𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐂𝐇 ━━ KLAUS MIKAELSON

57

EMERY WAS LED TO the room. She looked around the place, taking in what was around her. "What did you want to show me? This room?"

"This, precisely," he dragged her forward until they were both standing in front of a large painting fixed on the wall. "One of my passions."

The witch stared at the artwork in awe. She noticed all the small details, her brows furrowing as she turned to look at him, her tone teasing, "I take it the curators at the Louvre aren't on vervain."

Klaus chuckled, shaking his head slightly, "well that's their mistake."

She went back to staring at the drawing then her eyes fell on a couple of sketches on the table in front of her. She picked a page up, bringing it in front of her eyes.
"Wait a second," she looked around the place, suddenly feeling stupid for not realizing it before, "did you do these?"

Klaus bit his lip, giving her a slow nod, "yeah— actually one of my landscapes is hanging at the Hermitage, not that anyone would notice. Have you been?"

"I've never really been anywhere, I told you."

"And I told you I'll take you," he stepped forward, "wherever you want Rome. Paris. Tokyo?" He raised his hand and brushed a strand of her hair away from her face, "Italy?"

"You did ask me about Italy before," she muttered upon remembering the texts. He told her to not think about it but now she couldn't help but wonder.

He flashed her a smile, "I did." She was about to say something when she caught sight of a painting in the corner of the room. It stood out from the rest. Glancing at Klaus who was still smiling at her, she walked towards it.

Her eyes widened as she took it in. It was a portrait of her. The first thing she noticed was the incredible level of detail that he had put into the painting. Every strand of her brown hair was perfectly captured, and her green eyes seemed to sparkle with life. She was amazed by how he had captured her essence so perfectly.

What she didn't know was that the painting wasn't just a realistic representation of her; it was also an expression of Klaus's admiration for her.

Emery saw the way he had painted her with a gentle, almost reverent touch, making her look more beautiful than she had ever seen herself.

"This is—" she traced her finger over her face, "breathtaking. When did you start doing this?"

"A month or so," he replied, staring at his work. "You're a work of art, little witch. I couldn't not draw you."

"You're way better than me in this whole thing," she chuckled, "but in my defense, you've had years of experience."

"We should paint something together." Klaus's suggestion made her smile. She nodded, an idea forming in her mind as she turned face him.

"We should paint you," Emery paused, looking at him as he waited for her to continue her sentence, knowing nothing good would follow by her expression, "naked."

He breathed out a chuckle, "I should've known. How about we paint you naked instead?"

"I suggested it first," she raised her brows in defiance, "if we're painting anyone naked, it's you."

"Or maybe we could paint each other naked. I mean, it's only fair—" Klaus was cut off by a shake of her head, followed by a small laugh. He smiled, deciding to change the subject to something he had been wanting to address for a while, "back to what we were talking about. I want to take you everywhere you wish. Italy's going to be a great first, don't you think? I've been there before. It's absolutely wonderful. You're going to love it."

Emery felt a smile breaking onto her own face. Before she could say something, Klaus added, "once I'm done doing whatever I need to in this town, we can leave."

Suddenly she remembered his words from the dinner. "You said you will never leave Elena behind. Does that mean she'll be tagging along then?"

"I need her."

Emery scoffed, unsure why those three words hurt her more than anything. "Yes, everyone does, don't they?"

Klaus furrowed his brows, his lips pulling up into a frown. "You know why I need her."

"I know," she muttered, the bitterness in her voice didn't go unnoticed by the hybrid, "I didn't say anything."

"But it's clearly bothering you."

Instead of replying, she took a deep breath, her eyes shifting to his. She had been wanting to ask him a question but couldn't bring herself to do it. Figuring it was now or never, she finally spoke, "can I ask you something?"

"You'll ask anyway."

"I know Elena's important to your little plan or whatever," she began, "but if it comes to it—" she felt like she shouldn't continue. But she was desperate to know where she stood. She wanted to know just how much she meant to him. "If you had to make a choice, either you stay in mystic falls with her or we leave just the two of us, what are you going to do?"

Klaus went silent. It was an easy question. The answer was right on the tip of his tongue. He wanted to be with Emery but at the same time he needed Elena's blood. Unaware of how low the witch already felt compared to the doppelgänger, he replied with, "I need to be able to make more hybrids."

"So in other words," she took a step back, "you'll stay." He didn't say anything, only stared at her as her lips curled up in a sad smile. "I get it. It's always going to be her."

"Em—"

"— Remember how you told me that you presumably saved me from my toxic friends?" She cut him off, "how you told me that if it comes to it, they're always going to choose Elena over me? And remember how I told you that I don't care? That wasn't a lie. I don't."

He held his breath, unsure of where she was going with this. "What I do care about is your choice. Elena and I aren't a package deal, you should know that."

"I know that," he found himself taking a step forward, "if I had another way—"

"— I don't want to know," she interrupted him before he could explain. "I don't know why I even bother. I can't have this one thing without her being part of it. It's pathetic, actually." She let out a humorless chuckle, "I've never felt more sorry for myself."

"Don't do this," he stepped forward, "you're the only person I want in my life right now, okay? Elena's just..."

"A need? Important? Trust me, I know." She cut in, sighing when he went quiet. "It's fine, I told you, I get it. I wasn't expecting any less. Hope is a dangerous thing. It was a stupid question."

Klaus pursed his lips, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground. He wasn't even looking at her, he wasn't sure he could. He knew how she was feeling but he couldn't do anything about it.

"Weirdly, I had a fun time tonight," she spoke making him finally look at her. She gave him a smile which he knew was fake. "But I'll leave now so bye. I'll see you around." Without giving him the time to say anything, she rushed out of the door.