Hellbound With You

Inside the arcade, Alex was sitting there silently with an unreadable expression. He almost looked like one of those so called ’miserable men’ waiting for his wife as she shopped tirelessly around a supermall. Although there was one main point of difference and that was the fact that Alex still looked so damn gracious as ever as he sat there, crossing his elegantly long legs like a king.

Abi didn’t try to pull him and force him to join her this time because she felt bad that she might have exhausted him from having him carry her all the way here. However, that was completely just Abi’s opinion because in reality, the man wasn’t bothered even for a little bit. In fact, as he sat there, he wondered why the little fruit was not asking him to do anything. But at the same time, he was also glad that she was not forcing him to join because Alex actually had no idea what to do in this place. This was the first time he ever set foot in a place like this and he didn’t have any idea about how to play those games she was playing - not that he was planning to play those silly things even if she forced him...

He thought that it was enough that he was there. Besides, the little fruit looked like she was enjoying playing the games by herself, occasionally glancing at him with big smiles.

However, time ticked by and the man, who decided to just sit there until it was time for them to go, finally stood up.

It was because he got curious about why his little fruit seemed to be frustrated as she stood by the claw machine. He moved closer, not to help her, but for him to have a better view on her expression.

The man leaned on the machine next to them as he watched her with intense concentration. When she failed to claw anything inside the machine, she groaned and even tugged her hair in frustration.

”Ugh!! So close!!” she cried in frustration. She was trying to get that cute little lamb toy but it was stuffed at the farthest corner. Even though she was good at this, she knew that getting it was not possible.

Gripping her last coin, Abi could only give up on the little lamb. She had been playing these things since she was young and she had gathered a lot of toys from these machines, so she also knew when to give up on something that was just impossible to get.

Thankfully, when she pulled her eyes away from that little lamb, something else immediately caught her attention. There was one toy that was in a favorable position so she decided to go for it instead. She had used up her last coin so she had to get this one at all costs.

Her intense concentration, her every frown and scowl were all just amusing to Alex that he was smiling as he watched her.

Finally, Abi was able to get the toy.

”Yey!!! I got one!!” she yelled in excitement as she faced Alex. ”Look, Alex!!” She was grinning widely as she showed him the toy she won.

”Here, this is yours,” she then said, giving the toy to him, causing Alex’s smirk to fade. He took it and looked at it. It was a blue jellyfish with eyes that looked both angry and bored. ’What an ugly, unhappy jellyfish!’ he thought.

”Why would you give this to me?” he frowned. He couldn’t even imagine himself owning a stuffed toy! ”Take it, you worked hard for it.” He gave it back to her but Abi shoved it back to him.

”No, I… I worked hard for it so I could give this to you as a gift,” she said and Alex fell speechless. A gift? This little fruit actually wanted to gift him an ugly angry jellyfish?

Alex somehow found it unbelievably amusing. He remembered that the cheapest gift he received until now was a luxurious yacht.

”I’m sorry. I really wanted to get you that little lamb right there,” she said as she regretfully pointed at the little lamb at the farthest corner. ”But this one is really cute, too. I immediately thought of you when I saw it.” She smiled and Alex didn’t know what to say. ’This ugly thing reminded her of me?! Did this little fruit actually see him as being ugly and angry?! But she said this was really cute!’

In the end, Alex didn’t know why he accepted the jellyfish. Maybe because he watched how she did her best to get it. But still… him? Owning a toy was just…

As he stared at its angry face, he wondered if he really looked like this. But now that he thought about it, he probably did look angry and bored all the time. The thought made his face darken, but the next moment, he asked her to go and get more coins.

”Hold this,” he said as he gave the jellyfish to Abi.

And then, he started to play, targeting that cute little lamb at the farthest corner.

At first, Abi thought that Alex might be better than her with this, thinking that the great Alexander could do anything and everything.

But she was wrong. She could tell that this was the first time he had ever played this game. He didn’t know how to control his strength.

What was worse was that he was playing like the coins were not valuable at all! She pictured in her head the coins being used to build a road to get to his destination and it was like he didn’t mind using all the coins in the world to get there!

Or it was also like he was gambling, losing every hand and getting no monetary gain!

Abi was speechless.

He loosened his tie and pulled his sleeves. One would think that he was preparing himself for a dead or alive fight from the look on his face at that moment.

And thus, the great Alexander’s first ever frustrating game began.