Sungyeol appeared at her door a short while after her twin left.

“Well?” she asked. “How did it go?”

“Awkwardly,” he replied, sitting down on the edge of her bed. “I think we both forgot how to talk to each other. She asked me what happened. I explained to her a few things. We’re both a lot more sober, I suppose. We used to be such crazy children, and we dreamt big. Now we’re faced with the harshness of reality, so things have changed.”

“I see. I hope the two of you can become friends like you used to,” Hyora remarked. Even as she said this, however, she felt a twinge of selfishness that wished for the opposite. She’d been the first to reach out to him at the Academy, and the two of them had a special bond, she felt. Now that Seulhee was back in the picture, Hyora realized that what she shared with Sungyeol was only a shadow of what he’d had with his former best friend.

“Hey, about Dongwoo…”

“What about him?” she sighed.

“You should go talk to him. I said what I could, but you need to do your part. At least apologize and set things straight, if nothing else.”

As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. “If you can arrange it for me, I would appreciate that.” She wondered if Dongwoo would even be willing to talk to her. She couldn’t really blame him if he didn’t.

“I’ll take care of it.”

“Thank you.”

***

The situation felt very familiar, similar to the one she had been in nearly a month ago. They were on the rooftop again, under the moonlight. But this time, his back was to her, and there was a distinct gap between the two of them. Even though he was still within arm’s reach, it felt as if an immense gulf separated him from her.

“Say what you want,” Dongwoo said. His voice was harsh, but it also contained a hint of softness underneath.

The words spilled out. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I hid my status because I needed an escape from all of the pressures. I wanted someone I could talk to who wouldn’t remind me of home and the things I’d rather not think of. I didn’t love my fiancé. We were both forced into the marriage. I knew it was a bad idea to keep seeing you, but I couldn’t help it. You were the one person who could be my escape. I didn’t mean to fall in love with you.” She stopped for a moment, and Dongwoo tensed up visibly. She hadn’t meant to use the word, but it had slipped out anyway.

“Is he tolerable?”

“What?”

Dongwoo turned around, gazing directly at her. “Your husband.” He stepped closer to her, and even though her instinct was to move back, Hyora remained rooted to the spot.

“Oh. We didn’t get married,” she said, softly. Had Sungyeol not told him that? “The wedding was canceled at the last minute.”

They must have stared at each other for five whole seconds, each of which felt like an eternity.

Then, his mouth was on hers. Hyora returned the kiss with equal passion. They clung to each other tightly, as if somehow by refusing to let go, Fate might take pity on them and bind them together with an unbreakable thread.

Eventually, they separated, breathing hard, their hearts pounding.

“Run away with me,” Dongwoo said. It was an idea born from madness, but something in his gaze told Hyora he was perfectly serious, even if just for that moment.

She wanted to say yes, she really did. It was a thrilling thought, being free. Yet…to go against her mother? She didn’t care what her mother thought, that much, but she cared about her health, and running away might help her mother along to an early death. To disappoint her father, the person who had taught her almost everything she knew? To abandon her twin, her other half, the person who knew her the best? To say goodbye to everything she had ever known and loved?

She couldn’t do it. Not for one person, who had his own family and situation to consider. Not for her own selfish desires. She simply could not.

“No,” she said at last.

After a few speechless seconds, Dongwoo nodded. The bright, desperate yet hopeful flame had died in his eyes, displaced with only resignation. “I understand.”

As Hyora left behind the rooftop and Dongwoo, she couldn’t help but think that those were the worst two words she had ever heard.

***

Her eyes were dry by the time she returned to the Royal Academy dormitory, leaving her with a hollow feeling. She didn’t even bother to knock on Sungyeol’s door. Instead, she simply used an unlocking spell, one of the first her father had taught her to prepare her to dig around for secrets. Sungyeol didn’t put many security spells on his door since he didn’t have anything to hide, not here. Even if he had, she would have gotten around them eventually.

She opened the door as silently as possible and stepped inside, closing the door behind her. Sungyeol was asleep on his bed, his legs bent slightly to prevent them from dangling over the edge.

She eased herself onto the bed beside him. His eyes flew open in surprise and his arm shot out, but she grabbed it. “It’s only me,” she mumbled. His arm relaxed and retreated.

“Well?” he asked. His voice was surprisingly calm for someone who had just had his room broken into and a woman sneak into his bed.

“It’s over.” The tears were coming back, and Hyora hated herself for being so weak. She wrapped her arms around Sungyeol. “He wanted me to elope with him, and I told him no,” she whispered. She hadn’t worn a cloak while she had been outside in the chilly night air, and she was starting to shiver a little.

Sungyeol’s long arms encircled her, warming her numb body. For some time there was only the sound of their breathing. Then, he spoke two simple words into her ear.

“I understand.”