Forever Family (Klaus Mikaelson)

I Hate Him?

I lean onto the wall next to the open door with my arms cursed. 

Nik looks at me and I at him. I shake my head and roll my eyes. Words are not needed, and the look was not needed. Anyone could feel, by the thinness in the air, that this was a less than desirable situation on both our parts.

He frustratedly reaches into his closet and takes out a grey t-shirt and some black shorts. Then without any warning, he rips off his top, leaving his chest completely bare. 

"Woah, what are you doing?"

"Channing. Don't know if you noticed, but my shirts all ripped, and I'm covered in blood," he says, anger is clear in his voice.

He's right. His shirt was ruined and the top half of his body is covered in spots of blood where there were once wounds. For some reason, unbeknownst to me, my eyes are drawn to the spots of dried blood. And I began to feel remorse for causing him pain. What the hell is wrong with you, Clarissa? He deserved whatever infliction was caused.

"If you don't like it you can turn the other way."

I sigh but do as he said. Upon doing so I notice something that catches my eye.

On the back wall of the room, there's a picture of a girl riding side-saddle on a stunning white horse. I take a closer look at the art, observing the abstractly painted trees in the background and the mystical lifelike river that the girl and the house have stopped at as her chocolate brown hair seems to blow in the wind.

Something about the picture makes me think. Think about the choices I've made. What if I had chosen differently? How would my life be? Could I have been happier? Would I have been less lonely? Would I have died? Would I have liked death more than eternal life?

"You can turn around now,'' he says as he crawls into his bed.

I watch his movements as I stand still in the corner, not knowing what to do. He notices my staring and sighs as he gets up from the bed. "You take the bed. I'll lay on the floor." He picks up one of the many pillows and blankets off the bed.

"No, it's fine," I say, walking over to him and taking the bedding out of his arms. "I'll lay on the floor. It's your bed."

He hesitates. "Why don't we both just sleep in bed? It's not like we've never done it before and we're adults, it doesn't have to be anything weird."

"Hmm, let me think about it," I say, tilting my head to the side. "I rather be barred alive than spend the night in the same bed as you."

"Yes, we've made our distaste for each other abundantly clear, but seeing as we have no other option and the bed is big, I suggest we just go to sleep and get it over with."

"Fine," I say. Shoving the bedding back into Nik's hands, I go over to the other side of the bed and slowly, and very awkwardly, lay down. Taking care to not pull up the bottom blanket to ensure there will be no touching throughout the night.

I then realize that I am still in my banquet dress. Whatever, this will have to do. Ugg, but this lace is so itchy and this damn bun is so tight. There's no way I can sleep like this. Grudgingly, I speak. "Nikaus."

"What?" he asks.

"Can I have something to sleep in?"

He looks at me and rolls his eyes. Silently, he gets up and goes back over to his closet, taking out a large, blue t-shirt and dark gray shorts. "Here." He hands them to me.

I get up and go into the bathroom to change.

....................

Niklaus takes a sharp breath as I enter the room, his eyes scanning my body. I could see some type of internal debate in his eyes as he clenches his fist.