Hurt and Heal

Chapter 4: Caroline Forbes II

"Uhm... what's going on? Did I do something? Has something happened?" the fast movement of her beautiful blue eyes darting from one to the other and then back again was a clear sign of her confusion, her panic however was easily recognizable by the ever moving mouth of hers. Despite this, none of the people staring at her in a combination of wonder, happiness and hurt alike, answered, choosing instead to marvel at her presence. Her voice had not yet returned, but that did not stop the ever flowing questions from spilling from her wordless mouth.

"Seriously! What's wrong?! Mum? Damon? K-Klaus?" her voice began trembling horribly in her mind. What was it with them? It's not like she's been asleep for ages! Right? So what was the big issue? Unwilling to be ignored, the blonde frantically shifts her view from one to the other questioningly.

Suddenly, as if finally they return to Earth, the sheriff cleared her throat and moved to sit beside Caroline, the distressed girl seeking comfort in her mother's arms.

The soft, whispered reassurance which came from the woman's lips was greatly appreciated and Caroline managed to calm herself down in a short while. She tried to remember anything, but her mind hurt whenever she did so. It was quickly becoming unbearable. Caroline stopped trying.

"Oh, sweetheart!" she heard Klaus whisper, yet he made no move to approach the embracing women. He was standing, a few feet away from her bed, his head bow and his face a mask of painful, agonized thoughts. Caroline lifted her head to look at him. She was ever more shocked to see him staring back, his own eyes riddled with puzzlement.

Frustrated, the blonde teen untangled herself from Liz and, sitting up on her own, she tried to convey her wish using her hands. She mimicked the movement of writing in order to ask them for some paper and pen. Nodding, Damon left the room only to enter it again mere seconds later, a notebook and a pen in hand. He handed them to her as she moved to sit on the edge of her bed.

Thankful, the girl inclined her head to him and took them. She didn't write anything however as her vision was directed to her legs. They were, much like her wrists, marred by the already healing lacerations from the rope that held her to the bedposts, but that was not the reason for her scrutinize. From her knees up, and further still as the lines disappeared underneath her short nightgown – an oversized T-shirt she'd bought ages ago – were what appeared to be scratch marks, red, blotchy and not healing. She put the notebook and pen on the sheets and bent, slowly, cautiously as her body was no longer used to operating itself, and traced one from the outer edge of the kneecap up over her thighs and further still over her hipbone stopping just below her breasts. She had forgotten about the other inhabitants of the room as she did so, only being reminded by Damon's suggestive cough and her mom's gasp. Caroline dropped the cloth and stood up, too quickly, she realized, as the wall spun and she was falling forward. She half expected to intimately be acquainted with the floor, but the usual slam which came with it never make its appearance. Instead she felt two pairs of hands steady her. Klaus was holding her up with his hands around her waist while Damon had instead chosen to push her shoulders back.

"Careful, Blondie!" came the brunet's voice as she came to her senses once more. She let the hybrid lead her back toward the bed and push her gently to sit down on it. Seeing the wisdom of the action, she settled back down and took the previously discarded pen and notebook. What happened to me? She wrote and showed them the question. She saw their obvious discomfort and pressed harder. She needed answers! She pointed towards the written sentence and pinned them with a heated stare, as if to say "Answer me, dammit!" Caroline watched as tears gathered in Liz's eyes and as Damon avoided her gaze. Klaus however was conflicted. He seemed to debate whether to tell her everything or just parts of it. At last he appeared to make a choice as he turned to the other two.