A/N: I think this might be a new record :P 2270 words.

kittenxxkisses: :) you just have to look harder for them! erm nope, i'm technically still 16, because my birthday is in april. i still have 3 years of poly education ahead of me, so i'll be 19 when i go into NS. Plaza singapura? LOL. i used to hang out there alot too, but my friends sort of shifted to orchard road cathay. both are great places imo :p

majic91: my first language is english, as is for all singaporeans. we have mother tongue though, which for me, is chinese. our main language is still english :P

and to all you people who are begging (or threatening) for some dimitri and rose, i had to deliberately CUT OFF some adrian and sydney scenes to write some R&D this chapter because you guys are so damn impatient! D: now, to get back at you guys, i'm purposely made it so that the conversation is going to last two chapters c:

"Hurry up!" Dimitri shouted as he brought up the stragglers of the recruits in the middle of their morning jog. "Push yourselves! We've only covered two miles; we have another three to go!"

Most of the girls and boys moaned in despair, but Dimitri was heartened when Rose didn't complain one bit. She kept on going, her long hair tied back in a tight ponytail that swerved side to side with each one of her long strides, looking so goddamned beautiful he had a hard time forcing his gaze away.

Christian was in charge of the front, setting the pace that was meant to only be a warm-up, but already it was killing a large majority of the recruits. To say that it was disappointing was an understatement; Dimitri had hoped fervently that this new batch can produce at least a few Guardians of high calibre to replenish the dwindling numbers. At present, however, that seemed like a distant and almost impossible vision.

"Come on," he encouraged, patting one girl – Carol, was it? – on the back, causing her to put on a spur of speed.

They continued on in silence, only the barely audible sound of their footsteps on the soft, yielding grass filling their ears. This trail was what Dimitri always took during his nightly jogs, and he was positive that it was safe.

He couldn't say the same for the other, less explored and remote trails.

Adrian fell into step beside him a minute later, matching his pace effortlessly, though beads of sweat dotted his forehead – the only proof of any sort of strain. Having declined to jog as a group in favor of being on his own to explore the unfamiliar grounds, his arrival no doubt meant that he had finished his sweep of the environment. And if his dramatic sigh was any indication, he found it lacking.

"No clubs nearby here? Seriously, Dimitri, how am I going to get some action here that way?" Adrian groused.

"You're not."

"Are you kidding me? That's the sole reason I came here!"

"I didn't tell you over the phone that there would be a club here." Dimitri pointed out.

"I thought that was a given!"

"You thought wrong."

Adrian shoved a hand through his hair irritably, messing it up further. Dimitri noticed that since Adrian had reached the camp, he no longer styled his hair like he used to. "How the hell am I going to drink, then? You have to give me that at least."

"We have plenty of water."

Adrian swore, clearly reaching the end of his patience. "That's not what I fucking meant, and you know it!"

Dimitri shook his head, slightly taken aback by his friend's temper. Adrian rarely got angry, he was always jolly and downright cheerful, so much so that it got annoying. "You have to stay sober, Adrian. We never know when we might be attacked, and we'll have to be alert around the clock. Not having you lucid is going to really hamper our defensive capabilities."

"Training camps like this have never been attacked in the last century! Strigois know better than to come with guns blazing in such areas." Still, Adrian sounded slightly mollified.

"We're in the wilderness." Dimitri said, "an hour away from the nearest town. We may have barricaded off the area, but a breach is still very possible. And we never know what the Strigois are up to, especially since there's so fucking many of them at the moment, and their numbers might be increasing as we speak."

Adrian's face turned pensive. "I've scoured the outer reaches of the campus, and it looks very secure to me. No way a Strigoi would be able to get though the stakes without setting off the alarms."

"It pays to be more careful."

Realizing that they had slowed down due to their conversation and were lagging behind, the duo put on a burst of speed to catch up with the rest.

"Alright," Adrian relented with a sigh, looking downright miserable, "I'll lay off the alcohol. But all bets are off during the weekends – "

"You can drink yourself into a stupor then and I won't give as much as a damn."

Adrian smiled faintly. "We have ourselves a deal then."

A few minutes later, they emerged back where they had started from to find Christian dismissing the recruits for a water break. As the recruits scattered wearily, Christian strode over. "Two more days," he said when he approached, "till the weekends, Adrian. Then we can go to town and do what we do best." Dimitri observed a significant lack of enthusiasm in Christian's tone.

"Seems like an eternity away," Adrian said, shaking his head ruefully as he tipped the contents of a bottle of water down his throat.

Sensing the dampening mood, Dimitri changed the topic. "What happened with Sydney yesterday, Adrian? I think that that was the first time I ever saw you so depressed."

Adrian scowled, sitting down on a rotting log after checking that it wasn't infested with any sort of insects. "That woman's worse than the fucking arctic. Jesus, I think she only has one facial expression. She doesn't smile, she doesn't laugh. She just stares at you. Even her eyes are bleak." He shivered. "She's an alchemist, isn't she?"

"Yeah." Christian nodded, shooting a triumphant look at Dimitri. "I told you so."

Dimitri shrugged. "I'm sure that it doesn't matter. She does her job well, and that's what I care about."

Adrian interlaced his fingers, glancing up at the others. "Got to admit though, there's something sexy as hell about the way she carries herself."

Christian chortled. "You just like her pair of legs."

"That, too." Adrian pushed himself to his feet. "I wonder whether I can get through to her. You know, discover the real woman inside of her." He looked thoughtful.

"Good luck with that," Christian laughed dismissively. "I think you'll have better chances trying to seduce Viktoria."

Dimitri jerked to attention immediately at the mention of his sister name, growling low and menacingly. "Lay a hand on my sister, and I swear to God I'll have your head."

Adrian rolled his eyes. "If you keep doing that to every single guy that shows any interest in her, she'll die a virgin."

"Does that mean you're interested in her?" Dimitri narrowed his eyes.

"Jesus, no." Adrian's hands were up in surrender. "She's way too young for me."

Christian chuckled. "That never stopped you before."

"Look who's talking," Adrian sniped back, eyebrow lifted.

Christian shut his mouth, looking sheepish.

Dimitri's gaze darted from Adrian to Christian, than back to Adrian. "Is there something I'm missing here?"

"It's nothing," Christian asserted unconvincingly, casting a pointed glare at Adrian. "I'm going to go assemble the recruits for some sparring." He took off like the devil was on his heels.

Dimitri turned to Adrian. "Care to explain?"

Adrian just smiled and shook his head before walking off, his hands behind his head, whistling.

It had been two days.

Two fucking days since Dimitri had seen Rose.

Sure, he always saw her during training sessions, but that didn't count as it was compulsory for her to attend. Outside of training, she seemed to be doing her best to avoid him, changing course the moment she saw him walking towards her, stopping whatever she's doing and just leaving when she spots him coming.

It irritated him to say the least, and he didn't have the foggiest idea why.

He also intended to find out the reason for her shunning him like a plague.

Catching up with Adrian who was looking incredibly elated now that the weekend was just around the corner at the assembly area, he asked, "Have you seen Rose?"

Adrian frowned, his brow puckering. "Rose?" he echoed dumbly, then realization struck and he nodded. "The gorgeous brunette?"

Dimitri experienced a wave of anger at the way Adrian described Rose, and his hands fisted. "Yes," he ground out, fighting the urge to warn Adrian that Rose wasn't up for grabs. Because she was. He wasn't going to woo her or anything – it was against the damn rules. "The gorgeous brunette."

Adrian gave him a weird look, but pointed in the direction of the gym – another place that was always updated with the newest equipment and machines. "She was heading there. Said something about nothing to do since Lissa wasn't around." He gave a shrug, as if to signify who was he to understand woman.

Thanking Adrian curtly, Dimitri walked briskly over and was relieved to find that Rose was indeed there, running on the treadmill. The gym was otherwise thankfully empty. Dimitri didn't want an audience. He snuck over to the entrance, careful to make sure that Rose didn't see him approaching. There was only one entrance, and since it also served as the exit, Rose won't be able to get away this time.

They were going to have a nice, long talk.

Rose stiffened when she heard the glass door of the gym ease open silently, the back of her neck prickling in awareness and warning. She didn't need to turn around to know without a doubt it was Dimitri and on another occasion, that would have made no sense to her, but with Dimitri in the same room as her then, her brain seemed to cease operating at maximum potential.

The familiar wave of resentment resurfaced, threatening to smother her in bitterness. She had tried her best to see as little of Dimitri as she could the past few days because whenever she did, she died a little more inside. It scared her; how much power he seemed to have over her emotions even if she didn't understand why. Rose hated feeling weak, hated feeling like she couldn't fend for herself. That in itself was more than enough a reason to justify staying away from Dimitri.

Pretending that she didn't care for his presence, she continued running at the breakneck pace she had set for herself on the treadmill.

Dimitri silently stepped onto the treadmill next to hers and powered it up, setting it to high.

"What do you think you're doing?" Rose snapped at him, unable to control her volatile anger any longer. He already had a fucking lover - and she still hated him for it - and now he was intruding on her rare moment of privacy?

"Running," Dimitri replied coolly, looking her in the eye.

"Have fun. I'm out of here." Not wanting to argue with Dimitri – or be in close proximity with him – Rose jabbed at the power off button and hopped off the treadmill, making straight for the door, half wishing that he would give chase, half wishing he won't.

That only strengthened her resolve to keep away from Dimitri - she had never been so contradictory before.

Dimitri was in front of her a moment later, blocking her way. "Rose, listen to me."

"Get out of my way!" Rose tried to sidestep him, but he mirrored her. "I don't have time for this, Dimitri!" Frustration grew within her when he still didn't allow her past him.

"Rose, I just want to talk – "

"Well, I don't want to!" Rose retorted, shoving at his chest with all her might but failing to even move him by an inch. "I'm warning you! If you don't get out of my way now, I'll make sure you regret it!"

Dimitri stood his ground with an inscrutable expression.

That did it.

Rose lashed out with her leg in an arc, aiming for his head. Dimitri responded with lightning fast reflexes, grabbing her feet in midair, effectively stopping her attack. Beyond livid, she swung her other leg upwards too, using her feet that Dimitri was holding as the pivot, trusting that Dimitri won't let go of her feet because he didn't want her to fall head first to the ground. A dirty trick, she knew, but she was no longer playing fair.

He didn't.

Her feet collided with the back of his neck and Dimitri swore loudly, stumbling to the side as released Rose. Momentarily disoriented by her fall to the ground, Rose took a precious second to get back on her feet before she sprinted dazedly to the door, praying that she didn't hit Dimitri too hard. She knew that he had a reputation of being an iron wall, taking hits without even blinking, but. . .

Reaching the door, she glanced back to check on Dimitri.

Only to find that he was gone.

Rose only had a moment to register that fact before strong arms clamped around her waist, yanking her back against a hard chest. "Goddamn it, Rose, I just wanted to talk." Dimitri grunted next to her ear breathlessly, holding her effortlessly as she flailed.

"Let. Go. Of. Me!" Rose shouted furiously, struggling as if her life depended on it. She felt triumphant when the back of her sports shoes hit something hard – probably his ankle – and Dimitri swore. After what felt like an eternity, Rose sagged against him, utterly depleted and tired from the exertion.

"You okay now?" Dimitri muttered, his hot breath against her temple an almost tangible caress.

"No! Let me go!"

Dimitri sighed against her hair, releasing her. "Look, Rose, I just wanted to ask you – "

Rose whirled around, poking her finger into his chest, scowling. "You had no right to do that."

"I know." Dimitri shook his head, thrusting a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry."

Rose blinked in surprise. Did she just hear an apology? "You're what?"

"I'm sorry."

Placated just the slightest bit by the sincerity in his words, Rose felt some of her animosity towards him drain away. "You said you wanted to talk," she said, taking a step back and folding her arms across her chest, "so talk."

Taking a moment to compose himself, Dimitri took a deep breath. Fixing his eyes on her, he asked softly, "Why are you avoiding me?"