"I'm not going with him," I replied.
My momi raised an eyebrow.
"You BOTH are going. Or I'll make you do chores together for a week."
We froze.
Chores together = homicide.
Kaito sighed dramatically and stood up.
"Fine. Come on, you gremlin."
I smirked.
"Lead the way, you emotionally constipated broomstick."
And that's how we ended up walking out the door like two stray dogs tied to the same leash.
I yawned while checking the grocery list Mom gave us.
Ugh. So many things.
Kaito glanced at me and said,
"How can you look this ugly every day? Huh?"
I side-eyed him.
"Yeah, yeah. You haven't seen me all ready yet. You'll faint once you do."
Kaito smirked, mocking.
"Oh, faint from the ugliness?"
My face went poker-mode.
Damn. This guy is SO fucking annoying.
I started speed-walking just to avoid breathing the same air as him.
He sped up too.
Of course he did.
We walked inside the convenience store, and I looked around, trying to figure out what we actually needed to buy. Naturally, I picked up a few chips that were absolutely NOT on the list.
Kaito grabbed my hand, smiling like the villain he is.
"Oh, princess, I don't think that's what we're here to buy."
I raised an eyebrow. "Okay, so who said that? Prince?"
He leaned closer, voice dropping. "I did. What you gonna do about it?"
I yanked my hand free, smirked, and stepped on his foot.
"This. Humph. I am paying, so of course I can buy anything I want~."
I strutted away, pushing the cart, grabbing snacks like a child who stole her mom's credit card.
Kaito rolled his eyes so hard they probably saw heaven as a slideshow.
He followed behind me like a tired babysitter.
"Put that back."
"No."
"That too."
"No."
He snatched a chocolate bar from the cart.
I snatched it back faster than his dignity falling when he sees a spider.
"You touch my chocolate again and I'll cut your hand."
He narrowed his eyes. "You're five."
"You're three."
He opened his mouth to argue,
But an old lady walked past, smiling warmly.
"You two look adorable together."
Silence.
The universe stopped breathing.
Me and Kaito stared at each other in pure horror.
I spoke first.
"Ma'am… no. No, no, NO, we are NOT together. That's disgusting. I'd rather date… I don't know… a raccoon."
Kaito scoffed. "And I'd rather jump into a volcano."
The old lady laughed and peacefully continued her shopping, while me and Kaito glared at each other like street cats.
We grabbed everything we needed and paid for it.
Outside, I immediately started licking my ice cream like a happy gremlin.
Kaito glared.
"It's cold. You're gonna get sick, stupid."
I smirked. "Ohhhh, are you worried about me? Hm~~?"
Before he could roast me, he suddenly froze, eyes glued on a TV in the store window.
Curious, I stepped back to see what he was staring at.
He pointed at the screen, confusion all over his face.
"What are those?"
On the TV, news reporters were screaming about some monster attack.
I stared at him.
"My guy… where have you been living?? Under a stone??"
He looked genuinely confused.
"You don't know? Those are demons. There's been a portal opening every day, like, six or seven years now. Five types of demons. Different levels."
He kept staring, so I continued.
"Levels 1, 2, and 3 kinda look similar but their powers are different. Level 4 and 5 demons only attack people with really high mana. They eat your energy and the person basically gets paralyzed for life. I've seen level 4 and 5 demons… they look like"
I waved my hand, trying to explain.
"Red skin, like fire. Super hard to cut even with swords. Big fangs. Loud, heavy breathing. And honestly? They're fucking ugly."
Suddenly…
I heard it.
Right behind me.
A heavy, loud, beast-like breath.
Kaito's face changed instantly.
I didn't even turn around.
I just whispered-
"…oh look, just like tha..."
I paused.