Nami

As the bell announcing the start of the fifteen-minute break rings, I let out a relieved sigh and lean back in my chair, thankful I finally get to eat the mint chocolate bar I bought this morning on my way to school—supposedly, it is a limited edition, and it is delicious.

“Nami-chan,” Katsu-kun calls out to me while spinning around in his seat to face me. “Are you ready to ace the last midterm exam today?” He grins.

I grimace. “Not really, but I think I will be okay as long as I do not get distracted.” I rummage through my shoulder bag and pull out the chocolate bar, my eyes shining as I carefully open the wrapper.

His lips curl into a sly smile as he teases, “I’ve noticed that you and Yusuke have been distracted since the day before yesterday… I wonder why…”

My cheeks flush in response, adding fuel to the fire. “I have no idea what you are talking about…” I lower my eyes, feigning ignorance.

Before he can tease me further, a particularly tall figure appears in the doorway, drawing gasps of admiration and shrieks of excitement from our classmates, causing both Katsu-kun and me to look toward the door.

“Yusuke-kun?” I gasp, surprised to see the Demon Prince in our classroom. “What is he doing here?”

“That’s a first,” Katsu-kun adds, as stunned as I am.

Suddenly, the demon’s eyes lock with mine. “Nami, I need to talk to you,” he says, gesturing for me to approach him.

“Ah, that explains why he has gone out of his way to come here.” Katsu-kun smirks, smiling mischievously at the demon and me.

As I rise to my feet and head toward the door, I can hear the girls cursing me under their breath and speculating about my relationship with the demon, the disbelief evident in their voices as some of them assume we are dating for real, while others believe I am just the latest conquest of the most popular student in the school.

“Good morning, Nami-chan,” the demon greets me with a breathtaking smile plastered across his perfect face, blessing the day of his admirers watching us.

“Good morning, Yusuke-kun.” I force a smile, trying to block out the other people’s voices, particularly those offending me.

He holds my right wrist and pulls me with him, stopping a few steps away from the doorway. As we stand still, face to face, he begins, “I spoke about you with my dad and my mom last night, and in response, they have issued a formal invitation for you.”

I frown, confused. “A formal invitation for what, exactly?”

“They’d like to meet you in person,” he replies, running a hand through his hair casually. “They’re inviting you to spend the weekend at their home,” he adds, his cool expression turning expectant.

“What?” I squeak, stumbling on my feet and almost falling on my behind, which would have happened if Yusuke had not wrapped his arms around me and kept me standing.

“Careful.” He chuckles, his face too close to mine.

To say that his fans are making a commotion and threatening to harass me even more from then on is an understatement, thanks to their idol’s stunt.

I gently push the demon away from me, ignoring my body’s reaction—my heart is drumming against my ribcage, butterflies are turning my stomach upside down, and my legs are shaking like crazy—to his closeness and touch.

I clear my throat. “Did you just say that your parents wish to meet me?” The words come out in uneven pitches.

He nods, beaming. “Yes. They got super excited when I told them about you, and they’re eager to meet you.”

I stare at him in awe, doubting that his parents are, indeed, eager to meet me, because of my position as the angel princess.

Perhaps Yusuke has implied that he regards me as a friend or even as a girlfriend.

I immediately shake my head, shutting down my thoughts.

No, no. What an idiotic idea. Why would I ever think that? Shame on me.

“What do you say we travel there together tomorrow at five p.m.? I wish we could go earlier, but I’m afraid I have appointments in the morning and afternoon that I can’t be excused from.” He gives me an apologetic smile, tilting his head to the side. “We’d be returning to Tokyo on Sunday night. What do you think?”

My mind goes blank as I feel overwhelmed by the prospect of visiting the Kingdom of Demons, meeting the demon king and the demon queen, and spending the night at the palace alongside the demon prince.

As if sensing my apprehension, Yusuke cups my face in one hand. “I understand your hesitation in accepting my parents’ invitation, but I promise you I’ll stay by your side at all times and protect you, no matter what may happen.” He leans in and whispers in my ear, “I give you my word as the demon crown prince.”

His hot breath sends shivers down my spine, while the girls witnessing our interaction almost faint, either from heartbreak or over-excitement.

Yusuke continues, “They wish to discuss the attacks with you.”

This is the moment of truth, the point where I have to decide whether to trust him enough to accept the invitation and venture into a place I never thought I would visit, or to politely decline and leave it at that.

“I really want you to meet my parents…” He trails off, averting his eyes.

Before I know it, I am opening my mouth and responding, “I would love to go to your parents’ place with you and meet them.” My eyes grow wide at the realization of what I have just agreed to do.

Oh, no. Everyone in the castle is going to kill me or lock me up in my bedroom when they find out about my actions.

I can already see my father and the Grand Master of the Knightly Order scolding me for endless hours for being irresponsible and immature during my short stay in Tokyo. What if they decide that I should move back to the Kingdom of Angels permanently despite the attacks? What if they decide that I cannot continue studying at Mori Senior High School and force me to cut ties with my friends? What if I never see Yusuke again?

“Nami, are you okay? Your face is pale,” Yusuke remarks, visibly worried. “Did you eat breakfast? Did you sleep well?”

“I am fine,” I murmur, taking a deep breath to recompose myself.

“Then, I’ll meet you at your apartment tomorrow around four-thirty p.m. so that we can chat a bit before traveling to my parents’ house. Is that acceptable?” He grins, his eyes silently pleading with me not to go back on my answer and turn him down.

I nod in response, smiling.

Relief washes over his face, as though he feared I would change my mind. “By the way, have you informed your family members about what happened the day before yesterday?”

I shake my head. “No, I have not. Not yet.” I chuckle nervously as I add, “Do you think I should do it soon?”

“Of course, you should. And you should also tell them about me and our visit to my parents’ house.”

“Why?” I frown.

“Why? Because that would prevent them from finding out through a third party, and it’d also increase your safety by letting them know your whereabouts in case of unforeseen events.”

“Oh, I see. Those are good points,” I agree, nodding. “I will tell my brother, then.”

“Please, do it before our trip tomorrow. We should also take Yuki with us.” He winks, beaming.

“Okay.” I relax, the tension weighing heavily on my shoulders dissipating into the air.

“Hey, I hate to interrupt, but the break is almost over.” Katsu-kun appears behind me, shooting Yusuke and me a knowing smile. “You can talk more during lunch break.”

The demon glares at him, then shifts his attention to me, his stern expression softening as he hands me a medium-sized plastic container.

“What are these?” I ask, accepting it without thinking twice.

“Those are chocolate cookies that one of my chefs baked for you.”

“Yay, thank you,” I exclaim, my eyes lighting up. “I love chocolate cookies.”

He grins. “I imagined you did.”

“Yuu-kun is being considerate and attentive to a girl for no other reason than to spoil her? I can’t believe it,” Katsu-kun mumbles, dumbfounded. “You’ve never done that before.” He gapes at the demon, who shrugs nonchalantly, unbothered by the various reactions from the students around us.

“Ah, we should go back to the classroom.” I start pushing Katsu-kun into the classroom from behind, glancing at Yusuke-kun one last time and offering him a smile.

“Wait.” The demon grabs my wrist and hesitates. “Are you and Katsu always this close?” He scowls.

“Katsu-kun sits in front of me, so it is only natural that we end up chatting a lot between classes,” I reply, confused as to why he looks so distraught.

He purses his lips and lets go of my wrist. “Hmm…” Turning around, he starts walking to his classroom, all the while ignoring his fans trying to talk to him—I do not know if it is my imagination, but I can practically see a dark cloud hovering above his head as he walks away.

“Nami-chan?” Katsu-kun blinks at me, confused. “What is it?”

“Nothing. Let us go.”

The bell rings, rushing us back to our seats. As the teacher enters the classroom and everyone falls silent, my mind wanders as I replay the conversation I just had with the demon and think about the events awaiting me the next day. Just as I am getting ready to begin my test, my stomach grumbles, reminding me that I have not eaten the chocolate bar.

Oh, bother. Why did Yusuke have to call me before I could eat my chocolate bar? Well, he did bring me homemade cookies, so I will forgive him this time.

And just like that, my face breaks into the broadest smile it can wear.

By the way, I doubt that I will survive until the next day, considering that my classmates have been shooting murderous glares in my direction ever since I returned to my seat from my brief encounter with the demon. They must also be casting all kinds of curses while wishing me a violent, slow, and painful death in their heads.

I shudder as I become more aware of my surroundings.

I need to be extra careful from now on, thanks to that demon. Bloody hell.

* * *