A smile rested upon my lips as my phone flashed with an incoming call.
"Hi."
"Hello, darling." A velvety voice answered. "I hope my sudden leave this morning didn't leave you too disappointed."
"Only a little." I grinned when I heard Elijah's disbelieving laugh on the other side of the line. "Okay, fine, a lot."
"I do apologize for my absence, love." I heard him sigh. "I've been quite busy."
"I can imagine. Playing the responsible older brother to Niklaus Mikaelson has to have its setbacks. But I'm glad you're still trying to make things work between us."
"Angelina, I promised you that I would."
"I know, but even though both of our lives have been crazy since you met me, I don't want to give up on us. I hope you won't either."
"I will never give up on you. You know that."
"Do I? I can barely get you to say how you really feel, let alone if one day you might walk away out of your own sick way of protecting me. How do I know you won't give up on me? How do I know you won't give up on us?"
"I've been making an effort to show you I care." Elijah huffed, agitation in his voice. "Doesn't me sleeping over every night the past few weeks mean anything to you?"
"What? Are you saying you didn't want to sleep over? That it was just an effort to show me that you care and nothing more?" I sat down on the edge of my bed, my eyes flicking to the floor.
"No, darling, you know that's not what I meant-" Elijah began but I cut him off.
"I don't want to talk about this right now." I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "Just finish whatever it is you have to take care of and we'll talk about it later."
"Okay." He replied without another word.
It wasn't the first time we had that conversation. Ever since Elijah and I started dating, he had always found it difficult to commit. It was always family first, which I understood, of course, but the extent he took it to would always put our relationship in jeopardy. Every time we would be going strong and I felt content, he would choose his family over me, not tell me how he was really feeling, or, worst of all, he would push me away in attempt to protect us both.
