Getting him here had been hard, Marlee had had to slip a note to one of his fellow guards who was close to Carter and then wait to hear the news that he had received his letter. But surely, Marlee thought, the waiting was the hardest part.

She sat in a nice little corner of a dark room, hidden behind bookcases, couches, tables, and anything else they could get their hands on. The room itself was hidden from most people as well, only a few guards traveled to this area of the castle. All in all, it was a pretty safe place to be.

the corner was also quite cozy though. There was a quilt on the ground, trying to the floor a bit more comfortable, pillows lined the wall to lean on, and great memories, some of the best memories Marlee and Carter had had spouted in this very corner.

Marlee's breath hitched when the door cracked open, footsteps creeping closer. Then the door was closed, slowly. Carter walked to their little secluded area, not bumping into any furniture on the way there after coming so often. Then he pulled back a curtain and crawled under the table, making his was through the small obstacle course towards Marlee.

Her breath was labored by the time Carter had gotten to her, from panic and adrenaline. Marlee couldn't be caught meeting Carter in the dark, she knew that would result, not only in her death, but Carter's as well for being unfaithful to the prince.

"It's alright Mar, it's just me." Carter soothed, reaching out for Marlee in the dark. Her breathing immediately calmed and she found Carter's waiting arms, pulling him into an embrace.

Then they situated themselves, Marlee snuggled into his side on the floor and Carter playing with strands of her hair. They didn't dare talk, and if they did it wasn't above a whisper in the ear, so quiet that the other almost didn't hear it. They weren't just keeping their own person safe, they were keeping the other person safe from what they had caused them.

"You think it's worth it, right?" Marlee asked.

"What do you mean?" Carter tilted his head down so that he could see her face with newly adjusted eyes. there were tracks running down her cheeks from tears, but most of them had dried up by that point. Marlee hadn't trusted herself to talk until that point because she was afraid she would be too loud.

"Hiding away to see you, keeping all these secrets. I want to be able to let everyone know that you're mine and kiss you if I want to when we aren't stuffed inside this stuffy. old room. I don't want to risk you getting hurt because of me." Marlee admitted. She was sick of keeping secrets from America , her best friend, who knew that something was up. And fear knurled and clawed at her insides at the thought of causing Carter pain.

"Anything is worth seeing you. I don't care if you're covered in dirt or we're rich or poor, if you're mine then so be it," he tucked a bit of hair behind Marlee's ear. "I love you."

"I love you too." And then Marlee kissed him, a proper kiss that made them forget all about the prince, The Selection, and the price they would pay if anyone caught them doing just what they were doing.

"And one day," he said between kisses. "After The Selection... We'll find a nice house... get married... and it'll be the most perfect day of my life."

"Our lives." Marlee corrected, breathless.

He chuckled. "Of course. Our lives."