Isobel felt comforted by his answer, but she hadn't completely let go of her worries. She couldn't be sure that they would together for...a long time, or even the whole term. She desperately hoped they could, but what if they weren't? She did not want to lose Damien as a friend.

"I don't want you to repeat it," she said softly. Him losing her meant her losing him, by default. That had never happened to her, and she did not want it to.

Isobel squeezed his hand again, signaling her approval of his statement. "I like that plan," she said, and she couldn't help but grin. She liked the idea of being with Damien; it made the butterflies in her stomach flutter again.

"Damien," she said slowly. "When I hugged you, why did you react the way you did?" It was a question that had been haunting her for a long time. She had thought that was why he had been distant, but that had been because of Luke. He just said they would be together, so why had he not wanted to hug her?