Grocery Shopping

Suddenly, Arjuna stood up. He moved to the chair next to mine. Our eyes met in silence.

Eh... What is he doing? Don't tell me....

Whether it was a reflex or something else, my upper body slowly leaned toward him.

"Try opening the app you usually use for payments."

I froze. My body was already leaning about 15 degrees toward him, my lips were even slightly puckered—waiting for something that turned out to be just my imagination. With jerky movements, like a robot lacking oil, I pulled my body back to an upright position.

"Why is your face so red? I don't think it's that hot today. Or were you waiting for me to do something else besides checking your payment app?"

Ah... ehm! So that wasn't it. "J-Just a moment." I opened the PayPay app with trembling hands, then showed my phone to Arjuna.

He took my phone, his thumbs moving across the screen.

"Your phone is in English?" Arjuna asked, tapping the screen.

"I’m going to the country of Bali, leaving Japan. So, I changed the language."

When my gaze returned to him, Arjuna looked frozen and shocked.

—

"COUNTRY OF BALI?! DO YOU THINK—" Arjuna shouted loudly and clearly, struggling to hold back his laughter.

EHHHH!!! I SLIPPED UP!!!! SO EMBARRASSING!!! OH MY GOD!!! I only called it that so my escape would feel like I’d gone to the middle of nowhere.

I peeked through the gaps of my fingers, from the hands that were covering my face. People around us were staring, and even the Indian food vendor looked shocked.

"I-I... I know Bali is in Indonesia!! I only called it that... just... so—”

I couldn’t bring myself to speak another word because I felt so incredibly awkward. Hiding my face was the only way out for now.

Clank… Clank…

"Done! I'm going grocery shopping, so you're coming with me."

The moment I heard the sound of a chair sliding, I immediately peeked through the gaps of my fingers. Arjuna was already standing up and starting to walk away.

He’s always like this! So annoying! But if I don't follow him, I’ll really end up as a lost child.

I quickly caught up with him. Once we reached the car, we left immediately. I had no idea where we were going to shop; I was still completely clueless about this place.

While waiting to arrive, I’ll just read a web novel. I just got an email notification—it looks like Neko Gal-sensei just updated. I wonder why she only updated just now.

However, the moment it hit the homescreen, I was instantly hit with a wave of shame. The wallpaper was a photo of me—the one where I was covering my face earlier. I quickly looked at him, but he only gave me a thin smile.

When will you ever get tired of teasing me? So annoying! But somehow—it feels warm.

As I looked back at my phone, I found myself smiling automatically. I tucked that feeling away in my mind and proceeded to open Kakuyomu.

Sure enough, Neko Gal-sensei had just updated. She had left an author’s note: ‘Hi, I didn't update last Thursday because I wasn't feeling well. I worked as fast as I could so that today's episode could be out. Happy reading!’

Oh… so she was sick. I’ve been there too, especially back when I was in a contest. It really is extraordinary, being a web/light novel author.

I opened the latest chapter and began to read. Besides Neko Gal-sensei, I also read stories from other authors, especially those participating in the contest. Reading their work is my way of supporting them.

Before I knew it, the car had already come to a stop in the parking lot, and Arjuna had already stepped out.

"W-where are we, Pri—Arjuna-san?"

"Sidewalk Jimbaran Mall. The market is inside."

We headed inside. The moment I saw it, I was quite impressed. So there’s a supermarket like this here too. 'Gourmet Market', huh. Aha! What if I include a grocery shopping scene like this in my romantic story 'The Angel and Demon Next Door'? Kyaaaaa!!!! That would be so cute!

Thud…

By the time I returned to earth, my forehead had already kissed a cold ceramic pillar. A sharp pain throbbed in my brow, and I rubbed it slowly.

Hahahaha! I must have been too caught up in creating a scenario for my story. I didn't even realize I was walking that fast.

My laughter vanished the moment I noticed the people around us staring at me in confusion. They were chuckling and speaking in the local language, but I knew they were talking about how weirdly I was behaving. I pressed my forehead back against the pillar, wishing I could just sink into it and disappear.

Then, someone’s hand grabbed my upper arm. I panicked; my skin broke into a cold sweat and my body started to tremble slightly.

The thought of not understanding the language made me even more frantic. Unable to react, my body simply followed the pull of that person.

I could only close my eyes tight. What if he’s a bad person? WHAT IF THIS PERSON IS AN AGENT SENT BY MY FATHER?! THEY FINALLY FOUND ME! It's true... from the way he gripped me, there's a huge possibility he's one of those hired thugs. Goodbye Prince, Cinderella—is not going to make it! I won't have to meet the man who caused all this trouble again, I guess that’s the silver lining.

I let out a sigh, slowly turning my head and opening one eye. I felt a wave of relief and opened both eyes fully after tracing where that hand came from. 

It was just Arjuna. However—

Again... gloves again. Where on earth does he keep finding gloves like that? Am I some kind of fish that smells stinky, huh?

"Let’s go buy some basic spices first," he said while letting go of my arm, then peeling off the disposable plastic glove. He tucked it away to dispose of later.

He grabbed a trolley, then started walking to look for basic spices. I followed right beside him, glancing left and right to check out the items on the shelves.

Whenever Arjuna stopped, I stopped too, standing still and watching him. After picking up the basics—like onions, pepper, salt, and cooking oil—we went to look for condiments.

We already had chili sauce and tomato sauce in the trolley. As we were picking up some soy sauce, an elderly woman approached us.

She spoke with Arjuna while laughing; I could only stand there blankly. Eventually, she left, accompanied by someone younger.

Maybe that was her child. Or was she a sick elderly woman?

"Is that someone you know?" I asked Arjuna.

"Oh, no." Arjuna continued picking up the soy sauce with a smile. "That old lady said we look like a young married couple about to throw a party with this much groceries."

"EHHHH!? A YOUNG MARRIED COUPLE!!!"

"Ey, do you smell something burning?" a foreign woman with a ponytail asked.

"Um... it smells like cooking. Is it coming from the meat aisle? Let's go there," said another foreign woman wearing glasses.

Even though I was frozen, my senses were still functioning. It must be the aroma of my body boiling! Good grief! Why did other strangers have to pass by right now?

"Koharu?"

I returned to earth. "Ah.. wha—…. nani?"

"Now, we're going to get rice, coffee, and other dry goods."

I nodded, then followed him. I helped pick out some tea, and then some authentic Balinese coffee.

Arjuna asked me to grab 20 packs of instant noodles from the shelf he pointed to. He said it was the Indonesian version of ramen.

"Okay, thanks. For the rest of the noodles, let's just buy them by the box. All the liquid seasonings are here. Rice, coffee, and other dry goods are done. Basic cooking ingredients are done…."

Arjuna kept checking to see if everything we bought was correct.

"Oh... next is fruit, that's the last thing we'll buy. We can get dish soap, sponges, and other stuff at Indomaret later."

We headed to the fruit section. The fruits were kept very hygienic and clean. I noticed this stall provided disposable plastic gloves.

My mind flashed back to the scene earlier. Could it be... did he get those gloves from here?

Among all the fruits available, my eyes were drawn to one bright red fruit. It was labeled 'Dragon Fruit'.

Dragon? What kind of fruit is that? I’ll just ask Arjuna.

I gave Arjuna’s sleeve a little tug. "A-Arjuna-san, what fruit is that?" I asked, pointing with my other hand.

"Ehm... that's a dragon fruit."

My eyes widened, shocked by his answer. "E-eeeh!!! Indonesians eat dragons?! Sugoi!!! If we eat that, will we turn into dragons?"

I snapped out of it instantly. Darn it... I’m overreacting again. You’re being stupid again, Koharu!!

Arjuna burst out laughing, slapping his forehead several times. I could only shrink in shame.

"Are you a kindergartener or an adult? Hahahaha!" Arjuna tried to stop laughing.

"The fruit is actually called Pitaya, but in Asia, we call it dragon fruit."

"Oh... I see! I thought it was Pitaya because it looks the same, turns out it actually is Pitaya. If it's Pitaya, I know what that is."

Arjuna went to grab five of those dragon fruits. Then he took seven oranges and six pieces of a sharp, scaly fruit. I was curious about that fruit; I was so intrigued that I could only stare at it intensely.

I’ll just try it later at the guest house.

After weighing the fruit and getting everything we wanted to buy, we headed to the cashier. The queue was quite long, so Arjuna told me to wait outside. After a long wait, Arjuna finally emerged from the line. I immediately stood up, staring at him.

I saw him opening a pair of newly bought scissors and cutting a piece of string. He tied it to the trolley, then tied the other end loosely to my wrist.

I just stood there without resisting, like an idiot. "Uh... ano, what is this?"

"We're heading home. It'll be a hassle if a little kid gets lost."

He smiled, but that smile was clearly a tease. My body began to boil again for the umpteenth time. Even if it was a tease, who wouldn't be flustered being with a handsome man? In fact, ever since we ate at the food court, many women had been staring at him. I tried not to think about it, but in the end, I did.

So this is what it feels like to have a handsome partner. So many people are looking…