Cosima was paralyzed, her mind registering Delphine's words. For some reason her answer was delayed, like an explosion's shock wave that took its time to reach the place she was in. When it hit her it was the puzzle piece she's been missing to make sense of all that's happened the last couple of months and everything fits now. The decision was forced upon Delphine, as she initially suspected, but Cosima never considered it was directly related to Leekie. After all, the interactions she had with the dean never changed, he never altered his demeanor around her.

That prick! He was the reason Delphine had to stay away, the reason they lost all that time together, the reason she had to endure all the torture these last months presented to her.

"I know I should've told you sooner!" Delphine's voice came back to her. "But he insisted in keeping you in the dark about it. I think he was afraid how you would react if you knew."

"With good reason!" She started to move around, looking for the rest of her clothes.

"Cosima, wait!" The professor was moving in her direction, but she didn't stop. "What are you doing?"

"Getting dressed!" She stated.

"What are you going to do?" Delphine had a startled face. Cosima didn't answer. "Cosima, please, just listen to me!"

"You should have told me!" The brunette took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. The last thing she wanted was to unload all her anger on Delphine.

"And what would you have done?" The blonde was talking faster.

"Same thing I'm going to do now!" She found her jeans and was dressing them. "I'm going to give him a piece of my mind."

"You can't do that!" Delphine was becoming more frantic.

"Why not? He knows, doesn't he?" She was looking for her phone. "What difference will it make? And at least I have the pleasure to tell him to his face what I think of him, he can't control people like that!"

"He'll know I told you." The Frenchwoman held her shoulders from behind and spun her around; both women staying face-to-face. "Think! What good will that do? We need to think about a solution together. I know your first instinct is to confront him. Believe me, mine was too, but that will only make things harder for us."

For the first time since Delphine told her, Cosima paused to consider. "And why couldn't we have done that then? Why couldn't you have told me, so we could find a way together? Instead of taking upon yourself alone the decision, not telling me."

"For this very reason!" The professor pointed out. "I should've told you, I know, but…you… you burn fast. Truth is, I was also afraid how you would react, you tend to do the first thing that comes to mind and, in this case, that's the last thing we need."

"Why? He found out and nothing happened."

"Because I didn't tell you!" Delphine explained. "He made it very clear that if I told you both our careers would end."

"And how would he achieve that?" Cosima was skeptical.

"Fire me! Letting the reason for it be known." The professor said mater-of-factually, but Cosima was still not convinced. "My career would be over, along with my reputation. And what do you think it would happen to yours? This kind of thing coming out; all those job proposals you have. You could become a liability. Dr. Leekie is a very respected man in the scientific world, believe me, he could make it happen."

Cosima was starting to see the picture. Delphine was right, of course, it was an easy path for the dean to tread and he would come out of it unscathed. Especially after, apparently, giving them another chance to make things right. "Why didn't he do that in the first place?"

"According to him, he didn't want to lose me as employee over…" The Frenchwoman was fighting to find the right words.

"Okay, okay… I get it." The student didn't want to pry further, she could see by the other woman's face that it was not a pleasant meeting. "What do you propose we do?"

"If I knew that I would've told you right away!" Delphine's eyes moved to the ground. "Do you think I enjoyed staying away from you? Or being responsible for you to feel the way you felt?"

"You have no idea how I felt!" Cosima was starting to sound bitter, she couldn't help it. Remembering everything she'd been through, the pain that found a home in her chest for long weeks, when Delphine wouldn't even look her way, avoiding all contact, exchanging nothing but cold words.

Delphine sat back down on the edge of the bed, her eyes piercing the floor. "I know it was hard, do you think I didn't feel it too. So what? You think it was easy for me to ignore you, not to answer your demands?" She was starting to raise her voice a little. "To even consider the possibility of you moving on? Do you think I enjoyed to… to see you getting closer to someone else?"

"Hey… I was not close with anyone else!" Cosima said, getting on her knees, so she could stare at the professor's face. The student didn't want to agitate Delphine further, in fact she had some idea of what Delphine went through, she knew it couldn't have been easy for her either. If the first few weeks they spent apart were cold, the blonde's actions around her after that became more trying, more indecisive. During that period Cosima could see Delphine's resolution crumble and she took full advantage of that.

"Why did you decide to tell me now?" She could feel herself calming down. As much as she wanted to make the dean pay for all he's done, reacting like she wanted would make the man more powerful and, worse, Delphine would pay the ultimate price for her short temper. Even if the student doubted that he could ruin her career, no matter how respected he was, Delphine's was a totally different problem. He had the French professor in his hand.

"You're acting like I could stay away from you!" The older woman's hands moved to her neck.

"And now?" Cosima's hands holding the blonde's wrists. "Do you want me to stay away again? Until we find a solution?" She had to ask, even though the possibility of a positive reply terrified her.

"No!" Delphine's answer came quickly, her eyes opened equally scared with that perspective. "I can't still. And I don't want it!" She added urgently.

"Okay, alright!" She tightened her hold, wanting to reassure her. "We'll be careful. I don't want to stay away either." She confessed.

"We were careful!" Delphine reminded her.

"Not careful enough, if he found out. How could he, anyway?"

"I have no idea. I thought about that many times and never came to a good explanation."

"It is weird!" Cosima replied, getting up and finally reaching her phone. "Well, there has to be a way for him to know." She had a text from Scott.

"Obviously." The Frenchwoman paused, then added in a low voice, like she was afraid someone might listen. "Do you… do you think he has someone following us?"

Cosima couldn't keep a laugh from escaping her lips and then held the professor's face up, who was still seating on the bed, for a gentle peck. "I don't think so…" She whispered back, humorously. "And I thought I had a fertile imagination." She moved away to check the message her friend left her.

Delphine followed her with the eyes. "I know it sounds silly, but really… What other explanation is there?"

"I don't know, Delphine. But, believe me, we're going to get to the bottom of this." Scott was asking if she was going to class, the brunette read the text. Her eyes moving to the digital clock of the phone. "We have twenty minutes to get to school." She informed.

"Merde!" The professor got up and was gathering the rest of her clothes, which were still scattered on the floor. "I still have to go home to change." She was talking fast and was moving even faster, but Cosima was still, a smile plastered on her lips. When Delphine noticed, she asked. "What?"

"You don't have to go home." She simply said.

"Yes, I do!"

"No, actually, you don't." She moved to her closet, getting out of it an hanger. "You still have a change of clothes here, from our previous…hmm…adventures." She giggled softly. "And… listen to this! I have a working shower!" She added with a huge grin, throwing the clothes to bed, closer to where Delphine was and opening one of the drawers on the nightstand, playing childishly with the lace panties and bra she removed from it.

A look of recognition passed by Delphine's eyes when she realized to whom those things belong to. She moved next to the younger woman with a smile, removing her underwear from her hands and placing it next to her suit. "Merci!" She said under her breath, before kissing Cosima's entertained smile and rushing to the bathroom.

Cosima followed the Frenchwoman to the bathroom, but made no attempt to join her in the shower. As much as she wanted, the student knew the professor wouldn't have it. "I hope you'll excuse me from class today!" She said loud enough for Delphine to hear it over the water.

"Why?" The blonde asked.

"Hmm… Well, I still have to get ready and there's this impossibly hot woman hustling my shower!"

"The final is right around the corner, you can't be cutting class, Cosima!" Delphine was all business.

"I know, don't worry. I'll get the notes from Scott." Cosima said. "And is just today."

The older woman was already leaving the shower. Cosima moved to give her one of the towels, but froze, holding it between her hands, at the sight of Delphine's naked body before her, swallowing the lump that was quickly forming in her throat.

The professor smiled and roughly took the towel away from her hands. "Give me that!" She said between the smirk.

"Oh, yeah… right." Her eyes going to Delphine's eyes, a blush coloring her face.

Delphine moved to the room and started to get dress, with Cosima always following her trail. "Promise me you won't do anything rush!" She was buttoning her blouse, looking with a serious face to the brunette.

"I promise!" She replied. "Don't worry, I'll behave!"

"Hm-mh…" The Frenchwoman was still suspicious.

"No, really!" Cosima assured her. "I don't want you to lose your job, obvs…"

"Okay!" Delphine was putting on her shoes. Then moved to the door, dressing her coat, the student always behind her. She turned, giving Cosima a light kiss before opening the door and leaving.

Cosima walked back to her bedroom, picking up her phone and returning the text to her friend. After, she started slowly getting ready to leave as well and thinking over what the professor had revealed to her. Apparently, their biggest issue was finding out how did Dr. Leekie learn about their relation. Cosima had no idea how that happened, but it was obvious he had a way; if he confronted Delphine the way he did, it was not based on some simple suspicion, on rumors. Even because, as far as the student was concerned, her personal life was never the target of gossip around campus. She was not a popular character in college, most of her colleagues stayed away from her and, apart from Scott, her close relations were not with other students from her department.

No, he found out by other means! But which? She had no idea, unless the dean had a crystal ball, there was no way he could have known. They were so careful, all for nothing, they still had to spend too long away from each other. That dick! Cosima started to feel the anger again, burning inside her. The despise she felt for the man increasing, finding its way into her chest.

Threatening Delphine, making her lie to me! The student was well aware that the relationship she kept with the professor was anything but appropriate, but there was no need for him to powerplay the Frenchwoman, to corner her, chaining her decisions. Although Cosima had no idea how Leekie should've dealt with it, the way he ended up doing it was the cowards' way, bullying Delphine into do want he wanted. The least he could've done was to talk with both of them, after all they were all grownups, responsible for their actions. But no, I guess expecting him to behave like an actual human being was too much of a stretch.

Without Delphine's pacifying words her mind was raging again, the need to get back to the dean rooting in her head. She wanted him to suffer, the same way she has, the same way he made Delphine. Cosima had to keep her plans on hold, though; doing something now, without any control, was a losing battle and would put the professor in a precarious position. No, I have to wait, be patient.

The rest of the morning passed slowly, Cosima eventually did make it to her second period, but she didn't have Scott's company in her classes. As a result of it the student spent all morning fighting back yawns; it wasn't that she was not interested in the subjects, the fact was she was just too tired to stay focused. The night with Delphine and the tense conversation from a few hours ago drained all her energy.

She was feeling like a zombie while walking along the corridors, among her peers, to go to the cafeteria for lunch. Carrying her tray to her regular seat, Cosima settled in front of Scott, who looked at her with a shy smile. "Hi there, Scott." She said to the young man.

"Hm-mh… Boy, you look tired!" He replied.

"That's because I am!" The brunette started to pick at the food.

"So… Are you going to tell me what happened last night?" Cosima noticed some hesitation in her friend's question.

It annoyed her; she didn't want her best friend to be afraid to ask questions. They have known each other for some time now, it was not normal for him to feel cautious around her. Yet, she knew why he was feeling like that, after all that has happened, Scott's doubt was understandable. "Hm… I don't know…" She said.

"If you don't know, who does?" Scott's face lighting up a little more.

"Yeah, you know me! I'm full of mysteries!" Cosima joked.

"No shit!" His expression changed a bit, he was shifting on his chair, like he was uncomfortable, constantly readjusting himself. His friend knew when he wanted to say something, but was holding it back. She decided to help him. "What Scott?" She asked calmly.

"You were with someone last night, yes?" He asked, still hesitant, his face red.

The question surprised the female student, her friend was not the type to meddle in her life like this. "Yeah, I was." Cosima answered still, she had the impression something was bothering him.

"I'm sorry, I know is none of my business, but…" He stopped.

"God, Scott! Let it out already!" She said a little too loud.

"Is just… Well, I thought you said you weren't interested." He started to talk fast. "And that girl… I'm sorry… she sends bad vibes and you're usually so intuitive about those things…"

"Scott…" Cosima was growing more and more confused.

"Listen, I know, okay…" Scott didn't let her speak. "I know it's your life, but I just don't want you to get… I don't know…hmm… hurt. Really, I'm just trying to look out for you.

"And I know things with… Dr. Cormier" He whispered the name. "Didn't work out, but c'mon!"

"Scott, what the fuck?" She was still incredibly lost.

"No, I know, okay." He looked at his friend's confused face. "Look… I shouldn't have said anything. I guess she's…hot, maybe."

Cosima was already raising her hands in an effort to make him stop his ranting without rising too many suspicions around the cafeteria. "Scott, what the hell are you going on about?" She finally managed to ask.

"Alex!" He simply answered.

"What about her?" His reply didn't help her clarify things.

"Is her you're seeing!" It was an affirmation, a statement her friend was making. Not a question.

"What?!" This time the young woman couldn't contain her voice from going over what was recommended.

"I saw it!" Scott was obviously convinced of what he was saying.

"Saw what, Scott? I have no idea what you're saying!"

"Last night!" He explained, but Cosima wasn't getting any closer to understand what he was talking about, so he proceeded. "When you kick me out of your apartment, she was already there."

"What are you saying Scott, she was where?!" Cosima's confusion was being replaced by incredibility.

"On the other side of the street, in front of your building." The young man was starting to realize that his friend had no idea what he was talking about.

"Did she saw you?" Cosima asked, her mind racing.

"Oh, she saw me, alright!" He continued his narration. "I went to greet her. She acted like she was there by chance." He looked down. "I guess that's what happened, right? If she wasn't there to see you…"

"No, she absolutely was not!" The brunette wasn't sure what to make of it. I guess that could have happened! After all, the students typically lived near the campus and, even if she didn't know exactly where, Cosima recalled Alex mentioning something about living not far. But, for some reason she didn't think her partner lived around the same area she did; when they left together at the end of the day, Alex always started to walk in the opposite direction.

Then, suddenly a realization found her mind, she should have thought about it sooner, but the tiredness was undoubtedly making her brain working slower than usual. "Scott, do you think she stayed there?"

A/N: So, I know that the semesters in the States usually end with the Christmas break and that's when students have their finals. It just so happens that here, in Europe, they end around February. So I decided to make some sort of compromise... they'll be in January in my world... There... At least here I'm the boss, I can do whatever I want. :)