"That's true. But..." He rakes a hand through his hair, jaw ticking with his barely controlled emotions. "Losing you? I… can’t. I just fucking can’t," Before I can respond, he stands and moves to the window, gazing out at the darkened campus.

"You should sleep," he says, his back to me. "I'll wake you if anything happens."

I would feel offended that he’s not currently taking my very obvious offer for sex, but I can feel what he’s feeling—shadows of it, at least. Desire. Temptation. Arousal. Yes, that’s all there as clear as day. But he also feels frustration with himself.

He’s frustrated that he let himself feel so much for me. That he opened himself to weakness. Nothing I say or do right now can change that. All I can do is resolve to be strong tomorrow. For myself. For my friends. For Raith. Because his words aren't empty. He really doesn't think he would survive if something happened to me.

I find myself lying down, pulling the blanket over my shoulders as I watch him silently standing vigil.

"You need rest too," I murmur, my eyes growing heavy despite my racing thoughts.

He turns slightly, his profile outlined against the moonlight. "I'll be fine."

"Raith," I whisper, "just come lie down. Please. It will help me sleep if you're here with me."

For a long moment, he doesn't move. Then, with a sigh that seems to carry the weight of worlds, he crosses the room and carefully stretches out beside me on the narrow bed. He remains above the blankets, rigid and tense as he stares at the ceiling.

"I won't break if you touch me, you know," I say, the words little more than a breath between us. "You certainly didn't worry about that the other night in the showers."

His eyes find mine in the darkness, a flicker of heat passing through them at the memory. "That was different."

"How so?" I challenge softly.

"It just... was," he says, but his arm slides beneath my shoulders all the same, drawing me against his side. I rest my head on his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heart.

"Tonight could be our last chance for a repeat," I murmur, my fingers tracing idle patterns on his chest.

I feel his temptation like a slumbering beast trying to roar to life. Somehow, he manages to control it before he speaks. "I'm not going to be the reason you didn't get rest tonight, Nessa. Sleep."

I smile up at him, mischief playing across my face. "And if I sleep well, will you reward me in the morning?"

The slumbering beast of his desire flares bright. Raith's grip tightens on my bare shoulder. "Only one way to find out."