Page 346 of The Academy of Blood & Shadow

He's not wearing his uniform. Black training trousers. Sleeveless shirt. No coat. No weapons except a short practice blade in one hand. His hair is damp. Probably showered after patrol. Then decided to come beat something. Reasonable. His tattoos are exposed. I've seen them before. Obviously. Across his arms. Shoulders. Some disappearing beneath black fabric. Lines and symbols I don't understand. Dragon markings. Old script. Something curved along his shoulder that vanishes behind his back. I have never asked what they mean. I probably should. For academic reasons. Obviously.

He turns. Golden eyes find me. And for once, I look.

Actually look. Rhyven is beautiful. There. Fine. I've admitted it. To myself. Nobody else needs to know.

He's tall enough that almost everyone has to look up at him. Broad shoulders. Muscle built from years of fighting and flying rather than whatever ridiculous exercises Cassian claims create attractive arms.

His forearms are marked with faint scars beneath the tattoos. Hands calloused. Dark hair falling slightly over his forehead. Jaw shadowed from a day he hasn't had time to shave. And his mouth— No. Actually. We're not doing that.

Except I already looked. Full lower lip. Sharp upper. The slight curve that appears before he says something irritating. The mouth that was less than an inch from mine Sunday night. Wonderful. This is productive. Rhyven's eyebrow lifts. "What."

I realize I've been staring. Damn. "Nothing."

"You're bad at that."

"At what?"

"Lying."

"That's interesting coming from you." His mouth moves. There. That almost-smile. I hate Nyra. Not relevant.

"What are you doing here?" He asks.

"Training."

"It's eleven twenty."

"Excellent observational skills."

"You have suppression combat at six."

"I know."

"Sleep."

"No." He stares. I stare back. From the other mat Dax hits the floor. Hard. Soren says something I can't hear. Dax tells him to go fuck himself. Nobody cares about us. Good.

Rhyven sets the practice blade down. "Why can't you sleep?"