A/N:

Hello!

No, I am not dead, though I may have gone a little off grid - no writing at all, not stories, not to reply to reviews (not even to write reviews...).

Anyway, I'm still alive and I've written a chapter! And to make up for being total shit, it's very extra long!

Thank you for following, favoriting and of course reviewing. I really do appreciate it all!

Spacial shout out to my girl - MartianEskimo, who made sure I don't post total shit!

Anyway here's the chapter. Hope you like it!

Happy Reading!

K

Dimitri woke up alone. It shouldn't've surprised him really. He'd awoken alone most of his life. Yet he didn't like falling asleep with Rose in his arms, then waking to a empty, cold bed. Sure, he knew she had a shift and school and a princess to guard. Still Dimitri would have liked to have woken with his Roza in his arms just once.

Dimitri found Rose at her desk working on an assignment. He leaned over her with on hand on the back of her chair and the other resting on her desk, and nuzzled the crook of her neck. "You let me sleep in", he noted the late hour.

"You were up late", Rose answered with a shiver.

"And whose fault was that?" Dimitri's breath tickled her ear before he took her lobe between his teeth.

Rose let out a moan. "Why are you torturing me?"

"I woke up all alone", Dimitri moved his lips along her shoulder.

"You wake up alone all the time", Rose pointed out the obvious.

"I guess I just realized I'd much rather wake up with you," he kissed Rose behind the ear, "naked", he kissed her cheek, "in my arms", he kissed her lips.

"MMhhh", Rose hummed. She gently pushed Dimitri back till he sat on the edge of her bed. But she didn't follow and remained in her chair. "About that…"

Immediately Dimitri didn't like where this was going.

Rose took a deep breath. "I think we should cool it until I tell Lissa". Before Dimitri had a chance to protest, Rose said, "It's only for a few more days. I'll tell her over brunch this weekend".

"And when you say cool it…" Dimitri prompted for more.

"No whispering in my ear. No kissing, no being cute, no sleeping in the same bed. And", Rose bit her lip.

"And?"

"No sex", Rose puffed out her breath. "It's just that… I don't want to be reckless and get caught or let anything slip before I have a chance to tell her".

Dimitri narrowed his eyes slightly, though his expression was playful. "That's actually a great idea". He got off the bed and headed back towards his room.

"What?!" Rose jumped up and nearly tackled him.

Fortunately, he had excellent reflexes and caught Rose by the waist. Dimitri chuckled. "I said, I think that's a great idea. There's only so long you'll be able to go without my, ehem, love. So keeping it cool will only make you tell Lissa that much faster".

Rose gasped and giggled. "You say that like I'm the one with no self control, when clearly, comrade, it's you who lacks control".

Dimitri chuckled and played with the ends of her hair. "What can I say? You drive me crazy, Roza". He leaned in to kiss her, but Rose pulled back. Dimitri pouted. "You would deny me one last kiss, my love?", he asked softly.

Rose could never deny him when he was being so cute. She leaned in and kissed him fiercely, as though she were soaking up as much of him as she could, to last her the next few days. Dimitri groaned when Rose detached herself from him, missing her already. Once again, he found himself pouting. He left to get ready for his shift, hoping to god Rose would tell Lissa as soon as humanly possible.

Lissa walked into the kitchen, looking very worried. "Guys, we need to talk", she informed Christian, Eddie, Rose and Dimitri who were seated at the table, waiting on dinner. "I just got a call from the Queen's office. Apparently, word got back to her about the 2 strigoi attacks and she has decided to allocate more guardians here".

Silence surrounded the table. "How is that going to work, exactly?" Eddie asked.

"I'm not sure", Lissa answered. "The queen did say they couldn't find appropriate accommodations for the time being, however next semester we'll all be living together somewhere appropriate, where all 8 of us will fit".

"The queen is sending 3 more guardians?" Dimitri asked with a raised eyebrow.

"How could you agree to that Liss?" Rose accused.

"First, I wasn't given much of a choice", she replied. "Second, 3 guardians isn't enough. You three are spread out too thin! We ask too much of you. It's not right and it's not fair".

"But still, we don't need 3 more guardians", Rose insisted.

"Really?! You are so worn out that Dimitri was almost killed during the first attack! Christian could have been next! Rose, you came this close", Lissa motioned a small gap between her fingers, "to dying in the second one. We're trapped inside the wards every time the sun goes down, too afraid of another attack!" Lissa too a deep breath. "I am doing this for you, not just for us". It was clear you were the 3 dhampirs at the table, while us were the moroi. "Do you honestly think I could ever live with myself if I lost you, Rose, because you died trying to protect me?!" The rhetorical question was left unanswered, as well it should be. "Do you think having more guardians is easy for me? or Chris? Do you know what its like to constantly be watched? To never have a moment where you're truly alone?"

"Where are they even going to stay?" Rose asked when she knew she'd lost the battle. "We only have room here for one more person here", she referred to the guest room.

"I don't know yet", Lissa was relieved Rose wasn't fighting her harder. "But we'll figure it out". Lissa had some ideas but until they knew who was coming, they couldn't make any rash decisions about rooming. She was well aware that they all may need to rethink how they were distributed throughout the apartment.

Dimitri was all business. "Do we know yet who's getting assigned here? How many are going to be allocated to you and how many to Christian? What are the dynamics supposed to be like? Who takes point?", he bombarded Lissa with questions.

"I'm not sure about those details. I can tell you that 2 guardians will be assigned to me and 1 to Christian. But Dimitri, you are still my head guardian, and as far as anyone here is concerned, you're taking point and calling the shots". Lissa spoke for both her and Christian, but all present parties were on board with the scenario, it just made sense. He was their senior. They all knew him and trusted him and his judgement. "Hans Croft should be calling you later tonight with more details".

"I don't like this", Rose continued with her bad vibes.

Lissa rolled her eyes. "Wouldn't you rather live a little cramped for the next 8 weeks till we go back to court and be a safer and more prepared for any eventuality, than to have your own room and for all of us to be in constant danger?!"

Dimitri discreetly squeezed Rose's thigh under the table. She met his gaze. It was an instant balm. But she also knew it meant they could talk more about the situation later, not in the current forum.

"Let's see what Croft says", Dimitri interjected. "When we have more information, we'll know how to handle the situation and how to accommodate the newcomers".

If what Lissa said was true, and Dimitri would be taking point, it would be a promotion for him. He wondered if they'd get seasoned guardians or green ones. Not that he was apposed to green. Eddie and Rose were green and they were two of the most dedicated skilled guardians he'd ever worked with.

After everyone went to sleep, Rose stayed up with Dimitri. "This is big, comrade. I mean this is a big deal for you. But 3 more guardians living here? What are we going to do?"

"I don't know yet". Dimitri wrapped his arm around Rose. He wanted to be excited about the obvious promotion. And he was thrilled that they would all be safer and the work load would lessen. But he couldn't help but think how he and Rose would make it work with 3 extra pairs of eyes on them. "But we'll get through this". He kissed her forehead.

"Hey", Rose smiled, "I'm proud of you, Dimitri".

"We don't know if it's really a promotion I'm getting", he answered, but smile reluctantly.

"You're right. We totally shouldn't celebrate naked right this very second".

"Well I didn't say that", Dimitri pulled Rose to him, both hands cupping her backside firmly.

Rose grinned victoriously, they could start the no-sex-till-Lissa-was-told another day. "No, really, we should wait till after you talk to-"

Anything else Rose would have said was cut off by Dimitri's mouth on hers.

It was time for Rose and Lissa's next assembly in their joint project for class. Since the last time the group met, Lissa, Rose and Dimitri were almost killed by strigoi, it was decided that this session would be held behind wards. So Rose and Lissa invited their odd band of college acquaintances to their apartment.

"Why can't we just be a group of 2?" Rose asked Lissa, in a very whiny voice.

"Because that's not a group, that's a twosome. Besides, we were assigned to a team by the professor and we don't have a choice if we want a passing grade in this course", Lissa answered for what seemed like the thousandth time.

Other than Rose and Lissa, there were 2 more girls in their group. Rose wasn't particularly fond of either of them. All they did was talk about their wild sexcapades. Which really wasn't the issue, Rose didn't fault their promiscuity. But she did have an problem with one girl who only slept with guys who were in relationships. Lissa wasn't happy about the girls they were teamed with either, but at least they got the work done.

It was a Friday afternoon when the group convened. They got the work done quickly and efficiently. Their assignment would be ready to hand in for their Monday morning class before the evening was over, sparing them the need for another session over the weekend.

While they worked well together they did need a break. Which was when things started getting interesting.

"You guys want some sodas?", Rose asked as she stood and headed to the kitchen.

"Might as well. I can't believe we're actually studying on a Friday night", Jessica snickered.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch", Bree answered. "We'll be out of here in an hour, the you can go call Amy's boyfriend and get freaky", the two laughed.

Rose rolled her eyes and wanted to hide in the kitchen for as long as possible. Something about tweedle dee and tweedle dumb rubbed Rose the wrong way. When she returned from the kitchen, those two were still heckling!

Rose couldn't believe it! "Do you mind keeping it down? Dimitri's sleeping".

"Ooooohhh", Jessica wasn't being quiet. At all.

"Who's Dimitri?", Bree asked. "He sounds sexy!".

Rose was about to smack someone, when Lissa answered. "Dimitri is our roommate and he works nights, so he's still asleep". And then for reasons unknown to Rose or Lissa herself, she add, "And he is really good-looking".

This really peaked the interest of the moron twins. "Where is he from? Does he have an accent?"

"More importantly, when is he supposed to wake up?" Bree smirked.

"Not for a while", Rose seethed.

The gruesome twosome looked disappointed but the 4 got back to work all the same. They finished up pretty quickly. A fact that delighted Rose, she could now get rid of Beavis and Butthead. She snapped out of her very violent daydream of beating them up to the horrifying realization that Lissa had actually small talked with the two and invited them to stay for pizza!

The two guests went back to their crude ways and started discussing recent conquests while Lissa ordered the za.

"Lissa", Rose hissed, "what are you doing?!"

"What? I think they're hilarious!"

"As soon as Dimitri wakes up, one of those bitches is going to throw herself at him! If not both!", Rose whisper yelled.

"So? They're all adults." The pizza place answered at last. "Hello?" Lissa said into her phone.

Tell her. A little voice in Rose's head said. Tell her now.

But she couldn't. Rose felt stuck. She just couldn't do it. Rose and Lissa walked back into the living room, right into a heated discussion about giving head.

"I mean this guy was beautiful, he had a beautiful cock and yet he tasted awful!", Bree went on with her tirade. "It was so disappointing!"

"But how was the sex?" Jessica asked.

"I was so turned off, I didn't even stay to have sex with him! Don't get me wrong, I totally let him go down on me! But I didn't want his dick and that smell in me!" Bree laughed. Along with Jessica.

Surprisingly, so did Lissa.

"Has that ever happened to you?" Bree asked Jessica.

"You know I'm not the biggest fan of giving head! There's a reason it's called a blow job!"

The girls laughed. Rose found it funny as well, but didn't really want to draw any unwanted attention to herself.

"How about you?" Bree turned on Rose.

For some idiotic reason Rose felt compelled to answer. Before she had a chance to, Lissa stepped in for the save. Or not. "Leave Rose alone. She may not seem it but Rose is very virtuous". She was clearly implying that Rose was inexperienced and hymenally challenged.

"Actually", Rose gritted her teeth before answering, "I was going to say it doesn't happen to me because I don't let guys come in my mouth!"

That left Lissa completely slack jawed.

While Jessica looked on in awe, "That's a smart move". Bree nodded in agreement.

"Anyway, I totally see your point about the funky spunk", Rose added. The girls were in stitches. Who wouldn't love a good Sex and the City reference.

Lissa was flipping out, "Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?"

Jessica suddenly had a question for the entire crowd, like she was working the room. "Who here has choked on cock?! Show of hands, ladies!", Jessica asked with a raised hand.

Bree of course played along, and Lissa did as well.

Rose crossed her hands over her chest and declared, "I have no gag reflex".

"Shut up!", Jessica hollered, as Bree simultaneously said, "Uh, you are so lucky!".

Then Jessica countered, "Maybe she's only had smallish dicks in her mouth", she had a thoughtful look on her face.

Rose had no intention of being one upped by these girls. Even if the subject matter was ridiculous. She made a gesture with her hands, showing how big of a dick she could fit down her throat.

Lissa had no idea what to make of the entire situation. It was full on invasion of the skanky body snatchers.

Bree stared in awe.

While Jessica yelled, "Now I know you're lying! No one is that big!"

Rose smirked. She still had no clue what possessed her to get into it with Ren and Stimpy. "He's massive and amazing!"

"It's Moby Dick!" Bree gasped. "Rose, you found Moby Dick!"

"I'm assuming you're not talking about a fictional whale", Rose stated.

"No, it's a fabrication of Bree's warped mind!" Jessica answered and shoved Bree playfully. "It's the perfect dick attached to the perfect man. It's the perfect fuck. Personally I think there's no such thing".

"Moby Dick is out there! He's real!" Bree insists. "The perfect fuck exists!"

The doorbell rang and Lissa could not get to it fast enough. Rose was hot on her heels.

"Rose, strigoi don't ring doorbells", Lissa muttered as she grabbed a wad of cash from her purse.

Rose kept an eye on the exchange from afar, giving Lissa her space. Bree and Jessica were going on about how Bree doesn't sleep with pizza delivery guys anymore after an incident where she almost slept with her second cousin. Rose suppressed her disgust.

Lissa returned with 3 pizza boxes, which, to Bree and Jessica, seemed a bit excessive for 3 college girls. But they didn't know Rose's appetite.

Just then, a bleary eyed Dimitri walked into the living room.

"Sorry comrade, did we wake you?" Rose asked.

He shook his head. "The door bell did. Don't worry about it, my alarm would have gone off soon anyway", he smiled at Rose. "I'm gonna grab some coffee".

Rose was surprised Pinky and the Brain hadn't already made a move on Dimitri. Her relief was short lived till she realized the two were utterly stupefied, no doubt, from seeing the most gorgeous man they'd ever come across. They were rendered speechless.

"Bree? Jessica?" Lissa tried to get their attention. "The pizza's here".

Rose waved her hand in front of Bree's face. Bree pushed her hand aside and continued staring at the closed kitchen door. She swallowed hard. "How do you even function around him?"

"We just do", Rose answered, not liking one bit the effect Dimitri had on Frick and Frack.

"Dibs!" both girls called at the same time.

"I saw him first", Again the girls chimed at the same time.

"Dimitri's gay", Rose blurted out. It was the only thing she could think to say.

"What?!" Lissa exclaimed. "No he's not!"

Oh, Lissa, why? Rose was sorely disappointed in her best friend and elbowed her.

"Ow!" Lissa rubbed her arm, but got what Rose was doing and tried to save face. "I mean he has a girlfriend. Ow! Rose stop hitting me!" Lissa hissed as Rose elbowed her again.

"You know girlfriends are a challenge for me", Jessica winked.

"Yeah?", Rose crossed her arms over her chest, "well, this chick is crazy! She'll gouge your eyes out just for looking at him".

"Sounds like his girlfriend's uptight and he could definitely use a good shagging", Bree egged Jessica on.

Rose pinched the bridge of her nose.

Lissa knew this was her fault, she needed to save Dimitri from Itchy and Scratchy. Too bad she had no idea what she was doing. "Rose is Dimitri's girlfriend". Lissa turned her head to side so only Rose saw her wink.

"Yes, it's true", Rose said flatly.

Now Bree was drooling. "Dimitri is Moby Dick".

Dimitri stepped out of the kitchen feeling as refreshed as he was capable of at the moment, when he was practically attacked by the duo from hell.

"I'm Bree". "I'm Jessica". "You must work out all the time". "How much do you bench press?" "Where are you from?" "What's your sign?" "Wanna get out of here?"

Dimitri looked at Rose, alarmed. He would have preferred to face a strigoi. "Help".

"Is Rose your girlfriend?", Bree asked.

That question just left Dimitri completely dumbfounded. He knew Rose hadn't told Lissa yet. "Uh, no?" It was more of a question he was asking Rose.

That's when Jessica started running her hand up and down Dimitri's chest.

And Rose saw red. Jumping from her spot by the coffee table, she screamed, "Get your damn hands off my boyfriend!".

Rose had snapped. Gone was the pretense that Dimitri wasn't hers. There would be no coming back from this. There wasn't a lie Rose would be able to tell that would be a plausible explanation for her outburst. Or the rage induced shaking.

Dimitri figured since they were both going to hell, they may as well enjoy the ride. "You didn't let me finish", he removed Jessica's hands from his body. Then he locked eyes with Rose and strode towards her like a lion stalking his prey. "Rose Hathaway is so much more than my girlfriend", he approached her filled with purpose. Rose was frozen to the spot, her heart was beating wildly, trapped under the spell of his gaze. "She's the love of my life". His eyes never relenting. "She's my soulmate". When Dimitri reached her, he ran his hand thru Rose's silky hair. "She's my rainbow in the dark".

Rose let out a shaky breath just before Dimitri's lips met hers. As they kissed, Rose never felt more alive. Something ignited in her that would never burn out or die. It was a fire she would cherish, a fire she would fight for like nothing else. That same flame burned just as bright in Dimitri.

Rose and Dimitri broke apart when the front door slammed shut. Lissa was on a rampage. She had sent their guests on their merry way with a tad of compulsion and a slice of pizza to-go, then turned her sights on Rose and Dimitri. "YOU!" Lissa pointed at Rose, seething. "Bedroom, now! and YOU!" She turned to Dimitri, "You and I are going to have words when I done with Rose".

Rose swallowed hard. Dimitri gave her a questioning look. When she nodded, he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before they parted.

Rose followed Lissa to the bedroom and sat on the bed.

As soon the door was shut, Lissa was on her. "What the fuck?! How could you do this? How long has this been going on? How could you not tell me? Is he taking advantage of you? What the fuck?!", she repeated in a very un-princess-like way. The scolding made Rose feel like a child.

During Rose's staggering silence, it dawned on Lissa that whatever it was that was going on between her and Dimitri, it had been going on for a while. She realized that Dimitri was probably the non existent guy at court that Rose wouldn't admit to pining over, Dimitri was more than likely the reason Rose never dated and Dimitri was the cause of Rose's extreme mood swings. That's when Lissa expression softened.

Rose rubbed her face with her palms. "Dimitri is not taking advantage of me, okay? We're in love, Lissa. I love him".

That managed to calm Lissa enough to join Rose on the bed, so Rose continued her story. "I've been in love with Dimitri for a long time. But we couldn't be together because we're partners".

"Oh", Lissa said. She had so many questions, but she started with, "So what changed?"

"I don't know, I guess we just couldn't stay away from each other any more".

The memory of a very disturbing conversation that occur a short while ago with 2 overly talkative girls brought a new line of questioning. Lissa's eyes lit up. "Oh my gosh! Was he your first? How was he?"

Rose smiled shyly. "He was my first. He was… is amazing. And loving. And gentle. And rough. And… amazing", Rose's smile grew.

"You said that already", the girls giggled. "So he is Moby Dick?" Lissa asked. That got them both laughing so very hard. To the point of tears. It was cathartic.

When they sobered up Rose apologized. "I'm sorry you found out this way. I was going to tell you over brunch on Sunday. Dimitri wanted me to tell you a while ago. Before we even decided that we were really going to try to make this work".

"Why didn't you? Tell me sooner?"

"Because, Lissa, I didn't want to burden you with this. I didn't want you to blame yourself". When Lissa remained quiet, Rose added. "Dimitri and I are both your guardians, us being together is wrong on so many levels. We're supposed to put you first".

"I still don't get why that's a problem", Lissa said innocently.

"Other that the fact that it will likely cost us both our careers if anyone finds out, us being together puts you in danger", Rose answered. "If we're guarding you together and a strigoi comes at us, we need to protect you".

Lissa nodded, "and not each other", she finished what Rose was saying.

"Right. At first I didn't want anything to happen. We'd been fighting our feelings for so long. I pushed Dimitri away at every turn".

"Wait. You pushed him away?" Lissa was shocked. "Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?" she laughed. It made so much more sense to her that Dimitri would be the one to stand by propriety and Rose would be the one to break the rules.

Rose chuckled. "Used to be, but somewhere along the way our roles reversed, I guess", she shrugged. "I wasn't willing to do anything that put you in danger. You're my sister Lissa".

It was now that Lissa was coming to realize what a selfish, spoiled brat she had been. In all fairness, it wasn't totally her fault. "You should have had more faith in me Rose. I wouldn't have come between you. I love you and I want you to be happy" Lissa took Rose's hands in her own. "You know I've always hated that you had to protect me. It's not fair. You risking your life for me".

"Lissa, for you I do it gladly".

The bleak turn of their talk was broken when Lissa went back to girly girl talk mode. "So when was your first time?", she was giddy.

"Oddly enough, it was after Dimitri's dinner with Tasha", Rose made a face. 'Dislike' would be an understatement for how she felt about Tasha pursuing Dimitri. "I was so angry and hurt when he didn't come home that night. I tortured myself throughout the entire shift that he was back at her hotel… doing things…"

"Wasn't he?" Lissa asked surprised.

"No. They were stuck in an elevator all night".

It seemed like a flimsy excuse, Lissa thought, but if Rose believed it, who was she to judge.

"Alright, so, tell me everything. From the beginning. Was there something going on back at the academy?"

Rose started at the beginning. She told Lissa everything. From training together at the academy, to the lust charm, to the little moments they shared. She told her about Tasha's offer and how Dimitri turned her down, and about all the time they spent together at court over the summer. Rose told Lissa about what happened at the Christmas ball, which made Lissa feel like shit. She told Lissa about everything that had been going on between her and Dimitri for the past couple of months.

And now Lissa knew the whole story. All of it. Including that time she woke up from a loud noise that Chris claimed was him stubbing his toe, which was actually Rose and Dimitri getting freaky in their joint bathroom.

Lissa also now knew that Christian was avoiding her in an attempt to keep Rose and Dimitri's secret. She didn't know whether she should be mad at him or proud of him and happy that he and Rose were so close.

"So how does this even work?" Lissa asked. "You're asleep when he's awake and vice versa".

Rose shrugged. "One of us either stays up late or gets up early so we have more time together".

Lissa felt bad for the sacrifices her best friend had to make. She wished she could do something about it. Then came the most important question of all. "Does he make you happy?"

Rose smiled brightly. "Yes".

"Good".

"Where are you going?" Rose asked Lissa when she got up to leave.

"Oh, it's time I had a talk with Guardian Belikov".

While Rose and Lissa were having the longest talk 2 girls had ever had (or what felt like it to the anxious guardian), Dimitri paced. And when that didn't help, he moved on to stomach crunches and pushup. Chris and Eddie came home to find Dimitri in the living room doing planks.

"What's going on?" Chris asked.

"Lissa found out", he breathed out.

That was all that needed to be said. Now Chris was pacing and Eddie joined Dimitri's floor workout. It turned out to be quite the work out by the time the girls emerged from the master bedroom.

"Kitchen". Lissa commanded Dimitri with a single word. Before they disappeared into the kitchen, Lissa informed Christian that she'd be dealing with him later.

Now it was Rose's turn to pace nervously. Fortunately for her, Lissa scolded Dimitri much less than she anticipated.

"So", Lissa asked the cowering guardian sitting at the table, "What's going on between you and Rose?"

Dimitri looked at the princess confused, "Didn't Rose already tell you?"

"Yes, but now I want to hear it from you".

Dimitri swallowed hard. "I love her. I'm in love with Rose", he said as if it were that simple. "Princess I will resign it that's what you want, but please keep our relationship to yourself and away from HQ. I don't want this to hurt Rose's career".

Now Lissa was confused. "What are you talking about? Why would I want you to resign?"

"Well, Rose and I", he started nervously, "our relationship. We're breaking a lot of rules, not to mention…" Dimitri didn't quite know how to explain that him loving Rose meant that the princess would never come first to him.

"I get it. We're attacked and you're supposed to save me yet you'll want to save Rose more. But, Dimitri, I'd never ask you to resign. I wouldn't do that to Rose", Lissa's demeanor relaxed. "You misunderstood that point of this conversation. Right now, I'm not your moroi. Right now, I'm Rose's sister".

"Oh".

"Rose deserves every happiness. So I guess what I'm asking here is, what are you're intentions?"

Dimitri broke out in a goofy grin. "I intend to spend the rest of my life with her, so long as she'll have me".

"Aaaawwww!" Lissa cooed. "That is so sweet and romantic!"

Dimitri's cheeks were tinted pink.

"Welcome to the family", Lissa hugged Dimitri awkwardly.

"Rose and I haven't really discussed the future, other than making it work. So I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention this to her".

"You're secret's safe with me", Lissa winked and walked out of the kitchen.

She was immediately replaced by Rose. As the kitchen door shut behind her, she and Dimitri heard Christian stalk after Lissa towards their bedroom, begging for forgiveness.

"He's got a lot of groveling to do", Dimitri noted.

"Not as much as you'd think", Rose commented. "So, how did it go?" Rose placed herself in Dimitri's lap.

"Better than expected", Dimitri smiled.

The next morning at breakfast Lissa decided to call a family meeting.

"Dimitri, you said Guardian Croft is sending us 2 male guardians and 1 female in 2 days time."

Dimitri nodded. "The 2 males will be college age. We've already met the female, she covered for me during my recovery".

Eddie chimed in. "I've looked into some classified, there are no apartments available in the immediate vicinity".

The most daunting thought of all was that there were now going to be 3 bathrooms for 8 adults.

"So we need to figure out new sleeping arrangements", Lissa said.

Eddie added, "It also means that some of us are going to need to double up in a room".

"I actually kinda have an idea about that", Lissa cleared her throat. "I think Eddie should take Dimitri's room. That way the 3 new guardians can take the entire end of the floor, 2 in Eddie's room and 1 in the guest room. I'm assuming the guys'll probably wanna bunk together and give the girl her own space".

"You want Eddie and Dimitri to share a room?" Rose asked, very confused.

"No, sweetie", Lissa answered. And let that linger.

"Oh", Rose squeaked, clearly freaked out.

"We don't have to", Lissa tried to salvage Rose's hesitation. "It was just a thought. In all fairness Dimitri's leading the team, he should get his own room".

Rose's mind was running a mile a minute. She was very clearly shaken.

"Yeah", Eddie swooped in for the assist. "Dimitri can take the guest room and I'll take his. I don't mind bunking with anyone. And the other 2 can take my room".

"We don't have to decide anything right now, Roza", Dimitri tried to calm Rose as well.

"Good", Rose answered nervously. "I'm gonna go for a run. Excuse me".

Rose left. She didn't even bother changing into work out gear.

"I'm sorry, Dimitri", Lissa placed a comforting hand on his. "I didn't think she'd react like that".

Dimitri nodded. He seemed fine, but he really wasn't taking the rejection all that well.

"Eddie, can you stay with Lissa and Christian for a bit? I need to find Rose". Dimitri stated an hour later when Rose hadn't returned yet. Eddie nodded in agreement.

Once again Dimitri used his trusted locator app to find Rose. She was at a cafe half a mile from the apartment. Dimitri found her staring at an empty mug and a half eaten bear claw.

"I'm sorry I ran off like that", Rose murmured when Dimitri sat on the bench beside her.

"It's okay", he replied. "You've just been gone for over an hour, you didn't take your work out gear. I was worried".

"I just freaked out. I needed some air".

"I get it. Moving in together is a big step".

"Yes!" Rose agreed. "And we just got together. I'm afraid of moving too fast. I mean, we've never even talked about it or anything about the future and now I feel like we're getting this violent shove to make a decision".

"Right, but we don't have too. Roza, we're not gonna do anything that you aren't ready to do".

"Me? What about you? Are you ready for this?" Rose accused.

"Honestly? Yes".

"Shit". Rose ran her hands through her hair. "I thought you'd feel trapped"

Dimitri raised an eyebrow. "Is that how you feel?"

"No. Maybe. I don't know". Rose took a deep breath. "How can you be ready?" she questioned.

"Because I know what I want. And that's you, Roza".

"What if we get into a fight and you don't want me anymore? What if we fight all the time and can't stand to be in the same room?"

"I don't know what's going to happen, but I do know that every time I think about the future, you're always in it".

"Maybe that's the difference between you and me. I try not to think about the future".

"Why?" he asked softly.

"Because", Rose said just above a whisper, "I know there are things you want that I can't give you, no matter how much I love you".

"There is nothing in this world that I could ever want more than I want you".

She tired to swallow the ball that formed in her throat. "You say that now, but in a few years, you're going to realize how much you want children, and that I can't give them to you".

"You think it doesn't terrify me that one day you would want children, too?" Dimitri asked. "You're nineteen now, but 5, 10, 15 years from now, you're going to want a family with children of your own".

Rose couldn't even tell him that would never happen, because in truth, she didn't know; she'd never thought about it. Would she ever want kids?

"I wouldn't stand in your way", Dimitri couldn't even look as Rose as he spoke. "I would gladly be a father to any child you had, even if it wasn't technically mine".

Rose couldn't answer. She was too shocked. Would she be able to endure the same if the tables were turned? She wasn't sure. The thought of it alone was nauseating.

"This is insane. This conversation is completely insane".

"Yep". Dimitri stared at the ceiling. "Look, the only question that needs answering right now, is if you want to share a bedroom with me or not. And Clearly you don't".

"I never said that".

"No, you acted like that".

"I'm sorry I don't want us to decide to live together just because it's convenient for everyone else! Call me crazy, but I kinda thought couples discussed these things and decided as a unit if they wanted to move in together".

Dimitri took a calming breath. "Last night Lissa asked me what my intentions were. I told her that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you, so long as you'll have me. This is not for everyone else's convenience. I want this". Dimitri hadn't planned on making that little confession quite yet, but he had no other choice. "I want to wake up with you, I want to go to sleep with you, I want to build a life with you, Roza".

Rose leaned her her on Dimitri's shoulder. She wanted that to. More than she ever thought possible. "We should head back", Rose said. "Right now", she said with a sense of urgency that Dimitri only understood when she rubbed her hand up his thigh, dangerously close to his crotch.

Dimitri bolted up before a tent he couldn't conceal formed in his pants. They practically ran home. As soon as they were in the apartment Rose yelled some nonsense about her and Dimitri moving furniture for the next few hours and headed straight for the bedroom.

"EEWWW!" Christian yelled. "Why can't you fuck quietly, like normal people?!"

"When the new guardians get here we won't have a choice, so we might as well stock up on the noise now", Rose logicked.

Dimitri tried to hide his wolfish grin.

"Maybe you guys should go see a movie?" Rose suggested and slammed the bedroom door behind them.

Eddie, Lissa and Christian ran out of the apartment like a bat out of hell. "Lissa", Christian said, "this is all your fault".

Don't forget to review! Pretty please. with a cherry on top.

(I feel like i really need the feedback on this chapter, I wasn't sure about it. It took weeks to get out and I'm a little wary about some parts it...)

Much love!