The Hero's Daughter

The Jealousy

I’m trying to keep up with Charlie as she rambles on about some girl she knows. Apparently, this girl is amazing and pretty, the kind of girl who turns heads and makes hearts flutter. I can feel my jaw tightening at the thought. Who the hell cares about some random girl? Why is she even talking about this?

“Seriously, Kacchan, you’d love her! She’s got this awesome quirk that lets her manipulate shadows. It’s super cool! And she’s just so—”

I cut her off, irritation bubbling up inside me. “Why the hell are you telling me this?” I snap, my voice sharper than I intended. “I don’t care about some girl you think is great.”

Charlie raises an eyebrow, clearly unfazed by my outburst. “Wow, someone’s got a stick up their ass today,” she replies, smirking. “I just thought you might like to hear about someone who’s actually got a quirk. You know, since you’re all about that hero life.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not interested in girl talk,” I grunt, trying to sound tough, but she just laughs. It’s infuriating. Why does she have to be so damn cheerful all the time?

“Okay, okay, Mr. Tough Guy,” she says, rolling her eyes. “But you can’t just pretend like you don’t care about girls. I mean, you’re a high schooler. It’s normal!”

I feel my face heat up, and I’m not sure if it’s from anger or something else entirely. “I’m focused on becoming the best hero, not chasing after girls!” I growl, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Right, because that’s totally believable,” she retorts, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “You’re just a big softie underneath all that explosive bravado.”

I can feel my eye twitching, and I know I should be more composed, but there’s something about her that gets under my skin. “Shut up, Charlie!” I bark, but it lacks the fire I usually have. Damn it.

She just smirks at me, unbothered by my irritation. “You’re cute when you get all flustered, you know that?”

I grit my teeth, trying to suppress the heat rising in my cheeks. “I’m not cute! I’m—”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re a badass hero in training. Got it,” she interrupts, waving her hand dismissively. “But it’s okay to have feelings, Kacchan. You don’t have to pretend like you’re some emotionless robot.”

I can’t believe this. I’ve never had a crush on anyone before, and now I’m stuck here, feeling all kinds of weird emotions because of this girl. It’s infuriating. I’m supposed to be training, not dealing with whatever this is.

“Whatever,” I mutter, trying to change the subject. “What’s next on your agenda? More girl gossip?”

“Hey, it’s not gossip! It’s just sharing,” she replies, still grinning. “But if you want, I could tell you about the time I almost got kicked out of my performing arts school for pulling a prank on the principal.”

Now that catches my interest. “What did you do?” I ask, curiosity creeping in despite myself.

She leans in, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Let’s just say it involved a lot of glitter, a fake spider, and a very startled principal who has a phobia of creepy-crawlies.”

I can’t help but chuckle, the tension easing a bit. Maybe I can handle this girl after all. “You’re insane,” I tell her, shaking my head.

“Insanity is just another form of creativity, Kacchan!” she exclaims, her enthusiasm infectious. “And it’s way more fun than being all serious and grumpy.”

I roll my eyes, but I can’t help the smirk creeping onto my face. “Yeah, well, you’re gonna have to tone it down a bit if you want to keep up with me.”

“Challenge accepted!” she replies, her laughter ringing out as we continue down the street.

Maybe this trip won’t be so bad after all.