I stared at the colorful cookies. They were my favorite. specifically, the rose-petal ones.
"You remembered," I whispered.
"I remember everything you tell me, Amelia," he said simply.
We ate in silence for a while, the only sound the rustling of leaves and the distant hum of the campus wards. It was peaceful.
"Why are you doing this?" I asked suddenly, putting down my lemonade.
Arthur looked at me. " doing what? Eating lunch?"
"Being nice to me," I snapped. "Arthur, look at me. I'm a Vance. My parents are in federal custody for treason. I'm wearing a janitor's jumpsuit. I have no money, no status, and half the campus wants me dead."
"So?" he asked, biting into a cookie.
"So, you're... you."
"Me?"
"You're good," I said, the word tasting strange on my tongue. "You're pure. You help people. You save books. You're the human equivalent of a golden retriever."
He laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment."
"It's a warning!" I leaned forward. "I'm toxic, Arthur. Everyone who gets close to me gets burned. My friends? Gone. My parents? Locked up. My reputation? Ashes."
I took a breath, my voice shaking. "If Marrow sees you with me... really with me... he'll target you. He'll take your job. He'll ruin you just to spite me."
Arthur set his food down. He turned on the bench, facing me fully. He took off his glasses, cleaning them on his vest. Without them, his eyes were sharper. Older.
"Do you think I'm stupid, Amelia?"
"No," I argued. "I think you're naive."
"I've worked in these Archives for ten years," he said quietly. "I've seen Deans come and go. I've seen 'chosen ones' burn out and 'villains' save the day. I know the history of this school better than anyone."
He put his glasses back on.
"I know who you were," he said. "The Ice Queen. The Bully. I saw you. I saw how you terrified the freshmen. I saw how you sneered at the scholarship kids."
I flinched. "Exactly. So why?—"
"Because I also saw why," he interrupted. "I saw your mother gripping your arm so hard she left bruises at the gala. I saw you crying in the stacks when you got an A-minus instead of an A. I saw a girl who was drowning in expectations."
He reached out, his hand hovering over mine. He didn't touch me. He waited.
"You're not toxic, Amelia," he whispered. "You were just poisoned. And now? Now you're sweating it out."
I looked at his hand. It was steady.
"I'm scared," I admitted. The truth slipped out before I could stop it.
"Good," Arthur said. "Fear means you're paying attention. But you don't have to be scared alone."
He waited.
Slowly, terrifyingly, I moved my hand. I placed it in his.
His fingers closed around mine. Warm. Solid. Real.
