Vampire Diaries 1. Pilot

"_Close your eyes, give me your hand, darling  
Do you feel my heart beating?  
Do you understand?  
Do you feel the same?  
Am I only dreaming?  
Is this burning…"_

There was a clicking sound and Caroline's voice wasn't accompanied by music anymore, she slid down her earphones and leaned her head to the side, the man on the other side of the mirror pushed a button down and made his voice echoed inside the booth.  
"That was wonderful gorgeous but I'd like to redo the last verses before we do the chorus."

Caroline raised her thumbs up and adjusted the earphones over her ears, she was very focused when the music started and like she did all morning, Caroline started singing perfectly on cue and with a sweetness that oozed from her naturally.

The man turned on his chair and spread his arms. "She is remarkable Klaus."  
Klaus displayed a set of dashing dimples surrendered to the veracity. "Marcel... I believe those were my very words when I called you."

Marcel smiled turning to the recording table in front of him, he adjusted a few buttons and closed his eyes for a few moments, his accurate ears didn't betray him, Caroline sang perfectly on key and just as she hit the chorus for a second time he turned to Klaus again.  
"See those?" he pointed at the amount of hair in his arms rising as her voice filled the Studio. "Those only come up when I know there is a hit coming and that girl can sing."

Klaus swiftly put his phone away and addressed Marcel with a squint. "Does that mean that you will produce her second record?"  
He tapped his chin with a slow move. "You know that I have all the big names barking at my door, don't you?"

"That's entirely because you are the producer of the moment and your talent is finally being recognized." Klaus cunningly smiled.  
Marcel rolled his eyes. "Now you are just pimping me so that I produce your girl."

"I discovered Caroline singing on a small moldy dusty Pub and now she's singing for the great _Marcel Gerard, the King. _I know what I'm doing and so should you when I'm offering you a chance to be part of the success of the next singer of the Super Bowl."  
Marcel laughed. "You never do anything for the smallest."

"May I remind you of the last singer I managed?"  
The other big man grunted. "I'm surprised she allowed you to step down from guiding her career, so… _out of the blue._" he joked.

"She was already _Rolling in the deep._" Klaus launched with cheesy attire.  
Marcel laughed loudly but he knew if Klaus traded one of the biggest singers in the planet for an unknown singer with only one record under her belt it was only because he believed in the raw talent of this girl, as he turned to look at her once again, he noticed how striking she was but there was something else about her that was capturing, an unexplained energy that he could feel prickling at him even across the glass, as if she was a natural container of light and life just waiting to explode.

Caroline had something that came to her so naturally, he couldn't take his eyes away from her and Marcel couldn't remember the last time that happened with an artist, with time everyone just sounded the same to him.  
"Should I sing the entire song again or a just specific part of it?" Caroline asked with an energy that was as well unusual to Marcel.

"I've heard enough Goldilocks, come out and join us." Marcel asked her.  
Caroline stepped out of the booth with a big smile, he could tell how nervous she was by the way she kept pressing her palms together and glancing over to Klaus, hoping to catch a glimpse of what happened on this side while she sang.

As usual Klaus was unreadable and she huffed a little facing away from him, it wouldn't hurt if he contradicted her belief that he wasn't human just for once, she had no choice but to focus on the other man, the one with bulky arms was eyeing her in a funny way and Caroline fought the grumble in her stomach by pressing it with a hand over the long blouse that fell down on one shoulder.  
"Feel free to stretch out my torment…" she mumbled anxiously.

Marcel exchanged one single look with Klaus and swayed on his chair a few times before he parted his lips with a big smile. "Are you ready to be famous?"  
Caroline widened her eyes and opened her mouth at the same time. "Are you saying that you will produce me?"

"You are a raw diamond that needs to be a little polished but with the right songs and with the right beat… you are the next best thing." he searched for Klaus, as expected the smirk was the only outlet he was having from his old friend.  
Caroline jumped a few times excited, she clapped all giggly and with that she made both men break into a laughter, her happiness was that contagious.

"Seriously?" she asked again over excited.  
"Start thinking of a good title for the record of the year and come back next week ready for a relentless recording session, be prepared for brutal working hours, no sleep and a lot of yelling, I get cranky when things don't turn out well after the first 10 times." Marcel warned her.

Caroline quietly laughed, she could handle grumpy like an expert, it was the only mood she knew from Klaus. "I'm ready, I'm more than ready for this. I'll do whatever it takes." she said with determination.  
"Keep that enthusiasm then because we will need it." Marcel grabbed his phone. "I'm sending you my schedule Klaus, I have a single that I'm working with Bono so we'll have to reserve Caroline's studio hours after that…"

Caroline silently mouthed _U2 _awestruck and she was still a bit dazed when she left with Klaus.  
"He produced Justin Timberlake and Beyonce!" she exclaimed excited once they were alone.

Klaus was used to the celebrity life so obviously he ignored the fangirl unravel that came from Caroline, he was trying to fit her busy schedule with Marcel's while she gushed on and on about all the stars that recorded on this same studio, like he didn't know them all, quite honestly he managed most of them at some point and he was aware of how much the huge sample stars paid to be produced by Marcel while today he agreed to get his cut only after Caroline's CD hit the market.

For Klaus that was the big accomplishment of the day, the confidence from Marcel was just what Klaus needed to start the right buzz around Caroline, of course that she was clueless to all that and continued to list all the famous that achieved that one hit due to Marcel's magic behind a set of buttons that improved a bunch of screeching voices that inevitably flopped once they reached the live tours.  
Klaus was aiming very high concerning Caroline and he almost felt tempt to end her random rambles to tell her just that, however Caroline was far from listening to anything right now.

She was busy trying out different scenarios with the new achievement. "_And now we will play the new hit single from Caroline Forbes, the artist produced by the King_." she said spreading her hands apart at the same time the elevator doors opened for them.  
She was jittery, bouncing all the way to his car like she was listening to a famous radio station playing her song and she completely missed the car coming her way inside of the parking lot.

Klaus pulled her arm to make her stop and kept her close to him. "Let us try not to make it a post-mortem album."  
Caroline laughed turning her head to face his deep blue eyes. "That would be epic as well."

He restrained from rolling his eyes but still sighed distraught. "Can you try to focus for ten minutes Caroline? We need to go over your schedule for today."  
Her shoulders fell a little and she grimaced with his words. "What do you mean? I thought the audition was the entire plan for today."

As always Klaus didn't linger too closely to her and walked to his car unlocking it and opening the passenger door for her. "Of course sweetheart, shall we go back to the hotel and sleep for the rest of the day? Because that's what artists do, you know… they just slack all day and the money pours down from the ceiling." he leaned his head to the side with a forced smile.  
Caroline dragged her flat ballerina shoes. "You don't have to be so cheerful all the time." she complained getting into his luxurious car.

"I don't get paid to be nice." he reminded her as he closed the door on her side.  
"What if I don't sell enough copies to pay you?" she asked him as soon as he settled on the driver's seat.

"The idea is to make you rich enough so that I can take my millionaire fee later on." he started the car with a sly hint to a smile. "And if you can't pay me, I'm sure we will find a way to please me." he started their short ride.  
"You are so gross!" Caroline pushed her tongue out disgusted and crossed her arms. "And inappropriate… crude and crass." she added with a grouse. "And ugly."

"It's with glee that I accept how well you perceive me." he laughed only to spike her.  
"Is there still time to add how much you are _not _funny?"

"Always love." he parked the car in front of a building.  
Caroline's entire body ached in anticipation. "Do I have to?"

"There's nothing like a good Yoga class to tame that wild spirit of yours."  
"I don't like Yoga, it feels like I'm stretching for some really kinky sex positions and the instructor has this really weird vibe, she's always ordering me around with a polite low voice. _The Eagle comes from within Caroline." _she flawlessly mimicked her instructor.

"I will pick you up in one hour for vocal couching." Klaus simply stated.  
"Fine, I'm going to stick my butt in the air and pretend to be all sexy while I'm doing it." she still protested but before exiting the car Caroline looked at him doubtful. "Wait, when do I eat?"

"Don't worry love, food will be provided as the nutritionist planned."  
"She better not come near me again with a lot of stuff that tastes like haystack and a bunch of pills because I will shove those damn pills up her ass." Caroline warned him with a menacing finger pointed at him.

"Hum… we might need to squeeze in a few classes on good manners as well."  
Caroline slammed the door of the car as one loud reply but he was smiling as he drove away, probably the thing he enjoyed the most about Caroline was the way she was so genuine.

Granted that she really wanted this but she wasn't willing to change her entire personality just to make him happy and that was so refreshing that it only pushed Klaus further.

* * *

"Ok, let's try this one bar above." The professor told Caroline before he pushed a piano key down.  
She nodded and did as he asked of her, he was very pleased with the way their session ended and clapped at her once they were done with their lesson.

"Very good Caroline, you have a good ear and you learn fast." he closed the piano waiting for Klaus to join them.  
Klaus was outside emerged on a phone call for an hour now and Caroline rested her arms over the piano watching him, she slowly gazed along his strong features, the rough stubble and the curly dirty-blonde hair, she was unconsciously biting her pinky as she outlined his lustful lips with her eyes.

As a rule Klaus was wearing his tight Henley under a cool leather jacket, he was a man of necklaces and Caroline counted at least three of them under the purple V-collar, she also identified a very firm chest and by addition a fit body that she rather not notice.  
Klaus was very professional and he kept their relationship exactly on those terms, there was never too much proximity between them and whenever they were alone, he was always doing something, either fondling over his phone or his Ipad, personal contact was kept to the minimal and Caroline was thankful for that, he was her manager and her entire career was resting on his big hands, it was a mistake to place anything else from hers at the reach of those long fingers of his.

"He is rather handsome, isn't he?"  
Her young teacher asked just next to her, when Caroline looked at him, she saw nothing but lust in him and that sparkled a tiny laughter from her.  
"Well… he is attractive in this annoying sort of way." she admitted.

"He is too good-looking and that accent of his…" he grunted.  
Caroline laughed again but she closed her songbook thoughtful, she wasn't going down that path, he was hot but his temper and mood swings were a turn off.

"See you tomorrow?" she asked her professor.  
Josh beamed at her. "Make sure you bring him with you."

She gave him a side look before leaving the room, just as she was closing the glass door behind her Klaus ended his call and she suspected something was headed her way by the look he gave her.  
"We need to go back to the hotel because you need to get ready for an appearance tonight."

"An appearance where?" she asked before complaining with a loud sound as he pulled her hand, visibly she wasn't walking fast enough for him.  
Klaus was already reaching his car. "A local renowned artist is opening a gallery tonight and anyone who isn't on Cannes this year is attending this so I arranged for someone to take you under their wing."

Caroline slumped against his car. "You mean that some celebrity from a reality show accepted to pity escort me to the door and take a few pictures with me."  
"You have two hours to get ready." Klaus warned her serious.

"I can't wait." she beamed at him. "Some artist on crack opens another useless gallery for his abstract work and I get to make an appearance that no one will care about."  
Klaus didn't bother answering her, he had too many things to deal with at the moment, he couldn't afford to be upset over another tantrum from Caroline.

"Do I even get to choose what I'm wearing?" she looked at him slightly hopeful.  
"It's all been arranged for already Forbes."

She clasped her lips and narrowed her eyes at him, if hatred could kill, he would be easily choking by now.

* * *

The hairstylist shook his hand. "Girl, you need to sink those two gorgeous feet down on the ground and tell him, _hell to the no_. Do you know what I mean?"  
Caroline exhaled loudly. "I know but he doesn't listen, I've tried telling him that I only want to sing but he keeps filling my days with all this stuff I don't want to do."

The young man with orange long hair closed his eyes for a few seconds. "I bet he thinks those dimples of his will excuse him every time…"  
Caroline cringed a little when Lamar pulled her long blond locks a bit carelessly and lost in the conversation. "I don't know about that, I became immune to them during the first month we worked together."

Lamar lowered his head and pierced her through the mirror. "You can be honest with me Care, has anything ever happened between the two of you? Working late all those nights and sharing the same hotel and all?"  
Caroline eyed him with a crazy display of expressive eyes. "Never, I don't think he even finds me pretty."

"I don't play on your team sweety but the man had to be dead not to salute you every time you walk into the room."  
"If he has, I haven't noticed." Caroline cocked an eyebrow. "And I think I would notice because no one is that cocky without validation."

"Amen to that girl." Lamar snapped his fingers. "Our Lord was not sleeping when Klaus Mikaelson was conceived."  
Caroline laughed, it wasn't something hard for her to do but this last month was turning out stressful and honestly she felt as if Klaus was demanding more from her than she could deliver.

Lamar used a few hair clips and strapped the locks on the side of her head, he left the back bounce free and with a bunch of wild loose curls, he smiled at her headed for the door when there was a knock.  
Caroline wasn't sure if she should dread the moment, her dress was here and she didn't know what to expect, when Lamar unzipped the protective cover around it she almost smeared her cheek with lipstick, the dress was beautiful and she quickly left the last touches of makeup for later.

She jumped from her stool and rushed to Lamar. "I saw one of these in the Dior store downstairs."  
"And you say that nothing ever happened between you and Klaus?" Lamar asked with a low dragged sentence.

Caroline quizzically looked at him, she couldn't understand the suspicion at all. "We fight and pick on each other the entire time." she clarified while opening her robe and greedily getting into the exquisite dress.  
"Honey, do you know how much a suite on this hotel costs?" Lamar asked with a hand tucking at his waist.

"More than you make?" she ventured innocently.  
"I have to curl a lot of celeb hair to afford a night in here and you are currently occupying a master suite next to his not to mention that he is shopping for you in the most expensive shop inside the Five Star hotel…" Lamar lowered his chin with a gentle scowl. "And he knows your measures really well."

Caroline closed the zipper on the side of her tight white dress with a slow glance at Lamar. "Klaus has a big management agency or something…"  
"I know that you come from some small town that God forsaken into oblivion but homeboy is paying for all of this and I'm sure he is expecting something in return, if you catch my drift." Lamar went back to his things so he could start packing up.  
Caroline took in his words with a wary expression.

* * *

Klaus checked his watch unpleased, he dove into his suit pocket for the car keys as soon as he heard her heels approaching with a small race. "You are five minutes late." he lifted his eyes to scold her but he wasn't quite expecting the angelic figure.

"I'm sorry, I took too long deciding on the shoes." she quickly opened the door before he could react and got inside the car.  
Klaus' brain took a little longer to restart but he went around the car as soon as it did, he found Caroline waiting for him with a puzzled face, she was holding his IPad and he kick started everything again inside of his head. "You should read and memorize the pages I left open, it always looks good to say you admire the artist and actually know his name when the reporters ask you."

"I have to lie?" she squealed unhappy.  
"Try to smile while you are at it." he joked.

Caroline pushed her flawless golden hair behind her shoulder and started cross reading what he left for her, Klaus stopped before a red light and momentarily looked at her, Caroline was invested in the reading, her thick black eyelashes weren't even blinking, he caught a glimpse of all the discrete makeup she was wearing and how it all clashed perfectly against the really bright red lipstick, the white dress with a simple pattern worked magically against her ivory skin and only her neck was free along with her shoulders which gave her a truly sophisticated appearance.  
Caroline raised her head when the car behind them made its presence noticed. "It's green Klaus."

He shook his head and resumed to keep his eyes on the road, why was he was so surprised the dress fitted her so well?  
He was the one who chose it so of course that it looked magnificent on her.

* * *

"… the _Petite_, is her most notorious work and it's a metaphor to the world because Jackie decided to make a bronze sculpture with her size in the shape of a decaying figure." Caroline delivered an impressive summary of what she just learned during their ride.  
Klaus parked his car with a nod. "Don't deviate from that and if you don't understand a question just pretend you didn't listen because of the screaming crowd and move on to the next reporter."

Caroline held back a big chuckle, he actually seemed convinced there would be people wanting to talk to her or even a screaming… wait.  
As soon as she stepped outside she could hear the big commotion on the other side of the street and she jolted at him stunned. "What is that?"

"They seem to be gathering quite in a number." Klaus said excited and reaching for his phone. "We just need to wait for your godmother to arrive." he said almost with too much glee over his own plan.  
Suddenly everything became very real and present for Caroline, he was forging a big entrance for her and she became aware this was really happening for her. "I'm not sleeping with you." she gushed out bravely.

Klaus left the screen of his Smartphone to look at her. "All right…. I will try to battle my impending depression over the subject."  
"I'm serious Klaus, if you are doing all of this, expecting to have sex with me as a thank you, it's not going to happen. I may have a very naive background but I was brought up with morals that I strongly believe in and selling myself in exchange for my dream is not a choice for me."

She roughly recognized pride in his smile but she wasn't ready to bet on it, he closed his black suit before speaking, perhaps he was gathering all the things he wanted to tell her, she couldn't really know.  
"I've made a name for myself by building successful careers for others and I have never involved myself either physically or romantically with any of my clients."

Caroline nodded understand him. "I won't be an exception." she still felt the need to affirm.  
"You will not be one." he also cleared that for her. "I saw something when I found you doing covers on that shady Pub and I had no clue of who you were yet I felt compelled to know more about you and I wouldn't be wasting my expensive time if I didn't believe in you."

She smiled enchanted at him, it was hard staying indifferent to him when he spoke like that, when he reminded her so much of the night they first met.  
The small speech about wanting to know her dreams and aspirations in life, the easy way he conducted a conversation that revolved entirely around her had left her suspicious at the time that he was only after a one night stand and she had laughed in his face shamelessly mocking him because of the _I'm a famous manager _line, at the time she felt compelled to slap him across the face but then she did her research and found out he was indeed who he claimed to be.

Sometimes Caroline still couldn't believe she had the courage to call the number he gave her and it was with the same guts that she decided to believe him now as well.  
"Good." she said with a single swing of her curled hair, she trapped her tiny clutch securely in her hand and waited for his next orders.

They were held back by the car stopping in the sidewalk, at first Caroline wasn't able to form a single decent voiced word, then she proclaimed a really high-pitched _Oh my God_, it was her, the woman leaving the car and walking to them was his former client and she was smiling affectionately at Klaus.

"Sweetheart, you look beautiful." he said as soon as she was within his reach and before kissing her cheek.  
"You haven't lost your charm Nik." she sweetly answered and like she couldn't hold back, she hugged him as tightly as she could through her big pregnant belly.

"I heard it's a boy…"  
"I will not be naming him after you." The famous woman warned him.

He was waiting for that and laughed warmly, then he turned to Caroline who froze in anticipation, her frenzy eyes took attention to everything, she had never been this close to anyone remotely as famous as the singer now calling her near them.  
"It's hard for me to move." she explained.

When she reached them Caroline awkwardly bowed her head uncertain how to behave, she was standing next to frigging Adele.  
"Oh, you are such a sweetheart." Adele pinched her cheeks.

Caroline nervously made this odd sound that came off as somewhat a chuckle. "I admire you So much."  
"I have a feeling that I will be repeating those words myself soon." Adele nudged Klaus with her elbow. "If you are being led by this one, you are set for nothing less but greatness."

Caroline flicked her stare between them but decided on the woman lastly. "I should trust you…"  
"No darling, you need to trust Nik, he knows what he is doing. I reckon that he remains insufferable most of the time but he has his good days." she winked at Caroline. "You need to tell him to sod off when he gets on your nerves too much, it's what I did when he tried to stop me from wearing my beloved fake eyelashes."

Klaus' throat produced a loud growl that only made the girls laugh, Caroline felt more at ease now and thoroughly enjoyed the blunt teasing happening between Adele and Klaus.  
"Don't be crossed with me, you know I'm forever grateful that you introduced me to the bloke who gave me this." she lovingly placed her hands on her belly.

"Aren't you running late love?" Klaus shifted attentions off him at once.  
Caroline smiled watching them silently, he forgot to add that earlier, Klaus also never got emotionally involved with any of his clients, even now with Adele who had been with him for so long, there was this invisible line that separated Klaus from being truly attached to anyone and Caroline's smile became sadder, it was so clear to her that he was a lonely creature by choice and she found that infinitely heartrending.

With another kiss Adele bid farewell to Klaus and took Caroline's arm as support, although the young blonde was shaking she still followed the star ready for her debut.  
Klaus stayed behind as the women crossed the street towards the small venue and the crowd really went wild when they recognized Adele.

True to herself, the English star kept Caroline under her motherly wing and took all the pictures with her, she made sure to mention her name in every quick interview she gave and to mention how Caroline Forbes was the next name to lookout for.

* * *

Her feet were killing her, the straps were horribly tight around her puffy feet and she was taking them off about the same time she was pushing the card key that gave access to her room, she jumped with a startle when about to cross the threshold.  
The lights were on and Klaus was waiting for her seated on the arm of the couch. "Hello sweetheart."

"Klaus…" she squinted looking at her key.  
"You are in the right room." he comforted her.

She closed the door slightly unsure how to react to his presence. "You disappeared… the exhibit was actually interesting and everyone was really nice but I expect you to be there." Caroline left her stilettos on the ground and the small clutch on the little table nearby.  
"I work on the backstage sweetheart, that's my circus while the spotlight is left for you." Delectably he turned his phone to her. "That's a good picture of you."

Caroline gasped and ran to him, she yanked his phone and stared in disbelief, her face was all over twitter, she was tagged in every picture of Adele's. "Klaus!" she yelped. "Someone mentions me, they called me Carol but that's so not important, someone mentioned me as the adorable friend of Adele's."  
"Is that so? Are you admitting in a very clumsy way that I actually know how to do my job?"

Caroline guided her blue lively eyes to him. "When you aren't being an authority tyrant, you are actually bearable."  
"Adele was visibly impressed by you, she said that you captivated everyone in the room and that you were very polite and lovely, I almost called her a liar."

"For your information, I was Miss everything back in my town..."  
"I know." he smugly interrupted her.

"Therefore I know how to act like a lady." Caroline rolled her eyes ignoring him and stared at her pictures for a little longer. "I'm very photogenic and now I'm famous on the internet…"  
"Easy on the ego love, for now you are only a small little fish thrown into the ocean, we need to make you bigger so that the big sharks step aside for you." he rescued his phone back. "Also, you are only famous when someone actually gets your name right."

She sulked instantly but her stomach claimed all the attentions, she pressed her hands against it trying to stop the noises that were growing by the minute, she was anxious all day and she was hungry as hell on top of it all.  
"Adele mentioned something about your dislike for Sushi…" Klaus lowered his chin so he could engage her eyes.

Caroline spoke through her mopping. "They served raw fish…" she shivered just buy remembering it. "I'm a meat girl…"  
"You know love…" he reached behind him to the couch and took a silver platter that was holding something covered by a domed lit. "All in all, you did really well today."

"Am I now a dog that gets cookies for good behavior?" she scoffed promptly.  
"Very well, I'll indulge in it myself then." he exposed a luscious burger and fries.

Caroline screamed leaping at Klaus and having a bite while he was still holding the only hamburger she had seen in weeks, she made the most satisfied sounds and took a handful of French fries to go with it. "Oh my God…." she covered her mouth while Klaus only laughed entertained with her actions. "I think I'm having an orgasm…" she sighed with a few fries on the way to her mouth. "If I could still remember how that feels like." she brutally looked at him. "I can't even have a boyfriend with all this tight to-do list that you have going on for me."  
"Soon there will be groupies sweetheart and I might not interfere with those."

"I'm allowed to have sex?" she asked with her mouth full.  
"As long as I'm allowed to be inside the room to make sure there aren't any sex tapes being recorded."

Caroline stopped munching and loudly gulped down, they stared at each other for the longest time until she tightened her lips together and punched him hard on the arm. "You are not witty, at all!"  
"I beg to differ." he stood up placing his hands inside of his suit pants. "After you are done with your little food porn try to get some rest Caroline." he advised her as he was about to reach the door.

"Thanks for this Klaus… it meant a lot to see that there are actual feelings living among those big muscles of yours." she giggled joyfully.  
"It was a doggy treat because you need to be up at 4am to start working on your single, Bono is going to visit another Pope so we have an opening at the Studio."

"That's three hours from now." Caroline muttered with dismay.  
"I would take the chance to sleep love, the sofa seems very comfortable." There was an effortless sneer from him.

"Sod off _Satan._" she shouted before he closed the door.

* * *

**Soundtrack:**

Lay me down - _Avicii_

It's a beautiful day - _U2_

The new black - _Moon Taxi_

Morning sun - _The Happy Mess_


	2. Rewind

Marcel turned on his chair with a big grin, he contemplated the other man waiting for a reaction.  
"You weren't lying, that's a fact." The man called Enzo shifted his weight on the chair and leaned forward to bring up the volume, the beautiful voice coming from inside the booth was undeniably too good to be true. "And that's a clean voice?" he still had his strong doubts.

Marcel lifted his hands, all the buttons in front of him were untouched, he wasn't tampering at all with her natural voice.  
"And she's gorgeous to go along with it." Enzo narrowed his view around her chest. "Is Klaus tapping that?" he smirked with devious.

"Klaus will redo your face if he hears you talking like that, you know how protective he is of his assets." Marcel gathered his focus back to the blonde.  
Enzo gave him a sly look. "Well that's one of his best assets so far."

Marcel gave up with a shake of his head, he knew Enzo used the lower part of his brain recurrently forgetting when to stop.  
"Try to give it a rest." he still asked as he was about to call Caroline out of the booth.

Enzo parted his hands conveying an innocence that just didn't live in him at all.  
"How is my voice today?" Caroline asked apprehensive as soon as she joined them, she was jittery today and it took her a while to calm her nerves which really showed in her voice, she was certain of it and expected Marcel to complain but instead the big guy pulled a chair for her with a smile.

"We need to talk about songs. So far, you've been doing some neat versions but we need an original to launch you."  
Caroline jolted with a spur of life and left the chair without having warmed it, she grabbed her bag and searched frantically for something. "I have a few… Damn." she cursed when the old notebook fell from her hand.

Enzo smirked as he lustful tilted his head admiring Caroline's ass while she picked up the notebook.  
She caught him checking her out which left her uncomfortable but she tried to ignore it as forcefully as she was able to.

"I wrote a few songs." Caroline handed the notebook to Marcel. "The first ones aren't my best but I got really good towards the middle and then later o…" she interrupted her easy flow because Marcel skimmed too quickly through the pages, she knew he wasn't even listening, let alone reading her earnest lyrics.  
Marcel dropped the notebook hastily on the mixing table. "They seem sweet but we need something professional." His very tone was professional and straight to the point. "We have a few originals waiting to be picked up and Enzo here agreed to help us choose one for your big debut."

Caroline tried her best to be polite. "What does Klaus think about this?"  
Marcel laughed with a big noise. "Klaus wants the money pouring in, he has a big property in England that costs a lot to maintain and that only comes with the big hits that we will produce for you."

They hadn't specifically talked about the direction she wanted to take with her album but while listening to the sample of the pre-recorded song Caroline realized what she _didn't _want.  
At first she was happy that Enzo dismissed the song, he found it too cheeky and she was relieved that they weren't forcing her to sing about her body like she was advertising herself as a booty call but that glee didn't last long because both men were incredibly excited over some confusing lyrics about a wild night out in the woods.

The amount of times that the word _moon _was repeated in the chorus made her cringe in nausea and it was harder than ever to smile at Marcel and Enzo when they looked for a reaction.  
"It's… catchy." she awkwardly rested her hands over her knees and shrugged.

Marcel tuned out the scratchy voice and left the heavy bass pounding inside the studio. "Try to sing the chorus."  
Caroline unwillingly took the paper Enzo handed her, she sighed, it's not like she needed much to memorize this.

The song consisted of two versus that were repeated after the chorus while that one consisted of the same word repeated at least ten times, the way it said _use falsetto _on the last line of the chorus was hilarious to her.  
Marcel started swinging his head back and forth like he was nodding along with the song and he messed around with a few buttons to rearrange the music, undeniably it sounded cooler after a few minutes and Caroline wished he would let her do that with the lyrics as well.

"Let's do it from the start now Caroline." Marcel asked deeply focused in the mixing table in front of him.  
If Caroline came across this song in the radio, she would have changed stations within a blink but alas, she was a perfectionist with a tendency to be an overachiever and she did not disappoint.

She delivered a perfect rendition of it which left Enzo and Marcel keyed up but there was so much one could ask of her and she abruptly cut the last chorus short.  
"Are you sure Klaus is ok with this?" she asked fairly sure he hadn't been paying for private singing lessons if he wasn't aiming a little higher than the easy summer song that would flop along with her career.

Marcel accused the slight irritation as he hastily replaced the ongoing beat with a rough first recording of Caroline's voice.  
She went over her shock when he started using auto-tune to _correct _her voice.

"What do you think that you are doing?" she asked more ticked off than surprised.  
"It needs work." he stressed the obvious lack of quality in the recording, at least in his eyes. "But before we take you inside that booth we need to choose the right track, it doesn't hurt if we help you a little before that."

"Excuse _you_." Caroline wanted to snarl at the them. "I don't need that fancy machine tampering with my voice, I know that I'm not that awesome today but I can try it again."  
"Don't be so offended princess..." Enzo circled his eyes taken aback. "No one will ever find out about it."

Caroline pulled her eyebrows together in a discontent move. "We should wait for Klaus, he is my manager and I think he would like to be here when we are making the big decisions."  
Marcel exchanged a look with Enzo.

The other bent over in his chair and got closer to Caroline. "We know that you can sing gorgeous but people enjoy hearing a certain type of perfection that is only possible after some work. We know what we are doing and we need to do it fast because every minute inside that booth costs more than you can imagine so you are not going back inside until we have the right beat for you. Klaus trusts us to make the right decisions or he would be here breathing down on our necks."  
Caroline wrinkled her lips unsure, Klaus was having breakfast with someone from a big record company, that's why he wasn't here or else he _would be _breathing down so hard on their necks that it would feel like he was sniffing them.

They were very despair from each other but one thing Caroline and Klaus shared, they were incredibly ambitious and they were control freaks to no extend.  
But perhaps she was the one with the sharpest tongue.

"You can't tell how good I am with that poor recording, my phone records better than that and mind you that it's as old as I am." she stretched her lips to form a smile.  
Enzo twitched in his seat with the sassy comeback but the apt reaction was reeled upon Klaus' arrival.

"Hello…" Klaus stood by the door astute as he was.  
Obviously the mood was tense inside the room.

"Solve us a riddle Klaus…" Marcel replayed the short auto-tuned recording for the manager.  
Klaus wheeled his eyes to Caroline, she crossed her arms expecting him to do something brutal about the dreadful offense.

"Should we add a rapper to the chorus or just leave Caroline's voice fading at the end of it?" Marcel easily smiled at Klaus.  
Caroline narrowed her eyes with growing spite for the farce while it took Klaus a good few seconds to recognize Caroline's original voice.

"This isn't the single you showed me last week." Klaus was stuck on something more vital to him.  
"I had an artist to promote and Marcel gave me the single." Enzo smirked at Klaus. "Do you want to know her name?" he said with smugness for the first successful managing gig he landed.

"Why are you here?" Klaus asked at the same time he slowly looked at Enzo.  
The disdain for the other man left Caroline wound up and irrationally she wished for Klaus' fist to end on Enzo's nose.

"I have money to be here and I paid Marcel for the single." he was terribly sly as he smiled again. "It's number one already on ITunes Klaus, you need to keep up with the modern age, old man."  
Marcel stood up like he was envisioning a bad outcome and a few exchanged punches. "I needed the money Klaus but look, I have a long list of possibilities, we just need to find her the right hit."

"Evidently it's not the dimwit version of Teen Wolf." Klaus snapped.  
"Thank you!" Caroline dropped from her seat.

Marcel gave Klaus a look and then went past him to Caroline. "Do you mind fetching coffee for us Caroline?"  
"I'm not your dog." Caroline quickly shot back.

Klaus' next trade of looks with Marcel was telling and he licked his lips before looking back at Caroline. "Give us a minute Caroline."  
All the air was held back on her side and she was absolutely stunned with him but he was imperial in his stare and she clearly understood this wasn't open to discussion.

With a dragged yet snappy take, she left the room restraining from slamming the door.  
Once they were alone Klaus fulminated Marcel. "I chose you Marcel because you had rights over that particular song."

"I thought it was because we were friends." Marcel tried to bring Klaus around with a sympathetic smile.  
"I hardly allow that to cloud my judgment, we had an agreement and friendship is a very loose term between us when you won't grant me the same choices you expect of me."

The handsome black man felt unease for his move. "We've been friends for so long Niklaus, I know that you are pissed but I'm not exactly sitting on my family's fortune."  
Klaus gritted his teeth.

Marcel casually sat against the mixing table, he really looked for a good way to get out of this one. "I like the girl Klaus, she's drop dead hot and she's got a great smile to go with it but let's face it… she's no Adele. We can' take the independent route with this one."  
"My singer is also a social media rising star by the way." Enzo unfortunately felt the will to make things worse.

"Stop talking." Klaus warned him with a hand that lifted enough to bring fear.  
Enzo was a smart ass that saw himself as the best thing that ever came from Britain and he had the nagging ability of easily getting on Klaus' bad side.

"This is between Klaus and me." Marcel quietly asked Enzo to go for coffee as well.  
The other wasn't interested in engaging in a physical fight with Klaus so he chose to leave, on his way out he found Caroline pacing in the hall.

He left the door open on purpose and approached her with a conspicuous attitude. "Your future is being decided now, they will fondle a little with each other but then they will agree that a pretty face like yours is ideal for the new market. The problem is that Klaus still refuses to embrace the new world, music is changing and the way people listen and live music also changed." Enzo pulled a card from his jacket and handed it to Caroline. "If you ever get tired of Grandpa and decide to have a real manager, give me a call."

Caroline looked down on the card before taking it. "I'll remember that." she viciously crumbled his card and dropped it on the ground.  
"Not a fan?" Enzo asked with a shrug.

"I don't like a man who is incapable of having a conversation without lowering his eyes to my breasts every two seconds."  
Enzo chuckled sleazy as she just described him and walked away.

Caroline twisted her neck repulsed but came near the door, her mood wasn't improved by no means as she caught a fraction of the ongoing conversation.  
_"… you are being unreasonable Klaus, the girl has talent but she's not the next Grammy winner."_

Caroline hated the small disdain that Marcel added at the end of that, it wasn't fair to mock her limitations on top of his cutting words.

* * *

"I came to you first Marcel because I wanted to give you the chance to be part of her success, if you did not trust my knowledge then you should have been upfront with me."  
Marcel shook his head. "You are not seeing the big picture Klaus and I know how stubborn you can be but for Christ sake, she's just a random unknown girl like the thousands filling Los Angeles. I can find ten like her just across the street in the old diner and they all have one of these…" Marcel picked Caroline's notebook.

Klaus frowned, he never saw this before and he took it from Marcel's hand surprised he missed it, he was going through the pages with increasing intrigue and he barely heard what Marcel was rambling about now.  
"You are talking Marcel but all I can hear is the wind of your turncoat."

"Stop being so dramatic Klaus, I will work with her and we will make an outstanding record but she needs to be put out there showing a lot of that stunning ivory skin of hers and doing what all the others are doing. She needs a fast hit so she rides on that buzz as hard as she can, get her a raunchy video with very few clothes involved and a lot of sexy moves, if it's a little on the edgy side, even better."  
Klaus folded the notebook in two and kept it in his jacket pocket. "I'm not using her body to sell her debut record."

"Enzo was right…" Marcel went back to his chair. "You need to welcome the new era Klaus, every new hit girl has a provocative video and the image to go with it. I love you man but I have bills to pay and she's not going to make it big if you don't listen to the _King_."  
"I'm afraid you will need another blonde to sing alongside Bulldog, Caroline will be busy working with another producer." Klaus stormed away irritated.

Marcel wrinkled his eyes trying to figure the mistake out, he came to his senses just as Klaus was about to slam the door on him. "It's Pitbull!" Marcel shouted.

* * *

Caroline had stepped away from the door a while ago and was now sitting on the hall waiting for Klaus, she slowly stood when he came marching down the hall.  
For an instant Caroline forgot why she was down, he could be an idiot to her most of the time but the image of Klaus' muscles tense and defined under his Henley was a sight able to make anyone brighten up.

"Do I go back inside and sing about the woods again?" she asked retrieving her eyes away from his chest and encountering two immense pearls looking at her.  
"Do you wish to be taken serious or will you settle for being just another card in the deck?" he stopped inches away from her face.

Caroline held her stare. "Only if I'm the best card of that deck."  
His lips formed this magnificent smile that exposed a set of dimples. "I will get you another producer."

* * *

Caroline expectantly looked at him from the rim of the couch, she was holding her breath with every nod he made.  
For the last hour Klaus had made so many calls that she was struck, her stomach was hurting and she was so anxious that she hadn't touched dinner.

All of it was still scattered over the coffee table in his suite, he hadn't eaten anything either and from the way he was hastily ending the latest call, there were no good news in the horizon.  
"Nothing?" she quietly asked him.

Klaus glanced at her. "The same as the others."  
Caroline motioned her lips with a huff, she turned away from him and looked down on her bare feet, she outlined the little tattoo she had on her foot thoughtful. "They have a big list of artists to check and you should bring them the single we were meant to record with _the_ producer of the moment on our side."

She huffed again, Marcel was the perfect name to have on the introduction letter, she didn't know much about managing but she learned from watching Klaus that the big companies were currently flooded with everyone's name.  
From all the popular names leaving the reality shows to the new emerging stars on Youtube, the industry was full and like Marcel predicted, saturated with the new wave of naughty pop stars that reigned the charts.

"There's still time to call Marcel you know… we just left the studio a couple of hours ago and he is your friend…" she said trying to adjust to the real meaning of her words.  
Klaus sat next to Caroline. "I'm sure you look divine with no clothes on Caroline but unless that's what you want to do publicly, I won't place you in that situation."

She sweetly began to smile. "What will we do then?"  
"Find a solution." he assured her before standing up again.

She went back to rest her arms on the back of the couch while watching him, she toyed with a lock of her hair, twirling it around her finger lazily and for the longest time she just sat there watching him work.  
He was charming and playful on the phone, although she knew he wasn't sincere in all the comments, she was sure they made all the ladies melt and Caroline waited for a positive answer very soon.

The only obstacle now was her body asking her to go pee and she jumped from the couch with a little run to the bathroom, she wasn't long in there but when she was ready to leave Klaus was already on another call and she halted before coming out of the bathroom.  
For the second time today she listened to a conversation that involved Klaus but this time around the subject was about money.

_"… I know that I'm way over my budget but I do know what I'm doing."  
_He didn't mention any names but it was clear that he was talking to someone important in his life and Caroline tried to be as quiet as she could while she opened the door a little more.

Klaus was rubbing the back of his neck showing the distress but also how tired he was after the strenuous day.  
_"I need another week."_ Klaus was imperative now.

Caroline could tell the answer didn't sit well with the other side because Klaus dropped a hand in front of him like he was ordering the other person to shut up.  
_"I will not have this conversation now and I will not return until I have her career on its way, you know that I will not rest until I have that done so why are you demanding something that I am utterly unqualified to deliver?"_

His tone hardened and Caroline hid again completely inside the bathroom.  
There was a dry laugh from Klaus next.

_"If that is the case, I will use my own money to finance her breakthrough." _

Caroline closed the door unwilling to listen to the rest, the angry pitch was a sign that he was having a fight with someone over her and Caroline felt bad.  
He already spent a lot of money on her, he paid for everything since they arrived to LA and now she just found out he surpassed his budget and was going to invest his own money.

No…  
Caroline pressed her tummy, enough was enough.

From Marcel's words, she found out that she wasn't even that good and worthy of all this, Klaus shouldn't be going to such lengths to make her dream come true and it wasn't fair that he was fighting with someone else over it as well.  
Determined she left the bathroom ready to tell him just that, she waited until he ended the call and then apologized for eavesdropping.

"I'm sorry but I heard the call when I was leaving and I feel bad Klaus. I'm really lucky that you have such belief in my talent but Marcel was right, I'm just a small town girl with a lot of willpower but I lack the _it _factor and although I've loved everything you showed me… it's time to pull the plug."  
"I've lost you around the feeling bad part." he attempted a smile but she knew he was forcing it.

"Thank you for believing in me when no one else bothered to have a second look but I can't keep living on your expenses when your boss is cornering you to drop me."  
Klaus shook his head slightly and closed his eyes weary from the call. "It's someone slightly more complicated than an employer."

Caroline had no intention of asking who it was because it was not her place to ask those questions, she just wanted to end it all in a good note. "This was unforgettable Klaus and I will treasure all the things I've learned. The Yoga will stay with me forever." she pressed her chest hard.

Klaus laughed finally letting his phone go for today. "Caroline…"  
She interrupted him easily with a shake of her bouncy curls. "I'm going to pack, you can cancel my suite after tonight. As for the one-way ticket back home, I still have a few savings and I know you are going to argue with me but I would like to pay you back someday for all of this. I'm sure my job at the local Pub is still waiting for me." she cutely laughed.

It was astounding to him how she took the end of her dream so stoically but she was right, the issues were mounting and the fact he lost his temper just now when confronted about it was a bad sign.  
Klaus never crossed any lines or got attached in any way so he took back the strange hint of emotion in the air and smiled neutrally at her. "I'm truly disheartened that we haven't accomplished this."

Caroline moved her head so she could give him a side look. "I met Adele and I took a picture with her that was all over the net."  
He laughed quietly lowering his head. "Yes, I made _Carol _famous for a night."

Caroline picked up her shoes and was all steamy in her innuendo. "I'm sure many _Carols_ feel the same after their night with Klaus Mikaelson."  
He had one last laugh before she left to her room.

Klaus sat on the couch picking his tablet but he couldn't find anything capable of holding his attention for long so after a few minutes he decided to grab his jacket and go down to the front desk.  
"Good evening Mr. Mikaelson, may I help you?" One of the girls working on the night shift greeted him with a big smile.

"Yes, I'd like to check out from both suites after tonight." he took the wallet from his pocket.  
"I'll prepare everything for you." The girl started a few mandatory steps before handing him the invoice and all the papers required for the cancellation of his stay.

After confirmation Klaus paid the bill with his credit card and then thanked her for the discrete and efficient work with a big tip.  
"You need to leave the suites before 10 Am tomorrow." she reminded him. "And I hope you will be staying with us again." she politely added.

Klaus merely responded with a bow and headed for the hotel bar, he could use a good Irish whiskey and that's exactly what he asked for.  
It was late, the usual crowd was reduced to a few men who couldn't stand anymore and a couple trying to have sex with their hands instead of taking it upstairs.

Klaus was thoroughly enjoying his drink setting himself apart from the surroundings, his only reaction to what was happening around him was when a phone started ringing and he searched the pockets of his jacket wondering if it was his phone.  
Soon he realized he left it upstairs but he did find the notebook, which he had forgotten it was in his possession.

Klaus asked for a drink refill before opening the notebook, now that he could actually read attentively what she wrote, Klaus immersed himself in a series of words imprinted with passion.  
They resembled a diary taking in consideration how she started talking about pain and love so deeply entwined that he became certain she didn't know them apart.

Time flew as he read all of her notes, some were bubbly connections and others were heartfelt gushes of scars that wouldn't heal but reading them all was like accessing Caroline's soul.  
The pages were ending and Klaus felt compelled to read everything only that he was drawn to a specific passage, he kept reading these words over and over until he shot from his stool and went up to the suites.

He hit Caroline's door repeatedly with his fist until she opened the door with a glare.  
"Klaus…" she hissed with fury.

Klaus fought a big chuckle, Caroline's hair was a mess of curls and she had something orange sticking to that maze. "Did you fall asleep eating chips again love?"  
Caroline's sleepy eyes went wide. "What…" her hand flew to her hair and she struggled to look decent in front of him, after a few hair brushes and a straightening of the oversize T-shirt that she was using as night wear she snapped at him again. "What do you want Klaus? It's really late."

Klaus stretched his arms to each side and placed his hands on the threshold. "Were you in an abusive relationship?"  
Caroline grasped for air confounded. "Are you aware of how invasive and inconvenient that just was?"

Klaus refuted her words and just blatantly pushed himself inside of her room.  
She turned around perplexed. "Are you drunk?"

"Two drinks are hardly able to knock me off sweetheart."  
"How about a punch straight in the face?" she asked closing her door.

Klaus brought forward the notebook. "_Your twisted words… convince me to please you, made me think that I need this too…" _  
Caroline loudly inhaled and flung herself at him. "Why are you reading that? How did you get your hands on that?"

Klaus pushed her away with a hand while the other further took the notebook from her reach. "You also wrote… _I'm trying to let you hear me as I am._"  
Caroline responded to his soft voice with a yielding of her body. "So what? You had no right to read that without my permission."

"I'm not trespassing your privacy Caroline, you forgot this back at the studio and these terms you've scribbled in here are an honest rendition of your life."  
"Is that a question or a statement?" Caroline's hands disappeared under the long sleeves.

"Are you willing to show the world who you are? To let them hear you as you truly are?"  
Caroline threw her hands in the air. "I don't know who I am, that's just a bunch of stuff I wrote back at home and I thought that maybe… we could use them but I was put back into my place today." she sadly said.

Klaus handed her the notes back. "I just find you genuine and malice free and I know how much the world will fall in love with someone like you. You are relatable Caroline and I've found that since the day I've seen you."  
"Ugh!" Caroline covered her eyes. "Don't do that." she faced him angry. "Don't get my hopes all up again."

"You are destined for greater things sweetheart, the small town pub is irrevocably not an option for your talent."  
Caroline hugged the side of her waist. "You should see the doctor, there's a bipolar thing going on with your brain."

"Pack your belongings." Klaus hectically headed for the door.  
"My two dresses and my teddy bear have been packed for hours Klaus." she tilted her head finding him insane by the second.

"We are leaving in ten minutes."  
When Caroline opened her mouth to speak he was long gone, she circled her hand in the air before giving up with a flick. "Seriously…"

* * *

"That is yours?" Caroline shrieked loudly, she pointed energetically at the small jet plane. "_That_ belongs to you?"  
"It belongs to my family." Klaus clarified without stopping his walk.

There was a girl waiting for them inside the jet and she took Caroline's small bag with a smile, the blonde neared the big seats with wobbly legs, Klaus was already on his phone and sitting down with a glass of Scotch in his hand.  
Caroline took the seat across his with an overwhelmed sensation.

"Can I get you something do drink?" the girl with a black skirt and a yellow shirt asked Caroline.  
"Sparkling water?" Caroline ventured sweetly.

"I'll bring it right away." The girl answered leaving Caroline and Klaus alone once she delivered the requested bottle.  
Caroline leaned back on the puffed chair, she felt herself sink into it as the extremely comfortable seat absorbed her light weight.

Klaus looked up to find Caroline bouncing on her seat like a little girl.  
She giggled happily entertained. "These are really comfy… I bet they've seen a lot of Mile High Club action."

Klaus did a poor job restraining his smirk. "There has been the occasional girlfriend."  
She pushed her seat back until she was in semi-lying position, it wasn't a bad view and she wondered if it would be too straightforward to ask him if he had a girlfriend at the moment.

There wasn't much she knew about Klaus' private life, just that he came from a very ancient English family and that he had a lot of siblings, Caroline was almost sure she read somewhere he had five of them.  
She decided to stay quiet about it and looked for her phone, it barely worked without a few good bangs against her leg and there wasn't even a decent game in it.

Caroline was hoping to ask his IPad borrowed so she could distract herself but Klaus was busy with it and she backed away, since she was stuck with nothing to do Caroline snuggled on her chair and looked out her window.  
They were crossing a sea of clouds and she randomly lost herself in thoughts and dreams that were interrupted when Klaus grumbled some swearing under his breath.

"What's eating you?" she asked him with a frown.  
As he pushed the volume button repeatedly some song echoed louder, the song was pretty but the voice singing it couldn't belong to someone older than 16 and Caroline didn't recognize the voice at all.

"That's Enzo's star, Davina. She's a teen singing a masterpiece. It sounds like she's cleaning her doll house while doing it."  
The snarky observation made Caroline laugh. "It's still a good song."

"You should be the one singing it." he dropped the tablet on his lap upset.  
"If I didn't connect to it, I would also sound like her." Caroline guaranteed.

Klaus knew she was right but he still felt sour over Marcel's betrayal. "We just need the right song."  
Caroline felt the ultimatum in his voice, she didn't require a full download of his thoughts to know this was her last chance to make it. "Where are we going Klaus?"

"To see someone who hopefully will be able to help us without crossing me." he leaned back on his chair and finally seemed to relax.  
It took him a couple of minutes to fall asleep but Caroline knew how much he needed that precious rest and she didn't make a sound unwilling to bother him, she was too nervous and anxious to sleep so she went back admiring the clouds, although her blue eyes often searched for the handsome man peacefully resting.

* * *

"I can't believe we are in New York." her voice came out muffled because she had her face glued to the glass of the elevator.  
She was still recovering from the shock once they stepped down from the jet, now she was going up to the top floor of a luxurious residential skyscraper and she was in awe of the view over Manhattan.

She was actually here, in the city of her dreams and she pulled away from the glass dizzy from the incredible height they were gaining and from the chain of events that led her here.  
"My sister and her husband live in here…" Klaus explained a bit in awe himself for the girl genuinely happy to be here.

Caroline cocked an eyebrow amused. "And here I was thinking that you were going to show me your red room next."  
Klaus' laughter filled the elevator. "I enjoy touching as much as I enjoy being touched sweetheart and I rather not be in full control all the time. I find the book insipid to be quite frank but I didn't know it was on your reading resumé."

"I simply read it to know what the big fuss was about." she joined her shoulders. "But it's not my thing."  
"May I risk a slap in my face by asking what is your _thing_?"

Caroline wished she hadn't looked at his neck, the necklaces were her weak point, she just loved a man with good taste and Klaus was a master spewing that.  
From the real cool leather jackets, to the gasmic Henley's, to the on point choice of necklaces.

"You are making me nervous." she uncomfortably shifted her weight and crossed an arm around her chest, shielding herself from him.  
"Do I remind you of him?" Klaus bluntly asked.

Caroline took a double look towards him, like she was at first doubting she heard right. "Don't be a prick now that I started seeing you as an actual human being."  
"It was just a misfortune question." he said without facing away from her.

It wasn't exactly doing wonders to her racing heart and she had no control over her response, when the doors of the elevator opened up she didn't move and Klaus lost the easy attire as well.  
There would be a _sw__eetheart _coming really soon but Caroline acted on a spur of bravery.

"He wasn't my boyfriend and it wasn't a long-term relationship. He was a one night stand that was meant to be fun, I didn't think I would end up in the hospital when I refused to have sex the way he wanted."  
He watched silently as she painfully dragged air inside to fill her chest.

"But don't worry, you don't look like him." she clarified heading for the exit quickly.  
She should have foreseen it but Klaus still was faster than her and grabbed her arms as she was about to go by him.

It was the closest they had ever stood to each other and touching as it was.  
Caroline lowered her eyes spotting for the first time the mole on his neck and when she looked up she found him outlining her face with his eyes.

"Caroline..." he simply said, the words_ I'm sorry_ weren't available in his vocabulary.  
She dismissed it with another shrug. "It's not important."

Klaus clenched his lips upset and the throaty sound was a loud verbalization of it.  
"There's a vein about to explode in your neck." she cutely smiled at him.

He really didn't want to smile but she made it impossible to keep a straight face, although he still tried to be serious when he spoke. "I'm your manager Caroline therefore you are the most important person in my life right now."  
She tensed upon the proximity. "It's sort of unfair to say it like that using your thick accent."

"Although you are a very beautiful woman Caroline, I did not mean it with romantic connotation."  
"Damn..." she mockingly faked a troubled curse.

It eased the moment and they broke away from each other with a smile.  
"But you need to know that your comfort and safety are my main concern as your handler." he insisted.

"Bad analogy Klaus." she grunted taking the lead out of the elevator.  
As they went down the hall she felt a strange unexplained excitement and she had a hard time controlling her fangirl mode when Stefan Salvatore opened the door for them.

"Are you going balder or is that just some really shady haircut?" the blonde man asked with a malicious smile.  
"It's wonderful to see your hair again as well Stefan." Klaus countered with a sneer.

Stefan crumbled into laughter and locked his hand with Klaus, then both men shared this big manly hug full on hands pressing shoulder plates and odd noises that only guys were able to pull off when they encountered someone vital in their lives.  
"This is Caroline Forbes." Klaus introduced her once he was free from Stefan's affection.

She barely lifted her hand. "Hi… big renown song writer and famous person…"  
Stefan was immediately enchanted. "I'm not famous, at least I don't think I am."

Klaus cleared his throat. "Fake modesty is not your fortitude."  
Stefan rolled his eyes at Klaus inviting Caroline first inside his house.

Caroline took it all in with curiosity, the apartment was huge and right off the bat she could see a big black piano from the lobby. "You worked with Bon Jovi." she said a bit awestruck now that she recalled all the people he worked with. "And Aerosmith."  
"I was down with the old guard." Stefan joked.

"Is my sister around?" Klaus asked with a glance around the house.  
"Bekah is in Australia, she's shooting some movie about vampires so we have the house all for ourselves." Stefan was mischievous.

"She left you uncared for?" Klaus teased Stefan.  
The other gave him a foul look before sitting at the piano. "She will be back next week and there is this new invention Nik, it's called Skype."

Klaus made this grumpy sound, he was a man of real touch and he would never fall for this new hype.  
The easy banter followed and Caroline watched it all from a distance, she wasn't used to seeing Klaus so relaxed and playful and it took her a bit to motion when Stefan called her near them.

"So Nik tells me that you have a few songs in the makings…"  
Caroline started shaking. "It's a… rubbish." she stammered out.

No way was she placing her _work _at the same level than an ode like _I don't want to miss a thing_ but both men simply gawked at her like they were going on air strike until she displayed her notes over the piano.  
With a deep sigh Caroline opened her bag.

"You should do it before Stefan becomes senile." Klaus grinned.  
Caroline clasped her lips upset and glared at him, it was as effective as doing a rain dance but she still squinted at him.

Klaus swiftly showed his dimples.  
"Here…" Caroline handed the worn out pad to Stefan.

She cleaned her sweaty palms anticipating the same show that Marcel presented her with but like Klaus, Stefan found a few loose sentences that he liked and as easily as it was for Caroline to bring air to her lungs, Stefan began to stroke the keys of his piano.  
In seconds he had a repeated melody that instantly attracted Caroline and she inched closer to the piano.

"_Head under water…_" Stefan started singing, firstly trying to fit the words to the melody but quickly changing it to fit the lyrics instead.  
"_And they tell me…" _he started but Caroline interrupted him by joining her voice with his.

Stefan stopped singing but kept playing the piano and looked at Caroline with an encouraging smile.  
"_… the breathing gets harder, even I know that." _Caroline found her courage and carried on knowing the lines by heart.

Stefan's melody melted like magic around her voice and Klaus watched it all with a winning smile, finally they had _the _weapon he needed to throw Caroline into the wolves.

Stefan stopped to gather what they had so far and Caroline suggested they added one more line after the first one, he nodded getting intricately into working mood and started the song from the start.  
Caroline filled the apartment with a secure and beautiful voice as she as well found her niche.

"_Head under water, and they tell me to breathe easy for a while. The breathing gets harder, even I know that_. _You made room for me..."_

* * *

**Soundtrack: **

Keeps gettin' better - Christina Aguilera

When we come alive - _Switchfoot_

The middle - _Jimmy Eat World_

I'm a mess - _Ed Sheeran_

Love song - _Sara Bareilles_


	3. A little deeper

Caroline had one of those laughs that filled a room and by addition an entire block around it, Klaus just left the elevator and he could already hear it from the hallway.

"I do hope you have at least another song prepared by now." Klaus ended the party happening by the piano with snark.  
"We've perfected _Eternal Flame_." Caroline beamed surrounded by a lot of fast food.

The sight of tacos and everything related to Mexican food left him queasy and naturally his tone expressed exactly that. "It's a rather bad decision to name a new song with an old one."  
Caroline giggled. "It's not a new one, I've decided to include my favorite song in the master demo we are preparing."

Klaus chuckled but unlike the bubbly blonde, he was ticked off when he did it. "Your master demo will not include a cover."  
Caroline instantly frowned. "But I want it that way."

"It's a horrendous idea." he poked all the food scattered on top of the piano. "Much like this…"  
Stefan opened his arms when Klaus looked at him. "She never tried Mexican before and I found it a crime."

"Wonderful of you Stefan, will you be doing all the singing from now on then? I'm sure you would look sexy in red." Klaus scolded him before bending over to pick up the bin they kept around for paper waste.  
When he started cleaning the surface from all the food, Caroline managed to rescue a big bag of spicy chips that she protected against her chest. "Why are you murdering all the good food?" she asked him aghast that he was throwing it all into the bin.

"I'm trying to beat your suicidal wish to die of a heart attack before you turn 20." Klaus tossed a variety of sauces with particular disdain into the bin.  
Caroline judged him with all the power that her fresh 19 years allowed her. "There's nothing wrong with my heart." she launched a hand into the bag retrieving a very greasy chip from inside. "It's _undead _unlike yours." she mumbled.

Klaus laughed provoked by her. "I haven't heard you sing today sweetheart, would you grant me a show right now?"  
"Sure." Caroline shrugged. "What do you want to hear?"

"Something vigorous and energetic." he demanded with a big smile.  
Caroline grimaced succumbing to the lack of energy in her. "Can't you settle for a good ballad?"

"Only if you come up with a few good high notes to impress me." he improved his smile by adding dimples.  
Caroline cleared her throat like she was cleaning her voice but the first draft was horribly out of tone and the second was even worst so she stopped half way through it and bit her lip accusing the way she just wasn't feeling any of it.

"Are you feeling lazy? Perhaps in need of a good nap because of the way you feel so full of rubbish food?" Klaus held out the bin for her.  
She angrily tossed the bag of chips into it. "I only wanted to live a little."

"You are allowed to live when you have your face displayed on Times Square." Klaus dropped the bin upset.  
"We only took one break of an hour." Caroline glanced to Stefan for help.

But he was already getting up from the piano. "I'm sorry Caroline but it's a golden rule for a musician to never step in between a manager and his client."  
When he left them alone Caroline felt unprotected but she decided that putting space between her and the fuming man all in dark blue was the best option for now.

With a somewhat flair attitude she walked to the middle of the living room and stretched her arms, then her legs before she focused on turning her head to the sides, after a few other random movements she sat on the carpet and crossed her legs over her lap, upon resting her arms there as well she started making a continuous humming sound.  
Klaus loudly inhaled. "What are you doing now Caroline?"

"I feel bloated so I'm doing Yoga to get better." she deliberately left out the part of how incredibly distressed he made her.  
Klaus needed a drink and he left her humming on the living room to arrange for that exactly.

Caroline opened one eye catching him leaving but quickly closed it again before he caught her and only to poke him further she started chanting louder to something she just made up now.

* * *

Stefan was enjoying his drink on the balcony and he defended himself before Klaus started spewing bad remarks his way. "She has a way of convincing people without our awareness."  
Klaus closed the door of the balcony peeking at her, now she was making circles with her arms. "She has the ability of toying with all my limits." he grumbled as he took the glass to his mouth.

Stefan gave his drink a rest with a squint. "You are 26 years old and you've been a manager for 25 of those years…" he easily joked before getting serious. "But I've never seen a client manage to incite you in any way."  
Klaus smiled watching Caroline now doing some sort of exercise that consisted of sticking her ass in the air, she wasn't kidding when she protested about how silly Yoga was to her, whatever it was that she was doing with such a concentrated face was everything but Yoga.

"She is…" Klaus relished in the easy smile. "… I don't find her predictable." When Stefan chose to keep quiet Klaus turned to him set on putting the matter to rest. "You've also known me for the better half of my life so you know that there's nothing else to it." he added.  
Stefan nodded silently ending his drink.

* * *

Caroline lifted her head when the two men returned to the room.  
"Are we interrupting a private moment love?" Klaus rested his drink on the piano.

Caroline gave him a feisty look while bringing her foot to the back of her head and making a perfect arch with her leg. "I'm finding my inner balance."  
"Any chance you might find your good will to work while you are at it?" Klaus opened her old pad, noticing that the pages were all full now, she had been writing nonstop since they arrived to New York.

Caroline yanked it from his hands before he got a decent shot to read it. "This is like a diary, it means that it should be kept private until I decide to share it with someone else."  
"How adorable of you, should I get you a key so you can keep your hopes and dreams locked up as well?" Klaus dared her with a lift of his eyebrows.

"I want to include a cover, it's something everyone knows and they will see how different my voice is from the original." she asked him in a more pleading way.  
"Covers are for family, friends and pets. Do you have a dog that you want to win over?" Klaus found his way back to the alcohol.

"Just a really grumpy wolf." she huffed.  
"I'm impressed that your range of compliments would reach that far." he smirked.

Caroline delved towards his face, at first he thought she was going to slap him but with a determined move she took his glass away. "You know, this kills too."  
The movement was so surprising for Klaus that he didn't have a reply and after she realized how much she just crossed a subtle line, she was alarmed for a few seconds there.

"I really want to become famous before your liver disintegrates." she quickly drove the conversation back to the neutral side.  
"Then I suggest that we go back to work?" Stefan interrupted the awkward staring happening in front of him, for some reason he really missed his wife all of a sudden.

"Yes!" Caroline reacted with a smile for Stefan. "We already have a good catchy song, can we also do a ballad and something more on the alternative side?" she asked hopeful.  
"Are we going for a romantic, smooth demo or a diverse one?" Stefan was confused.

"We'll try to fit as much as we can into it." Caroline was assertive.  
Klaus did that loud inhaling thing again which propelled her to sigh.

"What is it this time?" she tilted her head to him.  
"We are trying to showcase you as one specific kind of artist, not as the resident do-it-all in the circus." Klaus itched to have his drink back.

"How will they know that I'm good if we only bring them a tiny sample of what I can do?"  
"The first demo I showed of Adele had her singing one song scarcely hinting to all the amazing things her voice could do and she was hired before the end of that song." Klaus smugly reminded her of the facts behind his attitude.

"Why not put everything I can do into one good song?" Caroline looked at Stefan for support again.  
"It's a recurring mistake Caroline but Nik and I know enough to stop you from doing it. A song with too many tricks pushes people away instead of making them connect to you." Stefan sweetly tried explaining it in a way she would understand. "When you think of your favorite songs, do you recall the way the singer went up on certain parts or do you remember the way you related to them instead?"

Caroline crossed her arms with a sulk. "Fine. We won't do things my way."  
Obviously that was the main issue with Caroline and Klaus signaled Stefan to leave them alone with a slight motion of his head.

"I'm going to call my wife." Stefan simply said.

Although they were suppose to confront each other over this, Caroline didn't take her eyes from the old notepad and she even added a few words visibly scribbled with anger, they filled the very last space left on the page which made Caroline shrink her handwriting to savage that line of thought.  
"Are you trying to fit your wrath into that small space? It looks rather lacking to me." Klaus tested her just as she struggled to add a dot.

"I'm buying a new one tomorrow so I can write all the ways in which I hate you." she looked at him with a forced smile.  
"I look forward to read the way you will plot my demise." he licked his lips barely taming a grin.

Caroline closed her pad violently. "Well, I would if I could afford to buy a new pad." her voice dropped a little in gloom.  
Klaus rested his forearms on the piano keeping a strong hold of her eyes with his. "I know that you are stronger than to give up now."

"I'm also very protective of this." she sighed padding the pad she owned for years.  
"Going for the safe choice is not an option sweetheart."

Though he was very strict, Caroline sensed an unfamiliar care in his voice and she didn't look away from him as he carried on.  
"A dusty cover is as good as the sampled fabrication Marcel tried to sell you."

She wrinkled her nose like the memory brought a bad scent with it.  
"The market is saturated with voices that sound exactly the same, you cannot tell the difference when you hear them on the radio, and not even the videos are doing that for them now because everyone does the same over and over."

His voice was alluring and somehow Caroline's eyes drifted to the lips expelling such enchanting words carried out with a delicious English accent.  
"It's a cycle, that's all there is to it. Every few years the music industry becomes dull and repetitive until someone breaks through and makes everything exciting again. A voice, an image or just that one remarkable song that becomes number one in 70 countries and begins a new age…" he leaned over to her. "I want you to be the transcendent that every girl will follow and try to imitate, the other way around is simply not acceptable."

Caroline gulped down louder than she intended. "You tell that to every girl, don't you?"  
He managed to make her heart speed in its steady rhythm when he smugly smiled at her. "I'm actually offering you the chance to get to know me, so that you can answer that for yourself."

It was her turn to smile with arrogance. "I'm too smart to fall for some cheap pep talk that you memorized and now sell to every pretty face that you want to put on the cover of _Rolling Stones_."  
"But that's why I like you sweetheart…"

Caroline chuckled looking away from him and fighting a looming easiness between them.  
"Do you want to be on that magazine or not?" he pushed her enough.

Caroline searched for his eyes with nothing but ambition. "More than anything."  
In the midst of a blue smeared with green, he recognized that fire in her eyes that would take the world by storm, he was deeply convinced that Caroline was destined to be one of the biggest artists of her generation and nothing would stop him at this point from achieving that.

Slowly he took the pad from her hands. "Then allow others to see how magnificent you truly are in your most raw and vulnerable state. Be fragile when they need you to be that frail but be a lioness when they demand a regal leader."  
This time she didn't stop him when he started reading her scribbles and she gave in quietly when Stefan returned and started using them to work on a new song, maybe Marcel was wrong after all and she was meant to make Klaus proud of her in the end.

* * *

"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes." Stefan informed the man opening the rich wine.  
Klaus stirred the beautiful elixir allowing the smell to hit his nose and smiled pleased with the choice. "All those long dinners suddenly come to mind."

Stefan waved an empty glass at Klaus. "You better not be here when Bekah returns, you know how jealous she is of our brotherhood."  
"How is my troublesome sister?"

Stefan's smile was as big as Klaus'. "She's having a blast on set, it's an action packed movie so she insists on doing all of her stunts and she's all excited because she gets to wear fangs… so yes, she's still crazy. And I miss her like hell."  
"Nothing has truly changed between you and her…" suddenly Klaus' tone plummeted to a gloomy vibe.

"Nik…" Stefan wasn't one to pry but he was one to observe everything to exhaustion. "You haven't talked to Caroline about…" he cut his remark short when Caroline entered the dining room with a lively smile.  
Unaware of the ongoing conversation she dazzled them with a genuine happy vibe, they managed today to create the start of another song that was impressive in its lyrics and melody.

"What are we having for dinner? I'm very hungry." she informed them in case they failed to hear the way her stomach was making a few demanding noises.  
"I'm making good Southern comfort food." Stefan winked at Caroline.

During one of the big talks they had, they had surprisingly found out that they both came from very small Southern towns and that alone forged a connection that was surely the beginning of a lasting friendship.  
Inwardly Caroline prayed that he was doing Chilly but she kept it to herself, mostly because something smelled funny in the room.

She really tried being discreet but checking her flat shoes for any signs of dirt attracted Klaus' attention and he found it funny that she was attempting to smell her colorful sleeveless dress next.  
"It's not you, it's the _Gorau Glas_." he said amused.

Caroline gave him an odd look. "What's that?"  
Klaus picked up a plate. "It's expensive cheese."

"It's… _blue_." Caroline covered her nose from the pungent smell.  
"It's exactly as it should be." Klaus knew she was about to tell him that the cheese was bad. "You should try it."

She looked at him like he was crazy. "It smells like feet."  
Klaus laughed taking a portion of the cheese and partnering it with wine.

Stefan joined them with a glass that he filled for Caroline with wine. "It's actually really good." he assured her.  
Caroline sighed. "I'll accept the wine."

"Here's your chance to try something that doesn't come wrapped in oiled paper." Klaus spiked her.  
She had a big sip of wine responding to the way he constantly instigated her in everything, when he smirked knowing that would further provoke her she grabbed a slice of the strange colored cheese and fearlessly had a big bite of it.

"What's your verdict?" Stefan asked curious.  
"It's…" Caroline pursed her lips. "… salty. I'm not a big fan of it."

"This sort of cheese is considered an acquired taste." Klaus enjoyed his fine wine and cheese nonchalantly.  
"Look at that, it's just like you." Stefan teased him evilly.

"That's highly debatable." Klaus grumbled.  
It broke the other two into laugh and in contrast with the tense day, dinner was easy and relaxed, even paved with tales about Stefan's adventures with Klaus, and there were quite the bit since they were friends from back when they were just two kids trying to get a job at a record company.

Instead of becoming enemies competing for the same vacancy, they became close friends who later found their real passion, Stefan's gift was to write songs and Klaus was a master when it came to build careers.

After dinner Stefan vanished to his room, Rebekah had promised to call him again when she had a few hours free and irrefutably he was there to accept her Skype request.

Caroline was just finishing up drying the plates and putting them away in the cabinet when the softest melody cut the silence and she went to the living room expecting to find a pouting Stefan by the piano.  
She was about to ask if Rebekah was caught up at work when the stun ate away her words.

As she slowed her pace she was fully wrapped around the image of Klaus sitting at the piano with tree candles inside of a crystal support and a glass of bourbon keeping him company.  
Klaus looked up from the piano without stopping his fingers from magically making music. "Is the shock caused by the surprise that I can play the piano?"

Caroline reached the piano with a smile. "I didn't know you played so well."  
Klaus dramatically pushed a few keys to make a terror entrance to his next sentence. "You don't know me."

Caroline laughed easily but his words harbored a harsh truth so she folded her arms over the piano keen on changing a few things tonight. "You are not a very easy person to like."  
He stopped playing just so he could press his chest overdramatically. "I am an adorable man."

She rolled her eyes. "You don't like people so you only talk to them when you need them and you are always doing something like talking on the phone or fondling with your tablet… drinking." she heavily scolded him again. "Just so you don't have to actually maintain a real conversation that includes eye contact."  
"Some say that I make them uncomfortable by looking straight at them or by talking too close to their faces."

Caroline lowered her chin but kept her scowl. "That's your way of keeping control over every situation, by intimidating people you remain guarded to the core."  
"It's plausible." he said gracing the keys with his eyes instead of looking up.

Caroline's scowl transformed to sadness. "You're this really famous and rich man and yet there is so little that people know about your life, at first I thought it was just some really dope marketing stunt to keep you mysterious but…" she sighed. "I think that you are just lonely. You made all those artists huge and known but you never enjoyed any of it."  
"We're not here to scavenge for my soul." he looked at her while starting to play the melody Stefan came up with. "We're here for yours."

Caroline knew he was shutting her down but instead of being mad, she was sadder than before, she lowered her head like she was letting it all lay to rest because he closed up entirely before she even peeked inside of the turmoil he nested inside of him.  
Klaus stopped playing which made her lift her head a bit.

"I ran away from home when I was 15, there was a violent father that favored me when he was in the mood to be abusive and I only returned to England when he died two years ago. I kept in touch with my siblings but I still feel detached from them and by addition from the world." Klaus spoke of something he very rarely did and the dept in his voice accused that.  
"That's why you love the showbiz so much, artists are nomads that don't fit anywhere and we frequently forge our own families." she warmly smiled at him because she understood him now.

"Your turn love…" he demanded by restarting to play the earlier melody.  
"I don't know if I can do it." she said in a low voice. "It's a tough audience tonight."

Klaus' cunning leer sparkled through a barely lit room. "If you are going to use the trick of imagining your audience in their underwear, I'm a man of briefs."  
Caroline burst into a roaring laughter and he laughed as well, with more will than he first intended but he still waited for her to sing nonetheless and after calming down Caroline crossed her lips with her tongue before singing the part she already knew by heart.

"_It's been awhile since…"  
_However Caroline didn't go far, singing just for Klaus was making her incredibly nervous and he wasn't indifferent to it, with a slow motion he put out two of the candles leaving only one lit for them.

Then buried in a comfortable darkness with him, Caroline started singing the words that suddenly began to have another meaning to her.  
_"It's been awhile since I've really cared, about something I never knew was there…"_

"We should do this one with a guitar instead of the piano." Klaus whispered softly wrapping his voice around her lyrics.  
"I'm calling it, _W__hy don't you stay." _she said before she carried on singing with feeling. _"… and I tried, oh how I tried…"  
_

* * *

"Stefan is arranging for the musicians." Klaus informed her as they went down the really busy street.  
Caroline tried dodging someone but ended up hitting a big newsstand, it made the magazines slid almost to the floor but she managed to stop any major embarrassment and her candid smile did the trick with the grumpy man behind the counter.

Klaus waited for her just down the street and she hurried to him somewhat avoiding any further awkward bumping, she was not used at all to the streets so full of people constantly rushing by her.  
"So I will be singing soon with a band?" she tried picking up where they just abruptly ended.

"Yes, which means you can't talk more than necessary for the next few days." he asked her with a glare.  
Caroline didn't understand and she looked at him confused.

"You can't tire your voice at all, we have one good opportunity that we cannot and I insist on that, we cannot mess up."  
Caroline's answer came with the two thumbs that she lifted at him in silence.

He chuckled turning away from her. "That's the spirit love."  
Her legs weren't that steady when they crossed the street because it was hard staying calm when she found herself right in the heart of Manhattan during a busy working morning.

Curiously she paid attention to all the details she only knew by watching TV and she felt incredibly important by walking among all the men in suits and the fancy women in their sharp heels and outfits, obviously she wasn't sure in which street they were, but ultimately that was unimportant when they went inside this magnificent glass building.

"Why are we seeing a lawyer?" Caroline asked him as they went up to the 50th floor inside of a luxury elevator.  
"You need someone to inform you about your rights and what you should expect in a contract before I bring you one to sign." Klaus explained while she went through the names listed on the elevator directory.

She tapped the one name that called her attention. "Bonnie Bennett Mikaelson… is she related to you?"  
"Bonnie was married to my youngest brother Kol for a year or so before his love for partying hard ruined their marriage, after that she took his money in a very swift divorce but kept his name." Klaus explained just as they reached the floor he wanted.

In a small span of hours she uncovered more of Klaus that she ever wished for and it was with a cheerless mood that she listened to what he had to say next.  
"I'm leaving you here for a meeting with her, she will answer every question you have and there is no time limit for it so take all the time you need, I on the other hand have a handful of things to do today so when you are done here, take a taxi and tell them to drive you here." He handed her Stefan's address along with an envelope containing money without waiting for her reaction.

Inwardly she was begging him to stay but she didn't show him that needy side of hers and simply agreed with a smile and a simple _ok_.  
Klaus left without looking back and she was escorted by a very pretty secretary to Bonnie's office.

The woman who greeted her was stunning, she had the most pretty green eyes Caroline had seen and the white bandage skirt that she was wearing was perfectly framed with a classic pink silk shirt.  
"Hi, I'm Bonnie."

And she was nice on top of it all.  
Caroline introduced herself feeling under-dressed in her peep-toe shoes and simple black dress, she admired the large office before Bonnie invited her to sit with her in the black sofa.

"I'm not sure how much Klaus has told you about the purpose behind this talk…" Bonnie started with a smile.  
"Klaus doesn't talk much." Caroline bit her lip knowing she was sinning, he had been frankly open to her lately.

"Some things never change." Bonnie shrugged reaching for a bottle of water on the coffee table in front of them.  
As she did so, Caroline spotted a chain around her neck but not what was at the end of it and she refused the polite invitation to have coffee or water, she was too nervous for that.

"I've never been in the presence of a lawyer before." Caroline admitted.  
"You need to see me as a counselor and a friend, I'm going to work with you through all the legal aspects of your career and I will always be available to clear any doubts you might have about your contract or anything else for that matter."

Caroline narrowed her forehead puzzled. "Klaus told me the same but I thought he was the one handling the legal stuff as well."  
Bonnie closed the bottle of water inspecting the beautiful blonde, though she looked naive Bonnie suspected she was as ferocious as they came and those were the ones she loved working with.

"Klaus is what we call in the industry a _10 percenter_, he is a talent agent who finds jobs for artists and takes 10 percent of whatever they make, only that Klaus decided to top everyone's game and focus entirely in one artist at a time. As a manager his responsibility is to oversee your day-to-day business affairs and to advise you concerning the professional matters, that means that long-term plans or personal decisions which may affect your career will be monopolized by him."  
"So he has full control over my career and my life." It wasn't even a question, Caroline had deduced this much by now and it was solely the reason they fought so much.

Bonnie offered her a soothing smile. "Usually booking agents lose track of what's important because they are handling too many people at the same time, Klaus on the contrary can afford to focus exclusively on someone for a period of time making that union slightly personal." Bonnie's chuckle came loaded with sass. "We all know how Klaus has a different take on being personal with someone."  
Caroline chose to omit the bridge she forged with Klaus recently and instead tried getting advantage of Bonnie's connection to the family. "How well do you know Klaus?"

The blunt inquiry made Bonnie rub the back of her neck, by doing that the chain moved and finally Caroline saw what was hidden inside the shirt, a wedding band sparkled from among the black silk.  
"I was married to his idiot brother and Klaus was at the wedding, the only casual conversation I've maintained with him so far consisted of how sunny the day was for a wedding. Frankly I like working with Klaus because he keeps everything very professional and he pays well."

Caroline slumped her shoulders discouraged, she was beginning to detest the word _professional_ so much.

* * *

"He was right about the guitar, the bastard really has a good ear." Stefan confessed to Caroline when they ended another working session, this time accompanied by a guitar instead of a piano.  
She was dead tired but she still remained cheerful before he called it a day, when she turned to the window she realized it was night already, she had missed the hours flying by entirely.

She also missed getting riled up by the devil and she decided to look for him in the guest rooms, he had been absent most of the day and now that she reached his bedroom, she could tell he was getting ready to leave again.  
Caroline knocked on the door feeling the scent of his strong cologne already reaching her outside. "Hey, it's me… are you decent?"

"Not remotely." he replied opening the door for her.  
Caroline didn't go inside right away, she remained by the threshold watching him go to the bed to pick up two ties.

He was wearing black suit pants and a deep-red shirt, it wasn't the first time she saw him in a suit but tonight he looked extra handsome or maybe her mind was just being mean to her because she was imagining the entire picture when his jacket was still lying on the bed.  
"I didn't want to interrupt your work with Stefan earlier but I meant to ask how your meeting with Bonnie went." Klaus was trying a tie that matched the shirt's color.

"I loved her, she explained everything in super detail and we are going to have lunch later this week." she answered revealing how easy it was for her to make friends.  
"She's very good at what she does, I thoroughly enjoy working with her." Klaus tried the black tie now.

"We finished another song." Caroline eagerly jumped straight to what she was dying to tell him.  
"We only need one more original song to finish your sample and then I will start contacting everyone I know in New York." Klaus removed the tie unsure which one to choose.

"Are you going to meet with one of them right now?"  
Klaus looked at the girl completely at ease with him, inside of his bedroom while he was getting ready to go out. "No." he picked up the strict tone as he did what he had. "I'm going to meet someone on a more private aspect."

Caroline took the swift shutting down of what must have appeared to him as silly infatuation and she did it with a mask of joy. "Uh, sexy time for Klaus."  
He wasn't sure why the entire scene felt awkward to him but he smiled looking at the bed where his phone started buzzing.

Caroline turned away before the insane will to see if the name on the screen was female and famous took over her. "Well have fun, I'm going to watch that marathon of Disney movies that it's on today."  
"Don't stay awake until late." he warned her severely.

Caroline stopped by the door with a promise. "And I'm staying away from the late snacks as well."  
He eased on his always so harsh ways and smiled at her with honest softness, for the longest minute they held this unspoken talk with their eyes until the buzzing of his phone became too incessant to ignore.

"Take the black tie, it makes you look hotter."  
Klaus looked up from the phone but he missed her by a second and was greeted by a closed-door instead, as he returned to his phone, the unsettling will to refuse the call grew of intensity.

* * *

"Do you need anything else from me Bonnie?" the secretary asked as she handed Bonnie a pile of files that needed her attention.  
"No, that will be all for today." Bonnie dismissed her employee and lost her tight shoes once the other was gone.

She only skimmed through the papers unable to focus on them, the mention of Kol today left her wandering off the point all day and she wasn't even thinking when she opened the last drawer in her desk.  
Bonnie removed the stag of papers on top and then she reached for the picture she sadistically still kept, she curled up on her big chair remembering the day of her wedding and how much she was in love with the smiling man in the picture.

Kol had been the love of her life and she outlined his features wondering how much she was lying to herself by referring to it in the past tense.  
It was a major mistake but she grabbed her phone and slowly tapped his name in her list of contacts.

"_Hello darling."  
_Bonnie closed her eyes, it was a monumental mistake because his voice stirred up everything inside of her like that still wasn't healed.

"_How did you know that I was thinking of you?"  
_Bonnie turned the picture upside down and left it on her desk, she stood up and started pacing around barefoot. "I called you because we need to do something about the house in the Hamptons."

Kol's laughter was telling, he knew it was an excuse to call him. _"What about our house darling?"  
_"There is no _we _anymore Kol, we are no longer married and we can't keep postponing selling that house."

_"Darling, I refuse to sell my share of that house, it has nostalgic value to me."  
_Bonnie snapped, it was the only thing that they couldn't agree upon the divorce and technically it was the only thing still connecting them together, the romantic part of her knew he was doing it on purpose because his ruthless denial to sell her his share of the house was obliging her to remain linked to him but it still pissed her off endlessly.

"What sentimental value, you English prick? You've only been there once and we only bought that colossal house because it was _my _dream to have a house in the Hamptons."  
_"Precisely darling, I'm not ready to let go of your dream therefore we are keeping the house unless you find another buyer."_

Bonnie glared him all the way through the call. "Forget I called."  
_"It's always a pleasure to listen to your voice Bonnie, feel free to call me again tomorrow." _he effortlessly teased her.

Bonnie ended the call regretting it like all other times, they always ended with her calling him prick and then needing a drink to forget how much she missed him.

* * *

It was really late and Klaus wasn't expecting to find anyone still awake when he arrived, well, he was half-right in his assumption because Caroline had fallen asleep on the couch.  
Klaus turned the TV off silencing _Aladdin _and then removed his suit jacket, he covered the sleeping princess on the couch with the jacket careful not to wake her and before he went to his room, he left her a gift on the coffee table with her name on it, surely the diary he just bought for her with a lock and a key would make her smile.

* * *

**Soundtrack: **

Happy - _C2C Ft. D. Martin _

Ghost - _Ella Henderson  
_  
Why don't you stay - _Candice Accola_

Fallin' - _Alicia Keys_

Prayer in C - _Lilly Wood & The Prick and Robin Schulz (Robin Schulz Remix)_


	4. Unrequited

Leaning against the windowpane, Caroline was divided between watching the mesmerizing rain falling outside and writing on her new pink diary.  
When she chose the last one, she made endless notes about her new dream, one day she would have a residence in New York.

Caroline smiled making an exclamation point at the end of that sentence and then she closed her diary, it was rather silly to lock it but somehow it was like a joke that she now shared with Klaus so she made usage of that key.  
It was a rainy morning and she contemplated the grey weather for a little longer before hiding her diary under her pillow and heading for the kitchen.

Stefan was already there concentrated on her notepad. "Good morning gorgeous."  
Caroline lifted an eyebrow at his glowing smile. "That was some loud Skype talk that you had with your wife last night…"

Stefan chuckled somewhat tongue-tied. "Well…"  
Caroline teased him with a sizzling look while holding a steamy coffee mug between her hands. "I'm moving to the couch, my bedroom is too close to yours."

He was aware his over-joy was all over his face and he saw no reason to hide the big news from his new friend. "Bekah is coming home next week, there is a big storm headed for Australia and everyone on set will be sent home for a week break so that means that my beautiful wife, the big movie star is coming home."  
Caroline made this _aww_ sound. "I'm so happy for you Stefan."

"I can't wait to fall asleep and wake up with her physically here."  
"You really are one of the good guys Stefan." Caroline sweetly told him.

He awkwardly refused to look at her and went back to the song he was planning next. "I have this melody stuck in my head that would fit this song you wrote while you were still in your hometown."  
"_Song_…" Caroline grumbled. "There's nothing there that resembles a real song. You can't go around naming things like that."

Stefan wasn't remotely smiling. "You actually wrote some really good things in here Caroline."  
She sighed most deeply into her mug refuting him.

Stefan leaned back on his chair keeping his eyes on her, obviously he wasn't going anywhere without making her talk and Caroline sighed once more before she gave in.  
"I was very naive when I thought that Marcel would like my lyrics and now I feel like a pathetic wannabe star by showing him that notepad, he barely read a line or two which is ultimately good because he would make fun of me endlessly."

Stefan found her pouting look as cute as they came. "Caroline, you don't have the life experience to write about heartache with depth but the way you've described a bad relationship is impressive because it comes from a very young place and if you are capable of doing this already without that baggage, I guarantee that one day you will write epic songs."  
Caroline had no option but to smile a little at him. "I really want to believe what you are saying because your writing abilities leave me speechless."

"My first song was about washing my car so thank God things progressed from there." Stefan cringed a little just remembering the embarrassing draft.  
Caroline's giggle was a perfect ending to an easy morning talk and they headed for the piano ready to start a new working session, however things were delayed because Stefan received an important call from none other but Steven Tyler himself.

It were moments like these that woke awareness in Caroline and made her feel blessed that she was working with someone so notorious yet humble like Stefan.  
Judging by the time he was taking, it would be a really long talk so she decided to pick up the guitar while she waited for Stefan, she wasn't much of a player but her old guitar had seen the birth of a few songs, among them was a song that she had been thinking about lately.

Knowing she was alone, Caroline ventured down a memory lane very close to her wounded heart and started singing.

"_It's more than a crack in the wall_  
_it's a whole lot bigger than we thought, yeah_  
_a hammer and nail won't fix it this time_  
_so bring on the wrecking ball_

_it's like we've been drifting along_  
_pretending like nothing's wrong, yeah_  
_we play the game, keep up the charade_  
_but when the river runs dry we're on different sides_

_you wait for rain and I chase the storm_  
_we just don't see it the same way_  
_you say you want change but you're never sure_  
_we can't go on like this anymore_  
_cause at the end of the day_  
_you wait for rain and I chase the storm_

_I was never good at standing still_  
_always got a hunger to fill, yeah_  
_don't think you ever understood that's who I am_  
_what we gotta face is we're in…_"

Caroline stopped singing surprised that Klaus had been listening to it all, he was leaning against the threshold and apparently for a while now.

"I don't recall reading about that precise song in your notebook."  
"I haven't written it down, I made the song a very long time ago and I know it by heart." Caroline stroked the strings gently producing a soft sound.

Klaus left the threshold and she lifted her gaze enough to enjoy the sexy white Henley with long sleeves that he was wearing today while he found somewhat funny that on such a rainy dark day Caroline chose to wear a bright rainbow-colored top with yellow shorts.  
When their eyes went up from their chosen clothes and met, they mirrored the smile they had for each other.

"You were a witness to a painful divorce, maybe your parents?" Klaus jumped to a wise conclusion while sitting on the coffee table in front of her.  
Caroline nodded. "It's not that I felt guilty that my father suddenly wanted a new family and life, I just felt powerless like my mother who still loved him despite his departure. I wrote this song because I never felt so lonely while my entire world was falling apart around me."

"We are born alone, we live alone and we die alone." he simply stated.  
Caroline gave him a look. "You are as cheerful as the weather."

"I enjoy rain, it suits my mysterious personality."  
"You are not mysterious Klaus, just guarded. We've already established that, remember?"

He tilted his head with a wary look. "Are you admitting that I am not related to Satan after all?"  
Caroline teasingly wandered her eyes away from him. "I'm not sure yet…"

"And I'm still waiting to find out if I'm a storm or a rain."  
Caroline smiled elated by his interpretation of her song but also by the way his scruff covered a very beautiful face.

There was this lingering moment when she felt as if the clouds were dissipating and leaving her feelings more lucid than ever, their connection wasn't ambiguous to her, she trusted him and she wanted to tell him that by merely looking at him without a mask.  
But like all other times, Klaus was the first to break away and in good time as Stefan now left the den.

He pretended to ignore all the eye-smoldering business happening by the couch and sat at the piano. "Let's start our day, the rain is leaving me all inspired and I want to make songs." he moved his hands around like he was feeding from all the good energy inside the apartment.  
Stefan was trying to reproduce the melody that had been dancing in his mind since he woke up, this time around he was determined to make something bright and less moody; they already had the big ballad so he wanted something different for Caroline's third song.

In return she was waiting for Klaus to play his Alpha male card and demand that Stefan included what she had been singing before, the song was important for her and she needed that trust boost from him but Klaus was again deeply entertained with his phone.  
"What do you think of this?" Stefan played the version he had already in his mind.

It wasn't more than a couple of runs put together but he really liked it, Stefan looked up hopeful for positive feedback, he found it on a beaming Caroline but Klaus looked absent from the room altogether.  
Caroline stood from the couch leaving her song behind and giving all her attention to Stefan's. "This is going to be a good one." she looked at Klaus again.

Indifferent to the work blossoming from the partnership or even to Caroline's silent plea, Klaus went to the balcony to make a call, it took him a few minutes to return to the living room and he went straight to his iPad.

"I'm getting so excited over this song we're working on." Stefan informed Klaus as he neared them.  
Klaus closed the notebook once he reached the piano with a determined motion. "I suggest a cold shower or another one of those virtual outlets with my sister…" he smirked at Stefan. "Because we are putting this one on hold."

Stefan glared at him. "That's like telling a driver that he has to stop just as he is about to cross the finish line."  
"I understand the magnitude of your disappointment Stefan but other pressing issues come into play now." Klaus was gliding his fingers fast across the screen of his tablet.

"I'm surprised that you actually know how to make that thing work, taking into consideration how much you hate technology and everything modern."  
"Nothing but lies comes from you." Klaus expanded something he wanted to show them. "I enjoy modernity as much as anyone else but I am a man from the old days in my heart."

"It's sort of frightening to see you talk like that about something that is yet to be proven that exists." Caroline defiantly joined the banter.  
Klaus was working hard to keep his smile hidden. "You should really be nicer to me and to my heart."

"Why?" she kept on daring him. "Because you gave me a diary? I'm trying to keep my panties from dropping…" she rolled her eyes with sass but flirtatious looked back at him.  
Klaus chuckled taken by her audacity. "Perhaps what I accomplished this morning will bring a certain shame to all that arrogance."

"I'm not that easily impressed." she simply shrugged.  
He was baffled, if there was ever a good word to describe his reaction, baffled was spot on. "Where is this boastful attitude coming from?"

"My agent and manager keeps telling me that I'm one of a kind and… _superb._" she ventured a British accent.  
"That word has never parted from my lips."

He was serious but mentioning his lips made her look down to stare at them, it wasn't until he tensed his jaw that she realized he was actually upset.  
"Over-confidence is an idiotic beginner's mistake." he snapped mad at her. "I beg you to be smarter than that."

The mood inside the room changed so much that she actually felt close to angry tears, first he didn't tell Stefan about her song and now he was reprimanding her, so with a single windy spur she turned her back on him to go away to her bedroom.  
"I'm not done yet Caroline." he demanded for her presence in the room.

Caroline stopped with a big breath and evidently the easy flirting look was gone when she looked back at him. "What is it?"  
"We are going to an audition." he closed the iPad cover mad and went by her with the same angry vibe. "I'll be back in one hour with your dress."

Caroline opened her mouth to verbally put how confused she was but that wasn't an option for him and Klaus stopped her before she started.  
"And make a braid."

Caroline turned to Stefan fishing for any clearance but instead of looking puzzled he appeared unhappy and Caroline found herself further lost.

* * *

Klaus gritted his teeth, she made him knock a few times before petulantly opening the bedroom door for him, she was now wearing a simple robe but there was a dashing fishnet braid ornamenting her head as he demanded but she was far from looking complying about the rest.  
"Do you have my dress your highness?" she was pertinent in her discontent.

Klaus silently handed her the big package which she took with a fake smile, then she closed the door on his face.  
"Be ready in five minutes Caroline." he asked before leaving her doorstep.

Klaus met Stefan at the end of the hallway, it was clear that an unwanted conversation waited for him as well and Klaus yearned for the alcohol that would help stomach it all.  
Stefan granted him the first taste of his poison before speaking up. "Are you going to tell her? Because if you don't, I will Nik."

Klaus eyed him powerfully. "I refuse to find any sense in what you just told me."  
"Neither of you even acknowledge that I am present in the room while you are provoking each other."

Klaus made the most guttural denial sound. "I lack the time for this."  
Stefan incredulously narrowed his eyes at him. "She's 19 years-old, she's full of dreams that you fuel but then you get overprotective when she wants to take risks."

"You've been drinking this instead of coffee." Klaus sarcastically waved his empty glass.  
"You are scared that she might get hurt if she starts dreaming as high as you do. You are used to the backlash but she isn't and you got angry because you know that a cocky artist always slacks. You are starting to protect her from herself."

Klaus exchanged a single look with Stefan, he was ordering his friend to shut up but Stefan still had one thing to add.  
"It becomes personal the second you start repeating to yourself that you will never cross that line." Stefan left the lobby crossing paths with a beautiful Caroline in a blue dress.

The dress was of an ocean blue color and the contrast between the way it hugged her upper body so well and the way it loosely hang from the waist down gave her this sweet Princess look, with a sulk she covered the dress with a long cardigan and waited for him to do something else other than simply gazing at her.  
"Are we going somewhere or is this some sort of Cinderella fetish that you have?"

Klaus opened the front door for them. "As always, after you sweetheart."  
Caroline went by him with a huff and she remained like that during the entire ride, he really chose a horrible day to piss her off, the rain was still relentless and she refused to look anywhere else but outside her window.

When Klaus parked he made all the way to her side but she didn't wait for his chivalrous ways.  
"Aren't you going to tell me what I'm auditioning for?" she asked him after a small race to escape the furious rain.

They found shelter on the other side of the sidewalk and she pulled the cardigan closer to her chest, it was cold so she stumped her heels on the ground as well.  
Klaus took his leather jacket and covered her with it, taken back to when she woke up enveloped in his smell Caroline searched his eyes wondering if they would be cold.

"A friend of my brother is auditioning a few singers for a song that will be used in a motion picture soon." Klaus' tone finally matched the change in his blue eyes.  
"A movie song?" she struggled with her will to start ranting.

"It's a private audition that many would kill for."  
Caroline's build up tension rose to a vehement shake of her head. "What am I doing here Klaus? I thought we were sticking to the demo and working on perfecting the original songs that we already have."

Upon her hectic moves, a raindrop settled on her cheek and Klaus startled her to a freeze when he swept her cheek with his thumb, it got worse for her when he gently cupped her cheek next.  
Caroline felt the heat burst from the skin he was shielding with his palm and she remained perfectly static while waiting for him to answer her.

"If you nail this Caroline, it's the biggest asset we can add to that demo, you will have a name behind a big brand and people will know you instantly, they will also be interested to know what else you have under your name and we will take advantage of all that hype to sell your demo and then your album to the best offer we get."  
"What is this movie anyway?" she was much calmer now and the question came a bit hidden under the effect his touch was causing on her.

Klaus smiled revealing his dimples and took back his jacket, when he held a door for her, she knew it was time to remove her cardigan and show off the dreamy dress he bought for her.  
With a quick inspection, she made sure her image was immaculate and she went up the stairs next to him with a growing feeling that she was about to face a monumental challenge.

"Klaus." A man greeted him just as he spotted them arriving.  
They shook hands while Caroline analyzed the man who wasn't as tall as Klaus but oozed this importance as equal as his, he was bald and the fashionable glasses gave him a Hollywood image that Caroline assessed at once.

"This is Caroline Forbes." Klaus introduced her with a hinted pride in his voice.  
It made Caroline smile with even more will. "Hi." she joyfully told the man eyeing her curious.

"I'm Paul." he moved his hand in front of Caroline like he was wrapping her up in a nice bow. "If you have the voice to go along with the looks, I'm stealing you to myself."  
She adorably laughed. "I've already been to Los Angeles and the city didn't treat me well."

Paul rolled his eyes with flair. "Honey, the city is like that old dirty mistress that we all try to leave but she's so naughty and good that we keep coming back for more."  
Caroline laughed again entertained with the man but he didn't stay with them for long and after a quick word with Klaus, he vanished into a big room and from what Caroline could glimpse all the way from the lobby there were a lot of girls trying their luck today.

The door was opened again and a man with headphones came out, he handed Caroline a paper. "You have 20 minutes to memorize the song, then someone will call for you." he simply said before going away.  
Caroline frowned but it didn't last because she saw what she was about to sing.

**Audition song For**** the first time in forever ****for the Disney's animated feature film **_**Frozen**_

"Oh My God, Klaus!" she was on the way to freak out. "You want me to sing a Disney song?"  
"I took the liberty of assuming that you were an avid devotee." he was smiling expecting the big outlet that was covered by her hands.

"And I am!" she said behind jittery fingers. "Oh God, I heard of this movie, it's the one premiering this summer... ugh, I'm so nervous, how do you expect me to make this work?"  
Before he answered her a girl ran out of the room crying in utter misery, Caroline guided her head towards Klaus and lifted one eyebrow at him.

He took her shoulders with his hands. "Paul told me that they are looking for two girls to sing the song, it's going to be a duet and there will be two versions of the song. One they will use in the actual film sang by the actors which is the one already in production, while the version you will be singing will be featured in the official soundtrack. You are aiming to be the guarded, mysterious sister who has a secret that stops her from enjoying life fully unlike her other joyful sister."  
Caroline scoffed. "No problem, I've got this."

"I believe you do." he quickly replied.  
Caroline pressed her lips and pushed a finger against his chest. "Listen up Klaus, after I make a fool of myself in there we are going to see a doctor because your personality swings can't be normal."

"I'm not telling you to go in there full of yourself because then they won't listen to anything you might tell them and nothing in this industry works as well as intelligent modesty but regardless of what I feel, you do have a talent and we are going to use it. I'm counting that you will be yourself in there."  
"There's not enough time to learn the lyrics." she was being practical now.

"They can't risk having the song leaked so every girl in here shares the same circumstances, just focus on being adorable and singing like an angel."  
"Do I get a cookie in the end?" she playfully widened her eyes.

"Only if you bring me the big contract with all that money, I need it or else I will have to sell my horses soon." he returned the playful tone, nonetheless he was scratching a harsh truth.  
"Don't sell your stallions just yet." she handed him her cardigan and headed inside the room with confidence.

On the way, she caught just another girl leaving on the verge of tears but she kept a straight face as she sized her competition.

* * *

"Demanding that you maintain your image against your will and for publicity reasons only, is reason enough to allege a fault in your contract…" Bonnie scribbled something on her agenda. "I will look into it as soon as I get back to the office and I will let you know later what we can do about this, in the meantime keep your mouth shut and don't start complaining to the magazines just yet." she strictly warned one of her volatile clients.  
When she ended the call, she was suspicious that her advice would fall into deaf ears and that she would have not only one problem to solve later today but several.

She signaled the waiter and asked for another glass of wine, it wasn't that sweet of her to actually be happy about it but if it wasn't for the problematic clients she would never have the reputation she had, she was a tough lioness and she enjoyed being one.  
"White wine as requested." The waiter flirted bluntly with her.

Another thing that Bonnie was thoroughly used to and she reached for her glass with a good comeback, the smile was effortless but it didn't cross her mind that things could change so drastically.  
"Hello darling."

Her green eyes shot in front of her and disbelief propelled her to drop her chin. "What on Earth are you doing in New York?"  
"Nik called in a favor…" he stopped like they were simple old friends catching up. "I'm a manager now as well, did you know? I'm managing Bekah and I have connections with the film industry now, so Nik needed a favor and I came to help a brother."

Bonnie dropped her head back and drank the entire wine in one take, she slammed the glass on the table forgetting about good manners altogether and that she was sitting at a very expensive restaurant table. "Why are you here Kol?"  
"I came to visit my wife." he shamelessly smiled while crossing his hands on top of the table so she could spot the wedding band that he was still wearing.

"Ex-wife." she hissed upset.  
"You look beautiful Bonnie." he gave her a flawless puppy-eye look.

She gasped, the bastard was still slick with his tongue. "And you look like a bum." she lied about his new look, the stubble made him hotter.  
Kol's naughty sneer came naturally. "I can't afford to look good, you drained me with the divorce."

Bonnie began to laugh, her entire body shook with the willing laughter. "I had a blast burning all that money along with the clothes you left behind."  
Kol grimaced beyond reason. "I beg you to tell me that you kept one or two shirts."

"There's that one I use to clean my bathroom from time to time."  
"I missed your feisty temper." he sighed. "And your laughter."

"What do you want Kol, money?" Bonnie cut him off cruelly, she wasn't having any of this reminiscent talk.  
He only smiled as an actual reply and left the table without giving her the pleasure of finding his real intentions behind the unexpected visit.

* * *

Caroline read the lyrics again, if only she had a little more time she would know them by now, unfortunately the line of girls was getting slimmer as they were asked inside of a smaller room to sing and she could tell that she was about to be called in next.  
She could hear the powerful voices outside, some of these girls were clearly experienced on Broadway and it was surprising that so many were leaving discouraged.

"Caroline Forbes?" A woman asked after sending someone else out the door without a positive answer.  
"That's me." Caroline had a deep breath and followed the woman to the auditing room.

She was taken to a large table at the end of the room and the same woman asked her to stand on a specific spot, there was a huge light next to her and she spotted someone filming her as well, it was just like being on some singing contest and Caroline tried to cling to that silly feeling.  
Instead of big executives and producers, she tried imagining they were just the judges of her favorite reality shows and she introduced herself with a big easy smile.

"Where's the other girl? Wasn't that Davina girl paired to sing with this one?" a grumpy man asked without even glancing at Caroline.  
She immediately knew he was the one she had to impress and she waited patiently for her turn to do so.

"I couldn't find her outside." The woman clarified why there was only Caroline standing here.  
"Already clubbing hard and she only has a top single so far…" Paul said disappointed with youth. "That was fast…"

"What did you think of the song?" the only female present at the table asked Caroline with a warm smile.  
"I love Disney movies, I've seen them all and I know all the songs so I find this one really beautiful. It reminds me of the old movies like _Beauty and the Beast_…" Caroline found that honesty was the right way to go.

"Would you be enchanted by it as a child?" the woman asked a bit on the fence.  
"I'm a struggling artist who just recently started writing her own material so if I had managed to come up with something as witty and magical as this, I would be proud." Caroline was candid in her gestures and mannerisms which pulled a big smile from everyone in front of her.

Except the grumpy guy who decided to question her. "Are you really that impressed by a line that says, _I want to stuff my face with chocolate_?"  
Caroline offered him one of her dazzling smiles. "I hope my voice makes it justice."

The others found her just the right kind of fierce and laughed while the guy pretended to be busy taking notes.  
"Whenever you are ready." he grumbled.

There was a knock halting Caroline and everyone looked at the young girl rushing inside the room.  
"I'm sorry I'm late, it's raining immensely and I had trouble getting a taxi and…"

The ill-mannered man interrupted her with a hand in the air. "Are you Davina?"  
The girl nodded and took her place next to Caroline, she looked like someone barely recovering from a long night and her voice was hoarse as well.

"Do you want to take a few minutes to go over the lyrics?" the nice woman asked her.  
"No, I have them." Davina straightened her wet hair and fondled with her paper that looked all wrinkled already. "I…" she smiled at the woman. "They aren't that hard."

Instantly Caroline knew no one would ask the girl another question and she wasn't wrong, the grumpy man ordered someone to play the recorded melody and pointed at Davina to start singing.  
The first notes were horrible, they were out of tone and things only got worse as Davina's hoarse voice produced a version that was all over the place, the runs were too rushed or too slow for the music and she was so nervous that she wasn't listening to the melody at all.

Paul raised his arm ending her part, by their faces Caroline guess how bad the audition had went.  
"I don't even know why you bothered coming here, your voice is straining and this was a mess." The grumpy guy huffed extremely upset that she made him waste his time.

Davina clasped her lips preventing the waterfall. "If I could do it again…"  
When none of them spoke or even reacted, Davina lowered her head in defeat and left to cry outside.

"Ok, let's hear the blonde now." The same man who destroyed Davina's day gave Caroline's cue to enter.  
She wasn't going to mess this up and she kept the paper in front of her as she started singing, one of Caroline's biggest virtues was her musicality and how easily she adapted her voice to anything she picked up by ear so easily she made the song her own.

The other thing that was still very overlooked by Caroline herself was that when she sang it appeared like she did it to someone specific, although she was singing to a group of people, when she raised her head everyone felt like she was singing only to them and that was rare and ultimately special.  
When the music was stopped Caroline was petrified, she was only a few verses in and she only sang the chorus once when she was cut off, Caroline gulped down fearing she didn't have enough time to show all that she could do and her eyes drifted at once to the grumpy guy who was smiling at her.

"We have our Elsa." he said utterly fascinated by Caroline.

* * *

Davina sniffled loudly when the blonde came out of the room bouncing and squealing in extreme glee.  
"Did you get the part of Elsa?" she asked between big fat tears that streamed down her face.

The blonde waned down from her thrill and sat next to Davina with a caring smile. "I'm Caroline." she said sweetly.  
"Davina…" the other sniffled again. "My manager is going to be so mad that I didn't get the part."

Caroline reached out taking Davina's hand. "Is he waiting outside for you?"  
Davina shook her head. "Enzo had to go with another singer to a meeting and I came alone."

"Do you need us to take you home?"  
Davina smiled. "That's really nice of you Caroline but that's ok."

"Are you sure?" she insisted.  
Davina's shoulders gave in a little. "You should be celebrating not sitting here worried about me, I shouldn't have gone out last night. The music was too loud and I tried talking over it so that ruined my voice…"

"It's just one audition, next time it will be better." Caroline assured her.  
Davina nodded with a smile now. "Thank you Caroline, that's the nicest thing anyone has told me lately... I'm starting to worry that I'm going to fall into that _one hit wonder _label so I really hope life treats you well."

Caroline gave her a tight hug which felt better than anything that happened in Davina's life so far.  
"Oh and congratulations." she added happy that the blonde got the big prize.

* * *

Klaus put his phone away, he had been going back and forth with it while waiting for Caroline but she was taking so long that he was genuinely starting to worry.  
Finally she showed up but her expression was one of murkiness, she was dragging her feet and looking down so Klaus held her cardigan open for her with a small induced smile.

"I will start by selling the grey stallion, he is by far my least favorite horse." Klaus said while helping her with the cardigan.  
Caroline kept her game going and looked at him miserable. "Are you raging mad and about to yell at me?"

"I need a drink before that." he released the braid that was caught under her cardigan.  
Caroline nodded slowly. "You should wait until they call you to schedule my recording session of the next frigging Oscar." her voice raised and she excitedly grabbed him by his jacket. "I got the Elsa part!" she shrieked excited.

Klaus was stunned by her trick and squinted at her with a threatening scowl. "The reenactment was just for fun then?"  
"It was revenge because you were an ass to me this morning." she crossed her arms looking straight at him in the eyes.

"Was that before or after I arranged for this?" he pressed her with a another squint.  
"That doesn't excuse your jerk mood."

"I thought I made clear why I was harsh on you this morning."  
"Stop treating me like I'm an imbecile Klaus." Caroline snapped. "Whenever we are alone, you have this soft side that soothes me but throw someone else inside the same room and you become ruthless and even cruel to me, so if I'm crossing some sacred line here, I'm sorry but it's your fault because you made me trust you enough for that."

Klaus chose to remain quiet and the silence between them was heavy all the way back to Stefan's home.  
Caroline was admiring the rain wildly hitting the glass elevator when Klaus pressed the red button that immobilized them and she turned around puzzled to face him.

Klaus licked his lips once, setting the mood for the talk. "I can't show how tolerant I've become towards you in front of Stefan, or anyone else. That's how nasty rumors start."  
Caroline took a small step closer to him. "How about when we are alone?"

Klaus' faintest pause was fire to her agony.  
"Caroline… there is something that I need to tell you."

She didn't want to hear it, God, it was as if blood was clotting in her veins and she was about to lose control over the one thing she suspected but still wasn't ready to find out if it was true.  
Her brain reacted before her body. "Stop worrying so much, Stefan knows that we are only leading a very platonic relationship. We've got this covered." she tried to giggle while she reached out to push the button that would make them move again.

When she was straightening up she slowly looked at him and the proximity brought forward this big unspoken electric force between them, the rain was violent outside but she knew her heart was loudly advertising how much she was attracted to him.  
"I can't do this with you Caroline."

His whisper made her world stop turning but she unconsciously inched closer to him, she looked at his lips before she searched for his eyes.  
His warm thumb grazed her chin and that made her close her eyes.

"I just can't sweetheart…" he whispered again.  
Caroline opened her eyes finding him staring at her with a different glow in his eyes and she wished that there was a way to stop what was taking over her.

Following that raw impulse she made the space between them even smaller and his hand contradicted his words, Caroline's breath dropped to an uncontrolled sigh as he warmed her cheek and then her neck.  
His strong hand made the slightest motion to bring her face closer to him and Caroline's tongue flicked across her lips wondering how it would feel to kiss him.

When he didn't take that final leap, Caroline was mature enough to know it wasn't their moment and she pulled away from him leaving the elevator as soon as they reached their floor.  
She was tucking her braid and her dented ego when she saw a blonde knocking on Stefan's door.

The other girl heard her and turned for a question.  
"Do you know if Stefan is home? I've been knocking for a while without an answer."

"Are you Rebekah?" Caroline asked intrigued.  
"No." the blonde girl chuckled amused and looked past Caroline to the man now reaching the hallway. "I'm Camille."

Caroline frowned following her as she went straight to Klaus and then to her utmost terror, the girl kissed him on the lips with an easiness of who was accustomed to those raspberry lips of his for a while now.  
"I'm Nik's fiancée." Camille said snuggling close to his chest. "And you must be Caroline."

Caroline's eyes were the only thing working in a paralyzed body and she looked at him wondering if it was sorrow that she found in his eyes.

* * *

**Soundtrack**

You wait for rain - _Kyler England_

Warm - _Sam Alone & The Gravediggers_

Fallout - _Sofi Bonde_

Make it to me - _Sam Smith_


End file.
