---

¬ FASHIRE 

My risky attempt failed to madden him, and his face only turned sour. He didn't let go of me either. My irritation spiked and immediately died down. I wanted to berate him, but I guess he would not just be clueless as to what just happened, but we can't know if we just stood there. After all, wasn't he the one pushing me about confrontation earlier? 

'So I have no excuse to stall on my part while you do?'

I squeezed his hand, stifling my remorse. He didn't deserve it. He could get it from someone else, but not me. 

"We can't stay here forever," I grumbled, "Others will begin to notice"—I would make sure of that—"and I am frankly not keen on standing still like this for a lengthy period. You can let me go and I'll come back to you when I'm done."