Caroline has her own house because she needed some freedom to be an adult.
⬆️Caroline's House⬆️
Caroline's POV-
We quickly unwind after that, with each original making plans or going to bed and Kol insisting on escorting Bonnie home; and suddenly it's just me and Klaus. I think about it and I should probably be getting home, but I don't want to I think.
I want to be wherever he is, in the short time I've been spending with him he's become my home and I don't want to leave his comforting embrace.
I don't know how to explain that to him though, it's hard to put into words this pull I feel towards him; it's an almost primal attraction.
"I should be going Klaus." I say making no steps towards moving apart from lifting my head so I can see his face.
"If that's what you want sweetheart." His face tells the story of his disappointment and I want so badly for him to see that reflected in my eyes.
"You could come with me?" I say softly, I need to be at home comforted by my things I need to have a bath and soak away the day; I know it's unfair to ask it of him but at the same time I pray he accepts.
"Are you sure love?" He asks taking in every detail of my face searching for my feelings.
"Only if you want to." I whisper downcast.
"I always want to be with you Caroline." Klaus says giving me a grin.
Things progress quickly after that, I reluctantly leave the safety and warmth that Klaus's arms promise and I shout my goodbyes to the rest of the house's occupant's while the hybrid beside me stays silent.
We head to my house and Klaus drives over there so that I don't have to run, we are silent most of the way but it's a comfortable silence simply enjoying each other's company.
I unlock the door and call out.
"Mom are you here?" I shout up the stairs.
"Just a minute." I hear her reply faintly.
I look to Klaus who looks perfectly at ease with the situation, I hope my mum feels the same way but just in case I go to the stairs where her gun belt hangs and quickly move it to the closet. No need to tempt her; I shoot Klaus a sheepish smile and he grins wickedly I can almost hear his thoughts.
'Let her try sweetheart.'
My mum comes down my stairs quickly and quickly stops when she see's me and Klaus leaning against the counters in my kitchen.
"Caroline?" She asks curiously cocking an eyebrow towards Klaus.
"Hey mum, this is Klaus. He's going to keep me company tonight it's been a rough day." I say hoping that if I'm confident with the situation she'll have no choice but to accept.
"And he's going to be keeping you company how exactly?" She asks turning her glare at Klaus. To his credit he doesn't do anything, just keeps his face impassive. But his eyes are smiling.
Maybe only I can tell that though.
"Mrs Forbes, I assure you that you and I are both striving towards the same thing; Caroline's health and happiness." he says sincerely.
She raises her eyebrow at him "Is that right? So tell me Klaus if a dangerous vampire was invited into your house and Caroline came home with him what would you do."
"I'm willing to bet exactly what you would do, except of course I'd probably get my fangs involved more." Klaus says offhandedly, and I almost want to laugh at the situation.
My mum scrutinises Klaus closely for a few more minutes before she gives him some kind of assent and he turns to me with a small grin.
I hand him one of the blood bags from My fridge that I had forgotten I was holding in my shocked daze; and he takes it ripping a small hole with his teeth before swapping it for my unopened blood bag and coming to rest beside me.
I immediately lean into him and sip from the small incision he had made, I look at my mum who looks as if she might stroke her eyes are popping out of her head.
"You guys looks awfully comfortable together." she says suspiciously.
I blush which intrigues Klaus who catches the colour and gives me a wink; and by gosh if that isn't the hottest thing to happen to me today. I mentally fan myself and give my mum a sheepish look.
"We get on really well." I say simply the only thing I can come up with.
"Hmm I'll bet." My mum says her eyes moving between us "You guys be safe I'm working the night shift; After I sleep at my house call me to make sure everything is alright." she says moving to collect her things, shooting me an amused glare when she finds her gun belt.
She's just heading out the door when she calls out a quick "No sex!" before giving us both a glare and closing my front door, a few minutes later her engine starts and we hear her drive off.
I look at Klaus who looks like he's trying to hold back a laugh, I slap him playfully.
"It's not funny!" I shriek when he finally gives in and chuckles.
"That's so embarrassing." I mutter heading to my room to get my bath things. Klaus hot on my heels.
"She's only looking out for you sweetheart." he says plopping down on my bed while I gather everything I need.
"I'm a vampire I can look after myself Klaus." I say childishly.
"It's always nice to know someone has your back no matter what love." Klaus says simply closing his eyes and resting back.
There is a contemplative silence while I finish getting bubble bath and my towels then, and I think hard about what Klaus said. No one ever had his back like that before, I think maudlin. Whatever this is between us it's electric.
It's thick and heady and you can feel it charge the atmosphere when we are together, one wrong touch and everything will explode; I know now that even after these few days spent together I couldn't go back to not having him in my life, the though scares me but also humbles me. I'll always have his back.
"I'm going to have a bath Klaus; do you want to come talk to me. Or you can rest there we can probably still hear each other." I rush to say when his eyes shoot open.
He throws me a smirk before standing gracefully "Lead the way sweetheart." he says fire in his eyes.
I lead him into the bathroom
and then point to the shower stall opposite the bath, he goes over to it sitting down and using it as a rest for his back spreading his legs out in front of him.
I start the bath running adding my bubble bath and bath bomb before quickly going back to my room to get undressed, I wrap myself in a towel and let my hair down before plodding back to the bathroom.
The fire in Klaus's eyes gets darker when he sees me.
I squirm "Close your eyes Klaus." I say blushing.
"That's like taking a starving man to a feast and then not letting him eat anything." Klaus purrs, his voice growly and deep but he closes his eyes anyway. I let go of the towel and then step into the bath but before I sit down I say.
"Hey Klaus, how about I give him an appetizer." I smirk mischievously when his eyes flash open and smoulder, they feel like a caress against my skin and I can't take much more I quickly sit down in the water after what feels like hours.
But in reality is only a few short seconds, as I close my eyes and sink into the water and the mountains of bubbles I can feel Klaus's eyes on me once more.
"Aren't you full of surprises love." Klaus says readjusting his position on the floor.
"Some of them good some of them bad." I say laughingly.
"Nothings ever bad with you Caroline." He says using my name sensually, I ignore him for a moment before he interrupts my silence.
"Will you Excuse me for a moment sweetheart." he says his voice playful again.
"That depends on the reason why." I say smirking at him over the edge of the bath, wrapping my hands over it and looking at him.
"I just want to grab something." he says innocently.
I nod and he flashes out of the room, it's not a few minutes later when I hear him whoosh back in again sketchbook in hand.
"Sorry about that love." he says recapturing his earlier position and beginning to sketch.
"Klaus you can't sketch me like this." I say giving him a look.
"Beauty like this has to be captured love." he says an innocent look on his face.
"You can see any of my girl bits can you." I say with a sigh.
"No sweetheart." Klaus says with a genuine smile before resuming his work.
I sit in the bath relaxing, soaking in the hot water closing my eyes and taking it all in.
"Hey Klaus." I say sleepily.
"Yes love." is his almost instant reply.
"Tell me a story about you." I say with a sleepy smile to the ceiling.
"What kind of story sweetheart?" he asks from across the room, and I can almost see his brow furrowing in confusion.
"Something you'd normally be scared to tell me." I reply opening my eyes and playing with my bubbles.
"Why on earth would I do that love?" he says sounding hesitant but not altogether opposed to the idea.
"Because I want to know all sides to you, not just the ones you allow me to see." I state simply finally lifting my eyes to his.
He's stopped drawing now and is looking directly at me, trying to determine If this is a good idea or not. Finally, he sets his sketchbook down beside him before relaxing against the shower more and leaning his head back, he closes his eyes.
"Once in the early 1600's I owned an estate in Prague, Kol was off with some witches in the newly discovered India and Rebekah was dating some duke or other. I was staying with a vampire I had turned earlier the same year. Only I hadn't changed him because he was dying or because he deserved it, I changed him because I wanted to he showed such malice and coldness as a human I thought that he was already a vampire until I heard his heartbeat." He paused here debating whether to continue or not.
"I was feeding in an alley one night when he came across me, he said that he'd been watching me for a while and begged me to turn him. Being the merciful vampire I was I did just that, thinking it would be fun to watch such a cutthroat human adapt to vampirism" he spits the words out harshly.
"At first I thought he'd adapted well; I couldn't find bodies from obvious binges. He handles himself well in front of humans it seemed as though he was born to the life. Then I was out in town one day and I heard rumors circling of a child thief, many of the villager's children had gone missing. Back then one or two runaways was common but there must have been about ten mothers worriedly asking after their sons and daughters." I take in a deep breath here, trying not to gasp. Klaus can obviously hear but now he's started it's like he can't stop.
"At first I thought nothing of it just another sick human preying on the weak; harming children has always been a sensitive point for me and so I agreed to help the local huntsmen who were up in arms. I agreed to help them hunt down the perpetrator and bring them to justice. What a fool I was then, I immediately went to the houses of some of the victims. I could see no signs or struggle or mess made and that's when I began to get suspicious. It wasn't until I went to this vampire's house the one I had created, that I knew what was happening. He hid it well always coming to my house, or knowing of my visits well in advance; he compelled his housekeepers. Everything." He stops here abruptly.
"I can't tell you this Caroline, you should never be burdened with such a story." he says his eyes shut his head pointing downwards.
"It's okay Klaus." I say soothingly quickly gathering a towel from next to me and letting the bath out.
I go over to him quickly and lay my hand on his head, he looks up at me eyes dark and troubled gleaming with demons and horrors. How many horrors had this man seen? How man still haunted him at night? Too much lay on his conscience, and from this story I could tell that lots of it wouldn't be deserved.
I grab his arm pulling him up "Let's go to bed." I say cradling his jaw, he kisses my palm before allowing me to withdraw my hand and following me into my room.
I sit Klaus down on my bed and then grab some clean pajama shorts and a t-shirt before quickly dashing back to the bathroom.
When I return Klaus has kicked off his shoes and is sitting in his jeans and shirt.
"You can get undressed Klaus." I whisper climbing into bed.
"Are you sure love?" he asks his voice still hesitant and I can tell his earlier story is playing on his mind.
"I trust you Klaus." I say simply staring into his eyes begging him to believe me.
He quickly gets rid of his jeans and top leaving just his boxers on before turning off the light and climbing in next to me.
I snuggle into him, feeling his warm skin against mine a comfort. We lay there in silence holding each other tightly. Until Klaus breaks it.
"He had them locked up in his dungeon, they were filthy and petrified when I found them. Bodies of their friends sat in a corner." He says quietly. Gripping me tighter as if afraid to let go.
"What did you do?" I ask nuzzling into his neck softly.
"He ranted at me about how their blood was purer and that he wasn't hurting anyone he wasn't justifying himself he couldn't see the problem with what he was doing. That's when I realised he was insane, I killed him and then compelled all the children to forget everything. I returned them to their families and a day later his body was burnt at the stake." Klaus says his voice turning harsh, he starts to pull away from me as if to get up.
I grip him tighter "It wasn't your fault Klaus; you couldn't have known what he would do." I say to him determined.
"I shouldn't have turned him; those deaths were on my hands." he says convinced.
I get on top of him and stare down at him angry "You listen to me Klaus Mikaelson, those deaths were not your fault. Yes, you shouldn't have turned him but we all make mistakes that doesn't mean it was your fault."
I continue "It's ridiculous to say that, imagine if you thought that about every vampire you turned; it wouldn't make sense some things are just out of your control and that's okay." I stare down at him imploringly.
"It doesn't matter anymore." Klaus says turning his head away and I slide of him back to my spot.
A short while later I feel sleep creeping up on me and I think of the hybrid laying half underneath me.
"I forgive you Klaus, even if you don't forgive yourself." I whisper to him sleepily.
He doesn't reply but the slight tense of his body indicates that he's heard me and I smile into his chest, glad that he decided to share with me. I want to help him, I want to absolve him, to lessen the guilt he hides so well. I want to make him whole again i think desperately, and determinedly before finally drifting off to sleep.