WHO: Kol Mikaelson and Finn Mikaelson WHAT: Reuniting WHERE: His car/grocery store WHEN: Backdated to the 4th of July
Kol was admittedly nervous in seeing his big brother Finn again after six years. He had only been 17 years old when Finn had left, and while Kol had always thought that he and Elijah were the goodie two shoes brothers, he had been shocked to learn of the inner demons that Finn had been fighting with that caused him to leave and go to Virginia. It was just another reason on Kol’s very long list of why he hated his father. Finn had needed their help and their father had decided to be an asshole about it.
Finn had worked his way through seeing the majority of the siblings, but as far as he was aware, Kol and Niklaus where the last two people on the list of family to reunite and catch up with. Hell, Finn had even gone and seen their parents--something Kol was interested in hearing the outcome of. It was for that reason that Kol had offered to come and pick up Finn for the 4th of July BBQ at Rebekah and Stefan’s house. It would give him a few moments alone with his older brother, to let him know that he had missed him and that he was glad he was home.
Pulling up to Finn’s place, he got out of the car. His knee was still recovering, so, with a slight limp, he walked up to his brothers door and rang the doorbell.
Finn had been making the rounds to speak to each of his siblings privately ever since he’d returned to California and so far he’d seen Rebekah, Elijah and Henrik. Niklaus and Kol were still on the list. He’d even spoken to his parents, although speaking to his siblings had gone much smoother. He had hoped to speak to all of them before the Fourth of July, because he was sure that someone would want to have a barbeque, but he hadn’t quite accomplished that, so he took Kol’s offer of a ride to Rebekah and Stefan’s so they could talk and he’d just have to hope that Niklaus would be there so he could talk to him.
Hearing the doorbell, Finn made his way to the door, a fond smile spreading across his lips when he saw his younger brother, “Hello, Kol.” It had been six years since he’d seen his brother and from the looks of it, he had matured quite well.
“Finn, it’s been far too long!” Kol said with a smile as he gave his older brother a hug, clapping him on the back. “You look great.” His brother had certainly cleaned up quite well after the drug incident. He looked more like the older brother he remembered growing up and less like the brother he had looked like when he had left to go to Virginia. Admittedly, Kol had missed his older brother. He had never been as close to him as Elijah had been, but Finn had helped teach Kol many things growing up. Had helped him learn to ride a bike, would play Basketball with him in the backyard...It had definitely been difficult without him. Finn hadn’t even had the opportunity to see him, Rebekah or Henrik graduate high school.
“It’s great to see you,” Kol said with a grin. “Shall we go right away or do you need to gather anything for the party? I know I need to make a quick stop at the store to pick up some last minute supplies for the BBQ.”
Admittedly, when Finn has left, he’d been far too skinny for his height and he’d looked far older than he was, but over the last few years, Finn had gained weight, gotten in shape and looked much closer to mid twenties as he should look. He was healthy. That was the bottom line. “It’s good to see you too, Kol.” If there was one thing he regretted, it was missing out on certain events in his younger siblings’ lives such as graduations and Natalia’s birth. He was determined to make up for all of that now though.
“I’m ready to go if you are.” Finn said as he shut and locked the door behind them, “What are you getting at the store? I’ll chip in.” Finn didn’t know what Rebekah needed, because she hadn’t given him anything specific to bring, so he would just go along with whatever Kol was getting.
“I’m going to get some extra burgers, hotdogs and buns, just in case. You can get some of the condiments like ketchup, mustard, relish, pickles, onions--anything you can think of. Rebekah wasn’t clear on what she needed, but I figured it’d be better to be safe than sorry. That way it limits how many trips we need to make to the store once we get there and we don’t have everything we need,” he said with a grin as he walked to the car, still limping slightly. Unlocking the doors, he got into the car and waited for Finn to get in before pulling out of the lot and heading towards Ralphs.
“I’m really glad you came back. I’ve missed you like crazy. Through a lot of this shit with dad, I’ve oftentimes thought of packing up my shit and heading out to Virginia too, but the Basketball team needed me, Rebekah got pregnant...and I wasn’t going to leave and let her deal with dad and his shit.” Granted she had other siblings that would be there to protect her and stand up for her, but he wanted to be part of the babies life. “You’ve met little Natty, ya? Kid s a crack up. Has me wrapped around her tiny little fingers.”
Finn followed Kol to the car and got into the passenger seat as his younger brother started the car, “I met her when I met Stefan.” Finn was the last person to judge the actions of anyone else, so he had no place to judge Rebekah for having had a baby out of wedlock, not that he would have, but he was glad that Stefan was not like some other guys who bailed when their girlfriend’s got pregnant. Stefan appeared to be a very good guy and Finn was glad that Rebekah had found a good guy. “She is quite special.”
He was looking forward to getting to spend more time with his niece and while he may have missed the first year of her life, he would be there for the rest of them, “How is your leg?” He asked, glancing over at Kol. He knew that his brother was upset about the outcome of his injury, but he was sure that Kol would be able to find something else he would be able to feel just as passionately about as he had basketball.
“She sure is. Love that little girl to death,” Kol admitted with a grin. “I don’t care who thinks I’m soft for it either. She’s going to be the most closely guarded little girl ever. I really feel sorry for her when she’s old enough to date, because she’s going to have crazy Uncles like me breathing down the guys neck,” he said with a laugh. “God help me if I ever have a little girl...”
When he mentioned the leg, Kol glanced down at it briefly and frowned, “it’s healing, but it’s going to get injured again if dad doesn’t shut up about how this ‘entire thing’ is ‘my fault’ and how I ‘did not try hard enough to heal faster’ and how I ‘let the entire team down.’ Kol let out a disgusted, bitter laugh. “As if I wanted to get injured and have the bone sticking out of my leg. If anyone is a disappointment and a let down, it’s him as a father. Blaming Nik for something he couldn’t control, turning his back on you. He gives Henrik shit all the time and I’m pretty sick of it.”
From the sounds of it, Kol was the most attached to Natalia out of his siblings aside from Rebekah of course, “I’m sure Stefan will be able to take care of any future boyfriend’s, Kol. You don’t want her to resent you for being overprotective. We’re the ones who she is supposed to go to when Rebekah and Stefan are being too stern.” While Finn might not have known much about children, he knew what he had wanted as a teenager when their parents were being too overprotective or unreasonable. Perhaps if there had been someone else he could have gone to other than Elijah, things would have been different for him.
“I’m sure he knows you didn’t do it on purpose. He’s probably just worried that you’ll simply give up now.” Or that he’d wind up like he had. He was sure that the last thing Mikael wanted was a repeat of what he’d gone through with Finn, “The situation with Niklaus is much different, Kol.” It was far more complicated than that and Finn remembered when it had come about that Niklaus was only their half brother. Of course, as far as Finn was concerned, he would always be his brother no matter what.
“Thats true, I don’t want to be the one to tell her no,” Kol said with a grin as he pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store. “I’m glad you came back and you get to know her and be with us again. Holidays didn’t seem the same without you. Neither did Skype conversations. I’m glad you’re back to stay.” And if Finn ever relapsed? Well...Kol would be right there to help him. He wasn’t some naive 17 year old kid anymore. He knew what he was doing and he knew what needed to be done in order to help his brother.
“He certainly has a funny way of showing affection, Finn. None of us deserve the shitty and indifferent way he treats us. And while the situation with Klaus may be different, it isn’t Klaus’ fault that mom slept with another man. He shouldn’t be punished for moms actions,” he said with a shrug. “How did...how did your dinner go? Did mom and dad know you were coming home or was it a surprise for them too?”
“I’m glad I’m back as well. I missed so much and now I intend to make up for it.” Finn said Kol pulled into the parking lot. While he could understand where Kol was coming from as far as Niklaus was concerned, he wasn’t sure that Kol really understood why their father acted the way he did towards Niklaus. “How would you feel if you found out that one of your children wasn’t really yours? He’s hardly the first man to react the way he has. Is it right? No. But there’s nothing to be done about it, Kol.”
When asked about their parents, he ran a hand through his hair, “They knew. I told them first before anyone else.” He had wanted his parents to know first so that Mikael wouldn’t be able to accuse him of keeping it from them if he told them last, “Dinner went alright. Our father seems happy enough that I’ve gotten my life straight. He didn’t appear to have anything negative to say about it.”
“Well, that’s good at least,” Kol said. Admittedly, Finn was right about Mikael’s reaction to Niklaus not being his son was well...normal. It didn’t mean Kol liked it though. He loved his brother, but when Finn was right, Finn was right, and with a shrug, Kol quietly muttered, “guess you’re right..”
Selecting some hamburgers and buns, Kol walked with Finn to see if there was anything else he needed to pick up for the party. “I’m surprised mom was able to keep your coming home quiet,” Kol said with a smirk, “but I’m sure they wanted to...make sure everything was okay first and let you tell us on your own. Have you found any work yet or are you still looking?”
“I had asked that they didn’t tell any of you,” Finn said as he walked along with Kol through the aisles of the store, “I had wanted to surprise you all.” And it had gone pretty well, if he did say so himself. “I’m working at Phoenix House as a rehabilitation counselor. I already had the job lined up before I moved out here.” .
“That’s awesome, I’m glad you’ve got your life turned around. If I had known at the time...I would have talked to you...or tried to help, or...something. I mean I know it wouldn’t have done much good, but, I would have been there and tried to help you the best I can.” Of course, Kol had only been 17 when Finn had left, there wasn’t much he could have done at that age, but he hated the idea that his brother had suffered alone.
“I’ve been working for the school’s news station. Broadcasting Journalism is my major, but they would have me report on all the sports events that weren’t Basketball and interview the team and the coaches. I guess I’ll be covering those events now too. My professor thinks she can get me a job with ESPN after I graduate next year, which is pretty cool. I’ll get to meet some of the greats that way.”
Finn was grateful that Kol thought he could have helped him, but if even their father hadn’t been able to do anything, it was very unlikely that his siblings would have been able to help. Except maybe Elijah. Elijah was his older brother and if anyone would have been able to get through to him, it probably would have been him. He didn’t say anything in response to that and instead picked up on the second part of the conversation.
“You’re lucky there. Lots of people never get a chance like that or it takes them years,” It was good to hear that Kol had something to fall back on as well as a possible in, “You’ll be good for a job like that, because you know the terminology and it’s something you’re interested in.”
“It could be worse,” Kol admitted with a shrug, “I’m bummed that I’m not finishing out my senior year with the team, I worked so long and so hard to make it on the team to begin with, but you’re right. At least I have something to fall back on. With ALL my siblings here, it should be easier. I have my entire support system now. Maybe when I’m not so pissed off and stubborn, I’ll try and talk it out with dad too and clear the air.”
“That’s probably for the best. Talking to him when you’re already in a bad mood never accomplishes anything.” Finn knew that all too well and he hoped that his brother would get the chance to have a real conversation with their father about what had happened where there was no yelling. “Have we gotten everything that we need?” He looked at the items they had gathered while walking through the grocery store, “If so, we should go before Rebekah starts calling us to find out where we are.” Finn really was looking forward to spending the rest of the day with his family.