Edgewalkers

He's back...

When Saturday finally came, I was happy to hear Caroline would be able to make it. She was still not entirely healthy, but seeing as she had to work anyways, she saw no reason not to meet me. This was, of course, lucky for me, since I had been looking forward to talking with the girl again. Hopefully, I could control my comments and not spill secrets, which were better kept hidden.

We had planned to meet up at the café she was working at after her shift was over. I entered a bit early, so she told me to sit down, she would join me shortly after. When she did sit down in front of me, her hair up in a bun and a bright smile on her face, my heart seemed to skip a beat. She looked a tad like she did that night I had first seen her. That damned night.

"Hello, love.", I greeted once again. "How are you feeling?
"Better.", she replied. "Have you ordered already?"
I shook my head and she immediately took charge of getting us something to drink.

A colleague of hers brought us our coffees and Caroline even cheekily had asked for cake. Following her recommendation, I had chosen the cheesecake, while she'd gone with strawberry.

"So, Klaus. How was your week? You were busy?", she tried to start the conversation.
"I was.", I said. "But I am not here to talk about me." Even if I loved it when she listened to me, nodding at my words, slight smile on her lips. "I am here to talk about you."

"Is that so?" She let her head rest upon her hand. "What about me then?"
"I wanted to check out my siblings' new friend to confirm that we can trust you."
Or furthermore, I needed to know if she could handle what she would get into with us. "We don't just let anyone into our midst."

"I've heard." She leaned back in her seat now. "That's one of the reasons I am here with you now. I need you all to trust me if I am to be friends with you."
Smart girl.

"Where did you move from?", I started my questioning. I already knew her answer.
"Mystic Falls."

"Family?"
"Lived with my Mom. Dad left us. He provides for my living, but our relationship is complicated."

"What does your mother do for a living?"
"As I've told your siblings already, she is a sheriff."

"Friends?"
"Alright, stop it.", she shut me down surprisingly. "I get that you need to know I won't harm your family; however, this is too much. I thought we were gonna have a nice talk, yet I am here being interrogated."

"You're right, Im sorry.", I admitted.
"Is this what a friendship with any of you is like?", she shook her head in displeasure. "I always have to tell you stuff about me without knowing anything about any of you?"

I kept quiet. This was usually how we treated newcomers who had not fully earned our trust yet. Or in this case, someone I personally did not want to be involved in our mess.

"Because that is not a friendship, I want to participate in."
I sighed. Such a secretive friendship was toxic, I was very well aware of that. For Rebekah's sake, I had to let her know, this wouldn't be what she would be signing up for.

"Fair enough.", I folded my hands. "What do you want to know about me?"
"Why are you rarely at college?", she immediately took a deep dive.

I took a deep breath. Honesty was key now. It did not look like she would stay away from us anyways, so I might as well open up.

"I only go to college for my father. He wanted me to major in business management to take over the company someday."
"And that is not what you want to do for a living?", she asked. I confirmed her guess with a headshake. "What do you want to do then?"

"Well, when I was younger, I always wanted to be an artist. Unfortunately, that seems to be a long-lost dream."
"An artist? What kind of art do you do?", she continued asking.
"I love to sketch and paint."