SLEEPSONG (BoyxBoy)✔️

Chapter 164

Chapter One Hundred and Sixty Four

"This is the longest line I've ever seen," Jak said in a low growl, tapping his foot in aggravation even as he leaned over his cart and rested on his forearms. "Why is it taking so long?"

"Because there were two people in front of us when we chose this line," I said calmly, using my phone to do the math and figure out just how much Thanksgiving dinner was going to cost, "and we all chose the same checkout instead of finding different ones."

"Well, to be fair, you're paying for all of this so its basically just one huge transaction," Horst drawled, immediately drawing some odd stares from the people in front of us. The Nereid twins shared a glance but said absolutely nothing, choosing to push their cart while holding hands.

"It's gonna be well over two grand for all this," I sighed, shaking my head. "You guys are damn lucky I love you."

"Dat so?" Jak quipped, casting a stoic glance over his shoulder.

"Yup," I chuckled, rolling my eyes. "So be sure to thank me later by helping me taste test this stuff. You know, to make sure it doesn't go to waste thanks to my terrible taste buds."

"Fine."

I smiled to myself, then pocketed my phone, but my grin faded when my fingers brushed Tammy's folded note. I'd told Jak and the others about meeting her after my confrontation with the racist little butthead in the bathroom, but none of them had really been fazed.

"Mermaids are actually more common than our kind around these parts," Jak had told me. "They can easily blend in as human beings since their tails only reappear when they're soaked with water from the ocean. If they dry their tails out, they transform into legs."

"You'll have to tell me more about that later," I'd whispered back, and had then proceeded to explain the incident with the stalker and the camera. Jak and Horst had both gone rigid and they'd wanted to take me home immediately, but I'd stood my ground and told them about my resolution concerning the stupid vampire who'd supposedly been following me around.

They hadn't liked it one bit, but I'd been firm, so here we were.

Still at Walmart despite what had happened, casually going about our business like nothing was really all that out of the ordinary. I was out of my element, though. I peered around, listening to the beeping of the clerk scanning groceries and finally finishing up with the people ahead of us.

The faint clicking sound coming from the wheel of my car as I rolled a little bit further ahead met my ears, faint and unpleasant. I was the last in line. Jak was ahead of me, Horst ahead of him, and the Siren twins were the first to have their selection put on the conveyor belt.

It actually amazed me how little Walmart as a whole had changed over the last fifty years.

Most stores--like Meyer, Walgreens, and Target--had things like holographic greeters and high-tech robotic checkouts that were speedy and took up less time, but Walmart had gone the old-fashioned route and had stuck with person-to-person customer service. People would ring up everyone's groceries rather than machines, and human greeters would cheerfully say hello.

That was actually the biggest reason why the store was likely as packed as it was.

Many people probably felt uncomfortable by the lack of interpersonal communication.

My fingers tapped the handle of the cart as I watched the twins finish loading everything up, politely responding to cheerful questions from the woman ringing our stuff. She was a bubbly little thing, pleasantly plump with bright green eyes and dyed bubblegum pink hair.