She hadn't realized how much tension she'd been carrying on her shoulders — how much worry — that had tensed up her muscles until she heard his voice from behind her and she felt shoulders drop in relief. And she did not care for how her heart seemed to leap and suspend in mid-air when she turned around to find him walking up to her. The degree to which she found herself dependent upon him was increasing each day and it terrified her. He'd said nothing about the kiss they'd shared last month, and neither did she. She hoped it was because both of them were too stubborn to be the one to break. But then that only scared her even more. There was only so much either of them could take, wasn't there? But then there was also the possibility that she had slipped from his mind as easily as running water through his fingers.

Even as he asked her if she was alright, she brushed straight past that; he'd know how she felt soon enough.

“I couldn’t sleep.” she offered, as an explanation to his first comment. She hoped that much was obvious, from the likely dark circles under her eyes, to the way her hand shook slightly as she cast the last security spell. “I’m sorry for calling you so late.” He looked like he was just about ready to turn in for the evening, but neat enough that he likely hadn’t gone to bed yet. This conclusion took her longer to work through than normal, and it was a few seconds before she realized she was staring at him. Tearing her gaze away, she gestured for him to follow. The door opened without protest. Even though, with as many wards as she’d cast, there was a high improbability of someone overhearing them, Rowan still wanted to shut and lock the door before she got to the point.

“I still can’t remember what happened the other night. Before….” She trailed off, not knowing how to bring up what they’d done. “Before I woke up. I’ve tried everything, and only have one option left, but I….I need —” She did not need him. She just required his assistance, if he was willing. “—your help...” Her eyes flicked down to his hand, which served as a reminder that she’d been massaging the red mark on her finger as she spoke; already, a nervous tick that she clearly needed to break. “If you’re willing to help, that is. You can say no if you wish to, I’ve already asked you to do so much; dragged you into too many things —” She was rambling now, back to brushing her thumb against the base of her pinky finger again.

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