Bad habits are hard to break...
"I really wish you'd stop smoking."
Baxium's words ran through Mira's head every time she put a cigarette in her mouth. With him around she didn't have to smoke as much as she was used to, which was already hardly at all. Still, sometimes it just felt better to have one.
She wasn't the only one she knew who smoked, either, Ashley did it more than she ever did, and it was sometimes concerning. At least Ashley was trying a little to ease up on the habit, but it wasn't an easy thing to do. Ashley went out for a smoke just the night before and it had only been a few days since the last one she had.
When she stood in the alley to light up, Mikey was approaching the apartment from work with a box of pizza in hand and a quarter of it gone. Ashley tried to stay inconspicuous, thinking he wouldn't notice her if she just stood still against the wall, but it didn't go quite her way.
"Ashley, are you smoking?" he asked curiously.
She lowered the cigarette and breathed out the smoke she had just inhaled, away from him. "Oh, yeah. I do sometimes."
"Why? You know those are like, really bad for you right?" Mikey leaned against the wall opposite of her, trying not to inhale the smoke.
"Yeah," she said simply. "Even the packaging tells you that," she added as she brought the cigarette back up.
"My brother smokes too, and we try to get him to stop," Mikey said, trailing off.
Ashley suddenly felt awkward and took another drag to buy some time. "Well, it is a bad habit, but everyone has their vice."
"Huh," he replied taking another slice of pizza from the box to eat. "I dunno what mine is."
Ashley watched him as he ate the pizza, smirking. "How many boxes of pizza have you eaten today?"
"I dunno, this is probably my second," he replied thoughtfully. "Why? Want some?"
She shook her head before finishing her cigarette and putting it out. "I'm good. You going in?"
He closed the box and nodded. "Yeah, I'll go with you."
It was a strange twist of fate that the night after Mikey met up with Ashley while she was smoking Raphael would end up joining Mira in the alleyway for a smoke. They gave each other a look before Mira returned to her already lit cigarette and Raph lit up one of his own. There was still a bit of awkwardness from the misunderstanding that led to her ignoring Baxium for a few days.
They had seen each other smoking several times before so it was nothing new for them, but it was rare that they'd be smoking at exactly the same time. Raph noticed the box that was sticking out of her pocket and raised an eyebrow.
"Georgia slims?" he asked.
Mira glanced at her pocket then looked back at him with a disapproving look. "What if they are?"
"Nothin," he said before taking a drag.
"What are you smoking then?"
He exhaled and shrugged. "Borough Brand."
She scoffed. "Yeah, you would."
He said no more as he continued smoking. A breeze blew by them and the streets drew quiet as their smoking session drew closer to its end. "How's it goin?" Raph asked finally, hoping to patch things up.
"Fine," she replied. Mira still wasn't sure what Raph's deal with her was. He would act friendly toward her but then always end up saying something really stupid. If it was his way of trying to befriend her, his approach could use some work.
"Good," he replied. And he was genuinely glad that things were alright with her, he just wished he was better with words. Maybe someday he'd be able to make things right again.
They finished their cigarettes together in a comfortable silence, allowing the chemicals to relax them. When it was time to go back inside, Raph held the door open for her but said nothing other than a 'goodnight' when they parted ways.
The rest of the night was quiet.