Grace - Elijah Mikaelson -

Chapter 79

"Home sweet home." 

Grace murmured as she unlocked the door of the Mikaelson mansion in Mystic Falls. She took a deep breath before she stepped inside and also felt Elijah tense beside her. Too many painful memories were connected with this place, the last time they'd been here together, Elijah had left for New Orleans alone. 

Her own misery of the year she spent here in loneliness was still way too real and present, but she needed to keep herself together and don't be pathetic. It was over. She wasn't alone anymore. 

Some time after she left, she had organized some company to clean the bedroom she destroyed up and prepare everything for the families' longer absence. White sheets covered the antique furniture from any harm and apart from some dust everything still looked the same.

"Are you ok?" 

Elijah's voice was filled with shame. Seeing this property made him realize how much she must've suffered. Completely left on her own, with no one to help her. Neither of her two families came to her rescue, because every one was just too deeply indulged in their very own problems to care. Just like the time when she had become a vampire. It proved how strong this woman was. Everyone else would've gone completely insane. 

"Yes, sure. I promised myself to look ahead instead of being stuck in the past." 

She lightly smiled and walked up the stairs to the dressing room. The compelled driver had just brought their luggage up here, so she quickly unpacked the dress she brought with her. Of course she had more than enough clothing here, as she left most of it in Mystic Falls, but the dresses from New Orleans had their very own charm. Adding to that, Grace didn't feel like she belonged here anymore. It was strange, but she felt more at home in New Orleans than she ever felt in Mystic Falls. 

Elijah too stepped into the room and let his gaze shortly wander before he started to change. Grace sat in front of the mirror and did her make up while she waited for the curling iron to be ready. 

"It feels good to have a little vacation. Even it's just for a day. Should do that more often." 

She stated while creating perfectly shiny curls. Their eyes met in the mirror and Elijah saw that she actually felt really conflicted. Grace currently wasn't happy in New Orleans, neither would she be happy coming back here. 

"You mean, it feels good to escape the lunatic ways of my brother for a while." 

The Original grinned, to which she rolled her eyes. 

"Can we have a Nik-free day, please? I feel like ripping heads off when I even hear his name, which would quite...inappropriate today." 

He nodded smiling and turned around when she changed into her dress, to which she chuckled. Always the perfect gentleman even though she knew exactly that he always liked to have a peek. 

"Would you mind?" 

She turned around, her back facing him so he could zip the pale rose colored dress. The tips of his fingers run along her spine doing it and Grace sucked in a sharp breath. Suddenly the air around them was filled with electricity. Elijah hesitated, as if considering leaning forward and kissing her delicate neck, but instead he sighed and took her hand, twirling her around elegantly. 

"You look stunning." 

Grace's eyes seemed to shine when she beamed up to him. It was hard for her not to kiss him, but it was again one of this moments where they simply hesitated too much. It may be frustrating, but it kind of a certain thrill. 

"Shall we?" 

Elijah held out his arm for her and Grace immediately interlaced hers with his. This was such a familiar feeling, as they'd been to a lot of social events back when they lived here. Still, this strangely felt different.