Nami

As the bell announcing the start of the fifteen-minute break rang, I let out a relieved sigh and leaned my back against my chair, thankful that I finally got to eat the mint chocolate bar I bought that morning on my way to school. Supposedly, it was a limited edition sold at that particular convenience store. 

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

I cringed. “Not really, but I think I will be okay as long as I do not get distracted.” I rummaged through my shoulder bag and took the chocolate bar out, my eyes shining as I carefully opened its package.

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

My cheeks blushed in response, adding fuel to the fire. “I have no idea what you are talking about…” I lowered my eyes and feigned ignorance.

Before he could tease me further, a particular tall frame appeared on the doorway, drawing gasps of admiration and shrieks of excitement from our classmates, causing the both of us to look at the door.

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

“That’s a first,” added Katsu-kun, as stunned as I was. 

Suddenly, the demon’s eyes locked with mine. “Nami, I need to talk to you,” he said, motioning for me to approach him. 

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

As I rose to my feet and headed to the door, I could hear the girls cursing me under their breaths and speculating about my relationship with the demon, the disbelief in their voices as some of them assumed we were dating for real, while others believed I was just the latest conquest of the most popular student in the school. 

A part of me was flattered that I got to talk to the demon, whereas another part of me wanted to run to the hill and disappear, the latter a mystery to me because I had never felt that way before. 

“Good morning, Nami-chan,” the demon greeted me with a breathtaking smile splattered across his perfect face, blessing the day of his admirers watching us. I could feel their hatred and jealousy toward me while Yusuke got to be silently showered with their admiration and love. 

“Good morning, Yusuke-kun.” I forced a smile while trying to block other people’s voices, mainly those offending me. 

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

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

“They would like to meet you in person,” he replied, running a hand through his hair casually. “They are inviting you to spend the weekend at their home,” he elaborated, his cool expression turning into an expectant one. 

“What?” I squeaked, 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 chuckled, his face too close to mine. 

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

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

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

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

I stared at him in awe, doubting that his parents were, indeed, eager to meet me due to my position as the Angel Princess. 

Perhaps Yusuke has implied that he regards me as a friend or even as a girlfriend… I immediately shook 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 gave me an apologetic smile, tilting his head to the side. “We would be returning to Tokyo on Sunday night. What do you think?”

My mind went blank as I felt 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 cupped my face in one hand. “I understand your hesitation in accepting my parents’ invitation, but I promise you I will stay by your side at all times and protect you, no matter what may happen.” He leaned in and whispered in my ear, “I give you my word as the Demon Crown Prince.”

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

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

That was the moment of truth, the point where I had 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 trailed off, blushing lightly.

Before I knew it, I was opening my mouth and responding, “I would love to go to your parents’ place with you and meet them.” My eyes grew wide at the realization of what I had 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 could 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 decided that I should move back to the Kingdom of Angels permanently despite the attacks? What if they decided that I could not continue studying at Mori Senior High School and forced me to cut ties with my friends? What if I never saw Yusuke again?

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

“I am fine,” I murmured, taking a deep breath to recompose myself. “So, as I was saying—”

“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 grinned, his eyes silently pleading with me not to go back on my answer and turn him down. 

Not too long before that morning, I had read a webtoon for the first time in my life, and I remembered a particular scene where a cupid threw a love arrow into a girl’s chest, making her fall in love with her friend as a result. Although I did not fully understand what it meant at the time, for some strange reason, I felt like the exact same thing was happening to me and Yusuke at that very moment. However, I was the one with the arrow in the chest, and the demon was the oblivious friend. 

“I’ll take your silence and your blushed cheeks as a yes,” he remarked, chuckling. “By the way, have you informed your family members about what happened the day before yesterday?” 

I was extremely grateful that he had not mentioned the specific word ‘attack’, presumably because his fans and gossipers were listening to each and every word we were saying.

“No, I have not. Not yet.” A nervous chuckle escaped my mouth as I added, “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 grimaced.

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

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

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

“Okay.” I relaxed, the tension weighing heavily on my shoulders dissipating in the air like a miracle. 

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

The demon glared at him before redirecting his attention to me, the stern expression on his face softening as he handed me a medium plastic container with what I could tell were cookies inside. 

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

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

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

He grinned. “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,” mumbled Katsu-kun, dumbfounded. “You’ve never done that before.” He gaped at the demon, who shrugged nonchalantly in response, unbothered by the various degrees of reactions from the students around us. 

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

“Wait.” The demon grabbed my wrist and hesitated. “Are you and Katsu always close like this?” He grimaced. 

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

He pursed his lips and released my wrist. “Hmm…” Turning around, he started walking to his classroom, all the while ignoring his fans trying to talk to him. I did not know if it was my imagination, but I could practically see a dark cloud hovering above his head as he went. 

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

“Nothing. Let us go.”

The bell rang, rushing us back to our seats. As the teacher entered the classroom and everyone fell silent, my mind wandered off to replaying the conversation I had just had with the demon and the events that awaited me the next day. Just as I was getting ready to begin my test, my stomach grumbled, reminding me that I had 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 broke into the broadest smile it could wear. 

By the way, I doubted that I would survive until the next day, considering that my classmates had 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 shuddered, aware of my surroundings.

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

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