🍎 Grocery Shopping w/ the Boys~
overall, the most fun and goofy to go grocery shopping with
loves 'sneaking' junk food into the basket
'sneaking' because he tries to make sure you notice and scold him
absolute instant ramen junkie, even though obviously he prefers the real thing and will not shut up about it even as he's adding ridiculous amounts of the stuff to the basket
makes sure to add pocky to the basket with every visit because he will not stop with the pocky game at every opportunity
has gotten a lot better at eating fruits and veggies over the years, so he's surprisingly practical when you guys come to the produce section. he has a thing for citrus.
loves to grab your favorite snack before you can, hold it out of your reach, and stand in front of the rest of them so you can't reach behind him and grab another one. he's an absolute tease.
speaking of being a tease, if you two are in a relationship, you can absolutely bet he'll use you bending over anything to take a closer look as an opportunity to cop a feel (and deny it of course, ie: "sorry, i was just checking out the merchandise" ; "you mean that's not for sale?")
even though he's not exactly rich, somehow every time without fail, your groceries are paid for before you get the chance to pay for them yourself. every single time he just shrugs and denies any responsibility with a grin on his face. "no idea how that happened!"
tries to be really responsible about grocery shopping, but does have a slight childish streak
brings a list and does his absolute best to stick to it. if you want something not on the list, you better give him puppy eyes (but if you do, you bet your ass he'll crumple in five seconds. if you're in a relationship, anything you want, you get. kuwabara's biggest weakness is his desire to please his partner.)
always always ALWAYS remembers to put your favorites on the grocery list. if you guys end up trying something new (ie: you make puppy dog eyes at him to get something) and you fall in love with it, he adds it to the list for next time.
if something grabs his attention that he really wants that isn't on the list, you can see the internal struggle on his face to not put it in the basket. when he says "stick to the list" he means it. kazuma is a man of discipline!
tries to avoid junk food as much as possible. most of what you end up buying is healthy foods, though admittedly there are a few things tossed in there for lazy days when you're not feeling well or are exhausted. he tries to cover his bases.
definitely more into vegetables than fruits. always talking about how you have to be careful about the sugar content in fruit! honestly, he might be a little too enthusiastic about vegetables. you might be concerned that he's taken the "eat your vegetables" thing a little too far if it didn't seem to be working out for him.
despite his methodical shopping, he's 100% the type to get distracted and stop and chat with people he recognizes at the store. you might need to nudge him.
he's more concerned about budget than a grocery list tbh
he has a mental list of things you need in his head, and that mental list has never failed him
as long as you get the necessities and make sure to get ingredients for fairly balanced meals, the rest of the budget is free game. get what you want!
honestly, he'll probably slip some stuff in the basket that he thinks you'll like without you even noticing and without even saying anything. he's always thinking of you like that.
although he definitely keeps the meals healthy, he's not a stickler about junk food as long as it doesn't negatively impact your health. if you gain weight, he doesn't mind. he doesn't mind a chubby or fat friend or partner. it's your health that matters, not your looks. feel free to grab whatever snacks you want~
he keeps a healthy supply of instant and quick meals around, and makes sure to stock up every time you go to the store, because he knows sometimes illness, injury, depression, etc just get in the way. he also keeps stocked up on fresh ingredients that allow him to cook quick fifteen minute meals on the occasion you're unwell so that he can bring you something.
if you pay attention to his basket, you might notice he has a thing for fresh fruits (particularly peaches) and meats. one benefit of being a spirit fox and not a normal fox plus being reborn in a human body is that he no longer has to worry about foods poisonous to canines.
he likes to go down the aisles in a methodical manner, kind of sweeping the store strategically. even if you don't think you need anything down the aisle, he'll suggest you go anyway, just in case you see something that catches your eye.
many might expect him to pay for the whole thing like a gentleman, but he actually agrees on a split unless otherwise discussed beforehand, because he knows some people feel guilty about having their groceries paid for, and this man knows aaaaaaall about guilt and feeling like he owes people. he doesn't want to put that on someone else, even if it's over something as simple as money, in his opinion.
that being said, if he's aware that you're struggling financially, there will be no discussion. your groceries are paid for. sorry. he wouldn't be able to sit well with the guilt of knowing he could help you and didn't, and in the end, kurama is still a bit of a selfish being when it comes to taking care of those close to him.
you were the one to suggest he accompany you to the grocery store. he thought it was a ridiculous idea at first and made certain to voice as much, but ended up going with you despite his complaints.
his excuse ended up being something along the lines of being curious about human foods.
you end up having to explain a few things to him, such as the flavors of fruits he hasn't seen before, why on earth there are so many different types of cheese, what are all these...cookies?
a few things get snuck into the basket when you aren't looking. you notice. a lot of those things are snacks that he insults, claiming such flavors seem ridiculous and he doesn't understand the need for such a thing.
he's actually more curious to try things with various texture than he is of different flavors, though flavor is definitely on his mind.
turns out, hiei really likes gummies and gelatin. don't you dare say a word to anyone else about him liking soft things though!!! he'll gut you alive.
his favorite flavor so far seems to be strawberry. he loves fresh strawberries. strawberry flavored things are good too (like gummies, of course), though he will argue with you for DAYS that the flavor is very different.
he doesn't understand artificial flavors.
he has zero patience for people who try to cut in the checkout line. thankfully this doesn't happen very often.
oddly fascinated by the magazine section.
turns out, he hates crackers. cookies are...okay. different types of cookies somehow "appear" in the basket during each trip. he's experimenting. he hates most of them. some of them have promise.
similarly, different types of instant ramen somehow "appear" in the basket, too. these he's much more fond of and tries out almost instantly. he's fond of the spicy flavors. his favorite thus far is spicy tonkotsu.
