Warm.
That was the first thing I registered.
Not the sharp, overwhelming heat from before—
not the crushing ache in my ribs—
but a softer warmth.
Human warmth.
The kind that didn't burn.
The kind that held.
I blinked slowly, my eyelashes sticking together for a moment before the room came into hazy focus.
Dim lighting.
Soft hum of ventilation.
The faint scent of antiseptic and…
Him.
I turned my head the smallest bit.
Horace was still there.
Still holding me.
Still awake.
His back was braced against the wall, posture rigid with exhaustion, but his arms stayed around me with steady, protective purpose.
His jacket had been draped over me at some point during the night.
My cheek rested against his chest.
His chin was tilted down—
eyes half-open, unfocused, staring at my hair.
Not asleep.
Not even close.
I breathed softly.
"Horace…?"
He froze.
His entire body went still.
Then—
his gaze sharpened instantly, snapping down to meet mine.
"Elleanore?"
My name left him like a breath he had been holding for hours.
His hand rose to brush my hair from my forehead.
Gentle.
Slow.
As if he was afraid I would break again.
"You're awake," he whispered, voice cracking on the edges.
"Thank god."
I swallowed, throat dry.
"…you didn't sleep."
He exhaled a half-helpless, half-relieved laugh.
"No. I couldn't."
My fingers twitched weakly around the fabric of his shirt.
"Why…?"
He looked at me as if the answer was obvious.
"As long as you were breathing in my arms, nothing else mattered."
Heat rose up the back of my neck—
not the biological kind,
but something warm and painfully human.
I lowered my gaze, voice soft.
"You didn't have to stay awake for me."
Horace's hand slid to my jaw, tilting my face up so I could meet his eyes.
"Yes," he murmured.
"I did."
There was no room for argument in his voice.
Only truth.
Only him.
ROWAN WAKES FROM A NIGHTMARE
Soft whimpers interrupted the quiet.
Rowan's body jerked on the cot beside us—
his legs kicking,
hands gripping the sheets.
"No—no—don't—please—don't take her—!"
Chandler reacted before Rowan could spiral.
He moved behind Rowan, cupping Rowan's shoulders and pulling him into his chest with practiced ease.
"Hey—hey—Rowan—shh—"
Chandler's voice dropped into something warm and low.
"You're dreaming. You're safe. She's right there. She's safe."
Rowan gasped, eyes fluttering open in panic.
His gaze darted around wildly until it landed on me—
awake
breathing
alive.
His entire body collapsed against Chandler in relief.
"Elle—
she's—
she's here—
she's—"
Chandler stroked gentle lines down his spine.
"She's okay. Breathe. I've got you."
Rowan pressed his forehead into Chandler's clavicle, shoulders trembling.
"I thought she died again—
I felt it—
I—"
"It was just a dream," Chandler whispered.
"But I know why it felt real."
Rowan clung to him, breathing shallowly.
Chandler held him tighter.
I felt my own chest tighten watching them.
Horace's arms wrapped slightly tighter around me, as if sensing the same ache.
LUCAN RETURNS — WITH BAD NEWS
The door clicked quietly.
Lucian stepped inside, shoulders tense, a security pad in his hand.
He froze for half a second when he saw me awake—
relief flickering across his face.
"You're conscious," he said softly.
"That's good."
Rowan pulled away from Chandler just enough to wipe his eyes.
Chandler kept an arm around him.
Horace didn't move his arms from around me, but his posture shifted—protective again.
"What's wrong?" Horace asked quietly.
Lucian inhaled.
"There was a breach."
Every muscle in Horace's body went rigid.
Chandler's jaw tightened.
Rowan flinched.
Lucian continued:
"It wasn't physical.
It was digital.
Someone accessed the Isolation Wing logs."
Horace's breath hissed through his teeth.
"That means—"
"That means someone knows what happened last night," Lucian said grimly.
"They know she was in heat-shock.
They know she collapsed.
They know we broke the sub-level."
My breath stilled.
Horace pulled me closer immediately.
"Who was it?" he demanded.
Lucian shook his head.
"We're still tracking the source.
But whoever it was—they're high clearance."
Chandler swore under his breath.
Rowan's fingers found mine again, small and trembling.
Lucian approached Horace directly.
"And there's more."
Horace met his gaze.
Lucian lowered his voice.
"The Academy Council has called an emergency assembly in eight hours.
A 'disciplinary review' regarding last night's breach."
Horace's grip on me tightened.
"They're trying to pin this on her."
Lucian's jaw clenched.
"Or on us."
Chandler scoffed.
"They can try. They won't succeed."
Lucian gave him a sharp look.
"You don't understand the political implications.
Horace is the Crown Prince.
You're a high-ranking Alpha.
Rowan's the only Beta with his clearance in the entire academy.
And Elleanore—"
His gaze flicked to me.
"—Elleanore was in the one place she was never meant to survive."
Silence fell heavy.
My heart pounded.
Horace's hand cupped my cheek.
"You're not going anywhere near that assembly," he said.
"Not in your condition. Not ever."
I swallowed.
"…if they blame you—"
"They won't," Horace said immediately.
"Because I won't let them."
I stared up at him.
He stared back—
eyes tired but burning with certainty.
HUMAN INTIMACY BENEATH THE TENSION
Lucian moved to the corner, pulling up data on his pad and giving us momentary space.
Rowan leaned his weight into Chandler again, eyes still glassy from the nightmare.
Chandler kissed the top of his head gently—
a soft, protective gesture that made Rowan melt instantly against him.
Horace stroked my hair again, thumb brushing the side of my jaw.
"How do you feel?" he whispered.
My voice was small.
"Tired…
warm…
and—
scared."
Horace's expression softened painfully.
He leaned his forehead to mine.
"Don't be.
You're safe here.
I'm not letting anything touch you again."
I swallowed.
"What if…
they want to take me away…?"
"They won't," Horace whispered immediately.
"I would never allow it."
Chandler spoke from the other side of the cot, his voice steady and certain.
"They'd have to get through three of us first."
Rowan, still pressed to Chandler's chest, lifted his head.
"Four," he whispered.
Lucian added from the chair:
"Five, if we count me. And we should."
Chandler cracked the faintest smile.
Rowan leaned into him.
Horace looked down at me.
Something gentle—
something unbearably tender—
filled his eyes.
"You're not alone, Elleanore," he murmured.
"Not anymore."
The words washed through me like warmth I'd forgotten how to feel.
I whispered:
"…thank you."
Horace brushed a kiss to my forehead.
"I'd do it all again."
My cheeks warmed.
Not heat-warm.
Not fever-warm.
Just…
warm.
He noticed.
His voice dropped lower.
"You don't know what you do to me," he murmured.
My breath hitched.
Rowan blinked in surprise.
Chandler looked mildly amused.
Lucian muttered, "Not the time," under his breath.
But Horace didn't look away.
Not from me.
Not even for a moment.
And he whispered the words that made my pulse skip—
"Rest.
When you wake again…
I'll still be here."
The Promise They Make While She Sleeps
Warmth drew me under again.
Soft warmth.
Gentle warmth.
Not consuming.
Not painful.
Just safe.
My eyes grew heavy.
My breathing slowed.
My fingers loosened slightly in Horace's shirt.
He noticed instantly.
"Elleanore…?" he whispered, brushing his thumb across my cheekbone.
My voice was barely audible.
"Mmh… just… tired…"
A slow exhale left him—relief mixed with something else. Something softer.
"It's okay," he murmured, adjusting me carefully against him.
"Go ahead. I won't move."
Rowan watched me with quiet intensity, his eyes still shimmering with leftover fear from his nightmare. But when he saw me drifting, his shoulders finally relaxed.
He leaned closer to Chandler again, and Chandler guided him gently until Rowan's head rested against my arm, his cheek lightly pressed to the blanket beside me.
Chandler's warm hand moved in slow circles on Rowan's back, calming him.
Lucian glanced up from his device, expression unreadable but relieved.
I let my eyes close.
The last thing I felt was Horace's breath brushing the top of my hair, a soft kiss pressed just above my ear.
Then I slipped under.
WHEN SHE FALLS ASLEEP, EVERYTHING CHANGES
The moment my breathing evened out, the room shifted.
Not louder.
Not tenser.
Just… different.
Horace looked down at my sleeping face, the tension in his jaw finally loosening.
He brushed a stray strand of hair from my cheek, fingers barely touching my skin—
as if afraid even the gentlest pressure might startle me.
Rowan watched the motion, eyes soft and aching.
"…she's finally resting," Rowan whispered.
Horace nodded slowly.
"Yes."
Chandler shifted behind Rowan, making sure the boy stayed comfortably braced against him without disturbing me.
"She needed this," Chandler murmured.
"Her body's been through hell."
Horace's gaze didn't leave my face.
"She shouldn't have gone through any of it."
Rowan swallowed.
"It wasn't her fault."
Horace's voice lowered, brittle and sharp:
"I know."
But the pain behind his eyes said something else—
He blamed himself.
Lucian noticed too.
He lowered his data pad.
"Horace."
Horace glanced up.
Lucian spoke gently.
"What happened wasn't because you failed her."
Horace's jaw tightened.
"Wasn't it?"
Rowan flinched at the quiet anger in his voice—
not directed at them,
but at himself.
Chandler placed a steady hand on Rowan's hip, grounding him.
Lucian didn't break eye contact.
"You saved her."
Horace looked down at me again.
His voice cracked, barely audible.
"Not fast enough."
Rowan reached out and lightly placed his hand over Horace's forearm—
a rare moment between them,
hesitant but deeply sincere.
"You came," Rowan whispered.
"That's what matters.
She knows that.
We all do."
Horace swallowed hard.
But he didn't pull away.
CHANDLER'S INSTINCTIVE PROTECTIVENESS
Chandler adjusted Rowan's position so he wouldn't strain his neck.
Rowan instinctively curled closer—
toward the warmth,
toward me,
toward him.
Chandler wrapped an arm around him again.
"He's right," Chandler said quietly.
"Horace—you didn't fail her.
If you hadn't broken that damn door, she wouldn't be breathing."
Horace tensed.
"I should've gotten there sooner."
Chandler arched a brow.
"Hm.
You're a prince, not a teleporting deity."
Horace almost smiled.
Almost.
But it faded quickly.
His gaze drifted toward the stitched wound at my collarbone where the restraint had dug into my skin.
Something dark flashed behind his eyes.
Chandler noticed.
"Stop," he said gently but firmly.
"You're spiraling.
She's here.
Focus on that."
Horace breathed in slowly.
Rowan tightened his fingers around my arm.
And the room steadied again.
LUCIAN'S DISCOVERY
After an hour of quiet monitoring, Lucian finally spoke.
"I found something."
Horace's attention snapped up instantly.
Rowan tensed.
Chandler's hand paused on Rowan's back.
Lucian turned his screen toward them, his expression tight.
"The breach wasn't random.
The access came from inside the academy."
Horace's voice sharpened.
"Who?"
Lucian hesitated.
"I don't have a name yet.
But I traced the clearance path."
He tapped the screen.
"Whoever accessed the logs had Level-4 Override—
that's Council-level access."
Chandler swore under his breath.
Rowan looked sick.
Horace's expression darkened.
"And what did they do with the data?"
Lucian exhaled.
"That's the problem.
They copied it.
All of it."
Rowan whispered:
"H-her readings…?"
Lucian nodded grimly.
"Everything. Heat level spikes.
Her collapse.
Her vitals during the worst of it.
Even the footage of you three breaching the door."
Chandler's jaw flexed.
Horace's body tightened around me unconsciously.
"And they're using it," Lucian continued, "as part of the disciplinary assembly."
Rowan paled.
"They're going after Elleanore."
Horace's voice dropped into something cold and deadly.
"Not if I get there first."
Chandler shot him a look.
"You're not leaving her while she's like this."
Horace turned, fire in his eyes—
"Then one of you stays. I'll—"
"No," Chandler interrupted.
"No splitting up. That's how we nearly lost her last time."
Rowan nodded shakily.
"H-he's right…"
Lucian looked between them.
"We have eight hours before the assembly begins.
We'll use that time to prepare."
Horace exhaled sharply and looked down at me again.
"Eight hours…"
He whispered the words like a vow.
"Eight hours to make sure they never get near her again."
A VOW HE DIDN'T MEAN TO SAY ALOUD
Horace pressed his lips to my temple gently, thinking I was fully asleep.
He whispered into my hair—
"You'll never face any of this alone again."
My breath caught softly—barely audible.
But all three boys noticed.
Rowan's eyes softened.
Chandler looked away, jaw tense.
Lucian pretended not to hear.
Horace whispered again, low and broken:
"I love you."
Silence slammed into the room.
Rowan's breath hitched.
Chandler's eyes widened slightly.
Lucian froze mid-step.
Horace didn't seem to realize he'd said it aloud.
He just held me tighter, forehead pressing to the crown of my head.
"I love you," he whispered again.
"And if they try to take you from me—
I will burn this entire academy to the ground."
My fingers twitched weakly in his shirt.
A tiny sound escaped me—
half-sigh, half-whisper.
Horace stilled, realizing for the first time—
I was awake enough to hear him.
Rowan's heart raced.
Chandler closed his eyes.
Lucian silently stepped back to give us the space.
Horace looked down at me—
soft panic flickering in his eyes.
"Elleanore…?"
I didn't open my eyes.
I couldn't.
But I didn't need to.
I whispered—
just loud enough for him to hear:
"…don't leave…"
He let out a breath—
shattered, relieved, hopeful.
"Never."
THE BEGINNING OF A DIFFERENT KIND OF BOND
The room's tension softened.
Not vanished.
Not resolved.
But changed.
Rowan rested his head lightly against Chandler's chest, eyes closing at last.
Chandler held him securely, rubbing a soothing line along Rowan's spine.
Lucian monitored the door, shoulders finally dropping a fraction.
And Horace—
Horace held me as if I were the only thing keeping his world upright.
Warm.
Safe.
Close.
I drifted again, held in the circle of all of them—
their quiet, steady breaths filling the room like a promise.
A promise none of us had spoken fully.
A promise forming slowly between bodies bruised, scared, and healing.
And even if I couldn't understand it yet—
I felt it.
The beginning of something deeper.
Something undeniable.
Something that would change everything.