Hi y'all! Thank you for your patience in waiting for this story to get updated! I promise that it won't be nearly six months before the next chapter is updated. Hope y'all enjoy the chapter :)

Hours later, I was still running through the conversation with Dimitri in my head. Every time I closed my eyes, the look on Dimitri's face when I told him that I was sorry I ever loved him kept popping up, taunting me. It was a lie, of course.

With a groan, I climbed out of my bed, leaving the sanctuary I'd been hiding in practically all week. I slid on my shoes, hoping a walk would do me good. I slipped out of the palace building without being seen by anyone (aside from the guardians on duty). I took off in a random direction without a destination in mind.

I wasn't sure how long I'd been out walking when I felt my phone vibrate with a text.

Lissa (6:37): Do you feel up to getting drinks tonight? Just us?

Rose (6:38): Sure. When?

I took a moment to recognize my surroundings before turning in the direction of our favorite place to get drinks. I started walking in that direction as I waited for Lissa to respond.

Lissa (6:39): Now?

I texted back my agreement and put my phone back in my pocket. I reached the bar first, as I expected that I would. I texted Lissa to let her know that I was at the bar before slipping into the back of the bar to use the bathroom.

When I came out, the door to the back room of the bar was cracked, and I could hear voices coming from inside.

"She won't even talk to me," a voice hissed. I froze, having spent too many nights having dreams about that voice to not recognize it as Dimitri's. The person Dimitri was talking to didn't say anything.

"This is your fault," Dimitri continued.

I heard a low laugh; one I couldn't place. "We both know that's not true. Maybe she's finally seen you for what you really are."

The other person's voice was as low as their laugh, and I struggled to hear it clearly. I stepped closer, and the floorboards creaked under my weight. I scampered backward, claiming the first spot I saw at the bar. It was on the corner, and I was sitting with a near-perfect view of the back room's door. The bartender came over, and I quietly ordered a Sex on the Beach.

The drink was sitting in front of me a moment later, and I sucked it down, trying not to take my attention off the back room's door.

A few minutes later, Dimitri stormed out of the back room, faltering for a moment when he saw me sitting at the bar. With a sad look in his eyes, Dimitri kept walking and left the bar a moment later. I sat at the bar for another moment, before standing up and walking towards the back. I checked that no one was following me before I slipped into the back room, hoping to figure out who Dimitri was arguing with.

There was nobody in the room when I walked in, and I groaned. Their conversation had clearly been about me, and I wasn't going to give up until I figured out what was going on. Which meant that I'd have to talk to Dimitri. I groaned again and returned to the bar before anyone noticed me missing.

I had only been sitting back at the bar for a minute or so when Lissa came up beside me. "Sorry, it took longer to get here than I expected," she said. "Glenn has a table in the corner."

I nodded and stood, leaving my empty glass on the bar counter. The bartender was familiar enough with us that she knew to put it on Lissa's tab. I followed Lissa to the table, and we both sat. Two of her guardians took up spots on either side of the table, against the wall, while the third guardian, Glenn, took the third seat at the table, angled away from us to give a semblance of privacy. Their formation ensured that nobody could get close to the table without them knowing, therefore protecting Lissa.

A server dropped off drinks a moment later, having been approved by the guardians to get close. I made a face as I saw the two Cosmopolitans on the tray.

"Cosmos?"

Lissa laughed. "Come on, I know you like them. You drink Sex on the Beach," she said with a pointed look.

I conceded and took my glass. "We're drinking amaretto sours next."

Lissa agreed, sipping her Cosmo. "What's new? I feel like I haven't actually gotten to talk to you this week. I'm so used to seeing you all of the time."

I laughed. "Don't worry; you won't be able to get rid of me once we're back at Lehigh. I haven't been avoiding you. Just avoiding your company."

Lissa made a sympathetic noise. "They're leaving tomorrow, about an hour before we go back to Lehigh, actually. Christian's been enjoying seeing Tasha though since they haven't seen each other in a while. I think it's been since my coronation. Tasha and Christian were talking it about earlier. She had stayed for a couple of months after the coronation, and it was around that time that Dimitri became her guardian."

Pieces clicked together in my head, and Lissa stopped talking as she realized what she said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring him up."

I waved her off. "It's fine. Do you know how long Tasha stayed after your coronation?"

"November, I think," Lissa said after thinking for a moment. "I remember Christian getting dinner with her around his birthday. Why?"

"That was the same birthday we gave him our present," I said, speaking softly. "When I left your apartment that night, I could have sworn that I saw Dimitri, and now I know that I wasn't crazy, and he probably really was there."

"You never told me."

I shrugged. "I wasn't entirely sure that I'd seen him. It was out of the corner of my eye, and when I looked over, there was no one there. I assumed I imagined it. It was easier to believe that than know that he was here and still didn't do anything."

My tone had turned bitter, and Lissa looked at me with sympathy in her eyes. I quickly told her what I overheard from the back of the bar.

"I'm going to confront him tomorrow," I said. "Been avoiding him all week just to end up here."

Lissa reached out to grab my hand, squeezing it. "I don't want to see you hurt again."

"Too late," I muttered, finishing off my Cosmo. I motioned to the waitress and ordered two amaretto sours when she came over.

"Rose—"

"Liss, please. Let's enjoy our last night before we're back at Lehigh, okay?" I said. "I promise I'll be fine."

The waitress returned with our new drinks, and Lissa smiled. We clinked our glasses together.

"To a great final year," Lissa said.

I was up early the next morning. I showered and dressed quickly before going outside. I picked a bench a little bit away from the palace building to sit on. It had a good vantage of the palace doors and the path from the parking garage. We were leaving for Leigh in ninety minutes, which meant that Dimitri and Tasha should be walking out at any moment. I wasn't outside for long when the door opened, and Dimitri and Tasha appeared. She had a duffel bag slung over one shoulder, while Dimitri carried two small suitcases.

I intercepted them before they could walk much further beyond the doors, stepping directly into Dimitri's path.

"We need to talk," I said. "Alone."

Dimitri looked at me in surprise before turning to Tasha.

She waved him off. "I'll be fine," she said. "I'll meet you at the car. Take your time."

He nodded, and Tasha walked away. Dimitri watched her for a moment before turning back to look at me, setting the suitcases down as he did so.

"I heard you at the bar last night," I said. "Who were you talking to?"

Dimitri shook his head. "It was nothing."

"Didn't sound like nothing."

Dimitri gave me a look. "Is this really what you wanted to talk about?"

"Why did you become Tasha's guardian?" I asked, changing topics. "Especially after saying no previously."

"She saved my life," Dimitri said. "We stayed in touch, even though I turned down her original offer. About a year after I left the Academy, we were getting dinner and catching up when Strigoi attacked. Tasha incinerated a couple, and I staked a couple, but one slipped through and caught me by surprise. He bit me and overpowered me. I thought it was the end; Tasha was busy lighting up other Strigoi but somehow saw me. The Strigoi would have killed me or worse if Tasha hadn't used her magic."

I stared at him in shock, processing his words. Around the Academy, Dimitri had always been referred to as a god, and I'd seen enough of his fighting to know it was true. The idea that a Strigoi was almost able to overpower Dimitri was almost an unbearable thought. I shuddered, thinking of what could have happened if Tasha hadn't been there or hadn't been quick enough.

"I agreed to be her guardian after that. I owed her," Dimitri said. "And selfishly, I agreed because of Tasha's relationship with Christian, and the connection to you through him."

I glared at him. "Do you really expect me to believe that? I thought I had everything at the Academy, and in the blink of an eye, it was ripped away from me. You were ripped away from me. Why come back now, after everything?"

"I never stopped caring, Roza," he said. "It would have been impossible for me to stop caring. And I meant what I said the other day. Tasha and I haven't been together romantically since we were at the ski resort in Idaho."

"You didn't answer."

Dimitri sighed. "I don't think you'd want to know the answer."

"You're wrong. I want to know. You wanted your chance to explain, so explain."

"You have to know that I never wanted to leave you, Roza," Dimitri murmured. "I loved you. I still do.

"Then why?" I whispered. My voice was strained as I blinked back tears.

Dimitri glanced away as he took a deep breath. "I left because of your father."

I was considering writing the next chapter from Dimitri's POV (like a flashback continuation from the last time this story was in his POV). Is that something y'all would want to read or should I just keep it Rose's POV?