Author's Note- Alright, alright. Here you guys go. Just, don't stone me at the end.

I apologize for having not updated 30 Days in the last couple of days. Something came up in which I really have no chance to write right now, nor the desire to. But I'm hoping to jump back on starting Monday. This was already written and I did promise to give it to you guys today. :) Bear with me.

Enjoy!

Forbidden

Relinquish

I waited while the students flooded out of Derek's classroom, standing in front of the first row of desks with the manila envelope in my hands. Derek was leaning against the front of his desk, hands shoved into his pockets. He looked just as incredible as the first day I saw him. Black dress pants with his white, button-up shirt tucked in. Sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing his firm forearms while clinging to his biceps. His peppered jaw was flexed while his jade orbs surveyed the envelope I was holding, dark brows knitting together questioningly.

When had everything changed so drastically? How had a silly little crush morphed into something that had felt so real, so amazing, only to be challenged by something like this?

When we were finally alone, I calmly handed Derek the envelope. I was an extreme of emotions inside, but mixing everything I felt with someone who had a short fuse wasn't going to get me very far. I wasn't here for any explanations or his side of the story. Not yet. There was only one thing I wanted right now.

Space to think.

"What is it?" Derek asked, taking the envelope from me. I could hear the hesitance in his voice. I could see the tightness of his mouth and around his eyes.

"You know what it is."

He took a moment's pause before he exhaled, as if he had been holding his breath, and placed the folder behind him on his desk without even opening it.

"I didn't do it, Chloe," He said slowly, holding my eyes earnestly. I saw in them the sincerity of his words and the truth. And part of me felt so relieved because, even though I was sure that Derek was innocent, I had still developed a miniscule seed of doubt. I nodded.

"I know, Derek."

He looked surprised for a moment and there was a hint of relief that touched his eyes. I wasn't too sure he'd be relieved a couple minutes from now.

"A lot of things make sense now. Why you're so adamant about me staying away from him and why he seemed so interested in my relationship with you. Especially now that two girls have gone missing, the two of you have seen it before and you've been so paranoid. You've hardly trusted me to have a minute by myself and he's noticed. That's why he suddenly came forward with this information. You think he's behind it all, now repeating the past, and he thinks it's all your doing-"

"No, Chloe." Derek suddenly interrupted. He'd pulled his hands out of his pockets as I spoke, crossing them over his chest as he listened. Now he was abruptly upright, arms at his sides, taking that same defensive stance he did the first time I ever spoke of Professor Banks to him. "It's bad enough that you gave him five minutes where he could have done God knows what-" He paused, casting his gaze to the side, visibly trying to reign in his anger, obviously infuriated that I'd agreed to discuss anything with Royce Banks at all, let alone this.

"He's lying to you." He continued, finally bringing his eyes back to me. Sharp, heavy, piercing green, begging me to hear his words, to let them sink in. "He's dangerous, Chloe. If what I think is in that envelope actually is, then you can see what he's capable of. He's trying to turn you against me. He's trying to hurt you."

"It's funny, he said all the same about you." I said icily, my resolve to remain calm and collected out the window, anger seeping in. Derek stared at me, mouth agape, his own rage rearing back to a boil in his eyes.

"And you believed him?" He asked incredulously.

"I'll tell you what I believe. The two of you are so out for each other, for all you know, the real criminal is still out there. You two are so busy blaming each other that-"

"You don't get it!" Derek exclaimed, interrupting me. "This isn't just-"

"Nothing you can say right now is going to change how I feel." I cut in. I was not here for an explanation. I couldn't afford to be swayed to Professor Banks' side, but it was the same for Derek. Just because I was falling for him didn't change the fact that he kept me in the dark with something like this.

"I believe you didn't kill Austin Banks. I know you didn't take those girls and that you didn't kidnap Rae and Miranda. But I don't trust you anymore."

"What?" Derek blanched, eyes widening in surprise and confusion and- and hurt. My chest seized.

No. You can't feel guilty about this.

"Why should I?" I continued. "You don't trust me."

"Of course I do," He said, stepping forward, reaching for me. I stepped back.

"No, you don't. At least Professor Banks cared enough to tell me the truth. He's wrong, but it's still the truth he wholeheartedly believes and caused him to have concern for me." Derek opened his mouth to retort, but I pushed on. "All you did was coddle me and lock me away. You needed an excuse. You saw that you tutoring me had caught Professor Banks' attention and thought that I would be his next target. So you took advantage of my feelings for you to keep me close, to keep an eye on me in case he decided to act."

Suddenly, Derek's aura morphed into something very dark as he stared at me disbelievingly.

"You think this was all an act? Do you honestly think that I'd pretend to care about you to confirm a theory?"

"I don't know what to think, Derek. Because I'd think that if you did trust and care about me, you would so enough to have properly warned me about all of this, about what I was getting myself into. That's what partners do. No matter how dark the road is behind them, they trust that the other will stay by their side despite it. And if you had been honest from the get-go, your worst fears wouldn't be realized right now. I'd have never enrolled in Banks' follow-up class. Hell, I would have dropped the credit of the first class forever ago. I'd have never learned his side of the story. I'd have never questioned my trust in you, and I'd never developed this small doubt that I have now that maybe, just maybe, you really are what he says you are, because you tried so damned hard to hide it."

"I didn't tell you because I wanted to keep you as uninvolved as possible." He said evenly, but quietly. Because he could see that he was in a hole.

"That ship pretty much sailed the moment you agreed to be with me, if not sooner."

After a moment he said, "I tried to stay away from you. As much as possible while still helping you through the class, anyway. I was aware of the ramifications if I pursued my interest in you-"

"Ones that really had nothing to do with me being your student."

He shook his head. It was a sharp movement, his lips curling deeper into his scowl.

"I didn't give a shit about that."

"But you pretended to, an excuse for the real cover. Not the one for everyone else. Just the one for him, and the one for me."

Derek held my gaze intently, gauging how I was processing this, hoping that I was processing it in his favor and I realized that, slowly, I was. I knew exactly why Derek did everything that he did. I knew it before I even started rereading the case files the night before. But, in the end, that didn't make the fact that he did it acceptable. Not right now. Not when I could so easily falter and just take the few steps that separated us and pull myself against him, whispering into his chest that it was okay, that I believed him and trusted him, that I understood.

"Just because it was the only way I thought I could keep you safe, doesn't mean that it was all a lie." He murmured quietly. He could see that he didn't have to say that, but he did anyway, hoping.

"I know."

Silence. Long, painful, can't-bear-it-anymore silence. He was waiting for me to do it. To deliver the blow that we both knew was coming. I could see his rebuttal bobbing with his Adams apple, ready to fly from his lips. No matter what I did next, we both knew that he wasn't going to just let me walk out, not when he was convinced that I was his mortal enemy's next target.

That's why I had planned for this.

"I'm going back to Buffalo tonight-"

"Chloe," Derek started, taking a step towards me, reaching out again. And again I stepped away.

"I'm going back to Buffalo tonight and I'll stay there for the week, just like we planned. I'll update Facebook or whatever every night just so you won't have a freak out and make an impulsive trip. I can't handle that right now. I need space. I need to clear my head and think about all of this. Really think about it. And then-" I paused, holding his gaze, warning him that I was serious and that if he wanted to try to make any of this better, he would have to leave me alone.

"-we'll talk when I get back."

I couldn't say what that truly meant on my end, leaving it so open-ended like that. But I knew that if Derek could see me online, see whatever bullshit posts I left throughout the next week and had a promise for me to hear him out when I returned, then I was certain that he'd keep his distance. And that's all I wanted in this moment.

He shifted uncomfortably, obviously not fond of the parameters I'd just laid down. He struggled between rubbing the back of his neck, scratching at his arms and raking a hand through his dark hair. Finally he settled on sitting back against his desk and crossing his arms over his chest. When his eyes met mine again they were no longer hard and guarded. His walls were nothing but rubble at my feet and I cursed myself for feeling awful and responsible for the storm of emotions waging within their jade depths. Part of me wanted just as badly as he did not to let me go.

But in the end, he did.

I know this is a bit short, and not what you guys wanted to see. But, with this situation, I tried to put myself into Chloe's shoes and asked myself what I would have done. Then I asked myself what Kelley's rendition of Chloe would have done.

While you guys wait for the next chapter- hopefully I'll finish with it sooner than later- and don't already know about it, go check out the 30 Day Writing Challenge I'm undergoing with this pairing. Maybe it can hold you over until I finish chapter 30.

Until then!