Seoul Kitchen: Chapter 18 (Patreon)

Gun Safety

Breathing into his aching hands, he gazed up as he watched the stream of advertisement go up to the black void above. With the morning sun yet to break through the horizon, it’ll be quite a while before it heats up to an almost intolerable level; plenty of time to enjoy the early morning here out in the desert.

It was peaceful, quite, almost tranquil even so far away from society but one question quickly came to mind as he slipped his hands inside the pockets of his jacket, “Did we have to go here so early in the morning? It’s so cold!” He asked Rebecca as she checked the assortment of guns laid on top the table.

He was by no means stranger to the cold. Afterall, he had been living in Night City close to ten years now. The desert night however could prove to be unpleasantly cold at times such as this. “Damn it, should have brought a thicker jacket,” He muttered.

“Aw come on, it’s not that bad! It’s only like high thirty’s,” Rebecca laughed as she stood there, all but naked to the elements with her strap like clothings. Stupid sexy gremlin was probably part Christmas Elf as well.

“Thirty Fahrenheit,” He fired back as he shivered, feeling the cold seep all the way down to his bones.

She snorted she cocked the gilded pistol given to him by his new found friend from the Valentino’s. Checking it’s sight, she then asked, “Yeah, but do you really want to deal with having to deal with the afternoon heat out here?”

He raised his finger before lowering it, “Point,” he acquiesced, seeing her point. “Wished I checked the new’s forecast though before we went through with the picnic and gun training,” He lamented.

It was his idea to actually get some training with guns. It was one thing to have it and it’s another to use ot effectively. Rebecca was not shy to point out how ridiculous he looked holding that gun like some untrained goon.

When he pointed out she fires that way, she was quick to reply that she can shoot straight; he on the other hand couldn’t hit a barn. As for why they were out in the desert, it was rather simple really; How else could they have barbecue as well? They could go out to one of the many shooting ranges but then they couldn’t make some stakes while watching the sunrise together.

“You know, I might have something to fix this right up!” Rebecca giggled as she laid down her gun. Quirking a brow at him, he watched as she skipped over before suddenly latching on to him and hugging him tightly. Feeling her press her chest against his back, he felt his cheeks heat up with excitement, “Feeling a bit better~?” she purred as she grinded against her.

“Damn it Becca, this early?” He stuttered out, feeling a bit disappointed as she pulled away. Despite living together for barely a week, she knew damn well how to press his buttons.

“Yup and I feel like a certain someone’s a bit excited~” She teased him as she felt him feel her up before pulling away leaving him all the more frustrated. Giving him a playful slap in the ass, she then said, “But enough horseplay, get your ass over here cause we’re gonna make things go boom!”

Chuckling, he shook his head as he followed her. How can he say no to that?

-x-x-x-

The early morning was spent with him familiarizing himself to the various small arms that he could find on the shelf. From the ridiculous vendo guns of Budget Arms to the far more respectable pistols made by Constitutional and Araska.

Holding on to the gold plated pistol, he could feel just how heavy and rugged the gun given to him was. “She’s a beauty ain’t she? There’s a reason why she’s classic,” Rebecca replied as she tapped him on the shoulder, “And relax, the Liberty doesn’t really have that much of a kick.”

“Yeah,” He breathed out as he aimed his sights at the line of bottles up ahead. It was an easy target, not more than a hundred paces away. He should be able to hit this.

“Breath,” Rebecca reminded him as she tapped him on the stomach, letting him feel the breath he was holding. “A tense body is the enemy of a good shot,” She lectured him before she told him, “Now remember aim and shoot. It doesn’t matter how long it takes because all you need is one shot,”

Standing by him, she then asked, “Got your target?”

“Yeah,” He nodded as he aimed at the center most target, a tall and slender wine bottle. Fixing his gaze at the targets body, his finger now rested on the trigger.

“Now, I want you to slowly squeeze down on the trigger,” She instructed. He felt the mechanism slowly give way until he felt resistance, “Feel that? That’s the double action. Kept cowboys from shooting their dicks off,” She jested before continuing, “Pull once to cock the hammer. After that, you have your shot.”

Resting her hands on his shoulder, she then said, “Now, I want you to remember. If your going to pull out a gun, you better have all the intentions of shooting it. You can bluff a civilian with a gun but someone like Campo Orto? You have to shoot to kill, don’t hesitate, got it?”

“Got it,” He nodded. Having a man like Campo Orto visit his little cafe was a quick reminder that not even obscurity could save him if someone came knocking. He really need to step up on learning how to fight or at the very least, know how to defend himself. Nodding, he breathed out as he cleared his mind, letting the distractions go as it was now just him and his target.

With his arms straight and his aim true, he pulled back the trigger before his gun fired… and then promptly flew out of his hands. Rebecca laughed as he stood there all confused, “I thought you said it didn’t have kick!” He shouted as he looked around, trying to find his gun.

“It doesn’t!” Rebecca wiped a tear off her eyes, “But oh man, it just flew off your hands! I just, I can’t! Even a kid could hold that!” She laughed, making him pout at her. As she calmed down, she then gave him a pat.

“You still did good Chef,” She praised him as she gestured at the remains of the bottle, it’s half all but gun as a jagged butt was all that remains, “Your not half bad, we just got to work with that grip.” Grabbing the gun from a nearby bush, she tossed it at him, “Who knows, maybe you could be a better shot than I am! Now are you just going to stand there or what? We still have a crate full of ammo to burn through!”

He smiled back, nodding as he grabbed his gun. Checking the ammo, he still had nearly a full mag on hand and a few more bottles to blast. With a goal in mind, he spent most of the morning shooting away with Rebecca.

-x-x-x-

It didn’t take long for them to burn through all their ammo and it was just in time for them to watch the sun rise. With his hands around Rebecca, they sat there with some barbecue. “Man, we should do this everyday,” She replied as she took a bite from the mouth watering slice of steak.

It was just a sirloin cut with some dry rub and butter but a good sear was all it took to get a juicy cut. “Maybe not everyday since we got work but how about every weekends? It’s one hell of a way to start the day.”

“I’m up for that,” Rebecca replied before she turned around, “Happy 2nd weeksary~” She whispered before giving him a peck on the cheeks.

He laughed as he feigned disgust before teasing him, “Eeww, you have oily lips!” With a laugh bubbling out from her lips, she jumped at him.

“Well, better kiss you all over to make you delicious!” She laughed as both of them had a wonderful day to start the weekends. As they cuddled there under the morning sky, he felt at ease. Times like these made him glad he got here. He hoped that days like these never ends.

The New Girl