I don't own VA! Also, sorry for muddling the plot a bit, I'm trying to throw in important aspects from the book but my memory is terrible so it's a little out of order. I think I'm getting the major stuff pretty well! Enjoy!

Thirteen

Chapter 18

RPOV

He didn't answer at first, looking at his feet as they shuffled against the carpet. I sighed heavily and sat on my bed, prepared to wait. He began pacing the tiny area of my room, finally stopping directly in front of me. He met my eyes, anger clear on his face.

"What do I want?" he snapped. "I want you to stop making stupid decisions that'll get you kicked out of school!" I flinched as he nearly shouted at me.

"I'm allowed to have fun every once in a while," I bit back, tilting my chin up defiantly. Fire could've shot out of his ears at that.

"It's fun for you to put yourself into comprising situations with a piece of shit royal that would love nothing more to take advantage of you then run off and brag to his stupid friends?" I blinked in shock at his anger and the vast amount of words that had just tumbled out of him. He rarely said more than ten word sentences. Except for when we were together. Anger flared in me and I jumped to my feet, jabbing my finger into his chest.

"What does it matter to you?" I questioned. "You practically ignored me when I first got back and now you're worried about my reputation? That's real fucking rich, comrade!"

"You left me, Rose!" he glared down at me. "What was I supposed to do? Run into your arms and thank you for slipping up enough that they found you? It's not like you would've came back of your own free will."

"I was protecting Lissa!" I yelled, frustrated since we'd already had this conversation. "That's my job. They come first, remember?"

"You're not a guardian yet," his tone was harsh and it only fueled my anger. "And you were almost never going to be one."

"That's not the point here," I resisted the urge to punch him.

"No, it's not," he pinched the bridge of his nose. "The point here is that you were doing something stupid and now you're mad at me for telling you that."

"Fuck you," I growled. "And you never even told me why the fuck it matters to you!" He looked conflicted for a second, then stepped closer so our chests were millimeters apart. I inhaled sharply at his proximity.

"It matters, Roza," he growled right back. "Because for me, they don't come first. You do." My heart stopped as my anger defused. I was still breathing heavily from the rage that had coursed through me before. I placed my hand on my bed behind me to steady my shaking legs.

"That's…no," I whispered. "You don't mean that." I met his eyes and they softened, his own anger fading and turning into anguish.

"Why didn't you ask me to come?" he murmured. "When you left?"

"I couldn't destroy your future," I whispered. "You're on track to be one of the best."

"You were too. But you left for her. If you'd have asked me, I would've left for you," he admitted, eyes scanning my face for my reaction. I blinked a couple times, realizing suddenly that we were still nearly touching. I regained control over my mind and body and flung myself at him. My arms wrapped around his neck and he easily caught my waist so we didn't fall over and my lips crashed against his. He froze, arms tight around my waist but only for a second. Then he was kissing me back with a passion we hadn't had at fifteen. I jumped up to wrap my legs around his waist and he slid his hands under my ass, squeezing gently. I gasped against his mouth and he took the opportunity to shove his tongue into my mouth. We fought for dominance until I couldn't breathe. I broke away but his lips stayed on my skin, trailing hot, openmouthed kisses along my jaw and neck. I ripped the tie out of his hand, winding my fingers into the silky locks and moaning as he sucked gently on my collar bone.

"Dimitri," I whispered. His eyes flashed to mine as his lips left my skin. "I love you. I never stopped." A beautiful, full smile lit up his face and he kissed my lips gently.

"I love you, too," he replied. "I always have and I always will." I pulled his face back to mine and we collapsed onto my narrow bed. He kept his weight off of me with one arm flat along my head as the other stroked my side. Fire shot through my veins at his touch as we pulled back to look at each other. I traced the planes of his face with my fingertips and he closed his eyes, a blissful expression on his face. As my fingers met his lips, he wrapped his hand around my wrist, holding me still as he placed gentle kisses on them.

"I dreamed about you every night," I admitted. His eyes opened as he smiled lazily at me. "Touching me. Kissing me. When I'd wake up, and remember we were apart, I was devastated, every time."

"I dreamt of you too, Roza," he leaned his forehead against mine. "They weren't all pleasant. A lot of them were similar to yours and I clung to those. But sometimes, you were being attacked and I couldn't get to you until it was too late. I worried all the time that you wouldn't be able to come back to me. That you were…" he trailed off as he looked away. I cupped his cheek and pulled his eyes back to mine.

"That I was dead?" I offered, tone soft. He nodded. "I'm sorry for doing that to you. I never intended to hurt you."

"I know," he nuzzled our noses together. "I can see that now. I was blinded by my own pain and anger. That wasn't fair to you. I'm sorry for treating you the way I did when you came back." Our lips met again, this time softly and full of love. When the need for air became too much, we pulled away but kept our foreheads touching. We laid there, wrapped in each other's arms for what felt like an eternity. Suddenly, he glanced to the window, where sunlight was trying to peek through the blackout curtains and swore in Russian under his breath.

"I should go," he said, reluctantly. I sighed but nodded in understanding.

"Are we okay now though?" I whispered, not letting go just yet. "Are we back together?" He chuckled and stroked my cheek.

"I love you," he told me, fiercely. "Of course, we're back together." A funny look crossed his face.

"If that's what you want," he added, brows furrowing as he studied me. I kissed him deeply.

"I've never wanted anything more," I informed him. We shared another feverish make out session before he slipped out of my room and back to his own. I felt truly happy for the first time since we returned. A sudden surge of annoyance pulled me into Lissa's head.

"I don't know why you care anyway," she snapped at Christian. She was in the church attic with him again and I felt my anger flare back up. I told her to stay away from him.

"I was just asking," he held his hands up in surrender. I prodded a bit to find out he'd asked one too many questions about the fox for Lissa's liking. We really did need to get to the bottom of that.

"Well don't," she snapped. I was surprised and Christian looked like he was too too. Lissa was starting to get paranoid and temperamental again and I was starting to worry.

"Sorry to bother you, Princess," he snarked, after recovering from his shock. He stormed out of the attic and Lissa sagged against the chair she sat in. Dark emotions swirled through her and I wished I could talk to her. It felt like she was calming down so I forcibly yanked myself out of her head. I laid back in my bed, my own emotions going haywire. I was unbelievably happy to have Dimitri back but also very worried about Lissa. I needed to find a better balance with them this time. I couldn't bare the thought of losing either of them. I tossed and turned most the night but managed to get a few hours of sleep.

I woke up late the next morning, barely having time to throw on my workout clothes and run to the gym for our morning practice. Practice went smoothly as Dimitri, Mikhail and I had settled into a routine now. We ran some laps to warm up, then worked through various attacks and defenses. When we left the gym to go to breakfast, Dimitri draped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me close. I smiled up at him, slinging my arm around his waist as he placed a sweet kiss on my lips.

"Hey!" Mikhail called after us. We both looked back over our shoulders at him. "I'm glad you two worked out…whatever it was that was happening between you." Even from across the room, I could see the wistfulness in his eyes and knew his mind was on Sonya Karp. I smiled back at him sympathetically.

"Thanks, Mikhail!" I called back. "And thanks for sticking up for me and being my mentor and everything too." He gave a quick nod then left the gym through the opposite exit. Dimitri and I made our way to breakfast, only to be met with a sea of fellow classmates gathered around the center of the cafeteria. Never one to be out of the loop, I released Dimitri and pushed myself towards the center of the crowd. I sensed Lissa's proximity as well as her irritation even before I reached the middle of the crowd. Her and Mia were in the center, glaring at each other.

"You and your little Salvation Army bitch of a best friend never should have come back here," Mia's voice was full of venom. "Stay away from Aaron. He's mine now." I lunged forward, grabbing her hand she'd been using to point at Lissa. I smiled wickedly at her.

"Hi, bitchy best friend here," I growled. "And you're standing too close. Go near her again and you'll regret it. If you don't believe me, just ask Dawn what I did to her arm freshman year." Her eyes widened in fear and she gulped, before glaring at me and yanking her arm away.

"You really are a psychopath," she bit out, turning on her heel and storming away. The hoard of our classmates dispersed, grumbling in disappointment at there not being a fist fight. I turned my full attention to Lissa.

"What the hell was that about?" I asked as Dimitri arrived at our sides, placing a hand on the small of my back. Lissa sighed, pushing her hair back.

"Aaron asked to borrow my notes for one of our classes yesterday," she explained. "I guess she saw us talking and got mad." She shrugged, looking forlorn, then noticed Dimitri's hand placement. Slowly, her eyes lit up, a smile spread across her face and excitement flashed in the bond. She looked between our faces, eyes landing on mine. I grinned back at her like a fool and nodded to her silence question. She let out an ear-piercing squeal, flinging herself at us and pulling us into a group hug. She kissed my cheek as Natalie walked up behind her.

"What was that all about?" she asked, pushing her glasses up her nose as we went to sit down. Dimitri excused himself to get us both food.

"Dimitri and I got back together," I announced, smiling broadly. Natalie and Lissa squealed together this time, and I couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of me. For the first time since we'd been back, I truly felt like everything was going to be okay. Then I saw Lissa starring across the cafeteria with a longing look on her face. I followed her gaze and my eyes landed on Christian Ozera. I guessed that was going to be a bigger problem than I'd initially thought. Shit.

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