Through stomach, to the heart!

'Come on man, just knock on this damn door!'

I made the deal with a damned mobster with relative ease. I then carried ten grand on me, roaming around the gang-controlled grounds, daring not to carry that much cash where other groups could just take it from me. Still, without stepping out of the area controlled by the people I just made a deal with, I managed to quickly stock up on everything that could be of use to me back home. 

Or namely, food, clothes, and hygiene products, all of which Fay might need. To top it all off, I bought a bunch of both small and oversized plushies, turning myself into a walking bundle of bags, carryable boxes, and packages. 

Yet, instead of feeling relief when I finally reached my shed, ready to drop off all this weight and take a breath to calm my beating heart… I couldn't bring myself to actually knock on the door to give Fay the signal we discussed before I left. 

Because, right behind the doors… There was Fay. 

And while I managed to keep my cool while dealing with a mobster, I couldn't be so sure I could do the same when dealing with her! Especially when the sole goal for all the purchases I made was to put a smile on her face. 

'Nothing good will come from standing around here,' I thought, trying to use reason to force my hand to move. 'I'm drawing a lot of attention. Even if that mobster promised to keep my family off my back, I won't be able to do much if they just show up to check how I reacted to them stealing my inheritance…'

By distracting my thoughts with my vicious aunt, I managed to fade away the image of the trail that awaited me on the other side. And with the burden on my mind now lessened, I finally managed to raise my hand and knock on the door. 

Two knocks, a short pause, three knocks, another pause, and then a single knock. 

A code that should let Fay know that it was me and thus she didn't need to hurry up and hide. 

In a sense, this amount of caution wasn't even necessary. After all, if my family really came while I was out, they would simply try to barge in as if they owned the place, struggle with the doors upon noticing they were locked, and then leave, as they could have no other business in the area but to bully me. 

And if the doors were locked and I didn't respond to their attempts at entry… Then, with quite a dose of certainty, I believed they would assume I was out. My disobeying them was something they simply couldn't fathom. 

'And not so long ago, I wouldn't fathom opposing them myself,' I thought, gritting my teeth before unlocking the doors and mindlessly walking inside. There, I dropped off all my bags before closing the door behind me. 

Heaving a deep sigh, I raised my eyes. 

And then I recalled what exactly troubled me so much I couldn't bear to return back to my shoddy home. 

"Peter!" 

Before I could as much as say a single word, Fay jumped out from behind the bed and rushed forth, worry mixing with excitement on her face. 

"You are back!" 

Seeing how I was all good, the concern vanished from her eyes, replaced by pure joy and happiness. 

'Why is she so happy I came back?' I asked myself, puzzled by this unexpected dose of attention. 'Is it because I'm the only one who can bring her back to her world? Or maybe she's just that cheerful on her own?'

I took a deep breath, ready to have Fay throw herself at me in a friendly hug… Only to see her rapidly decelerate on the last few steps, only to stop a mere few inches away and lower her eyes, her cheeks suddenly turning all red. 

'Oh, did she remember our previous talk?' I thought, unable to stop myself from just watching her stumble around. 

It felt like adoring a cute puppy frolicking on the grand adventure around the room. 

A bout of pain exploded in my heart as I struggled to handle just how adorable Fay was, all the more when she suddenly turned all embarrassed and shy. 

'Maybe she was so clingy before, because for her, intimacy is only possible when one's in heat?' I thought, going back to the same ideas that flashed in my mind before. 

But then, I shook my head and reached out to pat Fay on her shoulder. 

"I'm home, Fay," I spoke softly, quenching my need for adorableness in my life before stepping to the side and kneeling over the bags. "And on that note, what do you want to start with? Are you hungry? Do you want to taste some food of this world? Or maybe you would be more interested in clothes? I also have plushies and some grooming…"

"WAH!"

Fay's voice suddenly spiked as she uttered a small cry, her eyes locked on something that I happened to reveal while rustling around with the bags. I followed her line of sight, only for the corners of my lips to curve up when I realized what got this kind of reaction out of her. 

"Don't worry, it's just a toy," I assured, pulling one of the bags open to reveal a soft plushie bear, half the size of a human. And looking up, I could see Fay's eyes sparkle while locked on the plushie. Even her cheeks turned reeded as the anticipation appeared all over her face. 

"Here, I hope you will like it," I said, pulling out the ball of soft fur before passing it over to the girl. 

For but a second, I could swear I saw her fox ears twitch. Her long hair moved, making it seem as if she just wiggled her tail. 

"Soft…" Fay whispered when I left the big plushie in her hands. She immediately pulled it into a hug, only for her face to melt down in a satisifed smile when she wrapped herself all over the huggable toy. 

I froze. Seeing Fay snuggle up the big plushie with a simple yet full smile… It was as if this small gift alone was enough to bring her to the peak of happiness. 

'If that's how she reacted to a simple toy…' I thought, gulping my saliva down as my hands involuntarily reached down, to the huge, massive even, bag where I kept all the menu options from the nearby restaurant named after Ronald, the cook so great he was given the noble prefix Mac. 

"I'm glad to see you like it…" I spoke, busying myself with unpacking each separate meal and stacking them all on the lone table in the shed. 

"Human Peter…" Hearing Fay's shaky voice, I turned my head back… Only to see her staring at me with tears in her eyes. "Sniff…. Sniff…" Fay sobbed lightly. 

At first, I thought it was the strong smell of the fast food that I brought that got this reaction out of her… Only for Fay to take a step forward and reach out with one of her hands. 

"Human Peter…" she sniffled, struggling to make her voice loud enough for me to hear. She reached out and grabbed the edge of my shirt, pulling me closer by just half an inch. "Human Peter…" she repeated, as if unable to get some words out of her throat. "…Thank you…"

My eyebrows shoot up on my forehead. 

I couldn't recall using this world around her before. 

'What is she, guessing the sounds of specific words in my language?!' I freaked out a little. What I've just witnessed exceeded what my scientific mindset could explain. 

'Well, it's not like I can figure out how a portal can randomly take me to another world…' I thought, rolling my eyes at the idea of trying to explain anything about what was happening in my life right now. 

So, rather than wasting my time and brain power on all this useless thinking, I simply grabbed the first of the meal bags that I brought before opening it up and bringing it closer to the girl. 

"You are most welcome," I said with a happy smile. 

Strangely enough, making this girl happy… made me feel fulfilled as if I accomplished some kind of goal etched deep into my genome. 

"There's no need to try, though," I added, not knowing any better when my free hand moved all on its own… And reached out to gently wipe the tears from Fay's eyes. "So how will it be? Do you want to taste the food that grew to be a staple of my world?" I asked, pulling out the iconic burger of the MacRonald fast-food chain. 

'If I want to keep being as happy as I am right now, I need to keep her entertained,' I thought, more than happy to spoil this new pe… new friend of mine. And while I was still ages away from patting her head, playing with her lush hair, and calling her good girl… 

'Right now, the main goal is to get her addicted to me just as I'm already addicted to her… by making her love the food I can bring!'