Eventually the cooking was done.
The kitchen looked like it had survived a small war.
There were bowls scattered everywhere, vegetable peels piled near the sink, seasoning containers left open across the counter and enough dirty utensils to keep sobody busy for an hour. Yet sohow the chaos only made the place feel warr. The entire suite was filled with the sll of freshly cooked food. Steam rose from the rice sitting in a large pot while the chicken rested on a tray beside it, golden brown and covered in seasoning. The vegetables looked colorful and fresh and even Ann’s pancakes had survived without being burned.
Liam was already standing beside the counter holding a plate.
Waiting.
Watching.
Looking suspiciously like a predator waiting for prey.
Lana noticed imdiately.
"Don’t even think about it."
"I wasn’t."
"You were."
"I wasn’t."
"You’ve been staring at that chicken for five minutes."
Liam looked down at his plate.
Then back at her.
"I am a growing boy."
Ann nearly choked laughing.
"A growing boy? You’re over twenty."
"Growth never stops."
"That sounds scientifically wrong."
Liam pointed at her.
"I don’t need negativity right now."
Lana rolled her eyes before grabbing a large serving spoon. She began serving rice onto three plates while Ann arranged the vegetables. The simple act sohow turned into another argunt because neither of them could agree on presentation.
Ann wanted everything arranged neatly.
Lana wanted everything dumped onto the plate because, according to her, food was food.
"You eat with your eyes first."
"No, you eat with your mouth first."
"Presentation matters."
"Not when you’re starving."
"It absolutely matters."
"Tell that to Liam."
The two girls turned toward him.
Liam had already stolen a piece of chicken.
He froze.
Slowly lowered it.
Then imdiately stuffed it into his mouth anyway.
Ann pointed dramatically.
"See?"
Lana nodded.
"Exactly my point."
Liam chewed quietly.
He wasn’t participating in this discussion.
He had chosen survival.
A few minutes later they finally carried everything over to the dining table.
The table itself was positioned beside a large window overlooking the city. Sunlight poured through the glass, bathing everything in a soft golden glow. The city below looked peaceful from this height. Cars moved through the streets. People walked along sidewalks. It almost felt strange after everything they had gone through recently.
The mont everyone sat down Liam grabbed his fork.
"Finally."
The word ca out with genuine emotion.
Ann laughed.
"You’ve been acting like a prisoner who hasn’t eaten in weeks."
"I understand prisoners now."
"You ate yesterday."
"Barely."
Lana didn’t even bother replying.
She simply took a bite of her food.
The reaction was imdiate.
Her eyes widened slightly.
Then she nodded.
"Okay."
Ann looked interested.
"Okay what?"
"It’s actually good."
Ann imdiately straightened in her chair.
"Of course it’s good."
"I wasn’t talking about your pancakes."
Ann gasped.
The betrayal.
Liam burst out laughing so hard he nearly dropped his fork.
The al quickly turned into complete chaos.
Every few minutes sobody would tease sobody else. Every joke sohow beca another argunt which beca another joke.
At one point Ann proudly placed a pancake onto Liam’s plate.
"There."
Liam looked down.
Then took a bite.
"Hmmm."
"Hmmm what?"
"It’s nice."
Ann smiled proudly.
Then Liam continued.
"For a first attempt."
The smile vanished instantly.
Lana almost fell out of her chair laughing.
"It wasn’t my first attempt!"
"It tasted like one."
"You’re horrible."
"I speak truth."
"You literally tried frying a pan full of oil."
Liam imdiately pointed at Lana.
"Tell her she’s exaggerating."
"I’m not helping you."
"Traitor."
The laughter continued.
For nearly an hour they barely focused on eating because they spent more ti talking than chewing.
Liam learned very quickly that sitting between both won was dangerous because every ti he complinted one of them, the other would imdiately stare at him.
Not angry.
Just staring.
Waiting.
Judging.
The first ti it happened he complinted Lana’s cooking.
Ann simply looked at him.
Silently.
For ten whole seconds.
Liam finally sighed.
"You cooked well too."
"Thank you."
The stare disappeared.
Ten minutes later he made the mistake of complinting Ann’s pancakes.
This ti Lana looked at him.
Again.
Silently.
Patiently.
Waiting.
Liam lowered his fork.
"The chicken was amazing too."
"Thank you."
The stare disappeared.
Ann laughed so hard tears ford in her eyes.
"You’re being trained."
"No I’m not."
"You absolutely are."
Liam refused to acknowledge reality.
As the al continued the atmosphere beca softer.
The teasing never stopped but it beca gentler.
Comfortable.
The kind of comfort that only existed between people who genuinely enjoyed each other’s company.
At one point Lana rested her chin on her hand while watching the two of them argue over pancakes.
Sunlight illuminated her face and highlighted the loose strands of hair around her cheeks.
She looked relaxed.
Happy.
The exhaustion from yesterday seed lighter now.
Ann wasn’t much different.
She sat comfortably in her chair laughing every few minutes, occasionally stealing food from Liam’s plate whenever he wasn’t paying attention.
Which happened more often than he wanted to admit.
"Hey."
"What?"
"That’s mine."
"No."
"It literally ca from my plate."
"Then you should have protected it better."
Lana nodded.
"Fair point."
Liam stared at both of them.
"You’re teaming up against ."
"Obviously."
"Why?"
The answer ca instantly.
"Because it’s funny."
Liam looked genuinely heartbroken.
Which only made them laugh harder.
By the ti they finished eating, everyone was full.
The plates were nearly empty.
The room slled pleasantly of food.
The sunlight had shifted slightly.
Nobody moved imdiately.
They simply sat there.
Comfortable.
Satisfied.
For a few monts the conversation faded and silence settled naturally over the table.
Not awkward silence.
The good kind.
The kind where nobody felt pressured to speak.
Liam leaned back in his chair and looked around at the ssy table, the empty plates, the sunlight filling the room and the two won beside him.
A small smile appeared on his face.
Yesterday he had been fighting a monster strong enough to destroy buildings.
Today he was arguing about pancakes.
Honestly, he preferred today.
A lot more.
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