Everything was quiet. Dimitri stood in front of me and our eyes had melted into each others. His deep brown eyes and strong arms that I so desperately wanted him to wrap around me but as I saw the strigoi coming towards him I screamed and all of the noise from the battle returned.

"Dimitri watch out!"

He turned around and staked the strigoi. I was so impressed by his fast reflexes that I totally lost all of my concentration on the battle. Suddenly I felt how two cold hands grabbed me from behind and I screamed for all that I was worthy. Dimitri turned around and fear reflected in his eyes.

"Rose!" He shouted and started to run towards me but it was too late. I screamed just before the strigois fangs pierced my neck and the endorphins filled my body with joy.

I woke up all sweaty and panicked. My blanket was lying on the floor and got up to put it back on the bed. Still, I couldn't sleep and everything that I saw made me terrified. I needed some fresh air so I putted on some black jeans, a purple t-shirt and a pair of sneakers. I opened the door and closed it after me. Then I walked down the corridor until I reached the bottom floor and stepped outside. Cold wind struck against me and I hugged myself to not freeze. I took a deep breath to fill my lungs with the fresh but cold air.

"Little dhampir, what are you doing out here? You're supposed to be in bed, sleeping." A voice said behind me. I turned to my right and saw Adrian standing in the door opening wearing a black jacket and blue jeans. His hair was as messy as always but it got even worse in the hard wind.

"I'm supposed to be here as much as you are…" My voice was hoarse. A playful smile spread over Adrian's lips and he moved to stand beside me. He unzipped his jacket and took it off to put it over my shoulders. I know I shouldn't have accepted it but I was so cold.

"So what brings you here Rose? Thinking about someone special perhaps?" He teased me. Yes I was thinking about someone special. I was thinking about Dimitri. I wondered if he was in his room right now. Hopefully I would be able to sneak up to him because I really needed to be with him right now.

"Sorry Adrian, talk to you another time. I've got something to do." I started to walk away towards my room to later sneak up to Dimitri's room. When I was one door away from it I heard voices coming from his room. I placed my ear against his door, carefully to not make any noise.

"Janine, I really can't give you any reason." Dimitri said. But wait… Janine, did he mean my mother?

"Why not? Rose hasn't been the same lately. It's like something is on her mind and I need you to ask her." My mother said. I heard how Dimitri sighed heavily.

"And why do you think that she'll talk to me?" He asked her and that was when it happened. The worst timing ever! I was just leaving when I tripped on my shoelaces and my shirt got stuck in the handle of the door and I fell right into the room. I looked up and saw Dimitri's surprised – and declared – face. When I looked at my mother the only thing I could see was anger and irritation.

"What do you think you're doing Rose? You're not even allowed to be up here." I put on my, 'I don't take anything serious, nothing is my fault' face.

"I was sleepwalking and tripped." I said to my excuse. I knew that they both knew I was lying but I just pretended to be the normal Rose Hathaway that I was. "Though, when I'm already here, can I have a moment with you Dimitri?" He nodded and I looked at my mother in silence. She understood that I wanted some privacy but she could never figure out what I was about to do. I locked the door behind her and I didn't say anything until I couldn't hear her footsteps in the corridor anymore. I turned to Dimitri and let out a sigh.

"That was too close, comrade." I said and took a seat on his bed.

"Rose that could have ended badly. You can't just come up here without telling me first." Dimitri said with that serious face he always had.

"Relax comrade I just needed to talk to you." His face got a worried expression.

"What's the matter? Are you hurt?" He took a step closer to me and I did the same.

"I'm fine but there is something that doesn't make any sense to me. I've had this dream and every night it's the same. It starts at the same place, when you and I look at each other and it always ends the same, I get bitten by a strigoi. It's a battlefield. Guardians die one by one and you and I. It's the end for us." Suddenly I stood in his arms. He stroked my hair as I buried my face in his chest. I looked up at him and wanted him so badly to kiss me.

"Dimitri, why won't you just kiss me now?" I asked without being able to stop the words from leaving my mouth.

"Roza…" He said as he leaned down and our lips touched. At first just softly but the kiss got hungrier and deeper the more seconds that passed by. He lay me down on the bed and himself on top of me but then he suddenly stopped.

"No Roza, not now, not here." He said. I got to admit I was a little disappointed but could understand his worries for being too thirsty for my body. If we ever got caught I would be suspended and he would get fired. We couldn't take the risk. Instead we sat there for a couple of hours. He held me in his strong arms and sometimes we broke the talking to kiss. After two hours I got really tired and fell asleep in his arms.

I woke up the next day still lying in his arms but my head rested on his chest, by someone knocking on the door. Dimitri was asleep so I woke him up.

"Dimitri, wake up." I whispered and I felt a little panicked but soon remembered that I had locked the door yesterday. He woke up and I hurried to put a finger over my lips to silence him. Then I pointed at the door and the knocks came again. I hided in the closet while he opened the door.

"Oh, good that you were awake guardian Belikov. There is something I need to talk with you about." To judge of the voice it was a woman and the woman was Alberta.

"Guardian Petrov, what's the matter?" He didn't sound nervous at all and his guardian mask was on. Alberta didn't have any reason to suspect him for anything.

"May I come in?" Alberta asked Dimitri and I really wished that we had the same bond as me and Lissa so that I could tell him to not invite her in but he did. Don't fuck this up now Rose! I told myself. Without wanting to I went into Lissa's head and of course she was with Christian. She was lying in his arms and he rested his cheek against her head.

"Christian I just can't tell Rose, she would become insane." Lissa said and she just couldn't keep still.

"Well, then don't blame me when she finds out about it from someone else and she's much worse than insane…" Christian answered her and his answer didn't exactly give her a good solution. She stepped up and Christian sighed. "Look Lissa, I think that it's better to tell Rose yourself instead of letting her hear it as a rumor. At least, that's what I would want if I were her. If she gets upset then so be it but I promise you that she won't be much happier if you don't tell her." He continued.

"Maybe but what should I tell her? Hey Rose! I may accidentally have given Alberta a hint about you and Dimitri being together, you don't mind, do you?" I went back to my own head and stormed out from the closet.

"Look Alberta. Whatever Lissa told you it's not true!" I shouted and she looked surprised at me. Well, who wouldn't when they saw a student coming rushing out from her mentor's closet? Dimitri putted his hand in front of his eyes – he didn't think he could hide himself behind it, did he? Perhaps he wished to.

"Ms. Hathaway? What are you doing here?" She asked and I understood that what I've done had been a massive mistake.

"This may look bad but I can explain!" I hurried to say.

"I sure hope you can for both of your own sakes." She said with big eyes and turned her attention to Dimitri who looked ready to take on a hundred of strigoi.