Cas nodded wordlessly when Iris said that she hadn’t slept well. He could already tell that she hadn’t because of the shadows under her eyes and the paleness to her cheeks, but hearing her admit it out loud just added to the leaden weight of guilt in his chest. If there had been a way to keep her out of the conflict with the terrorists, he would have done it in a heartbeat, but unfortunately, the timing of it all couldn’t have been worse. He could empathize with her for losing sleep over everything too. Having stayed up until four in the morning to stay in touch with the soldiers and security team, he was exhausted too. If the men on the other end of his com device hadn’t just said that the interrogation would be resuming shortly, he would have suggested that they both take a nap to recover. As it was, he wouldn’t have the luxury until the interrogators were done with the prisoners and the disaster was settled.

Feeling her pull away from his embrace, the prince rolled his shoulders and leaned back into the plush sofa. [color=#b97703]“Just a little,”[/color] he smiled back at her with a weary playfulness. [color=#b97703]“But you’re still just as cute as always, so I’m not complaining.”[/color] As the words rolled off his tongue, his smile widened slightly. It felt good to be able to speak to her so openly, without worrying about making her uncomfortable or ruining their friendship. All the tension that had been building up inside of him since the day they’d met had evaporated like water on a sultry day. Now that he knew they were on the same page, that tension had been replaced with an excitement to find out where their relationship could go. Of course, he didn’t assume that they were in a real [i]relationship[/i] at the moment. One impulsive kiss didn’t add up to that, but the prospect of becoming boyfriend and girlfriend after they got to know each other better certainly wasn’t off the table. After all, he liked everything he’d learned about her so far, and he hoped she felt the same way about him.

As Iris suddenly brought up the idea of going back to the woods to look for her missing ID, Caspian raised his brows with intrigue. He’d had the same thought just moments before. If she believed they could find her lost belongings there too, then they were probably on the right track. Enthusiasm blossomed within him as he imagined how great it would be to go back to the forest and get everything they needed to send her home. She could go back to her family and friends and hopefully start to recover more of her memories when she returned to them. Selfishly, he looked forward to getting to know more about her as well. Though she wasn’t trying to be, the amnesiac was a mystery box to him that he wanted to unlock. He couldn’t wait to find out more about the past that had been sealed away by her head trauma.

[color=#b97703]“I’m not [i]that[/i] bad,”[/color] he rolled his eyes as she teased him about being squeamish again. [color=#b97703]“And, for the record, I think I handled that situation better than most people would have. Your leg looked like it had been dropped in a food processor.”[/color] He prodded her knee jokingly. With the depressing mood lifted at least a little, he wanted to close the distance between them again, but he restrained himself. They had kissed the night before, and he’d locked lips with her one more time that morning, but they still hadn’t had a chance to talk about it. He didn’t want to smother her if she wasn’t ready to pursue something more than friendship with him right now. Given that her memories were still gone, he wouldn’t have been surprised if she wanted to hold back even though she had said that she liked him. So, he folded his arms over his chest and sank into the cushioned seat, pulling one knee up onto the sofa as he made himself comfortable in the crook between the back and armrest.

[color=#b97703]“I think you’re onto something though,”[/color] he continued on a more serious note. [color=#b97703]“I didn’t check the ground to see if you had dropped anything when I found you. If you had your ID on you when you stepped in that bear trap, that’s the best place to look for it.”[/color] He leaned his head back, looking up thoughtfully at the ceiling, and sighed. [color=#b97703]“We probably won’t be able to do that for a while though. Security has the whole city on lockdown, and that goes double for this place. Until the escaped prisoners are back in the military’s custody, we can’t leave the mansion.”[/color] Unless they snuck out, he could have added. However, he kept the detail to himself. As much as he wanted to go looking for her ID, a plastic card wasn’t worth the risk of running into the terrorists who had just tried to attack his family. They were better off staying inside the mansion, where they were safe.

[i]The interrogation is set up to resume,[/i] a soldier’s voice announced in Cas’s ear. [i]The Aproveset is effective for another two hours. Shall we begin questioning the prisoners?[/i]

[i]Go ahead, Winston. Remember to prioritize names, locations, and strategies. Wring them of anything we can use to take down their damned organization.[/i]

[i]Yes, sir.[/i]

[color=#b97703]“And I think that’s my cue,”[/color] Cas exhaled, tapping his earpiece since he knew Iris couldn’t hear the conversation on the other end. Standing up from the couch, he stretched his legs and looked down at her with a halfhearted smile. [color=#b97703]“Looks like the prisoners we have are still alive, so I have to oversee the interrogation. With any luck, they’ll tell us everything we need to find the two who got away and finally win the upper hand against the Scourge.”[/color] He leaned down to touch a quick kiss to her forehead and turned to head for the door. [color=#b97703]“You should try to get some sleep, Iris. I promise I’ll come back whenever I find a chance to get away from this shit show.”[/color]