chapter 22

Heart to heart
And so I had a late arrival
So we never saw the start
Of each other's lives
Heart to heart

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

JADE LOOKED AT THE CLOCK on the hotel's room wall. 1:24 a.m. Driving her eyes back to the ceiling, which had been fixed on it for over an hour as she surrendered sleep, her thoughts once again returned to the one thing that refused to leave. Or rather someone.

She couldn't push his fucking perfect face off her head. His watercolor eyes that felt like they saw her whole soul every time he looked at her, his sharp cheekbones and those fucking full lips, eternally twisted into that cocky smirk she hated and couldn't get enough of at the same time. His voice, tinged with that captivating accent, sent shivers down her spine every time she replayed it in her mind. She could even smell his scent, a delicate blend of cigarette smoke and forest, mingled with a subtle, luxurious perfume that most likely cost more than her entire life. She wanted to drown in it and die.

She felt like she was going crazy.

And this is said by her, who has been mad for half her life. Although what she felt now... was a different kind of madness. One, that she had never encountered in her twenty-two years of living.

She didn't like it.

She tried not to think about him. It was simply impossible.

Jade looked down and her eyes widened as her hand instinctively wandered to the spot on her leg where his had been earlier. She stood up as if burned, staring straight ahead with coin-like eyes.

Hell no.

She went quickly to the bathroom, turning on the tap and setting the water as cold as possible. As she quickly rinsed her make-up-free face, she turned off the faucet and leaned against the sink, looking at herself in disbelief.

What the fuck was happening to her?

After a moment's pause, she grabbed her pack of cigarettes from the coffee table, took a deep breath, and headed out. Her bare feet made soft, gentle steps on the expensive carpet in the hallway. She paused, her head turning slightly to the left at one, particular door.

Bad idea, Forbes. Don't do it.

Clenching her jaw tightly, she strained her ears, trying to hear anything from behind the wooden door. Some soft scribbling. Maybe pencil's? Pressing her lips into a straight, tight line, she raised her hand.

Don't you dare.

She was already about to knock, but froze when she looked down at her clothes. All she was wearing was an oversized T-shirt that she didn't even know where it came from and some shorts. Nothing else. On her head was a bun that looked more like a nest than anything else, and her face resembled one before a funeral artist's makeover.

Absolutely not.

Shaking her head, she took a step back, continuing her walk to the roof of the hotel. Moments later, the girl found the brass exit door and her face felt the cool breeze of the night. Taking a deep breath, she walked to the edge of the rooftop, focusing in on the night landscape of Chicago.

"You look like shit." She heard an all too familiar voice from behind her.

Turning around with huge eyes in a flash, she saw none other than her favorite doppelgänger. "What the fuck?" She muttered under her breath, her face scrunched. "What the hell are you doing here? Are you suicidal?"

"A little bit." Katherine shrugged in an innocent manner, making Jade roll her eyes. "Taking a page out of your book, I guess."

Jade snorted, her head shaking as she locked her gaze with the brunette. "Hilarious, really." She retorted with an amused smile, taking few steps ahead and wrapping her arms around her. "Finally someone who doesn't make me want to blow my head off." She muttered into Pierce's hair, making her huff a laugh.

"I missed you to, J." Katherine said with a smirk as the two women pulled out from their embrace. "And Caroline was driving me insane with questions about you, I had to literally snap her neck to stop her from coming with me." Katherine sighed in exasperation, earning a smile from the blonde.

"Good." She murmured, her lips pulled. After a second, she glanced at Katherine. "Don't tell her that." She quickly spat, threateningly pointing at her with her finger. When the brunette just huffed with amusement, Jade smiled. "How is she?" She inquired after a moment, her tone softening.

Katherine groaned theatrically, her head tilting back in a mix of annoyance and fondness. "Like a chihuahua on an energy drink. Can't sit still." She muttered, her head shaking. "So, pretty much the usual." She shrugged after a beat, Jade nodding in agreement, her lips curling into a small smile as she thought about her sister worrying about her. "The necklace they're looking for is Elena's, isn't it?" Katherine asked with a cheeky smirk, her head tilting to the side.

Jade scoffed, throwing her hands in the air. "How do you even━" She stopped herself when she saw the brunette's raised eyebrows and cunning smirk. She huffed in amusement, her head shaking. "Of course it is." She answered, her lips twitching upwards.

Katherine playfully narrowed her eyes at the blonde. "You haven't ratted him out yet? That's surprising."

"I'm waiting for a good moment. What can I say? I love drama." She said with a nonchalant shrug, her hands twisting theatrically in the air. "And watching Stefan shit his pants every time they mention it and trying to distract them is comical."

Katherine shook her head, her eyes dancing with amusement. Then, her expression grew more serious. "Just be careful." She cautioned sincerely. "Klaus is the literal devil with a pretty face."

Jade nodded, her eyes flickering over the Chicago's landscape. "Yeah." She breathed softly as she thought of the hybrid. Again.

Katherine watched the side of her face with a scrunched nose. "What the fuck happened during those three months?" She questioned, her eyes blinking rapidly.

Jade snapped her head toward the brunette. "What? Nothing." She blurted out, her eyebrows furrowed.

Katherine arched one of her eyebrows, eyeing her carefully. "I just unlocked some new facial expression of yours and you say nothing?"

"Nothing happened, Kat." Jade grumbled immediately, her eyes narrowed into tiny slits as she glanced at her, now every amused, friend.

"Mhm, sure." She nodded with a pout, patting the blonde on the shoulder with a wicked smirk.

"Oh, fuck off." Jade huffed in irritation, swatting the brunette's hand away. "How's the lesser Salvatore?" She changed the subject.

It was enough that she couldn't stop thinking about him, she didn't have the slightest desire to talk about him, too.

Katherine hummed, enjoying the look on Jade's face. When she shot her a warning look, she raised her palms in defensive gesture. "Nothing too surprising. Still trying to steal his brother's girl, and it seems he's succeeding." She mused, earning a snort from Jade. "He's gotten oddly chummy with the Gilbert kid lately. Not sure what he's up to, but I'd bet it's something." Jade furrowed her eyebrows, glancing at the doppelgänger, who just shrugged in response. After a few moments, she cleared her throat. "But J... gossip is not why I'm here." She said, her face turning more serious than before. "Shockingly." She added, sarcasm lacing her voice.

"Oh?" Jade muttered, eyebrows clenched in momentary confusion.

"Something happened." Katherine stated, her serious expression only unnerving Jade more.

"What?" She barked, her voice escalating slightly as a million tragic scenarios swamped her thoughts.

Katherine clenched her jaw, letting out a big breath. "Your father was released." She said softly, her lips forming into a tight line.

Jade froze.

Ice sculpture-Syberia-dead-froze.

"What?" Her voice was a breath, barely audible as her gaze remained locked onto Katherine's face, eyes wide like coins. "What? How? When? Why?" She spat in a flash, her brain not processing the information.

Jade felt herself instantly short of breath, as if the world had suddenly shrunk, suffocating her. Nightmare. It was a nightmare.

"Recently... maybe a week ago." Katherine's voice snapped her out of her dark thoughts. "For good behavior or something, a few bribes came into play and..." She trailed off, her tongue clicking against her teeth.

"He's in Mystic Falls?" Jade immediately asked, in her thoughts only Caroline and their mother, accompanying with dozens of scenarios when he returns and Jade is not there.

"No." Katherine shook her head, making Jade let out a mighty breath in relief, her hand rubbing her face, as if trying to wake herself up from the nightmare. "I didn't see or hear anything."

"Shit." She shook her head, her hand agressivily rubbing her face. "Shit, shit, shit." She kept mumbling under her breath, her frantic eyes darting around Chicago's skyscrapers. Katherine put her hand on the blonde's arm in silent support, making Jade glance at her, her expression deadly serious. "It's time to end the fun." She murmured and Katherine nodded softly in response and pulled her into a embrace.

"Good luck, J. Don't die." She murmured.

"You too." Jade whispered, pulling back. "Watch over them, okay?" She said quietly, her usualy stony and fierce eyes now sparking with vulnerabilty and fear.

"Of course." Katherine whispered with a nod, her face glowing with sincerity. The vampires exchanged one last look and, after one blink, Katherine was gone.

Jade drove her nails into her scalp as if trying to pull out her hair, her head lowered and shaking from side to side. Taking a deep breath, trying to get the air she seemed to be missing, she sat on the roof's edge, her legs dangling hundreds of meters above the ground.

Why does life hate her so much? Were hallucinations not enough? Did he have to become real again?

She had spent those three months away from Mystic Falls and could admit that she loved it. (mostly) Finally, she didn't have to worry about anything, she could be herself and do (almost) anything she wanted. She felt free.

And now? She felt caged, suffocated and stifled by him, again.

Pulling out a cigarette with shaking fingers, her gaze was focused forward, her face and eyes blank, as if she were in that basement again. As if she had never left it.

She had spent years building a fortress around herself, erecting walls to protect her from painful memories and the ghost of her father's presence. But now those defensive walls seemed fragile, as if a mere gust of wind could shatter them into dust, leaving her exposed.

Fear crept up her spine, wrapping around her like icy ropes. Memories of his anger, his unpredictability and the scars he left behind came back with a vengeance, vivid and unrelenting. The feeling of being a child, small and defenseless against his wrath, swept over her in chilling waves.

She was a helpless little girl again.

And she hated it.

"You know you have to fire it up first, right?" She heard an accented voice to her left. Voice, which was echoing over and over in her head already.

She glanced down at her unlit cigarette, which she kept between her lips the whole time. "Ye━" She started, turning her head, but her words quickly died on her tongue when she saw the hybrid in a loose dark T-shirt, sweatpants and dishevelled curls on his head.

Jesus fucking Christ.

Life really hated her.

"Yeah." She finally breathed, reflexively reaching into her pocket, only to find nothing, her eyes watching Klaus' every move as he sat down beside her.

The Original glanced to the side and pulled out his own lighter, firing it up and sliding the flame under the blonde's cigarette. "Here." He murmured.

Jade raised her gaze and leaned towards him, firing it up. Her eyes had been connected to his all this time, and through their proximity she could see how blue they were. Not like hers━dark, reminiscent of the ocean during a storm. His, like azure depths caressed by moonlight, hid a galaxy of history. They carried the weight of centuries, and every glance was a whispered echo of the countless lives he had touched, changed, and wiped.

"Thanks." She murmured, her voice a soft echo in the night as she took a drag and released the smoke into the darkness, watching it curl and dissipate like haunting ghost. He responded with a low hum, mirroring her actions with a cigarette of his own, his eyes involuntarily tracing the contours of her form from head to toe.

In that moment, she appeared utterly natural, her slightly curly hair was artfully tied up in a loose bun, a few rebellious strands dancing around her face. A closer look unveiled the delicate freckles that adorned her skin, like constellations mapping her features in the absence of her usual dark and stark makeup. The sight of her like this was so captivating that his fingers, which held the cigarette, quivered almost impatiently, yearning to immortalize the moment on paper.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, glancing slightly at him, her eyes discreetly scanning his figure. She couldn't help but think how.... normal he looked. It looked weird as hell, but also... nice. Don't get her wrong, Jade liked him wreaking havoc left and right and looking hot as hell doing it, but seeing him like this? In a slightly oversized black T-shirt, sweatpants and hair that showed he'd only just stood out of bed? She felt... strange. As if she wasn't supposed to see it.

But thank fucking God she did.

Klaus huffed with a little smile on his lips as he exhaled the smoke through his nose. "Apparently the same as you." He murmured, looking pointedly at the blonde, who just hummed and rested her chin in her palm, eyes staring blankly at the landscape before her.

Klaus glanced at the girl, who seemed locked in her own thoughts, her face blank. After these few months, the hybrid could admit that he knew her enough to know when something was bothering her. Her heart was beating irregularly, sometimes stronger sometimes weaker, one of her feet that hung in the air was shaking with nerves, and her lower lip was a victim of her blunt human teeth. "Penny for your thoughts?" He asked a little playfully, raising one of his eyebrows.

"Hm." Jade hummed, summoning a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I don't think so." Her gaze briefly met the Original's, who acknowledged her response with a nod before redirecting his attention ahead, into the night. She sighed softly, watching him as he did the same. The corners of her lips twitched as she playfully nudged him with her knee. "Penny for yours?" Klaus shot her an unimpressed look and she huffed in amusement. "Alright, alright." She mumbled, her head shaking with a quiet chuckle.

The silence has returned. It was not uncomfortable, objectively speaking. The only sounds surrounding them were their smoking cigarettes, accompanied by nothing more than the distant symphony of the city's nightlife below. And yet uncomfortable it was for Jade, because as soon as there was stillness, her thoughts returned to him.

"Can I ask you a question, though?" She asked, twisting her head towards the hybrid. He responded with a dismissive puff of amusement, exhaling a stream of smoke into the night.

"You never seem to just enjoy the silence, do you?" He remarked, his gaze shifting to meet hers, amusement danced within the depths of his ancient eyes.

"All I ever wanted... all I ever needed..." Jade murmured in a hushed voice, a cheeky smirk tugging at her lips. His head shook in response, a battle of his own smile evident in the corners of his mouth. She couldn't suppress a soft laugh that escaped her, almost like a whisper, as she took a drag from her cigarette. "I do enjoy it, but the silence is making me think, and I don't wanna do it right now." She said as she let out the smoke, her tone softly changing from playfull to more somber in a matter of seconds.

Klaus looked at the girl, noticing the turmoil happening behind her eyes. Taking a deep breath, he asked. "What's your question?"

Jade smiled slightly to herself, casting her gaze ahead. "What's it like? Being you?" 

Klaus turned his head away, flashing his eyebrows up and down. "Well, it's not exactly a picnic━"

"━I mean being half-werewolf." Jade interrupted, turning her head towards him with a deadpanned look. "Not you, you." She said, pointing at him with her cigarette. After a second, her face started to break into a grin. "Altough that must suck, too." She quipped, making him narrow his eyes at her.

"It's called being a hybrid, love." He corrected, his tone tinged with a touch of mock patronization as he narrowed his eyes at her.

Jade raised her hands, her lips pulling as she curtsied lightly. "Oh, my apologies, your highness." She spoke, mimicking his accent.

Klaus couldn't help but chuckle, his head shaking as he looked upward in a moment of amusement. He heard her laugh, the sound of it infectious, and he found himself glancing down at her again. "Why do you ask?" He inquired, his tone gentle, imbued with genuine curiosity.

"Just curious." She said bluntly, her shoulders shrugging.

Klaus looked at one side of her face with a clenched jaw. He could lie, of course he could. Yet he didn't want to. He didn't, looking at her, at this baby vampire who was such an enigma that he was catching himself more and more eager to solve. "Lonely." He finally said, his voice low, gentle, as if embarassed.

Oh, sweetheart. What are you doing to him?

"I thought so." He heard her say. He shot his gaze up to her, his expression quite taken back, eyebrows furrowed.

"Did you, now?" He asked, his head twitching to the side as he placed his cigarette between his lips, taking a might drag.

"Why would you obsess over cloning yourself if it wasnt't?" Jade said with a little amusement, twisting her head towards him, eyes locking into his.

"Power?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, his tone as it was the most obvious answer.

"Maybe." She shurgged her shoulders. After a second, she snorted, her eyes rolling slightly. "Well, definitely, since it's you." She said, looking pointedly at him, to which he smirked with a nonchalant shrug. "But," She drawled, her tone growing more somber as she continued, her attention briefly drawn to the cityscape of Chicago that stretched before them. "I saw something in your eyes when Stefan asked you about it in Tennessee." She admitted, making him snap his eyes towards her in a flash in curiosity. Jade huffed to herself and turned to him again, giving him a small, sad smile. "And eyes never lie." She whispered, looking up.

Klaus was enchanted in her at that moment. Who wouldn't? Her eyes, those expansive pools of deep blue, like the night that surrounded them bore into his, and he caught himself not wanting to look at anything else.

Jade felt like she was in hypnosis, as if it would be a sin not to look at him. At him, looking at her like that.

Hearing his heart beating evenly with hers, she shook herself out of her trance and blinked, looking away. "My friend taught me that." She murmured before placing the burning cigarette between her lips.

Klaus took a huge breath, also turning his gaze away and focusing it into the stars that hung over their heads. "Sounds like a wise friend." He said, his head tilting back as he leaned back on his hands.

Jade clicked her tongue against her teeth, her head twitching to the side. "Well, she's dead now." She said with a pout, nodding to herself as her eyes were fixed ahead. Klaus snapped his gaze to her in a flash, not missing the way her eyes darkened with grief. "Turned and killed by dumb and dumber." She said, rubbing her head on her forehead, eyes closing for a brief second as she sighed. "And she was dumb as fuck, actually." She whipped her head towards him with a deadpanned look, making the corners of his lips twitch up. Jade huffed a laugh and shook her head. "I'm kidding, Vicks. Don't haunt me." She exclaimed, twisting her head around, eyes darting around them as if she was looking for something.

Klaus watched her the whole time, observing every expression on her face, every glint in her eye, neither sad nor amused, he saw everything. "Can I ask you a question?" He asked after a while, when silence fell between them.

Jade let out an amused snort. "What is this? 21 questions?"

"Well, you started it." He retorted with a little shrug.

"Ugh, fine." Rolling her eyes in mock exasperation, Jade relented with a huff. "What do you wanna know?"

"Did you see your father that night?" He asked, watching her amusement disappear from her face, replaced by bafflement.

Jade swallowed the lump that threatened to rise in her throat, her breath catching. "Not beating around the bush, I see." She mumbled under her breath, her fingers tightly gripping the cigarette as she took a deep drag, finishing it off in one go.

"Did you?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

The question, the memory it evoked, hung heavily in the air between them. Jade hesitated, her gaze flickering over the horizon as she sought for the right words. She bit her lower lip, struggling to put into words a truth that had long been buried within her. "I..." She trailed off, her fingers nervously tapping the remnants of her cigarette. "Um..." She hummed hesistantly, locking her eyes with his and clenching her jaw because of what she saw in them.

She recognized a kindred spirit, someone who knew pain and complexity intimately. Who knew her pain. Her complexity.

"He's not... very nice."  Her eyes met his again, and she found herself drawn into his world, a world that seemed to understand her. She let out a nervous chuckle that lacked any humor, glancing away from his intense and piercing gaze. "I could've just show you my scars to avoid talking about it, because that's awkward as hell, but they disappeared━which I'm still pissed about, by the way━"

"━I saw them." Klaus interrupted her nervous rant, his voice gentle, although his eyes were blazing as they were fixed ahead. The Orignial closed his eyes for a moment, finishing his cigarette, before his eyes the sight of her entire body covered in all sorts of contortions and bumps, most of them covered in ink.

After a moment, his own image, from almost a millennium ago, joined in. His back, decorated with blood from his father's whip when he used his hunting knife to carve chess pieces. When he lay on the forest floor, kicked as a boy of several years because he couldn't catch an animal.

Why? Why did a young, vulnerable girl get treated this way by the world? Not the world, no. Her own family, her own father. He could not understand it━what had happened to him was long ago, old times, almost ancient. And her? On his scale, her memories would be like yesterday to him.

"Wha━" She stopped herself, realization crossing her features as she started at the side of his face. "Oh." She breathed, nodding slowly to herself. "Yeah... you did." She murmured, before snorting slightly. "You were the only one to ask me about them, actually." She added in an undertone, her words like a secret shared between them. "One of the reasons why I realized I wasn't beating my friend's ass." She concluded, glancing at him with a cheeky smile.

Klaus looked at her, noticing her infectious smile, but also her eyes, her huge, sad eyes that silently begged for a change of subject. "What were the other reasons?" He asked. When she was about to open her mouth, he raised his eyebrows. "And you didn't beat anything, sweetheart. I let you." He added, a cocky smirk tugging at his lips.

"Sure... rematch?" She asked, playfully raising one eyebrow in challenge. When he merely raised an eyebrow at her, she let out a light chuckle, making the corners of Klaus' lips twitch up.

He really like the sound of that.

"Kidding." She sang, rolling her eyes. After a second, she put her chin in her palm, head twisting in his direction as she mused. "Well, first one was you asking me about NOLA. I was sure I told Ric about it."

Klaus hummed, a smile forming on his lips. "Ah, yes. New Orleans." He breathed, eyes darting forward as some memories swirled in his mind. "Forgive me, that city... it holds a special place in my heart." He said, his voice a low and tender murmur.

"Really?" She retorted, her furrowing as she looked at him in curiosity. When he didn't respond for a few moments, she nudged him with her foot. "That was a hint for you to elaborate." She said with a deadpanned look.

Klaus smirked to himself, taking a big breath. "I lived many years, as you already know." He said cheekily, making her huff in amusement. After a few moments, his expression faltered, something more loving, nostalgic forming on his face. "And those handful of years could be trimmed down to a few lifetimes of their own. My time in New Orleans was one of them."

Jade's eyebrows disappeared under her bangs. "You lived there?" She asked, blinking rapidly.

"For two hundred years." He whispered, carefully pronouncing the words as his eyes were fixed ahead, multitude of happy memories crossing his mind. When he didn't hear any response, he glanced down at the blonde, seeing her with her jaw dropped and eyes wide. "I believe this might be the first time I've seen you speechless." He quipped, huffing in amusement, his lips twisting into a unvoluntary grin.

Gods, this woman.

"Two hundred... holy shit." She mumbled under her breath, eyes darting around them as she absentmindly turned her body around to face him. Klaus, of course, had noticed it, even though she hadn't, not complaining about the better view of her curious face. "Why? Why would you live two centuries in the same place?" She asked intrigued, driving her gaze into him.

Klaus smiled to himself. She looked so pure, a complete contrast to her usual appearance, he couldn't get enough. "I think I'll just quote you on that." He said, his warm eyes connecting with hers. "People, culture, food, music, art." He echoed her words, making her smile and narrow her eyes at him.

"It's true, though." She admitted with a slight shrug. "The people there are just fantastic. Warm, lively, interesting. They come down from all over the world and stay there. Who wouldn't?" She said, gesturing with her hand in the air. "I was supposed to go there before... you happened." She narrowed her eyes at him threateningly, pointing at him with her finger. "You still owe me for my plane ticket, by the way."

A self-assured smile graced Klaus's lips. "I apologize for disrupting your travel plans with my evil schemes." He mockingly expressed, placing a hand over his heart in faux sympathy.

"Dick." She muttered under her breath, her lips curling in an amused half-smile. "All in all, this roadtrip isn't so bad." She said softly with a casual shrug, her eyes glancing up to his. Klaus caught himself in her gaze, in her huge eyes that mirrored his own soul, and realised he couldn't look away. He didn't want to.

He definitely should.

After a few moments of the staring contest, he looked away and Jade cleared her throat. "Why did you leave NOLA if you liked it so much?" She asked, but immediately regreted it. The moment the words left her mouth, she noticed the shift in his expression. His smile and amusement faded, replaced by a coldness that sent a chill down her spine.

"We had to." He said, his voice low and haunting as he glanced away. "All good things must come to an end." He whispered, the image of the scene at the New Orleans Opera House flashed before his eyes. The bloody butchery playing on stage as hundreds of people compelled by Mikael watched it with a smile on their lips. Laughing and clapping as Marcellus was nailed to the beams like some martyr, all his happiness crucified and soon burnt, only smoke and ash surrounding them as they fled the place, and never returned again.

Jade watched the changing emotions on his face with her lips slightly parted, absorbing them and finding herself in need of understanding as never before. "Fucking tell me about it." She muttered under her breath, his words echoing in her head. Klaus threw her a questioning look, because of course he had heard her.

She looked at him a little uncertainly at first, she hated talking about it. But the gaze which Original was looking at her, she couldn't help herself. She felt compelled without his pupils dilating. 

"My... father, he..." She said hesistantly, eyes darting everywhere but him. "He was released from prison." She concluded, her fingers nervously fiddling with the hem of her shirt. "He went there because of... the things he did to me." She murmured, eyes fixed in the distance. "So my five-year bliss is coming to an end. He's no longer a silly werewolf hallucination, he's real again." She whispered, her jaw clenched so hard, that she swore one of her teeth started to move. "Now give me that penny." She spat, outstretching her hand towards him, eyes still not daring to look at him.

A silence fell between them.

An eerie silence, that made Jade slowly lower her hand, eyes hesitantly glancing at his stone cold face.

"We had to leave because of our father." She heard him say after a full minute of stillness.

"What?" She barked, whipping her head towards him in a flash.

"Would you like to hear a story?" He asked softly, tilting his head. There was a slight smile on his lips, but his eyes dripped with the kind of sadness, hatred and resentment she had never seen on his face. And it was Klaus Mikaelson.

The girl nodded gently and Klaus began to tell his story. The story of his family, how they became vampires, why they became vampires. Through his words, she felt as if she had been transported back to the 10th century, imagining Klaus, Rebekah and Elijah as teenagers, doing chores, hunting and swimming in the river.

She smiled at the thought.

Yet her smile quickly fell when Klaus began to tell of his eldest sibling, Freya, who had fallen by the plague that had forced them to move to the New World. About their youngest brother, who he couldn't even say the name of, who fell to the werewolves, torn to shreds by their teeth, and about Klaus, who to this day blamed himself for it.

She told him it wasn't his fault, do you think he believed her?

Yeah, exactly.

And then he told her about their father. Theirs, not his. The Destroyer, he was called. And that name suited him better than anything else. With each word, with each horror, with each insult Klaus recalled for her, she felt her heart sink and expand at the same time. She felt horrible and fulfilled at the same time.

Because he knew. He understood. He wasn't the witness, he wasn't the one who knew, but didn't feel.

He knew.

He then told her about the end of his story from a thousand years ago, how his mother had bound his Wolf. How she stole half his soul, leaving a terrible nothingness. Nothingness, that was unfillable. Nothingness that he had carried inside him for a millennium. Nothingness that was finally filled when he drove his double fangs into the doppelgänger's neck.

During the whole of his story, in which Jade was sure he had left out a lot of things, yet she didn't press, grateful that he trusted her enough to say anything at all, the girl found herself much closer to the Original than before, mentally and physically, her head resting on his shoulder as this time it was she who was spinning tales of her childhood.

Klaus stared ahead, absorbing her every word like a thirsty man in a desert. Her head rested against his shoulder, and her scent overwhelmed him━she smelled like cherry liqueur and a hint of bitter almonds, like a plump fruit waiting to be eaten.

Jade talked about how it all started when she met Vicki. When, as a child, she looked up to her father, wanting to be like him━strong, independent and respected. Klaus could relate. Oh, how much he could relate. She talked about how Vicki had changed her view of life, that it was okay to be herself, to be different, to not be caged.

How his father didn't like it, how the punishment that carried all eight years began. With every word she spoke, Klaus' hand clenched tighter and tighter, unable to comprehend how someone could do such a thing to a small, defenceless girl. He couldn't help but look at the top of her head, putting her in a completely different light, admiring her for her strength.

He told her that all it took was a word and her father would disappear from the map of the earth in an hour's time, yet she forbade him, claiming it was a fight of hers alone.

He smiled at that.

"Look at us, we could start a daddy issues club." She muttered from her place on his shoulder, trying to light up their gloomy conversation. After a few seconds of silence, she let out an amused snort. "You'd be the president of it, though."

Klaus huffed, shaking his head a little. "I don't know, love, you do have some pretty good points."

Jade smiled, sighing. "So, that's why you wiped out Stefan's memory, right? He was a ripper then, he would draw too much attention." She asked, brows furrowed together as she conncected the dots. "That's also why... you keep your siblings daggered, isn't it?"

"I will wake them once Father's dead." Klaus murmured back, his shadowed eyes fixed in the distance. "When I'll build a home for us all, when we no longer have to run and watch our backs."

Jade pursed her lips, her fingers fiddling with the hem of her shirt. "Why do you call him that? He's not your real father." She asked quietly.

"He's done demage only a father could do." Klaus whispered, his voice laced with a mix of sadness and hate.

Jade hummed. He was so right.

"I'm... sorry." She spoke up after a few moments of silence. "For what I said in the mountains."

"You didn't know." Klaus muttered, smiling slightly. After a while, it disappeared, his jaw clenching. "And I apologise for what I said. If someone had said something like that to me, they would longer breathe." He said and Jade smiled slighty. "Or they would've lack some of their most important organs." He added, a smirk tugging his lips upward.

"Believe me, I wanted to." She said, her head nodding rapidly as a grin started to form on her face. "But you didn't know." She added after a moment, much more quietly this time.

"I know what it's like, I know what it's like when he's always somewhere, in the back of your head, next to you, like a ghost you can't get rid of." He mused quietly, his eyes darkening as he watched the sun rise. "It is tiring." He added, taking a big breath. "I have not met a person who understood that, truth be told."

Jade closed her eyes for a moment, feeling a small sting in her heart. He was so right. Even more than he thought, because she could really see and hear him, all it took was to forget a couple of pills.

She lifted her head slightly, leaving her place on his shoulder. Biting her lip, she cast her eyes up into the sky, which was saying goodbye to the moon and hello to the sun.

How long they fucking talked?

Taking a deep breath, she looked at him. At his little curls that were everywhere, his necklaces that lay around his neck, some hidden under his shirt. At his eyes, full of an understanding and admiration she hadn't seen before.

She had to tell him.

Now.

Jade cleared her throat. "I need to tell you so━"

"━Jade! If you don't shut that adorable little thing up, I'll shut it myself!" Rebekah's piercing voice coming from a few floors below interrupted her. Jade contorted her face, turning her head in the direction of her scream.

"Your pest needs you." Klaus said with a half-smile, his head cocking to the rooftop's exit.

"Yeah." She breathed, nodding to herself in a daze. She rose, giving him a small nod, which he returned. Taking a few steps toward the exit, she stopped abruptly.

"Klaus?" She called out.

He twisted his head around, still sitting on the edge of the roof. "Yes, love?"

"Mikael maybe failed to raise a man who would make him proud," She said, gripping tightly the side of the door she was holding. Seeing his face falling and hardening, she continued. "But in the end, he raised a man he can never be able to defeat."

Klaus's eyebrows instinctively jumped upward, his lips slightly parting at her words. He opened his mouth to say something, but Jade simply smiled and turned away, slamming the brass door behind her.

Jesus, she really was fucked, wasn't she?

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

A few hours later, Jade found herself sitting on the bar counter in Gloria's speakeasy along with Rebekah, their legs resting on the seats in front of them. Klaus sat next to her on a stool, glancing at the blonde from time to time, each time Jade clenching her teeth, feeling his intense gaze.

She was about to tell him. It was the a perfect time. If she'd told him now, while Gloria was poring over her Grimoire━Hey Klaus, remember when you killed the doppelgänger? Well, you should've double checked, dumbass━he would fucking kill her on the spot.

She didn't felt like dying yet.

She had no fucking idea what to do, so...

Alcohol!

Jade spun on the countertop, jumping off it. As she began mixing everything she had on hand into one glass, Salvatore spoke up. "What's she doing?" He asked.

Klaus narrowed his eyes as he watched the blonde. "She's failing." He exclaimed, arching one of his eyebrows as he saw her combining every type of alcohol she could get her hands on.

Jade snapped her head to him, her face scrunched. "Shush." She hissed defensively, making him raise one of his palms up.

"It's hard to find something when you don't have anything to go on." Gloria snapped in annoyance.

"So use me." Rebekah spoke up, jumping off the counter and taking a sip out of Jade's glass. As soon as the ungodly cocktail touched her lips, she started to cough. "What in the bloody hell?" She spat, her voice hoarse as she threw the blonde a disguisted look. Jade only muttered something about not touching someone else's stuff. "I only wore it for a thousand years." Rebekah said to the witch as she wiped her mouth and sat down on the table Gloria was working on.

"See? Now this one offers a solution." Gloria smirked, looking pointedly at the blonde Original. "All right, give me your hand, sweetheart." She said as a sigh escaped her lips.

As Rebekah put her hand in the witch', Stefan spoke up, his voice uneasy. "She's, uh, looking for the necklace, huh?"

"Yup." Jade drawled with a loud pop of her lips, picking up her drink and tapping it on the countertop, then drinking it in one gulp.

Someone pray for her, she could use it.

Klaus only measured her with a disgusted look.

"I found it." Gloria suddenly said, making eye contact with the Original. Jade looked at Salvatore's face and had to literally force herself to hold back the smirk that was begging to be formed.

"So where is it?" Rebekah asked, leaning towards the witch with a smile on her face.

"It doesn't work like that, doll." Gloria shook her head. "I get images. There's a girl with her friends━"

"━Yes, a dead girl with dead friends, if I don't get my necklace back." Rebekah snapped, nodding her head rapidly at the witch. Jade just choked on her drink in the background.

"I have to dive back in to get the details." 

"So dive." Klaus mused with a smirk as he walked up to the witch.

"I need more time." She said, sending him a glare as he leaned on her table. "And space. You're harshing my juju."

"We can wait." Klaus shrugged.

Gloria rolled her eyes. "I'm sure you can, but that's not what I asked." She replied with raised eyebrows, locking eyes with the hybrid, who stared intensely.

Stefan walked up to them and put one of his hands on Klaus' shoulder, interrupting their heated staring contest. "Hey, you know, why don't we just, uh, come back later? I'm hungry anyway. I'll let you pick who we eat." He said as he leaned into the hybrid's ear. 

Jade and Rebekah exchanged knowing glances. "I'm 100% sure they━" Jade started, whispering towards the other blonde, but an iron grip on her shoulder stopped her.

"━Chop, chop, sweetheart. Dinner's waiting." Klaus muttered with a tight smile, his eyes murderous. 

Jade exchanged another glance with Rebekah, and after few moments, they both snorted with amusement. The blonde Original slapped his brother's hand away and looped her arm around the Forbes' woman, walking out together of the bar in even step.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

All four were in the warehouse again. Jade was sitting together with Rebekah on a wooden box, both busy draining their girls of blood. Klaus and Stefan were doing the same, on two couches placed across from them. 

Morti hunting some mouse in the background. 

Jade had her fangs sunk into her black-haired girl, her eyes closed as she relished the euphoric taste of blood. 0rh-, probably her favorite so far. The woman was compelled not to fight and sit quietly, to the blonde's displeasure. She much preferred it when they jostled and felt fear, it tasted much better then.

Opening her eyes slightly as she felt the girl's heart grow fainter, she met the intense gaze of the Original, who was sitting on the couch across from her, his golden eyes staring at her as his fangs worked over his girl's artery.  

Oh, lord.

They stared at each other for a few, long moments, Stefan and Rebekah too busy with their meals to notice. The longer Jade looked into his mesmerizing eyes, the heavier her breathing became, and her grip on the girl's waist tightened.

Finally, her girl's heart stopped completely, and Jade shook her off, her limp body hitting the floor with a loud thud. Crossing her legs and not taking her eyes off Klaus, the girl ran her tongue slowly over her still-sharpened teeth, licking up the remains of her dinner.

Klaus hummed softly, not taking his eyes off the blonde, his tongue unconsciously sliding over his lower lip as his mouth twisted into a slow, hungry smirk, his eyes darkening slightly━not because of vampirism.

"My girl's dead. I'm bored." Rebekah's whine interrupted their intense staring contest, causing Klaus to cast one final amused glance at the blonde and look toward Salvatore.

"You weren't kidding about being hungry." He said, his eyes amber eyes slowly returning to normal, much to Jade's displeasure.

Stefan pulled away from his girl's neck, his lips twisted into a bloody grin. "It's been a long day." He said, slightly out of breath.

Klaus cocked his head towards his sister. "Try being related to her." He said cheekily, making Jade throw her girl's shoe at him, earning a glare from the Original. 

"You're being mean." Rebekah pouted, drawing a chuckle from Stefan. Jade removed the girl's other shoe and flung it at him, the heel connecting with his forehead. He shot her a glare that could kill, but she simply raised an eyebrow in challenge, unfazed. 

"And why are you being mean? You used to love me." Rebekah grumbled towards the vampire, before giving her blonde friend a cheeky smirk in appreciation, to which the she bowed her head, mirroring her expression.

"It's been ninety years, Rebekah. Give him a minute." Klaus teased from his place in the couch. 

Jade let out a exasperated huff and took off her own shoe, throwing it forcefully toward the Original, who caught it easily with a raised eyebrow. Jade rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest in annoyance, making him smirk.

Rebekah shot her friend a thankful look. After a second, she whipped her head towards her older brother. "Why are you taking his side?" She spat, eyes narrowing.

"Because, my dear sister, I feel pity for any man who doesn't give you what you want." He said with a tight smile, making Rebekah huff in fury.

Jade let out an angry gasp and removed another of her shoes, aiming for his forehead. Klaus, of course, caught it, sending her a smug smile, seeing her infuriated eyes.

Dick.

"Will you stop making me out to be a brat? I am not a brat!" Rebekah shouted, her eyes blazing.

"A thousand years of life experience says otherwise." Klaus sang, his smirk unwavering, the Salvatore chuckling in the background.

"I'm out of shoes." Jade muttered under her breath, throwing her hands in the air in evaporation, before hopping off the box and walking towards the Original.

"You're no picnic, either." Stefan chimed in. "I mean, I've only spent one summer with you and I feel like I want to blow my head off."

Jade halted in front of the seated Original, trying to snatch her heel from his grasp. Unexpectedly, the hybrid tugged her closer, causing Jade to instinctively grip onto the backrest beside his head to steady herself and avoid tumbling onto him.

Asshole!

When their faces were only inches from each other, Jade let out an exasperated huff upon seeing his self-satisfied face and pushed herself off the couch, snatching her shoes out of his hands.

"Okay, fuck all of you." She muttered irritably, slipping her shoes back on before seizing Rebekah's hand and urging her towards the exit of the warehouse. "C'mon, Bex."

"Absolutely not." Klaus' exclaimed, his face burning a hole in the back of the blondes heads.

"Fuck off, Michaels." Jade shouted, showing him her favorite finger without bothering to turn around. "Play fetch with Morti or whatever you animals do."

Rebekah snorted, pushing the brass door of the warehouse. "Where are we going?" She asked once they were on the street.

"I promised to teach you to dance, didn't I?" Jade's lips curled into a mischievous smirk.

Rebekah mirrored her expression. "Fantastic."

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Two girls stopped for a little shopping. Jade chose a short black latex dress that clung to her like a second skin, with a front zipper that ran from top to bottom. If she had the strength to put it on, Jade would wear leather and latex every day. Rebekah opted for an emerald satin dress that made heaven to her cleavage, the delicate material ending just barely at the beginning of her thighs, showing off her long legs.

Entering the dark club, which was overcrowded with a million people, Jade shot Rebekah a wink, pulling the blonde toward the bar with a sinister grin. 

"Twelve shots of tequila, stat!" She shouted to the bartender, who just gave her a wink of approval and began to prepare the drinks. "Welcome to 21th century, Bex." She muttered smugly, snatching the tray of shot glasses out of the bartender's hands and sliding half of them towards the bewildered blonde. 

Rebekah's eyes were glued to the interior of the club, which was a symphony of red hues, casting the entire space in a seductive and mysterious atmosphere. Dim red lights hung from the ceiling, casting elongated shadows that danced across the walls and floor, creating an unearthly atmosphere.

The dancefloor was a swirling mass of bodies, each illuminated by the red lights, bouncing and moving to the relentless beat of the music. The floor seemed to pulse along, a living entity in sync with the rhythm. People moved in close proximity to each other, lost in the beat and the collective energy of the crowd.

It was certainly different from the speakeasys of the 1920s.

"Is this a sex club?" Rebekah questioned, casting an astonished look towards the blonde, who just barked a laugh in response.

Jade hummed, following the Original's trail of vision. "In theory━no, but it can be, if you want." She said cheekily, sending the blonde a suggestive wink. 

"You're wild, Jade Forbes." Rebekah snorted, turning to the bar.

"Oh, you don't know the half of it." Jade quipped, her voice hushed, as if she was telling a secret, to which Rebekah smirked. "Now, c'mon." She urged, raising one of the tequilla shots in the air, the Original quickly following. "To insufferable hybrids and their annoying boyfriends." Jade toasted with a wicked smirk that threatened to break her face in half. Rebekah's lips twisting into a grin and she clincked her glass with her, both women draining their glasses in one go. 

"Okay," Jade hissed after finishing every glass, slamming the last one back on the counter, feeling the alcohol burning her throat. After a second, she whipped her head towards the other blonde. "Slutty dancing 101." She said with a grin, pulling the blonde into the crowd.

As they pushed into the middle of the dancefloor surrounded by dozens of people, the beat was infectious, and Jade couldn't help but sway her hips to the rhythm. She turned to Rebekah, who looked a bit uncertain but determined.

"First things first, feel the music," Jade said, placing one of Rebekah's hands on her own hip and the other in the air. "Let it guide your movements." She muttered, placing her on hand on Rebekah's hip. 

Rebekah took a deep breath and tentatively followed Jade's lead. She moved her hips tentatively at first, but as the music flowed through her, her movements became more fluid. Jade grinned and twirled around, beckoning Rebekah to follow suit.

The two women danced together, their laughter mixing with the music. Jade showed Rebekah a few simple dance moves, and soon they were both spinning, dipping, and swaying with abandon. 

Some time later, Rebekah was already a champion, matching Jade, and they danced with other people. During her little bonding, Jade confessed to the blonde about her little secret. Was it the nerves or the alcohol? She didn't know. But she trusted Rebekah enough. 

She chose well.

Two vampires sat in the vip lounge on the club's balcony, sipping the most expensive drinks on the menu. Rebekah was a little tipsy, and, as Jade found out, when Rebekah was tipsy, she loved to talk about her love life. When she finished musing about her multitude of heartbreaks, which had been caused by Klaus every time, Jade plucked up her courage and opened her mouth.

"Can I tell you a secret, Bex?" Jade tilted her head back, glancing towards the blonde.

"Sure thing, love." Rebekah chirped, slurping her drink.

"I know where your necklace is."

Rebekah choked. "What?!" She exclaimed, fixing her frantic eyes towards the vampire, which blazed with fury in an instant.

Jade flinched. "Can you wait with killing me until I finish?" She asked, raising her hands in a defensive gesture. Rebekah narrowed her eyes, but nodded softly, waiting for her to go on. Jade cleared her throat, biting her bottom lip nervously. "Sooo, you know how your brother can't do hybrids, right?" She asked and Rebekah just nodded once. "You know why? Because the doppelgänger didn't die." She answered before the Original had even a chance to respond.

Rebekah widened her eyes, scooping closer towards Jade. "What?" She hissed.

"That's where your necklace is." Jade kissed her teeth. "Wrapped around her dainty neck."

Rebekah scoffed, her eyes darting furiously around the club. "That little skank━" She started, but stopped herself after a second. "Wait, why didn't you tell Nik?"

Jade let out a small smirk. "Oh, you see, I have a little beef with Stefan." She started, making Rebekah furrow her eyebrows in confusion. "He killed my best friend, so that's my way of getting back at him. He knows she's alive too." She said, and Rebekah's eyebrows jumped up. "I'll tell him soon enough."

"Wow." Rebekah breathed, her lips forming into a cruel smile. "You're evil."

"I know." Jade shrugged nonchalantly, a shot of relief going through her at the blonde's reaction.

Rebekah's smile faltered a little. "Thank you, J..."  She trailed off awkwardly. "For trusting me." She concluded, her head twitching to the side. "It feels nice." She muttered under her breath.

Jade smiled, patting the blonde on her thigh. "Thank you for not killing me." She chirped with a grin.

"What are best friends for?" Rebekah grinned back, pulling the blonde back onto the dancefloor. Jade just barked a laugh and downed her drink as they both ran down the stairs.

Currently, Jade broke away from some slezy guy, walking toward the bathroom to fix her hair, which he couldn't stop touching.

He'll be dead in an alley soon, she swore. 

Walking impetuously into the bathroom, muttering curses under her breath as she fixed her hair, her voice died in her throat at the sight before her.

There was a girl, leaning over the sink, a rolled up bill in her hand, in front of her nose was a scattering of some white powder. 

Oh, fuck no. 

Jade swallowed loudly, her eyes mesmerized in the white substance, not hearing the girl's screams. She may have been almost two years sober, but that meant nothing. The urge was still there, even as a human, so she tried to avoid such places. But now? As a vampire? Jade's leg moved forward as if involuntarily, her eyes focused on only one thing.

Only when the girl slammed the door right in front of her face did Jade shake off her momentary daze. She took a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair, turning around and walking back to the dance floor, shaking her head at the same time.

Absolutely. The fuck. Not.

Jade quickly found a familiar face in the midst of the crowd and smiled sinisterly, seeing that Rebekah was dancing with the same guy as Jade had a moment ago. Approaching them with a model-like gait, Rebekah smirked upon seeing her.

"Aren't you hungry, Bex?" Jade chimed in, her fingers trailing along the man's arm as she locked her intense gaze with his.

"Absolutely famished." Rebekah responded, her hand splayed across the man's chest.

The stranger's smirk seemed almost unbreakable as his eyes shifted between the two women. "Oh, really now? How about we take the party to my place?" He purred, his hands finding their way to the hips of both girls.

"He ruined my hair." Jade lamented, pouting slightly as she rested her head on his shoulder, giving Rebekah a knowing glance.

The Original responded with a dramatic gasp. "Oh dear, that's simply unacceptable." She cooed, her nail tracing a tantalizing path along his chest, earning her an even deeper smirk.

Wrong.

Jade's hum was filled with intrigue as her fingers curled around his neck. "I think a little punishment is due, don't you, Bex?" She mused, her gaze locked onto his.

"Wise words, J." Rebekah purred back, her hand finding its way into his hair.

With a menacing grin, Jade pulled him closer in one swift motion, her pupils dilating as they locked onto his. "You will stay still and quiet." She compelled. 

When the man nodded in trance, the women exchanged glances, a smirk on their lips as they moved closer to the stranger's neck. Without breaking eye contact, they sank their fangs into his skin.

Jade couldn't help but let out a soft sigh in pleasure. His blood, sweet and salty, flowed down her throat as her eyes were locked with Rebekah's blue ones that were so much like━no! 

Just like in the warehouse━it wasn't so tasty. She didn't feel what she loved most━the fight. She felt his fear, of course, but it wasn't enough. She preferred how her victims ran, begged for mercy, felt a hint of hope when they escaped━when Jade let them escape. 

But that was enough for her. The image of the girl in the bathroom was already blotted out, replaced by his face twisted in pain, the taste of his blood that overwhelmed her senses, his fear that Jade could feel on her tongue. 

Suddenly Rebekah pushed the man away, probably because his heart began to weaken, which was no problem for Jade, who pouted with displeasure. Rebekah just smiled and licked her lips, watching Jade at the same time, her hips returning to the beat of the music. Jade let out a bloody grin, catching the blonde by her waist, their faces inches apart as they swayed. 

However, just as Jade, still in her euphoric state, was about to close the distance between them, she felt a pull from behind, her hip tugged by a strong hand. A supernaturally strong hand.

Before she had time to turn around, she connected her gaze with Rebekah, who only pouted and, after few seconds, shot her a wink with a mischievous smirk, disappearing into the crowd in a matter of seconds.

"Did I not tell you no?" She heard a very familiar, accented, voice in her ear, his strong hands squeezing her by her hips as she let out an amused huff, resting her head on his collarbone.

Of, fucking, course.

She could hear his breath on her sensitive ear, which made a shiver run down her spine. His closeness, his chest snuggled against her back, made her unable to stop herself, and let out a soft breath from her lips. "Didn't I tell you that I don't listen?" She teased, lifting one hand to curl her fingers around his neck. Their bodies moved in sync with the music, their hips swaying together to the pulsating beat.

She shouldn't. She soo shouldn't.

Klaus smirked, a bubble of air escaping from his mouth, brushing against Jade's ear. "You look absolutely ravishing." He whispered, absorbing her cherry scent that made him drunk, even without touching a drop of alcohol. One of his hands peeled away from her hip and began wandering up her side, and he enjoyed the way she pressed harder against him in response.

"You're not the first one to say that." She muttered in arrogance, pressing her nails lightly into his neck, drawing small circles across his delicate skin.

Klaus' tongue swiped along his bottom lip at the sensation. "Yet, I'm the only one that matters." He purred, his fingers pressing more firmly into the curve of her waist.

With a quiet hiss, Jade tightened her hand around his neck, the other tangling into the hair at the nape of his neck. "Someone's cocky."

Forbes no.

"Am I not?" He questioned, his tone low and velvety against her ear. When Jade didn't respond, just drove her nails harder into his neck, he let out a soft hum. "I can hear you heartbeat, sweetheart." He admitted, his fingers tracing a path up her sternum. "Words may falter, but your pulse betrays the truth."

Forbes yes.

Jade abruptly turned around, her arms still locked around his neck. "And I can hear yours." She purred, looking up at him through half-lidded eyes. When Klaus merely raised his eyebrows, she continued with a smirk. "It's pounding really fast, Mikaelson, you better have that checked out."

Klaus's smirk deepened as he leaned in closer to her ear, his breath sending delightful shivers down her spine. "I think you should worry about yours." He whispered, his fingers tracing a teasing path between her breasts, the very spot where her heart raced.

Jade's breath caught in her throat, her body responding to his touch in ways that sent waves of electricity through her veins. She found herself hooking a finger around one of his necklaces, her eyes locked onto his neck as she played with his family's pendant. Her lips curved into a nonchalant pout as she looked up at him through her lashes. "You look... nice." She murmured, her fingers tugging at the chain of his necklace, pulling him closer to her.

"Just nice?" His voice was a low rumble, almost a purr, as he fixed his gaze on her face. The intensity of his stare sent her heart racing even faster, a sensation she tried to mask by lightly moistening her lips as she maintained eye contact.

"Mhm." She hummed in response, looking up at him with those big, alluring eyes, her fingers curling around his neck.

Oh, sweetheart. You'll be the death of him.

Klaus hummed back, a sly smirk playing at his lips. "I quite like that dress." He muttered, his fingers idly toying with the zipper at the front.

"I'm glad." A soft chuckle escaped her, and she let her hand travel down his chest in response. "After all, you payed for it." She quipped with a little shrug of her shoulders.

His eyebrows lifted in mock surprise, his smirk growing more pronounced. "So I can do whatever I want with it, then?" He asked tauntingly, his fingers dancing along the zipper, tugging it down an inch with deliberate slowness.

"Absolutely not." She shot back swiftly, a smirk curling her lips as she swatted his hand away.

Klaus let out a mocking pout. "Didn't I pay for it?" He taunted, his voice dripping with a self-assured confidence. His words hung in the air, daring her to disagree. When her silence followed, his smirk deepened, and he leaned in closer, his grip on her hips firm once again. "I did, so it's mine." He said, leaning towards her, his fingers driving into her bones, hard enough to make a bruise.

Jade let let out a scoff. "You wish." She spat, turning around again and pressing her back into him once more as they danced.

"Don't you?" He asked as he leaned towards her ear, his lips brushing against her earlobe as he spoke. Jade closed her eyes for a second and raised her hand, tangling her fingers into his hair as she rocked to the music. At her silence, Klaus's playful smirk only grew, his movements pushing her even closer to him, their bodies melding together on the dance floor. His voice held a tantalizing blend of taunt and seduction. "You don't have to answer, love, I heard your heartbeat."

"Since when are you an expert of my heartbeat?" She asked, tilting her head back on his shoulder as she locked her eyes with his.

Klaus let out a knowing smirk. "Since you wanted to knock on my door last night." He murmured, spinning her around in flash so that she was in front of him, their faces inches apart, their noses brushing. 

Do it.

You only live once, don't you?

Jade let out a shuddering breath and grabbed him by the neck, pulling him slightly towards her. When she saw that his eyes fell to her lips, the girl did the same. Bringing his face closer to hers with her jaw clenched, the girl missed his lips at the last moment, dragging them to his ear, her lips brushing against his earlobe as she whispered.

"Elena's alive."

a/n: BITCH i was doing deeeeep research on klaus' relationship with mikael for this one and OMG the way i bawled my poor baby he didn't deserve any of that shit

did i just wrote 5k words of just their heart to heart? yeah i diddddddddddd idc

what do you think klaus will do???? like seriously, i have some ideas but maybe you could inspire me with something better hehe

btw did i listen to tove lo when writing their little heated moment? yes i did and..... oh BOY