Motel 38 (Short Story) // Klaroline

Chapter 3

Caroline stays looking out the window, her eyes settling on the buildings which pass before her. The city is beautiful and she can't help but to be in awe, never wanting to leave.

Klaus's eyes glance over at her, a small smile settling on his face at her expression. She's so amused by such simple things, he notes.

"You like the city I take it," he speaks up and she turns to him, smiling sheepishly as if to be embarrassed for it. It's quite cute, really, he thinks to himself and then quickly pushes the thought aside. He barely knows her, he shouldn't be thinking about how attractive she is.

"I love it, especially at night. The lights and buildings... it's beautiful," she states.

He forces himself to keep his eyes on the road, pulling into a small cafe when his GPS shows him to. She unbuckles her seatbelt when they park, and he does as well, the two exiting at the same time.

They enter the coffee shop, Klaus holding the door for her. He may not be excited to share a room with a complete stranger tonight, but the least he can do is be polite.

"I'm going to order... would you like anything?" he asks her and she looks at him, surprised.

She is able to capture his eyes in the better lighting, staring at the remarkable blue green color. He waits for her response.

"I don't have money," she frowns.

"I'll pay."

Caroline shakes her head, unable to accept other people's graciousness, especially when she barely knows them.

"No, that's okay, I'm fine. I couldn't ask you to pay for me."

Klaus persists, "Just tell me what you want and accept the offer."

She blushes, his temper revealing itself yet again.

"Um, alright... I guess I'll have a regular coffee, cream and sugar. Thanks," Caroline replies, not wanting to push the subject any further. She feels weird for making Klaus pay for her, not wanting to give off the impression she can't do anything for herself.

"I'll take two coffees, one black and the other with cream and sugar," Klaus tells the barista who smiles and takes his card.

Caroline waits behind him, taking the time to eye him some more. She can't help but to admire his extremely good looks. He is tall and muscular with a slight scruff, and his dirty blonde, curly hair fell in his face at a perfect angle. She can only thank God for giving her someone attractive to be stuck in a room with all night, even though his attitude didn't quite match

"Caroline," he says again, annoyed she didn't hear him the first time. Her attention turns to him.

"Huh? Oh, sorry," she takes her coffee, coming back into reality. She doesn't get him; how he can be polite one minute, complimenting her name, paying for her, and the next mad at her for not paying attention?

He takes his own and sits down in the back of the cafe at a small booth, a window right beside it.

Yawning, he rubs his eyes and takes a gracious sip of coffee. Caroline repeats his actions and gulps her coffee, the two sharing their desperate need for sleep.

"How do they mess up the fact they gave two people the same exact room?" Klaus suddenly rants, his expression angry.

"You did notice the wannabe rebel teenager running the front desk, right?" she jokes, a smile plastered on her face as she takes another swig of the hot liquid.

Klaus sits back in his seat, eyeing Caroline's complexion. She's clearly exhausted due to the dark circles lining her under-eyes, but her bright blue eyes continue to sparkle. Her hair is slightly tangled yet still falls perfectly to her shoulders.!