wetly into her, their hips locked together. He continued to thrust, jetting deep inside her and somewhere in the back of her mind Caroline thanked God that she was on the pill because she wanted nothing between them in this moment – she wanted to feel him and only him. His release seemed to go on and on. And then he dove deep and held himself there, slowly lowering his body the rest of the way until he covered her completely, their sweaty bodies clinging to each other. His chest heaved and his breaths were hot against her neck. Klaus was still wedged tightly within her as the two worked to gather their bearings.

Not ready for him to pull away from her yet, Caroline slid her hands across his shoulders. She let her hands roam freely across his body, luxuriating in the post-coital glow. They slid down his back as far as she could reach and then up again with languid, feather light strokes. Klaus let out a soft sound of satisfaction that made her entire body clench. He groaned in reaction when she squeezed around his cock, still softening inside her, and then he pressed a kiss to her neck just below her ear.

"Beautiful," he whispered and Caroline wasn't sure if he was speaking directly to her or musing out loud.

It was another few quiet moments before Klaus eased out of her and rolled off, immediately pulling Caroline to his side.

"That was –" Caroline began but Klaus cut her off.

"Phenomenal." He kissed her jaw. "Sensational." His lips grazed her ear. "Exceptional." His mouth ghosted over hers in a barely there kiss.

Caroline let out a content sigh. "Yes, all those things."

Before he could say anything else, her stomach let out a very noticeable growl. With any other man, that might have made Caroline feel awkward and uncomfortable but with Klaus she just laughed it out.

"Apparently I've given you quite the workout." He said, grinning at her. "I'll go rustle up something for us to eat. Breakfast is clothing optional, but if you need anything, you've got free range of my closet." With a smirk, Klaus climbed out of the bed. Caroline shamelessly admired his ass as he strolled over to the dresser, retrieved a pair of sweats, pulled them on and walked out of the room.

After he'd left, Caroline flopped back against the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Listening to the distant sounds of Klaus moving around in the kitchen, she contemplated what came next. Caroline, of course, knew what _she _wanted but she had no idea what _he _wanted. The sex had felt different this time – closer, more intimate. But what if all that had been one-sided? What if Klaus thought this was nothing more than a return to their previous friends with benefits status? Before the panic set in, Caroline took a few deep breaths and climbed out of the bed.

She wandered over to the closet and found a fresh clean t-shirt to wear. After rummaging through the dressers, Caroline finally settled on the smallest pair of sweats she could find, which still hung loosely off her hips. As she got dressed, Caroline came to the conclusion that what she needed was time to figure out what it was Klaus wanted. Just a day alone together to see what came next.

Caroline joined Klaus in the kitchen and grinned wide at the smell of bacon filling the room. Klaus watched her lean back against the counter and had to stop himself from yanking her into his arms. He'd never seen the appeal of a woman in man's clothing before Caroline. Now it was all he could do to keep from tearing her clothes off and fucking her again, against the countertop. There was just something about the way she looked, snuggled in his clothes. Klaus had the sudden urge to dress her in his clothes every night just so he could see her like this every morning.

Turning the stove off, Klaus walked over to Caroline, pressing her back against the counter. He leaned in to kiss her when a shrill ring sounded behind her on the marble countertop. Klaus rolled his eyes and began to reach for his phone when Caroline snatched it up.

"How about," she held the phone above her head and brushed her lips lightly across his, "no phones today? Just us."

Klaus arched an eyebrow, his hands going to wrap around her hips. "Oh really?" He asked, chasing her lips with his.

"Yes really." She shot back, pressing her lips quickly to his before pulling away. "Look, I'll even turn mine off in solidarity." Caroline pulled away from his arms to run into the living room.

He waited in confusion as she returned with her purse from last night in one hand and her phone in the other. Turning back to the stove, Klaus listened as Caroline made a quick call to cash in one of her vacation days at work. Once she'd hung up, he turned to face her again.

"See, turning it off." Caroline shut the phone down before waving it in his face.

Klaus wasn't sure where this was going but he went along with it anyway, lifting his phone from the counter where Caroline had dropped it and immediately turning it off.

"So if it's just us, what are we doing?" Klaus asked, yanking Caroline back into his arms. He had a few ideas about how he'd like to spend the day – none of them involved leaving the bedroom.

"Oh I don't know." Caroline wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her lips across his morning shadow scruff. "I'm sure we'll think of something."

Klaus just grinned before lifting Caroline into his arms, her legs wrapped around his waist, and striding out of the kitchen.

"What about breakfast?" She asked with a laugh, her lips still tracing idle patterns across his neck and face.

"You _are _breakfast." Klaus said with a growl as he tossed Caroline back onto his bed.

A few hours later, Caroline was lying on the couch with Klaus, her head in his lap. Her stomach was full from the elaborate breakfast he had cooked and her body was still limp and sated from the morning's activities. A show neither of them was familiar with played in the background as they talked.

"Have I mentioned before how lucky you are to own your own business?" Caroline asked, looking up at him.

Klaus grinned. "What the nine to five isn't working for you anymore?" He asked, watching as she toyed with their intertwined fingers.

"I was just thinking it must be nice not to have anyone to answer to." Caroline replied. It was nice that he could spend the day with her on a whim and not have to worry about calling out of work.

Klaus nodded in agreement. "It is."

"You know, you've never told me why you decided to open your own bar."

He just shrugged. "It just sort of happened. I worked a nine to five job for my brother's company for a few years, saved up a nice pile of cash and decided I wanted to start my own small business. A bar seemed like the way to go. I get to enjoy myself most nights and I help other people enjoy themselves too. I just wanted a small place where people could come to take a load off – the kind of atmosphere where you can relax despite whatever disasters are waiting for you on the outside. I like being able to give that to people."

Caroline threw him a teasing smile. "So you're basically a saint – that's what you're saying. Saint Klaus?"

"God, you're a pain in my ass." He said with a laugh, leaning down to place a soft kiss on her lips.

Caroline wove her hands into his hair but before the kiss could get carried away, a shrill sound filled the room.

"What is that?" She asked, as Klaus pulled away and sat back up.

It took him a moment to realize the noise was coming from the house phone he never used. Caroline sat up, moving out of his lap so Klaus could stand from the couch. He searched around for a moment before uncovering the cordless phone.

"Hello?" He asked, not bothering to check the caller ID before picking up.

There was a brief pause on the other end before Elijah's voice came through, an obvious edge of panic in his voice.

"Where have you been, Niklaus, I've been trying to reach you on your cell."

"What is it?" Klaus asked, not bothering to explain himself.

Again there was silence and Klaus wondered what could possibly have Elijah so riled up.

"You need to go down to the police precinct. It's Kol. They – " Elijah stopped speaking and Klaus felt his grip tighten on the phone.

"What are you talking about, Elijah?" So far as Klaus knew, their brother Kol was still in London.

Elijah steeled himself before continuing. If there was any way he could take his brother's place he would but he was an ocean away. "They need you to ID a body."

Klaus felt his grip tighten further around the phone and it was astonishing that the thing didn't break. "Elijah –" He began to speak but his brother cut him off.

"Kol was coming out to visit you and" again he paused before continuing, "you need to get down to the precinct." Elijah was barely hanging on by a thread as it was – and that solitary thread was the hope that the police were wrong, that somehow someone else had gotten ahold of Kol's wallet. Maybe he had been mugged. Maybe he'd been the victim of a pickpocket. But the body the police had, the body that had Kol's wallet on it - that wasn't his brother.

Caroline watched on in confusion as Klaus' face paled and his fingers turned white from the death grip he had on the phone. She tried to follow along through his end of the conversation but all she could gather was that he was talking to his brother. He hung up the phone and let it fall to the floor before striding quickly towards his bedroom. Caroline leapt up from the couch to follow him, watching on in confusion as he got dressed in a frantic rush.

"What's going on?" She asked, the concern clear in her voice as she inched closer to him.

Klaus didn't respond, weaving his way around her and heading for the door.

"Klaus, what happened?"

Again there was no response. It was as if she wasn't there as he strode toward the door, flinging it open and slamming it shut behind him. Caroline stood there shocked and confused, staring at the door as if Klaus would come back in and explain what was going on. He didn't.

* * *

Klaus sat in the back on the cab and worked to bring his frantic thoughts in order. He hadn't trusted himself to drive in this state but Klaus was immediately regretting that decision as the taxi eased its way down the street at a pace a lot slower than Klaus would have liked. He felt his chest constrict again and again as they drew closer to the precinct and part of him expected to wake up any moment now. He'd wake up and be back in bed with Caroline.

The cab came to a halt and Klaus threw a few bills at the driver before racing out of the car. He drew in a steady breath before walked in. In retrospect, Klaus could hardly remember going through the motions – identifying himself to the police, being brought to a back room. But there was one moment he remembered vividly – a moment that would likely never leave his memory.

A man in a sterile white lab coat pulled a metal stand out, revealing a zipped up black bag. A tense silence filled the air as Klaus nodded, giving the man the go ahead to unzip it. There were two distinct moments then. The moment when it was all okay – when Klaus was thoroughly convinced they would unzip that bag and the face revealed would be an unfamiliar one. And then the moment when it wasn't okay. The moment when the pale, lifeless face staring blankly back up at his was one he was all too familiar with. A face that he had teased and taunted as a child. A face he had partied riotously with through his teenage years and early twenties. He'd seen a number of looks on this face – mischief, rage, begrudging affection. And now it was just a blank face, staring back up at him with empty, lifeless eyes. And Kol's eyes had always been the very best part of him – always sparkling with some secret. There was nothing there now – no secret, no mischief, no affection. Just the very clear gaze of a dead man.

Klaus didn't need to say the words for the cops to get the picture.

Everything after that became a blur again. He was vaguely aware of being led out of the room, distantly conscious of the cops explaining to him what had happened. Kol had been in a cab that ran a red light. One red light.

Klaus wasn't sure how much time had passed with him sitting there before it finally dawned on him that he had to call Elijah. Still in a trance of sorts, he pulled his cell from his pocket and turned it back on for the first time since this morning. The screen lit up and immediately greeted him with three new notifications, all missed calls from Kol. A wave of anguish washed over Klaus and his grip unconsciously tightened around the phone. His little brother had left him three voicemails and it was a long moment before Klaus worked up the nerve to listen to them.

Trying to force a calm that wasn't there, Klaus played the first message.

"Surprise big brother." Kol's voice came through the phone and Klaus sank further into the stiff, plastic chair, ignorant of the moisture welling up in his eyes. "Guess who's in town. I just landed at O'Hare, I expect you to be here by the time I get through baggage claim."

The phone beeped indicating the end of the message and before he could lose his nerve, Klaus played the next one. Again Kol's voice wafted through the phone.

"You've become a hard man to get ahold of Niklaus. I'm out of baggage claim and breathlessly awaiting your call brother."

Again the message ended and Klaus steeled himself before listening to the final message. This would be the last time he heard his little brother's voice.

"I'm beginning to get the impression you aren't showing up." Kol's voice was playfully mocking and Klaus felt his heart constrict at the sound, "luckily for you, Elijah has texted me your address. I'm hopping in a cab now and I expect that once I reach you, you'll be ready to show me a good time. Girls, alcohol, music – I want the whole nine yards Niklaus. It's been too long, brother."

Klaus let the phone fall into his lap and ran a hand through his hair. Kol had been in that taxi because of him. Hell, Kol had been in Chicago because of _him_. Yesterday his brother had been alive and today he wasn't – because of him. Klaus didn't remember most of the cab ride back to his bar. He remembered calling Rebekah again and again, her phone going straight to voicemail. He left her a bunch of messages telling her to call him back but it would appear that he hadn't been the only Mikaelson ignoring his phone that day.

When the taxi reached the bar, Klaus climbed out in his zombie-like state and threw some money at the driver before making his way into the bar. He stopped to grab a bottle of whiskey before heading back to his office. He fell back in his chair and opened the bottle, not bothering with a glass. By the sixth long swig, Klaus had taken out his phone to replay the messages again. The bottle was half finished by the time the messages were playing on loop in his head.

_I'm beginning to get the impression you aren't showing up._

_I'm hopping in a cab now._

_It's been too long brother._

Klaus let the guilt wash over him. He welcomed it. Taking another swig from the bottle, Klaus contemplated how a man lived with himself knowing he had killed his own brother. The answer was he didn't. Kol was in the taxi because of him. And that was something Klaus would carry with him for the rest of his life.

_I'm beginning to get the impression you aren't showing up._

_I'm hopping in a cab now._

_It's been too long brother._

Lifting the phone in front of him, Klaus played the message again.

* * *

Caroline raced around Klaus' apartment, cleaning things that didn't quite need to be clean and reorganizing things that were perfectly fine where they were. She wasn't sure why she was doing this – she only knew that she needed to stay busy. And it would be nice for Klaus to come home to a clean apartment. Caroline had tried to call him once since he left but when he didn't answer, she thought it best to just wait. She could have left, gone home, but the look on Klaus' face when he stormed out of here kept her from going. He'd been in a state of panic and Caroline didn't know what had caused it but she did know she wanted to be here to help when he got back. _If _he ever got back, Caroline thought, looking at the clock on the wall.

She'd been about to give up and go home when the front door swung open and a clearly drunk Klaus stumbled in.

"Oh my god, what happened?" Caroline asked, rushing forward to help him.

Klaus held a hand out to stop her, backing away as if her touch was revolting. "You're still here." He bit out in a harsh voice that had Caroline's heart dropping into her stomach.

"I thought you might want to talk." She whispered, backing away from him to give him the space he clearly wanted.

Klaus just scoffed, walking past her and toward his bedroom.

"Nik, what happened?" She asked softly, fighting the urge to reach out and lay a comforting hand on his shoulder.

He let out another derisive laugh before turning to face her again. "What happened? **You **happened." Klaus spat out.

Caroline's eyes widened and she crossed her arms over her chest. "Are you going to tell me what actually happened?" She asked, working to keep her voice even.

Klaus strolled forward until their feet were almost touching. "What happened was my brother needed me and now he's dead," Caroline sucked in a gasp at his words, "because I was too busy chasing a piece of tail to be there for him."

"What do you mean?" Caroline whispered even though part of her knew she didn't want him to say anymore.

"I mean," He inched closer and she could smell the alcohol on his breath, "if it weren't for you and your ridiculous demand to turn off my phone my brother wouldn't have been in that taxi. It wouldn't have run that red light. And he'd still be alive. His blood's on my hands. And yours."

Caroline felt the tears well up in her eyes. "I –" She wasn't sure what she was going to say but it didn't matter anyway since he cut her off before she could get another word out.

"Get out, Caroline."

His voice came out stiff and cold but Caroline reasoned with herself. He just lost his brother and was dealing with misplaced guilt. All she wanted to do was help.

"Nik –" she reached a hand out but he backed away.

"GET OUT!" He yelled this time and Caroline jumped a little.

She didn't reach for him again or try to say anything else. Caroline snatched up her purse and raced toward the door.

Klaus watched her go before sinking to the floor and leaning back against the wall. His head dropped into his hand and his shoulders shook slightly as he let yet another wave of grief wash over him. Tilting his head back against the wall, Klaus pulled his phone from his pocket again.

_I'm beginning to get the impression you aren't showing up._

_I'm hopping in a cab now._

_It's been too long brother._

* * *

**Welp. Thoughts?**


	9. Chapter 9

Klaus was having the dream again.

It always started out the same. His sweaty palms slid along the leather seats in the back of the cab. The driver had the heat turned up and the radio turned on, a light jazz tune wafting through the car. The streets of Chicago whizzed past, nothing but a blur in the window.

Klaus turned his head to the side and was met with Kol's mischievous smirk. His brother's hair flopped forward, almost but not quite masking those eyes – a roguish glint showing through.

The silence held for a moment longer before Kol spoke, "Hello again, Nik."

Klaus remained silent, his gaze riveted to his brother. Even asleep, he knew Kol was dead. He **knew **that. But sitting here beside him, close enough to reach out and touch him, his brother certainly felt real.

"Come along for another ride?" Kol asked nonchalantly, reaching into his breast pocket and pulling out a silver flask. He took a long swig from it before holding the flask out to Klaus who shook his head no.

Kol threw him a cajoling grin. "Come on, drink with me brother – for old time's sake."

He hesitated for a second longer before taking the flask from Kol who clapped him on the back with a laugh. Klaus took a swig and felt the whiskey, their favorite, burn down his throat. When he was done, he passed it back to his brother who took it with a wide grin on his face.

"We had some good times, didn't we?" Kol asked before taking another swig from the flask.

Klaus couldn't hold back the chuckle that bubbled forward. "We did, we did. We had a fair share of bad times too, if I recall." He tilted his head and arched an eyebrow at his brother.

"Wrong." Kol said, shaking his head with a smile and clapping a hand on Klaus' shoulder. "There were only good times, and better times."

Tilting his head back against the seat, Klaus let out a laugh. Of course that's how Kol would choose to remember things. The man lived with zero regrets. They'd gotten into their fair share of trouble together – trouble was a part of who Kol was – but his little brother was never the least bit phased by it. It was always one thrill to the next, one escapade to the next. One more drink. One more girl. One more dance. Kol never stopped.

"Do you remember, my first year of university at that one party," Kol paused to take another sip from the flask.

At only three years apart, Klaus and Kol had been at university at the same time – something that hadn't bode too well for the school or its students. Kol's first year had been Klaus' third year and it hadn't taken the two long to fall back into the same old patterns of wreaking havoc they'd had throughout their teenage years.

"Where that big rugby player found out about my little indiscretions with his girlfriend." Kol finished his sentence, throwing Klaus a grin.

Klaus turned to face his brother again. "And you told him it was me, you little bastard." He said with a small laugh.

Kol had convinced the rather large rugby player that he had the wrong Mikaelson. The guy had come after Klaus with a vengeance but before he could throw his first swing, Kol had crept up behind him and shattered a bottle across the athlete's back. They'd both imbibed their fair share of alcohol by that point but Klaus distinctly remembered running like his life depended on it. He remembered Kol running beside him, stopping long enough to throw a wink at a group of girls before his brother pulled him away.

"Yes, but at least I had your back." Kol shot him another one of those smooth, cajoling grins.

Yes, he had. They'd always looked out for each other. They'd always been there for each other. And then the one time Klaus wasn't…

"You never should have come." Klaus spoke almost beneath his breath. If his brother had never flown to Chicago, if he had only stayed in London…

That mischievous smirk fell from Kol's face and was momentarily replaced by a serious look that seemed out of place on his normally roguish face. "Perhaps you never should have left."

Silence descended for a few seconds before the serious look fell from Kol's face and that familiar grin returned. "What's done is done."

Klaus looked forward again at the street ahead. He knew this cross-street, he'd driven by it every day for the last three days since the accident. It looked the same as it had always looked. There was no sign that any accident had taken place. It was as if it never happened. Only, it had happened. The rubble was gone, the cars towed away as the world just kept spinning. But it had happened.

As the cab moved closer to where the two streets intersected, Klaus turned to look at Kol again. His brother gave him a small nod before lifting the flask to his lips with a muttered, "Cheers." Klaus braced himself for impact and counted down in his head. Three, two -

And like all the dreams before, Klaus shot up in his bed before the crash came.

* * *

Caroline sat alone at her kitchen table, pushing cold scrambled eggs around on her plate. The apartment was quiet. Quieter than it had been in weeks, since Rebekah had moved in. But the other girl was gone now. Rebekah had been haphazardly packing her things by the time Caroline had gotten home that night four days ago. Not knowing how to react, and having already struck out with one Mikaelson that night, Caroline had remained quiet as Rebekah grabbed what few things she had laying around the apartment, her eyes red and her shoulders shaking. Somehow through the distress and tears, Rebekah had managed to thank Caroline for her hospitality and explain that she would be staying with her brother for a few days. Her behavior exhibited none of the rage Klaus' had so Caroline could only assume he hadn't shared certain facts with his sister. Like how he thought Caroline was partially responsible for Kol's death. She hadn't asked and Rebekah had been gone in a matter of minutes. If she was being honest with herself, Caroline kind of missed her. She'd gotten used to Rebekah's snarky comments and sassy attitude and the apartment felt empty without her.

Though that was nothing compared to how much Caroline missed Klaus. For the past four days, she had debated whether or not to call him. On the one hand, he'd made it pretty clear he didn't want to talk to her and he'd been a real asshole about it too. But on the other hand, the bigger more mature hand, Caroline knew he was suffering. Losing a brother had to be hard enough – thinking you were responsible would be downright unbearable. She had finally caved and tried to call him yesterday. And called. And called. And called. When he didn't answer, Caroline figured he needed more space. She really wanted to give him that space but Caroline also knew Klaus. She knew if someone didn't convince him he wasn't to blame soon, then Klaus would only dig himself into a deeper hole of despair. He'd torture and torment himself until Kol's death completely ate away at him. And there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Sighing to the empty room, Caroline stood up and took her plate over to the trash, scrapping the cold eggs into the garbage. She was just placing her plate in the sink when a buzzing sound filled the room. Caroline looked over at her phone vibrating on the table. Her first thought was 'Maybe it's Klaus'. Her second thought was 'Why should I answer?'It wasn't fair the way he occupied her thoughts. The call was on its last ring when Caroline finally snatched it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Caroline." Stefan's voice drifted through the line.

"Hey, what's up?" She asked, the confusion clear in her voice as she cocked her hip against the table.

"Could you swing by the bar?"

Caroline's eyebrows shot up and she fell silent, not knowing how to respond.

"Oh, I'm actually on my way to work." She didn't have to be at the office for another hour but Stefan clearly hadn't gotten the memo on Klaus' newfound opinion of Caroline.

"Please, Caroline."

She stood up straighter, her back going rigid at the concern in Stefan's voice.

"Stefan, what's going on?"

There was a sigh and some rustling on the other end of the line before Stefan spoke again. "How soon can you get here?"

Caroline wanted to say she hadn't agreed to come at all. Instead she said, "I'll be there in 20."

* * *

Swinging a heavy duffel bag over one shoulder, Klaus jogged down the stairs through the bar and out onto the street where Stefan was standing by Klaus' car. Ignoring his best friend, Klaus threw his trunk open and tossed the duffel bag in before walking back inside the bar.

He and Rebekah had a flight to catch in two hours. Elijah had insisted Klaus fly home the day after the accident but Klaus had refused. He told his brother it was because he wanted to see to it that Kol's body was transferred overseas properly but the truth was the Chicago PD easily could have handled the matter on their own. Klaus had chosen to wait because, honestly, he wasn't ready to face his family yet. It was hard enough being around Rebekah, who had insisted on staying with Klaus until everything was squared away and they could fly home together. Klaus hadn't told Rebekah the role he had played in Kol's death. He hadn't told anyone – except Caroline. Before the thought of her could take root, Klaus shoved it away to that dark corner where he was storing all Caroline-related thoughts and feelings.

Instead, Klaus turned his thoughts to the trip ahead of him. He still wasn't sure how he would survive being in his family's presence – knowing what he had done, what he was responsible for. Rebekah came down the stairs, pulling Klaus from his dark thoughts. He took the small suitcase she was dragging from her and walked back out to the car, tossing it into the boot.

Stefan watched Klaus packing up his car and said nothing. He knew his friend would have to fly home for the funeral but when Stefan had shown up this morning, Klaus had been packing up his apartment for more than just a few days. It hadn't eased his worry when Klaus had handed him a long list of instructions to keep the bar running. Not knowing what to do, Stefan had called in reinforcements. Said reinforcements pulled up just as Klaus walked back into the bar.

Caroline parked her car and hopped out, walking up to Stefan who stood on the street in front of the bar.

"What's going on?" She asked, trying to steady her breathing as she came to a stop in front of Stefan.

Stefan looked behind him at the bar before turning to face Caroline again. "Did you know he was leaving?"

Caroline just arched an eyebrow and cocked her head, making it clear she had no idea.

"To London."

She gave a small nod. "Well he needs to be with his family right now. And with the funeral and all. Of course he's going home." Caroline wasn't sure if she was speaking more to Stefan or herself. _Of course he's going home. _But he hadn't told her. He was just going to disappear.

"Yeah, well this isn't just for a few days Caroline. He's really going."

Caroline felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach. He needed space and she _knew _that. But the Atlantic Ocean was an awful lot of space. And if he never came back…the possibility of that happening had Caroline's heart tightening as if someone was squeezing it in an iron fist.

"Can you talk to him?"

Stefan's voice sounded far away as Caroline's mind took off racing with all sorts of negative possibilities. She was still trying to get her emotions in check when Klaus exited the bar. Caroline's eyes shot up and immediately locked on his.

There was a long moment of silence as they stared at each other. He looked… defeated, Caroline thought. She really couldn't think of another word to describe Klaus in this moment. His eyes held a vague red tint, the skin surrounding them sagging as if he hadn't slept in days. His jaw was unshaven, the scruff beginning to take over his face. His shoulders slumped a little and his skin had a pale sallowness to it. She took in the sight of him there and she immediately felt thrust back to that morning four days ago – Klaus standing in front of her broken and not the least bit interested in being fixed.

The silence continued as Klaus finally moved, walking past Stefan and Caroline and toward his car. Galvanized into action, Caroline strode over to him as Klaus opened the car door.

"Can we talk?" She asked, watching as Klaus tossed his phone and keys onto the driver's seat, not looking up at her. "You didn't answer my calls yesterday." Caroline's voice was soft and wary.

Klaus finally looked at her, his eyes seeming even dimmer this close up. "Not taking phone calls is something I've been doing a lot of lately."

Caroline frowned a little, swallowing back the urge to reach out and touch him. "You have to know what happened wasn't your fault."

Klaus just gave a dark chuckle, shaking his head.

"Nik," Caroline said, finally giving into the urge to reach for him.

Klaus flinched when her hand landed on his shoulder and Caroline quickly pulled it away.

Klaus let out a low growl, his hands tightening around the top of the car door. "I don't want to talk about this with you Caroline. If I had, I would have picked up any of the six times you called. Please, just leave."

"Not until you talk to me." Caroline shot back. "You can't just run away indefinitely."

"Forgive me, but you're the last person I want to take advice from right now." Klaus growled, his knuckles going white from the grip he had on the open car door.

Caroline scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. So now he wouldn't even listen to her. They'd gone from being on the brink of something amazing to this. "Yeah, it was my idea to turn our phones off and what happened is tragic but now because of it all you see me as is the girl responsible? So that's all I'll ever be to you?"

Klaus' gaze went blank, the rage falling away and leaving nothing but a chilling emptiness in its place. "You aren't anything to me Caroline."

Caroline stepped back as if she'd been punched in the gut. She felt the moisture begin to pool in her eyes and spun on her heel before Klaus could see. Feigning a confidence she didn't feel, Caroline held her head high and walked back over to where her car was parked. Before she could retrieve her keys from her bag, Stefan reached out and grabbed her arm, spinning Caroline around to face him.

"What's going on?" He asked, the confusion clear on his face.

"You shouldn't have called me Stefan." Caroline replied, shaking her head and pulling her arm from his grip.

"Caroline, what is going on with you two?" Stefan stepped in front of her, coming to stand between Caroline and her car.

"I tried to help Stefan but I'm not the harbinger of doom and I won't be treated like shit just because that's what he wants to believe." Caroline shoved past Stefan and climbed into her car.

Klaus stood by his car and watched Caroline go. He knew he was being cruel but Klaus also knew it was better this way. He might blame Caroline for what had happened but nowhere near as much as he blamed himself. That wasn't why Klaus had pushed her away. He pushed her away because he couldn't look at her without being transported back to that morning. It was hard enough to even think about Caroline, let alone see her standing in front of him. She was a constant reminder of the choice he had made. Granted, it was one he had made unknowingly but that didn't change the fact that Kol was dead. He'd had his entire life ahead of him and by tomorrow he'd be buried in the ground. So why should Klaus get to live happily ever after? Why should he get to be with Caroline – the very woman he'd been so single mindedly pursuing when his brother had died? The answer was he shouldn't. Klaus didn't deserve the happy ending. He didn't deserve Caroline. This was his punishment.

Rebekah exited the bar and walked up to Stefan who was watching a car drive away.

"I think that's everything." She said from behind him and Stefan spun around to face her.

"So that's it then?" Stefan asked, looking over at Klaus and then back at Rebekah.

She just nodded - talking had been a bit of a challenge lately. Every time Rebekah opened her mouth, she ran the risk of having a complete breakdown. She started to more toward the car but before she could take a step, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her. Instinctively, Rebekah leaned into Stefan's embrace. She sucked in a deep breath, inhaling his scent - sweet like cinnamon and whiskey. Stefan's hold on her was warm and comforting and Rebekah didn't want to pull away but after a few moments she finally did.

"Take care of yourself." Stefan murmured into her ear before she pulled away.

Again, she just nodded before opening the car's passenger side door and climbing in.

Stefan looked over to the driver's side where Klaus stood outside the car. Reaching into his pocket, Klaus pulled out a set of keys and tossed them over to his friend. Stefan caught the keys, not taking his eyes off of Klaus'.

"Take care of the place." Klaus said, nodding over at the bar, his life's work.

Pocketing the keys, Stefan just nodded. The two friends shared a final look before Klaus climbed into the car. Stefan waited until the car had turned the corner before finally turning around and walking back into the empty bar.

* * *

By the time Caroline got to work, she was done feeling hurt and had started feeling pissed. There was only so much she could forgive. Caroline understood Klaus was hurting but that didn't give him the right to hurt her like he had. She was still stewing when Elena appeared in front of her cubicle.

"The Patterson case files." Elena said, setting a thick manila folder onto Caroline's desk.

Caroline glanced down at the folder then back up at Elena. "I thought Lucas was the paralegal on this case."

"And now you're on it." Elena said with a wide grin. "I told you the new guy was asking for you personally."

Caroline rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to bang her head on the desk. Elena had mentioned last week in the break room that the new junior partner, Galen Vaughn, had requested Caroline be assigned to his first case.

"Don't look so excited." Elena said, throwing her friend a confused look.

"Never mind. I'll explain later." She said, standing up from her chair and picking up the folder. "I've got work to do."

Five minutes later, Caroline found herself standing in front of Vaughn's office. She knocked twice and when a muffled 'come in' sounded, Caroline swung the door open. Vaughn looked right at home behind a large oak wood desk. With sandy blonde hair and a nice build, he was just as attractive as Caroline remembered from meeting him in the lobby last week. She waited to feel some spark of attraction but nothing came as Caroline walked further into the room.

"Good morning, Mr. Vaughn. I'm the paralegal assigned to the Patterson case." Caroline said, though she knew he already knew that since he had asked for her.

"Yes, of course. Have a seat, we can get right to work. And call me Galen, please." He looked up and threw her a smile, gesturing to the leather chair across from his desk. Caroline might not have felt a spark of attraction before but she was just as susceptible to that Irish accent as any other female would be.

Twenty minutes later, they had gone through a review of the case and he had given her a list of documents to compile and things to research. Caroline stood from the chair, collecting the files in front of her into one neat pile. She was halfway to the door when she turned around again to face Vaughn.

"Can I ask why you requested me specifically?"

There was a beat before he responded. "I'm new here and I have a lot to prove. I need to nail this first case and to do that I need the best. Word on the street is," He grinned up at her with an infectious smile. "the best is you."

Caroline found herself smiling for the first time since she'd woken up that morning.

"Well, thanks for the vote of confidence." She said, grinning back at him.

"I'm sure you won't let me down." He replied.

With a nod, Caroline spun around on her heel and exited the office.

* * *

After a seven hour flight and a quiet drive, it was a little after midnight by the time Klaus and Rebekah reached the family home. Leaving the bags in the car to be dealt with in the morning, the two strode up the stairs to the three story house. It took a few minutes for Klaus to locate the spare key their mother kept hidden on the wraparound porch. The house was still and quiet, which was to be expected given it was after midnight.

"I'm going up to bed." Rebekah said softly, heading towards the stairs.

Klaus looked around the empty foyer, contemplating what to do with himself. The trip had been exhausting but his body still thought it was only 6:00 so it was unlikely he'd be falling asleep any time soon. If he recalled correctly, there was a nice stash of aged scotch in one of the sitting rooms. Klaus was making his way down the hall when a light caught his eye. Careful not to make any noise, Klaus slipped over to the library where the light was shining from and eased the door open slowly.

His mother sat in a large armchair, staring into the fireplace watching the flames dance.

"What are you still doing up?" Klaus asked quietly as he walked into the room and came to stand beside his mother's chair, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Esther reached up to place her hand on his, squeezing it lightly once. "Waiting for you and Rebekah. I wanted to be sure you both arrived safely." Her voice was almost distant in a way, her gaze still locked on the fireplace.

"You should get some sleep." Klaus crouched down, bending his knees until he was level with his mother. "You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow."

"I'm not tired." Esther replied, still speaking as if she were in a trance. "I haven't had to lift a finger. Elijah's been so great planning the whole funeral."

Klaus sighed. "You still need to rest."

Finally Esther tore her eyes away from the flames to look at Klaus. He could see a pain that mirrored his own in her gaze. When she spoke, her voice was so soft Klaus almost had to lean forward to hear her. "How many more of my sons will I have to bury?"

Klaus ducked his head, staring down at the carpet. There was no imagining what his mother was going through. Henrik had died of malaria before his fifteenth birthday. They'd lost Finn six years ago to a random mugger. And now Kol. As a child, Klaus used to complain about being one of so many children. All the forced sharing, all the inevitable fighting. And look at them now. He'd lost more siblings than he had left.

When Klaus didn't respond, Esther continued on. "No mother should bear the death of three of her children. It's not natural."

"You need to get some rest, mother." Klaus said, standing again and tugging Esther up with him.

She stood slowly and let Klaus lead her out of the library and up to her bedroom. Pausing in front of her door, Klaus leaned down to place a kiss on his mother's forehead.

"Try to get some sleep."

She huffed lightly, "Sleep would be a welcome respite. If it ever came."

Klaus waited until his mother had disappeared into her room before heading back downstairs. It didn't take him long to locate that bottle of scotch he'd been after. With the bottle in one hand and a glass in the other, Klaus made his way up to his childhood room. It was always strange coming back here. When he'd gone off to college, Klaus had made it a point to visit as infrequently as possible. Even after his mother divorced Mikael, almost a decade ago, Klaus still couldn't return to this home without dredging up old, painful memories. Somewhere in the back of his mind he wondered if Mikael would be at Kol's funeral tomorrow. He hadn't shown up for Finn's.

Pouring himself a glass, Klaus wandered over to the bookshelf, eyeing the pictures there. He lingered on the ones that had Kol's smiling face in them before finally turning them all over. That grinning face wasn't something he wanted to wake up to tomorrow morning.

Klaus lost track of how many drinks he'd had before passing out on his bed. It wasn't long before he was back in the backseat of that cab.

"And the prodigal son returns."

Klaus whipped his head to the side to face a grinning Kol.

"I hear my special day is tomorrow." Kol said, lifting that same flask to his lips.

"I'm sure it'll be a widely attended event." Klaus replied, watching his brother.

Kol threw his head back and laughed. "I'm positive the ladies will come out in herds. All those fine women, grieving the death of the greatest lover they ever knew. It'll be easy pickings for you." He said, shoving Klaus' shoulder playfully.

"I've never needed your secondhand girls." Klaus shot back with a slow smile. "Besides, I highly doubt Elijah invited all your lady friends to the funeral."

Kol just clucked his tongue, "Damn shame. I do miss the ladies. Though if I'm being honest, the afterlife certainly has its fair share of beauties. Jean Harlow. Marilyn Monroe."

"Starting small I see?" Klaus laughed.

Kol threw him that sly grin. "I'm hitting the ground running, brother."

Klaus looked up as they neared the bend. The intersection would be just around the corner. When he turned to face his brother again all lightheartedness had fled his eyes and Kol was giving him a serious look.

"You can't keep coming back here brother."

"It's not that easy." Klaus replied, looking away and out the window.

Kol hit him in the shoulder and Klaus turned to face his brother again.

"Stop coming back for me. I'm okay." Kol said with a seriousness that never came naturally to him. "I have Finn. And Henrik, that little shit. They both say hello."

Klaus nodded even as his mind was racing a mile a minute. There was comfort in knowing his brothers all had each other now. _Stop coming back for me. _But what if Klaus wasn't coming back for Kol? What if this nightly dream occurred because _he _needed it? Klaus needed to see his brother. He needed to be able to talk to Kol, even if it was just for a brief period of time. Because out there, in the real world, Klaus was alone in this. He was alone in his secrets, in the truth. The weight of everything that had happened, and why it had happened, was a burden Klaus had to carry on his own. In here, he had Kol. But out there, he was alone.

"Goodbye, brother."

Klaus looked away from the street and over at Kol. His eyes stayed trained on his brother for a moment longer before flitting back out the window and looking towards the quickly approaching intersection. Klaus braced himself for impact and counted down in his head. Three, two -

Like all the times before, he shot up in his bed before the crash came. And like all the times before, Klaus realized that he was completely and utterly alone.

* * *

**Much love and many thanks to my beta Kristen (sweetklausoline). You might have noticed less errors - that was her doing. So. Thoughts?**


	10. Chapter 10

**So it's been well over a month, I'm super sorry guys. I'm even more sorry that this is basically a boring filler chapter anyway. It'll get exciting again soon enough though. **

* * *

It was raining. The skies had been clear all week but now, now it was raining. Klaus barely held back a sarcastic laugh. They were putting Kol in the ground now and like every cliché funeral he'd ever seen, it was raining. The clouds had already started rolling in when Elijah had burst into Klaus' room this morning to wake him up.

Elijah had been in bed when his siblings had arrived last night but one glance at Klaus' body splayed haphazardly across the bed painted a pretty clear picture of what his brother had gotten up to the night before.

"We leave for the cemetery in twenty minutes." Elijah spoke loudly, opening the heavy curtains and looking out at the clouds moving closer.

Klaus just grunted, rolling over in the bed.

"Twenty minutes." Elijah repeated, tossing Klaus' tux onto the bed. "And wash the scotch out of your breath." He said as he strode out of the room, not bothering to glance back at Klaus to see if he had moved. Twenty minutes and they'd leave with or without him.

For the last week since Kol's passing, Elijah had thrown himself into planning the funeral. Burying himself in the details (and even now concerning himself with making sure everyone stuck to the itinerary), Elijah was able to turn off his emotions. As it always had, the responsibility fell on Elijah, but he was grateful for it. He needed the distraction that planning the funeral had provided and if he was being honest with himself, Elijah wasn't quite sure what he would do after the funeral was over. After his little brother's lifeless body was rotting beneath six feet of soil.

Ten more minutes. They'd leave in ten more minutes.

By the time Elijah stood to give his eulogy, the rain was really coming down. As his brother spoke, Klaus half listened, looking around as people crowded under umbrellas. Some of them stared forward with stoic faces, others cried with shaking shoulders. Klaus was observing each person when he saw him - Kol standing off in the distance.

Maybe it was the rain peppering his eyelashes with water drops. Maybe it was the shots he had taken from the flask in the car ride over. Maybe he was officially losing his mind and the apparition that filled his dreams had taken on a more corporeal form.

Klaus tilted his head to stare at his brother and Kol just stared back. It was Elijah's voice that snapped Klaus' attention back to the funeral. His eldest brother ended his eulogy and silence descended. When Klaus looked back to where he last saw Kol, there was nothing but shadowy figures retreating. Maybe it was the rain. Maybe it was the shots. Maybe it was nothing but fog. Maybe not. Either way, Klaus had the sinking feeling whatever it was would not be returning.

The coffin was lowered into the ground as Klaus stepped forward alongside Rebekah, Elijah and their mother. Klaus glanced once at the rose in his hand, spun it around a few times between his fingers before letting it fall, watching it float down to join Kol's coffin in the ground.

Once back at the house, Klaus wasted no time slipping away before people began to arrive for the wake. He didn't want to be surrounded by people telling their favorite stories about Kol. He didn't want to watch his mother stare listlessly at all the people observing her every move. He didn't want to deal with all the condolences people would surely force down his throat. So Klaus slipped away quietly before Elijah could stop him, heading over to the alcohol cabinet in the library. He'd come to associate sobriety with pain – with a constant stream of self-loathing and pathetic despair. The sooner he got the whiskey pumping through his system, the sooner he'd feel that welcome numbness- the sooner he'd be free of that little voice in his head constantly reminded him that it was all his fault.

As he sat back, bottle in one hand and a glass in the other, Klaus thought back to how he'd seen Kol at the funeral. It had felt an awful lot like his brother was walking away from him for good. Maybe if he drank enough, he'd see him again. It didn't necessarily matter to Klaus that it would be nothing more than a façade – the ghost of Kol was better than no Kol at all. So he poured himself a drink. And another. And another.

* * *

Klaus continued on this way for the next three weeks and when the liquor in the house was all gone he simply stocked up on more. He'd also taken to spending his days in Kol's old room. If he couldn't conjure up his little brother, this was the closest he'd come to drinking with him again – sitting in Kol's favorite armchair and staring out the large bay windows. Sometimes if he stared hard enough, and was drunk enough, he could almost make out the shape of a figure in the foggy window panes.

Settling deeper into the chair and leaning his head back over the edge, Klaus tried to keep his eyes from drifting closed. Sleep would come for him eventually but he'd found it was best to put it off for as long as possible. He was still having the dreams, only now there was no Kol. It was just Klaus alone in the back of that cab, just like Kol had been, crashing over and over again. It was easier to stomach the exhaustion. He'd been lifting the glass to his lips again when the sound of the door opening and floorboard creaking drifted up from behind him. Moments later, Elijah appeared in front of him, that same somber and disapproving look he'd worn on his face every time he glanced at Klaus over the last three weeks.

"Come to join me?" Klaus asked with a sardonic smirk, already knowing his brother's response.

Elijah stared down at the mess his brother had become. He'd told himself that Klaus would eventually snap out of it, every one grieved their own way and copious amounts of liquor appeared to be Klaus' way of coping. But his brother showed no signs of stopping and Elijah had had enough.

"Get up." He said, glancing momentarily away from Klaus and looking over at the closed bedroom door.

Klaus gestured forward with the glass still in hand. "I'm rather comfortable right here, really."

Before he could continue, Elijah's hands shot out and gripped Klaus' shirt around the collar, yanking him up and causing whiskey to splash over his arm. Elijah tugged his brother forward until their noses all but brushed, the unmitigated fury in his eyes a clear warning.

"Enough, Niklaus." He growled. "This drunken behavior has progressed far enough."

Klaus glanced down at Elijah's fists wrapped around his shirt and just gave a dark smile before looking back at his brother. "I'm sorry, does my grief offend you?"

"And are you alone in your grief? What of our mother? And Rebekah? Do you not care what happens to them?" Elijah used his grip on Klaus' shirt to shake him but his brother just let out a scornful laugh.

"Oh but they have you. Elijah the first born. So noble, so strong." Klaus said mockingly.

Elijah released his hold on Klaus, shoving him in the process. He adjusted the sleeves on his suit before speaking again. "Still such a child, Niklaus."

The smirk fell from his face and Klaus' eyes darkened. "And so the truth comes out." He spat, more than a little drunk. "The glaring realization that I'll never be the man you are. The last Mikaelson male with true Mikaelson blood coursing through his veins."

Elijah scoffed derisively. "Of course we return to this age old grievance of yours." He stepped closer to Klaus as he spoke. He'd had more than enough of his brother's secluded, sullen behavior. "You whine about the blood that courses through your vein but if you want to be a part of this family then **be **a part of this family."

"You have no idea what I've done to this family!" Klaus yelled, images of Kol's face flashing through his mind. He hadn't shared the bitter truth with anyone…except Caroline. His siblings, his mother – they had no idea what he had taken from them.

Elijah watched the rage and dejection swirl in his brother's eyes before stepping even closer until their shoes all but brushed. "And you have no idea what you're **doing **to this family. Right now." He looked his brother up and down once more before striding off toward the door.

Klaus didn't turn around but listened for the sound of the door slamming behind him. Elijah didn't give him the satisfaction – closing it softly instead and leaving Klaus alone again in the lifeless room. He sank back into the chair and shut his eyes. Without intending to, Klaus fell asleep and a mere half hour passed before someone was shaking him awake. Coughing to clear his dry throat, Klaus opened his eyes and looked up at Rebekah who stood in front of him with arms crossed over her chest.

"It's dinner." She said, looking from him to the bottle on the table and back at Klaus again. "If you can make it there." Rebekah muttered as she strode toward the door. Unlike Elijah, she did slam it and Klaus quickly brought his hand to his head as if that would somehow stop the headache already creeping up on him.

Shaking his head once, Klaus stood from the armchair and headed toward the door. By the time he reached the dining room, Elijah, Rebekah and his mother were all seated at the table. Klaus dropped into the seat opposite Rebekah, remaining silent the entire time. He watched and ate while his family made idle chitchat around him – the atmosphere noticeably lacking Kol's boisterous attitude. It wasn't until Rebekah addressed him that Klaus finally spoke.

"Nik, when are we going home?" She asked, looking up from her plate and locking eyes with him.

Klaus furrowed his eyebrows. "We **are **home."

"That's not what I meant." Rebekah shot back.

Elijah cut in before Klaus could respond. "I believe what our dear brother is trying to say is we're happy to have you two back. There's no rush to leave."

Rebekah turned to face her eldest brother. "It's been weeks Elijah. I want to go home, to Chicago. No offense, mother." She turned again to face Esther who sat quietly and watched her children (what remained of them) bicker.

"There's nothing for us in Chicago." Klaus said, his mind already conjuring up images of that one cross street. The very spot where Kol's cab had collided with another car. There was nothing for him in Chicago except the constant reminder of what had happened.

"I want to go home." Rebekah repeated slowly, her hands balling into fists on the table.

Klaus let out a dismissive laugh. "To what exactly? To the friends you don't have? To the job you don't have?"

"To Stefan!" Rebekah shouted before she could stop herself and all eyes were on her.

There was silence for a moment before Klaus let out another cruel laugh. "Typical Rebekah. Our brother's barely in the ground for a few weeks and already you've moved on to yet another lust fuelled obsession. Kol would be thrilled to see how thoroughly you've mourned him."

Elijah threw Klaus a critical look. "That's rich coming from a man who hasn't been sober for more than an hour since his passing. "

"I don't need you to defend me." Rebekah said, throwing Elijah a look before turning back to Klaus. "And maybe I wouldn't be so eager to go lean on Stefan if you were any help at all but you're far more interested in drinking yourself into a coma."

"Says the recovering alcoholic." Klaus almost immediately regretted the words.

Rebekah's jaw locked and she stood up quickly from the table before storming off. She and Klaus had always been close and when she needed him the most, Klaus drew into himself. Rebekah had no idea what was going on but she knew the callous man back at the table wasn't her brother.

Back at the table, Elijah fixed a stern glare on Klaus. "Well done, Niklaus."He stood and followed Rebekah out, leaving Klaus alone with their mother.

Esther turned to look at Klaus, her gaze that same meditative look she'd used on them all at some point or another. She had a way of looking at you that made it seem as though she was leisurely reading your mind.

"I suppose I should have sat this dinner out." Klaus said with a wry smile, having the decency to feel ashamed now that it was just him and his mother.

She gave him a small smile, reaching a hand out to place it on his. Klaus looked down at their intertwined fingers on the table and then back at his mother.

"How are you holding up?" He finally asked after a few moments of silence. Klaus felt guilty for not having inquired to his mother's wellbeing at all over the last few weeks. Part of him had been avoiding her. It was hard enough to cope without seeing that morose look in her eyes every day.

"As well as to be expected." Esther replied with a soft sigh. "I'd be better if I knew you were alright."

"Of course I'm alright, mother." He replied quickly, squeezing her hand in his.

Esther just arched an eyebrow and threw him a disbelieving look. She knew her children well and she knew Klaus was the furthest thing from fine.

"I miss him." Klaus spoke beneath his breath with a small shrug.

"We all do."

Silence descended again while Esther waited patiently for Klaus to explain what was really wrong.

"It's my fault you know."

Klaus hadn't meant to say the words but once he did it was as if a small portion of the weight had been lifted. As if sharing the secret had somehow lessened the burden. Klaus wasn't sure what reaction he had been expecting from his mother but the soft sigh she let out wasn't quite it.

"And what would possess you to carry around such an absurd notion?" She finally asked after a moment, her heart hurting even more at the thought that Klaus had been carrying around this extra grief.

"Kol was coming to see me. He called me again and again, asking me to come pick him up from the airport and" Klaus looked away from his mother and back down at their hands, "and I didn't." He admitted. "I didn't come for him and he ended up in that cab."

"Listen to me," Esther shook his hand in hers, forcing Klaus to look back up at her, "none of this is your fault. Things happened and Kol was taken from us but none of that is on you."

Klaus remained silent, just watching his mother. She was comforting him when he should be the one comforting her.

Esther sighed before speaking again. "You're just as stubborn as I was at your age so I know there will be no convincing you. If this guilt is something you want to carry around then nothing I say will change anything. You may blame yourself, but sooner or later, you're going to have to forgive yourself."

Klaus paused before finally responding. "Don't worry about me, I'll be okay."

"Will you?" His mother asked with an arched eyebrow that clearly said she didn't believe it. "Take care of yourself, Niklaus. I can't lose another son." She whispered the last part, her grip on his hand tightening again.

"I will. I promise." Klaus replied.

"Now," Esther said, patting his hand one last time before pulling back, "tell me why you don't want to go home."

He gave her a small half smile. "Tired of me already?"

"Never." She smiled back, the first smile he'd seen on her face in weeks. "But you built a life for yourself in Chicago. Don't throw it all away. That's not what he would want."

Klaus leaned back in his seat. "I can't go back there. I'm not ready to face it. I'm not ready to face the people that I've hurt." Caroline's stricken face flashed in his mind and Klaus quickly buried the image, not ready to handle it yet.

"Running away from your problems is a race you'll never win." Esther replied somberly as she stood up. "You'll see that soon enough."

Klaus watched his mother go, leaving him once again alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Work. Caroline buried herself in work. Because the more she worked, early mornings and late nights at the office, the less likely she was to think about Klaus. Caroline hadn't heard from him in weeks, not that she was letting it get to her. If space was what he wanted then space was exactly what he was going to get. Caroline didn't need him – she had a very exciting life. A life that currently revolved around one thing – work.

"I filed the subpoena, proofed the testimony and I've readied the affidavits and forms for court tomorrow." Caroline said as she walked into Galen Vaughn's office.

"You did all that in one afternoon?" He asked, looking up from his computer and at her.

She grinned widely. "I did all that in one hour."

"Caroline Forbes, how do you do it?" Vaughn asked with a grin as he circled around his desk and came to stand in front of Caroline, accepting the stack of files she held out to him.

"I have my ways." She shot back with a smirk.

He let out a laugh. "A woman of many talents."

"Will that be all?"

"Yes, of course." Vaughn said, tapping the files against his hand. "Thanks again."

Caroline grinned and nodded. She was just doing her job but she liked that he always thanked her for it. A lot of the lawyers at the firm walked around with sticks wedged far up their asses and treating the paralegals like glorified secretaries. Vaughn, however, went out of his way to be nice. Caroline hadn't done a whole lot of smiling over the last few weeks but whenever she did – he seemed to be present.

She waved a quick goodbye before striding back over to her cubicle. Caroline had barely reached for her bag when Elena appeared in front of her.

"Look who's finally leaving the office at a reasonable hour." Her friend said, placing a hand on one cocked hip.

"I haven't been staying _that _late." Caroline replied, swinging her bag over her shoulder.

Elena just scoffed. "I'm pretty sure the night security guard knows you by name."

"Okay so maybe I've been spending a lot of time here." She shot back with a shrug.

"Maybe?" Elena said with an arched eyebrow. "Caroline you've become a borderline workaholic. But don't worry, that's why I'm here." She grinned. "To pull you back from the edge."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Aren't we being a little dramatic?"

Ignoring her friend, Elena linked arms with Caroline as they strode down the hall. "We're going out for drinks and I'm going to get you wasted."

"Fine." Caroline said with a sigh, resigning herself to her fate. "Where to then?" She asked as they exited the large corporate building that held the law offices.

Elena threw Caroline a sheepish look as they walked over to the parking lot and Caroline froze, pulling Elena to a stop.

"No." She said firmly. "Elena we're not going there."

"Why not?" Her friend whined with a pout. "The drinks are free and plus, I want to see Stefan."

"Okay first of all, the drinks _were _free. Things change." Caroline hadn't quite explained what had happened to Elena but her friend knew enough to know that Caroline and Klaus weren't on the best of terms at the moment. "And two, a night of watching you flirt with Stefan isn't my idea of a good time."

"Caroline, come on." Elena shook her friend's arm. "Please, please, please." She cajoled with her best smile.

Rolling her eyes, Caroline finally gave in. "Fine. But just a few drinks." She said, pointing at Elena.

Elena was about to respond when she paused, looking over Caroline's shoulder.

"What?" Caroline asked, turning to see Vaughn striding toward the parking lot.

"I just had an idea." Elena said with a slow grin.

"Whatever it is, the answer is no." Caroline said, turning back around to face her friend.

Ignoring her, Elena raced off and Caroline barely refrained from face-palming when her friend danced over to Vaughn. She watched the exchange from a distance, leaning back against her car. When Elena finally began walking back over, it was with a huge grin on her face.

"What are you smiling about?" Caroline asked with a wary look.

"Nothing." Elena said with a smile, climbing into the passenger side seat and waiting for Caroline to get in. "Just, Galen's going to join us for drinks." She said once Caroline put the car in drive.

"What?!" Caroline threw Elena a look before turning back to face the road again.

"He's following in the car behind us." She replied.

"I meant why?!" Caroline shrieked.

Rolling her eyes, Elena swung her head to face her friend. "Because why not?"

"Well for one thing, he's our boss. People generally don't go out to get drunk with their bosses."

"Technically, he's not our boss. He's a lawyer who happens-"

Caroline cut her friend off before she could continue. "Not the point Elena!"

"Relax, Caroline." She said, exasperatedly. "You said it yourself, he's a cool guy."

"Yes in a, 'I like working for him' kind of way."

The car was silent for a moment as Elena searched for a gentle way to make her point. "Caroline look, I don't know what happened between you and Klaus but I do know that burying yourself in work won't help you move on."

"And having drinks with Vaughn will?" Caroline asked sardonically.

"It's certainly a step in the right direction." Elena said with a shrug that was met with a scoff from Caroline. "It's just a few drinks."

Not wanting to fight, Caroline bit her tongue and just drove. Truth be told, it wasn't as if the thought hadn't crossed her mind once or twice. She wasn't blind, Caroline could tell when a guy was interested in her and Vaughn definitely was. And she hadn't been lying when she raved about him to Elena. By all accounts, Vaughn would be a great catch. Successful job, funny, smart, kind. The list of reasons why Caroline should be into him went on and on. The list of reasons why she shouldn't was a short one – Klaus.


	11. Chapter 11

On an average day, Caroline was a master at compartmentalizing. Every issue, every worry, the good, the bad and the ugly, all had their own individual box in her head. It was how she stayed sane – it was how she stayed efficient. But lately the lines were all blurry and her mind was nothing but a jumbled mess.

Somehow the 'work' box had clashed with the 'personal' box over the last week as Caroline devoted her time to closing the Patterson case with Vaughn. Maybe it was just the effect of being cooped up in close quarters together on so many late nights. Maybe it was some closeted fantasy about an illicit office affair trying to work its way out of her system. Or maybe Galen Vaughn was just that charming and sweet. Then again, maybe it was the accent. Maybe it was all of these things. Could be it was none of them.

Normally, Caroline would be able to sort through how she felt about all of this but once again the usually neat boxes in her head were collapsing and one mess ran into another. She couldn't think about Vaughn without thinking about Klaus. Klaus who she hadn't heard so much as a whisper from since he'd left for London a month ago. It was unfair how he occupied her thoughts since she was so clearly the furthest thing from his. But thinking about work led to thinking about Vaughn and thinking about Vaughn led to thinking about Klaus and Caroline desperately missed her ability to compartmentalize.

Though an annoying inner voice reminded Caroline that it hardly mattered. All roads led to Klaus. She could be out buying ice cream and be slammed by the memory of late nights eating Rocky Road ice cream and watching trashy horror films with Klaus. Caroline could be out jogging while listening to music and a song he suggested to her would come on – bringing with it the memories of sharing music over a takeout dinner. The worst was when she saw a taxi and immediately thought of his brother – immediately remembered the way Klaus had returned to his apartment that night drunk and angry and broken.

Caroline wondered where exactly Klaus was now and what exactly he was doing. She mostly wondered if he'd started to heal yet. If he still blamed himself…still blamed her.

"Caroline?"

Her mind was still so far away that her name said in that accent was almost enough to convince Caroline that Klaus was here. Almost.

She snapped out of her daze and looked up at Vaughn who was shooting Caroline a confused look across the table, files open and scattered between them.

"Yes?" Caroline asked, shuffling papers around in an attempt to hide the fact that she had just checked out for God knows how long.

Vaughn's confused stare turned into a slow, teasing grin. "Where were you just now?"

"What do you mean?" She asked quickly, feeling her face flush.

"Hey don't be embarrassed," Vaughn said with a slight laugh, "this is pretty boring stuff, I'd check out too." He gestured to the files covering the table.

"Just a little hungry is all." Caroline replied, knowing there was no way she'd tell him where her mind had really gotten off to. This wouldn't be a problem if Klaus hadn't shattered her ability to compartmentalize.

Vaughn rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. "Well we've been at this for a while." He glanced down at his watch. "Why don't we grab some dinner, we'll put it on the firm's tab."

He grinned at her but Caroline could practically feel the hint of hesitation beneath it. She didn't exactly blame him after the way drinks had gone last week when he'd joined her and Elena. Caroline didn't know a lot about mixed signals but she knew she'd been giving them off in spades that night. In her defense, it was hard enough being in Klaus' bar for the first time since he'd left. It was made even harder by Stefan's almost constant appearance, interrupting every time he thought Vaughn had leaned in too close.

Caroline wanted to give this little flirtation with Vaughn a fair shot. She owed that to herself – and she definitely didn't owe anything to Klaus. All she needed was for all the different compartments of her mind to get on the same page. And right now, that page was dinner with Vaughn.

"Sure." Caroline finally responded, throwing him her best grin.

He grinned back, all signs of hesitation gone, and Caroline felt her mood lift. "So where to?" Vaughn asked, already moving to stand.

Caroline stood as well, her excitement building now. She could this. She was a free woman and Vaughn was one of the good ones. She needed a good one. "I know the perfect place."

* * *

"Are you going to tell her you're back?"

Klaus didn't look up from the papers on his desk when Stefan strode into the backroom office of the bar. He'd closed the bar down early to catch up on all the work he'd missed while he was in London for three weeks.

Unfazed by Klaus ignoring him, Stefan dropped into the seat across from him before continuing. "It's been a week already. I think she'd want to know."

Klaus didn't move so much as a muscle, strategically ignoring Stefan's presence. His friend wasn't exactly filling Klaus in on something he didn't already know. He knew he should call Caroline. He knew she'd want to know he was back. He knew they needed to talk. Klaus was well aware of all of this but for the past week since he'd returned to the states, he'd avoided doing anything about it. His mother might have advised that running from his problems wasn't the solution but Klaus would certainly try.

The truth was he wasn't ready to face her yet. Hell, he'd hardly been ready to face this town and simply wouldn't have if it weren't for Rebekah's insistence. Klaus had enough on his plate returning to Chicago and Caroline inspired a hotbed of conflicting emotions in him that he couldn't properly deal with at the moment. Part of him was still mad at her but part of him wanted to fall at her feet and beg for forgiveness. Part of him wanted her so badly it made his bones ache and part of him never wanted to see her again – never wanted to face the things she reminded him of. Part of him knew he needed her, knew he wouldn't be able to get through this without her, and part of him knew they needed to stay far away from each other.

So Stefan wasn't enlightening Klaus to anything he didn't already know. Klaus had spent the last few nights wide awake in bed, consumed by thoughts of Caroline. Stefan's incessant reminders were just a drop in the bucket at this point. Which is why Klaus was ignoring him. Until Stefan spoke again.

"She was in here the night you got back, you know." Stefan pointed out nonchalantly, leaning back in the chair and watching his friend with perceptive eyes. "She was with some lawyer guy from her firm."

Klaus' shoulders tensed and he finally looked up, fixing his gaze on his friend but remaining silent. He knew he had no grounds to be angry but that logical thinking didn't stop the wave of jealously that hit him like a two by four to the face. Even before everything that had happened, Caroline was a free woman. She was breathtakingly stunning, undeniably sharp, full of endless wit, and most guys with eyes in their heads tended to notice. And there was nothing Klaus could do about it because at the end of the day the truth remained that she wasn't his, no matter how fiercely he wanted her to be. Caroline was a lot of things to him, a friend, a lover, a confidante – but she wasn't _his. _And after everything that had happened, she probably never would be.

"Caroline's a big girl. She can do what she pleases." Klaus bit out, swallowing back a growl and impressing himself with how steady his voice managed to sound.

Stefan, however, wasn't fooled and just arched an eyebrow as he shrugged.

"I need to get some air." Klaus stood abruptly and strode toward the door of his office. "Try not to be here when I get back." He said gruffly.

Stefan just let out a low laugh as his friend stormed out of the office. He hadn't initially intended to play the Caroline with another guy card but Klaus had done nothing but mope around for the last week and Stefan figured he needed the extra push. He'd never seen his friend behave the way he did with Caroline. Stefan still wasn't clear on all that had gone down between them but he knew Klaus needed Caroline. And watching Caroline the other day with Elena and that guy, Stefan had known she needed him too. Since neither of them seemed to have come to this conclusion on their own, Stefan was taking matters into his own hands.

Shaking his head at the empty room, Stefan stood from his seat and strolled out of the office. He was on his way to the door, prepared to head home for the night, when a voice sounded behind him.

"Leaving so soon?"

He was grinning before he even turned around to face Rebekah.

"Your brother made it pretty clear he'd rather not see my face for the rest of the night." Stefan replied, walking over to where Rebekah stood by the bar.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "My brother's been a moody asshole."

"It's understandable." Stefan replied with a shrug, coming to a stop in front of Rebekah. "How are you holding up?" He asked softly. The two hadn't seen much of each other in the last week since the Mikaelson's return.

Rebekah hopped up onto to the counter, her legs swinging in the air as she stared back at Stefan. "Okay, I guess. Better than Nik anyway."

Stefan moved closer, resting his elbows on the bar beside Rebekah and tilting his head to the side to look up at her. "I can't imagine how hard this must be. I don't know what a world without Damon would be like." Stefan spoke barely above a whisper, thoughts of the brother he rarely talked to coming to mind. The two had a volatile relationship but Stefan loved his brother more than anyone else in this world and despite everything between them, he knew Damon felt the same way.

"I'll be okay." Rebekah said, throwing him a sad smile. "Where did my brother run off to anyway?" She said, quickly changing the subject.

"Hopefully to find Caroline. More likely, to brood in a dark corner by himself." Stefan said with a smile.

Rebekah let out a dramatic sigh. "If you ask me, those two need to work their shit out sooner rather than later."

Stefan just cocked an eyebrow and threw her a look. Rebekah and Caroline were so alike it was a miracle they got along at all.

"What?" She shot back with a shrug. "The apartment upstairs is really only suitable for one person so the sooner I can get out the better." She said in an effort to cover up her slip.

Stefan just threw her a slow, knowing grin. "It's okay to admit that you miss Caroline. I think she misses you too."

"Yeah well, I'm an easy person to miss." Her lips curved into a smug smile.

"Don't I know it." Stefan shot back, watching as Rebekah's smile turned into a genuine one.

Even with Klaus' less than optimal attitude, Stefan was glad to have them back.

* * *

Driving around the empty Chicago streets, Klaus had no real idea where he was headed. Not that it mattered – it wasn't as if he could outrun his thoughts. It was as if thoughts of Caroline and Kol were fighting for dominance in his head. Every time Klaus focused on Caroline for too long, he'd begin to feel guilty for momentarily forgetting to mourn Kol. On the other hand, it had been a month and Klaus couldn't very well stop living to grieve eternally. That's not what Kol would have wanted.

For a second, Klaus wondered what Kol would have thought of Caroline – what she would have thought of him. But he dismissed the question almost as quickly as it had risen. It didn't matter because they would never meet each other. Not unless Klaus flew Caroline to London to stand in front of Kol's grave. Kol would never know about how Caroline had swept into Klaus' life and changed everything for him. He'd never know how close his brother had come to falling. And Caroline would never know Kol. She'd never know the devilish, trouble-making side of Klaus that only ever came out when he was with his younger brother. They'd never know each other.

Klaus pulled his car over and parked before climbing out. He couldn't keep driving, he had to walk – needed to clear his head somehow. That was proving hard to do as Stefan's words kept echoing in his head.

_She was with some lawyer guy from her firm._

That wasn't any of his business. Not in the least. Caroline had dated guys before him and of course she'd continue to date guys after him. The thought had barely crossed his mind when it dawned on Klaus that there would be no 'after' for him. There'd be no other girls.

Again Klaus felt an internal war rage on in his head. He'd never been as conflicted in his life as he was when it came to Caroline. He couldn't see himself with anyone but Caroline and yet, at the moment, Klaus couldn't see himself with Caroline. He wasn't good for her – not the way he was now, half a man. And he couldn't heal, couldn't be whole again, if every time he looked at her he remembered that catastrophic day.

Without realizing where he was going, Klaus found himself standing in front of a diner he and Caroline used to visit a lot. Yet another reminder he didn't need right now but Klaus was hungry so he swung the door open and strolled in anyway. The place was small and it took him all of 1.2 seconds to notice that head of familiar blonde curls standing by the register. It was only a millisecond after that that Klaus noticed another blond head beside hers.

_She was with some lawyer guy from her firm. _

It didn't matter that Klaus had just had a long talk with himself about how Caroline's love life was none of his business and she was a grown, independent woman capable of making her own decisions. Klaus felt his blood boil. It was one thing to hear she was out with a guy and another thing entirely to see them standing there in front of him.

Jaw locked and shoulders tense, Klaus walked slowly over to the register. Caroline must have felt his stare on her because her head swung to the side and their eyes locked as Klaus drew closer.

Sucking in a deep breath, Caroline blinked a few times to be sure she wasn't just seeing things. She believed in coincidence but this was just too much. Just when she thought she might be able to get Klaus out of her head for one night, he appears as if he hadn't just been an ocean away.

Klaus came to a stop beside her, his penetrating eyes still trained on hers. "Hello, Caroline."

Caroline's mouth opened and shut wordlessly for a moment while she tried to gather her wits. Finally she let out a muttered, "hi."

Silence descended for a moment before there was a cough from the other side of Caroline.

"Oh!" She flushed with a twinge of embarrassment at the uncomfortable moment. "This is my boss, Galen Vaughn." Caroline gestured to him. "Vaughn, this is my…Klaus." She said, waving her hand toward Klaus before it dropped back to her side.

_Her Klaus_. Klaus almost let out a bitter laugh at the accuracy of that statement. Caroline might not be his but he was certainly hers and he probably always would be.

"Nice to meet you." The other man spoke, holding out his hand.

Klaus glanced down briefly at it before taking it in his. "Likewise." He replied smoothly though his grip on the man's hand made it clear that his words were nothing more than a polite pretense.

When Klaus dropped his hand, Vaughn turned to face Caroline again.

"I'll go grab us a booth." He said, picking up their food as spoke before walking away.

Caroline just nodded before turning back to Klaus.

"You're back." She said, though that much was obvious.

Klaus nodded. "I am."

"I missed you." The words were out before Caroline even thought about saying them.

"Clearly." Klaus replied snidely, glancing over her shoulder at the booth Vaughn had slid into.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Caroline let out a scoff. "You're unbelievable." She bit out before turning on her heel and striding away.

Klaus regretted the remark almost immediately but as he watched Caroline take a seat across from Vaughn, he realized there was nothing he could do. His appetite lost, Klaus glanced once more at them before turning to leave the diner.

Caroline had barely slid into the booth across from Vaughn when he looked once over her shoulder then back at her before speaking.

"You two have history I take it." He said with a knowing look.

Caroline just shrugged. "Something like that." It didn't feel like history. It felt an awful lot like the here and now.

"Mind if I give you my two cents on the topic?" Vaughn asked and Caroline just arched an eyebrow, nodding for him to continue. "Any guy that lets a girl like you get away doesn't deserve you Caroline."

Caroline felt her lips curl up into a smile and immediately relaxed. Klaus' appearance had been unexpected to say the least but the song remained the same – she was going to have a good night.

And that's exactly what she did, shoving Klaus to the back of her mind while she talked and laughed with Vaughn. When they were done, he drove her back to the office to get her car and they parted ways without so much as a kiss. Caroline could sense he was considering going for it but was actually quite grateful that he hadn't. As much fun as she'd had with him, Caroline wanted to move slow. Like glacier slow.

When she got home, Caroline quickly changed into a pair of pajama shorts and a matching camisole. She'd barely crawled into her bed with a book when the sound of the doorbell ringing drifted back. Glancing at the bedside clock, Caroline wondered who the hell would be dropping by unannounced at 10:00 PM. She shot out of the bed and raced down the hall, fearing it was an emergency of some sort.

The door swung open and Caroline felt the air rush out of her when she saw Klaus standing there, hands in his pockets.

"Can we talk?" He asked.

"No." Caroline shot back quickly, slamming the door shut.

It had barely closed when the knocking started up. Rolling her eyes, Caroline swung the door open again.

"I just want to talk." Klaus said, having the decency to look shamefaced.

Caroline scoffed. "I talked to Stefan, I know you've been back for a week. So why don't you go take another week and see if I'm ready to 'talk' then."

"Caroline – " Her name had barely fallen from his lips when the door slammed shut again.

Breathing heavy now with anger, Caroline glared at the door. She wasn't some toy he could take out and play with when he felt like it. Caroline was done cutting him slack. But even as she told herself this, Caroline knew she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight unless she heard him out.

For the third time in as many minutes, Caroline swung her apartment door open to find Klaus still standing there.

"I said I didn't want to talk." She pointed out, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I know. I'll wait until you do." Klaus replied, leaning against the doorframe.

"What you're doing is considered harassment."

Klaus fixed that penetrating gaze on her. "Are you going to let me in before your neighbors begin to wonder?"

Stepping back, Caroline let Klaus enter the apartment before shutting the door and walking over to the living room with him following close behind her.

"What do you want Klaus?" She asked, spinning around, hair flying, to face him.

Klaus didn't exactly have an answer because he'd been asking himself the same thing since he got in his car and drove over here. He must be a masochist because despite the horrible memories Caroline evoked, he couldn't bring himself to stay away from her. And maybe it didn't matter – Kol's death would haunt him with or without Caroline in his life. And there was no 'without Caroline'. There couldn't be.

"What do you want?" She asked again, slower now.

Klaus took her in before finally saying. "Your hair's a little shorter." He reached out to graze his fingers over the silky strands but Caroline slapped his hand away.

"I got it cut. But I'm sure that's not why you came all the way over here." She bit out.

"I like it." Klaus replied, his hand dropping back to his side.

Caroline scoffed. "Well if that's all you came here to say then." She gestured toward the door.

"I came to apologize." Klaus finally admitted, stepping closer to Caroline and taking it as a good sign that she didn't step back. "The way I treated you the night –" Klaus paused, steeling himself, "the night it all happened, and the day I left, and earlier tonight at the diner. I've been going through some things and I lashed out at you. It wasn't fair. And I'm sorry."

Caroline paused, watching almost warily as Klaus inched closer. "You blamed me for what happened." She reminded him.

"I know, I was angry. But it wasn't your fault Caroline."

There was another few seconds of silence before she spoke again, this time barely above a whisper. "And you blamed yourself. Do you still feel that way?"

Klaus didn't respond. A part of him would always blame himself. But it was something he would have to learn to live with.

When he didn't respond, Caroline moved to sit on the couch and Klaus followed suit. Crossing her legs beneath her, she turned to face Klaus before breaking the silence.

"Are you okay?"

Klaus let out a bitter laugh. "After the way I've treated you, do you honestly still care if I'm okay?" He asked, his arm going over the back of the sofa and his fingers grazing her shoulder.

"Of course I care." Caroline replied indignantly. "You're still my friend."

"Your friend." Klaus said, staring at her. "Of course."

Silence descended again and they stayed this way for a few minutes before Caroline spoke again.

"Are you ready to talk about it?"

Klaus let out a cross between a derisive laugh and a scoff. "Henrik. Finn. I've had so much practice burying my brothers, you'd think I'd be used to it by now."

"Don't say that." Caroline said, scooting closer to him. "Loss doesn't get any easier."

"So I've learned." Klaus replied, lifting his fingers now to run them through her hair.

Giving in, Caroline shifted until she was nuzzled into the crook of his arm.

Klaus felt his lips curve into the first real smile in weeks as she got comfortable in his arms. He was right, he needed Caroline to get through this. In fact, he just needed Caroline.

"Will you tell me about him? When you're ready?" Caroline asked, tugging his arm tighter around her before entwining their fingers.

Klaus froze. He wanted to talk about Kol but he couldn't. Not yet. "Of course, love."

She nodded against his chest and Klaus felt his body relax again. This was what he needed. Not to run away. Not to drink himself numb. He needed this. He needed her.

* * *

**We're moving out of the heavy shit portion of the story and I know all the angsty-ness came out of nowhere so sorry if that kind of killed your vibe. Smoother waters ahead. **


	12. Chapter 12

**Well it was less than a month this time. Not by a whole hell of a lot but still. Beta'd by the lovely sweetklausoline. **

* * *

Caroline had always been a light sleeper. The slightest creek of the floor or tap on the wall would have her twisting and turning in bed. So when Klaus let out a low groan in his sleep, Caroline shot up in the bed, her mind racing to orient itself. She vaguely remembered curling up in her bed with Klaus and talking until sleep took over.

Leveling out her breathing, Caroline glanced down to see Klaus shirtless and tangled up in her sheets. Before she could write the noise off as a passing thing, he let out another agonized groan. The tormented sound died down but Klaus continued to toss and turn, a look of distress etched on his face. Caroline reached to shake him awake but quickly swallowed back the urge, remembering that you weren't supposed to rouse a person from a nightmare.

She could take a rather good guess at what this particular nightmare was about. Letting out a soft sigh, Caroline laid back down on her side, her gaze still trained on Klaus. He was laying on his side now, his back facing her, but Caroline could still clearly picture the tormented look on his face. Inching closer, she slid her arm over him, pressing her chest to his back. Leaning her head against his shoulder, Caroline waited patiently as Klaus' breathing slowed down. He didn't wake up but his arm moved to cover hers, instinctively tugging her tighter against him.

Caroline lost track of time as she laid awake like this, her face pressed to his back and her fingers tracing soothing patterns across his chest. She wasn't sure if it was helping or not but it definitely made her feel better. Caroline couldn't go back to sleep knowing he was suffering and she couldn't wake him up either but she what she could do was be there for him in whatever little way possible, even if that meant just laying there in silence.

* * *

The nightmares were back but they weren't the same. His brother was no longer there beside him in the cab. Now it was just Klaus, filling the seat where his brother had once been. The streets were the same as the cab speed through them, weaving through traffic. The soft music was the same – even the smell was the same, all fascinating considering Klaus hadn't been there and had no real idea of what had happened that day. Still, his imagination spun the tale and a small part of Klaus found himself believing it. It didn't matter that a small voice in his head kept telling him none of this was real, that it was all a dream – the fear felt very real.

Klaus felt sweat bead on his forehead as the cab turned down that one, inescapable street, speeding faster now toward the intersection. Hands shaking, he gripped the handle of the door and pulled but it was in vain. Frantic now, Klaus scrambled across the seat and lifted his leg to kick at the door, putting the weight of his body behind it. Still nothing. The small rational voice in his head reminded him that it was all nothing but a figment of his imagination but the rest of his mind screamed at him that the intersection was fast approaching.

Taking a steady breath, Klaus slid back into his seat, hands gripping the sides again. 'This is the part of the dream where you wake up', the small rational voice reminded him.

"Wake up." Klaus growled to himself, slamming a hand against the unbreakable window. "Wake up!"

The light jazz music continued to play, completely at odds with what Klaus knew was coming. He wanted to shut his eyes but he couldn't. Instead they remained glued on the intersection up ahead where another car was speeding down the road.

Like all the other times, Klaus counted down in his head. Only this time when one came, he didn't wake up. Instead, time seemed to slow down as the two cars collided. The sound of crunching metal and breaking glass resonated through his head as it cracked against the window. Shards of glass attacked him from both sides, cutting into his skin as his lower body got trapped in the crushed steel of the car.

Even as the small, rational voice reminded him that none of this was real, Klaus realized it had been very real for Kol. He'd been trapped in a closing steel container, unable to breathe with glass tearing into every bit of his flesh. And knowing Kol, he hadn't gone easy. He'd fought. And lost.

Caroline let out a slight yelp when Klaus shot up in the bed, breathing heavier now and wildly taking in his surroundings. Breath still unsteady, he moved quickly to the edge of the bed, planting his feet on the floor and burying his head in his hands.

Caroline watched anxiously for a moment before inching forward to straddle him from behind, her legs parting to glide along either side of him. Without saying a word she wrapped her arms around his stomach, laying her cheek against his sweaty back. Caroline lost track of how long they stayed like this in silence and she never asked him what the nightmare had been about.

She didn't have to ask. She already knew.

When his mind had finally settled, Klaus stood from the bed, reluctant to leave Caroline's warm embrace but knowing he had to. Striding over to the stuffed armed chair backed against the wall, Klaus plucked his shirt up and tugged it on before walking back to Caroline. She was kneeling on the bed now, watching him with concerned eyes. If Klaus had known the nightmare would return, a new and improved version at that, he never would have agreed to spend the night. He wouldn't have put her through that – wouldn't have put himself through that. Because having her there this morning when he woke up had been bittersweet. No matter how much he might have wanted it, Caroline couldn't be the person Klaus turned to with his troubles. Not now – not with how he felt about her.

Throwing her a small reassuring smile that he hoped said, 'I'm okay', Klaus leaned over and cupped her head with one hand, placing a lingering kiss on her forehead.

"Where are you going?" Caroline asked softly once he stood up straight again.

"I have to get to the bar." He replied, not quite wanting to meet her gaze and instead glancing around the floor for anything that might have fallen out of his pockets.

Picking up on his skittish behavior, Caroline could only imagine how much worse it'd be once he was alone in his bar with nothing but an endless supply of liquor and his own tormented thoughts.

"Or you could not…" She said, hopping out of the bed.

Klaus threw her a confused look and Caroline just shrugged.

"Let's play hooky." She said, belatedly realizing that that statement alone might be enough to bring back memories Klaus was clearly having a hard time burying. Remembering something that might help, Caroline rambled on quickly, racing to her underwear drawer. "I have these baseball tickets." She pulled an envelope from the drawer and waved it in front of her. "The firm is always giving out these comp tickets to games at Wrigley Field." Slicing the envelope open, Caroline pulled out two tickets and a flyer with the schedule of home games printed on it. "There's a game today at 3."

She threw him a hesitant smile and Klaus smiled back. Caroline would never cease to amaze him. When he'd come here last night, Klaus hadn't really expected Caroline to forgive him at all. He'd been a complete asshole – Klaus had known that at the time and it was even clearer now. She had every right to hate him or at the very least, shun him for a while to put him in his place. But of course Caroline would be sweetly forgiving on top of all her other obvious perfections.

Her smile widened and Klaus felt his chest constrict. He hadn't realized just how much he'd missed that smile until it was staring him in the face. Walking closer to her, Klaus came to a stop, eyes locked on hers.

"You don't have to do this you know. I wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to see me for a few days."

Caroline just rolled her eyes. "If I didn't want to see you, I would have kicked your ugly ass out last night." She said with a laugh.

Klaus smiled back, his first genuine smile in what felt like ages. "How'd I get so lucky?" He all but whispered, not entirely sure if he was asking her or fate.

"Let's see if you're still singing the same tune by the time I'm done with you today." She said with a laugh, pressing the tickets against his chest before shoving him toward the door. "I'll get ready then we can go for breakfast." Caroline said as she directed Klaus out of the bedroom.

Waiting for her in the living room, Klaus heard her bedroom door open and shut a few minutes before the shower turned on. Alone in that moment with his thoughts, Klaus resolved to make it up to her somehow. Caroline might have forgiven the way he'd treated her but Klaus would never truly forgive himself.

Tapping the tickets against his hand, Klaus glanced around the apartment, spotting odd little hints of his sister everywhere. A pair of shoes left abandoned in the corner, a book on the table folded just the way Rebekah did it. It all served as another reminder of just how lucky he was to have Caroline in his life. And just how undeserving he was. But he could be – he would be. Klaus would make himself worthy of Caroline.

He was still ruminating on this when Caroline reappeared, dressed in jeans and a white V-neck t-shirt, her hair tied up in a ponytail. For the second time that morning, his lips curled into a smile that was just beginning to feel normal again.

"We'll take my car." Klaus said, waving his keys in front of him. He'd rather not explain to Caroline his newfound phobia of being a passenger in a car. Lately, he had to be behind the wheel or Klaus couldn't quite bring himself to get in a car.

Five minutes later, Caroline fiddled with the radio as Klaus drove around looking for a place they could have breakfast. He would have taken her to their usual diner but since last night, Klaus had more or less lost his taste for the place.

Caroline finally stopped toying with the radio and Klaus stopped short of rolling his eyes at the song that filled the car.

"Yes!" Caroline exclaimed, vibrating in her seat in a way that made Klaus smile. "Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really really want."

"Please not this, anything but this." Klaus said with a short laugh, watching Caroline dance in her seat out of the corner of his eye.

Caroline ignored him and continued to sing loudly and off key. "I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna really really really wanna zigazig ha."

"And what, pray tell, does 'zigazig ha' mean?"

"Hey, don't knock the Spice Girls." Caroline said, pausing her singing to throw him a look. "And you're British, aren't they like a national treasure to you guys?"

Klaus just laughed. "Yes, they're right up there with the royal family." He shot back sarcastically.

"Oh come on, what is not to love?! The songs, the attitude, the impeccable sense of style!" Caroline said playfully.

"And now you sound like a young Rebekah." Klaus replied, remembering his little sister's rather drawn out obsession with the girl group in her youth.

"Of course she was a Spice Girls fan. Let me guess, she was Posh Spice." Caroline said with a laugh.

Klaus just shrugged. "Sounds accurate enough. And you?"

"Oh, Ginger through and through." She shot back with ease. "I was a born leader."

Klaus smirked, letting out a low laugh. "I noticed."

Caroline didn't respond, choosing instead to continue her off-key singing. When he rolled his eyes, she just laughed and turned it up louder. And as annoying as it could have been, Klaus actually found it nice to finally have something drowning out the incessant noise in his head.

* * *

Stefan was busy taking stools off the countertop when the sound of soft footsteps drifted in from behind him. Without turning around, he found himself smiling.

"Getting a late start on the day are we?" Stefan asked as he felt Rebekah cross the bar to him.

A moment later she appeared in his line of sight, hopping up onto one of the stools he had just placed on the ground. "A side effect of a late night." Rebekah said in response to his question.

Stefan just arched an eyebrow, giving her an inquisitive look and Rebekah felt a slight flush creep onto her cheeks. She wasn't sure how much of her past partying issues Klaus had relayed to his friend but the question in Stefan's eyes was enough to have Rebekah explaining.

"Not that kind of late night. Just a little trouble sleeping." She said quickly, shrugging nonchalantly. The truth was, 'a little' was putting it lightly though some nights were better than others.

"Anyway, have you seen my brother around?" Rebekah asked, rushing to change the subject.

Stefan shook his head, leaning against the bar beside Rebekah's stool. "He texted me asking me to open the place up and I haven't heard from him since. Lexi's not scheduled to come in until much later so the afternoon rush is going to be rough."

Stefan had already called Lexi in an attempt to cajole her into coming in earlier but his best friend was having none of it. Without Klaus there to help man the bar, Stefan would be swamped – especially since it was a game day and patrons liked to watch the game in packs while they enjoyed a beer.

"I could help." Rebekah found herself offering. She had no experience in bartending but she'd certainly been on the other end of the bar enough to get a general idea of how it worked.

"Oh you don't have to do that." Stefan said, although he found himself thrilled that she'd offered at all – not so much because he needed the extra help but more because it meant she'd be stuck here with him for the next few hours and that sounded pretty damn appealing to Stefan.

"I want to." Rebekah said with a slow grin. "Though I don't know how much help I'll be. I've never done this before."

Stefan let out a low laugh that sent a slight shiver racing down her spine. "Well I happen to be a great teacher." He said as he vaulted over the countertop and came to stand on the other side of the bar. "Let's get to work before the people start showing up."

Rebekah slid off the stool and moved to walk toward the small swinging door but Stefan stopped her.

"Ah, ah, ah. First lesson in bartending is nailing your over the counter jump." He grinned at her with an expectant look on his face.

Rebekah arched an eyebrow and stared disbelievingly at him. "You can't really expect me to jump over this thing, do you?"

"Up and over." Stefan said with a nod of his head, tapping the countertop.

Rebekah narrowed her eyes at him before turning around, perching both hands on the countertop and hopping on. She spun on the shiny surface to face Stefan again before hopping off on the other side of the bar, her body colliding with Stefan's as she landed on her feet.

Stefan let out another laugh, his arms instinctively wrapping around her waist as Rebekah tumbled into him, bracing her hands on his chest.

"The dismount could use some work." He said, holding her a little longer than necessary.

Rebekah gave a nonchalant shrug, smirking up at him. "Personally, I thought I nailed the landing."

Stefan inhaled her scent before finally stepping back, his arms falling back to his side with a slight cough. "So, uh, we should get started."

"Show me how it's done." Rebekah said, clasping her hands together and waiting.

Leading her around the circular bar, Stefan gestured as he spoke. "Your average customer is most likely going to want a beer, especially the afternoon game crowd." He showed her the different taps for the different kinds of beer and walked her through the glasses and their varying sizes, all while Rebekah tried not to be distracted by the way his back muscles flexed when he reached for things.

When that was done, Stefan pulled a bottle of whiskey from one of the shelves and grabbed glasses from beneath the bar. "Now, when it comes to mixed drinks, you've got your highballs, your lowballs and your basic cocktails." He began to explain but paused, placing the bottle down gently as he threw Rebekah a look.

"You know you don't have to do this if you aren't…you know, comfortable." Stefan said, scratching the back of his neck and wishing he'd thought of a less awkward way to raise the issue.

Rebekah moved closer to stand beside him at the bar, looking from the bottle of whiskey to him and back. "It's fine, really. Alcohol was never my biggest problem." She said with a cynical laugh. "It was the pills I was mixing it with that were the real issue." As soon as the words left her lips, Rebekah flushed, slapping a hand over her mouth. She had no idea why she'd said that. Something about being around Stefan made her drop her guard and part of Rebekah feared that she'd tell him just about anything.

Before Stefan could respond, Rebekah was rambling again. "Well, there's a mood killer. Nothing like a spectacular show of weakness to lighten the mood, right?"

Stefan watched her with piercing eyes for a moment before responding. "I don't think it's a show of weakness. I think it's a show of strength."

Rebekah let out that same humorless laugh, looking down at the bar as she drummed her fingers nervously against it. "Right, rehashing the old addiction days is a real show of strength."

Stefan tilted his head until his eyes caught hers again but the look in them wasn't the judgmental one she usually got – it was oddly understanding. "You got clean and you're staying clean which is a lot more than some people can say. Don't belittle that."

Rebekah felt a small smile creep onto her face before she clapped her hands impatiently. "Well are you going to teach me or what? Show me what you got, Sam Malone."

Stefan's face blanked for a moment before he let out a loud laugh. "Did you just reference Cheers?"

"I might have." Rebekah shot back with a shrug and a cheeky grin.

"I like to think I'm more of a Doug Coughlin." Stefan replied, gesturing with his hands.

Rebekah raised one brow, making it clear she didn't know who that was.

"Are you kidding me?" Stefan asked, feigning grand disbelief. "Cocktail. Tom Cruise. Bryan Brown."

Rebekah just shook her head no.

"The luck is gone, the brain is shot, but the liquor we still got." Stefan quoted but Rebekah continued to throw him that blank stare.

She finally smiled at him, shrugging again. "I guess I'm not as up on my fictional bartenders as you are."

"We'll add it to the lesson plan." Stefan said with a wink before turning back to the bottle and glasses.

Rebekah watched him work, showing off with fancy flourishes and behind the back tosses, and couldn't stop herself from laughing. For the first time in a few weeks, Rebekah felt the weight of grief lift off of her and it felt a lot like she could finally breathe easy again.

* * *

After a long breakfast and a walk through a nearby park, Caroline and Klaus finally made their way over to Wrigley Field, half an hour before the game was set to start.

"Is it just me or do you feel a little off?" Caroline said as she collapsed dramatically into her seat.

Klaus just shook his head with a slight laugh. "I told you not to risk the bacon at that diner." He said, sliding into his seat beside her.

Caroline gave a melodramatic moan. "It seemed like such a good idea at the time."

Klaus laughed again, waving down a passing vendor. "Two bottles of water." He requested, holding money out to the man. "Here, drink this." He said, handing Caroline the water after the vendor had wandered away.

Caroline downed half the bottle before speaking again. "Why did we go to that place anyway? What was wrong with our usual place?"

The smile fell from Klaus' face and he turned to face the field again. "No reason." He said nonchalantly, even as he pictured Caroline there the night before with that guy from her firm. There was silence for a moment and Klaus knew he shouldn't ask but he couldn't quite stop himself either. "So you and that Vaughn character…"

Caroline froze in her seat, lowering her bottle of water again. "Let's not, okay?" She said softly, not quite meeting his gaze. Caroline wasn't ready to talk about Vaughn with Klaus yet. Not that it even mattered because she had no idea what she would even say. Caroline wasn't even sure herself what was going on there. Vaughn was a great guy but she wasn't entirely sure if she liked him for him or because he'd been a welcome distraction over the past few weeks. At any rate, it wasn't anything she had any intention of explaining to Klaus.

Dropping the subject, Klaus leaned back in his seat as he overlooked the field.

"Sweetheart, be prepared to walk me through this because I know nothing about baseball. Bizarre American sport that it is."

Caroline laughed shaking her head. "I can count on one hand the things I know about this game so we're both out of luck."

"Isn't this supposed to be the American pastime? Shame on you, Caroline."

"I know." Caroline lamented dramatically, swallowing back her laughter. "What would my father say?"

"I suppose we'll manage. We simply cheer for the Cubs, how hard can that be?" Klaus said throwing her a grin.

Caroline scoffed. "Speak for yourself, I'm rooting for the underdogs. Woo go Marlins!" She chanted for the Miami team and got glares and a few boos from the surrounding seats.

"Care to bet on it, love?" He said, throwing her that slow half-smirk.

Caroline just cocked an eyebrow. "A second ago you were calling this sport bizarre and now you're ready to make wagers?"

"Baseball may not be my thing but gambling on the other hand…"

She paused for a moment before nodding. "Done. What're the stakes?"

Klaus thought for a moment before replying. "If I win you come by the bar and put those phenomenal organizational skills to good use helping me catch up all the paperwork. If you win, free drinks for a month."

Caroline furrowed her eyebrows and shook her head no. "You already give me free drinks."

"I do?" Klaus asked, arching an eyebrow and throwing her a mocking look.

"You do." She just smirked in return. "If I win, you" Caroline tapped her chin as she thought about it, "put together my new dresser." She said, remembering the new furniture she'd bought weeks ago but hadn't gotten around to assembling.

Klaus just threw her a questioning look. "Caroline, I would have done that for you anyway if you'd just asked. I'll take care of it tonight."

"Yeah if the Marlins win."

Klaus just rolled his eyes. "Love, I'll assemble it for you either way. Choose something else for the bet."

"Why?" Caroline asked, "I've already chosen what I want."

"I'll put together the bloody dresser Caroline, win or lose, so choose something else."

Now it was Caroline that rolled her eyes. "Someone's pushy today. Okay if I win, you have to cook breakfast for me every morning for a week. I can't risk anymore diner food after this bacon mishap."

Klaus' eyebrows rose as he threw her another questioning look. "Are you suggesting I stay with you every night Caroline?"

"Would that be a problem?" She asked, returning his inquisitive look.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"It isn't."

Klaus paused for a moment, watching Caroline carefully. It may not be a problem for her but it could end up being a problem for him if the nightmares didn't stop. Klaus knew this was something he should probably figure out for himself but he also knew how nice it had felt to have Caroline there when he woke up.

"Okay then. Agreed." Klaus said with a nod and a smile. "Shall we shake on it?"

Caroline's lips parted into a wide grin as she slid her hand into his. "Done."

As the game finally started, Klaus took another moment to take in their surroundings. "These are really nice seats. Does your firm spring for these on everyone or are you simply special?" He asked, trying not to think about Vaughn giving gifts of any kind to Caroline.

Caroline wasn't an idiot and Klaus was anything but subtle. This was the second time he'd tried to work Vaughn into the conversation. "Everyone gets these seats but I like to think I'm special anyway." She said lightly with a grin.

"I know you are." Klaus said, fixing his gaze on her and all signs of playfulness gone. "And I'm certain I'm not the only one who knows it."

Caroline sucked in a breath, unable to tear her gaze from his. "I thought we weren't talking about this." She said softly, taking another swig from her water bottle to clear her now dry throat.

"I'm just looking out for you, love. I wouldn't want you to get hurt." And Klaus meant it. His own selfish reasons aside, the last thing he wanted was for Caroline to end up with the sour end of the deal in an office place romance gone bad.

"He can't hurt me." She shot back with a shrug of her shoulders. But you can.

Caroline immediately tried to shove the thought away but it was too late. The truth of it was stuck with her. Vaughn couldn't hurt her the way Klaus could because he'd never have the effect on her like Klaus did. She'd never care about him the way she did Klaus.

And the realization was incredibly sobering.


End file.

Vampire Diaries, Friendship, Romance