It's been quite some time since Michelle and I left the Adventurer Guild; in fact, it's in the middle of dusk, and the darkness was slowly overtaking the night sky, though right now, we were enjoying a walk through the forest. Of course, we weren't too deep, and we were close by Hyphen just in case something were to happen; Michelle may have been blackmailing me, but I didn't want any harm to come to her, especially considering she hadn't really done anything bad to me as of yet, she's merely just made my life slightly more inconvenient over the past few months.
"So, as a fake lover, how was the date? I'm pretty confident I scored pretty well." Asked Alexander curiously with his hands in his pockets as he walked beside Michelle, who was completely in her element within the forest.
"Hmm, you did quite well, and I loved how straightforward and dominant you were, ordering my own food and introducing me to your Adventurer friends; they were little things, but I liked how you instantly took control. It made me feel at ease and safe like I always had a shoulder to lean on." Replied Michelle lightly with a small smile as she brushed her hands around the vegetation before looking at Alexander with a slight blush.
"Well, you're welcome, Michelle; though, it's getting rather late, so we should probably head back; you've still got to pick up your daughter, don't you?" Remarked Alexander with a faint smirk as he looked up at the sky before grabbing Michelle's hand and turning around, heading back towards the Hyphen.
"No, I'm getting her tomorrow afternoon, so we can stay out here a little longer. It's been several years since I've gotten the chance to enjoy nature." Said Michelle with a shake of her head before pulling Alexander back, forcefully turning him around as the two continued deeper into the forest.
"Several years? The forest is only about a kilometer walk from Hyphen; it's only a ten-minute walk at most; how come you've never bothered to visit?" Asked Alexander curiously with a raised eyebrow as he held Michelle's hand while looking at her, causing her to sigh while shaking her head once more.
"Well, the first two years were spent getting used to Hyphen after I moved here following my arranged marriage with my husband; after those two years, I eventually got pregnant and gave birth to Chloe, and the last six years have been raising her, all on my own I will add. It's not easy trying to be both a Father and a Mother when I've got no clue what I'm doing; though, thankfully, I met some experienced mothers who helped me." Remarked Michelle lightly with a frown as she held a dying leaf in her hand, a sight that caused Alexander to be filled with grief for a few seconds before he shook his head and returned to normal.
"However, I'm also a little scared; I may be an Elf, but the forest isn't our home; it's our natural habitat; there is a difference, so if I'm not careful, I could end up dead, and my mediocre bow skills aren't going to save me if I came face-to-face with a predator especially since I don't have a bow or any arrows." Added Michelle with a slightly bashful expression as she looked away, causing Alexander to wrap his arm around her shoulder protectively.
"Well, with me, you don't need to worry about anything harming you; I've been in this forest many times before, so I know what kinds of beasts roam around. Besides, I'm pretty fast, so I could carry you and flee; that's not a problem." Stated Alexander with a warm smile as he looked down at Michelle, filling her with a sense of assurance and safety.
"I know, that's why I dared to follow you out here, Alexander." Replied Michelle with a smile as she leaned into Alexander's embrace and rested her head against his torso while closing her eyes, soaking up the touch of his soothing embrace.
As we descended into silence while walking deeper into the forest, basing in the tranquility of nature, I saw movement coming from the top of a tree, and the next thing I knew, a large feline had pounced down and growled at us, scaring Michelle as she swiftly hid behind me.
"Calm down, Michelle; she's merely warning us to exit her territory." Said Alexander as he slowly approached the large feline with his arms raised, causing her to growl louder.
"I apologize about entering your territory, girl, but we mean no harm; we're just passing through; you'll allow that, right?" Asked Alexander softly with a smile as he squatted down right before the feline, who lightly growled in response, causing him to nod.
"I understand; how about some scratches to compensate for it?" Replied Alexander with a raised eyebrow as he slowly brought his hand forth, causing the feline to warily eye it before leaning forward and rubbing the top of her head.
'Hehe, got you.' Mused Alexander with a smirk as he gently rubbed the feline, quickly turning the scary predator into nothing but a harmless house cat while she rolled about on the ground, releasing pleasant purrs.
"Aren't you a beautiful girl? Michelle, come here and rub her.' Remarked Alexander with a smile as he used both hands to rub the feline's belly before glancing at Michelle, who was looking with widened eyes, absolutely shocked at what she was witnessing.
"E-Eh, a-are you sure? I-I don't want to lose my hand." Asked Michelle fearfully as she kept her distance while eyeing Alexander playing with the feline, who suddenly bit his arm, causing her to nearly scream in fear.
"Hehe, trust me; come and rub her; she's merely playing." Said Alexander confidently as he shook his arm while the feline was playfully latched onto, causing Michelle to approach them hesitantly.
Seeing Michelle get closer, I grabbed her hand before suddenly yanking her closer, causing her to nearly fall atop the feline, freaking them both out in the process.
"Calm down, you two." Added Alexander as he gently rubbed underneath the feline's mouth while holding Michelle's hand, successfully calming the two women down.
Once the two calmed down, I grabbed the top of Michelle's hand and slowly brought it forward since I knew from the fear I could see in her heart she would never take the initiative. The instant her hand touched the feline's body, I saw her body tense in fear, though after a few seconds of no aggressive reaction, Michelle began to come down, and eventually, I released her hand, allowing her to brush the feline by herself.
"See, I told you, Michelle, you had nothing to worry about; just don't do anything stupid to her." Said Alexander with a smile as he scratched behind the feline's ear, causing her to purr in delight while Michelle began to scratch her enthusiastically as well.
"Her fur, it's so soft." Muttered Michelle with a smile as he rubbed the feline, who suddenly pounced on Alexander, pinning him to the ground and biting his shoulder.
"Hehe, you want to play like that?" Remarked Alexander with a playful smirk as he flipped their positions and bit the feline leg, wrestling while Michelle watched with a smile
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Taking my pants off, I created a strong gust of wind, cleaning all the dirt off from my playtime with the feline before wearing my pants and walking over to Michelle.
"Do you not wear underwear?" Asked Michelle with blushed cheeks as she looked at Alexander's crotch.
"Nah, but it's a habit I need to fix, same with not wearing any shoes." Replied Alexander with a shake of his head before looking down at his feet.
Stretching my body a little from that rough play, I turned to look at Michelle after hearing her rummage through her purse, only to see her handing me pictures of myself, causing me to raise an eyebrow as I took them out of her hand.
"T-Those are all the pictures I have of you, and this is the camera." Said Michelle lightly as she handed Alexander a camera.
I could tell she was telling the truth, and before I could allow her to take it back, I erupted them both into a blazing fire using my mana, causing the pictures to burn to ashes while the camera was quickly melted and destroyed into something unrecognizable.
'Haa, I'm finally free! I don't need to worry about Yuki getting kicked out of her house!' Thought Alexander in excitement while smiling before confusion overtook him as he looked at Michelle, tilting his head.
"Why?" Asked Alexander, his words causing Michelle to take a deep breath before an expression of determination emerged.
"I had initially taken those pictures to blackmail you into having sex with me, but I-I was too scared to actually follow through, so I settled with just touching; however, over the course of the past few months and this date. I-I've come to develop feelings for you, Alexander; I-I like you, Alexander. Though I know after what I did you probably won't want anything to do with me, but I-I just wanted to get this off my che-" Stated Michelle seriously with a deep blush as she gathered her courage and looked into Alexander's purple, crystal-like eyes, only to to be interrupted by a pair of lips.
"I quite like you as well, Michelle, and I'm too mad about the blackmail thing; I knew you were never going to actually follow through with exposing me. Though I am annoyed." Remarked Alexander lightly with a smile as he retracted his lips from Michelle, causing her blush to deepen while she pressed herself into his embrace, only for him to push her back.
"However, like I've said before, even if you and your husband are on terrible terms, I won't be doing anything sexually intimate with you, Michelle, not willingly, at least. It's the principle of the matter that you're married, not who you're married to, Michelle." Added Alexander seriously, shaking his head while holding Michelle's shoulders, keeping her at arm's length.