Her heart was thrumming steadily beneath his palm as Chase floated above her sleeping form, his face so close to hers as her shuddering breaths caused her chest to quake gently. That pleasant warmth was still spreading through his limbs with the same vigor as it had the previous night, continuing to banish the lingering traces of pain from his nerves as it healed him from the inside-out. Incredible that despite being at the literal mercy of his fingertips, she somehow still had strength enough to provide him with what he needed. Every. Single. Time.

For the fifth time, he sighed deeply in relief, never taking his eyes off Lily's face as he kept his hand pressed to her skin. Taking. Power alive in his pores and becoming stronger with every use. Her head tilted further back onto her pillow, causing her chin to tilt up and the long curve of her neck to be exposed. Seeing this, he felt something stir within his chest. What was it about watching her sleep like this that had him so damn transfixed? Had him narrowing his eyes as he memorized every detail of her face, from the slight furrow of her brow, to the way her mouth had fallen open with her rhythmic breathing?

What is it, huh? He grazed the knuckles of his other hand over her cheek, not surprised when she turned away from the chill of his touch. What can you tell me?

The barest of gasps passed her lips, and he could detect the mild shivers that were beginning to wrack her body.

Why…

His focus wavered when he heard her breathless voice in his head again.

…are you doing this?

Clenching his teeth, Chase kept his gaze fixed on her, maintaining his hypnotic hold despite that bothersome little interruption. Once again, she'd managed to penetrate his own thoughts in an attempt to protest his actions, and he couldn't help but speculate as to the potential reason behind these sudden shimmers of strength.

Tyler…

He arched a brow at the murmur in her thoughts. Shall I let you have him, then? He inquired of her, cupping her cheek with his hand. Even though she tried to turn her head away from his touch, he held fast. Hush now, lovely, he insisted, and she gradually became still beneath him. None of that.

Her breaths were still trembling as his thumb stroked her cheek, and he delved into her thoughts yet again to find her a helpless prisoner in that faceless figure's embrace. Let's just see what happens, he thought, summoning his will to change the vision within her mind. The figure's dark, blank face began to morph into something more discernible, more familiar, and soon enough, it was the image of Tyler holding her to his bare chest from behind. Lifting a hand to cup her jaw, Tyler guided her face back to his, and when she opened her eyes, her entire face seemed to light up with recognition.

Lily gave another soft, gasping breath, and Chase felt the quickening of her heart beneath his palm. A smile crept across his lips. 'Atta girl, he praised, sensing the heightening of her energy just before he drew more into himself. The warmth wafted right through him, making him sigh triumphantly as he decided to give her a little more, this time making the vision of Tyler bend down to capture her lips with his.

This time, the surge of heat in his veins had his mouth falling open as he gave a shuddering exhale of his own. Oh…yeah…

Lily made a gentle sound in the back of her throat, and Chase looked down at her, seeing the peace that had unexpectedly come over her features…save for that faintest hint of a furrow still in her brow as he remained latched onto her. Then she sighed, her head rolling to one side as she settled back into deep sleep. He watched her closely, tilting his head as he continued to study her face, and then he glanced into her mind again, seeing that she was holding on to that image of Tyler kissing her.

He released a slow breath through his nostrils. Maybe…he thought absently, letting his fingers caress her cheek. He watched her react predictably to his touch, then proceeded to further manipulate the image in her mind in order to feel the surge of energy through his form once more.

Though there was still that familiar sense of fatigue hanging over her the following morning, Lily nonetheless felt herself smile. Her dreams…they were more pleasant last night than they had been in weeks, and as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail, Tyler's handsome face remained the most prominent image in her mind. She didn't want to jinx it, but somehow, she really did seem to feel better whenever she kept him in her thoughts lately.

Maybe her heart was heeding the advice both Sarah and her mother had given her; maybe she finally was ready to give him a second chance.

At the same time, however, she held her breath, waiting for any inkling of doubt from that sinister voice…

There was nothing. She sighed; thank God for that.

Grabbing her grey cardigan from the back of her desk chair, she quickly slipped it over her shoulders. Normally on weekends, she didn't bother to shower until after she'd gone down for breakfast, which was only served until eleven in Spenser's cafeteria. Since it was only a quarter past eight, she had plenty of time to get down there and eat. Usually, Tyler was notorious for sleeping in late on Saturdays, but as she headed for the door, she couldn't help but wonder if maybe, just maybe, she'd see him down there—

As soon as she opened the door, she looked down, gasping softly at what she found waiting for her: a pink carnation laying atop a small envelope, and, behind those, a small bottle of chocolate milk. There was no stopping her smile as she bent down, picking up the bottle first. Tyler was very aware of her fondness for chocolate milk, which she often touted as the most perfect of all beverages, so she knew it could have only been from him. Laughing softly, she shook her head, picking up the flower and envelope in her other hand. Briefly inhaling the subtlety sweet scent of the carnation, she situated the items in her hands so she could tear open the envelope, and finding the small card inside, her eyes read the three words that were written in Tyler's penmanship.

Dinner tonight. Please?

A gentle flush rose to her cheeks as her heart began to race. Tyler asking her on a date…again. No doubt to make up for what had occurred last time. But instead of giving in to her uncertainties, the notion of being alone with him had her smiling inwardly as a great warmth began to rise within her chest.

Tyler, her mind whispered. What time must he have gotten up to make sure she'd find this at just the right moment…?

A calmness descended upon her as she stepped back into her dorm. Setting everything down on her desk, she took out her phone, found his number, and was still smiling softly as she texted a single word.

Yes.

Yes. Even hours later, Tyler was still staring at the text on his screen.

Yes. Finally, she'd told him yes. It was incredible how three letters could drastically change his mood, and it was the first time he'd felt something close to what he could consider happiness in at least a month.

Looking up once more, his eyes scanned the area, checking for any signs of Lily's approach. He'd asked her to meet him in front of the bell tower at six, and he'd purposely arrived an hour ahead of time. He wanted to see her as she approached, to observe her from his spot behind one of the campus' tall oaks before he made his presence known. Stupid, maybe, but it wasn't any stupider than what he'd accidentally pulled on her the night of the dance. All that mattered was that she was coming, and they were going to have their first official date.

He glanced at the time in the upper corner of the screen: 5:54. Six minutes until their meeting time, and the sky continued to grow darker overhead. Another sign that they were transitioning further into the month of October, aside from the ever-cooling temperatures. He released a breath through his nostrils. Everything was all set for tonight, and he hoped everything would go smoothly. Unlike Caleb or Pogue, he wasn't quite as seasoned a pro in the realm of dating, but that was a personal choice on his part. The idea of serial dating had never held much appeal to him; no, he preferred to wait until the right one came along…

When he looked up again, Lily was coming down the walk past the gymnasium, and his heart skipped a beat. God, he loved it when she wore her hair like that: all gathered to one side so that it draped over her shoulder, exposing the elegant curve of her neck. It wasn't a style she often wore, and seeing it like that now had him biting the inside of his cheek. She really was beautiful, and even as she came to a stop in front of the bell tower steps, Tyler was content to stand back and admire her from afar for just a moment longer. Just beneath the hem of her jacket, he could see that she was wearing her favorite denim skirt—the one with the fleur-de-lis patch on it—and what she affectionately referred to as her athletic Mary Jane's. It suited her. Seeing her glance at her watch and then once more at her surroundings, he pocketed his phone, took a deep breath, and emerged from his hiding spot.

Seeing him from the corner of her eye, Lily turned to him and smiled, causing his pulse to race. She hadn't smiled at him like that in far too long. As he approached, he reached out with his Power, checking for any possible signs of malicious activity surrounding her, but he detected nothing out of the ordinary. For that, he was silently grateful. Closing the distance between them, he smiled softly and presented her with another pink carnation that he'd been hiding behind his back.

"Consider this a fool's apology for ever hurting you," he said.

She blushed sweetly, her smile becoming just a bit shier as she accepted the flower from him. "Hey, Tyler."

"Hey," he replied. There were still evidence of dark circles under her eyes, but that hardly took away from her beauty. "You look great."

Her blush deepened. "Thank you."

There was a beat of quiet. Then he sighed. "Listen, I—"

"Before you say—" She started to say at the same time.

Pausing, they both laughed gently.

"Go ahead," he told her.

She gave him an appreciative look. "I just want to say that…" She looked down at the carnation as she twirled the stem between her fingers. "I really haven't been myself lately, which is why I kept finding reasons to avoid you whenever you wanted to talk. It just seemed like every time I was ready to say something, my mind just…" Her shoulders appeared to tense slightly, but then she relaxed as she exhaled, lifting her blue eyes to meet his again. "I really have wanted to talk to you. For quite some time."

Hearing her say this was like a wave of relief washing over him. "I've been worried about you."

"I know."

"I really am sorry, Lily..."

She very calmly lifted a hand. "From the sounds of it…you might have had a good reason for not being there that night."

He blinked, angling his head slightly. "Caleb mention something to you about that?"

"Sarah, actually."

His eyebrows went up at that. Sarah had spoken to her about that night?

Lily was biting down on her lower lip. "There was, um…a lot that she told me. About you; about the other guys. About there being more to your family's history than the legends that…" She trailed off when he reached out to cup the back of one of her hands with his, hearing her softly shudder as she inhaled at the contact. Her eyes never left his, and her voice was so much quieter when she spoke again. "I have a lot of questions to ask you, Tyler."

"About what we are."

This time, it was she who blinked, which only confirmed his suspicions about what Sarah had revealed her. "I'm not sure what to believe, but…is there some validity to what she said?"

He thought about that for a moment, his eyes still searching hers. The next thing he knew, the great bell in the tower above began signifying the six o'clock hour, and he felt a flutter of inspiration deep within his stomach. "Come with me for a minute?"

"Where?"

He smiled inwardly, placing an encouraging hand on her shoulder. "Come on. There's something I want to show you," he said, guiding her around to the far side of the bell tower. As they came to the lone door there, though, Lily halted in her steps, prompting him to turn back. "Something wrong?" He asked.

"'Maintenance Only,'" she pointed to the sign displayed on the door. "We're not allowed in there."

He shook his head. "Their rounds end by five on weekends; no one will know we're here."

She arched a brow at him. "So you've done this before?"

That inward smile of his turned into a genuine one. Were Reid present, he might ask her where her sense of adventure was, but unlike them, Lily was not a natural when it came to being a rule-breaker. In truth, it was one of the many traits he admired about her. He offered his hand to her. "Trust me?"

"Do I have a choice?"

He had to smile respectfully at her inquiry. Regardless of how much he wanted her to follow, he would never coerce her into doing anything against her will. Ever. "Always."

Her eyes remaining locked with his, but then she gave him the barest of smirks as she placed her warm hand in his.

He grinned, turning so she couldn't see his eyes as he summoned his Power, and willed the door open before leading her inside. The wooden steps of the narrow staircase creaked beneath their feet with every step they took. The bell tower was old, but not nearly as old as the town of Ipswich itself. It had been built back in 1850, when Spenser was still a fledgling school at the time, a sturdy ten-story structure at the heart of campus. Over the years, it had been restored and well-maintained, but still retained the quaint charm of its original design. It made the ten-flight climb feel as though they were ascending to another level in time.

"Where exactly are we going?" Lily asked behind him.

He glanced back down at her with a grin. "Up."

"I get that, smart-ass, but where to?"

There was something so endearing about hearing her swear, and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "You'll see."

They continued up the last two flights of stairs, and soon enough, Tyler began to emerge in the tower's belfry, one that had sufficient room for the two of them. "I come up here to get away sometimes," he told her as he guided her the rest of the way in, "get away from the guys; clear my head for a bit."

"Never thought I'd hear you say you actually need to get away from the guys once in a while."

He chuckled. "We all need our space," he glanced up at the large bell overhead. "Just have to be careful with my timing."

"I can imagine," she commented, also looking at the bell. Then she happened to see the view. "Oh, wow," she breathed, walking over and placing her hands on the stone railing.

"Yeah," he said, seeing how pretty her hair was from behind before he came to stand beside her. Even as sunlight disappeared, it was an impressive sight, especially with the leaves turning colors this time of year. The roofs of all the dorms and administration buildings were visible from up here, and every so often, a pedestrian would traverse the sidewalks below. "You get one of the best views of campus up here. And if you look further out there," he pointed to the east, "you can see part of Crescent Lake. See?"

"Yeah," she breathed, seemingly transfixed by what she saw. He could have watched her like that all night. Lily held such a vast fascination for so many simple things in life, a notion that had him appreciating so much more around him ever since they first became friends. Especially the sunsets he'd seen up in this very belfry since then. A gentle breeze passed through the arches of the belfry, causing a few loose tresses of her brown hair to dance around her face. It was taking every fiber in his body not to reach out and touch her neck, her hair…

"I can see why you prefer your solitude sometimes," she said.

"But not from you," he admitted quietly, feeling his stomach stir pleasantly when she turned to meet his eyes again. "Never from you.

She remained quiet for quite some time, and eventually, an ironic little smile played at her lips. "So was that your plan? Bring me up here so I'd be distracted from the questions I wanted to ask you?"

His gaze never left hers, not even as he turned to lean back against that stone railing. "No," he answered, bracing his palms upon the cool edge. "You just haven't asked me any questions yet."

She stared, then her faint smile returned. "I haven't, have I?" Then she sighed, looking down at the carnation in her hands. "I'm just…not sure how to word this without…without sounding crazy to myself."

The innocence in her voice; it made him feel protective of her heart all over again, made him realize how long he'd ached to tell her his deepest, darkest secrets…

Glancing down at the world below, he checked for any possible witnesses, but for the time being, there wasn't anyone in the immediate vicinity. He closed his eyes, breathing the cool air of approaching night into his lungs. "Guess I'll have to prove you wrong on that one," he said, turning to place a foot on the railing.

"Tyler…?" She questioned as he hoisted himself up, and he didn't miss the nervous inflection in her voice.

Standing carefully to his full height, he braced a hand on the overhead archway and looked down at her. Lifting his brows, he asked, "Trust me, Lily?"

She was hesitant, he could see that in those gorgeous blue eyes of hers, but he tried to convey as much reassurance to her as possible as they stood there together in silence. His patience was rewarded eventually when he saw her shoulders relax on an exhale, her eyes still holding his as she whispered one word. "Yes."

At this, he smiled gently, keeping his gaze locked with hers as he summoned his Power and let his eyes morph right in front of her. Hearing her sharp gasp, he calmly stepped off the edge of the railing.