#there was the small italicised oh moment where i was like ''this is actually real'' <it's maybe worth noting i wasn't very active on soc me

[averlym]

which is gayer? SIX or Adamandi (real)

adamandi

[delemenko]

At Ease

So, I wrote this as a birthday present to myself. I don’t remember half of what I typed and as per usual, I didn’t check for grammar or spelling errors. I’m pretty sure that this fic falls into the Sharp Cheddar Gang because I refuse to give up my romance.

A couple of things to mention, as with all of the pre-Warriors fics, I must mention that this takes place before Cowboy gets his Stetson (Jeez, I should probably organise these fics chronologically, huh?) and I headcanon his pre-Cowboy name to be Harris. Also, the character Adelay doesn’t speak, so she communicates mostly in ASL, and I’ve done my best to italicise her dialogue. though, I hope you enjoy this and constructive criticism is appreciated.

If there was one thing Harris knew about A.J., it was how easily she flustered whenever she was uncomfortable, or startled, or embarrassed, and that didn’t take much. Adelay gave her a light-hearted hug last week, and her face immediately turned bright red. Of all of the members of their friend group, she seemed most comfortable with Adelay, having known her in middle school, but there wasn’t much difference in how she acted toward her overall. He couldn’t tell if she despised affection or if she just didn’t like being touched. She was nice enough to everyone, but it was obvious she still felt outta place within the group, despite them all having been friends for the better part of a year at this point. 

So, it came as a surprise to him when she agreed to go to the festival they were having at the beach that Saturday.

“I have nothing to do on Saturday, so sure why not? I’d love to go. Of course, I would have to ask Nikola, but I’m sure he’d be alright with it.” She was distracted by something, so she didn’t catch his surprised expression.

“Alright. Cool. We’re all meeting up at Juka’s house that afternoon. Do you know how to get there?”

“Yep. It’s on the way to my house actually.” She grabbed her bag off the table. “I’ll see you then.”

“Yeah, see you then.” He said, watching her walk out the door, suppressing his urge to smile. 

 -----

“You sure she’s actually gonna show? I’m still surprised she actually agreed to comin’ today.” Noah said as he flopped down on the couch and put his feet up, before opening up a bag of chips.

“I hope she wouldn’t bail. She doesn’t seem the type,” Harris said. “It seems like she might at least let someone know unless it was an emergency or she couldn’t reach them.”

“I’m pretty sure she would say something,” Juka said walking back into the room. “Noah, get your feet off the couch!”

Noah moved his feet back onto the floor. “Alright, don’t kill me,” 

There was a knock at the door which Juka went to answer. Noah put his feet back up out of spite. “You get my feet of the stupid couch.” He mumbled under his breath, causing him and Harris to burst out laughing. 

He put them back down when she started walking back, A.J. and Adelay in tow. “We can leave in a moment, I just realised that I don’t have any flowers, I’m gonna grab some,” She said before turning back to Noah. “Don’t put your feet back on my couch.”

“Juke, I’m hurt that you think I would do such a thing! You’ve got nothing to worry about!” 

“Yuh huh.” She headed upstairs and the moment she was gone, he put his feet back up for a moment, causing A.J. to laugh slightly. 

“You’re gonna get yourself into some serious trouble!” She told him. 

 “Nah, she don’t mean it. She don’t care as much as she acts like.”

“I get the feeling she’ll kill you just because she can,” Adelay signed, “I mean, she’ll say it’s because your feet are on the couch, but this stems deeper than that.”

Noah was about to reply when Juka walked back in the room. “Let’s go, children.”

“Yes, Mom.” Adelay got up off the floor immediately. “Finally, we can leave since Juka started moving her ass.” 

“Hey, I saw that!” Juka called out as Adelay went outside, the rest of the group following.

-----

The walk to the beach went by quickly; everyone making conversation on the way. 

“Hey, A.J. You ever been here before?” Noah asked her.

“To the beach?”

“To the festival.”

“Eh... Nikola used to take me when I was younger, but I haven’t been in years.”

“Any real reason?” 

“He works a lot these days, so we don’t go much anymore. Plus, I rarely have time to go, because of my schedule.” She shrugged. “This is the first time I’ve been able to go in years. Do you all go a lot?” 

“My parents usually take me and Harris, or sometimes his dad will take us, but my parents are out of town, and I think his dad is workin’,” Juka explained, to which Harris nodded.

The beach was pretty crowded, so they knew that the lines to get food would be very long. There were people and tents everywhere, if there were any more people, someone could easily get lost in the crowd. “It’s way more crowded than it usually is… I think there was half this amount last year and the year before.” Harris looked around at the crowd, “You can barely see the sand anywhere.”

“Yeah, it’s almost annoying. Though I did hear a lot of the other kids at school mention that they were going, so it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s just a bunch of high school kids here... I want some caramel corn. Anybody willing to walk over to the stand that sells it with me?” Adelay queried, moving out of the way of an oncoming group of kids. 

“Yeah sure, I’ll go.” Harris said.

“Do you think they’ll sell kettle corn?” A.J. asked, her voice quiet, though it was likely because it was already so loud at the beach.

He thought for a moment. “I don’t see why they wouldn’t. Come on. Juka? Noah? You two comin’?” He asked, looking back at the pair.

“No thanks. Be careful not to get lost!” Juka told them.

“I’m gonna hang back too,” Noah agreed as the three walked off to find the stand.

The three made their way through the crowd, not seeing the popcorn stand anywhere. “You sure it’s this way, Elle?” Harris questioned with a raised brow. “I can’t see over anybody.” 

Adelay gave him a shrug in response.

“Did you see it, A.J.?” Harris turned to look at her, or at least turned to look at where she was before. “A.J.?” He looked around him but she was nowhere to be found, “Oh, shit. Elle, we lost A.J.!” 

Adelay looked at him before looking around. "That's not good. Come on." 

The two walked through the crowd, Adelay grabbing his hand so that they wouldn't get separated. They searched everywhere, behind the tents, near the stage the band was using, and around the restrooms. Their clothes and faces were covered in sweat. Adelay said she needed to go to the restroom anyhow, so  Harris waited for her.

Harris found himself getting frustrated with the ordeal. Anything could've happened to her. We didn't even notice she was gone. What if she got trampled by the crowd or something?" He pushed that thought from his mind. He wasn't fond of the idea that she had gotten herself hurt, or any of the people he cared about getting hurt for that matter. Then, he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to it, and sure enough, it was a smaller person wearing a maroon Cordovan hat.

"A.J.!" He tried waving to get her attention. A.J. turned around upon hearing her name, trying to navigate the crowd. When she turned, Harris let out a sigh of relief. Once she got closer, it was apparent that she had found the popcorn stand, carrying two bags of kettle corn and one bag of caramel corn.

"Where did you guys go? I told you where the stand was! It wasn't-" Before she could finish her sentence, Harris gave her a tight hug, almost without thinking. She froze, shocked for a moment before trying her best to hug him back. The back of his head touched her face and she knew her face would start turning red any moment. Despite this she felt comfortable in the embrace in a way she couldn’t put into words if she tried. The pair released each other; her face now slightly reddened, though it was more prominent on the cheek that his head had touched. Adelay walked out a moment later.

“A.J.! Where were you? You know how worried we were about you?”

 A.J. simply handed the caramel corn to her. "I bought you this."

"How much did this cost?" Adelay wondered, looking at the bag.

"Don't worry about it. Consider it a gift." A.J. smiled.

"What's the second bag for?" Harris asked.

"This is for Nikola. He loves kettle corn a lot. The first bag is for everyone here, so you're welcome to have some."

The three returned to the table; Juka and Noah not noticing them return. “Damn, how long was that line?” Noah looked at them with a confused expression. 

“It wasn’t that long, surprisingly, not that these two would have any idea,” A.J. said with an amused look. “They got lost. I bought three bags of popcorn, because if you buy two, they give  you a third one for half the price, so I got one for Nik!” She said holding up her bags with a bright smile.

“I specifically told you all not to get lost!” Juka gave them a look. 

“We didn’t get lost. We lost A.J.!” Harris responded. 

“Well, I wasn’t lost. I actually found what we were looking for.” She looked at him, shaking her bags to prove her point.

Juka chuckled softly. “Yeah, alright. Let’s hurry up and see if we can’t get a good spot. I kinda actually want to go watch them perform.” She stood up. ”Can I have some of that caramel corn?” 

Adelay opened her bag and allowed Juka to take a small handful out. The group then headed over to the area where the band was performing as the evening sky set in. Noah kept stopping to buy snacks along the way.

“This thing comes around once a year, and I like festival snacks, so I’m buying everything and you can’t stop me.” he said, stuffing another candy box into his backpack. There’s something missing though…” He looked around before he found the tent he was looking for, “Oooh… Hey, I’ll catch up with ya later, bye!” 

“Wh- Noah?!” Juka called after him. “Only this kid! I get the feeling he needs to be supervised.”  

“Nah, he’ll be fine! Let’s go.” Harris turned back to the area where the band would be performing, the other three following behind.

They stood watching the band perform an upbeat song, everyone around moving their feet or waving their hands and generally having a good time. Even A.J. seemed to be getting into it, her hand on her hat to keep it from falling off as she danced with Adelay she shook the bags of kettle corn with the other. 

Juka and Harris laughed at her energy. Harris leaned over to her, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that’s a totally different person from the person who showed up with us. Maybe we still haven’t found her yet.” 

“Maybe, her voice does seem a bit deeper than earlier!” Juka shot back as Noah walked up with an ice cream cone. “Found you and it was definitely worth it to go back. I have ice cream.”

Juka looked at him incredulously, “You found an ice cream stand and didn’t say anything? Take me to it! Please.”

Noah feigned annoyance. “Alright alright! Harris, you comin’?”

“Yeah, I’m down for some ice cream.”

“Elle! A.J.! You guys want to go get some ice cream?” The two in question turned to the trio.

Adelay’s face lit up. “Yes, always!” She ran up to the others in anticipation.

“No, thanks! I’ll watch the band and save our spot!” A.J replied, turning back to watch the band. 

“Alright, let’s move!” The other three laughed and started walking.

Harris looked back at A.J. briefly. She stood watching the performance, her right hand hanging onto her bags of kettle corn  “On second thought… I should stay… We probably shouldn’t leave anybody by themselves, right?”

“Oh, good point. I’ll bring you back a cone, You want chocolate-vanilla swirl, right?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Noah!” He said as he made his way back to where they’d left A.J. She’d been so busy watching the band, she hadn’t noticed that he’d come back. “Hey!”

She looked mildly surprised at his return, but she didn’t seem upset by it. “I thought you went with the others to get ice cream.”

“I changed my mind. Noah’s getting me some. I didn’t want to leave you by yourself.”

“I mean you could’ve. I wouldn’t have cared much.” She said, fixing her glasses.

“I’m assumin’ you don’t want the company then?”

“It’s not about that. The company is nice, and I’m grateful that I have it. I’m just used to not having it, so I’ve grown accustomed to not complaining about it, and I learned not to ask for it. It’s easiest to distance myself rather than constantly needing company.” She tilted her head slightly, as if in thought.

Harris didn’t have a response for that, but he didn’t like the empty feeling it gave him. He couldn’t imagine not being able to hang out with his friends, or just refusing to ask people to hang out. He couldn’t count how many times he’d call Juka to ask her to come over when they were younger, but for him to just not spend time with her... It sounded… lonely. He thought about what he could say next, then he found what he thought was the best response, but it could just as easily be the worst one if the implication upset her. “Well, I can’t speak for the others because they’re usually pretty busy, but I wouldn’t mind if you called me up to go have fun sometimes.”

She looked at him for the first time in their conversation, a bit taken aback. “I’d be on board with that.” Despite her initial expression, Harris didn’t miss the way her face lit up afterward. She looked back at the band.

Harris noticed it then. She wasn’t flushing. In fact, her face was pale as ever, not even showing any signs that she could be the least bit uneasy.

‘Well, I don’t only turn red when I’m flustered or uncomfortable. I have sensitive skin, it turns red at anything touching it. Plus, I’m fairly pale, so naturally I’m more prone to getting red skin pretty easily.” He must’ve had a confused expression because she clarified. “You said that aloud.” To which he gave a hum of satisfaction. Thinking about it, when they stopped hugging earlier, her face was slightly redder on one side than the other. He hadn’t paid much mind to it though.

“Not sure why I’d be flustered though. I don’t feel uncomfortable around you. If anything, I feel more comfortable with you and Adelay than most people. You’re easy to talk to and your naturally relaxed and cheerful demeanour makes you a fun person to be around. It’s relaxing; it’s like… letting go of tension I didn’t know I had.” 

Harris turned away from her, feeling his own face start to heat up. He didn’t know what he expected her to say, but he certainly knew that it wasn’t that. He couldn’t come up with a response, but A.J. didn’t seem to mind and he was grateful that she didn’t notice his face turning red, or maybe she just didn’t care. After his face returned to normal he looked at the band again, enjoying the comfortable silence that listening to the music brought. He felt a slight warmth near his right hand, looking down and noticing that A.J.’s hand was close to his own. He couldn’t tell if she moved her hand closer on purpose or not, but he didn’t know if he wanted to question it. He grabbed her hand gently, causing her to look down at it, before interlocking their fingers in response and looking back up at the band. He’d taken her hand before, but it was different this time and both of them were aware of it. For all they knew, it could’ve been a reaction for the moment and they’d never speak of it again. Of course, neither of them wanted that to be the case.

-----

Juka, Noah, and Adelay were finally heading back to where Harris and A.J. were. “Man, everyone wants ice right now. Do people really eat ice cream at night?” Noah asked, taking a lick from his cone.

Juka looked at him, dumbfounded. “Noah, is that an actual question?”

“Yeah, why?”

Juka and Adelay shared a look. Trying to keep from bursting into laughter and just as Juka was about to explain, Noah realised.

“Oh, wait! That’s a stupid question! And now I don’t even remember what I was trying to ask!” He sighed as the two girls covered their mouths with their hands. “Anyways! I hope they’re doing okay.”

“I’m sure, they’re fine. I don’t think they’d get into too much-” Juka looked over, noticing where they were standing, immediately noticing their interlocked hands. “Trouble…” Noah and Adelay followed her gaze. 

“Huh. I wouldn’t have picked up on that.” Noah said, walking towards them. “Harris, I got your ice cream! Be careful, it started melting on the way here, sorry.” 

Harris and A.J. turned around; Harris taking the ice cream cone with a grateful smile.

Adelay walked up soon after, the four immediately making conversation.

Juka hung back a bit, shaking her head in amusement. “Lookin’ back, I really shoulda seen this comin’.” she laughed before joining the group.

[misssophiachase]

Can you write a Peter Kavinsky hot tub scene with Klaroline?

Hey! Thanks anon and Happy Holidays! I really loved this scene in the movie. I’ve changed it though and put a Klaroline/Christmas spin on it. The title and italicised lyrics are from the song playing during the hot tub scene in TATBILB, which I’m sure you already know. 

Lovers

25 December - Aspen, Colorado - 1:03am

I’m in the dark….

“All by yourself, huh?” Caroline murmured, making her presence known. She wasn’t quite sure how long she’d been standing inside at the window watching him from afar but Caroline was fairly certain it might constitute stalking to some. 

If anyone caught her she’d say it was all his fault.

And it was.

She was pretty sure anyway.

She’d been unable to sleep, his crimson lips taunting her every time she closed her eyes. As if it was bad enough he haunted her during the day she also had to contend with his unwanted presence at night. 

“You say that like you’re surprised or something, Forbes,” he replied stoically, his eyes focused on the small ripples forming on the surface of the hot tub. 

“Well…”

“You are unbelievable,” he growled, slicing his hands through the water and disturbing the ripples he’d apparently been so captivated by moments earlier. “Who else would I be with?”

“I don’t know,” she began. “The waitress at dinner could barely keep her eyes or hands off you.”

“Sounds like someone was also distracted,” he shot back, a slight grin tugging at his lips but it was gone before she could admire just how much it brought out those disarming dimples. 

“Well, it was a little hard not to notice,” she baulked. 

And it was.

Caroline could barely contain herself during dinner but decided to blame the foreign feelings on indigestion. Now she wasn’t so sure.   

“You realise you’re not my girlfriend, right? I don’t answer to you.” He asked, his blue eyes finally meeting hers. Although it was dark, the lights emanating from the hot tub couldn’t hide his frustration. 

“Trust me, I’m aware,” she huffed. “And for that I am grateful. It’s difficult enough having to pretend with such an egotistical, arrogant jerk.”

“Say what you really think,” he muttered. 

Caroline couldn’t miss the hurt registering on his face but only for a split second. Klaus Mikaelson could be so frustrating but there were moments. albeit brief, she would catch a quick glimpse into some hidden world where he wasn’t the arrogant jock he purported to be at college. 

October 31st - Stanford College, California - 9:59pm

She remembered the first time they met like it was yesterday. Two years her senior, Klaus was well-known around college, almost as much for his womanising ways, as head of fraternity Alpha Delta Phi. 

Caroline had pledged Beta Sigma Phi not knowing just how connected the two organisations were. It was Halloween and Caroline had found herself at their fraternity celebrations, mainly because her best friend Katherine had forced her to attend. 

She was actively trying to avoid Stefan Salvatore, a guy from her English class who’d taken a rather unhealthy likening towards her. He was part of Alpha Delta Phi and this was the last place she wanted to be. Tightening her white feathered mask, Caroline was happy to be at least partially disguised to avoid detection.   

Katherine had disappeared to get some punch but she’d been taking her sweet time returning, no doubt flirting with someone. Caroline found herself distracted by some artwork on the nearby wall. 

It was gorgeous. An array of abstract dark blues and greys. Upon first glance it seemed angst filled and dark but there were a few, brief white and silver touches that signified something completely different.

“Do you like it?” A voice asked behind her. It was low and gravelly over the loud music, his breath tickling the hairs on the back of her neck and making her shiver.

“It’s complex,” she murmured. “So many layers, so many emotions.” Caroline didn’t consider herself an art expert but she knew what she liked and this was it. 

“How so?”

“The artist,” she began, wondering briefly why she was conversing with a complete stranger she hadn’t even seen but found herself too lost in the painting to stop. “They’re drowning in fear and sadness, but these lighter colours show they aren’t completely lost. There is hope buried amongst all the despair.”

There was a long silence, Caroline almost worried she’d interpreted it wrong and the stranger was preparing to argue with her assessment. 

“Caroline, is that you?” Unlike the stranger, that was a voice she knew and dreaded at the same time. 

“Stefan,” she groaned, trying to sound like she cared but failing miserably. She could still feel the stranger behind her wondering what he was thinking right now. “You’re here.”

“Well, of course it is an Alpha Delta Phi party. I’m so glad you came, it feels like I haven’t seen you in ages.” If by ages he meant spying on her from behind a tree yesterday afternoon in the quad. 

“I’ve been busy,” she lied. “With homework and…”

“Me,” the stranger finally spoke again, now coming into view. Of course he was dressed as the devil to her angel. Rather than being weirded out she was actually relieved he’d stepped in, whoever Lucifer was.   

“Yes, we’ve been seeing quite a bit of each other actually,” Caroline babbled, wondering how her night had taken such a turn. “We even wore matching costumes for the occasion, isn’t it cute? He just loves that kind of thing.” 

By the way he stiffened against her, Caroline could tell matching costumes wasn’t really his thing. But he did start it.

“You and…” Stefan baulked, his surprise not lost on Caroline. 

“Yes,” she confirmed, wondering briefly why he was so shocked but not caring as she pulled him closer for a kiss. Might as well make this believable. 

She’d noticed those crimson lips under his mask but never imagined they’d feel so supple. The stranger was still at first letting her do all the work as her tongue ran along his upper lip. The least he could do was play along, she thought. 

But it didn’t take long before he opened his mouth slowly welcoming her tongue and intertwining it with his. He tasted like a combination of whiskey and mint and she only registered that he’d dipped her backwards when he finally pulled away. 

She could make out his blue eyes filled with something unrecognisable as he pulled her back up to full standing mode. Given the fact her legs felt like jelly she was glad his arms were still firmly fastened around her waist. But if Caroline was being honest holding her balance wasn’t the sole reason for that.

They held each other’s gaze before he let her go and lifted his mask. It took all her composure not to lose it. It was Klaus Mikaelson of all people and she’d just unwittingly thrown herself at the egotistical idiot like one of his many sycophants. 

“You’re welcome, love,” he smirked, those dimples making an untimely appearance. 

“Excuse me?” She insisted, deciding she had nothing to be grateful for, well except maybe for Stefan’s hurried exit.  

“It’s only a snowflake by the way,” he offered pointing to the artwork in question on the nearby wall. 

“Is your interpretation really that literal?”

“I suppose it is,” he murmured, a brief frown creasing his forehead before walking away, leaving Caroline open mouthed. 

“Roomie,” Katherine squealed excitedly as she approached. “You’ll never guess what happened to me.”

“It can’t be as crazy as what happened to me,” she mumbled taking the plastic cup from her friend’s outstretched hand and downing it in one go. “I’m going to need more drinks to get through this party.” 

13 hours later….Beta Sigma Phi House

“Go away,” Caroline groaned, trying to appease the excruciating headache the incessant knocking was causing. 

“I can’t do that,” Katherine shot back, throwing open the door and jumping onto her bed like an excitable child on Christmas. “He’s here to see you!”

“Katherine,” she whined, throwing the pillow over her head and trying to ignore the pain ripping through her cranium. “I don’t care.”

“You’ll care when you know who it is,” she chuckled. “The whole house is in a frenzy.”

“Great, let them greet this mystery guest that I have no interest in seeing in my current state.”

“Care,” Katherine chided, peeling away the pillow and throwing off the covers. “You must have made a real impression on Klaus Mikaelson for him to show up here.”

“Klaus Mikaelson?” She asked, suddenly somewhat conscious. “What does he want?”

“Well, how about you stop whining, change into something much more attractive than these ghastly, flannel pyjamas and get your ass downstairs,” she insisted. “He usually loses interest in a girl the moment after he’s kissed her but you must have made an impression.”

“Oh wow, my mission in life,” she growled. “To be of interest to the biggest, womaniser on campus.”

“Stop with all the compliments, love, you’re embarrassing me,” another voice offered from the doorway. She buried her head in the pillow as the previous night came back in all its weird glory. 

Caroline felt the mattress bounce, realising Katherine had left her with the smug idiot. She was going to have words with her supposed best friend later. She sat up, albeit reluctantly, noticing that her hair was sticking up in different directions and had taken on a bed-like appearance and not the sexy type. 

She took a moment to focus on the intruder, all sexy in dark jeans and a grey henley, no signs of a hangover in sight. Bastard. Meanwhile she was clothed in her most unattractive but equally warm she would argue, red tartan.  

“What do you want?” She asked, deciding that in her current state she needed to get to the point before a bathroom visit was necessary.

“Now, that’s not the way to talk to the person who saved you from your clingy, ex-boyfriend.”

“He’d have to have been my boyfriend for that ever to be true,” she grumbled. “And you didn’t save anyone, I’m more than capable of doing that on my own.”

“Fine,” he agreed. “I’ll accept your version of events, Forbes.”

“Says literal Mr Snowflake,” she shot back remembering his close minded interpretation of the painting. “What do you want, except ruining my sleep patterns?”

“I have a mutually beneficial proposal for you, love.”

Looking back Caroline realised it was the most stupid thing she’d ever agreed to given the fake endearment that accompanied it, but decided to blame it on the fact she was probably still drunk.   

Present Day

Show a little loving…

“Why am I here, Klaus?” She asked shyly, making her way towards the edge of the hot tub. “Really.” 

When they made their arrangement it was designed to deter Stefan and any unwanted girls that swarmed around him on a daily basis. 

Caroline had been surprised given she assumed he loved all the attention. But as soon as they shook on their deal the only person he seemed to want to swarm around him was her. And Caroline was struggling not to like being in his constant presence. 

It was as if they got each other but Klaus still remained a little distant. When he invited her home for Christmas at his families ski chalet in Aspen, Caroline was confused given the terms of the arrangement. However for some reason she’d said yes.

But meeting the Mikaelson family yesterday had been confronting to say the least. Mikael was a dictatorial, judgmental father who didn’t think anything Klaus did was good enough. Esther, while being kind for the most part, just let her husband behave that way. 

His siblings Elijah, Rebekah and Kol, she noted, were all similar to Klaus; cocky and apparently immune to their parent’s treatment. Although Caroline could see straight through them all. She was frustrated, wondering why Klaus didn’t bite back, why none of them did.

Dinner at the nearby restaurant last night had been the final straw, watching as the waitress shamelessly flirted with her supposed boyfriend. Caroline had told herself numerous times that she didn’t care but standing here in the darkness it was all too much to deny.

Klaus hesitated for a moment his glance now returning towards the water. For a guy who was usually so self-assured he was having a lot of trouble making eye contact. Caroline didn’t stop to think, just removed her coat and waded into the water in only her white nightie. 

She decided to address the fact that her nightie would be completely see through later. 

She could see him inhale sharply while his eyes traced every inch of her body as she submerged herself in the hot tub. There was no chance of him avoiding her gaze now and their connection was as intense as ever through the steam rising up from the water.

“I know you’re a stubborn ass but talk to me,” she insisted. “It’s just you and me.”

“I didn’t get to give you your Christmas present yet,” he murmured, reaching outside the tub and producing a brightly coloured, wrapped gift.

“You didn’t have to…”

“But I wanted to, Caroline,” he smiled. “It might also explain a few things.” Reaching for it and tearing away the paper, Caroline recognised it straight away. 

“You gave me a snowflake,” she asked, her eyebrows raised curiously. 

“It’s not a snowflake turns out,” he admitted sheepishly. 

“You don’t say,” she teased, taking in the painting she’d fallen in love with all those months ago at his frat house. 

“Everything you said that night it just hit me,” he explained. “You saw everything; every stroke and every emotion I poured onto the canvas. I was happy but also scared that you noticed and interpreted all my vulnerabilities. 

“The fear and sadness…”

“My father has never hidden the fact I’m a disappointment,” Klaus shared, his voice breaking slightly. “I’ve worked my ass off to be what he expects but apparently it will never be enough.”

“And the light?” Caroline asked purposefully changing the subject as she traced the silver and white streaks. He didn’t respond immediately. Caroline, meanwhile, placed the painting on the side of the hot tub then made her way towards him.

Shine a little light on me….

“I knew there was something on the other side but it wasn’t until I met you that night everything finally made sense,” he murmured, pulling her closer so that she was straddling him and snaked his arms around her waist. “You get me, Caroline Forbes. All of me.”

“Is that so?” She teased, running her hands along his toned shoulder blades and revelling in the feeling of his bare skin against her touch.

“That is so,” he grinned, nuzzling his nose against hers. 

“Hang on,” she replied, pulling away abruptly from his warm embrace. “You tricked me, Mikaelson?”

“Well…”

“You only made this deal because…”

“Because I am utterly and ridiculously in love with you, Forbes,” he smiled, pulling her closer. “Even before we kissed I was a goner.”

“Well, I do have a certain irresistible appeal,” she giggled. “But just so you know I sometimes speak without thinking. And now that you’re my boyfriend….”

“I am?”

“Don’t tease me,” she groaned, pulling him closer so their lips were within inches of each other. “I might feel the need to tell your father what an ass he is over Christmas lunch, just a warning.”

“Just another reason I love you,” he feathered kisses along her jawbone, Caroline losing herself in the sensations it was causing below.

“Oh and while I’m admitting things,” she began, pulling back again and gazing into his eyes. “My nightie is probably see through by now.”

“You’re killing me, Forbes,” he groaned, his hands moving lower and pulling her flush against his body.  And suddenly nothing or no one else mattered now they were finally in each other’s arms. 

In my Crossroads FF collection HERE