The Vampire Diaries and The Originals Imagines and One-shots

The Hike - Klaroline

Caroline Forbes needed a break. Every time she turned around there seemed to be another crisis or more drama that needed to be fixed. And it couldn't be typical teenage drama. No, that would be too simple. Instead it was vampire drama. Hybrid drama. This was so not how she imagined her life would turn out.

The morning had been spent fighting with Elena. As much as Caroline loved her friend, it seemed that Elena could do whatever she wanted while the rest of them were judged for every action, every mistake, and every feeling. Pretty much anything they did that didn't fit with Elena's vision of how things should be was wrong. It was getting tiresome.

"So what if I like Klaus?" Caroline muttered to herself as she plucked a colorful leaf from a tree as she walked through the woods. "She's with Damon and look what he's done. Look what he did to me. Oh, but we all just conveniently forget that, don't we?"

She sighed knowing it would do no good to try and make Elena see her point of view. She arrived at the peak of the hill she'd been climbing faster than she meant to. Damn vampire speed. So much for a slow, leisurely hike. A large boulder sat near the peak and Caroline pulled herself onto it to look out over the view below. It was simply gorgeous this time of year.

"So, you like me, do you, love?" Klaus's familiar accent ran over her, pulling a smile from her in spite of her annoyance at being disturbed.

"Who said that?" she asked glancing at him over her shoulder. "I certainly didn't."

"You certainly did." He grinned then flashing those dimples that never failed to make her weak in the knees. "I heard you."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "But that was ages ago. Have you been stalking me?" She feigned anger, unwilling to let him win so easily.

He gave a little shrug completely unmoved by her accusation. "I wouldn't say stalking. Let's call it keeping an eye on the things that matter to me."

Damn it. That was good. The little resolve she had left began to melt with his words. Deciding to do what she wanted for once without worrying about how anyone else would react, she patted the stone beside her. "It would be easier to keep an eye from up close, wouldn't it?"

He grinned wider than she thought possible as he sat beside her. "It certainly would, love."