His eyes fixated on the fire of a torch; outside, it was so cloudy that the light of the day was not enough to brighten the room. He opened the curtains and gazed idly out the window.

"Why did you come to my room, anyway?", Val asked.

Adrien's mouth twisted into a strained smile. "Well, at first I wanted to talk to you about what I was reading, and then -- then I wanted to play a prank on you... Well, anyway, I -- sorry, but -- I ended up accidentally seeing you through the crack in the door".

"Crack? What crack?", Val gasped, wide-eyed.

"By the hinge", Adrien said.

"By the hinge...", Val repeated. His expression seemed blank for a moment; then his eyes regained their warmth. "The door I kept tightly locked had a crack after all", he mused. "Perhaps it was there exactly so you could see".

Adrien lowered his head and smiled slightly, in lack of a reply that could carry enough meaning to match with Val's thoughts.