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15/COMING FROM THE COLD buried under heat
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"Apologize!" I demanded, giving him a death stare.
Meliodas merely shrugged, his casual dismissal igniting my anger further. He rolled his shoulders with a nonchalance that mocked my intensity. "I'd be lying if I said I was sorry," he declared, his tone drenched in defiance. "But I'm not a liar, so I won't."
"We both know you're a liar," I took another step forward as I clenched the kitchen knife in my hand when seeing his lack of remorse. "You're gonna regret that," I warned, my voice low.
He arched an eyebrow, the playful glint in his eyes never wavering. Meliodas' lips curled into a smirk, the flicker of challenge in his eyes dancing with amusement. His stance remained relaxed, not threatened by me whatsoever.
"Oh, really?" Meliodas inquired, his voice a mocking lilt. He leaned slightly towards me, his casual demeanor belying the intensity of the moment.
"Yep." I kept my voice firm, refusing to be drawn into his game, but he was making it nearly impossible. He tilted his head, studying me like he found me endlessly amusing.
"Are you going to punish me?" Meliodas hummed, the words floating in the air like a challenge.
My mouth dropped in disbelief at his audacity. I raised the knife toward him, but he didn't even flinch, not even the slightest twitch of fear crossing his face. He was provoking me, taunting me with his unwavering confidence.
"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"
"Mhm," he sang softly, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Please, punish me."
A surge of frustration mixed with something more tangled in my chest. I took another step forward, closing the distance between us to just a few paces. My grip on the knife tightened, but it was becoming harder to focus on its purpose. His teasing demeanor, the challenge in his eyes, drew me into his web.
Fine. If he wanted to play games, I'd play along.
Drawing in a slow breath, I matched his gaze with my own, letting a hint of a smirk play on my lips. "You know..." I started, my voice taking on a teasing edge. "If you keep this up, I might just have to take you seriously."
His usual composure seemed to waver at my words. A faint blush colored his cheeks, a rare hint of vulnerability breaking through his otherwise confident facade. The shift was subtle but noticeable and I enjoyed it.
My stomach had butterflies when seeing him vulnerable for even the slightest moment. It wasn't often I could surprise him like he could do to me.
Meliodas' smirk widened, quickly masking his slip up of weakness as fast as it came. "I'm counting on it."
