Noah gripped his head with both hands, his fingers digging into his white hair as he stared at the floor in disbelief.
His heart was still hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird, and the silence of the room felt louder than any explosion.
'I don't know what came over me…' he thought to himself, his face still burning with a lingering heat.
He had faced down death in the forest and stood firm against a shadow assassin, yet he had nearly lost all composure to a single moment of quiet intimacy.
This wouldn't be the first time they would be together.
They had spent countless hours tucked away in the academy library or walking the outskirts of the town, sharing dreams and frustrations in the shade of the old trees.
But it was certainly the first time something like this had happened.
The air between them had always been comfortable, a safe haven from the cruelty of the world, but today it had shifted into something far more volatile and electric.
