My eyebrows went up. “That came out beautifully.”
He bit his lip then tried again. “I thought protecting you would be a duty. A position to hold. I know how to hold a position.”
The cloth folded tighter in his hand.
“I did not know I would care whether you hated me for it.”
“Congratulations,” I said. “That’s almost self-awareness.”
“I’m willing to practice that.”
He raised the cloth again. I glanced at it, then his face, and then nodded.
Caspian cleaned the last of the blood from my face.
The cloth lingered at my lower lip one second too long.
Neither of us pretended not to notice.
“You shouldn’t have come, Caspian,” I said.
“To the assessment?”
“To my door.”
“I know.”
He lowered the cloth.
The cut was clean.
My mouth was not. It tasted like marble.
Not with him standing there.
Not with the Pull between us and the doorframe under his hand and the whole school pretending walls were enough to keep people in their assigned places.
“Caspian?”
“Yes, Astra?”
My name did the same damage it had done the last time.
This time he knew it.
His gaze stayed on mine.
“Thank you,” I said.
He pocketed the cloth.
“I’m glad you won.”
“You sound almost surprised.”
“Not surprised.”
“No?”
