Getting spoiled in a woman dominating world-Chapter 88: Smoky night?

"Urghh..."

With a soft groan, Brandon blinked his eyes, and a mild pain shot through his head.

Slowly opening his half-lidded eyes, he glanced at the couch where he was sitting with Elize and Ravene beside him, sleeping.

Elize’s arm was slung over his shoulder like a lazy cat with her mouth slightly open, while Ravene curled up against his side with her face pressed into his arm.

His gaze flickered to the empty alcohol bottles sprawled across the room and sighed in his heart.

Another drinking night.

He sighed rubbing his eyes ’Haa.. At this point, I feel like I would also be a drunkard like Aunt Elize...’

Looking at Ravene’s weird position, he leaned forward and kissed her cheek "You are cute even when you are sleeping..."

At this time, he noticed that the front door is slightly open as cool night wind curled in.

"...Did someone forget to close the door?"

With a quiet groan, Brandon stood up from the couch, carefully pulling away from Ravene and making sure not to wake either of them.

He moved slowly and his bare feet padded softly across the wooden floor as he made his way to the door.

But at this time, in the corner of his eye, he looked at Charlotte, who was sitting outside on the small wooden bench in the porch.

She is sitting there wearing a tank top and shorts while smoking a cigarette.

She didn’t look back, but he knew she must have already sensed him.

With a sigh, he walked to her, and she turned her head.

The chill air caressed his skin as he looked at her face bathed by the moonlight "What are you doing outside?"

Flicking the cigarette in her fingers, she replied "Just a quick sip."

He shook his head helplessly and went to sit beside her on the bench.

She turned to look at him and muttered "I stepped out of the room because you don’t like the smell and now you are out here, sitting beside me."

Looking at the smoke curling up in the air, he replied "Well, as I said, I didn’t like it at first... but now I think it is kind of bearable."

"Hm..." She hummed under her breath and took another slow drag of the cigarette.

But then she remembered something and a black mobile phone appeared in her hand from her spatial ring.

She extended it to him and spoke "Here."

Hm? Brandon raised an eyebrow and took it from her hand.

Huffing the cigarette, she spoke "That is an encrypted mobile phone. Keep it; it will be useful."

"If anything happens, you can directly call me and I will be there as soon as I can."

Brandon was dumbfounded and looked at her face as she coolly smoked her cigarette.

Initially, he thought that she hated him... but after recent interactions, it feels like she doesn’t really hate him.

She feels like a cool Big Sister who looks after her little brother.

A small fond smile touched his lips before he saved the mobile in his spatial ring "Thank you, Big Sister."

Charlotte’s gaze lowered for a moment, and she continued smoking her cigarette.

Looking up at the night sky, he leaned back comfortably and glanced at her, smoking the cigarette.

He reached out, and his fingers brushed against her fingers as he gently took the cigarette from her fingers.

Charlotte looked at him and spoke "You are going to cough again... give it to me."

Brandon looked at the cigarette and muttered "Teach me how to smoke."

-_- Huh?

Her eyes narrowed in disbelief "...Are you serious?"

He gave a small shrug. "Kind of. I don’t think I’ll make a habit out of it. But... you are doing this for years and I want to try it a bit."

She thought about it for a second before relenting with a soft sigh "Fine."

She reached into the box beside her, pulled out a fresh cigarette, and lit it with a flick of her thumb on the lighter.

The flame glowed briefly between them before she handed it to him, her fingers brushing his.

"Hold it like this," she said, adjusting the way he gripped it between his index and middle fingers.

"Keep your fingers relaxed. Don’t pinch it."

He mimicked her grip and held the cigarette gently.

"Alright," she said, leaning in a little.

"Now, take a small drag. Just a little. Don’t inhale it yet. Let it sit in your mouth."

He did as she instructed, drawing a small bit of smoke past his lips.

The taste was harsh... bittersweet and metallic with a dry warmth and it made him instinctively want to cough.

But he held it in.

"Good. Now don’t breathe in through your nose or you’ll choke. Just exhale slowly through your mouth."

He blew out the smoke carefully as his breath curled into the night like mist.

Charlotte gave a nod of approval. "Not bad."

Brandon smiled slightly "So what now?"

"Now try inhaling. But slow. Draw it in, like a breath, but keep it shallow. Don’t fill your lungs all the way. Then exhale through your nose."

He followed her steps again.

This time, as he drew the smoke in, it hit his lungs with a warmth that spread deep into his chest.

He tensed, feeling that telltale burn that usually ended in a coughing fit... but it was manageable.

When he exhaled through his nose, the smoke came out in twin streams.

His face twisted a bit. "Still not... pleasant."

Charlotte let out a soft sigh "It never is at first. Some people never like it. They just do it to calm their mind."

Brandon looked at the cigarette, then back at her and asked in a soft voice "So why do you smoke?"

The question caught her off guard, and she stared at him for a moment.

Then she leaned forward, resting her arms on her thighs as she stared at the gravel pathway leading away from the porch.

She contemplated whether to tell hin or not, but then she sighed in her heart and began to speak.

"It started when I was 22. We were deployed on a small rupture clearance mission. Not in a high-risk zone. It was supposed to be routine."

"My squad from the Academy went in together. All six of us. We had trained for two years.

"But the difficulty level was far greater than our handlers reported. A secondary rift opened deeper inside, and we were trapped."

"Everyone in my squad was killed."

Brandon’s gaze trembled looking at her.

With a sigh, she spoke "I was the only one who made it out alive. By the time reinforcements arrived, it was just me, standing there... soaked in blood. My arm was broken. My uniform was torn. I couldn’t hear anything..."

"I looked down and saw her," she continued, her voice dipping lower.

"My best friend. Leaned against the wall with her head slumped forward. Her name was Mira. She always had a cigarette tucked behind her ear, even when we weren’t allowed to smoke."

"I... used to tease her all the time. Told her smoking would kill her one day."

Gazing at the porch, she mumbled "I found a crushed cigarette pack in her coat’s pocket. Lit one without thinking. It made my hands stop shaking. That’s all."

Brandon didn’t say anything and stayed silent as he didn’t know what to say in that moment.

He always hated that she smokes, but right now...

Taking a deep breath, he brought the cigarette to her lips "Here."

She opened her lips and took it from his fingers before letting out a puff of smoke.

"Don’t start smoking for the wrong reasons, Kael."

He looked at her and nodded slowly "I won’t."

A silence followed...

After a moment Brandon added, "Mira sounds like she is fun to be around."

"She was..." Charlotte said, her voice lighter now.

"Smartass. Brave. Had a smile that could make instructors pause in mid-sentence. And she could down three cans of root beer in one breath."

Brandon couldn’t help but chuckle upon hearing this "She sounds like someone I would’ve liked."

"She would’ve liked you, too."

The wind brushed past them again, this time gentler.

Charlotte leaned back, her head tilting toward the stars and closed her eyes for a moment.

The night was settling deeper now.

When her eyes opened, her green eyes shimmered under the stars.

Then she looked at him and spoke "Take good care of yourself, Kael. Listen to Naevora’s instructions and stay close to her whenever you go to a Dungeon."

He blinked at the sudden seriousness in her voice.

"You were a normal human a few weeks back. But now you have some responsibilities on your back... so, grow stronger."

Her gaze lowered for a moment "And if one day, if you were afraid of all of this or if it feels too much to bear and you wanted to live a simple life."

"Come to me; I will arrange it for you. I want to see which government or organization tries to touch you when I am alive."

Brandon stared at her and his lips parted in surprise.

For a moment, he didn’t know what to say.

That same warmth returned to his chest... but this time it hurt a little. A gentle ache, bittersweet and filled with gratitude.

Before he could think further, he moved forward and hugged her in his arms tightly.

Huh? Charlotte was taken aback and her eyes widened in shock as the cigarette slipped out of her fingers and its ember was snuffed out by the cold night air.

Her eyes quivered and before she could say anything further, he placed a firm kiss on her cheek.

"Thank you, Big Sister."

Charlotte’s gaze trembled as tears moistened her eyes, but she quickly looked away and lifted her hand to wipe at her face with the back of her knuckles.

She has never been honest with him...

Brandon closed his eyes tightly and felt the warmth of her body in his arms.

He doesn’t know why she was rude to him in the past and always acted distantly.

But it doesn’t matter now...

Right now, she is the best Big Sister he could ever get.

... and that is what mattered.