When he cast a glance in her direction, he saw that she was smiling at him. It was one of those peculiar smiles of hers, a sort of middle ground between amusement and intrigue. There was something about that smile, about the way it seemed to be reserved only for him, that drew him in. He felt his face heat up beneath the intensity of her gaze - her eyes always seemed to burn into him like flickering blue flames - and he quickly averted his eyes.

"You know," she said, her tone gentle in a way that was unfamiliar coming from her, "for what it's worth, I don't think you're as bad as the others say you are."

He let out a bitter laugh. "Then you're a fool."

"I mean it," she insisted. She finished tending to his wounds, tightening the last bandage with a light tug. Her hands remained in place, however, her fingertips gliding along the bandaged area. "You may act all tough, but I've seen a side of you that no one else has gotten to see. I saw the real you."

A part of him wanted to snap at her, to tell her that she knew nothing about him and had no right to claim otherwise. A more rational part of him, however, decided against that.

Instead, he found himself asking, "And what did you think...of him?"

It was an uncharacteristically vulnerable question to ask, but before he could take it back, she’d already grabbed the sides of his face and yanked it towards hers with astonishing force. Their lips collided in an instant, an electric shock running through his veins as they did.

She was kissing him.

What was even more shocking to him was how quickly he buried his hands into her frizzy locks and reciprocated the gesture. She seemed surprised as well, stiffening for a moment before melting into him. Their kiss deepened, and neither of them seemed keen to put an end to it. Her touch was warm, he noticed. Everything about her was warm, warmer than anything he had ever known. Perhaps that was why he was so desperate for her to never stop kissing him like this.

At long last, after what had felt like an eternity, she pulled away. Her face was flushed, her eyes shimmering in the darkness, and the smile she'd previously worn was replaced with a look of complete and utter awe. He did not doubt for a moment that he wore an identical expression on his face. Neither of them uttered a word as they caught their breath, until she finally took the liberty of breaking the silence.

"Does that answer your question?"

He wasn't sure how to respond to that, but there was no need to. Smiling once again, she turned and left the room without another word, leaving him to process what had just happened between them.

All he knew for certain was that he now had more questions than answers.