Yusuke

“Welcome to our milk tea shop. What would you like to order?” a young man asked from behind the balcony.

“I would like to order a medium Bubble Matcha Milk Tea and a medium Bubble Hokkaido Milk Tea, please,” I said politely.

“Hmm… Bubble Hokkaido Milk Tea, huh?” Tonkatsu placed a hand on my shoulder, his tone teasing. 

“I assume Fukuyama-san likes sweets because she ate a bunch of mochi ice cream at the karaoke.” I pushed his hand away from me.

“I would like to order a medium Bubble Strawberry Milk Tea,” he informed the young man after giving me a knowing smile. “Oh, I apologize. Make it two medium Bubble Strawberry Milk Tea.” 

“Aimi?”

“Yep. By the way, I was super surprised when you agreed to eat a bowl of mochi ice cream at the karaoke because you loathe sweets. In fact, I think it was the first time I saw you eating something sweet without complaining or grimacing in disgust. Why was that? Was it because you wanted to impress Nami-chan?”

I rolled my eyes, thankful that the young man was already handing me the milk teas, granting me the opportunity to escape the grilling session regarding Fukuyama-san. I felt uncomfortable talking about her so openly, especially when the conversation in question consisted of me being teased about my special attention toward her.

“I’m going back to the girls,” I informed Tonkatsu, briskly walking away from him and the shop without giving him the opportunity to stop me. 

“Yuu-kun,” Aimi called out, meeting me halfway to the makeup store where I last saw her and the angel. 

Noticing that Fukuyama-san was nowhere in sight, I looked around us and asked, “Where is Fukuyama-san?”

“She has gone looking for a shop to buy presents for her brothers.”

“Where exactly?”

Aimi tried to take one of the plastic cups of milk tea I was holding in my hands, but I managed to turn around and keep them out of her reach, causing her to pout, “One of them isn’t for me, then. Where is mine? Is it with Katsudon?”

As if being summoned, Katsu appeared behind me and handed her one of the strawberry milk teas, much to her delight. “I’ve bought this one for you,” he told her casually.

“Thank you, thank you.” She grinned from ear to ear. 

“Where is Nami-chan?” he wondered, as confused as I was when I first noticed Aimi was alone.

She took a sip of her drink. “She’s somewhere buying gifts for her brothers.”

I let out a frustrated sigh and immediately began making my way through the crowd in search of the angel, worried about her safety. Although we were in the human realm, I couldn’t help but feel sick to my stomach at the possibility of demons disguised as humans or even hybrids targeting her specifically because she was the Angel Princess. I hadn’t told my dad and my cousin about her yet, but I intended to do so when I was convinced that no one in the castle in the Kingdom of Demons was involved in the attacks in the Kingdom of Angels. Despite refusing to believe that anyone would dare to breach the Peace Pact, I needed to be careful and suspect everyone, including the Demon Royal Family.

As I looked around me frantically, my heart pounded against my ribcage as millions of disturbing thoughts crossed my mind. I myself had no idea why I cared so much about the Angel Princess, but I felt an odd need to protect her from whoever and whatever might harm her, even if it meant putting my own life and real identity at risk. 

Perhaps it’s my instinct as the Demon Crown Prince always to protect those whom I deem deserving.

Five minutes later, I finally spotted a very uncomfortable Fukuyama-san standing in front of a pet shop, surrounded by a group of girls I recognized from school, including Emica. 

“You think you’re all cute and shit, but you’re actually hideous, you know,” Emica snorted, her condescending stare at Fukuyama-san growing more intense as the seconds went by. “I told you that I would make you regret having crossed paths with me, didn’t I? How dare you have fun with my friends and my man?” 

I approached the group, my jaw tensing with annoyance. “What are you doing?” The question came out of my mouth in a harsh and calculated tone, so much so that the main bully immediately stepped away from Fukuyama-san. “Why are you harassing Fukuyama-san again?” I added.

“Yu-Yuu-kun? He-Hello,” Emica stuttered, panic flashing in her eyes. “I was just ta-talking to her about—”

“Cut the shit out, Emica. Leave her alone,” I hissed, stepping in front of Fukuyama-san, my back facing her. 

The other girls grabbed Emica’s hand and started pulling her away while begging her to leave us alone before things got uglier, to which she ended up complying after glaring daggers at the target of her rage and shooting me a longing smile. 

“Are you okay?” I inspected the angel’s face, concerned. “They didn’t hurt you, did they?”

Fukuyama-san shook her head and smiled. “I am fine, but thank you for helping me. I was actually getting scared because Ishii-san would not let me go.”

I hesitated. “Hey, have you been harassed at school because of me? Is that why you’ve been avoiding me, even though we got along well at the karaoke?”

She spun on her heels and entered the small pet shop. “Yes, I have been harassed at school because of you, and no, it is not the reason why I have been avoiding you.” 

“Why have you been avoiding me, then? Have I done something that upset you? Have I been disrespectful?” Unlike my usual expressionless and emotionless self, I ran a hand through my hair in exasperation. 

She locked eyes with me and said, “I believe you know why we cannot be around each other.”

I read between the lines—she was an angel, and I was a demon. The Angel Commoners in her kingdom were falling because of the traitors in mine; therefore, she needed to avoid those whom she could not trust. 

I tilted my head to the side, smiling. “I believe not being around each other won’t be possible because you happen to be friends with my friends. We’ll be forced to hang out together, whether you want to or not.” 

Fukuyama-san took a white cat collar from one of the shelves. “I think Yuki will like this one,” she mumbled to herself, her brows furrowed. 

“Yuki?” I tilted my head to the side again, intrigued. 

She clarified, “Yuki is my cat,” while heading to the cashier with the collar in her right hand.

“I didn’t know you had a cat.” I followed her closely.

“The guardian chose me as his ward when I went to the castle,” she remarked nonchalantly.

“Guardian? Castle? You need to watch what you say, Fukuyama-san,” I warned her, genuinely worried about her slips, though I didn’t believe she did it on purpose.

She covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes growing wide. “Oops.”

I chuckled, finding her reaction cute. 

Once she was done paying for the cat’s collar and we were out of the shop, I handed her the Bubble Hokkaido Milk Tea without uttering a word. She accepted it, bringing the straw to her mouth immediately. The happiness in her eyes and her body language indicated that she was more than pleased by my gesture. 

I grabbed the small plastic bag with the collar from her hand and started carrying it despite her protests. I didn’t know why I was doing it, but I felt compelled to spoil her somehow. It was as if I owed it to her because she was being harassed by our schoolmates because of me.

“I thought you wanted to buy gifts for your brothers,” I said, drinking my Bubble Matcha Milk Tea. 

Fukuyama-san cringed. “I was going to, but I could not find any shops that sold what I wanted to buy. Then, I got lost and could not find my way back to Shiokawa-san. That was when I saw the pet shop and decided to check it out, and that was also when your admirers found me.”

I winced, feeling even more guilty for being the reason she was being targeted so harshly. “My sincere apologies that our interactions have been bringing you stress and harassment. If you wish, I will stop trying to be your friend and leave you alone.” The last statement came out low and full of uncertainty.

The angel gazed at me intently as though reading my eyes. After a brief moment, she grinned. “As you mentioned, that would not be possible because we happen to be a part of the same group of friends, and I would not want to put a strain on everyone’s relationships. Do not worry about me.”

I couldn’t help but grin back, the weight lifted off of my shoulders. In a quick and sudden movement, I entwined our fingers and brought her closer to me as we continued strutting toward our friends. “I need to keep you close to me so that you don’t get lost again,” I smirked, winking at her.

“Ri-Right…” She blushed. 

“Of course, you’re holding Nami-chan’s hand.” Tonkatsu laughed when we reunited with him.

“Where were you, Nami? Did you get lost again?” questioned Aimi, her hands on her hips as she scowled at Fukuyama-san, who hid behind me, taking everyone, including myself, aback.

“We were at the pet shop,” I responded, the dryness in my voice making it clear that I wouldn’t elaborate on any further.

Aimi sighed, “Fine. Do you guys want to eat something? I’m hungry.”

Tonkatsu threw a hand up in the air, excited. “Yes, food.”

“Sure, why not?” I shrugged.

Fukuyama-san, who was still holding my hand, by the way, nodded in agreement, giving the green signal for Aimi and Tonkatsu to begin their mission of finding a suitable restaurant with delicious food.

Needless to say, the rest of the day went by fast, with the four of us having a great time and strengthening our friendship. By the time we said our goodbyes at the train station, the angel’s genuine smile was enough to make me promise myself that I would do everything in my power to protect her. 

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