Summary: Yang and Blake have been in love with each other since the moment they met, but neither could ever reveal their feelings. But now that they're entering their senior year and all the talk is on colleges and plans for the future, their friends aren't sure they can just sit by and watch as they lose each other for good. High School AU. Bumblby, WhiteRose, Arkos
Author's Note: Hello! So happy to finally be back to uploading. The hiatus was absolutely brutal, guess I didn't fill people in on the last one but I actually spent these past two months writing several dozen essays for grad school and it was seriously one of the most grueling experiences of my life. But thankfully it's over, and I can start trying to get back to my normal upload schedule. Not sure if I'll be able to hold the weekly updates as consistently as before, still working on getting back in the rhythm, but in the meantime, here's the chapter!
Chapter 33: Split Paths
To say that Yang's head is spinning is a colossal understatement.
After having one of the most shocking conversations of her life yesterday, she'd spent the entire rest of the day agonizing over what Weiss had told her. All throughout her afternoon classes and work in the evening she'd been basically dead to the world as she struggled to come to a decision about what to do with this new information.
Honestly, how on earth had they managed to go through three and a half years of high school not knowing that Blake had been hiding something like this the entire time? Just the thought of Blake struggling with all of this on her own, too scared to even tell anyone about it, is enough to almost bring Yang to tears.
Had she not been a good enough friend?
Could she have done something more to have earned Blake's trust?
And she'd dealt with a thousand more questions just like these all throughout the day, her mind refusing to stop racing no matter what she tried.
Of course there was a part of her that tried to be rational, telling herself that there was nothing more anyone could have done with Blake keeping this to herself for so long, that she shouldn't waste any more time than she already has dwelling so much on the past, and that it would be so much better to just focus on the future.
But to be honest that really only ended up opening a whole other can of worms.
Because as hard as she had fought with Weiss about it, saying all those things about how Blake's safety takes priority over anything else, she's still left with this ridiculously selfish feeling that part of her isn't willing to let Blake go.
And it makes her feel like the most awful person on the planet.
Pyrrha would probably tell her that she can't help having these kinds of feelings for someone you're so madly in love with.
Weiss would probably say that it's perfectly normal to cling to the people you care about.
Her dad might say something about how this isn't her fault, that it's just a result of all the trauma she's gone through losing two mothers that makes it so hard to let people go.
And they all probably have a point, hell they might even be right, but none of it is an excuse for letting Blake continue putting herself in danger like this.
So as ashamed as she is that it had taken her so long, she had finally forced herself to make the right decision.
Which brings her here, walking up the driveway of the Belladonna house, heart pounding so hard in her chest that she can barely register the fact that Blake's car isn't in the driveway as she climbs the steps up to the front porch.
Because for some reason, the only thing that she seems to be able to think about right now is the first time she'd come here to Blake's house back in Freshman year.
It was late into the school year, just a couple weeks before they'd be let out for summer vacation to go on the now infamous trip to Weiss's family lakehouse.
By that point she already had some idea that her feelings for Blake were a little stronger than that of just a friend, they'd had a few too many late night phone calls and meetings at the park for Yang to stay in denial about that part anymore. So when Blake had invited her over after school that day to study for finals, she had been so nervous that she had spent over an hour trying to figure out an outfit that would be cute but not make it seem like she was trying too hard, only to realize when she was halfway out the door that changing her clothes at all after they'd already seen each other at school would pretty much expose her completely.
And her hopes of forgetting her nervousness during studying would be dashed after a few ill-timed texts from Nora and Weiss, making jokes about how big of a step it is to be meeting Blake's parents for the first time. Of course she'd tried to laugh it off, but the second she'd stepped inside and was met by an overwhelmingly warm greeting from Blake's mother she'd been reduced back to a bumbling mess for the remainder of the study session.
And honestly she had only been able to let out the breath that she'd been holding when Blake had pulled her in for a hug at the end of the night, leaving her to walk back to her house with a goofy grin on her face that didn't disappear until she'd woken up the next morning.
Looking back now, she can't help cracking a small, wistful smile at the memory, one that feels like half a lifetime ago compared to where they are now.
She's only brought back to reality when she reaches up to ring the doorbell and realizes how hard her hand is shaking. It takes a second or two of staring at it in shock, trying to get control of herself before it becomes clear that there's nothing she can really do to make it stop.
She tries to tell herself it's just the snow or the wind, or the fact that she had walked all the way here with a jacket that really isn't meant to be worn in this kind of weather, but it's such a feeble attempt at lying to herself that it's almost laughable how unconvincing it is.
Her head is such a mess that she doesn't even know when she actually manages to ring the doorbell, but at some point she finally registers the sound of footsteps through the door and almost immediately her heart starts to race again.
This is it.
It's her last chance to change her mind, to turn around and run.
And she could do it too with how insanely nervous she's feeling now.
But in the end she knows that there's no way she can leave. No matter how hard it might be, if letting Blake go is going to keep her safe, then that's a sacrifice that she's going to have to make.
It takes a second for the door to be unlocked with a quiet click before it slowly swings open, revealing Blake's mother peeking out from behind.
"Yang?" Kali says, confusion etched on her face as she steps to let the door fully open. "Are you looking for Blake? Because I think she might still be at Weiss's house…"
"Actually Mrs. Belladonna," she says, not quite able to hold the older woman's gaze, "I… kind of wanted to talk to you."
Kali furrows her eyebrows, looking Yang up and down once before ushering her inside. "Well whatever it is I'm sure it can wait until after a cup of tea. You must be absolutely freezing out there."
She does her best to flash a grateful smile as she steps inside, hoping that it'll disguise the fact that she can barely even manage to get a word out as the door slowly closes behind her,
…
Yang watches nervously as Ghira steps into the kitchen in search of his phone.
She's not sure how long it had taken to relay everything she could remember about her conversation with Weiss, but judging by how insanely dark it had gotten outside, it must have been at least a few hours.
"Well," Kali huffs, setting another mug of tea in front of her as she slides back into her seat, "I'm not sure what Ghira thinks he can accomplish making calls at this hour, but who can really blame him?"
Yang can't help flicking her eyes back up to scan Kali's face, feeling another tinge of guilt when she sees how red the woman's eyes still are.
"I'm… really sorry Mrs. Belladonna. I should've waited till tomorrow or something. At least that way…"
"Yang." Kali interrupts, "you have nothing to apologize for. If anything I should be the one saying sorry to you. Ghira and I… we've noticed that Blake's been behaving strangely these past few days, but we just never thought that it could be… Anyways, I'm sorry Yang. I can only imagine the kind of stress you must have been under with this hanging over your head."
"It's nothing Mrs. Belladonna."
Kali firmly shakes her head. "It's not 'nothing' Yang. In fact, I can't thank you enough for bringing this to our attention. I know I'm speaking for my husband as well when I say that it means the world seeing how much you and Blake care about each other."
Yang doesn't even know how to respond. Because what is she even supposed to say when the reality of the situation is that she and Blake have barely even spoken to each other in weeks?
But she doesn't even get the chance to answer before they hear the sound of the front door being unlocked.
Yang's blood turns to ice as she snaps her head over to the front of the house. It had been something of a miracle that she'd been able to come over to have this talk without needing to fight through Blake to do it, but now that Blake's home she's going to have to explain how she'd gone behind her back to speak directly to her parents.
She's not sure which one is worse.
The door seems to swing open in slow motion, allowing Yang to follow every single detail as Blake stops by the closet, giving her hair a light flip as she shrugs the coat off her shoulders.
Before she knows it she finds herself cracking a small smile. She wants to say that it's just because she hasn't seen Blake in weeks, or more embarrassingly that Blake always looks absolutely gorgeous in her black peacoat, but deep down she knows the truth: that what she'd just done could mean that she never sees Blake again.
And it's the sentimental side of her that's taking over now, making her follow the ridiculous impulse to get in one last look before she loses Blake for good, no matter how stupid and melodramatic it might be.
She half hears Kali calling out Blake's name next to her, half recognizes the tinge in the woman's voice bearing all the disapproval that had built up over the night's revelations, and just like that her last moment of peace is officially over.
The second Blake sees her sitting nervously at the kitchen table her amber eyes go wide.
After so many weeks of fighting, the first thing Yang expects to see is anger, hurt, or maybe even betrayal, all the emotions that she had seen that night at her house with Neo.
Any of those she might have been able to deal with, at least in the sense that she'd seen them in Blake before.
But what she sees instead, is shocking, hard to believe, and yet completely unmistakable.
Fear.
Her amber eyes are stretched wider than she's ever seen before. Yang hears a sharp gasp, followed by a whispered "no," before Blake quickly whips her head to look back through the front window.
She exchanges a worried look with Kali before turning to look back at Blake, finding the girl still anxiously scanning the streets, hands already starting to fuss with the tail of her shirt.
"Blake?" Kali says cautiously, already losing the accusing tone that had been present just a few seconds earlier.
Blake snaps her head back. "Yang…" she whispers, "what… what are you doing here?"
Yang slowly rises from her seat, doing her best to ignore the trembling that's made its way back into her hands. "I… I was just..."
"You can't be here." Blake interrupts, "please you have to go. I… please just..."
Yang finds herself at a loss for words. Of course Weiss had mentioned that Blake wasn't exactly in the best place right now, she had used words like 'paranoid' and 'scared'. And it's not like she really had any reason to not believe her, in fact at the time she hadn't had any doubt at all that Weiss was telling the truth, but seeing the reality of it up close like this… is something else entirely.
Thankfully she isn't forced to come up with a response before Kali steps up beside her.
"Blake." She says heavily, "why didn't you tell us about Adam?"
Blake's eyes snap back over to Yang, this time starting to ignite with the anger that she had been expecting. "You told her?"
"I just…" Yang stammers, "I didn't…"
"Don't take this out on Yang." Kali interrupts, "you should never have put her in this kind of a position. You should have told us! You should've…"
The older woman trails off as her husband gently sets a hand on her shoulder, having quietly returned from the kitchen after hearing the commotion just in the other room. The two lock eyes for a moment, with the brooding intensity in Ghira's eyes slowly wearing down on Kali's fiery temper until she finally lets out a slow, shaky breath.
Even from where she's standing a couple steps back in the dining room she can tell that the tears have once again started to well up in Kali's eyes.
"Yang." Ghira says, "I think maybe you should head home for now. We… have some things to discuss as a family."
"Oh," she responds, "uh yeah, I guess I could. Unless…"
She turns to Blake as she trails off. She knows that this shouldn't be her first instinct anymore, that all of the little protective habits that they'd developed over the years really might not even apply anymore, but that's the thing with habits: sometimes they're just involuntary.
There's a beat or two of silence as the question hangs in the air.
"What?" Blake says.
"Well…" She can't even put to words how stupid she feels right now. "Nothing, I just… if you don't want to be alone for this… I mean if you want I could just wait in your room or something or…"
"Why would I want that?"
And maybe… no she definitely should have expected this, but somehow the harshness in her tone is still painful enough for Yang to actually flinch, hastily tearing her eyes away in a vain attempt at controlling the stinging in them that's growing stronger by the second.
"Blake!" Kali says sharply.
"What? It's like dad said, Yang doesn't need to be here for this. She should go home."
"She's offering to stay for you. Even if you're mad at her or… whatever this is. You shouldn't be so…"
"I'm not mad at her. I just don't want her here."
She can feel herself starting to shake again, overcome by a sudden wave of anger that they're talking about her like she isn't even in the room. And it's just the slightest, unexplainable tick that makes her actually lose control enough to go looking for a fight. But when Yang finally looks back up, all Blake does is flick her eyes back to her feet.
She's not sure what it is, she wants to say it's just the deep connection that she has with Blake, but the second she sees the look on her face, Yang gets this unexplainable feeling that Blake is lying. And the anger dissipates in an instant.
The feeling grows the longer she looks, noticing all the little details in the girl's behavior that confirms that she's saying this on purpose, that even after she'd just exposed her secret to her parents, Blake is still committed to pushing everyone away in order to keep them safe.
"Blake…"
Her voice is shakier than expected. She's not sure if it's because a part of her is still hurt that Blake is trying to kick her out like this, or because she's touched by the sudden realization that Blake is still actually worrying about her in her own way.
But the more shocking thing is that she doesn't even know how she wants to feel. After so many weeks doing nothing but fighting there's a part of herself that feels like she should be getting angry. Except then there's also the part of her that remembers everything they've been through together over the years: all the long nights doing homework together, meeting up in the park when they couldn't sleep, even the mornings after where they'd meet up to walk to school together, each of them holding two thermoses of coffee that they'd prepared for each other.
And it's that sentimental side of her that has her rooted to the spot.
"Blake," she repeats, forcing herself to try just one more time, "you don't have to be scared. We can get through this together."
"I'm not scared." Blake answers quickly, "I just… don't want to deal with you right now."
This time she doesn't have the strength to block it all out. Because even though on some level she knows that Blake is still lying and just saying anything she can in a misguided effort to keep her safe, hearing something so hurtful coming from Blake of all people has more of an effect than she expects.
And as hard as she tries to keep thinking rationally, she still feels that all too familiar stinging in her eyes.
She half hears Kali voicing another protest, something about how you should never say something like that to a friend. And for a second she thinks about arguing, about insisting that she stay and be here for her, but in the end she decides against it.
After all, she's already done everything that she'd come here to do. Blake's parents know now, and hopefully that means that Blake will be safe. She hadn't wanted to admit it herself, but even as she was walking over here there was a part of her that didn't really consider it a possibility that their friendship could survive this.
"It's okay Mrs. Belladonna," she cuts in quietly, "if Blake doesn't want me here then it's probably best if I just go."
For a second she thinks she spots a flicker in Blake's eyes, something that she wants more than anything to identify as hurt or remorse, but it's impossible to say with how clouded her vision is getting already.
Without another word she turns around to gather her things. Her movement is slow and lethargic, as if picking up her bag from the back of the chair is suddenly the most painful thing in the world. She half hears the sound of Blake quietly whispering something to her parents as she slips her coat over her shoulders. She thinks there's some pleading in there, along with a stern sounding response from Ghira, but it's too hard to make out when she notices that her hands are shaking again.
"Um, Yang?"
She looks up slowly, feeling a hint of confusion when she notices the hesitant look on Ghira's face.
"Why don't I drive you home?" He continues, "it's late, and I don't think you should be walking back alone."
It's basically instinct at this point for her eyes to immediately flick over to Blake standing by the front door, unsurprisingly finding the girl still studying the floor in front of her.
A million questions fly through her head even as she forces herself to tear her eyes away, knowing that looking any longer could very well trigger a complete meltdown and there's no way she's going to let herself cry in front of Blake's parents.
"Okay," she says, fighting to keep her voice as steady as possible, "thank you."
Without another word Ghira makes his way over to the door, stepping past Blake to collect his coat from the closet.
A million thoughts race through her head as she slowly follows his path through the living room. Her mouth opening and closing more times than she can even count as she fights with her urge to say something, anything to Blake.
But she doesn't let herself.
Besides, what could she even say?
There's no way she's composed enough right now to pull off saying a cool and simple 'goodbye', and barring that she's pretty sure saying anything more elaborate would inevitably lead to some kind of sobbing, tear-filled confession that she absolutely refuses to entertain.
And she almost makes it out the door without saying anything more. There's barely even three feet before she can just reach for the doorknob and leave all of this behind, possibly for good.
But then… just as she's taking the first step past the girl leaning against the wall and doing her best to ignore the fact that Blake still can't seem to raise her head to look at her, she hears the faintest, hint of a muffled sob, so quiet that she isn't even sure she'd just imagined it.
But it's more than enough to shatter her paper thin conviction. And the words are leaving her mouth before she even realizes it.
"The… the other day," she whispers quietly, "when I ran off and nobody could figure out where I was hiding. It was you wasn't it? You were the one who told Pyrrha where to find me."
She turns slightly to look up at Blake, finding the girl's head still hanging to hide her face behind a veil of raven hair. They stay there like that, absolutely frozen, for what feels like an eternity, before she finally gets her response in a slow, shaky nod.
Somewhere deep inside there's a voice telling her that this should make her happy, that at the very least the knowledge that Blake had remembered such an obscure detail of her life should be enough to hold back the tears until she gets home, but for some reason it only makes the empty feeling in her chest a thousand times worse.
She doesn't even realize what's happening around her until she's already halfway down the street, tears streaming down her eyes and doing her best to ignore the sound of someone calling her name fading into the distance.
Author's Note: Hope you all liked it! Thanks all of you for waiting for this one, I know it's pretty freaking angsty but it's just such a huge step for Blake and Yang. Secrets are being exposed left and right and we'll just have to see where it takes them. Anyways, thanks again for putting up with the hiatus, the messages I received throughout were so important and is what keeps me going through all these chapters. As always, thanks so much for reading!
