57

We spent yesterday afternoon in Mr. Robertson's classroom, combing through every computer, every file, every possible lead.

He was surprisingly co-operative, giving us full access to his students' devices for the sake of the university's reputation and our sanity. Well, also our- and Daniela's reputation too.

Yet, despite the hours we spent hunched over keyboards, squinting at screens, nothing turned up.

It wasn't the photography kids. That much was clear.

Eleanor also found nothing on the cameras throughout the library.

So that leaves the suspect to be either staff members or students that had unauthorized access to the webpage. Making them hackers. Maybe the suspect wasn't even in university.

I wanted to check up on Daniela, but I knew she didn't want to see me.

Never again.

But, out of being at random places on the right time, there she was, walking down the hallway. She had her phone in her hand, looking down at it with her full focus. She seemed to be confused, her eyebrows furrowed down slightly.

I always found it cute how she frowned.

I stood frozen for a moment, unsure if I should call out to her. Part of me wanted to run to her, beg for forgiveness, and fix things. But the other part of me-- the part that learned the hard way-- knew that she would push me away. She already made it clear with her silence and distance.

The halls were quite empty since more than half of the students were in class or somewhere else. So she didn't really expect to run into someone before I made sure she did.

Getting the timing right, I purposely walked around the corner the same time as she did and we collided.

Her phone slipped from her hand, clattering against the floor with a sharp noise that seemed to echo through the hallway.

My eyes widen as I looked at the device on the floor.

My gaze flickered up, meeting hers. She didn't speak.

She bent down to pick up her phone.

When she straightened up, she didn't look at me directly. I could see her trying to avoid my gaze, but there was no way I could ignore the tension that was building between us.

"I didn't mean to." My voice cracked before I could finish the sentence, and I felt my throat tighten.

Luckily her phone was fine.

No cracks.

"Yeah, it doesn't matter." She said strictly before grabbing my wrist. "Come with me." I flinched at her sudden contact. It was the last thing I expected, and luckily nobody was near to see it either.

I didn't have time to protest before she tugged me down the hallway, her pace quick. I could feel the tension radiating off her, her body stiff.

Soon, we were standing outside the janitor's room. I barely had time to register before she pushed the door open and pulled me inside, the smell of the cleaning supplies hitting me immediately. It was cramped, dark, and smelled like bleach.

Like good old times.

The door slammed shut behind us with a thud.

I stood there, uncertain, my eyes meeting hers. She was staring at me now, and I tried my best to not look away.

"Professor Clarke's been helping me." She finally speaks. "He thinks it's someone in his class, someone with access to the coding for the blog."

"What?" I was a bit relieved we might have something. "How does he know that?"

Daniela let out a frustrated sigh, running a hand through her hair. "He's been looking into it. He's the one who set up the security on the site, and he's been checking the logs. It's someone who knows how to work with coding, someone who had access to the system." Her eyes flickered briefly to the door, as if making sure no one was listening. "He tracked where the post came from and it was in his classroom, from one laptop. That laptop belongs to Elijah."

It was like a slap to the face.

So what? That's what he does after I took Cameron away from him?

"That. Mother. Fucker." I clenched my fists at my side, gritting my teeth. "I'm going to--"

"No." She cut me off. "You're going to do nothing."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "No?" I repeated with a scoff.

"No." Daniela's voice was calm but firm, her eyes locking with mine as she took a step closer. "You're not doing anything, Victoria. Not now. Not when we don't have all the information we need."

I opened my mouth to argue, but she cut me off again.

"You don't understand how serious this is." She frowned. "I don't want you near him."

My anger flared each second. "I don't need you to protect me." My jaw clenched. "I can handle Elijah. If I did it before, I can do it now."

"Oh, you handled him, did you?" She let's out a sarcastic laugh. "I'm pretty sure I was the one who told him to never come close to you ever again. And that's exactly what he didn't do."

My eyebrows furrowed together, feeling the heat rush to my ears. Her eyes sent daggers into mine, but it didn't intimidate me anymore. In fact, it urged me to smack that look off her face.

"I'm the one that started this shit in the first place." I muttered, looking down to my feet as my body trembles. My nostrils flaring. "I'm going to find Elijah and make him pay." I moved to the door.

"Victoria."

"No." My hand reaches out for the handle.

"Victoria." Her voice went lower.

"I said--"

Like the speed of light, her hands were on me before I could even open the door. She spun me around and pinned me against the wall. I let go of a tiny "oof" as my back hits the wall. She held my wrist above my head. Her face was insanely close and I could see the anger in her eyes. It shifted between anger, hurt, betrayal to jealousy even.

Her grip on my wrist tightened, and I felt my heartbeat quicken. Her breath mixing with mine, and for a moment, I could only focus on the intensity in her eyes. I couldn't let her eyes stare me into a trance. So before I could do anything stupid, I had to speak.

"Let go of me," I hissed, struggling against her hold. But she didn't move.

"You're not doing this," She whispered, looking down to my lips.

I glared at her, refusing to back down. "You can't stop me. I need to find him."

"Then I'll have to lock you inside of here."

I frown. "You fucking wouldn't."

At this point, what wouldn't she do?

If anything, her expression hardened. She was serious. She would keep me here if it meant stopping me from doing something reckless.

Her grip on my wrist didn't loosen, but it wasn't just her hands holding me in place anymore—it was the weight of everything unspoken between us. Everything that's been left unsaid, all the things we were avoiding. It wasn't just about Elijah anymore. It wasn't just about the damn blog or the video.

It was about us.

"Try me." Her voice went lower.

Hell, did that fucking fuel my anger. "Let go of me!" I was so close to getting her off me, escaping, before she slammed me back into the wall.

Did I really want her to let me go? I mean, this was the closest we've ever been in a long time.

She took a deep breath, steadying herself. Her chest rose and fell with each breath, her face so close to mine that I could feel the heat of her body pressing against me.

And for a split second, her eyes darted down to my lips again.

Then that was it, I shoved her away, feeling the rush of adrenaline surge through me. My heart was hammering in my chest, my breath coming out in uneven bursts. The moment she was no longer pressed against me, the silence between us felt suffocating again.

I stood there, trying no to cry as she stares at me.

"I'm leaving." I said, my voice shaky and quieter than before.

But just as I reached out to the door, a shadow was behind it, and I heard as the door locked.

"What the hell?" I whisper, tugging at the handle. "Hey! Let us out!"

Daniela rushed next to me, and the shadow disappeared. "What?" She asked, "What is it?"

"Someone locked the door!"

I yanked at the handle again, my frustration growing with each unsuccessful attempt. "Come on!" I hissed under my breath, my fingers digging into the cold metal. My heart raced as the reality of being trapped set in.

The first time I was trapped in here was enough.

I stepped back to let Daniela give a try. But her effort didn't last long before she stepped back again.

"So what?" She scoffed. "Someone has been stalking us and followed us here?"

My body fell against the wall, my eyes glued to the floor. My ears listening to Daniela as she cuss something in Spanish under her breath. She then groaned out loud and went to lean against the wall at the opposite side of me.

I zoned out, not knowing what to think anymore.

Daniela also slid down, sitting right in front of me, mimicking my position as I bend my legs. Our shoes were almost touching, a few inches between us.

We sat in silence and I dropped my head on my knees brought up to my chest. I could feel her eyes scanning over me, but honestly, I didn't care.

How can Elijah do this?

A better question, how did he even find the footage?

"How's your burns?" She suddenly asks, her voice softer than before.

I looked up at her. I totally forgot about my burns. I've just been so focused on other stuff, I forgot they were still on me. But the stuff she applied on it also helped, making me forget about the pain. It also made the redness disappear.

"Fine."

We both could've pulled our phones out any second to call for help. But why haven't we? I don't know what's stopping me.

Why haven't she?

Like for the tenth time, we fell into silence.

I could feel her gaze lingering on me, but I didn't want to look up. I didn't want to acknowledge the way her presence in the small space seemed to fill the room with tension. Her question about my burns felt like the first real sign that she cared about something other than the chaos surrounding us.

"The typewriter's fixed." She spoke up.

My head snaps up. "What?" I whisper.

She nodded slowly, her eyes not meeting mine. "It was just a matter of adjusting the keys. They were sticking. It's all good now."

I didn't know what to say.

I shifted uncomfortably. "Thanks," I muttered, unsure of how to react.

But she didn't seem to need a big response. Instead, she just sat there, still and calm. Almost like she was letting the moment breathe, giving me space to react, to let my guard down just a little.

My cheeks flared up slightly as her emerald eyes met mine. Neither one of us had the urge to look away this time. It was like she was trying to search for something in me, the same way I was studying her. This is the perfect chance to tell her about everything. Adeline and Cameron.

But then again, this moment will be ruined and maybe I'll never get it back again.

So why not say something that she needed to hear a long time ago.

"Daniela, I--"

Just then another silhouette, looking like Iris' appeared outside the door. And as it unlocked and swung open, there she was.

"Why the fuck did Elijah lock you two in here?"