Going shopping Part 1

A bright and sunny summer day was on the horizon. Kazuto and Nozomi were just getting ready to take a walk through the market street. „Oh! One important thing before we leave!“ Kazuto said. „Y-Yes?“ Nozomi asked curiously. „Can you use your morph ability to conceal your tail and turn your ears into human ears?“ Kazuto asked. „I think so.“ Nozomi replied as she then closed her eyes and covered herself in a flash of light that lasted for a few seconds, and after emerging from it, her tail was gone and her ears have transformed into human ears. „Great! We can get going now!“ Kazuto said as he went to unlock the door. The two were now strolling through the market street while Kazuto was showing off the neighborhood to Nozomi. „Whoooaaa! There's so many people here!“ Nozomi said as she admired the bustling crowd. „Yeah, usually on weekends the streets are bound to be packed with lots of people since the vast majority of them are off work.“ Kazuto explained to the curious Nozomi.

As Nozomi observed the people around her, she noticed that there were a lot of couples out and about who were walking arm in arm, cuddling or kissing on the benches or generally enjoying themselves by doing lovely dovey stuff. It was very wholesome seeing those sights, but then Nozomi's sight trailed back to Kazuto. He too was looking at the numerous couples present, and while his facial expression seemed normal enough for the average observer, but Nozomi saw that there was something more to that face expression than it meets the eye. She knew that something was on his mind, and was possibly bothering him, yet she couldn't quite put her finger on it. „The way he is looking at all those couples, I can sense a whole conflux of emotions, both positive and negative. What could it all mean? Could it be that his falling out with his parents has lead him to becoming more and more lonely, or maybe… Wait, is it possible that he has never had a mate in his life?“ Nozomi thought deeply as she looked at Kazuto the whole time while thinking. „Here we are Nozomi!“ Kazuto said as he stopped walking and turned to face Nozomi who also stopped walking. „Is that the store that you were telling me about?“ Nozomi asked. „Correct, this humble little store has everything I need in my day to day life. So when you notice that we are running low on any of the supplies in the house, you go here and pick it up, and you pay with this.“ Kazuto said as he handed Nozomi one of his credit cards. „Umm, What is this supposed to be? If I may ask. It looks like an unusual picture to me.“ Nozomi said with visible confusion on her face as she tried to figure out what the strange object Kazuto has given her is.

„This is a credit card, it is a key with which you transfer money in exchange for the items in shops. This one is yours to keep.“ Kazuto explained to Nozomi. „Oh! I see! Thank you then! I'll use it wisely, I promise! But now that I think about it, don't you have the option of paying for stuff with actual physical money?“ Nozomi asked for clarification. „Yes, we do indeed have that option as well, but it's considered older technology at this point in time, however some shops still only accept physical cash despite credit cards being an established thing for several years at this point. Should an occasion like this ever arise, these credit cards can be used from these machines over there that go by the name: ATM.“ Kazuto explained as he pointed to the group of three ATMs that were located on the far left side of the store.

„Amazing! Your world doesn't seem so different from mine on surface level, but there are enough differences to warrant experiencing it! And I really like it so far!“ Nozomi commented as the two started walking towards the ATMs. „Hehe! I'm glad you think of it that way.“ Kazuto said as he produced a small chuckle. „Wow! So these are ATMs? But why does each one have a different symbol and a different set of words above it?“ Nozomi asked in confusion. „Ah, you see, there are many different banks out there and when you start making any kind of larger income, you create a bank account in at least one of the banks and if you want to withdraw money, you usually use the ATM that belongs to the bank in which you have an account in. You can use other ATMs in which you don't have an account as well, but if you do, you'll have to pay a small fee since you're essentially borrowing money from another bank.“ Kazuto explained while Nozomi was intently listening. „I see, so you can indeed make an account in more than one bank if you want.“ Nozomi commented. „Yes you can, but first you need to decide if you really need it or not.“ Kazuto explained to which Nozomi nodded to let him know that she understood him. „So, can you show me how you withdraw money?“ Nozomi asked.

„Yes sure, you take the card and insert it into this opening here.“ Kazuto said as he took Nozomi's card and inserted it into the ATM. „Oooh! S-So how do we get it back?“ Nozomi asked after witnessing the card disappearing. „After we express how much money we want, the machine will give us the card back, but now the ATM wants you to confirm your identity by asking you for the a four digit card number called a PIN. This card's particular PIN is this one, I am not saying it out loud because that is information only available to you.“ Kazuto explained as he discreetly glided over the keypad to show Nozomi what her card PIN is. „So the PIN is 1603, I'll remember that!“ Nozomi thought as she put the PIN in. „Awesome, you're getting it, all that's left is to select the amount of money you want and that's it.“ Kazuto said to Nozomi who smiled after knowing she performed the task successfully. „Ok, let's take… 2000 Yen.“ Nozomi said as she made her pick. The machine started working and after a few seconds, the credit card has been returned, and a few more seconds later, the money also emerged from the bottom compartment. „There you go! You've made your very first withdrawal.“ Kazuto said to Nozomi as he gave her a thumbs up to which Nozomi reacted with a beaming smile. Nozomi then walked up to Kazuto and lowered her head in front of Kazuto. „Uhh, excuse me? Oh! D-Do you want me to…?“ Kazuto reacted thinking that Nozomi might want him to pat her. Nozomi nodded energetically to signify that his guess was right, Kazuto then obliged and patted Nozomi to which she responded with a warm and beaming smile. „Teehee, I really love head pats!“ Nozomi thought as she smiled. „There you go. Ok, time for your second task for today.“ Kazuto said as he started searching his pockets for something. „O-Ok I'll do it with flying colors!“ Nozomi said in a timid tone.

„Here! This is a list of items that need to be bought from the store, I've made this list myself, but in the future I'd like you to count on you to make sure that the house is regularly supplied with everyday goods. Is that ok for you to manage? I-I mean y-you can always ask for help if you feel you need it.“ Kazuto said while sounding a bit sheepish at the end. „Y-Yeah sure, I-I'll do my best for sure!“ Nozomi replied sheepishly as well. „Ok then! Now, let's head in the store.“ Kazuto said. „Right! The list isn't too big so this shopping will be done in a jiffy!“ Nozomi said enthusiastically.