A/N: Woo! The reviews are incredibly loved and I'm seriously appreciating each and every one of them. Thank you ALL so much for taking the time to leave them. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I will be updating ASAP. :D

Enjoy.

:) Carter.

CHRISTIAN

"She said she was thinking with her heart instead of her head." I let that conversation with Ana roll around in my head another time while Dr. Flynn processed the information. "The look on her face when I dropped her off…" I knew deep down that she only wanted what was best for me, but she didn't know me well enough to take that on as a responsibility. I wasn't ready to let her all the way in yet, but someone had made that decision for me.

"She was clearly looking out for you. Though it still doesn't excuse her for crossing a boundary that you assumed existed. Have you talked to her since you dropped her off two days ago?" Taylor had been sending me subliminal messages, willing me to just call and talk to her, but I needed a few days to wrap my head around everything before I could get myself to deal with the situation in a way that I knew how. Allowing Ana to enter into my life was one thing, but having her try to help in such a profound way was more than I was willing to take on at the moment.

"No. She hasn't tried to get in touch either." I stared at my folded hands that rested on my lap. I really needed to reevaluate the feelings that were currently tangled up in a ball lying on the floor at the feet of Dr. Flynn.

"She's giving you time and space. That's a good thing. Do you think this is the end of things with you and Ana? It hasn't been long and It's okay if it is. Wanting to date other people is perfectly normal." Dr. Flynn rested his eyes on mine, looking for any answers to his questions. I didn't like the sound of dating other people at all and I really didn't like the sound of Ana dating anyone other than myself. I felt things for Ana that I have never felt before. The difficulty of it all was daunting, but I couldn't miss out on something that was proving to be good for me, despite recent events. She made me happy; a feeling I could get used to.

"I don't want it to be. I just hate that she knew about my past and still put me in that position with Elliot." I had to keep reminding myself that it was just in her nature to help. She just did a shit job of thinking about the consequences.

"I agree that she made a poor decision of setting you up, but think about it Christian. You've spent ten years hiding away from people who didn't care. Now you have someone who does after knowing you for so little time; and after knowing about your past. What is it that you want?" Fucking Flynn.

"Christ, Flynn. I want Ana. I've wanted Ana from the very beginning, but I can't handle the surprises or the idea that she thinks of me as damaged goods or even someone she pities."

"I don't think she sees you as damaged goods or any of that, Christian."

"Then how does she see me? How should I be looking at myself when that's exactly how I feel?"

"Only Ana can answer that for you. I also can't change the way you see yourself, but you can learn to change the angle. It's all a cognitive distortion, Christian. You need to find whatever triggers these thought processes in you and you need to learn to tweak them to go in a separate direction. Remember when I gave you that homework that ultimately led you to Ana?"

"Yeah?" Where was he going with this?

"It worked out better than you thought, didn't it?" I nodded. "Though, now you're faced with this new set of difficulties which can be scary. Because of that, I have a new assignment for you." Fuck, no. "I know what you're thinking Christian, but it could be worth it." I caught myself before I rolled my eyes. If I wanted any of this to work out I needed to put in some effort. I gave in.

"What is it?"

"Considering the connection you have with Ana I think you should continue on with it. Explore it." I could feel some of the tension leaving my body. As if the permission to move forward with Ana was what I needed to hear. "It was difficult for you to emotionally allow her into your life, but you did it and I don't think you need to lose her over something that was meant to be beneficial to you. I'm sure your pain is punishment enough for her, considering the nature of her heart, and I believe that you're in good hands with her, as long as there is open communication. With that said; the assignment. Unfortunately she heard about your story from your brother, you can't change that. There is no worse way to hear about a personal story than from someone else's mouth. Now, you need to let it come from you. Share your story with her and be proud of who you are, because, Christian; you are good enough."

The electric blinds in my bedroom slowly raised from their base, letting in the early Seattle morning sun. It was the morning after my evening session with Dr. Flynn and I woke up feeling a little more refreshed than I had been feeling the past couple of days. I lied in bed and stared up at the ceiling, feeling the soft black sheets that were tangled around my bare legs. I planned to call Ana so we could find a way to reconnect. I wanted to be open with her, tell her the things I had to live with, but It's difficult to explain things when you know they might not be well received. I valued my credibility. I managed to turn myself out of bed, landing both feet on the cold white marble floor. Slowly walking into the bathroom, I ran the shower as hot as I could stand it, stripping out of my white boxer briefs before I got under the steady stream of water. I slowly trailed my hand down my abs, through my pubic hair to my semi-erect cock, but ended it there. It had been three days since I've taken care of business, but there was no way I could finish with so much on my mind. I lathered myself up with a citrus spice body wash and rinsed off after using my favorite mentholated tea tree oil shampoo. Turning the nozzle, the water shut off, leaving me to drip dry until I grabbed a fluffy white towel hanging over the warmer on the wall. I wrapped it around my waist and stood in front of the mirror above the sink, looking at my reflection. Everyone thought my gray eyes were intense, but this morning they looked determined. I ran my fingers through my wet copper hair that looked close to black until it dried. I decided to leave the day old stubble. I gave myself a reassuring smirk and padded out to the shiny black dresser where I ditched the towel and slipped on a pair of black boxer briefs that hugged my ass in a way that made it bubble. I took a quick visit inside of my walk in closet and grabbed a pair of jeans and a black v-neck t-shirt and made myself presentable. All I needed to do was call Ana and hope it all went well from there.

ROBBIE

"Dude, so what's up with Mrs. Lincoln? She's always staring at me weird." I leaned in at the lunch table, stopping the group of male students from talking about Erica West's developing chest. I wasn't about to be brought down to Mrs. Lincoln's level. There was so much I needed to learn about these students and the situation with their teacher. Were they feeling threatened or were they also victims of Mrs. Lincoln?

"She's like that with all of the guys." Sam Rosen, a student in the health and history classes I was scheduled in, said simply. "Has she asked you to stay after class yet?" So this was a thing. I needed more, but I couldn't be too obvious.

"Yeah, tutoring." Keep talking Sam.

"The woman flashed me her pussy once and after that..." Kyle Tyler, another student in the history class, started to talk.

"Come on, Kyle." Sam shook his head. "Seriously. Robbie, whatever you do, don't entertain whatever it is she might have you thinking. She'll push harder. Most guys think having your teacher hit on you his hot. Not this one. You've seen her. She's also fucking crazy. Rule of the wise... Just don't. Got it?" It was as if he was warning me. The guys around the table looked at me with a seriousness that made me swallow hard.

"Why?" I pressed. There's something here.

"If you want to keep your good name you'll listen." Kyle took a bite out of his sandwich and looked away at the clock on the wall. Our next class was history.

ANA

I became a permanent fixture on the couch over the past couple of days. I couldn't get out of my head. I should have went with my gut and kept out of Christian's business. There was no reason for me to get involved and setting Christian and Elliot back wasn't what I intended to do. It wasn't a good feeling to lose my chances with Christian after doing something so stupid. Alex had always told me that my heart was bigger than my brain and one day it would lead to a world of pain for me. Instead of hurting myself, I hurt someone else. I was in the middle of wearing a hole in the ceiling with my stare when the phone began to ring. The past million phone calls that came through weren't Christian, so I gave up answering. What was the point? I wanted to mope and feel sorry for myself for at least one more day. Christian was long gone. I wouldn't want anything to do with me either after ruining the ten years spent keeping stable after everything that he went through. I could have sent him back years in his emotional stability. I know it would affect me if I were in that position. God, I hated myself. I closed my eyes and tried to imagine what clarity in this situation would be like. I was a mess of thoughts and insecurities. I must have fallen asleep because out of the blue there were loud thuds on the front door that caused me to jump from a groggy state on the couch. I looked like shit with my messy bun, cotton shorts and a wrinkly cami. I wiped my eyes and cracked the door open, taking a peek at who was standing outside.

"Ana?" Christian tried to assess my appearance. I opened the door, just enough to show half of me, because I hated for him to see the state I was in.

"Christian, what are you doing here?" Why did I ask? I wanted him here. I was thrilled that he was here.

"I tried calling. I just… I needed to talk to you. Is now a good time?" Cue the butterflies.

"Come in." I said casually, motioning for him to come inside. Thank God Kate and I are clean freaks. There were no piles of dirty laundry to hide or stinky dishes to cover up. "Would you like anything to drink? Are you hungry?" Whatever you need, I'll get.

"No, thank you." Christian took a seat on the couch, I sat on the other end, pulling a white micro-fiber blanket over my legs for comfort.

"Christian… I'm-"

"No, Ana, let me start, please. I have this all worked out in my head." He looked determined to talk. I nodded. He was probably only here to end things before they started because of the gentleman he was. For him to do that just showed what kind of guy I was missing out on. I wished I looked better so I could make it more difficult for him to walk away, but I deserved it.

"Okay." I swallowed.

"I'm not mad at you Ana." There went most of the tension I held in my shoulders. He wasn't mad? "I get it. You were trying to do something that you felt was to everyone's benefit, but it blew up in our faces. I can't fault you for not knowing me well enough to understand that it wasn't the best way to go about it. We just met. I hate that you learned about me from my brother, who I'm estranged from." I could hear him take a calming breath. I knew he was getting worked up. "Yes, I felt cornered and I felt setup. It wasn't right. For it to be caused by someone who I was beginning to feel comfortable with made it worse. Ana, you don't know how hard it is for me to accept people or even try to get to know them. I could honestly care less, but with you It's different and I need you to know what you're getting yourself into. We're barely getting into the beginning phase of whatever this is and I don't want you to feel the need to take matters into your own hands when something comes up. I need to be in control. It's in my nature. Any loss of that and I can't manage myself properly. Even telling you this is hard enough for me." Christian ran his fingers through his hair and rested his elbows on his knees, leaning in. He opened up beautifully.

"I'm sorry for everything Christian and I want you to know that I accept you for exactly who you are. I hate that I got involved the way I did. It was uncalled for. I wouldn't love anything more than to keep getting to know you and I really want you to know that I won't ever try to fix anything for you again, because that's not what you need and I failed to realize that. I don't know what you need because, frankly, I don't really know you." I really wanted to know him.

"The story you said Elliot told you was true. All of it." He said flatly.

"I know and I believe you."

"Do you, though?" Why wouldn't I?

"Christian, stop. I may not know you well enough, but I believe you." I could see that he had trust issues so I needed to make it clear to him. I think it registered in his head, but I couldn't be too sure. Am I willing to take on a man with trust issues? I could certainly try.

"My baggage is real, but so are the feelings that I have for you, Ana. I want to promise you that things will be easy, but they won't be. That's something I can promise. They'll be really fucking difficult at times and I don't want you to be left wanting more if I can't handle it because I'm still learning. I don't easily admit my faults, but this is my first time experiencing something like this. Relationships are foreign to me. I need you to understand that. I will try to be as open as possible, but sometimes I'll need a reminder because I can be just as selfish as I am selfless to those I care about which has been a single digit for as long as I can remember. It was just me and Taylor for ten years and now you're here and I… am beginning to count you in on that." I'm really searching within myself to find a response to what he just said, but there really are no words. I couldn't believe he was giving me a second chance. I leaned in close and looked at him in his beautiful gray eyes.

"None of this scares me away from you. I hope you realize that. Your past is your past and I understand that It's still a part of your present, but none of that is making me second guess the quality of person you are. I'm not expecting promises or guarantees from you. I wouldn't accept them even if you gave them to me because I can't promise the same. This is a first for me too, Christian."

"It is?" He sounded a little hesitant to believe me.

"Yeah. I haven't done this before. I'm full of my own challenges and I might not even be aware of all of them." Did that just make me sound like I have crazy swept under my rug?

"You've never had a boyfriend?" He pressed, focused on that alone.

"Just like you haven't had a girlfriend. Yeah, no relationships other than the one I'm hoping to have with you." Yikes, did I just say that out loud?

There was a glimmer of hope in Christian's eyes. It was as if he was coming around and letting me back in. I could see the possibility of it working for the both of us. I slowly got up off of the edge of the couch and walked towards him. I watched him tense slightly, but he relaxed as I ran my fingers through his messy head of copper hair. He looked up at me and it was as if time stopped. It was as if we were searching for the truth in each other's eyes, trying to find the one lie that just couldn't be found. Christian stood up. I thought maybe he was going to leave, but the look in his eyes made my heart stop for a second as he brought his hand to the back of my head and crashed his lips against mine. His other hand sliding down to the small of my back bringing me in close, his warmth consumed me. The wet entanglement of our tongues pushed the simplicity of our kiss to a heated embrace that we both needed to pull away from in order to catch our breaths. I kept my eyes on his reddened mouth and a smile began to creep on his face.

"Do you feel it too?" He asked. I nodded my head and rested my forehead on his shoulder, taking a sigh of relief. I did. I felt it too.

ROBBIE

Mrs. Lincoln was in a fire engine red pencil skirt with a tight white blouse that was loosened enough to see the edges of her leopard print bra. Her tits were practically spilling out. I watched the other male students interact with her and their repulsion was obvious. She wasn't singling any of the male students out. After the lunch room discussion this made me more uneasy; if that was even possible. Mrs. Lincoln must have been watching me observe her because she headed in my direction. The look in her eyes was of curiosity. I was a challenge.

"Mr. Hart when the bell rings I would like you to stay. I need to go over your last homework assignment." Could she be any more obvious? She tapped her long black nail on the edge of my desk and turned on her heel to face the dry erase board that was covered in dates related to World War I. One of the girls in the front of the class turned her head and gave me a dirty look that made me feel even more disgusted with the situation. She must know that there are disadvantages of being a female in Mrs. Lincoln's classes. History never excited me and that was part of the reason why the last half an hour felt like a full hour. The class had left as quickly as they could once the bell rang, leaving me alone with a child predator. I was surprised that there were no fangs when she smiled at me once we were left alone.

"Mr. Hart, I see you're doing well, but there are a few things that need some tweaking." She walked over to my desk and sat on top of it, leaving her legs uncrossed, her breathing picked up, pushing her breasts in and out.

"What kind of tweaking?" I asked, giving her a vibe that I was nervous. Let's do this.

"Well, I'll let you in on a little secret." Her eyes grew wide and she edged her tongue out slightly. It was as if she had heat vision.

"Sure."

She grabbed my hand and placed it on her thigh, sliding it down slowly to the edge of her skirt. She watched me closely, gauging my reaction to her advances. I had to play along with it. I needed her guilty. Before she could move my hand under her skirt I took my hand away. I couldn't let her take it further.

"What are you doing?" I looked at her with disgust.

"It's what you need. Young men need incentives. It's in your nature." She tried to normalize the situation.

"I'm perfectly capable of motivating myself." I needed to see how hard she worked for it.

I refused to blow my cover, so I grabbed my backpack and headed for the door before I could set her straight.

"If you tell anyone, Robbie, I'll say you forced yourself on me. You're new here. It's my word against yours and mine weighs more heavily. It would be best if you remembered that." My eyes grew wide. This was just what my boss said she would do. "I want you in here everyday after class. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action; including the possibility of expulsion or maybe even a few sexual assault charges. That wouldn't look so great on your record now would it? No one will believe you Robbie, so I suggest you play along." Her face was serious and sinister. I nodded and left the room, placing the most important call of this assignment. We'll see who faces charges. I needed a beer.

CHRISTIAN

"Boss, I just went over the footage from today." Taylor's voice sounded haunted. "I also got the call. Robbie Hart has contacted the authorities on Mrs. Lincoln. They're setting up a sting tomorrow afternoon once school lets out. They have enough evidence to arrest her now, but they want to catch her in the act." I looked up from my desk, Taylor stood by the door with his hands in his pockets. I didn't know how to feel after ten years of waiting for this moment. It wasn't happiness. It wasn't contentment. It was vindication. "It's suspected that she has been doing this to multiple students at Macefield Prep. Since they're minors we can't ask them to step forward without parental guidance, but once Mrs. Lincoln is taken into custody we can start with the investigation." What a mess. Taylor took a deep breath and waited for a minute before continuing. "Have you thought about what you're going to do?" I dropped the pen I was holding onto the desk and ran my hands through my hair. I thought about it for a minute. Did I want this woman to tarnish my image publicly by coming out with my past with her? She had already taken so much from me. There's no way. Fuck no.

"No Taylor, I want my name out of it."

"I understand." Taylor nodded, turning around to leave.

"Taylor?" I stopped him.

"Yeah, boss?"

"Can you do me a favor?" I felt my face contort as I tried to get the courage to ask for this.

"Of course." Taylor tilted his head in confusion. I never ask him to do favors, I just expected him to do whatever I asked. I took a deep breath and spit it out.

"Bring me the call log."

A/N: So... What's on your mind? :) Thanks again for leaving your thoughts. :)