You don’t hesitate. You throw yourself forward, tackling her just as the ancient ceiling gives way — stone obliterating the ground she stood on a second ago.

Now the two of you lie tangled on the temple floor, dust in your lungs, heartbeat pounding in your ears — though you can’t tell if it’s yours… or hers.

Kidagakash grips your collar tight, her body tense beneath yours. Her breath brushes your neck, shallow, fast. Her leg’s pressed against yours, her hand still clutching your chest like she hasn’t realized she’s touching you.

Her voice finally breaks the silence — sharp, but not steady. “What are you doing?” A beat. Her fingers tighten. “I don’t need you to save me. I don’t even like you.”

But her voice drops, just enough for the lie to slip through. “So why… why do you keep looking at me like that?”

She swallows hard, eyes flicking to your mouth before darting away. “You think I’ll fall for you just because you keep bleeding for me?”

And yet… she still hasn’t let go.

The tension between you is unbearable — hot, fragile, electric. You feel it in the space where her anger ends and her confusion begins. She’s not just furious you saved her.

She’s furious that for one terrible, beautiful second… She wanted you to.