Chapter 36: Guilt

*Ava*

I opened my eyes and rubbed my head. My body felt all tingly. Was it because of my dream of doing it with Sehun. My eyes widened as I saw the shirtless prince slumbering next to me. That... was not a dream.

My body flopped back onto the bed. No! What did I do? How could I have allowed it to get this far!

"Ava," Sehun mumbled as he rolled over and wrapped his arms around me.

"Let go of me!" I snapped, slapping his arm. I should've done that before when he got all handsy on me! Ugh, why was I so weak when it came to him?

Sehun opened his eyes and gasped. He quickly let go of me and backed away.

I covered myself with the blankets and sighed. "I told you we couldn't be together, but you kept on pushing, and now we're here, like this."

He lowered his head. "I-I'm sorry." He raised a hand to his face. "I messed up."

I shook my head. "Both of us did."

He slowly let go of his face. "Are you going to tell Sou and Sayuri about this?"

I gulped. "I... I don't think that's a good idea." Both Sou and Sayu could be scary when angry. I-I didn't want to face their wrath. That's exactly why I'd resisted at first! How did my passions end up overtaking my logic?

He sighed. "I think the same."

I pushed myself off of bed. "Let's just pretend none of this happened."

Sehun held his hand at me, but quickly pulled it away. He was about to repeat what got us into this mess, wasn't he? His clinginess was a bit annoying, but also cute.

"Sehun, please forget any of this happened, okay?" I said as I grabbed my clothes.

He covered his eyes with his arm but did not say another word. Was he kicking himself for betraying Sou's trust, or was he more upset by what I just said? Sou, he and Sayuri didn't deserve this.

I clenched my skirt. My younger brother often called me the worst when he was mad at me, while that just a childish rant, I now felt he had a point; I truly was the worst.

After putting on my clothes, I left the room I had taken Sehun to after the battle with the fox beast. I winded through the maze. What would I do if Sayu or Sou ever learned what happened? Could I really keep it a secret forever? Maybe it was best if I told them... but how? There had to be some words I could use to lessen their rage, right?

"Are you okay?" a voice called out.

I looked up and saw a pair of amethyst eyes looking back at me. They looked more mystical than usual under the dim lighting.

"Uh, yeah," I said, averting my gaze.

"Oh? You don't seem fine. Want me to read your mind?" Purpura asked, leaning forward.

"Don't!" I yelled, pushing him away.

He stared at me in shock.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to push you."

He pushed himself off the wall and straightened out his shirt. "Alright, something is for sure bothering you. Did something happen while you were out?"

I rubbed my head. I had to think of something. If I hesitated for too long, he would resort to reading my mind. Should I lie? But, he could probably see through me if I did. Plus, lying might not have been the best solution. I already planned to lie to Sou and Sayu, if I continued to lie, I could turn into a pathological liar.

"Well, we were attacked," I said. Technically, I wasn't lying. We really were attacked.

He looked down. "It's my fault, isn't it?"

I shook my head. "Don't blame yourself. Even before you came to this area, there were monsters roaming around."

"But there are more than before."

Sehun certainly thought he played a role in that, but could we really put all the blame on Purpura? That werefox showed they would love to get their hands on any of us descendants of the ancient stone clans. Similarly, the beasts kept pursuing my brother and Seiya.

"I think that could be due to the disturbance from what Sehun's uncle drawing on your power or an indication of the Dark Lord's arrival."

He sighed. "You're probably right."

I patted his shoulder and smiled. "I'm honestly surprised to see you kick yourself. I expected you to be more selfish. I mean in the self-preservation sense. Given all you've been, though, you can still care for others."

He furrowed his brow. "Sou told you everything?"

"From Sehun, actually."

His cheeks reddened slightly. "So, that cinnamon roll does know how to keep a secret."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Say, are you in love with Souta?"

He turned and laughed. "M-me? Why would I be in love with that guy?"

Oh? His reaction is very defensive. He sure is hiding something. Wait, I better not poke around, otherwise he might poke back.

"Well, I hope you feel better. Try not to push yourself." He laughed. "I mean, I do need your protection."

I laughed back. He didn't mean that, did he? The guy seemed strong enough to defend himself against most threats. Only something as powerful as that angel or stronger would be a challenge for him.

"I'll try," I said, walking off. "Say, do you plan to stay here after all or return to Sou's place?"

He glanced at the ceiling. "I might go to Sou's place. It's too dreary here. Plus, I-" He stopped himself and looked away.

I smiled. "You miss him?"

"Maybe a little," he said, running a hand through his head.

"Sou's lucky to have you."

He blinked.

I turned away. "I think you're more deserving of him than the rest of us."

"Huh? You like Sou?"

My face reddened. "Wait, I don't mean it like that! I mean, you seem like a better friend!"

He tilted his head. "Why do you say that?"

I averted my gaze. "Well, sometimes, I can be rather pushy. Sehun, he..." I stopped myself.

"He likes Sou, but likes you too, right?"

I gasped. "You noticed?"

He crossed his arms over his chest and scoffed. "Of course I have! One has to be blind to not see it. Pretty sure Sou himself has noticed."

I looked down. True. Sou would often get jealous of me.

He patted my back. "I don't think you're as bad as you think. That guy sometimes has to be pushed around to get him moving in the right direction. Just don't do anything that harms him. If you do, you'll have to answer to me." His purple eyes glowed.

I froze.

Purpura snickered. "Scared ya, didn't I? Well, let's get going!"

I kept my distance. It didn't feel like he was kidding. Maybe it was best to keep things a secret. But, what if Sou learned the truth later on? A truth could be like pressurized gas in a can, the more one lied, the more one shook the can. Too much lying would cause the truth to explode violently. Well, was it really lying if I just kept quiet? Yeah, that was different. I simply wouldn't say a thing. Eventually, Sehun and I would forget what happened and everything would return back to normal. Or, was that just wishful thinking on my part?