For a while, Misha strolled in the shopping mall near the drugstore in search of some treasures. Although he couldn't buy a laxative, which was a small thorn in his heart, he was still able to find a few things that were on his list.

His newly acquired items put him in a pretty good mood, and he couldn't help but giggle while Dereck pretended not to know him, looking elsewhere. Right now, his friend was acting quite foolishly, and standing by his side was a little bit embarrassing. However, he still followed behind him without complaining, a small smile on his lips.

When Misha was about to enter another shop, he abruptly stopped in his tracks, and Dereck crashed into his back. The sudden physical contact made Misha's body tense, but he didn't say anything. Instead, the little boy stared at the giant clock that was hung on the wall, blinking a few times as if repeating this action could change the position of the hands. His face turned pale, and he glanced at his friend whose face wasn't any better than his. Without a word, the two boys veered and jogged-walked back to Dereck's house, wandering about a little as they lost their way more than once.

Like thieves, they snuck in under Elizabeth's nose. They arrived just in time – they had around five minutes left before Alexey's arrival. They quickly went upstairs and put Misha's purchases in the corner of the room, hiding it under the bed.

Seeing his nervous face, Dereck reassured Misha for the umpteenth time, saying that he would bring his things the next time he visits him. However, that still wasn't enough to calm his friend's nervousness, and thus Dereck had to promise to come the very next day. Only then did Misha relax.

The moment his anxiousness was out of his mind, the little boy ended up daydreaming, fantasizing about how he would torment Gabriel. So, when his father came to fetch him, Misha had a head full of unrealistic, dreamy thoughts, and he couldn't bother to be annoyed by Alexey's presence. Instead, he was smiling brightly enough to blind passersby. Misha even felt like humming but restrained himself in the end. He didn't want his father to question him about his good mood. Less he talked to him, better he felt.

Most of his preparation was done, and it was now time to harass Gabriel until he explodes from anger, making him drop the gentleman act.

The following days, every time the teenage boy popped up, he would be subject to pranks. Some were very childish; some were unbelievably nasty. In any case, they all tested his patience, pushing him to his limits.

For example, whenever Gabriel showed up, Misha would hide things in his shoes. Most of the time, it was a bubble gum that the child had previously chewed until it had lost its flavor. Secretly, he stuck it onto the inner sole of the running shoes a bit before Gabriel left the house.

In the beginning, the clueless teenage boy put his feet inside without verifying if there was something hidden in them, and the still warm and slightly wet bubble gum stuck to his sock or the sole of his feet. Sometimes, the chewing gum had the time to harden, and it felt like he was walking on a rock – it was quite painful. After a stroke of genius, Misha even added gravel to the sticky material, making Gabriel's mouth twitch. Now, it wasn't only an impression; he literally was walking on rock.

Cleaning the mess was also a pain in the neck because the bubble gum stuck to the inner sole, and the teenage boy had to scr.a.p.e it. It wasn't easy to do with his big hands. Thus, after realizing that the little boy wasn't planning on stopping putting things into his shoes, he decided to switch to sandals, allowing him to take a breather.

However, that wasn't the only recurrent prank there was, and his misery was only starting.

When Gabriel stayed the night, he slept on a mattress in Misha's room. There was no way Alexey would allow him to sleep in the same room as his daughter, much less share the same bed.

At first, the teenage boy was supposed to sleep in the living room, but Misha unexpectedly proposed to let him stay in his bedroom, shocking everyone. After all, that child wasn't the friendliest one, and only Dereck received such care from him, so it was normal for his family to look at him somehow strangely. Misha turned a blind eye to their dumb face and went on with his fake caring.

The reason the boy gave was that his father tended to wake up early in the morning and watch the TV in the living room, which would disturb the teenager's sleep. The child innocently said this even though he knew the teenager was a heavy sleeper. There could be a thunderstorm, and the guy's eyelids wouldn't even twitch.

His mother loved the idea, and since Gabriel wasn't opposed to it, at least, on the outside, it was decided that he would sleep in the child's room. When that happened, Misha almost let out an evil laugh. For once, he felt very smart! Having the teenage boy within reach would facilitate his plan, which made him quite excited.

When Gabriel fell asleep, the little boy took the opportunity to hide his glasses, and when the teenager woke up, he said that he didn't know where they were. Every time, the teenage boy rummaged throughout the room, and Misha quietly watched him search for his glasses until Masha gently and secretly asked him to give them back. Only then did he help the teenager find it, pouting a little.

It became their morning routine whenever Gabriel slept at their house.

Then, there was that one night where the little boy used the superglue, which he had bought with Dereck's money, to glue Gabriel's pajama to his skin. It was with a pounding heart that he lifted the blanket, then the clothes to spread the glue on the teenage boy's stomach.

When the child saw the well-defined abdominal muscles, he couldn't help but feel jealous. And thus, he added another layer of glue before pulling the pajama top back in place. He patted it and made sure it was stuck to the skin. Satisfied, he went back to his bed. The boy had forced himself to stay awake, waiting for Gabriel to fall asleep, which tired him out quite a lot. Hence, he slept like a baby that night.

The next day, Gabriel lost a layer of skin and almost cursed out loud. Strangely enough, he started to sleep in the living room afterward.

Today too, Misha was preparing another prank, his heart full of confidence. Because his family was going on a camping trip the next morning, his mother went out to buy groceries while his sister went to visit Camille, but they should come back in the middle of the afternoon, and Gabriel was supposed to arrive around that time too. The teenager was coming with them, and since they were leaving early in the morning, his parents told him that he might as well sleep at their house tonight.

Of course, for the occasion, Misha had to prepare a little something.

The one who babysat him was his father, who locked himself in his study. He was working on a big project and couldn't play with his son. However, if Misha needed something, he only had to call him, and he would run to his side.

In short, no one was there to monitor him.

Rubbing his hands with glee, the little boy glanced at the kitchen. Although he wasn't a cordon bleu, he still had minimum survival skills after leaving alone for so many years, and thus Misha was pretty confident. At least, he should be able to bake some chocolate muffins without setting the kitchen on fire.

Rapidly, Misha went through the cupboards and found what he needed. He took a muffin mixe and followed the recipe. Thoughtfully beaten the mixture until his arms became numb, the child complained about this weak body of his once again, feeling quite aggrieved – he even had to stand on his toes because he wasn't tall enough.

Once the mixture was ready, Misha poured it into 12 muffin cups. Afterward, he took the glass mason jar he had previously brought with him. In it, there were a few earthworms that the little boy had carefully picked up in the garden earlier. With a smile, he chose three worms among the fattest ones, then washed them under the tap to get rid of the dirt for the sake of his conscience. He was a good boy who knew how to clean the food.

After cleaning the earthworms, he carefully buried the insects in the mixture inside one of the muffin cups.

While humming, Misha put the muffin pan in the oven, turning on the light so he could observe the mixture slowly expand for the next 20 minutes.

"I can wait to see his face!" giggled the little boy, swaying slightly on his feet. A sweet smile bloomed on his face, enhancing the angelic features of his delicate face. No one would think that in his heart, he nurtured evil thoughts.

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Author's note

ML: What a perverted child! Who told you to eat my tofu[1] while I'm asleep?

MC: Shut up! I just lifted the top of your clothes and barely looked at your stomach. Don't be a drama queen. Wait. While you're asleep? When you're awake, it doesn't matter? Aren't you the perverted one!?

ML: That's not what I mean!

Author: In a few years, it's not like you're going to mind anyway. May as well get used to it now.

MC: ??? (ʘ言ʘ╬)

ML: ... I think the perverted one among us it's that darn author of ours.

Author: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[1] In short, s.e.x.u.a.l harassment.