˖*°࿐chapter twenty five.
xxv. LOVE'S A WITCH
———
Waking up within the next few hours, Janelle shifted around on her bed to find a more comfortable spot.
It was around late in the afternoon and there was a light breeze coming in from the open window, which made Janelle shiver. She was going to get up to close it, but something was holding her back.
Kai was lying next to her, sleeping peacefully with his arm draped across Janelle's body. His grip was quite tight around her, but she carefully managed to slip out of his grasp.
Janelle walked around her bed and trailed her fingertips over the walls to find her bathroom. Once she got there, she turned on the shower and stripped out of her over-sized sweater.
Images flashed through her head of the kiss she had with Kai. The feeling of his soft lips colliding with her own was enough to make her blush at the thought of them sharing a moment like that again.
It was different this time.
Before, Janelle was in denial about Kai's feelings for her because she was so focused on taking care of her child, but now that it was out of the way, she was able to open up her heart more.
But then again, Janelle was still scared to let him in. Kai already knew so much about her, some things she didn't even know herself, but she felt like she knew nothing about him. She was afraid of hurting him more than she already had.
She didn't want to risk giving him the chance, only to end up realizing that this wasn't the same guy she fell in love with 18 years ago.
She feared that she wouldn't just break Kai's heart, but her own as well.
And that was one of the things Janelle hated showing the most. She hated showing fear. To her, it was a sign of weakness and it gave off the message that she couldn't handle things by herself, which she could, just not all the time.
When Janelle was finished with her shower, she turned off the water and wrapped a towel around her body. She went towards the bathroom counter and searched through her drawers for a comb, being unlucky with her first few tries.
Janelle jumped when she felt a hand on her hip and a warm breath on her neck.
"Need help?" Kai smirked, pushing Janelle's hair aside to rest his chin on her shoulder.
She giggled, caressing the side of Kai's face, "I can't find my comb."
Kai glanced around the bathroom counter and found the exact item Janelle was asking for next to her flat iron.
"Here," he handed it to her and watched as Janelle untangled the knots in her hair.
"Take a picture, Kai. It'll last longer," Janelle told him, but Kai didn't even hear her because he was too busy gazing at her, adoringly. "Kai." She elbowed him in the stomach when he didn't move.
"Huh?" he suddenly snapped out of it. "Oh, sorry."
"You really shouldn't do that," she said. "Staring is very rude."
"Not unless the view is great," Kai whispered in her ear, turning Janelle around, so her back was against the counter. "And the view happens to be wonderful."
"You're so corny," Janelle shook her head and let her hair fall in her face to hide her flushed cheeks. The physical contact the two of them were sharing was getting awkward for Janelle, and she sighed. "Look, Kai —"
Before she could continue, Kai pressed his lips against hers, catching Janelle by surprise for the second time that day. Her fingers knotted in his hair, making Kai release a low grunt. He picked up Janelle, never breaking the kiss and sat her down on the bathroom counter.
When he finally pulled away, the two of them panted heavily. Janelle's eyes fluttered open as she rested her arms around Kai's neck. "You shouldn't have done that."
"I know," Kai breathed against her lips, "but I couldn't resist."
"Kai, we can't —" Janelle stopped talking when she felt her eyes starting to itch. She rubbed them with her fingers, blinking a few times after.
"What's wrong?" Kai worriedly questioned, examining Janelle's face.
She glanced down at her own hands started to come into clear view.
"I can see," Janelle said softly to herself as a smile broke out onto her lips. "I can see," she repeated once more to Kai this time and he mirrored her smile.
"How is that possible?"
"I don't know. I mean, either Esther's dead, or she reversed the spell. And I'm betting on the first one. But either way, I really don't care because I can see!" Janelle exclaimed in excitement, taking in everything that was in her bathroom.
"You're so adorable," Kai grinned.
"Um," Janelle began as she glanced down at the towel wrapped around her body. "Kai, I need to get dressed."
"By all means, go ahead," he replied.
"Alone," Janelle scowled at him.
"It's nothing I haven't seen before, Nelle."
"Kai," Janelle pushed his chest and pointed to the door, "get out."
"All right," Kai chuckled, putting his hands up in surrender, but not before leaning in to kiss Janelle's lips again.
Once he was gone, Janelle let out a frustrated groan as she got off the counter. She really hoped that Kai didn't think that since they've kissed, it meant they were getting back together, or even remotely close to that point.
Because ultimately it didn't matter how serious they were back then, Janelle was still with Klaus. And even though they weren't exactly on good terms at the moment, they haven't broken up yet.
Janelle didn't want to think about it anymore. This was supposed to be a happy moment for her. She went into her closet and picked out some clothes to wear for the day. When she entered her bedroom, she noticed that Kai was no longer there.
Janelle shrugged and went downstairs, but she stopped in her tracks when she heard shouting coming from the living room. She jumped a little when she heard something being thrown against the wall. Janelle took silent steps, but her face fell when she saw the sight in front of her.
Kai was arguing with Klaus.
Actually, it was more like they were fighting.
They were ready to strangle each other to death. Janelle decided to step in and separate the two as she felt the tension rising as she stood between the both of them.
"Okay, this needs to stop. Right now." Janelle demanded, but the two of them kept their stance. "Klaus," Janelle scolded him first.
Klaus responded to her with a roll of his glowing eyes, but they eventually turned back to normal. His gaze shifted to his girlfriend in amazement, "You're vision has returned."
"Yeah," Janelle replied, blankly. "You'd probably know that if you'd been here."
"Love, I..." he pleaded. "Forgive me for not being at your side when you needed me the most, but you have to understand that I did this all for you. Everything I've ever done was for you. So you could come back home. Our home."
Klaus reached out to grab Janelle's hand but was interrupted when Kai pulled her back into his chest. "Better idea. Spare her the excuses and just leave. Janelle was doing just fine before you showed up."
Klaus took hold of Janelle's arm and pulled her towards him with an angered expression. "You don't speak for her," he seethed.
"Enough!" Janelle screamed louder this time, gaining their attention. "Kai, can you please go wait in the other room? I need to talk with Klaus for a sec."
Kai frowned but nodded anyway because he knew that's what she wanted. He didn't want to upset her, so he walked out the room, but not before giving Klaus one last glare. Without even having to turn around, Janelle could already see the expression on Klaus' face.
"Lose the grin, Klaus. You're not off the hook," she turned towards him and took a step back to create some distance, which made Klaus pout. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Me?" he questioned incredulously. "Oh, so suddenly this is my fault? What's that bastard even doing here in the first place? I thought there wasn't anything for me to be worried about, but yet here I stand corrected. Is he the reason why you've chosen not to come home, why you've refused to even speak to me?"
"Don't try to turn this around on me. Kai was here because you weren't. No matter how I stubborn I was, you still should've been here. I felt like I was going through this whole grieving process by myself, and believe me when I say it hurts. This was our baby, Klaus. We were supposed to be there for each other."
Klaus sighed and began pacing around the room. "What's happening to us?"
"I think we're getting a taste of reality," Janelle answered him in almost an inaudible tone. Tears started to form in her eyes as she fought to hold them back. "I've given this a lot of thought over the past few days, and I don't want you to think that losing this baby or anyone has influenced my decision in this, but I think it's time we put this relationship to rest."
"Janelle," Klaus shook his head. "Please... I am begging you. Don't do this."
"I'm sorry, but this is what I think is right," I admitted. "I just need some to find myself and figure out what's best for me. If it's meant to be, it'll be. But if not, then —"
"Marry me."
"What?" Janelle scoffed. "No."
It didn't matter how many times Klaus had asked Janelle to marry him before because it somehow always seemed to take her by surprise. But she knew what his intentions were already.
"No, you can't randomly hit me with a marriage proposal because I don't want to be with you anymore. It doesn't work that way."
"Janelle, I've wanted to call you my wife since the day I met you and I refuse to let you go without a fight," he told her. "We can work this out, sweetheart. I know we can. Just... tell me what I have to do to fix this."
"There isn't much you can do, Klaus. Our relationship just isn't what it used to be anymore, and I don't want you to think that this is your fault either because you did nothing wrong. These things just happen."
Klaus furrowed his eyebrows, "I'm not sure I understand what you're saying."
"I know about Cami," she sighed, not what to have to bring it up, but it was bound to happen eventually. "Rebekah told me, and from what I've heard, she sounds like a really nice girl."
"Janelle, I never —"
"I know you didn't," she told him, "but I also know you love her. Rebekah's seen the way you talk about her, the way you look at her — I know because it's the way you used to look at me," she smiled sadly at him.
"Love —"
"You deserve to be happy, Klaus," she said. "It's all I ever wanted for you."
"I am happy," Klaus told her. "I'm happy with you."
"Klaus, you gave me the chance at a human life again. The chance of seeing what it was like to be a mother. I can never put into words how grateful I am to have had someone like you come into my life when I needed them the most."
By now, Janelle and Klaus were both in tears.
"This isn't what I wanted," Klaus choked back his sobs as he tore his eyes away from the woman he loved. "It wasn't supposed to end like this."
Janelle stood in front of him and wiped his cheeks with her thumbs. "I don't care about the compulsion, or what anybody else has to say — you, Niklaus Mikaelson, are by far, one of the greatest things to have ever happened to me in the last 172 years of my existence."
She pressed a brief kiss to his lips, "I love you, Klaus."
He leaned his forehead against hers, savoring the moment for just a few more seconds. "I love you, Janelle."
It was official now — Janelle and Klaus were over.
———
"Get up."
"Go away, Caroline," Janelle groaned. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you."
"Come on. You just broke up with Klaus, and you've been cooped up in your room for almost an entire week. It's time for you to have some real fun," she grinned.
Janelle peeled back the covers that were over her face, holding a blank expression. "What part of 'go away, Caroline' did you not understand?"
"The 'go away' part," she laughed. "Now, get your ass out of this bed and put on something hot. The two of us are going out."
"Sure," Janelle nodded, "as soon as you turn your humanity back on, then I'll think about it."
It was no secret that Caroline flipped the switch after her mom died. Janelle had turned off her humanity frequently while she was a vampire because of situations similar to Caroline's, so she understood why she did it.
Caroline crossed her arms over chest, not even being phased by what Janelle just said. "I wasn't asking. So, either you pick out something to wear, or I will."
"Fine," Janelle huffed and reluctantly got onto her feet. Knowing Caroline, she'd purposely pick out something skimpy. "Where are we going anyways?"
Caroline smirked, "There's a rave happening tonight off campus. Everyone's going to be there."
"Care, a warehouse house party for college students does not count as a rave."
"Doesn't matter. You're still going," she said.
Janelle rolled her eyes and walked into her closet to find an outfit for the night.
Caroline followed her and leaned against the door frame. "Oh, quit your pouting. You deserve to have a night out. It's not like you could've hidden in here forever."
"Doesn't mean I couldn't have tried," Janelle muttered to herself, picking out a pair of strappy heels to go with a black dress she'd never worn before.
"What are you so afraid of?" Caroline suddenly asked. "Esther's dead, the werewolves are gone, and now that you're not a threat to anyone anymore. You're free to live your life how you please. There shouldn't be anything stopping you from that. So whatever fear it is you have, you need to get rid of it before it's too late."
Janelle paused and turned her head to the blonde vampire. "What did you say?"
It was like a light bulb had just gone off in her head.
"I said you need to get rid of your fear," Caroline repeated.
"I, um — I need to do something real quick," Janelle told her. "Can you — can you wait for me downstairs? I'll just be a minute."
"Whatever," Caroline plainly shrugged.
As soon as she was gone, Janelle pulled out her Grimoire from the back of her underwear drawer. She flipped through all the pages until she found what she was looking for.
It was a spell she had wrote a while back when she was first starting out as a witch. A time where she wasn't confident in her abilities and was very scared that she'd never get the hang of using her magic. Cassandra warned her that using it wouldn't work, but she wasn't exactly here to tell her otherwise.
It didn't matter what anybody said, Janelle still felt responsible for losing everyone and everything she had ever loved.
She feared that she would never find happiness again.
Janelle needed to do this for herself, regardless of what the consequences were.
Locked in, boxed in, full of fear
My panic grows manic, till I can't hear
In need of reprieve, so that I can breathe
Remove my fear, please make it leave