Steelz

  I sighed, still eyeing the ring on my finger like it was a shackle. “This is ridiculous.”

  Nasped dramatically, clutg her chest. “Ridiculous? Markus, how could you? After everything we’ve been through?”

  I rolled my eyes, already regretting this. “We’ve been through you f this onto me, yeah.”

  She sniffled dramatically, swiping at imaginary tears. “And now you’re trying to deny our love in public? Have you no shame?”

  I tensed as I caught the shopkeeper peering at us with poorly hidden amusement. “Nora,” I warned, my voice low.

  But she was already on a roll. She grabbed my hand, holding it up like we were in some tragiance movie. “You haven’t been loving me enough tely, Markus,” she decred, loud enough for the entire shop to hear.

  A few bystaurheir heads.

  My jaw ched. “I swear to god-”

  “Is there someone else?” she cut in, voice trembling with exaggerated movements like she’s having a heartbreak. “Is that why you’ve been so distant? Are you cheating on me?”

  I groaned, running a hand down my face. “Oh my god.”

  She wasn’t done. “I k,” she tinued, shaking her head like some suffering housewife in a drama.

  “I work so hard to keep this retionship alive, and you-” she pointed a finger into my chest, “-you ’t even look me in the eyes anymore!”

  I turo the shopkeeper, who was ht smirking at this point. “Please don’t ence her.”

  The shopkeeper only shrugged. “You should listen to yirlfriend more, young man.”

  Nasped again, this time in delight, before turning bae with her biggest, smuggest gri. “See? Even the wise elder agrees.”

  “She looks like she’s iwenties, what elder-”

  But before I could even finish that thought, she took it a step further. “What about our children, Markus?”

  I coughed violently. “WHAT?”

  She nodded solemnly, pg a hand over her stomach like she was already carrying a football team in there. “Do you think this is a game? Our little ones need a father who isn’t running off to flirt with other women-”

  I grabbed her shoulders, shaking her slightly. “WE. DO. NOT. HAVE. CHILDREN.”

  She stared at me for a long moment, her fingers absentmindedly trag the band of the ring on her hand.

  Her antewitched ever so slightly, like she was deep in thought. Calg, deg. Then, just as her gaze flickered bae, she murmured under her breath-

  “Not yet… but I’ll make sure.”

  A shiver ran down my spine. “...What?”

  She looked up, all wide eyes and a sweet, unassuming smile. “Hmm? Oh, nothing!”

  I exhaled sharply, rubbing the bridge of my nose. Just another one of her jokes, I told myself. Another one of her ridiculous, over-the-top acts that she was clearly enjoying way too much.

  But the crowd? Oh, they were loving this.

  A few shopgoers had started throwing in their own jabs.

  “Treat your dy right, young man!” someone called from behind me.

  Another voice chimed in, hooting, “Yeah, don’t make her a deadbeat mother before the kids are even born!”

  I felt an encroag headache as I heard the snickers around us. Dear gods, make it stop.

  Meanwhile, Nora was thriving.

  She grabbed my hand, twining our fiogether. “Darling, won’t you hold your loving girlfriend properly?”

  A long, drawn-out groa my lips. “Just end me already.”

  Nora, the absolute menace, only tightened her hold on me, her smug grin widening with each pyful iion. “Aww, don’t be shy, love,” she purred, resting her head against my arm.

  “You’re always so soft-spoken at home, but in public, you’re like this. Maybe you just need a little encement~”

  I shot her a look that could curdle milk.

  Her grin only stretched further, eyes twinkling with pure amusement.

  Oh, she was so enjoying this.

  Buy maybe… this wasn’t so bad after all. The whole ridiculous charade, the teasing, the pyful banter, it was letting me loosen up in a way I hadn't in a long time.

  I’d been so afraid to show emotions, to let anyone see past the walls I’d built. But right now, in this absurd situation, it almost felt… easy.

  I let out a breath and turo her, a slow smirk creeping onto my face. If she wao py this game, fine. I’d py along.

  Reag out, I tucked a stray strand of her silken hair behind her ear, my fingers lingering just a little too long. Her antewitched at my touch, and for once, she was the one caught off guard.

  Leaning in, I met her eyes, l my voice to a husky whisper.

  "You’re right," I murmured, my lips brushing against her ear. "I’m waiting eagerly for our kids."

  She went stiff. pletely frozen. Then, all at once, her face exploded into a shade of red so inte nearly matched the burning rays of the sun. Her hands shot up, clutg at my chest, gripping onto me to keep from melting into a puddle right then and there.

  The crowd lost it.

  Whistles, cheers, ughter, it all exploded around us. Some people cpped and I even caught a woman sighing dreamily.

  I leaned back slightly, smirking. "What’s wrong, dear? Is my little kitty getting shy?"

  For onora had nothing to say.

  Nora didn’t answer. Instead, she buried her fato my chest, her entire body pressing in. Too close, too tight.

  Her hands clutched at my shirt, trembling slightly, and even her legs bent inward, pressing against me in a way that sent a jolt of something unfamiliar down my spine.

  Then, in the smallest, most pitiful voice, she pleaded, "I… I o get to the bathroom."

  My mind bnked. "Huh?"

  She gave a tiny, desperate nod, still ging onto me like a lifeline. "Now."

  Panic shot through me, and I immediately broke out of whatever act I had going. "O-Okay, okay, let’s go!" I turned on my heel, ready to bolt, but before I could take two steps, she whimpered again.

  "Not so fast," she gasped, her grip tightening. "I-I ’t run…" She shifted against me like she was trying to hurry, but at the same time, she was clearly struggling.

  "Then what am I supposed to-"

  With no other choice, I crouched down and scooped her up into a princess carry. She let out a startled squeak, but before I could feel any satisfa from it, she buried her head against my chest again, her voice muffled.

  "You’re only making it worse…" she whined.

  I didn’t have any time to sider her words. I sprioward the restroom, dodging past fused onlookers, my heart pounding as I carried her like some tragic, paralyzed patient. By the time we reached the door, I was out of breath, practically gasping as I set her down.

  "Geez, I didn’t expect you to have a nature’s call all of a sudden," I huffed, wiping my forehead.

  Nora, still red-faced and gripping her dress, g me with wide, disbelieving eyes.

  Nora snapped her head up, her antewitg as she huffed. "That wasn’t-!" She stopped herself, g her mouth shut befroaning. "You know what? Never mind!"

  I crossed my arms, still trying to catch my breath. "Oh, no. You don’t get to bme me after that mess. You were the one who started this whole thing."

  She gasped, eyes wide with betrayal. "Excuse me? You were the one who got all into it! What was that whole ‘I’m waiting eagerly for the kids’ thing, huh?"

  I scoffed. "You’re the one who’s been at this all day!"

  "Exactly! Which means you should’ve built up an immunity by now."

  I narrowed my eyes at her. "Oh, so this is training now?"

  She smirked. "Maybe."

  I sighed, shaking my head as I realized how ridiculous this versation was. The weight in my chest had lessehough, repced by something almost warm.

  Then, just as I was about to brush it all off, Nora leaned in, her grin widening. "ime, we should get matg underwear. That way, we match even in bed."

  I choked on my own spit.

  Niggled, patting my back as I coughed violently, gasping for air. "Oh? What’s wrong, brother? You’re looking awfully red."

  "Shut up already!" I rasped, wheezing.

  She paid o my remark before tinuing on with the shopping.

  As we stepped out of the jewelry store, a sudden realization hit me. "Wait, we fot to pay for the rings."

  Nora turo me, her expression unreadable for a moment before she let out a soft giggle. "I already paid for them."

  I stared at her. "Without even asking me about it?"

  She simply shrugged, twirling the bag in her hands. "You looked so into the moment; I didn't want to ruin it."

  I narrowed my eyes. "That’s not an excuse."

  "It's a perfectly good excuse," she tered with a sly smile. "Besides, think of it as my gift to you."

  "That’s not-" I stopped myself, realizing that arguing with her over this was a lost cause. She was going to do whatever she wanted regardless of what I said.

  She must have sensed my resignation because she grinned wider, nudging me pyfully. "e on, lighten up. It’s not every day you get a free ring from your lovely fiancee."

  I sighed. "That’s exactly what I’m worried about."

  Nora paid o my remark. Wasting no time, she dragged me through the marketpce, her wings fluttering slightly iement.

  The market stretched endlessly before them, a vibrant, chaotic sprawl of stalls stacked with tris, exotic fabrics, and handcrafted goods.

  The st of sizzling skewers and spiced drinks wafted through the air, blending with the distant hum of versation and the occasional bark of a mert advertising their wares.

  I found himself dragged from oall to another, barely keeping up with Nora’s enthusiasm. She greeted vendors like old friends, seamlessly slipping into casual versation with strangers as if they’d known each other for years.

  One mert, a burly man with four arms, twitched his mandibles jutting out of his human-esque fa amusement as Nora bartered over a silver-threaded scarf.

  “e on,” she teased, leaning on the ter with a smirk. “You ’t expect me to pay full price when I’m practically a regur.”

  The mert rumbled a ugh, shaking his head. “You drive a hard bargain, girl. Fine, but only because your boyfriend looks like he’s suffering.” He tossed Markus an exaggerated look of pity.

  I crossed my arms, shooting an unamused look, not even b to correct the boyfriend ent. I’d long since given up by now.

  Nora smugly pocketed her bargain as the mert chuckled, shaking his head like he’d seen this a huimes before.

  “Cheer up, kid,” he said, leaning in like he was about to share some gra. “What, not used to being the oing spoiled? Shouldn’t you be fttered?” His grin turned sly. “Or are you among the boys that likes to do the chasing?”

  I felt my face twitch. I wasn’t sure how to respond to that, but before I could even try, Nhed and cpped me on the back hard enough to make me stumble.

  “Don’t tease my boyfriend too much,” she said, winking at the mert as she left. “He’s still shy.”

  As she tinued, every so often she would stop to point out something, tugging me closer as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

  I barely even noticed how easily I was getting swept along with her pace, too distracted by the stant flurry of iions.

  At some point, she pulled out a sleek, crystal-infused devid tur towards us. “Smile, Markus!”

  Before I could even process it, a bright fsh went off. I blinked. “Wait, what was that?”

  Nrinned, holding up the s for me to see. It icture of us, too close together for fort, with her leaning into me and a pyful smirk on her lips.

  “Oh, just a quiap for Monstagram,” she said nontly. “Or maybe Manebook. You know, social stuff.”

  I frowned. “So you just share pics with everyohere?”

  “Of course! It’s all the rage tely,” she chirped. “People love cute couple pictures.”

  I barely heard the st part, too busy staring at the interface. The scrolling feeds, the ents se, the like buttons, it was all eerily simir to what I remembered from Earth. My memories stirred uneasily, drawing parallels I hadn’t sidered before.

  Nora took another picture, fshing a peace sign, then shoved the devi my hand. “Here, take oh me!”

  I sighed, exasperated, but lifted the devioheless. “Fine, but wait, why do we o take so many?”

  She griilting her head ily. “Because they’re cute.”

  Something about the way she said it made me pause, but before I could think too much about it, she pulled me towards the stall, already moving on to her scheme.

  As I scrolled through the s, I couldn’t help but stare at the sheer number of iions flooding Nora’s feed.

  Dozens of notifications popped up, likes, ents, shares. I g the names, expeg maybe a handful of acquaintances, but no. She had a massive friend list, filled with names I didn’t reize.

  “When did you get so… social?” I asked, my brow furrowing.

  Nora chuckled, swiping through her posts. “A year is enough to ge a lot of things, brother.”

  "You were just chatting up that mert like it was nothing," I pointed out. "The Nora I know gs to me like a koa."

  Nora stretched her arms over her head, looking far too pleased with herself. “Well, I had to learn how to talk to people at some point. I ’t exactly carry the household while relying on you forever, I?”

  I eyed her, still irely vinced. “You say that, but a year ago, you practically treated anyone else like background noise.”

  She hummed, tilting her head in mock thought. “Guess I figured out there’s a lot more you do when you actually i with the world.”

  Her gaze flickered toward me, something sly hidden behind her grin. “Besides, doesn’t it make things more normal for us? You know, how people see us?”

  That st part made my stomach twist. “You mean how people assume-”

  “Exactly,” she cut in, beaming. “See? You’re catg on.”

  I let out a slow breath, ping the bridge of my nose. “I don’t even know what to do with you anymore.”

  She ughed, nudging my side pyfully. “Well, you could start by rexing and just going along with it.”

  I stared at her, taken aback. A year ago, she would barely leave my side. Now, it felt like she’d turned into something so much more fident, so much brazen than before.

  Her fingers danced as she tinued showing me all her feed with excitement, giddily expining every aspect of this i culture of this world I had no clue about.

  One showed a naga struggling to untaheir tail, captioned "When your own body is your worst enemy."

  Another was a skeleton opening ay wallet with the caption "When you're immuo poison but not to bad decisions."

  She giggled at a post about a vampire actally walking into a sunlit café and turning into a pile of ash while their friend sipped coffee, unfazed.

  I shook my head, uo believe how easily she had ied into this world. Meanwhile, I still felt like an outsider, stuck between past and present.

  Was I even deserving of her?