Feros and the Underworld Prince (38 page)

“
Why was Travis able to beat you before? From all the stories, you should have been able to mop the floor with him; it’s not like everybody can go around killing gods.” Jeremy inquires. I think he’s giving me the opportunity to ensure the current hierarchy with the freshmen, prior to it being challenged.

“
Well, you can’t believe everything that you hear. The only way I stayed alive against the gods that I faced was through tricks and by being one step ahead of them. I never fought on fair grounds and I would always taunt the gods to blind them to my tricks. Blinding them was always the easiest part because of how cocky gods are; they never perceived me as a threat until it was too late. However, in a fair fight in hand-to-hand combat, I’m not all that great. I’m not that much stronger than an average werewolf, nor am I much faster than an average vampire.” I explain.

“
How are you alive? I thought the consensus was that you were dead?” a freshman asks.

“
Early release for good behavior.” I reply.

“
Alright, with that out of the way, let’s get to work! The intermural tournament between the clubs to decide who is representing Fogquartz in the tournament is less than a month away!” Jeremy announces and everyone returns to their mats to continue sparring.

…

After practice, I port back to my room only to find that Cheza is still naked in my bed… in fact, I don’t think she’s moved. I start freaking out as I check for a pulse.

(She’s fine, Master)

Well, I guess that answers that question. I think I’ll go fetch us some dinner. I port to the food court and start to wonder what Cheza would like for dinner as I’m vaguely aware of a girl yelping in surprise. There’s Italian, Asian, American, Greek, Indian, salad… I could always go with her favorite… then again, I’m not even sure if that’s her favorite anymore.

“
Hey Airi, do you have any idea what Cheza wants for dinner?”

(Well, she’s currently having a dream about pudding, so that would be a good choice. Her favorite food is still fettuccini alfredo, Master)

“
Pudding and Alfredo it is! Oh, is it chocolate, vanilla, or swirl?”

(Swirl)

I wait in line for my cheeseburger before getting in the Italian food line. People are pointing and whispering to each other, but I just ignore them. After getting the Alfredo, I head to the desserts line for pudding. I grab a Pepsi for Cheza and a Mountain Dew for myself before porting back to the room. I set the food down and attempt to wake up Cheza.

“
Cheza… wake up, Cheza…” I softly say while gently shaking her. “Cheza, if you don’t wake up, I’ll eat all of the pudding.”

“
MY PUDDING!” Cheza shouts as she jolts awake, head-butting me in the process.

“
Ouch… why is your forehead so hard?” I ask while holding my right eye.

“
Sorry Cole… did you get me food!?” Cheza inquires.

“
Yes, I went and retrieved dinner for both of us.” I reply as Cheza looks at what I brought her.

“
Oh, Cole… I love that you know me so well!” Cheza exclaims as she hugs me; naked hugs from Cheza are so much better than normal ones.

“
Thank you, Airi!”

(You are welcome, Master)

After finishing my hamburger, I wait for Cheza to finish her dinner before porting to the food court to return the tray and the dishes. I port back to the room only to find that Cheza is gone.

Was I too clingy? Did I freak her out by being too clingy? Or does she just not love me anymore? Or did she decide that she didn’t want to be shunned by everyone for being with me? I wouldn’t blame her if she did…

“
AM I TOO CLINGY!?” I shout after I touch my Haglaz rune and port to Niflheim.

“
Bro! We’ll talk later. You’re not too clingy, but you seriously need to leave!” Jason replies as he continues to bang Reyna on the bed.

“
Jason… don’t be… rude!” Reyna exclaims, seemingly unfazed by my sudden appearance and the fact that she and Jason now have an audience.

“
You’re right… like always.” Jason concedes and stops his rhythm.

“
Of course I am.” Reyna says, slightly out of breath.

“
Cole, do you want to join in?” Jason asks, completely serious.

“
Not like that, you pendejo! I meant that you should ask him to
please
leave or offer him a drink, not your girlfriend!” Reyna yells.

“
What!? I thought you were implying that you want to have a threesome with Cole!” Jason expounds.

“
My bad… glad to see you guys are doing well!” I say over their arguing and then touch my Haglaz to port back to my room… that was awkward.

(By the way Master, Cheza is in the bathroom)

Wow… I feel like an idiot. What the hell was with my reaction? Maybe I should get my hormone levels checked or something because that was not the thought process of a healthy male in his twenties. After grabbing my toiletry kit, I head to the bathroom to get ready for bed.

“
Hey. Do you want to watch a movie?” Cheza asks when I walk in my room.

She’s sitting on the bed, wearing nothing but one of my white dress shirts, which she’s only buttoned at solar plexus level. The result is an exposed navel and a gracious amount of cleavage that is totally distracting.

“
Um… uh, yeah… I would just like to take the time to say that I am a fan of this look!” I tell her as I put my bag away, grab my laptop, and walk over to the bed. I hand the laptop to her so she can pick out a movie while I slide into bed next to her. Cheza sets the laptop on my lap and snuggles into my right side. About ten minutes into the movie, Addie’s face pops up on screen.

“
Daddy! And Mommy’s there too!” Addie exclaims.

Cheza quickly checks to make sure her goods are covered. I don’t remember there being some kind of auto-accept feature for calls on Skype…

“
Hey sweetie! How was your day?” I ask.

“
Good! Daddy, why are you and Mommy in bed?” Addie inquires.

“
Because it’s bedtime, sweetie.” I respond.

“
It’s about time that you two got back together.” Tia says behind Addie, making air quotes when she says together.

“
We were just watching a movie!” Cheza expounds for reasons unbeknownst to me.

“
We totally did earlier though.” I whisper.

“
Cole, you do realize that, even with Tia’s hearing, the laptop’s microphone won’t pick up your whispering… but I can, because I’m sitting six inches away from you.” Cheza says with an uninflected tone.

“
Right… we totally did earlier though.” I repeat at normal volume to Tia. Cheza just glares at me.

“
Anyway, it’s bedtime for you too, so we will talk to you tomorrow, Ada.” Cheza says.

“
Okay, goodnight Mommy! Goodnight Daddy! I love you!” Addie replies.

“
Goodnight sweetie, we both love you too!” I tell her and end the call.

Cheza and I continue to watch the movie, but I fall asleep before it’s finished.

…

Chapter 34: Pleasant Surprises

[October 1st]

After waking up next to Cheza, I go about my day. Everyone avoids me in my chemistry class, as well as in my computer science class. I catch a few glances from Naia that tell me that she isn’t happy about abandoning me, even if it is my idea. Class ends and I head to cardio kickboxing. I avoid even looking at the girls and decide on a spot at the front of the room, next to the door.

“
Nagi, what are you doing?” Sarah whispers.

“
What do you think? I’m going to join Cole.” Nagi replies.

“
Nagi, he’s Feros!” Stacy whispers back.

“
So what? He’s a nice guy.” Nagi says.

“
Nice guy? He practically admitted to torturing and killing people yesterday!” Kacey replies.

“
One thing I’ve learned about Cole is that he hates hurting people that don’t deserve it.” Nagi tells the girls and walks over to me. She takes the spot next to me and just smiles at me.

“
Thanks Nagi.” I tell her with a slight smile.

We punch and kick at the air for forty minute before something really unexpected happens.

“
Well, that concludes today’s class. I will see you all tom—” Spanish Ewan McGregor says.

“
DADDY!” Addie screams as she bursts into the room, runs, and jumps at me with her tail swishing excitedly through her shorts.

“
Addie!?” I ask in astonishment as I catch her in midair.

“
I finally found you, Daddy!” Addie giggles.

“
Cole, who is this?” Nagi asks.

“
This is my uh… daughter, Adelaide.” I tell her.

“
Addie, this is Daddy’s friend, Nagi. Can you say hello?” I ask her.

“
Hello…” Addie shyly says.

“
Daddy, she looks like Auntie Sara!” Addie says in a child’s whisper.

“
That she does, sweetie. How did you get here?” I ask while Nagi just stares at the bundle of adorable in my arms. I notice Stacy, Sarah, and Kacey cautiously moving forward to get a better look.

“
I walked from school.” Addie replies.

“
Sweetie, you can’t just go off on your own!” I scold, realizing that she must have come from the elementary school in town.

“
But I wanted to see you, Daddy…” Addie says with tears forming in her eyes. I hug her tightly.

“
It’s okay, but you can’t run off. I’m sure you’ve made your Auntie Sara very worried!” I explain.

“
I’m sorry…” Addie replies.

“
I have to go call Auntie Sara so I need you to stay here with Nagi for a little while, okay?” I say to Addie; she nods in response.

“
Nagi, do you mind keeping an eye on her while I go change and make a phone call?” I ask.

“
Yeah, of course!” Nagi exclaims with an almost hungry look in her eyes.

“
Snakes don’t eat babies, right?” I ask, now unsure if I should leave Addie in her care.

“
Not unless they’re in egg form… but I may make an exception for this one…” Nagi says still hungrily staring at Addie; she’s starts drooling a little bit… or that might just be my imagination.

“
Don’t worry, Cole; we’ll make sure that Nagi doesn’t eat her.” Stacy says. I turn around to see her, Kacey, and Sara smiling behind me.

“
Thanks, you guys. I’ll be right back, Addie.” I say.

“
Okay Daddy!” Addie replies and waves as I head towards the changing room.

I change back into my jeans and t-shirt, and pull out my phone to find that Lila has sent me a text.

Hi Cole, I just passed a tiny version of Chezarei that was walking around town and appeared to be sniffing the air. Thought you might be somehow connected.

I text her back so she doesn’t worry:

Hey Lila, that was my daughter, Adelaide. I’ll introduce the two of you later.

Next, I call Sara.

“
Hey Cole, what’s up!?” Sara asks in a panicked fashion as I hear a crash in the background.

“
Relax Sara, Addie is with me.” I tell her.