Arising Fear
765 Words
The fear. The panic. Even the lingering heat inside me.
Gone.
I looked down at his hand, then back at him, my breath catching.
“What… is happening to me?” I asked, softer this time.
For a moment, he didn’t answer. His eyes held mine, something unreadable flickering in them.
Then he said quietly, “You’re not ready to know.”
My chest tightened.
Because somehow…
That scared me more than the attack.
There wasn't a sound coming from the forest this time either; however, the silence was oppressive, as if it was suffocating me. I could feel myself struggling for breaths that wouldn't come evenly, as if everything was off. It was my body, my mind – even the way I was breathing – all seemed somehow not quite right anymore. Yet there was something solid and real about the way Kael was sitting beside me, holding me by the wrist with one hand and keeping me tethered in some way I couldn't explain.
something inside me had already started to realize the truth. He knew. He had always known. And somehow, that truth hurt more than the attack itself. “Say something,” I whispered, my voice shaking slightly, my eyes locked on his. “Please, Kael… I don’t understand what’s happening to me.”
He exhaled slowly, like he had been holding something in for too long, his jaw tightening as his gaze shifted away from mine for a brief second before returning. That look in his eyes—heavy, conflicted, almost painful—made my chest tighten. “You weren’t supposed to find out like this,” he said quietly.
His voice was soft and steady, but there was more going on under it. More than he was telling me. “What do you mean find out?” I demanded, my heart pounding, but this time it was for reasons other than fear. His fingers around my wrist relaxed a little, but he still held fast to me. “Lyra... what you sensed tonight... what you did... wasn’t human.”
Despite the warmth still coursing beneath my skin, I shivered. I gave a small, weak laugh, but it felt like an odd sort of laugh. "Yeah, I got that much figured out," I whispered, the edges of my voice cracking a little. "But what else is there? Who am I?" My voice faded away into the silence after, and the words themselves hung heavily between us. There was something soft about Kael’s gaze, as though he were struggling with something within him, but there was also something tight there too. "You're not just human," he told me at last. "Never have been."
I stopped breathing entirely for a split second.
The words hit home, sinking deep into me. And yet...
"No, that can’t be true," I told him, my voice whisper-quiet.
"It is."
But then I tore my hand from his, standing on unsteady legs, moving away from him until we were no longer touching. I felt my heartbeat accelerate once more, but this time it wasn’t the fear of the things out there in the forest that caused it; it was the fear of him, of the truth in his voice. “Well, then, explain it,” I said, raising my voice. “Explain to me why I reacted the way I did, how I behaved, and why it stared at me like it recognized me. Explain to me why all this is happening as if it’s not a shock for you.”
Kael rose slowly, still staring into my eyes, his gaze unwavering even under the bright moonlight that shone down on his face. “Because it isn’t,” he replied.
The words hit harder than anything else.
I stared at him, my chest tightening painfully. “What… does that mean?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
“It means,” he said, taking a step closer, “that I’ve been watching you. Protecting you. For years.”
My breath stopped completely.
“Protecting me?” I repeated, disbelief flooding my voice. “From what?”
“From everything,” he said simply.
Silence fell between us again, but this time it felt suffocating. My mind struggled to catch up, to piece together what he was saying, but nothing made sense. “That’s not possible,” I said, shaking my head again, my thoughts spiraling. “You’re just… you’re just a student. You’re just—”
“I’m not just anything, Lyra,” he cut in, his voice sharper now, but not angry. Frustrated. Desperate.
- Writer
