The Winter Tyrant-Chapter 52: Domestic Disturbance

Yuki stood at the counter preparing dinner while Katherine worked beside her. The two women chopped ingredients, boiled noodles, and measured spices with careful precision.

And Katherine noticed that Yuki’s hands were a bit more sluggish than usual as she chopped the scallions.

Yuki’s hands moved automatically through the motions of cooking, but her mind was still on the endless problems waiting outside the kitchen walls.

"Yuki... go take a rest, I’ll finish up dinner tonight. You should go enjoy a soak in Dean’s hot tub before he gets back."

Yuki placed her knife down and turned around to look at Katherine an accusatory expression on her face.

"Why? So you can brag to Dean about how you cooked this meal all by yourself? I may be tired, but I’m well enough to finish my chores!"

Katherine sighed and shook her head. Her relationship with Yuki was rocky to say the least. The girl still didn’t quite trust her, and Katherine suspected Yuki wouldn’t be quite right with her until Dean finally gave her the answer she needed to gain some peace of mind.

But that was none of Katherine’s business, and instead she got back to her station and began adding the meat to the frying pan.

"I’m sorry, I was out of line. You just work so hard every day, I thought you could use a proper rest."

Yuki also returned to her station, filled with a second wind as she quickly finished up her task before adding the scallions to the noodles.

"It’s fine... We’re all overworked. There’s not enough hands to go around, and still somehow too many mouths to feed. I have to do my part, just like you and Dean, and everyone else in Paradise Falls."

Katherine didn’t say anything, but she did shoot occasional glances of quiet approval at Yuki while the two of them finished up their cooking.

It was only when they had finished setting the table, did Yuki finally say something to break the awkward silence between them.

She poured herself a beer and sat down at the seat next to where Dean usually ate at, the look of utter seriousness on her face, and in her tone as she said the words she knew would cause Katherine to self destruct.

"By the way... Dean has cameras all throughout this building, and the outdoor balcony is no exception. So the next time you go skinny dipping in his hot tub, do be aware that you are being recorded."

Katherine damn near dropped her plate as she heard Yuki’s taunt, her face flushed red as she turned slowly toward Yuki.

"What did you say?"

Yuki narrowed her eyes while a smirk carved itself across her lips before adjusting her tone to be far more agreeable.

"I mean, I’m not judging you. That thing is an absolute luxury in this frozen wasteland. And you don’t exactly have a lot of clothes to change into, let alone a proper swimsuit. But... as another woman, I’m just warning you, when you do sneak out there while Dean’s outside... you’re not alone out there."

Being an experienced trauma surgeon, it took quite a bit to cause Katherine to lose her composure.

And Yuki honestly didn’t believe a woman of her age would react so... sheepishly to such news. But Yuki’s eyes grew wide as Katherine instinctively covered her own sensitive areas, despite being fully clothed, and averted her gaze.

Luckily for her, she was given a breath of fresh air immediately after when the front door opened, and Dean marched inside. Shaking the snow off his boots, gaiters, and outer layers before taking them off and neatly folding them aside.

Katherine forced herself to remain calm as she finally sat down, glaring at Yuki who had a self-satisfied smirk on her face. Especially when Dean came into the room.

"Thank God dinner is ready, I’m starving..."

He then took a seat next to Yuki and looked over at the obvious state that Katherine and Yuki were in, forcing himself to interfere in whatever drama they were cooking up between the two of them.

"So? What were you two speaking about before I interrupted you?"

Katherine opened her mouth, but immediately quit herself, while Yuki took advantage of the situation to add salt to the wound.

"We were just talking about how pitiful it is that Katherine can’t join us in the hot tub because she doesn’t have any proper swimwear, isn’t that right, Katherine?"

Dean dug into his food, not thinking any deeper on the conversation, as he nodded his head in agreement.

"I suppose that’s true... I mean she didn’t exactly have time to pack a bag before fleeing the hospital. But..."

Katherine looked over at Dean flushing red in embarrassment her mind already shifting to the idea that he had seen the tapes of her braving the hot tub when nobody else was home. Something she clearly underestimated, as Yuki had somehow seen her.

However, Dean said something while digging into his food, almost as if his thoughts were entirely on another plane of existence that cut her off from making a scene.

"I do have quite a bit of cloth lying around in the workshop, including some spandex. Do you know how to make clothes yourself? Or would you prefer me to do it?"

Yuki damn near choked on her food as she stared at Dean in disbelief.

"You know how to sew?"

Dean rolled his eyes while returning to his meal.

"Yes, Yuki I know how to sew. Sewing isn’t just women’s work, it’s a valuable survival skill. You have no idea how many times I’ve had to patch up my own tarp, or fix a tear in my jeans. So, yes, I could in theory make a swimsuit from scratch, or I can try to find something in Katherine’s size the next time I go out and brave the wastes on a scavenging run."

The sarcasm dripping in Dean’s voice, especially that last part caused Yuki to return her focus to her food. While Katherine remained utterly quiet.

In fact, it took the woman a few moments to gather the courage to ask what was bothering her. And she tried her best to pose it in a way that wouldn’t compel Dean to look into it further.

"Dean... I have a question, if you don’t mind answering it?"

Dean looked up from his plate and saw that the woman was unusually flushed.

"Is something the matter? If you’re feeling unwell, you can go lie down and rest. I know I’m asking a lot of both of you, but you really don’t need to push yourselves to the point of exhaustion."

Katherine shook her head and sighed. She was silently grateful that Dean had given her an out without even realizing it. But for her own sanity, she truly needed to confirm the matter.

"No, it’s not anything like that. I was just wondering... Umm... When you and Yuki go out into the hot tub... Do your cameras record it?"

Luckily for Katherine, Dean didn’t seem to notice the underlying concern beneath her question and instead treated it earnestly.

Dismissing the idea entirely, he shook his head while washing down his food with a gulp of his beer.

"No, that would be pointless. The security system exists to monitor what is happening in the world outside the house. While I do have some cameras pointed inside the property, the purpose of those is to keep an eye on critical areas like your Infirmary, or the aforementioned workshop. Why would I ever want to monitor the hot tub?"

Yuki tried her best to stop herself from laughing while she shifted her gaze away from both Dean and Katherine. An action that did not go unnoticed by either of them.

In fact, Katherine shot her the nastiest glare she could manage. And it was in that moment that Dean more or less understood what was happening.

With the mention of swimsuits and cameras, as well as the interactions between the two women, one would have to be as dense as a neutron star not to understand.

Dean had somehow found himself standing in the middle of a minefield. There was only one rational course of action for him to fulfill. He said nothing and pretended that he had absolutely no idea what had just happened.

After all, from his perspective, it was better to be perceived as an oblivious idiot than to willingly step on a potential landmine that would completely undermine the peace and quiet he had managed to obtain in his home for the last few days.

The three of them continued eating in uneasy silence until Katherine suddenly sighed and spoke again, and in doing so, triggering the very detonation Dean had so desperately been trying to avoid.

"Dean... Since you were so kind as to offer your services, I would very much appreciate it if I could borrow your time to make me something suitable to join you in the hot tub. Would you prefer that I tell you my measurements now? Or would you like to talk about it later when we’re alone together in the workshop?"

If the look on Yuki’s face was anything to go by, Katherine had succeeded in her retaliation.

And Dean had somehow ended up a victim of the shrapnel.