第1章厨房春潮-我的妺妺h

Elle seemed startled by the call and unprepared, moving the phone around as if trying to find a good angle. Eventually, she stopped, but she was completely out of view, leaving Don looking at the ceiling. He raised a brow and asked, "Uh… are you okay?"

Elle answered in a rushed tone, "H-huh? Y-yes, I\'m alright, just give me a second."

Don could hear fumbling sounds but couldn\'t quite make out what it was. After a few more seconds, Elle finally returned to view, raising the phone up to her face.

Behind her was the panoramic view from the office, overlooking the island base. Her cheeks were rosy as usual, her posture a bit stiff, and she seemed to be avoiding eye contact.

She broke the silence by muttering in a low tone, "Hey, uhm, I wasn\'t expecting your call. Not that I\'m not happy—I am happy, I mean… I was going to call you anyway to say congratulations. You were… uh… really amazing out there."

Elle showed a weak but joyful smile as she slowly got her words out. Don could see her shifting slightly in her seat as she spoke. Of course, he didn\'t point this out or react, as he genuinely found it cute.

He\'d never had a girl act this way toward him before, especially out of liking him, so each time he experienced Elle\'s company—even through a call—he enjoyed it. He also couldn\'t resist teasing her.

Don gave Elle a smile and said, "Thanks," before adding, "I would\'ve loved it if you were there, so I could get a reward from you after winning."

"H-huh? W-what type of… reward?" Elle asked, blushing even more.

\'She\'s pretty dirty-minded for someone so innocent. I wonder what she\'s imagining,\' Don thought before giving a tame but cute answer. "Your lips would do."

"O-oh… Sure," Elle replied, smiling a bit more noticeably but trying her best not to look like she absolutely loved the idea.

Don nodded. "Great." Now that he\'d broken the ice, it was time to approach the real reason for his call. As much as he enjoyed teasing and talking to Elle, he preferred doing so in person. "So, are there any new updates on your end?"

Elle raised her head a little at this, her expression turning curious. "What do you mean? With making a base in the city?"

Not wanting to be too specific or sound like he\'d only called her for information, Don chose his response carefully. "Anything, whether it\'s what you\'ve been up to, how you\'ve been feeling, or anything else. You\'ve always listened to what I had to say, so I\'m just doing the same. We can talk about grass growing if you want; all that matters is that I hear your sweet voice and honest thoughts."

Elle\'s expression went from curious to stunned and speechless. Don may have just been trying to sound as caring as possible, but his words hit her like a truck. She immediately became teary-eyed, swallowing hard, unsure of how to respond.

She sniffed a little, using one hand to wipe away the tears that were about to fall down her smooth, rosy cheeks.

Don asked, "Are you okay?" She nodded, quickly trying to compose herself. "Sorry," she murmured, trailing off and sniffing again before continuing, "I\'m just… so happy to hear that, is all."

Don chuckled softly at her response and gave her a gentle nod. "I\'m happy if you\'re happy. So, is there anything on your mind, or should I get my ass to training so I don\'t get tossed around by an android in the future?" he asked in a humorous tone, causing Elle to crack a weak, grateful smile.

To someone like her, who had gone to incredible lengths just to get Don\'s attention, his words meant the world. A delusional world, perhaps, but a world nonetheless. Feeling at ease, she gave a soft nod, heaved a sigh, and took on a more casual tone.

"Well, we\'re running out of operating funds. I didn\'t get the chance to set up proper income streams with Gary. If nothing changes, we won\'t be able to operate very well next year."

As Don listened, he quickly noticed the differences between what Elle was saying and what Gary had told him. Did this mean Gary lie to him?, he wondered, though he felt it was unlikely.

\'She\'s definitely trying not to outright say the island base is a money pit. To be fair, after experiencing more of this life, I can see being a superhero isn\'t cheap—let alone a villain with world domination plans.\'

Don understood the need to be realistic and not treat the world like a playground. As disappointing as it was to learn the grand island base was a liability, he still had much around him. Outwardly, he gave her an understanding nod.

"Well, that\'s understandable. We pretty much just started. Do we have any options to fix it, or do we need a plan?"

Don was leading Elle to what he was hesitating to bring up directly. For one, he didn\'t want her to know that Gary had already told him, and secondly, he wanted to see if she would lie to him, even if it was for his sake.

Elle showed visible reluctance, glancing downward as her body grew more fidgety. She did this for a few seconds before taking a subtle deep breath and raising her head, though avoiding Don\'s gaze.

"Well, the only option… well, not really an option, but someone wants to buy the base. But we don\'t need to since we could just maybe… uhm… with the amount of sidekicks we have, it wouldn\'t be hard to establish a quick criminal organization. We take out the boss, threaten their families, then their territory—"

Before Elle could continue, Don cut her off and asked casually, as if unfazed by the options she\'d started listing in a sweet voice, "How much are they offering?"

Just from her tone, he could tell she was trying her best not to make the idea seem like an option, to the point that she was willing to consider a far more dangerous and morally dark route—all because she thought it meant the world to Don.

This type of care from someone was, to an extent, worrying, but Don kept an open mind. At the very least, he was starting to see why the last Don, who had weak powers and likely a fragile emotional state, chose to run away.

Elle hesitated to answer again, but then she muttered, "Close to twenty billion."

Don didn\'t react wildly, instead acting mildly amazed. "Wow, if it\'s close to what it took to build the base, then it\'s not a bad deal."

Elle seemed surprised by his reaction, her mouth hanging slightly open and her eyes trembling in disbelief. "But… it\'s your dream base…"

Don couldn\'t fully read her emotions at this, with both negative and positive feelings being possible, so he chose his words carefully once more.

"No, it\'s the younger me\'s dream base—the old Don\'s. Now, both you and I have grown up and changed in how we see the world. I like the idea of selling and getting another base, because this time, we get to create it together. Bases can be made and destroyed, but the memories we\'ll create will stay with us forever."