That evening, Aiden finished his day of training and pushed open the door to Dorm 307.
He saw Smoker immediately.
Smoker wasn't doing his usual extreme training. Instead, he was sitting on the edge of his bed, which was very unusual.
His brows were tightly knit. The expression on his face looked like he had been constipated for an entire week.
He looked like he had something to say but was struggling to get the words out.
When he saw Aiden come back, his mouth opened slightly as if he wanted to speak.
In the end, he swallowed his words. He only let out an unhappy grunt through his nose.
Aiden knew exactly what was going on. He guessed that the guy had something on his mind, but he purposely didn't say anything.
Aiden just walked to his own area and started organizing the training clothes he had changed out of that day.
A strange silence filled the dormitory. The only sound was the rustling of Aiden's clothes as he folded them.
Seeing Aiden so relaxed made Smoker even more anxious.
He sat there restlessly, shifting his weight several times. Finally, he couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Hey," he said, his tone sounding extremely forced. "Did you... did you eat enough today?"
Aiden stopped folding his clothes. He turned his head, feeling a bit surprised.
He didn't expect that after Smoker had hesitated for so long, he would ask such a question.
Aiden nodded naturally and replied, "Yeah, I'm full. The cafeteria food isn't limited. If I wasn't full, I would have just gone back for more."
Smoker stared at him, his face frozen in shock.
"No... I mean, that stuff in the cafeteria," Smoker said, struggling to find the right words. "How do you... how do you actually manage to eat enough of it?"
"It's alright, I guess." Aiden shrugged. His expression was as calm as if he were talking about something tiny and unimportant.
"I used to be at the Loguetown Branch. The cafeteria there was even worse than this one."
Smoker was completely speechless.
He felt like all the words he had been practicing in his head were now stuck in his throat.
Aiden's casual response had completely ruined his prepared speech.
Smoker had no choice but to fall back onto his messy bed with a look of helplessness.
He irritably pulled a cigar out of his pocket. Just as he was about to light it, he suddenly thought of something.
He glanced at Aiden, who was still slowly folding clothes, and then unhappily stuffed the cigar back into his pocket.
Aiden caught this out of the corner of his eye. A tiny, almost invisible smile appeared on his lips.
He thought it was a bit funny and decided to stop teasing the guy.
"Just say it," Aiden said. He turned around and leaned against his locker with his arms crossed. "What do you want from me this time?"
"What do you mean 'this time'?! When have I ever asked you for anything?!"
Smoker reacted like a cat that had its tail stepped on. He jumped up from the bed and spoke with a fake toughness.
But when he met Aiden's teasing gaze, he remembered he needed a favor. His fiery attitude quickly died down.
His voice naturally became much quieter.
"Well... don't you think the cafeteria food... is just too bad?"
Aiden glanced at him but didn't speak. He just gestured with his eyes for Smoker to keep going.
Smoker's eyes flickered nervously. He scratched his messy white hair and continued.
"I... I think your cooking is so good. It's not fair for you to eat such terrible food with us."
"Look... how about this? Every night, I'll use my smoke powers to sneak in and open the cafeteria door."
"Then you can slip inside and make something delicious... as a reward for yourself."
He finished the whole sentence in one breath. By the end, his voice was very low. It was clear he didn't have much confidence in his own idea.
Aiden was stunned after hearing this. He looked Smoker up and down with a judging gaze.
"No way," Aiden said, sounding doubtful. "Is this a plan that a muscle-head smoker like you could actually come up with?"
He leaned forward, his tone becoming playful.
"Be honest. Who gave you this idea?"
"How did you know?!" Smoker blurted out instinctively.
The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted it. He wanted to slap himself. Wasn't that just a confession?
Seeing the "I knew it" look in Aiden's eyes, Smoker gave up entirely.
He sat back down on the bed irritably and gave up his partner in crime.
"It was Hina! It was Hina's idea! She couldn't swallow a single bite of lunch today."
"She came to find me and said that ever since she ate your cooking on that desert island, she can't stand the cafeteria food anymore."
"So... she told me to talk to you about it when you got back."
Aiden didn't answer immediately after hearing the explanation.
He just kept looking at the frustrated Smoker with that teasing smile. It made Smoker feel very nervous.
"So," Aiden finally spoke, his voice full of playfulness. "The genius of the Monster Class, the future hope of the Marines, is going to break military rules just to fill his stomach?"
His tone suddenly became sharp and serious.
"Your plan is full of holes. What time does the kitchen patrol change shifts? Which specific freezer has the top-grade ingredients? If a night guard finds you, who is responsible for the cleanup?"
The string of questions made Smoker break out in a cold sweat. He realized how naive his original thought had been.
Seeing Smoker's stunned expression, Aiden leaned back against the locker. He spoke as if delivering a final judgment.
"Forget it. Expecting you to handle the details was asking too much. But, I agree to do it."
Smoker's eyes lit up instantly. He was about to speak, but Aiden raised a hand to stop him.
"However," Aiden's gaze was calm but heavy with pressure. "I'll handle the food, but it isn't free."
He looked at Smoker and said each word clearly.
"From now on, no matter what I do that you don't understand, you must keep my secrets unconditionally. And you must always be ready to cover for me."
"Also, you have to be the one to wash the dishes and scrub the pots every night after we eat," Aiden added at the end.
He calculated the situation calmly in his mind.
Since they were living under the same roof, this guy would eventually find out some of his secrets.
Instead of waiting for trouble to happen later, it was better to bring him onto his "ship" now.
If he could win over a future pillar of the Marines with something as simple as good food, it was the best deal in the world.
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