A/N: I am sorry it takes me so long to update, but with all that is going on, that is most probably the way things will be from now on! I hope you enjoyyy... CHAPTER WHATEVA!

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Kartik and I stare into each other's eyes, a competition to see who would break such contact first. Both of us seemed comfortable to stay, though. We were comfortable locked in each other's gaze in such a way. Kartik's eyes are so round, so golden, so special... So much like himself...

I almost didn't notice when I inched closer to him as we walked further on towards Sporks. What surprised me was Kartik's reaction. He did not back away, as I had been expecting him to. He had, instead, made it a wonderful, warm, treasured secret between the two of us and stayed that way.

We walk farther down the path as we reach an area where the light of the moon is completely covered by trees. The darkness overwhelms a feeling I did not know of. There was some sort of electricity going through me, reaching towards Kartik, making me want to touch his skin, touch his body, get inside him...

But such thoughts were forbidden, and so I shook them out of my head with some difficulty. But the electricity was still there, only with more fervor, and I had to clasp my hands beneath my arms to keep from reaching over and touching him. When I looked up shyly into his eyes again, he was staring sheepishly into mine, with his arms in the same position. His lips rise into the sweet crooked grin again, and I smile politely, trying not to let my thoughts wander to where they were before, when I thought of Kartik landing soft kisses on my neck...

I felt ashamed when I realized that my thoughts had taken over me yet again. I frowned and pushed the thoughts aside.

It felt like forever until we reached the part of the path which leads on to the entrance of Sporks; to the moonlight, where I hoped to find that the warmth travelling through my body and to Kartik would subside. I take a small step in that direction and turn around to look at Kartik again. He put his hands in his pockets and shrugged his shoulders slightly.

"So..." he began. He seemed to break down suddenly; to cower within himself. He looked up to the heavens and reached his hands out, as if asking the sky 'why?'. "What is to happen?" he whispers, so quietly and quickly that I wasn't sure he had done so in the first place.

"Whatever is the matter, Kartik?" I asked. He looked at me as if noticing me standing there for the first time. He blinked once; twice.

"I have made some mistakes, told you some things best not told." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. I felt it; he was going to get rid of me. He was going to reject me. I would not; no, I could not allow it.

"I am to have my debut in but a few months," I blurted out, thinking of nothing else I might have been able to say. Kartik raised his eyebrows. The look was meant to be uncaring, but there was something inscrutable beneath it.

"Is that so?" he asked. "And might you be attending any balls?"

I nod my head, eager to talk to him. "Oh, I should expect to attend several balls," I say as if quoting my grandmama.

"I have never been to a ball before. I know not how to dance at all," Kartik admitted sheepishly, looking at me from beneath those long lashes. Such a look made my blood pump faster; my face tinge red.

"Well, it is not difficult at all! Watch," I order. I hold my hands up, placing one on the shoulder and the other in the hand of an imaginary man. I move my toes rhythmically as Mrs. Nightwing had taught us. I spun around, being taken in by the feeling of ecstasy to spin and twirl and dance.

Kartik tapped my shoulder lightly. He performed an entertainingly exaggerated bow, in which his whole body shook. I giggled girlishly. He held out his hand, still bent over. "May I have this dance, Lady Ramsbottom?"

I placed my hand in his gently. His palm was cold and hard, yet soft at the same time. I did my best not to flinch at the surprising temperature. "Why, of course, Lord Hoity-Toity," I responded, placing my other hand gently on his shoulder. I felt the muscle there.

Kartik seemed lost at that point. He did not know what to do next, and I couldn't help a small giggle at this knowledge. I took his other hand in mine and placed it on my waist. He seemed to relax after discovering the proper positioning, and we began to dance.

At first Kartik seemed confused. He stumbled several times, but soon enough, he had managed to understand the rhythm and to get the movements done properly. We were uncomfortably settled more than a foot away from each other. Even though this was as expected, it felt like a much larger gap than that. Kartik noticed.

"I say, why must we stand so far apart?" He asked. He moved the hand that was at my waist and let it curl until it was at the small of my back. I gasped as he pulled me in closer. There was only about an inch between our chests. There was gooseflesh all over my body.

I looked back up to see that Kartik was staring tenderly into my eyes. Our faces were only centimeters apart. I could feel his every breath against my skin. His breath was a wonderful one. He was so close to me, and yet too far. "And so the lion fell in love with the lamb," he murmured so quietly I was not sure he had said so in the first place.

"Pardon me?" I ask softly.

"I suppose you have heard of the tale of Bella and Edward?" Kartik asked. When I nodded, he continued, "It was the way Edward had first confessed his love to Bella."

I stare into his eyes with astonishment, and for the first time I noticed the warmth and sincerity within them. "What a stupid lamb," I respond, thinking of nothing else to say.

Kartik chuckled softly. "What a sick, masochistic lion." I smiled tenderly at his words. The closeness between us was nothing compared to the feeling I had.

Suddenly, something seemed to soften within Kartik's gaze, as if he were giving up on something, and he pulled away from me entirely. I felt the loss immediately, and I couldn't help a shiver. Kartik wrapped his arms around himself.

I reached out boldly and touched Kartik's hand softly. The touch seemed so difficult for him. He uncoiled his body and released my hand. "There is something I would like to try, Gemma," he said. I nod, letting him know that he may do whatever he pleased. He slowly advanced toward me. When we were only a millimeter away from each other, I could not handle it anymore. The bond was too much. Everything was too good. I gave up with a flourish of my hand, raising it to my forehead, and fainted.

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