?

　　I came back to my senses when I was sinking deeper into the water. No amount of me kicking my legs and moving my hands helped with me getting back to the surface. The suffocatingly tight corset paired with my dress which was now heavier than ever due to it being soaked. To think that I was going to drown due to my own dress was rather ironic.?

　　I soon find myself losing consciousness again, unable to breathe nor to swim myself up to the surface. I closed my eyes, fully accepting that this was how things were to end for me.

　　There was something approaching me, a strong grip pulling onto my arm and soon the atmosphere shifted. I was not fully aware of what was happening but I could feel my body being guided somewhere and soon being dragged onto land. I could hear someone calling out my name but no matter what, I could not open my eyes.

　　I could feel his hands on my body, his sturdy grip around the laces of my dress and then a loud snap followed by my body being pulled forward before I fell back onto the grassy ground.

　　“Cordelia!” he called out again, the urgency in his voice was alarming. His frantic hands struggled with my corset before he used his strength to rip it off effortlessly. I felt free from my confines, not being dragged down by layers of fabric nor being suffocated but the tightly tied corset. Cassian’s hand then caressed my cheek as he told me to wake up. I could feel his warm breath against my skin, so tender that I wanted to remember this sensation forever.

　　A knot formed in my throat and soon I felt myself jerking forward as I coughed out water. Although I felt incredibly weak, I managed to prop myself up to cough out the excess water that entered my stomach.?

　　I glanced up at Cassian who wiped his face with the back of his hand before reaching over to pat my back, to make sure I coughed out everything. I wanted to apologise to him as I must have coughed water all over his face but I also wanted to thank him for saving my life.

　　I did neither when I noticed the state of my appearance. He had completely ripped open both my dress and corset, leaving me to expose my inner wear. I shifted back away from him as my hands instinctively moved to cover myself from him.

　　“Sorry about your dress but you were drowning and—” he started but I quickly shook my head at him.

　　“N-No, you did what you had to do.” I muttered, somehow feeling incredibly embarrassed to look him in the eye.

　　“Are you alright?” he asked, hand hovering in front of him as though he was trying to decide whether to touch me or not. I nodded quickly as I started to wonder how I was going to return to the castle looking like this. It was as though Cassian could have read my mind as he shrugged off his drenched coat and placed it over my shoulders. “I’m guessing you fainted because of the corset?”

　　“Did you think I fainted because you called me adorable?” I teased, feeling my throat burn the more I spoke.

　　Cassian froze. “So…you did hear that.”

　　“Just bits and pieces. Um…Cassian, thank you for saving me.” I finally said.

　　He smiled. “I feel at fault for forcing you on the boat in the first place. And I should have realised your state earlier. Please forgive me for putting your life in jeopardy.”

　　“No, you did nothing wrong.” I quickly said. “And I’m sorry…for accusing you of sleeping with Elina instead of talking to you or listening to your explanation first.”

　　“We were both at fault I suppose.”

　　“What do you mean?”

　　“I got defensive instead of just telling you the truth. It was no help that Isaiah was butting in.” he sighed.

　　I giggled. “That’s true.” I could feel myself trembling from the cold and I found my gaze trailing up Cassian’s body. His white shirt was clinging on his frame, the wet fabric was see-through and I could see the outlines of his toned body. I looked up at how the tiny water droplets were dripping from the ends of his hair and the curves of his chin. “What are we going to do?” I blurted out, causing Cassian to meet my eyes.

　　“I suppose we should get you dried up before you catch a cold.” He said.

　　“I meant with the rumour.”

　　“Ah. You could always say you were with me the entire night.” He whispered, his deep voice reverberating inside me. I felt my mouth dry up as I finally? noticed how close out bodies were. “You were in my room after all and if Lady Marie says otherwise then at least we have proof that she has spies to watch your every move.”

　　“…but we were together the entire night.” I said, already following up with the white lie. My eyes fluttered down to his lips for a mere second but by the way he smiled, it was apparent that he noticed.

　　“And pray tell, what were we doing together, princess?” he teased.?

　　I wanted to scoff and roll my eyes at him but strangely enough, something in his voice prompted me to play along with him. Was it the near death experience I had just encountered that was making my blood pump faster than usual? Was it the coldness of my body that is desperately seeking for warmth or was it just him, Cassian being his charming self? Cassian who looked incredibly handsome even when he was drenched from hand to toe.

　　“You kissed me, softly—gently to the point where your lips were merely ghosting my own.” I said.

　　“Oh? What did I do next?”

　　“…t-this is embarrassing.” I muttered, ready to stand up and walk away when I could feel my face heating up dangerously. Cassian reached out and took hold of my little finger, making me tense up.

　　“But you were just telling me what we did last night, so we would have our story straight, right?”

　　“No one is going to question what we did in your chambers.” I told him.

　　“But what if they did? What if the only way for us to expose Elina’s lie is to tell them every detail about last night? About how I ravished you.” He whispered. A harsh shiver ran down my spine and I was not sure if it was due to his voice or due to my body getting colder by the second.

　　“Ravished me?” I bashfully repeated.

　　He hummed, inching closer to my face. “May I kiss you, Cordelia?” he asked, gaze fixated on my lips.

　　The memories of the night we were locked in that room together came back to me in broken glimpses. I remembered the way he kissed me, full of desperation and hunger as though he was deprived of my lips but now it was different. He looked kind, loving even that I had to remind myself this was all just for show. I nodded at him and allowed him to cup my cheek before titling my face to the side.

　　He acted out the words I had said earlier, about our fake night spent together, about how he kissed me gently and his lips were brushing against my own. It was a complete contrast to our first kiss and it caused the fine hairs behind my neck to raise.

　　Cassian pulled away and licked his lips. “Hm, you taste like lake water.” He commented.

　　“…so do you,” I countered with a pout.

　　He laughed, a truly beautiful sound. “I never said I disliked it.” he leaned forward once more, catching my lips with more pressure. He deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue onto my own as we swirled them together, exploring each other as though time was on our side, as though we were the only two people on this planet.

　　I wanted more, wanted more of what he had to offer but I could tell but the way he held my face that he was holding back. He pulled away from our kiss before I could, uncharacteristically averting his gaze from mine as his cheeks were tainting pink.

　　“What’s wrong?” I asked him.

　　“You are freezing. We should get you inside.” He said, still not looking at me.

　　I nodded in agreement, thinking how awful it would be for me to fall ill when there was a lot of work that needed to be done. We parted away from each other and Cassian stood up. He offered me his hand. I pulled his coat around me to cover my front with one hand while the other was placed on his hand. He effortlessly pulled me up.

　　“The maids should all be taking care of breakfast right now so we could talk the inner corridor to get back to my room since that is the nearest compared to yours. I could call Anne to bring you spare clothes.” I explained my plan.

　　“Very well, I trust your judgement, my sweet Cordelia.”