"Are you sure this will work?" Elena asked, looking at the trunk/safe in which Silas had locked Stefan two years ago.
"It helped me" Stefan said, looking at the trunk with his arms crossed.
"But how will this help Caroline? Is she afraid of enclosed spaces or what?" Damon asked, frowning.
"I needed something as narrow as possible so that Caroline can't escape. Thus, when I talk to her, she won't kick me out.

Damon and Elena looked at each other and the looked at Stefan, nodding.

"It's not what you're thinking" Stefan warned, rolling his eyes.
"Stefan, you want to spend some time alone with your girl. Relax, we get it" Damon said.
"I said that's not it."
"Okay, how we manage to put Caroline in there?" Elena asked.

A few hours later, Elena and Caroline went downstairs. Elena was telling her about many things of college and the blonde let out rude comments from time to time or simply ignored her. Elena guided her to the library, when Damon was sitting in an armchair with crossed feet on the table.

"What is that trunk doing there?" Caroline asked, pointing to it with a frown.
"What?" Damon asked. "If you're worried about Stefan, calm down, he came out of it months ago."
"I'm not worried about Stefan."

Damon and Elena looked at each other and after doing a signal, the two grabbed Caroline by force and dragged her to the trunk. Elena opened the door and they both put her into it. Then, they closed the door.

"What are you doing?!" Caroline asked, hitting the door from inside with their fists.
"I don't think it'll be useful" Stefan said. Caroline startled when he heard him and looked at him. Stefan shrugged and Caroline hit the door again, trying to open it as she averted her gaze.
"See you in an hour!" Elena cried from outside. Caroline stopped hitting the door and crossed her arms, pursing her lips together.

There was no distance between them and it was noticeable that it was hard to be so close to each other for both of them. Caroline tried not to touch him, but it was impossible due to the limited space since Stefan did not put any distance between their bodies.

"Well, what do you wanna do while we're here? Talking, sleeping, mmm… playing I spy?" Stefan asked, looking straight into her eyes.
"What about killing you and them?" Caroline asked ironically still staring at the door. Stefan smiled. "If you think this will be of some help…"
"I don't know if it will do any good, but we can spend eternity here. You know? Locked."

Caroline looked at him, but when their eyes met, she looked away quickly. Stefan frowned.

"Why do you always look away?" he asked.
"It's nothing" she answered quickly, starting to get nervous. Stefan raised her chin with his hand to meet her eyes. Their eyes met again and Caroline swallowed. Stefan was able to hear the pounding of her heart, which accelerated speed.
"Caroline, please. You have to feel something."
"For what? What's the point of feeling, Stefan?" the girl asked. "I've lost everyone and you have to understand that I don't want to live with it."
"You have me." Stefan reminded her, with totally straight face. Caroline laughed.
"Please, Stefan. I lost you months ago."

Stefan frowned again and released her chin with a sigh. Caroline was silent, but she began to notice a lump in her throat and a large chest tightness.

"You saved me from Enzo the other day" Stefan said.
"So what?"
"You had to feel something to do that."
"Stop it, Stefan" she asked him.
"Why?" Stefan asked, desperate.
"Don't use what I felt for you to give my humanity back to me."
"What you felt or what you feel?" Stefan asked. Caroline looked into his eyes and Stefan saw something different in her eyes again. She seemed more "her". Caroline shook her head, looking away once more. "You never let me tell you what I…"
"Shut up" Caroline said, covering her ears. Stefan raised his eyebrows.
"Really?" You have super-hearing, Caroline. You can hear me even if you cover them."
"I don't wanna hear another word, okay? I don't want you to tell me that you feel something just to get my emotions woken up. It won't work because I know the truth."
"You know nothing."

Stefan was silent for a few seconds and Caroline took some air.

"Why do you keep doing this to me? Do you want me to mourn each day again when I remember the death of my mum? Do you want me to be locked up without doing anything in my room all day? Want to see me unhappy? Why do you want do that to me?
"I don't want you to be unhappy again, Caroline. I want you to be you again in order to accept all those feelings little by little as any human would do. That's what I liked about you, your human side. You're the best vampire I know. Your ability to be so imperfectly human and…"
"So you want me to be unhappy again" she repeated. Stefan looked straight into her eyes and slowly brushed her hand with his fingers.
"No, I just want you to overcome all of that and come back to be as human as you usually are even though you're a vampire."
"Why?" Caroline asked him angrily.
"Because that's what makes you you."

They looked at each other without saying anything for a few seconds. Caroline remembered that Stefan knew her very well.

"I… I can't do this" the blonde said. Caroline started to hit the door again and called Elena. Stefan clenched his jaw and grabbed her wrists to stop her.
"Caroline, listen. I know you have a hole in your heart right now for what happened to Bonnie, with Mystic Falls, me and your mother, but I promise you that if you give me a chance this time everything will be different. If you go back to being you, I… I'll fill that hole because… because I love you, Caroline. Let me love you, please" Caroline looked scared. She tried to get rid of his hands, in vain. Stefan took her face and pressed his lips against hers hard. Caroline tried to resist, but Stefan stopped her, grabbing her harder as he moved his lips against hers desperately. Then he noticed how Caroline's body relaxed slowly against his. She grabbed his neck and pulled him closer to her, parting her lips and giving way to Stefan, who began to play with their tongues. After a few seconds, Caroline pulled away from his mouth and Stefan looked into her eyes, searching for her Caroline. There she was again.

Caroline's eyes began to fill with tears and Stefan pulled her against his chest, his arms around her to hug her. Caroline leaned her head against his chest and began to cry, grabbing Stefan's shirt tightly. The boy stroked her hair and her back, comforting her.

"It's okay, it's okay…" Stefan whispered in her hear, holding her tightly. He understood that she needed to mourn and vent now, and he did not care as he knew he would not separate from her side. He was going to be his shoulder to mourn until she would decide to stop. Stefan kissed her on the head and took her face with his hands to look at her. Her face was full of tears, but he did not remember seeing her more beautiful and prettier. "I promise I won't leave you alone, okay? No one will love you like I do, Caroline."

Caroline nodded and Stefan gave her a soft kiss on her lips. Then he looked at her again, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs to wipe her tears and giving her a comforting smile. Caroline stopped sobbing and hugged him tightly, knowing that, at least, Stefan would never leave her alone.