Too Close for Comfort Pt. 3

By the time we reached my apartment, my arms were on the verge of giving out. Bags dangled from my hands, forearms, and even my fingers, stretching my skin like I was some kind of overworked delivery mule. And yet, the three goddesses walking beside me? Completely empty-handed.

I huffed, adjusting my grip as the plastic cut into my fingers. "You know... I feel like I'm getting the short end of this deal."

Lana, walking just ahead, glanced over her shoulder with a cheeky grin. "Oh? You feel like you are?"

"You three can literally store things in some kind of pocket dimension or whatever. So why, exactly, am I carrying all of this?"

Chloe fidgeted slightly, avoiding my gaze. "W-Well… you seemed so determined back at the store… I thought maybe you wanted to carry them…?"

"Wanted to—? Chloe, please. Look me in the eyes and tell me I look like I'm enjoying this."

She peeked up at me, then immediately looked away again. "...Y-You're doing great, Aikami."

Alice chuckled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Consider it a valuable learning experience. Perhaps if you'd paid more attention to what we were buying instead of looking so lost, we might have taken pity on you."

"That doesn't even make sense..." I mumbled.

"It does if you think about it."

"It really doesn't. And you know what also doesn't make sense? Why isn't Lana carrying them instead? She never seemed to have a problem breaking my bones with just a—"

Suddenly, Lana suddenly jabbed me in the side with her elbow. It was softer than usual but stung a ton anyway.

My grip faltered, and the next thing I knew, the bags slipped from my fingers, tumbling to the floor with a series of thuds and rustling plastic. An onion rolled to the side, dramatically spinning in place before stopping at her foot.

I looked down at my arm, then up to her. "Ow?!"

All she did was put a hand on her hip with a grin. "Oh no, the mortal is fragile. Who could've seen this coming?"

"I'm gonna remember this, by the way."

"Oho, yeah? And what exactly are you planning to do?"

"Eviction part two."

"Eh?! You wouldn't!"

Alice sighed, shaking her head as she knelt down to pick up a stray vegetable. "Honestly, Lana. You torment him enough as it is."

"What? He should thank me. It's character development."

"Character development my—just pick up the damn bags."

Chloe crouched down beside me, carefully gathering the fallen groceries. "S-Sorry, Aikami. I'll carry some from here."

"Phew. Thanks, Chloe. At least someone here has a heart."

Lana puffed out her cheeks. "Hey! I do have a heart!"

Alice scoffed. "Technically speaking, we have a heart. You, as an individual, do not."

"Alice! Whose side are you on?!"

I had a snarky comment locked and loaded, something that would've definitely made Lana throw a pillow at my face later—but I held it back. Something else had just caught my attention.

"Wait… You guys have one heart?"

Chloe froze mid-step, a pair of plastic bags dangling in her hands. Alice and Lana exchanged a glance, then looked at me like I'd just asked whether the sky was blue.

"I thought you did your research on Greek mythology," Alice said flatly.

"I mean, I did, but I don't remember anything about you three sharing a heart. Wasn't it, uh…?"

"An eye?"

"Yeah! That."

She rolled her eyes. "How outdated. Do they still refer to us as 'old hags' too?"

"W-well…"

Chloe giggled softly. "Hehe~ It's okay. Some of it's true, some of it isn't. There was a time when we did look like old women, but that was just to scare off mortals who sought us out."

Lana crossed her arms and muttered, "Ugh. Don't remind me. That jerk Perseus stole our eye once. Made some demand—can't even remember what it was. Point is, it got annoying, so Mother Nyx changed things up. One eye became one heart. Cleaner system."

As she spoke, I resumed unpacking the groceries, glancing over my shoulder. "But why just one? Can't you each have your own… organ?"

Lana shook her head. "Nope. That's not how it works. We might be three in form, but fate itself is one. A single heart, a single will. It's a symbol of our bond. We can't exist without each other. Like—okay, say you killed me. My sisters would drop dead too!"

Everything stopped. Chloe froze. Alice narrowed her eyes. I stared.

Lana looked around. "Whaaat?"

I sighed with a hand over my eyes. "That feels like something I really, really shouldn't know."

Chloe walked over, smiling gently. "Don't worry, Aikami. It's not like you could kill any of us anyway."

"What the—?"

Before I could finish, Alice swiped an apple from the bag and took a bite. "Stick to the shallow end, darling. Spilling immortal blood isn't as easy as it sounds. Still, I'd respect the guts if you ever tried."

"As if I'd ever..."

"Heh. We'll see."

She turned with a smirk. "Now then, shall we start on dinner?"

"I'll handle the prep!" Chloe chimed.

"I call dibs on the stove!" Lana grinned, already rolling up her sleeves.

"And I will handle the seasonings," Alice said, tying her hair back into a neat ponytail.

And just like that, they moved into action. Chloe twirled a knife between her fingers, expertly slicing vegetables and dicing up the beef and chicken. Lana prepped the pans with oil and butter, her movements precise and practiced. Alice scanned each spice jar with the attention of a scholar, lining them up like an alchemist preparing for a ritual.

Watching them work was... honestly kind of mesmerizing. If I didn't know any better, I'd think they were seasoned chefs or long-time coworkers—not divine sisters who once terrified mortals with a single glance.

"Um… So what do I do?" I asked.

All three of them turned to me. Then to each other. Then back to me.

"Not to be disrespectful, Aikami," Chloe said hesitantly, "but… do you even know the basics of cooking?"

Oof. That one hit deep.

Lana raised a brow. "Forget the basics. Do you even know how to check temperatures? Handle a knife properly? Keep track of time?"

Ouch. Right in the ego.

Alice folded her arms and scoffed. "Can you make anything besides rice and instant ramen?"

That too…

I slumped in defeat. "I'll… just stand here and look pretty, I guess."

Alice chuckled softly, tapping her chin with a thoughtful expression. "It is quite the revelation. Tell me, darling—how have you been surviving until now?"

"Surviving? What do you mean?"

"Let's be honest here. You're twenty-one years old, yet you've never cooked a real meal or even grocery-shopped properly. So I'm genuinely curious—what have you been eating all this time?"

I crossed my arms and thought about it. Nothing particularly impressive came to mind. I knew my eating habits weren't great, but I always figured the occasional jog and some late-night pushups made up for it.

"Hmm... Mostly eggs. Sometimes I throw in random vegetables. Slap it all on rice and call it a day. Or I just eat instant ramen." I let out an awkward laugh. "Pfft… I guess that proves your point. Maybe I should just stay out of—s-stay out of the kitchen…?"

When I turned around to face them again, the entire atmosphere had shifted.

They weren't amused anymore.

Instead, they stared at me—quiet, almost somber expressions lining their faces. Brows furrowed. Lips slightly parted. It felt like I'd said something wrong, but I didn't know what.

"…That's it?” Lana asked softly. “That's what you call surviving?"

"What? I mean… yeah. Is… something wrong?"

Alice let out a quiet sigh, lowering her arms. "Aikami… I've avoided asking this for a while because I didn't want to dig into anything painful. But now that we're living together—now that we actually care about you—we have to ask. Did you… grow up alone?"

I froze.

A dozen moments flashed across my mind like a broken film reel—images I tried to bury, voices I tried to forget, days I told myself never happened.

I forced a weak smile, trying to pivot. "That's a little out of nowhere, don't you think? Not exactly dinner conversation. How's the cooking coming along?"

I took a step past Chloe, but her hand reached out and grabbed my wrist.

It was gentle… but firm.

Her expression—normally shy and uncertain—held something different now. A quiet, determined frown that didn't suit her usual softness. And the worst part? It wasn't just her.

"Aikami…" Chloe said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Please don't dodge the question this time. We… we need to know."