Naomi lay curled beneath the heavy cover, face hidden in her pillow, as if even under the darkness, her burning cheeks could be seen. Across from the postered bed, Cassien sprawled stiffly on the chaise lounge by the dying fire.

The decision to share the room for the night hadn't come easily - or from either rulers, in fact. Naomi had refused outright, overwhelmed with mortification; Cassien was no better, acting as if Naomi's touch had burned him with how quickly he had pulled away afterwards. It had been kindly Cressida who strong armed the two into it, threatening that if they didn't at least test the theory of proximity for one night, she would march straight to the prince's chamber for his intervention.

"Fine," Naomi had said, body tense. "Just for tonight."

"Just for tonight," Cassien echoed reluctantly.

But despite the lingering tension and awkwardness of their situation, Naomi found an unexpected sense of safety within Cassien's presence. She may have rebuked him, but there had never been a measure of fear elicited from his company. More than that, the relief within her aching skull was undeniable bliss after weeks of chronic torment. In this strange, uneasy arrangement, she finally remembered what it was like to hear her own thoughts again. Naomi stifled a laugh at her predicament; all she could picture was her mother rolling in her grave at the mere thought of sharing a room with an unmarried man, especially the duke. The scandal would be enough to grease Monroe's gossip circle for months.

Cassien was all too painfully aware of the intimacy in sharing a room with Naomi, the one person he couldn't quite push or get away from. Every breath she took, every shuffle beneath her covers - even the air was permeated with the scent of citrus and something so distinctively and intoxicatingly hers. But even he couldn't deny that the complete absence of pain was a welcome reprieve.

Tension hung in the air, as if waiting for the silence to finally break before either could even think to fall asleep. Naomi tossed and turned, cursing inwardly that for the one night she didn't have stabbing pains, sleep eluded her. She propped herself upwards against the bed frame, sighing heavily as she stared downwards at the chaise. Cassien's head was visible on the armrest, his dark, short waves dipping downwards as his legs dangled uncomfortably off the end - his frame clearly too tall for the delicate piece of furniture.

Without thinking, her mouth blurted out her sympathetic offer. "We can trade places, if you want."

Her eyes widened, mentally cursing herself. Why?! Why did I say that? How hard is it to just keep your mouth shut?

Across the room, Cassien blinked, caught off guard. A flicker of disbelief flashed across his face, and Cassien was glad she could not see the warmth that rose to his cheeks as he formulated a particularly articulate response. "Why…?"

"...Because it's glaringly obvious from where I am that you don't exactly fit on the couch," Naomi cleared her throat. "Just forget it. It was a dumb suggestion anyway."

"So I can't have the bed?"

"No- I mean, yes? But… you… actually want it?" Naomi said, baffled.

Cassien let out a low chuckle. "If you had no intention of actually offering it to me, duchess, then that was just cruel of you."

Naomi shifted, blush still lingering on her cheeks. "I wasn't being cruel, just… practical. You're the one who looks like you might break the chaise - and I'm not reimbursing the prince on your behalf."

Cassien smirked, stretching out dramatically. "That must be the famed Monroe hospitality I've heard so much about."

"You're impossible," Naomi hissed quietly, flopping back on the mattress. "I don't know why I even bothered, after what you said today."

Cassien sat up then, head turned towards the bed. "Clearly, disassociating from each other may prove harder said than done if it turns out this theory is correct."

"Don't get ahead of yourself. This is strictly a one-night truce." She plopped back upwards, blonde hair swaying, though she could not meet his eyes. "...I just thought if we're going to have to share a room, we might as well get comfortable where we can. Savour the first potential pain-free night in weeks."

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "That's very thoughtful of you."

"I try," Naomi let out a weak laugh, but he could hear the sadness in her voice. It tugged at him and at the walls he had built.

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"It's not that I wouldn't prefer a bed," he clarified after several moments. "But I'm not going to put you out on the couch just so I can sleep easier."

"Why not?"

Cassien cleared his throat as she rose back in an upright position. "Well for one, it's rude. Secondly, my mother would rise from the dead just to kick my ass for making a woman sleep on the couch."

"Probably not, if she knew which family I'm from," Naomi laughed then, a genuine sweetness that made his stomach flutter.

The corners of his lips twitched upwards. "You make a good point. Probably not, then."

She laughed again, hand delicately shielding her face. "Seriously, I won't take offense to you saying yes. I fit perfectly fine on the couch - the bed is actually too big when it's just for me."

He raised a brow. "Just for me? Was that an invitation?"

Naomi squeaked, pulling the covers over her head as her face burned with embarrassment. "No!"

"Relax," Cassien replied, his voice light. "I'm just joking around. I have no intention of taking your offer."

"That must be that Rivainian humor I've heard so much about," Naomi said sarcastically, voice muffled under the covers before popping her head back up, his chuckle echoing off the walls.

Despite the heaviness of their argument earlier in the day, Naomi could not help the flutter of her heart at the ease and humor that flowed between them. She didn't realize how badly she craved the banter, how much she had missed the sound of his deep voice, and how wonderful it felt to speak to him simply as Naomi - nothing else.

The wandering thoughts of exactly what transpired to cause the ice attack on her lingered at the back of her mind, however, but the more she thought about it, the less sense his motive made. Not to mention, Cassien was cleared of any criminal wrongdoing shortly afterwards by Prince Aryn, who had confirmed he never left the warding area. She felt foolish to have fallen for Alistair's twisted lies and allowed her resentment of Cassien to have persisted for so long - and even worse when she realized there was no reason for her to act so bristly to him.

Quiet settled in the room before she broke it once more. "Do you really think this theory will work?"

She watched his figure lean back against the couch as he spoke. "So far, so good at least. It matches up when we both stayed in the same ward for the first few days, till today. I went from feeling like my head was splitting apart to nothing in an instant."

Naomi nodded slowly. "Me too. So do you think it's a distance thing?"

"Most likely," He said, though his voice was slightly skeptical. "Then again, maybe physical touch extends how long we can stay apart. Whatever it is, it doesn't explain the whole vision ability."

"I don't even know where we would start with this," Naomi rubbed beneath her eyes. "How to get rid of it, I mean."

Cassien hesitated. "Whatever it is, we'll have to get used to each other. If this theory pans out, at least."

Naomi paused, a multitude of thoughts running through her mind. "Maybe… we start small. See if just closing the distance without actually touching helps. We can measure how long the relief lasts."

"Right. If the pain flares back up, then we move to… actual contact. See how that changes things," Cassien nodded in agreement, though he averted his eyes.

She shifted on the bed, casting a quick glance toward the chaise where Cassien lounged. "And if all that works, well…" Her voice trailed off, cheeks coloring slightly.

"Then we see how long we can keep up with this arrangement before it drives us both mad."

Naomi bit her lip as her mind scrambled through her thoughts, her stomach twisting like a tornado as she considered the best approach of their experimentation.

"If… distance is the current theory, then… I'm not suggesting we sleep…together, but… W-we… can share.." Naomi's face flared in a deep shade of red as she covered her face with the blanket, unable to find the words.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," He cleared his throat. "We're already testing proximity with where we are right now."

She held her hands against her cheeks. "I-I know that! I just wonder if the closer, the better… the longer the relief might be, without needing actual contact."

"Sounds like an excuse to get close to me," his tone was low, undecipherable.

Naomi let out a frustrated sound as she roughly smoothed down her hair. "Just forget it."

Cassien's lips twitched at her obvious embarrassment, but he gave a low, understanding chuckle. He had come to a similar conclusion, but he was glad he hadn't been the one to suggest it - sparing himself the embarrassment. "…If you really insist."

"I'm not insisting - it's an offer, and it's up to you whether or not you want to take it." She muttered, pale eyes peered over the edge of the covers. "…Plus it means we both get the bed."

Cassien let out a heavy breath, running his hand through his hand as he steeled himself. He stood from the chaise, with every step feeling like a thousand pounds as he approached. As he drew closer, he could see the flush on Naomi's cheeks as she lay beneath the covers, hair spilled like a halo across the pillow. Her eyes were fixated on his movement, pink lips parted as her chest rose and fell steadily.

"Are you sure?" Cassien asked, lowering his eyes. "I really don't want you to be uncomfortable. We don't have to do this for the sake of testing."

She nodded slowly. "I'm okay with it… as long as you are. For theoretical purposes only."

Cassien's jaw tightened with nervous anticipation; entering the bed would be breaking the silent promise he had made to himself. But beneath it all, he wanted nothing more than to simply be beside her again - even if they could never be anything more. He was okay with using such a justification for a single night to soothe his conscience.

He slid under the covers as she scooched away, the mattress dipping under their combined weight as the two lay on the opposite ends of the bed. The space between them felt both painfully vast and impossibly small all at once, their breathing slowly becoming synchronized as their gaze remained fixated on the ceiling.

"Just for tonight," Cassien said quietly, his soul sighing.

Naomi's chest pounded. "Just for tonight."

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