The Varied Path (Akatsuki no Yona Fanfiction)

Chapter 80: Stranger Danger

Warning: Mentions of stalking

Calista glared at him, but he matched it. Yona glanced between them worriedly, but no one moved a muscle.

"You can't hide something like this." He whispered and its weight wasn't lost on her. "They need to know."

He didn't put his foot down often, but with this, there was no other option. He couldn't keep something this big from the rest of them and neither should she.

Gesturing to their shell-shocked friends in front of her, he stated, "If it was one of them, you wouldn't let them keep it a secret."

Her resolve crumbled at that, knowing he was right. If one of them were going through this, she would want them to speak up, not try to deal with it themselves. The two sides of her mind were warring over what to do.

I shouldn't tell them. They don't need to know. I'll put them in danger if I tell them.

But Jae-ha's right. I need to do what I would want them to do. Trust has to be built, and it first starts with me. I have to trust them with this.

Why would you do that? You stand alone, remember? Assassin, hello? Friends aren't in the picture, the only friends you make are the ones you're going to stab in the back later.

That's not true!!

"Oy, Bat-Ears. What the heck is Droopy-Eyes talking about?" Hak drawled, and even though his tone was nonchalant, his eyes were serious.

Calista gnawed on her bottom lip nervously as all their expectant gaze fell on her. The argument in her head quieted as she came to a fragile decision.

"Okay, first," She grimaced. "Please don't get mad."

Hak's eyes narrowed in suspicion, but he nodded tersely. No matter what she threw at him, he wasn't going to be angry with her. Maybe just at whoever was making her look so frightened.

Kija looked worried, and she couldn't tell what Shin-ah was thinking. Yona's gaze turned somber but she managed a small smile of encouragement. Yoon remained silent beside the princess. Zeno placed his hands behind his head, shutting his eyes and Jae-ha motioned for her to continue.

Her silver eyes darted away from them, training on the ground in front of her as she fiddled with her hands.

"I... I think there's someone following me." She mumbled, bracing herself for the physical hits that would never come.

The silence was deafening.

"WHAT?!?! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US SOONER?!?!"

"Yoon, calm down." Yona tried, as she grabbed onto Hak's arm to prevent him from stomping off and finding them. "I'm sure she has a good reason to keep this from us."

"A good reason?!?! SHE'S GONNA NEED A HELL OF A LOT MORE THAN THAT!!!" Yoon shouted, turning red in the face with anger that someone had the nerve to do such a thing. But he was a bit preoccupied with how they were just hearing about this now. "When did this start?!?!"

Calista pressed her knees together anxiously at his raised voice, wincing at the grating sound. Picking up on her agitation, Shin-ah hugged her from behind, hoping to diminish some of her unease.

"Since Awa..." She admitted quietly and Yoon just barely refrained from exploding again.

The blue dragon was so caught up in his own failure to notice that something was wrong that he couldn't prevent the rage bubbling up in his chest. How dare someone make her afraid, how dare they trample on her peace. He was going to give them a piece of his mind.