[Thank you for all the reviews (:

Here's the next chapter, in Emily's POV.

Enjoy.]

"People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges." -Joseph F Newton

Emily woke up to the sunlight hitting her face and making a warm glow around the room.

She lay there sleepily for a couple minutes before realizing a hand was still resting around her waist. He was still there.

She ran through it in her head; he'd always left before she woke up. It helped them avoid the awkwardness of the situation. But not today.

Maybe he was asleep, she told herself. But, somehow, she knew that he was not.

So there they were, two people who knew each other better than they knew themselves; lying awkwardly in bed together, facing different directions, neither quite willing to turn around and face reality.

Sergio jumped up onto the bed, making soft pat-pat noises on the sheets as he crawled into Emily's arms and settled down there. She just sat up slightly, still not quite facing Derek, and patted the cat's head.

She heard a low chuckle which caused her to turn around, finally making eye contact with him. And she immediately regretted it.

Things between them had never been tense or awkward. They were always easy-going and comfortable. He was probably one of the only people she wasn't awkward around.

And she couldn't help thinking that they had just ruined that.

He looked at her, eyebrows slightly raised, face questioning. He was asking exactly what was on her mind: Where do we go from here?

They hadn't done anything, she tried to convince herself. Well, they hadn't. They didn't have sex, they didn't date. They'd just slept by each others side. It was harmless, really.

But now they both knew how much they needed each other. And honestly, she didn't know what that meant.

"Hey Emily.", he suddenly said, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"What?", she responded.

He opened his mouth to speak, and she held her breath.

She knew Derek Morgan, and what he would say next would undoubtedly be what he wanted.

He wasn't one to send mixed signals and wait for the right time: that was her. He would get it all out in the open, no matter how bad it was. So she looked anxiously at him, awaiting his response.

But all that came was "Never mind."

And Emily's mouth almost dropped open in surprise. Because Derek Morgan wasn't one to chicken out either, and that was exactly what he'd just done.

She stared into his eyes in shock for a second, the awkwardness laying like a heavy blanket on top of them. But then Sergio meowed, and it seemed to pull both of them into reality.

"I'm.. I- I better go...", he said, getting off the bed lightly, pulling his shirt on in the process.

Emily nodded, avoiding his eyes.

It wasn't until she heard his footsteps leave the room that she looked up. She saw the other side of the bed, which was now empty. All of a sudden, she felt much colder and sadder. The sunlight no longer seemed to be radiating in the room, and the warm feeling she'd woken up with was far gone, replaced instead with a sad emptiness in the pit of her stomach.

Sergio meowed again then, looking up at her with his emerald eyes. They looked accusing, as if he knew how much of a coward she was being.

Emily knew how happy Derek could make her. He knew it too. And it seemed like they were both just lying to themselves.

But Emily hadn't needed anyone in as long as she could remember. But now, she needed him, and it was terrifying. And Emily was afraid, as stupid as it sounds, to be happy. Every single time she'd been genuinely happy in her life, it wouldn't last.

There would always be a grace period where she felt like she was on top of the world, but that never lasted long. Then, it would all shatter, and she would be left in an even worse state then before.

Emily would always self-destruct.

She would think about how it couldn't possibly last; she would antagonize herself to the point where she ruined it.

And she knew that it would happen with Derek too.

He could make her happy, but eventually it would end - her own mind would mess it up. And she was sure one more heartbreak would shatter her completely.

She didn't want to hurt Derek either. She knew she would. And he was a good guy; one of the best she knew. He deserved someone better. Someone not as broken, someone with not as much baggage.

She knew all this; she tried to convince herself of it and move on, but there was a part of her that still longed for him. There was a young, naïve part that thought that all she had to do was tell him, and they would get their happy ending.

But this wasn't a fairytale, and Emily was damn sure she wasn't the princess who got her happily ever after. She was just the woman who'd spent her whole life trying to get out of her mother's shadow.

Sighing, Emily got up and attempted to forget. She showered, got dressed and ate breakfast, just like any other day. She fed Sergio and locked her door on the way out of the house.

But then as she was just sitting in her car, like an idiot, she realized that she had nowhere to go. Of course, there wasn't a case when she needed one.

There was always work when she had plans; when all she wanted to do was curl up in her bed and sleep for ages. But now, when what she wanted most was to have her mind somewhere else – there was nothing.

She would've loved to have something else in her head – a profile, a body, a serial killer – anything.

Those things she could deal with. She did, every day. It was her job, and she was damn good at it.

Feelings, however, that was her weakness. And exactly when she wanted to slip back into something familiar, the stupid feelings got in the way – feelings she had no idea how to even deal with.

Emily took out her phone again, checking for a call from Penelope. But instead, she found a text from Derek:

Em, I'm sorry...

I'm here if you want to talk about this. Always.

Of course. He was just the kind of guy to apologize for something that was obviously both of their faults. He just made everyone around him feel better; no matter the cost.

Emily read the words over a couple times in her head. She could almost remember all the times he'd said that to her: Always.

And she knew it was true: he would be there, whenever she needed him. That was just Derek; he offered her a shoulder to lean on, but he didn't impose. He told her he was there for her, but he knew that she might not want to tell him. He respected that, he didn't push. He understood.

And she asked herself, once again, why she kept pushing him away.

They say people are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges. If that was so, then Emily's heart was surrounded by giant stone walls, because she needed someone.

But that someone was right there; he was her best friend. All she had to do was tell him.

So with that thought, she started the car and turned out of her driveway.

[Leave me a review if you want me to continue?

Next chapter will probably be the same, just Derek's POV]