Chapter 49 Chapter 49
It took some time, but eventually, she found what she wanted and bought it. Thorne nearly fell over laughing when he saw what it was and didn’t let her hear the end of it, teasing her until she had a permanent blush on her face. He made it a lot more embarrassing for her than it was, almost acting as if she had bought wedding rings or something like that.
“I wouldn’t have expected that of you, Valerie. You surprised me,” he cackled.
“Don’t say that. I just thought… it would be a… good idea,” she stumbled over her words, unable to look at Thorne. The demon wasn’t done making fun of her yet, much to her annoyance.
“I’ve never seen you buy something for your boyfriend before,” he smirked, and she nearly dropped her shopping bag.
“What boyfriend? I don’t have one,” she said so quickly that he almost didn’t understand her.
“Are you sure?” Thorne asked slyly. “You do realize that a bond is the demon version of marriage, do you?” he snickered, and his eyes twinkled mischievously when the blush on her face got as red as hellfire itself. “HUH?” she squeaked. “Why hasn’t anyone ever told me?”
It was 6 pm when she returned home, and after Thorne’s endless teasing, she wasn’t so sure anymore if what she was planning was a good idea. She took off her jacket, pulled a little box from her shopping bag, and trudged towards the living room where she heard the muffled sounds of the TV.
She discovered Maxwell playing another PS4 game and sat down next to him on the sofa. He briefly looked at her, pausing his game and putting the controller on the table.
“Didn’t expect you to come back so soon. Did Nicholas Clarke annoy you?” he smirked.
“You could say that,” she mumbled under her breath, feeling her cheeks get warmer. She fidgeted with the box in her hands, falling silent. He raised an eyebrow at her and observed her curiously.
“What’s up with you? You’re being weirder than usual.”
“And you’re as rude as usual,” she retorted, finally finding the courage to go through with it. “I got you something,” she said and held the box out to him.
“Oh? What could that be?” He took the little box and opened the lid, staring at its contents. His lips parted, and silence fell over the room. When his eyes met hers, they reflected surprise that soon changed to amusement. “I should have expected it,” he chuckled slowly, taking out a delicate silver chain and weighing it in his hand.
“I… I just thought since you lost your other one… and you never got a new one,” she said, watching him put it on just like he always wore it.
“Thanks, Valerie,” he said, and for once he looked happy, the brightness of his eyes catching her off guard. His flirty grin had her heart flutter in her chest, and she blushed, unable to take her gaze off him.
—
Happy that her surprise had been a success, Valerie was in a good mood for the rest of the evening. She had gone to the bathroom to take a shower earlier, and now she was drying her hair, pulling it up in a bun. Wrapping a towel around herself, she glanced at her reflection in the mirror, smiling brightly.
As she looked in the mirror, she saw movement, and suddenly she stared into the eyes of a stranger who had appeared out of thin air, standing next to her. He looked just as surprised as her, his piercing eyes widening a fraction.
Stumbling back, she slipped on the tiles and landed hard on the ground, clutching her towel that almost opened. Pain flared through her back. She cursed and screeched loudly, grabbing a bar of soap that she threw at the intruder. He wasn’t sure if he should shield himself or cover his ears and ended up standing motionless, staring at her as if she had lost it.
Valerie grabbed a shampoo bottle and tossed it at him. Next, she got her hands on a bath duck and threw it at his head with all the force she could muster. It made a squishing sound when it hit him.
“Get out. You creep,” she screamed. Without warning, the door was ripped open by a furious Maxwell whose eyes widened at the scene in front of him. Valerie’s towel had slipped up and revealed a dangerous amount of skin, and it was very obvious who was responsible for all this. Light flashed and struck the intruder, who cursed at Maxwell.
“It’s not what it looks like,” he defended himself.
“He tried to peep,” she yelled agitatedly.
“I’m going to kill you, Xander,” Maxwell threatened and came closer, but Xander suddenly vanished into thin air, and Valerie and Maxwell were alone.
“Huh? Where did he go?” she asked suspiciously. “Who was that pervert?”
Maxwell sighed annoyedly and ran a hand through his hair, the anger in his eyes gradually fading. “It was one of my friends… he has the bad habit of appearing at the stupidest of times…” he grumbled. “Get dressed before he comes back, okay?”
She nodded, and he left the bathroom. Hastily, she put on her clothes, looking around paranoidly until she was finally done. Just at this moment, the doorbell rang, and she heard Maxwell walk off to the front door. She heard muffled voices and got curious, leaving the bathroom to enter the hallway, where she discovered three men, all dressed in very fancy clothes. One of them was the green-haired pervert, Xander, whom she glared at with a vengeance.
“You,” she hissed, pointing at him.
“Me?” he said, gaping at her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to barge in like that. I didn’t see anything.”
“You saw enough,” Maxwell hissed.
“Damnit, Xander, we just wanted to come over for a friendly visit…” the one with black hair nagged. “I told you not to teleport.”
“Who even are you?” she asked.
“I’m Wade,” the black-haired demon said. “That’s Shawn, and you’re acquainted with Xander already. Hunter told us something very interesting about you guys.” He grinned mischievously, his eyes moving back and forth between her and Maxwell, who still wasn’t over his anger. He looked pissed.