Thank you sooo much for all the reviews/ favorite/ follow. I'm so happy that you liked the first chapter! Here's the second one, I hope you'll like it as well.

Please remember that it has been written before the stills from 4x18 have been released, so this is not canon compared to the stills.

Thanks to Matt-on-Matt for betaing

Caroline headed to the door in a blur and it was at that very moment that Klaus collapsed on his knees with a scream.

Caroline stopped dead in her tracks at the sound and she turned to look at Klaus. He was kneeled on the floor, holding his head in his hands and screaming in agony.

"What are you doing?" Caroline exclaimed. "If this is a trick to make me stay…" Caroline's voice trailed off as Klaus screamed again and she suddenly looked uncertain.

"Klaus?" she asked, stepping closer to him. His whole body was uncontrollably shuddering and she knew that he wasn't faking it. Her anger slowly turning into concern, Caroline kneeled next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What is going on, Klaus? What happened?"

Klaus hissed, a searing pain setting his nerves on fire.

"Silas," he exhaled. "Silas happened."

Caroline frowned in worry at the mention of Silas, but Klaus struggled with another spasm and she turned her attention to him.

"You need to lie down," she mumbled. "Come on, let me help you."

Caroline grabbed Klaus by the waist and blessed her vampire strength as she managed to place him on one of the couches in the living room. He had become deathly pale and was sweating abundantly. Caroline sat next to him, taken aback and a little uncomfortable at seeing Klaus suddenly look so weak. She had never seen him like this. He was Klaus. He wasn't supposed to be weak.

Klaus opened his eyes to look at her.

"You don't need to see this, love," he whispered. "You should go."

"What happened?" Caroline demanded again, completely ignoring his remark.

Klaus groaned and shrugged weakly.

"Silas came to see me," he explained with difficulty. "He wanted me on his side and when I refused, he staked me with the white oak stake. Apparently, he had Bonnie cast a spell on it. The stake must be poisoned or something. It won't kill me but it's a warning to not take him lightly. I just have to wait for the poison to get of my system."

Caroline frowned.

"You mean that not only did Silas have the white oak stake but he was also strong enough to stake you with it? So Silas is stronger than you?" she asked worriedly. It really was bad news.

Klaus groaned again but this time it was more because of his wounded ego than because of the pain.

"It seems so," he admitted very reluctantly.

A new spasm took over and Klaus struggled to hold back a cry. Caroline hesitantly touched his forehead and noticed that it was burning. Without a word, she left the room and located a bathroom after exploring the first floor. She filled a basin with cold water and grabbed a pile of towels. She then came back and sat next to Klaus, who looked at her with surprise.

"I thought you left," he whispered. "You should leave, Caroline. I don't want you to see me like this. It won't kill me."

"Nope, it's just gonna torture you for god knows how long," Caroline retorted. "Not that I'm saying that you don't deserve it," she mumbled between her teeth.

Klaus couldn't help but smile slightly through the pain. "It's good to know that you care but I'm one thousand years old, love. I can take it."

Caroline knew it was true. The poison wouldn't kill him and he could take the pain. He had probably known worst kind of pain in his lifetime. But oddly, she didn't enjoy the sight of Klaus being hurt as much as she thought she would.

Caroline nodded. "I know you can take it. But I'm staying anyway."

She plunged one of the towels in the basin and started to cool off his forehead. Klaus sighed at the feeling of her hand, relishing the slight touch.

"Why are you doing this? You hate me," he murmured.

Caroline shrugged without stopping her ministration.

"If Silas is that strong, we need you at the top of your form to beat him," she deflected.

Klaus chuckled and hissed in pain at the same time.

"Liar," he said with difficulty. A new wave of pain took over his body and he couldn't hold back the cry coming out from his lips. Caroline flinched at the sound and placed a soothing hand on his chest.

"Oh my God, you are drenched," she exclaimed. Klaus grumbled and Caroline stood on her feet.

"Shirt off," she ordered. "You can't keep it."

Klaus didn't answer as his body convulsed violently again. The scent of blood suddenly invaded Caroline's nostrils and she hurriedly took Klaus' shirt off. She couldn't contain an exclamation of horror at the sight of his chest. It was totally lacerated like he had been stabbed over and over again. The ribs were showing and blood was dripping everywhere.

"Oh my God," Caroline whispered horrified.

Klaus lowered his head to look at the damaged flesh of his torso before turning his gaze on Caroline.

"Go away, Caroline," he murmured weakly. "Please."

Caroline quickly composed herself and with a shake of her head she sat next to him once more. Without a word, she took another towel and, after wetting it with cold water, placed it on Klaus' chest. She gently cleaned the blood, trying to avoid the wounds and to cool the burn radiating from his torso.

Klaus sighed at Caroline' stubbornness and turned his face to her, trying to pierce the haze of pain to focus on her.

"Admit it," he asked breathlessly. "Please, admit it."

"What do you want me to admit?" Caroline demanded, still concentrating on his chest. The wounds weren't healing and it worried her more than it should. The sight of his tattoos reminded her of Hayley's comment about them and she cringed. She would be lying if she said that the idea of Klaus shirtless in front of Hayley didn't bother her.

"Admit that you are jealous that I slept with Hayley," Klaus clarified feebly. "Admit that you like being my weakness. Admit that you like my attentions to you."

"Come on, Klaus, you are not dying," Caroline scoffed. "Don't try to manipulate me to make me say things like you were on your deathbed."

Klaus shook his head as he gritted his teeth to fight another wave of fire.

"I'm not manipulating you," he denied heavily. "I just want you to be honest."

His body suddenly arched against the couch as a cry fell from his lips. The wounds on his chest ripped open and Klaus screamed in agony. A sharp pain tightened in Caroline' stomach at the sound and she instinctively gripped Klaus' hands in hers. She held him through the excruciating spasm, murmuring encouragement, trying to soothe him the best she could. Klaus struggled to recover from the seizure and collapsed on the couch again, completely out of breath. Caroline resumed her calming ministrations on his chest with the towel, trying to clean the fresh blood without hurting him more. She noticed that her hands were shaking uncontrollably and she bit her lips. Why was she so affected? Why did each one of his cries cause her heart to clench?

After a few minutes Klaus attempted to collect himself, Caroline sighed in defeat.

"I like your attentions," she confessed lowly. "And I like being the weakness of the most powerful creature in the world. It makes me feel..." Caroline hesitated but she finished. "Powerful," she whispered.

Klaus tried to reach her hand but he was too weak to lift his arm. Caroline understood his intention and hesitantly wrapped her hand around his.

"I am jealous," she said so low that a human wouldn't have heard her. "When Hayley told me..." Caroline's voice trailed off. "It hurts me," she admitted even more lowly.

Klaus squeezed feebly at her hand and struggled to answer.

"I don't care about Hayley, Caroline. You know that. It was meaningless and it certainly doesn't change the way I feel about you," he stammered through his ragged breathing. "Do you remember what you told me about my feelings for you when I bit you?"

Caroline cringed at the memory of the bite but she nodded. "I do," she whispered. I know that you are in love with me. How could she have forgotten?

Klaus closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "You were right," he admitted.

Caroline closed her eyes as well, trying to wrap her mind about Klaus' declaration. He didn't care about Hayley. He was in love with her. Caroline knew she shouldn't feel that way, but a sudden wave of happiness washed onto her. He was in love with her. It was not a speculation anymore, it was not an assumption. It was real. Klaus was in love with her. Caroline opened her eyes, the joy gradually spreading over her as the words sank. She noticed that Klaus was anxiously looking at her, afraid of what her reaction might be.

"Do you remember what I told you that night?" she asked instead of answering.

Klaus nodded. Of course he remembered. I have caught myself wishing that I could forget all the horrible things that you have done. These words have haunted him over and over again.

"It was true, you know. I didn't say it to coax you into saving me. I meant it. I have caught myself wanting to give you a chance more than I can count," Caroline confessed.

Elena' sentence came back to her mind. You won't have to feel guilty about all the dirty thoughts you have about Klaus. And Caroline suddenly realized that Elena had been both right and wrong that night. She had been wrong to think that Caroline needed to turn her humanity off to be guilt free. But she had been right to think that there was nothing to be ashamed of. Because it was true.

When was the last time that one of her friends had done something for her? When was the last time that one of her friends had put her first? The answer was easy. Never. She had always been second best with everyone.

Except with Klaus, Klaus had always put her first. Klaus had always made it very clear that if she chose him, he would do anything for her. Who had ever done that for her? Even Tyler had eventually left her. Caroline knew it wasn't his fault but she also knew that even if he had stayed, he would have always put his pack first. Why should she be ashamed of wanting to give a chance to someone who had always put her first?

Caroline gave her attention back to Klaus, who was still obviously trying to process what she had just said.

"I'm tired that nobody ever putting me first," she murmured.

Klaus snapped out of his thoughts and squeezed her hand with more strength this time.

"If you let me, I would always put you first, Caroline," he assured breathlessly. "Always."

Caroline smiled softly and leaned in to be closer to him.

"You know what? I'm starting to believe you," she whispered on his ear.

Klaus smiled and cried immediately after as a new wave of fire slammed into him. Caroline winced at the agony of the sound, and without thinking about it, she leant further and pressed a quick kiss against Klaus' lips.

Dumbfounded, Klaus gasped and fought to regulate his breathing.

"I thought I wasn't on my deathbed," he noticed raggedly.

Caroline smiled at him and this time, she leaned into him very consciously and kissed him one more time.

"You're not," she answered calmly. "I just wanted to do it."

Klaus looked at her, trying to read the expression on her face. She had admitted that she was jealous and that she had thought about giving him a chance but did it mean that she was ready to do it now? Klaus felt the hope rise in his chest and he tried to crush it as much as he could. If he was wrong, he wasn't sure he could take it. Caroline seemed to read his mind. Cradling his face in her hands, she smiled at him.

"What if I told you that I'm ready to make a decision for myself and not for my friends this time?" she asked softly.

Klaus smiled.

"I'd ask you what is the decision that you are ready to make?"

Caroline laughed and pressed a third quick kiss on his lips.

"You."

Thank you very much for reading.

Please let me know what you think, I really love to hear about you :-)

I'm thinking about a sequel, maybe a fluffy one, but let me know if there is interest.

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