Hello readers! Sorry about the wait- been busy the past few days. You know how that goes. Figured you all deserved to know what happened, so I decided to work on this story instead of Chasing Dreams and All I Need (which is going to throw me off for a while but oh well). This chapter is revealing (or at least I think it is) and I hope you all enjoy it! ^_^

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Artemis leaned against the doorway to Diana's room. He had been there for as long as he could remember. Right after the incident, Foaly had called them all down to Haven, and he and Holly went to work on healing Diana's wound. That was only hours ago.

Luckily, Holly and Foaly were able to remove the bullet and seal Diana's wound for good. She would not be without scarring, but she was lucky she was hit in a spot that hardly anyone would ever see. The girl was asleep now, still resting from her brief surgery and healing. As much as Artemis wanted to go sit by her side, he couldn't bring himself to do it. After all, it was his fault she was like this.

He watched her from afar, never letting his eyes wander from her bed. Admittedly, Artemis was drained, and wished he could be sleeping like his friend was. He would've given anything to be able to sleep, but that wasn't going to happen, at least not until he knew for sure Diana was okay.

"You can go in there, you know," Foaly stated, startling Artemis in the process. The boy hadn't realized the centaur had been standing behind him.

"I know," Artemis answered quietly, turning to face his friend.

"Then why haven't you?" Foaly inquired, folding his arms across his chest. When Artemis didn't answer him, Foaly continued. "Diana is in stable condition, and will make a full recovery. Holly got to her wound just in time. Another thirty seconds and I don't think she would've made it."

Artemis didn't say anything for several moments. "Good."

"I erm... erased you all from the Spiro Needle cameras," Foaly added. "Interestingly enough, Spiro didn't have any in his office- and I'm thinking it's because of his tendency to throw people out of windows. So that prevented the main problem we had. I... I still can't believe you did that."

Artemis sighed, obviously not wanting to talk about the atrocious deed he had committed. "Me either," he answered, feeling his conscience tearing at him. Although Spiro would not be missed, a murder was a murder regardless to what the circumstances were. Even Artemis couldn't come up with a good, justifiable reason for what he did. Although nearly killing Diana was a pretty good reason, Artemis was worried that this would turn around and bite him.

"I know you don't think so, but you did the right thing Artemis," Foaly stated. "The world is a better place without Spiro. You know that if you hadn't killed him, he would've never given up until you were dead."

Artemis hardly nodded. Foaly had a valid point, but Artemis still couldn't find a valid reason to have committed murder. Artemis could hardly use 'self-defense' as an excuse in court, let alone 'the better good.'

Foaly patted his friend on the back. "Cheer up kid. Life isn't that bad. Everything worked out in your favor: no one knows you're the one who killed Spiro, he's dead, you're alive, and the girl you love is alive... what more could you want?"

Artemis went to protest, but Foaly had already walked away and had begun chatting with another LEP officer. "I don't love her," Artemis muttered to himself, although he honestly wasn't so sure about it.

Artemis looked back at Diana, who was still sleeping soundly. Her eyes were closed gently and a small smile lingered on her face. Upon seeing that, Artemis felt a small smile crept across his face. But it did not last long; as soon as Artemis remembered his denial, he frowned again. The boy definitely needed to figure out what was going on with him.

Diana confused him. Never in his life had Artemis acted so irrationally because of a girl. He had risked so much, put himself on the line to get her home safely. Artemis was willing to admit their friendship, but he wasn't quite sure if there was more to it like everyone else was suggesting. Artemis was beginning to wonder if maybe his friends were right. The Irish boy closed his eyes, beginning to try to put all the pieces together in his head. Why did everyone say he was in love with Diana? What did they see that he didn't?

Artemis had to admit, Diana did cross his mind more often than any other girl he had met. There was just something about her- whether that was her intelligence, her personality, or her beauty he had yet to decide- that made him so intrigued with her. Something about her made Artemis put his guard down. Diana made him relax, and he felt at ease whenever she was present. When he was with Diana, he forgot all about his problems, his typical mannerisms and boorish behavior. As odd as it was, Artemis didn't seem to mind it. In fact, he enjoyed being around her. Just within the few days of knowing her, he felt as if he had known her for an eternity. And that was just the beginning.

Artemis had risked his life for Diana. Even though he had missed, it was something Artemis hadn't really done before. The only other time Artemis had truly sacrificed himself was when Opal had opened the Berserker Gate. For all intents and purposes, Artemis had died that night. If it hadn't been for Foaly, Artemis wouldn't have been there now. Now, he wasn't so sure if he had made the right decision. Had he known he was going to go through this, Artemis may not have been so sure to have that back-up plan ready.

It killed him to see Diana lying on the gurney-like bed, hooked up to all the various machines keeping track of her vitals. Although she was going to be okay, Artemis couldn't help but to feel like this was all his fault. If they hadn't met, none of this would've happened. But at the same time, Artemis debated if that would've made anything better. Where would he be without Diana? Spiro probably just would've killed him without hesitation and the big standoff.

"Well, well, well. Looks like someone is in love," a voice teased from behind him.

Artemis turned, glaring at Holly who was only a few feet away. "Ha, that's so funny I forgot to laugh," Artemis retorted, rolling his eyes. "Excluding that first ha."

"Face it, Artemis," Holly continued, "you're a sucker for a girl with green eyes."

"Ha! Her eyes are brown!" Artemis exclaimed, before thinking about what he was saying.

"Ha! Thank you for proving my point," Holly answered, smirking.

"Damn!" Artemis cursed, irritated with himself for his lack of concentration.

Holly folded her arms, looking up at her friend. "Now stop being a creeper and go sit with her," she said.

Artemis sighed, wondering exactly what Holly was implying with that statement. "I'm not a creeper... whatever that is."

Holly gave him a stern look. "You're watching the poor girl sleep, Artemis. Don't you think that is a bit odd?"

Before Artemis had a chance to respond, Holly disappeared into Trouble Kelp's office down the hall. The boy frowned slightly, and then looked back at Diana. He figured since her eyes were still closed that now would be the best time to join her. The Irish boy hesitantly stepped into the room, quietly taking a seat next to her bed. Artemis gingerly took Diana's hand in his, not wanting to wake her.

The longer Artemis sat there, the more he began to wonder if everyone was right with their assumptions. Being near Diana had calmed him down a little bit, and he certainly felt a bit happier as well. Diana stirred slightly, turning onto her side and facing Artemis. The boy smiled, leaning back against the wall as he got more comfortable in her presence. Artemis let out the breath he had been holding. He rubbed his temple with his free hand. What was it about this girl that made him so frazzled and unsteady? She was perfect, in every way. Diana was an intelligent and beautiful young woman, not to mention she had a way of making his stomach flip every time they made eye contact. Artemis was notorious for ignoring his emotions and yet this girl made them all come spilling out of his subconscious. This could very well be the beginning of something unfamiliar, something that could throw him off of his game.

He had always sworn he would never fall in love- it simply wasn't his style. But perhaps, just perhaps, Diana was the only exception to that rule. And maybe now Artemis was ready to admit that as he closed his eyes, falling asleep still holding onto Diana's hand.