As Iris pulled away from him, Caspian turned back to her, watching as she scrambled to throw her clothes back on. He felt a pang of disappointment, wishing they hadn’t been interrupted when they had been about to indulge in their desire for each other at last. However, there was no time to think about that right now. For the moment, they had the cover of darkness to hide from Jay and Miles, but if the other high borns shined a light into the bathroom, they would be caught. So, he followed suit, picking up his shirt and trousers from the floor and fumbling to put them back on before his friends grew clever enough to take a look through the glass door.

Just as he pulled his top back down over his head, he heard her starting to panic. He let go of the fabric and turned toward her once more while she fanned herself and scrambled to come up with an explanation for them to be in the bathroom at the same time. Initially, he’d been startled by the others too, but watching her freak out had a strangely calming effect. One of them needed to be level-headed if they were going to get away without drawing attention to themselves, and that responsibility fell to him now.

Quickly, he took hold of her hands to stop her from rushing about. [color=#b97703]“Iris, Iris, calm down,”[/color] he whispered, frowning solemnly as he held her gaze. [color=#b97703]“Those two are high as a kite. We can do this. Just stay behind me, and I’ll get the door for them. As soon as they come in, go back to the bedroom. If we tell them you were there the whole time, I’m sure they’ll believe it.”[/color]

From the other room, he could hear Jay and Miles jostling the handle as they tried once more to get in. “It’s stuck good,” Miles grumbled when the door didn’t budge.

“That’s what she said,” Jay snickered.

Miles laughed and then shook his head, “I’m gonna get a maid and let her know that we need to call a locksmith. I’m too baked for this shit.”

At that, Cas stiffened. If his friend called one of the servants, they would find out that Iris was hiding in the room with them. He couldn’t let that happen—not while he had nowhere else to send her where she would be safe. Hurriedly, he called out, [color=#b97703]“I told you guys I needed to use the toilet! The door’s locked so you would stay out!”[/color]

“Cas?” Miles paused, pressing his face up to the glass again and squinting as he attempted to look through. “Why are you in there with all the lights off?”

Gently, Cas pushed Iris so that he was standing between her and the other high borns. He doubted they could see inside, but just in case, it was better for them to only see him. [color=#b97703]“What are you talking about?”[/color] he asked in return, using the first response that popped into his head. [color=#b97703]“The lights aren’t off. You must’ve had too much.”[/color]

“Really?” Miles blinked, squinting harder and then recoiling from the door with a grimace. “Fuck. I overdid it. I’ve gotta lay down.” He took a step away from the bathroom, stopped, and then turned back again. “Wait. I still have to piss. Are you done in there yet?”

[color=#b97703]“Yeah, just give me one second and I’ll let you in,”[/color] Cas yelled back. Glancing at Iris over his shoulder, he shrugged. [color=#b97703]“See? They’ll believe pretty much anything when they get like this.”[/color]