CHAPTER 117: HOOK LINE AND SINKER

"But..."

Eo froze like a statue. She would have never thought that Nick would push her away right in the middle of a kiss like that. After everything he had said...Was there something wrong with him?

"...Can we wait with the romance just a little?" Nick asked with apologetic eyes.

Eo looked at him. How was she supposed to say no to that look?

"It’s just...I don’t know how long you’ve been thinking of us as a couple, but it started before this whole transmigration, right?"

Eo nodded.

"I didn’t know you existed until a few months ago, and until this morning, you’ve been a tentacle. To be honest with you, Eo, I haven’t really thought of you as...a person of romantic interest."

Eo’s expression fell. Nick’s heart stung. He could tell that she was saddened by the revelation. Everything else aside, he didn’t want to hurt her or make her feel anything other than joy.

But this was a necessary step.

He might be a hopeless pervert, seeing as he had trouble letting go of Eo’s shoulders and had to bend over slightly. But he still had morals.

An indecent man would have taken advantage of Eo’s enthusiasm to get right to ’it’ without caring for either of their feelings.

Nick couldn’t do that. He cared too much about her to do that. He respected her too much. But that was also why...

Nick looked up and gently pushed on the underside of Eo’s jaw to make her look up again as well.

"I just need some time to catch up, babyboo."

...He was going to do his best to return her feelings with sincerity.

He might be a decent man, but he was still a man, after all.

If the tentacle he knew and cherished suddenly turned into a beautiful woman, there was no way he wouldn’t immediately get ideas. Considering that Eo also thought of them as married, Nick couldn’t help but imagine himself by Eo’s side as they lived on. Cooking together. Watching TV while cuddling. Sitting by the bonfire together. Watching the stars together. Joking. Talking. Feeding each other.

He wasn’t sure if Eo would grow old since she was a tentacle monster, but he imagined himself and Eo growing old and sitting on the porch together.

Kids and grandkids, maybe.

Eo was stunned for a moment as she looked at Nick’s blushing face. It was more the nickname he used than what he said. But she could feel his sincerity beneath his expression.

She could also see in his eyes that he wanted her.

She almost dove in for another kiss, but hesitated.

Nick also hesitated.

They settled for a hug instead.

Eo was satisfied. She had studied a lot for this moment, after all.

She knew what men liked. Too big seemed like they would get in the way a lot. The strain on her back probably wouldn’t happen, seeing as she wasn’t human and her back was strong.

At the same time, too small...She wanted to exude ultimate feminine charm and completely hook Nick. Neither too big nor too small. Soft. Supple. Warm.

And a tight hug.

As much as Eo could feel Nick’s sturdy, surprisingly muscular chest, he could feel hers.

She glanced up at his dreamlike expression as he moved his hips back.

Yup. Hook, line, and sinker.

It wouldn’t take long for Nick to come around. Eo grinned as Nick hurriedly returned to the food.

The patties ended up slightly burnt once the burgers were done.

Eo had been looking forward to eating food with a human body.

It would have been disappointing if she didn’t have Nick’s sweet words to improve the taste of everything she put in her mouth. She was a little clumsy eating and ended up with a mess around her mouth.

It both fit and didn’t fit her appearance.

Regardless, she was beautiful. Everything she did was amazing, and Nick couldn’t stop staring.

Eo finished her first burger and started licking her fingers before Nick even took a bite. Eo gave him a look, and Nick belatedly realized that he had stared at her a little too much. It was rude. Fortunately, it seemed Eo didn’t find it unpleasant.

Still, he should do better.

"Eo, do you mind if I continue asking you questions?"

"Of course not. But what’s this ’Eo’ thing? Where did ’babyboo’ go?"

"Strategic retreat. Anyway. Is it rude if I ask you what you are? Now that you can give me a detailed answer, I mean."

"Just being your wife isn’t good enough?" Eo winked.

"N-no, that’s..."

Eo giggled and waved, stopping Nick. It was a joke.

"I can probably answer around three or four questions in one go with this."

Nick’s eyebrows rose, but his mouth was full of burger, so he waited for her to continue.

"First of all, this place and Earth are...Well, to be exact, this world and Earth aren’t dimensions, but they belong to different dimensions."

"...Dimensions?" Nick asked through a mouthful of half-chewed burger.

Eo frowned slightly and leaned back in her chair with crossed arms as she thought about how to explain something that was as basic as breathing to her to someone who didn’t even know what a lung was, metaphorically speaking.

"I guess universes could be another term for it? Earth, the solar system, the Milky Way, and the rest of the connected space belong to one dimension. This world, on the other hand, belongs to another dimension, another universe. No matter how far you go or how long you look, you will never find a path connecting the two."

Nick’s eyes widened during her explanation until she reached the end, when his expression dropped.

It sounded like she was saying that there was no way to go from one place to the other. It sounded like she was saying that there was no way for him to return to Earth.

Sure, he might be satisfied with his current life. But Earth was still home. He wasn’t desperate to go back, but he at least wanted to have the possibility to do it.

"Does that mean...?"