Thief of Twilight

Part Two: Chapter 66

Yohan sat beside me in utter silence. I hadn't seen him move an inch since I began my story.

"He has my mother's ashes. That's all I wanted back. I didn't care about my debts. I told myself that once I got my mother's ashes back, I would run away. I would run as far away as I possibly could. I would even move to another continent to ensure that Lord Baldwin could not find me."

Yohan clenched his jaw before sitting back. He pulled his feet from the water and slipped on his boots.

"Y-Yohan..." I watched him walk a few feet away from the hot spring. He covered his face with his hands as if in deep thought before collecting himself. Taking a deep breath, he looked up to the sky.

"Yohan, it's over! Lord Baldwin is dead! So we-."

"We don't have to what?" he turned to me. "We don't have to worry?"

I looked down. "You don't have to worry..."

A silence followed.

Yohan narrowed his eyes. "Let's go."

I hesitated before pulling my feet from the hot spring. After putting on my sandals, I carried the basket on my hip. Our walk back to the village was a quiet one. The silence felt like heavy stone weights. I handed So-hee the basket of peppers before Yohan and I returned to the temple. Before I could say anything, Yohan was walking away.

He hates me.

I know he does.

Why would he still like or even care about someone like me? I'm glad I didn't confess my feelings to him. If I had...and then told him this, I would have been broken. I washed up for the night and went to bed alone. I don't know if I've ever felt so alone before. Without him here...the temple feels much colder.

During the night, I felt a pair of thick arms wrap around me.

"...Yohan...?"

"...Mhm."

I turned around and curled into him. "Do you hate me?"

"No." he kissed my forehead. "I don't hate you."

"Do you...still like me? Despite knowing...that?"

"Yes."

I was relieved by his response.

"But I am angry."

I looked up at him through the darkness.

"I'm not angry at you. I'm angry at the situation that you were put in. The way he treated you...like you were an object since you were a child. Like...you were some sort of tool. I wish you didn't have to go through that. But it makes sense now. Now I understand why you acted the way you did in the beginning. The way you would flinch and immediately create space between us when I wanted to hold your hand. The difficulty you had trying to trust me. You really...did not know if I was safe for you. If I was going to make you feel safe."

I wrapped my arms around him.

"I promise not to hurt you the way that he did. I promise to always respect your boundaries. I promise to always provide a safe space for you."

Hearing those reassuring words made my heart feel lighter.

"Thank you..."

Yohan tightened his arms around me.

"Yohan, I'm fine. Really." as I sat up, I noticed the pillow was wet. "...Yohan?" I stroked his cheek feeling a few tears just below his eyes. "Y-Yohan! Why are you crying?"

He rolled onto his back to wipe his eyes.

"Yohan...what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry..." he wept.