Above All Else

Chapter 17

It was just past noon when Caroline finished showering and changing for the day, she was just putting the finally touches on her make-up when she felt a flutter in her chest as she recalled Klaus catching up to her at the front door of his house and the conversation they had as he walked her to her car.

Klaus walked next to her seeming nervous about something, she had decided to let it play out and see what was on his mind. "So Caroline, what are your plans for the day?"

"Go home and wash this junk off me and then I'm not sure. Maybe see if my mom wants to meet for a late lunch? Get ahold of Stefan to see what happened when he talked to the others." They made it to her car as she began riffling through her purse for her keys only to stop when she heard a jingle coming from beside her to see Klaus holding her keys pinched between her fingers. She smiled softly at him as she took the keys, "Thanks by the way for having me car brought here, even if you did order your little minions around to do it."

Klaus lowered his head and huffed out a laugh before looking up at her with that nervous expression again. He placed his hands behind his back and his face took on a look that reminded her of when he met her as she was setting up for the Miss Mystic Pageant. "I was wondering if I could take you out to dinner this evening." Klaus tried to interject confidence in his voice but she could see him preparing for her rejection.

She had watched him with her eyes slightly squinted, her head tilted to the side as she bit her lip before she answered him in a soft tone, "What time do you want to pick me up?"

She had seen his eyes widen a fraction before his face had lit up brighter than any Christmas tree she had ever seen. His dimples were deep and his smile shined on his face as he spoke, "How does Six o'clock sound?"

She smiled back at him with a gentle nod of her head, "Perfect." She had reached to open her car door only to find Klaus had beaten her to it.

He picked up her hand bringing it to his lips, placing a tender kiss on it. While still slightly bowed over her hand in his, his sparkling blue eyes glanced up to hers as he spoke in a reverent voice, "Until then Love." She offered him a smile as she got into her car and bit her lip at the fact he had stood in the driveway with his hands in his pockets watching her leave.

Caroline sighed as she pulled herself from the memory, she couldn't hold back a giggle as she placed her hand over her mouth over the fact that she had an actual date with Klaus tonight, no distractions, no ulterior motives, just the two of them enjoying each other's company and moving forward. She was curious of where exactly he would take her, she had a feeling dinner at the Grill was not his idea of a proper date. She would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't nervous about the night to come, but she was also more excited about this date than any other she had before. She had a feeling, knowing Klaus; it was going to be the best date she had ever been on. Caroline's mind drifted back to the look on his face as he realized she wasn't turning him down or rejecting him like so many times before. He always said she was full of light, but in that moment Klaus had a flicker of his own light as well. She couldn't shake the warmth that filled her at the thought that she did that for him.

Ready for the day, she checked the time and decided to head to the coffee shop across from the park to grab a table in hopes that her Mom could meet her there. Once she was in her car driving down her street she dialed her Mom, disappointed when after two rings it was sent to voicemail, "Hey Mommy! I'm on my way over to the coffee shop. You know the one with the cute little bistro tables outside? Anyways, I was hoping you could meet me there. So yeah, well I'll be there for a while so just let me know. Or just come! I miss you." She ended the call, frustrated as she turned onto the street the coffee shop was on she muttered to herself, "Her and I are going to have a serious sit down talk soon. This is just ridiculous. Screening the calls from your own daughter! Who does that?" Pulling her car into a parking spot out front she shut her car down and pulled her phone out to call Stefan as she sat at a table.