Chapter 42: You have to scrub! Like this
Asael stood stiffly in front of Isabella, eyeing the strange black paste on the chewing stick like it was a death sentence. His lips parted slightly, hesitation clear on his face.
Isabella, of course, took that as permission.
With zero warning, she shoved the stick into his mouth.
Asael made a strangled sound, eyes going wide as the gritty, minty, slightly bitter taste spread over his tongue. He instinctively recoiled, but Isabella grabbed his wrist, holding him in place with an excited grin.
"Now, now, don’t be dramatic!" she cooed, her tone far too cheerful for someone forcefully making a grown man chew on something suspicious.
"You have to scrub! Like this—" She made exaggerated circular motions with her own chewing stick, demonstrating with her pearly white teeth. "Make sure to really get in there—oh, yes, just like that! Good job, Asael!"
Asael, who was aggressively brushing in a desperate attempt to get the taste out, was not proud.
Then—he swallowed.
Shelia had done the same thing yesterday, but unlike her, he got an immediate reaction.
Isabella gasped. "Oh no."
Asael froze mid-chew. His pupils shrank.