Chapter Ten

"Dad? Hey! Listen, I need to ask you for a favor."

"Okay." I heard him reply with a sigh.

"Next Tuesday, is it okay if I borrow your home to host an event for my company?"

I heard crickets. There was no response.

"Casey, have you lost your mind?" My Dad spat. "Why would you ask to host something at MY house? You're a grown woman, you have your own apartment."

"Dad, PLEASE?" I whined. "My apartment is too small to fit our entire floor."

"Why can't you rent a venue?"

"I'm a bit low on funds right now." I glanced over my shoulder and eyed Kai as he poked the TV screen in my living room. "I'm only asking to trade for one night."

"I'm going on a business trip next week." He grumbled. It figures. He always goes on business trips. "So now you want me to book a last-minute flight for Jeanette, Jackie, and Samuel? How is that fair to me? Or them?"

"They could stay in my apartment for the night."

"Jeanette doesn't like traveling in the area you live, you know that, Casey."

"I'm only asking you this because the CEO is attending. I don't want her to think I live in the dump I live in. Not to mention my colleagues who are all snobby and have more money than me."

"So, you want to impress people?"

"When you say it like that..." I frowned.

My Dad sighed and I could hear him moving around. "You can borrow the house for Tuesday only. But keep it clean. Don't let anyone go into the bedrooms or break anything."

"Thank you so much! I love you, Dad."

"Uh-huh." He mumbled sarcastically. "Take care of yourself, Casey. Don't try too hard to be someone you're not working for those idiots."

"I won't." I smiled. "Have fun on your trip."

"Goodbye." My Dad hung up and I sighed in relief. This was great. Now I had an address to give to my manager, and all I had to do was plan the food and what to wear.

"Kai!" I poked my head out of my bedroom and he shifted his gaze to me. "Put your shoes on. We're going to the store."

"The store?"

"Mhmm."

"Is that a place where I can eat?" He smiled.

"Yes and no. I don't know how it is where you're from, but here there are different types of shops and stores. We are going to a particular store to buy some clothes."

"Are you talking about a market?" He slipped his feet into his shoes while I grabbed my car keys off the table. "The place where you trade goods?"

"No, yes?" I didn't know what he meant by trading goods. I just knew I needed to get a new dress before next week.

"Then I will be of good use to you." Kai opened my front door and allowed me to walk out first. I gave him the stink eye and slipped on my shoes while trying to understand him. Kai took out a golden-colored clip that kept his hair up in a ponytail and handed it to me. "You should be able to get more than enough fine silks and linens for this."

"I... what?" I blinked at him. "What is this?"

"A hairpiece made of gold. It's a reward we get for battling off a grand number of our enemies. I'm giving it to you as repayment for assisting me."

"Kai, I can't take this." I snickered.

"Why not?"

"This isn't real gold." I glowered at him. I raised the band to take a closer look.

"It is." He stood behind me and moved his arm beside mine. Then he gently grabbed onto my fingers and brought the clip closer to me. I could feel my body tense and warm up because of how close he was. He pushed back a strand of his hair behind his ear and smiled. "Elvanor trades with merchants from distant lands to bring us gold. The carving of our symbol is here." He pointed at the image of a dragon on the clip.

"I still don't believe you." I snatched my hand away from his and closed my apartment door. "Let's go." I huffed and took a step toward my elevator. He was talking nonsense again. I told myself to only deal with it for a few more days. Kai followed me to my car and reached for the handle of the backseat.

"Excuse me, what are you doing?"

"I am waiting to Mount your Parrottle." He frowned.

"Sit in the front. I'm not your taxi driver." I pointed to the other side of my car. Kai rolled his eyes and sauntered to the other side of my car. We both sat inside at once. "Put your seatbelt on."

"The reigns?" Kai grazed his finger across the belt in amazement, and I growled. I grabbed the belt from his side and dragged it over his chest.

"You're so annoying!" I mumbled and stopped when the belt got jammed. I reached my arm over to tug on it, but it was stuck and refused to budge. "Stupid belt!"

Kai wrapped his hand around mine and tugged the belt, and it easily grew longer. I pulled my hand away awkwardly and helped him buckle himself in. "You are very irritated today, Phoenix."

"I wonder why." I spat sarcastically and pulled out of my parking space.

~

We walked inside the thrift store and the first thing I noticed was a large 50% off sale sign above us. I grabbed Kai's arm and dragged him over to a section full of women's clothes. He glanced around at everything as if he were stunned. His eyes were like a child walking into a candy store for the first time.

I quickly went over to the aisle where some dresses were hanging and browsed through various gowns that were too long or too short and showed too much cleavage. I pulled out a shoulder-less lace red dress that reached below my knees and held it up to my body. I wondered if this would be too flashy.

"Hey." I looked at Kai, who was gazing elsewhere. I snapped my fingers in his face and he turned to face me. "Kai, how would this look?"

"I don't like it." He skimmed it over carelessly.

"What? Why?"

"The women of my land wear long garments, robes that cover their legs and arms. On occasion, they do tease the men with a see-through fabric to show their interest."

"You know what? I don't care what you think. I'm buying it anyway." I shrugged and threw the dress over my arm. Kai ignored me and continued staring off into space and I tapped his shoulder to regain his attention. "Are you daydreaming or something?"

"Everyone is watching me." He narrowed his eyes. I glanced around and noticed some of the middle-aged women staring at us. Was it because of his clothes? "I don't trust them."

"Don't worry about them." I shrugged and pulled him to the other aisle where men's shirts and pants were. I picked up two shirts from the rack and held them up to his body. "I'm sure you wear an extra large in men's size. You're pretty bulky."

"Bulky?"

"Nothing." I smiled and took down a more formal dress shirt. Then I took down some pants and sweatpants. "I think you look better in black. Come on, I want you to try these on."

"Why?"

"Because your cosplay is getting old, Rapunzel. Let's go."

"Cosplay? Are you making a mockery out of my Royal attire? And why do you keep calling me Rapunzel?"

"You ask too many darn questions to a person who's trying to buy you some new clothes."

"I don't want new clothes. The ones I have on now are meant for me."

"You know what? It's okay to be honest. You could say you don't like these particular shirts. But it's rude to reject someone who's trying to do something nice for you."

"As it is rude for you to force your standard on me simply because you refuse to believe my customs exist." He retorted.

"You complained about the staring!"

"I am observant of the many eyes that are on me. I brought it to your attention to express my distrust."

"You are the worst man I have ever dealt with!" I snarled and realized that the entire store was now gawking at us. I cleared my throat. "Whatever. You don't have to wear them inside my apartment if you don't like them. But when you are walking around with me publicly, you're going to wear them. I've had enough of feeling embarrassed by your appearance." I stomped over to the register before he could respond and purchased the clothes.

Kai and I both left the store in silence, but I could feel his anger. He walked beside me toward the car and stopped suddenly. The action confused me so I stopped walking and watched him.

"I'm famished." He stated. I couldn't believe he had the nerve to have an attitude, and now he was demanding that I get him some food.

"You can pay for your own food." I spat.

"The hairpiece." Kai grabbed me by the arm. "Give it to me."

I took the golden hairpiece out of my purse and tossed it at him. He caught it. "Would you take me to a merchant? One who trades gold for silver?"

"Uh, there's no merchant. But I do know a good pawn shop nearby that my mother used to drag me along to sell her jewelry." I hopped in my car and waited for him.

"Take me there."

"I doubt you'll get any cash for that thing." I chortled softly. He placed his seatbelt on and I drove to the Pawn Shop. It was located in one of the malls. Once we arrived, I parked and walked inside with Kai. We were greeted by everyone inside, and Kai followed me over to the counter. "Excuse me!" I waved my hand over to the dark-skinned man wearing a sports jersey who was eating potato chips and slouching in his seat.

The man shifted his gaze from his phone to me and smiled. "Well look who it is! Casey Gracie! You've grown in all the right ways."

"Whatever, Jamal. Where's Mr. Earl?" I rolled my eyes. Jamal was that one guy who wouldn't take a hint. Ever since I was in middle school, he liked me and would always flirt whenever my Mom would bring me here. Mr. Earl was the owner of the shop, who happened to be his Uncle.

"Dang, girl. At least give me a chance to catch up. Your dad told me you were working for one of those big companies in the city. How's that going?"

"Jamal, I'm in a hurry. Could you please just go to the back of the store and get your Uncle?"

"Can't. He's on vacation right now. He left me in charge of the shop."

"He left YOU in charge?" I snorted. "Now I see why it's so empty in here," I mumbled. "Alright, Rapunzel. Show him your toy."

Kai placed his hairpiece on the counter and slid it toward Jamal. Jamal gave Kai the stink eye. "Who's your friend? Is he the Chinese delivery man? Or woman?"

"Jamal, that is rude." I snapped.

"As unfamiliar with your terms and language as I am, I only want to show you the goods I want to sell." Kai began. "How much can I get for this?"

Jamal picked up the hairpiece and opened the drawer behind the counter. He pulled out a magnifying glass and held the hairpiece under a light. A few seconds later, his eyes widened like he had seen a ghost.

"This is a lot of gold." Jamal eyed Kai suspiciously. "Where'd you get this thing?"

"No way." I frowned. "It's real?"

"Yeah, it's real and a pretty hefty amount. What are you, some kind of rich princess or something?"

"I am a Royal of Elvanor." Kai spat. "This was given to me as a reward. I only want to know how much silver you can trade me for it."

"I don't like this guy." Jamal spat.

"I am not fond of you either, peasant."

"Who are you calling a—"

"Alright men, settle down!" I nudged Jamal back and glared at Kai. "Just give him the money, and we will leave."

"I don't trust him, Casey," Jamal whispered. "Just look at him. That's why my father told me to stay away from those China boys. They all got that weird look."

"The gold is real, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then take the gold, and give him the cash. That's all I brought him here for."

Jamal hesitated but he opened the register and pulled out a couple of hundred dollar bills and slid the money over to Kai. "You're probably doing this to make me jealous again, aren't you? You just love playing hard to get." He muttered.

"Excuse me?" I hissed.

"Nothing. By the way, My uncle was talking about that bird around your neck the other day. He's willing to purchase it for a good price."

"Jamal, you know I can't sell this. It's my mother's last gift to me."

"Not even for a couple of hundred dollars?"

"The Phoenix stays." Kai intervened. "Greed does not rot her soul."

"Does it look like I'm talking to you? Maybe your small eyes can't see."

Kai laughed and leaned over the counter. I felt something within him change. He took the money off the counter and slid it into his robe before eyeing Jamal straight in the eye. "I've been told I have the sharpest vision of all my ancestors. And do you know what my vision tells me right now? I see a feeble and insignificant man trying to be something he's not, fooling himself into believing that he will be with someone he will never have. You lack the proper sustenance and intelligence that a being requires to be victorious and you excuse your irresponsible behavior by slaving away for a man who will never trust you. My eyes may be small, but they're not as pathetic as the fool in front of me."

In one swift movement, Jamal pulled out a gun and aimed it right at Kai's head. I screamed and the rest of the workers rushed over to see what was happening. Kai never flinched. He only stared at Jamal with a bored expression.

"What's that supposed to be?" Kai smirked.

"You'd better get out of my store if you don't want to find out. You think I'm scared of you? All hell breaks loose when I'm present."

"Jamal!" I squeaked. "Put the gun away! We got what we came for! We'll leave!"

"I'm not gonna let him insult me like that!" Jamal sneered and Kai rolled his eyes, unamused. "Say something now big mouth!"

"I'll give you 3 seconds to take that filthy toy out of my face." Kai glowered. "One..."

"Are you trying to get yourself killed, Kai?" I tugged on his sleeve but he wouldn't budge.

"Two..."

Jamal's hands started to shake as he put his finger on the trigger.

"Three." Jamal moved his finger, but Kai reacted quicker. Kai flicked the gun out of his hands and caught it, before lightly smacking Jamal on the head with the weapon. Then he tossed it aside like it was nothing. Everyone gasped and Jamal eyed Kai with a blank expression. "Let's go, Phoenix. I am starving." Kai grabbed me by the arm and dragged me out of the shop. I was too shocked to respond.