The Scards: Start!
Chapter 12: Shopping

Kirania settles down on a single bed that fits one person in one of Albert's apartment unit rooms. His mind wandered into the conversation between his uncle and his father a while ago.

Flashbacks

"Two tattoos of the twelve constellations of the zodiac are here, Aquarius and Leo." Joshua's mutter was heard by three people in the room while staring at the two teenagers who were staring at two adult men with confused looks.

"Yes, you're right." Albert's words were short.

"It's best they have to hide the tattoo, otherwise..." Joshua hung up his words.

"The X city government and greedy people will use them for personal gain." Albert chiming. They looked at each other for a moment and nodded.

"City X?" Beo Kirania was confused.

"Yes. We purposely put you to death and take you to X city so you can live happily. You can never be calm if you are under the supervision of the Anderson and Brawijaya families. Just so you know, my stepbrother was cruel before." Papar Joshua relaxed as he sipped his canned drink.

"And don't worry, I've drained Anderson and Brawijaya's company. So in the future we're gonna start a new life here."

"Ah, one more. From now on you two stay with Albert. I'm gonna get you a new identity." Joshua's successful speech made Albert glare not accept.

"If you will not take care of us, jaudah. Don't you want to shirk." Ketus Ellios made no sense when she saw the expression of two adult men in front of her as if reluctant to take care of them.

"It's not so, Ellios. Ak–" Joshua's circumvention was cut by Kirania. "We can live together without anyone else. So if you guys are reluctant it's better not to take care of us. After all we don't need people pretending to be nice to take care of us." The success of Kirania's words made the two men stunned.

Flasback off

Lamuan Kirania was split apart when she heard Ganymede's voice echo in her head.

"Think of what the two old men said?"

"Yes... As you heard." Kirania answered through her mind.

"What they say is true. This X town is a ruined, messy town."

"You know where it's coming from?" Kirania asked curiously. He only arrived here last night and hasn't explored his new city.

"We used to exchange information with tattoos of the other twelve zodiac constellations. So it's not that hard. By the way your papa's coming." Then Ganymede's voice disappeared in his head.

'Tok' 'Tok' 'Tok'

"Kiran, are you inside?“ Call Albert from outside the room. "We're going to the supermarket for a minute. Wanna come?"

"Yes, Pa. A minute!" Kirania from within. Moments later, Kirania came out of the room and rushed to Albert, who was sitting on the sofa with Ellios.

⚛️⚛️⚛️

Albert pushed the trolley slowly in the food hallway followed by two bumbling boys behind him. Every now and then they stop to pick up the needed food and put it on the trolley while marking it on the note. Seeing Kirania who was busy carrying a lot of snacks and moaning to and fro made her anxious and immediately pulled the girl's hand and grabbed a snack that was in the sling of Kirania.

"Kiran, jeez. Don't eat much!" Excited Albert while putting back some snacks that were in the sling of Kirania.

"Pa, no!" Kirania protested while trying to reclaim a snack put by Albert.

"Kiran, you better take one-on-one instead of buying everything." Albert tried to understand. Kirania and potato chips are hard to separate!

"I really like these chips, Pa. I beg you to give me the chips..." Rengek Kirania while putting on a clear face that successfully made Albert not wrinkle. The man tried not to be affected by Kirania's cute gaze.

"can't. You even miss your mealtime if you have these chips." Albert was patient. He's not a patient man, okay!

Their debate invited several mothers to gather around him. They watched Albert and Kirania debate with adoring gazes. More precisely pay attention to the super handsome face of Albert.

Who doesn't melt seeing a very handsome man like a god shopping in a supermarket?

Ellios who had been watching the debate let out a short sigh and approached the two who were still busy arguing.

"Stop the debate that invites the crowd. You'll be suspected of kidnapping people's children." Ellios said, heard by the two of them.

The father and son looked around, and sure enough. Many mothers and girls crowded around watching their debates.

Whispers were heard around him.

"Gee... That guy is so handsome."

"If he were to be my mistress..."

"If she wanted to be my daughter-in-law..."

Albert simply ignored the whispers and squatted down before Kirania to align his height and scramble the girl's hair in an uneasy manner. "Alright, you can take these chips with different variants. Don't buy them all!" Albert's disconnection was immediately greeted with joy by Kirania.

"Thank you, Papa. I love you."

Kirania immediately took the chips one by one and put them in a trolley and then immediately headed to the cashier to pay for their groceries. The Kirania snacks dominate their shopping today.

⚛️⚛️⚛️

Albert walked leisurely with a large grocery bag in his hand. The apartment is only a few blocks away which takes ten minutes walk. He was lazy to bring a car anyway.

'Kryuuukk's'

There was a rumbling sound coming from the stomachs of the two boys who were walking beside him.

"You hungry?"

The two of them just nodded their heads in response. The man felt that his stomach was also starting to get hungry considering that the day had gone by and the lunch hour was almost past.

"Where do you want to eat?"

The two of them spread their eyes and simultaneously they pointed to a tavern that was on the sidewalk that looked lonely.

"Just there, Pa. Besides it's pretty quiet there and there's no need to queue." Sahut Kirania and sauntered to the store followed by Ellios.

Albert soon caught up with the two boys who made him shake his head with the cohesiveness and wonder of their opposite natures but protect each other.

Two children who always fight but love and protect each other. Support and encourage each other, their brotherhood is so sincere even though not siblings.

Albert looked at the two children who had been sitting sweetly and looked at him warmly.

"Uncle want what message? We haven't ordered any food." Ellios showed me a menu book.

Albert sat down next to Kirana and placed his groceries and grabbed a menu book and read it, apparently this shop is a noodle shop. A middle-aged man came up to them with a note and a pen in his hand.

"Uncle, I want chicken noodles!" Kirania is enthusiastic.

"I am too."

"Just like them."

The owner immediately recorded their order and passed towards the kitchen to make the order.

While waiting for the order to arrive, Ellios decides to ask about Albert's work.

"Where does the uncle work?"

"I work as a bartender at Lotus bar. Just five minutes walk from our apartment." Albert answered honestly.

"Papa wasn't a gigolo or a stash of people, was he?"

Albert almost choked and squinted his eyes, looking at the two boys with a sharp look.

"So we don't want any strangers shouting obscurely later and hurting us, it's a shame." Ellios replied, looking directly at Albert.

"I didn't take that dirty job. Just so you know." Albert looked at the two boys calmly. Kirania and Ellios looked into the man's eyes, there was no trace of a lie there.

They turned their eyes away as the tavern owner brought their order. Kirania immediately raided a serving of chicken noodles.

"Uncle, one more bowl!" Kirania's successful exclaim made the two men almost choke. They saw that the bowl of Kirania was already toilet while they had eaten five mouthfuls.

Before long Kirania's order came and the girl again stormed her order.

"Baaahh... I'm so full..." Said Kirania while stroking her protruding stomach. In front of him were four piles of empty bowls of his order chicken noodles.

While the two men just gawked in disbelief at the pile of empty bowls in front of Kirania. ’What is this boy's stomach made of?’ Their inner compacts.

"Pa, let's go home." Suddenly they soon recovered from his gawking event and cleared a brief thud.

Albert quickly recovered and paid for his order and took the two boys home to the apartment.

"It doesn't seem bad living with them considering I've been close to them." Albert's mind looked at the two boys walking in front of him.