Chapter 72 - Thank You

After Misha handed him a glass of gr.a.p.e juice, Stephan swallowed a mouthful without much ceremony. As a result, he immediately spat it out on the kitchen floor, his pale face turning bright red. The dark purple liquid splattered up his pants, as well as the nearest wall and the counter.

Luckily, Gabriel and Masha had taken their precautions, so their clothes didn't end up stained.

The moment they entered the kitchen, they maintained a safe distance from Stephan under the pretext of having little space for moving Masha's wheelchair about in the room. Although they didn't know what Misha had planned, it was better to be safe than sorry. As long as they didn't stay close to the boy's target, they shouldn't suffer from collateral damage, or so they hoped.

Standing near the table, Misha was leisurely drinking his glass of juice, innocently glancing at the teenage boy who was sticking out his tongue in disgust and pain. His grimacing face was quite priceless, and he couldn't help but regret not having taken a picture of it. It would have made a great souvenir.

Seeing the child take a sip, Gabriel and Masha looked at each other before tentatively tasting their own glass of juice. Realizing that it didn't have any weird flavor added to it, they heaved a sigh of relief and started to drink it without any more misgivings.

"…" Stephan glared at the three persons with tears in his eyes. Sniffling, he asked Misha with a bit of resentment in his voice, "What happen to my juice? It tastes, well, it tastes awful! Very, very awful!"

"I may have mistaken the salt for the sugar."

"And for that super spicy flavor!?"

"My hand may also have slipped," smiled Misha, not showing any guilt whatsoever.

In his opinion, he had been quite lenient with his prank. Misha only added a pinch of crushed jalapenos to Stephan's glass of juice, even though he had the urge to add a lot more. So, shouldn't the teenager thank him for his mercy? What was he doing, complaining nonstop?

A few months ago, Misha had prepared many things to make Gabriel's daily life a living hell, including those crushed dried jalapenos. He had smashed them himself, so each flake was very thin, looking almost like powder. As such, their size and texture were perfect for hiding them in food and drinks.

To make sure Stephan wouldn't realize something was wrong with his beverage, Misha had chosen a dark-colored juice and mixed everything in a plastic glass. This way, the teenager wouldn't see at a glance the residues left after mixing in the crushed dried jalapenos. Of course, some floated on the surface of the juice, but Stephan hadn't bothered taking a closer look and just gulped up everything in one go. It resulted in him burning his tongue and spitting the juice all over the floor.

It also meant Misha would have to clean up the kitchen again. Still, it was well worth it.

"Can I have a glass of milk? I'm dying here!" pleaded Stephan, streams of tears rolling down his flushed cheeks.

"Sorry, we don't have any milk left. Gabriel drank the last bit this morning."

Gabriel almost choked up upon hearing the child's words, feeling somewhat wronged. They had bought three liters two days ago, so there was more than enough milk left in the fridge. Sparing some wouldn't kill them! But even if he was thinking such things, Gabriel didn't dare to voice his thoughts for fear of incurring Misha's wrath. The boy was in charge of cooking, and if he were to offend him, who knew what kind of living hell his dinners would become.

Ultimately, his stomach was more important than his friend.

"Then what about bread!?"

"Gabriel also ate the last slice this morning."

"…" Stephan's mouth twitched. "So, what's that?"

Misha eyed the bread on the counter, and without so much as a change in his expression, he replied, "Something that looks like bread but isn't."

"I'm begging you! Have some mercy!" cried out the teenage boy.

He was about to lose it and snatch the bread whether he had received the permission or not! The fire in his throat was killing him, and his tongue was so numb that he could barely move it and talk. Even his ears felt kind of hot and humid as if they were about to emit smoke.

"Sure. If you become my slave for the rest of the day, I will help you out!"

"Fine, fine! Anything you want! Just give me a slice of bread, please!" Stephan readily agreed, happily throwing his pride in the trash if it could put an end to his misery.

Satisfied with Stephan's answer, Misha didn't continue to make things difficult for the teenager and even gave him the whole bread. With a broad smile, he reminded him, "Don't overeat. There's still dinner tonight."

Stephan gulped at those words, almost choking on the bread he was wolfing down. Strangely enough, he wasn't looking forward to dinner, even wondering if he shouldn't just go on a hunger strike. After all, he didn't want to die young!

"Don't give me that look!" snorted Misha. "Also, you're in charge of cutting the onions and peeling the potatoes."

"Ha? But I'm a guest!"

"No, you're my slave!"

"…" He did agree to be his slave, didn't he?

Not knowing what to do to escape his fate, Stephan looked at his friends with pleading eyes. However, he quickly learned that his friends were heartless; they both pretended not to know him and fled to the living room, leaving him with no choice but to help the boy prepare the dinner. It resulted in him cutting his fingers more often than not, bloodying the table and the cutting board.

After Stephan injured himself for the third time, Misha couldn't stand it anymore and kicked him out of the kitchen. Although he wanted to take revenge on his ex-boss, it wasn't to the point where he wished for him to lose his fingers.

Of course, Misha didn't forget to scold Stephan for being useless. Already so old but still unable to cut vegetables! Wasn't he ashamed of himself!?

"Even babies are more useful than you!" spat out the boy, throwing a disdainful glance at the teenager.

Stephan, who had hidden behind Gabriel the moment he entered the living room, replied with a pout, "How come? Those things only know how to cry and poop!"

"They are at least cute, unlike you!" hmphed Misha before shifting his attention to Gabriel and rudely pointing Stephan, whose head popped out from behind the young man. "Also, when are you going to treat that guy's wounds!? If I find a trace of blood in the house, no matter how small it is, I swear you're gonna sleep in the garage tonight!"

Gabriel's mouth twitched, thinking that sure enough, he couldn't escape his fate. Without any word, he gripped his friend's wrist, lifting it so that the blood wouldn't drip on the wooden floor, and dragged Stephan to the first-floor bathroom.

With squinted eyes, Misha observed them disappear behind the bathroom door before nodding, satisfied. Unknown to him, a small smile stretched his lips. Seeing this, Masha couldn't restrain herself anymore and burst out laughing. With tears glistening at the corners of her eyes, she asked in a teasing manner, "I'm bad at cutting vegetables too. Does it make me useless?"

"You're cuter than a baby, so you're forgiven," very seriously said Misha before escaping into the kitchen, returning to his post.

Now that his helper was out of the way, cooking became easier. Although it took more time than it should have with someone else's help, the dinner was ready in an hour or so. The enticing smell wafted over to the living room, whetting everyone's appetite. Even Stephan couldn't help but gulp in anticipation.

After the worms-flavored muffin episode, Mrs. Brown had taken her son under her wings, and she taught him how to cook. Of course, as an a.d.u.l.t living alone in a run-down apartment, Misha had some basic skills, but he only knew how to make something that would fill up his stomach. As for the taste, he never really cared about it.

With his mother's help, his basic skills became as good as a small little chief. And after her death, he was the one in charge of cooking everyone's meals as everyone else in the house only knew how to burn food. Therefore, after a few weeks, Misha's craftmanship reached a new level. Most dishes he made were exquisite, and so no one in the house dared to skip mealtime. They were also very obedient.

And Stephan was lucky enough to taste his cooking. Although the teenager had been a little fearful, he forgot all his misgivings after the first bite. He cleaned up his plate until it was sparkling and asked for seconds, making Misha feel a little proud of himself. Moreover, Stephan wasn't shy with compliments, so it put Misha in a good mood, and thus he decided to push aside the next prank he had in mind and let the teenager eat in peace.

Without knowing it, his sweet mouth had saved him. Well, for the time being.

As always, Alexey and Gabriel ate in silence while Masha was busy moving her mouth and ate very slowly as a result. Strangely enough, Stephan talked as much as the teenage girl, yet he was still the first to finish his plate. Misha was quite impressed by his ability to chitchat and eat at the same time.

All in all, dinner was lively and pleasant.

After eating, Alexey went back to his study to work, and the trio went to the living room. Misha decided to wash the dishes tomorrow and followed behind them, whether they liked it or not. Without uttering a single word, he hurried to sit close to his sister, who had placed her wheelchair beside the L sofa.

Once comfortably seated, the boy lifted his chin, glaring at Stephan and Gabriel with a look in his eyes that told them to try and take his place if they dared. Pretending not to notice it, the two adverted their eyes and obediently sat on the other side of the sofa, next to each other.

The atmosphere was a little awkward, but not for long as they started to play card games soon after entering the living room. This time, Misha didn't focus on dealing with Gabriel. Instead, he attacked Stephan over and over again until the teen shed tears of frustration. Because the child had the mentality of dying together with his enemies, he suffered quite a lot despite his good cards.

Well, Masha and Gabriel also weren't polite and didn't hesitate to take advantage of his misery. In short, Stephan was beaten black and blue throughout the evening, making everyone laugh at his expense. It went on until Misha fell asleep, his head resting against his sister's shoulder.

Staring at the little boy, Stephan couldn't help but wail, "Masha! How dare you lie to me!? Your brother is not cute at all! He's the devil incarnate!"

"I swear he's usually adorable. Just not with you," laughed Masha, not even trying to excuse her little brother's behavior.

"Looks like your face is not to his taste," added Gabriel in a solemn tone.

"Why is my luck so bad?" muttered the teenager, appearing to have received a great blow.

Then, a silence fell. A moment passed in which they did nothing but observed the sleeping little boy. His breathing was faint and regular, and his lips slightly parted every time he exhaled. After making sure the child was genuinely asleep, Stephan wiped the tears off his cheeks and casually threw in the air the cards in his hands. They scattered all around the living room like falling petals.

With a smile that wasn't quite a smile, Stephan stood up and dusted his clothes as he said, "It's late. So, if you don't mind, I'll take my leave. I'm afraid you're going to destroy what little is left of my ego."

As an answer, his friends smiled, silently watching him put his coat and boots on. When he was about to open the door, Gabriel said in a soft voice, "Thank you for coming over."

"You're welcome. But next time you need a clown, just hire one. I'll gladly pay for it."

"You say so, but you will still come over if we ask you," chuckled Masha before glancing at her little brother. Her smile softened as she added, "You know, it's been a long time since I last saw Misha be so carefree. It felt good to hear him laugh so much. He's always so careful and stressed around me as if he's afraid to say or do something that will hurt me. It's like he's walking on eggshells whenever I'm close by."

Masha bit her trembling lips before taking a deep breath and whispering in a small, broken voice. "Really, thank you for tonight."

Opening the door, Stephan didn't say anything and only winked before fleeing like a thief. Now that he had accomplished his goal and that the li'l monster was asleep, there was no reason for him to stay. There was also no need for thanks between friends, especially when all he did was being himself and make a child smile and laugh.

___________

Stephan: Why did I have to drink a jalapenos-flavored juice!? What a bad joke!

ML: Would you have preferred to eat a worms-flavored muffin then?

Stephan: Frankly, I've no idea which one is worst.

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