Thomas peeked through the crack, checking to make sure no one was talking nearby before leaving the hiding spot. He squeezed through, even after he made it out the other side, he still couldn't catch his breath. Artemis' sketchbooks, blankets, candles, and drawing supplies were gone. He ran a shaking hand through his inky hair, trying to keep the panic at bay.

What does this mean?

Charlie's smug face, his strut into the dining hall. Artemis' vengeful glare. Her cold demeanor after lunch. Speculations fought for his attention. Before he could dwell on a single one, his feet made their way to the library's exit. The fog had thinned within those short minutes and darkness had started to fall. He could just make out the silhouettes of the two girls who were gawking at him. A whisper caressed his mind.

Follow them.

So he did.

They made their way back to the main building and towards the staircase leading up to the girls' dorm. Thomas hesitated for a moment, remembering the first and last time he approached those steps.

You have to find her.

Just as they reached the first step...

"Excuse me."

The girls jumped and turned to him, startled. He smiled and their surprise dissolved into a fit of giggles.

"You scared us," the blonde one gasped. The brunette fidgeted with her hair.

You have to get in.

He moved to the side as a cluster of girls approached them. They clucked and cooed among themselves while some gave him quizzical looks while others gave him warning ones. Scenes from mother's books flashed in his mind. Suddenly, he was grateful for the slight delay as a plan started to form. He stepped towards the blonde. Her back pressed against the stone stair railing as he leaned towards her, her breath hitched. Her friend's jaw shamelessly dropped, threatening to unhinge in Thomas' peripheral.

"Mind if I join you?" he said softly.

The brunette nodded so vigorous that it must have been dizzying. The blonde blinked at him, uncomprehending.

"Uhh umm T-This leads to the girls' d-dormitory."

"Oh," he purred. Part of him was shocked and slightly alarmed by this facade that started to take on a life of its own. Thomas glanced to the side towards the top of the stairs as though he just realized it was there.

They want you. Don't push or you'll scare them.

"My mistake. You ladies have a good night."

He leaned back and turned towards the opposite side of the building towards the boys' dormitory.

What if Artemis was expelled?

"Wait!" one of the girls whispered. "Hurry, before anyone sees!"

The hall was empty for a moment but a monitor will come by soon, and Thomas knew his window of opportunity was closing. They quietly dashed up the stairs. The girls' dorm was identical to the boys' except Thomas had no idea whose room belonged to whom.

"Our room is this way," said the brunette coyly, gesturing down one end of the corridor. Thomas nodded and followed, trying to peer into every room he passed, hoping for a glimpse of white hair. The charming facade was slipping as worry and doubt occupied his mind.

What if she was really gone?

His body lurched to the side, nearly losing his balance. His head spun and smacked against a wall the same moment a door clicked into place. He cried out but no sound came out. A hand was there. Piercing blue eyes met his. Artie placed a finger to her lips as the two girls out in the hall clambered about. When their voices faded, Artie slowly removed her hand from his mouth. He reached up and gently took it in his hands. Her pupils widened as he brought her palm to his lips. His gaze didn't waver from hers as relief flooded through him.

They stayed like that for a few heartbeats before Thomas released her hand. His eyes wandered around her room until it landed on a box. A sketchbook, candle-holder, blanket, and pens protruded out of it. Dread hardened his stomach.

"You're leaving," he breathed. Artie turned towards the box, shaking her head.

"No, I'm not."

Thomas' eyebrows furrowed. She smiled reassuringly, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it. He squeezed back.

"I couldn't keep my things in that alcove anymore. Someone was bound to find them eventually."

"But-"

All the images from earlier today flooded Thomas' mind. It didn't make sense.

"What happened between you and Charlie in class? Why weren't you at dinner? Artie, what's going on?"

For some reason, Thomas was not satisfied with her simple answer. He bowed his head and heaved a great quivering breath. His worry did not wane but his body was quickly fatiguing from the nerves.

Artie bowed her head so she was looking directly underneath his eyes until he straightened again.

"I'm okay, Thomas. Really."

She smiled but it didn't reach her eyes which looked slightly swollen and pink around the edges.

"Did Charlie do something to you?" Thomas croaked, thinking back to the first time Charlie spoke her name, how he ordered Thomas not to go near her. Then, there was the expression on his face in class today.

"I told you and Miss Finch. He ripped up my poem."

"What about before that?"

She released his hand and crossed her arms across her chest, avoiding his gaze.

"It wasn't anything I couldn't handle. I...We don't need to talk about it right now."

Thomas wanted to press her for more information but the warning for lights out was announced, echoing down the corridor as girls scuttled back to their rooms.

"You can't stay here any longer or you'll get caught." She peeked out her door and then frantically waved for him to follow her down the hall and down the stone steps. Thomas wanted to tell her to return to her room but she seemed to be leading the way. They had a few close counters with hall monitors, barely making it behind a wall or column in time. As they neared the boys' dorm, Artie brushed his hand.

"I promise I'll tell you everything later, okay? And..."

She glanced down towards her tapping foot.

"And...?" Thomas gently pried.

"And...thank you for...returning that to me."

She lifted her palm, her cheeks turning rosy. The realization that he had returned her kiss back to her made his cheeks warm too.

"It was my pleasure," Thomas breathed, his voice suddenly husky. He stepped closer, intertwining his fingers with her raised ones. Guilt squeezed his heart but he squeezed Artie's hand tighter. He thought she was gone. He wasn't going to think about what could be or what was. Only this moment mattered right now.

Artemis' aquamarine eyes drifted down to his lips. Thomas raised his other hand to move away a few strands of silvery hair that had drifted in front of her face and was embarrassed to find it trembling. They felt like silk in between his fingers as he looped them behind her ear. As though they shared the same mind, their heads tilted and moved towards each other until their lips touched.

Rose petals. Powdered sugar.

That was how they felt. That was how they tasted. Sweet but not so sweet as to make you ill.

Her lips parted slightly as she tilted her head again and deepened the kiss. The fingers in her hair slid down her neck, her pulse beating against their tips.

"I have to go," she whispered, her voice as husky as his. "We can share this secret again, if you want."

Thomas chuckled and genuinely smiled for the first time in what felt like days. He watched her iridescent hair fade in the dim light of the corridor as she made her way silently back towards the girl's dorm. Thomas ascended the stairs, feeling lighter than before. He closed his room door quietly, relieved for once that his roommates were snoring loudly. He changed into his pajamas and laid his tall frame over his covers. He mused about how chance seemed to have brought him to her. If there was the smallest delay, Artie might not have seen him through her bedroom door and have grabbed him in time. How fortunate that his intuition guided him and how that charming and confident persona manifested the way it did.

He brows creased.

The whisper that guided him. It was his voice but resembled the tone and directness of another that he had not heard in years. The guilt came back, threatening to crush his chest, refusing to be ignored this time.

What have I done?