Max's eyes fell upon his comrades for only a second, as he was really enjoying his pizza.

It did occur to him that it was odd that they hadn't eaten yet, but the pizza distracted him from thinking about it too much.

After all, it was a really good pizza.

One specifically made to suit his interests.

As for the others...

Rose: C'mon, guys. Dig in. This food tastes great.

Easy for her to say. There was no doubt that it really would taste good, no doubt at all. Especially considering the aroma, but... considering what they were all feeling.... it would be an understatement to say that they were at least not in part glad that Rose would not read their minds.

Ken: Sure...

He uneasily looked at the roast beef right in front of him.

He was tempted to immediately do an internet search about the meat or to scan the meat, but waiting too long to take a bite would cause suspicion. And so, he knew he had no choice, and took a knife and fork, gently cutting out a piece of meat, and then chewing it.

The result.

He paused.

Julianne and Rose simply watched him with patient expectation, and even Max was a little attentive to what his first reaction to the meat would be.

The reaction being...

... Ken simply froze.

The taste of the meat was beyond anything he could have expected. In fact, it was beyond anything he had ever tasted.

He slowly chewed it, bit by bit, as the flavour like some kind of fluid rushed around his tongue.

And then he swallowed it, all the while remaining silent.

He couldn't believe it. He knew it would taste good, but this? This was.... extraordinary.

So much so that he didn't say another word.

Julianne: So... how was it?

It took a lot for Ken to simply and calmly answer this question.

Ken: It was simply divine, Mrs Hunter.

Julianne: Oh.. really?

Rose giggled.

Ken: Yes. Simply and immaculately divine.

Julianne: Oh. Well, I'm glad to hear that.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Ken: (thinking: No kidding it's good. This meat is... in fact... beyond good. Just how did... how did she get this stuff? And on such short notice at that.)

Julianne's eyes consequently went off to Luke, who had just begun to take a bite of his own piece of meat.

Julianne: Well, how about you, Luke?

He, unlike Ken, wasn't nearly as good with a knife, fork, and other utencils, and so was using his hands.

His eyes turned to Julianne, for a moment, concerned that she would protest, but she simply waved her hand.

Julianne: Oh, I don't mind. Go on ahead.

And so he did.

Now, to explain what had caused Luke's reaction, his own life would need to be understood.

Luke Parks was an orphan. An orphan who worked a job delivering pizza to make ends meat.

Needless to say, him tasting something so good was out of the ordinary for him.

Far, far out of the ordinary.

And so, Luke immediately paused as well. So disturbing was it that even Rose had to comment on it.

Rose: Luke?

At that point, everybody in the room looked at Luke.

Julianne: So.. how is it?

Luke: It's.... amazing....

Just like Ken, in all his life, he'd never tasted anything so good. But unlike Ken, tasting something this good was completely out of the ordinary. After all, how often did this teen get to taste luxury food? Let alone all the disgusting lunch food he had to deal with.

Julianne: Really....

Luke: Yes. It is... ma'am.

It was a little embarrassing, the way he felt. After all, he wanted to simply pig out and enjoy this meal, but he had enough sanity to pace himself. Bit by bit, he would enjoy this meal.

And Julianne turned to the last of the team members, Tiffany Chang, who, during this entire debacle, hadn't taken a single bite of her fish cakes.

Julianne: And last but not least... Tiffany?

There were many things keeping Tiffany from taking a bite out of the food, but the first and foremost of these, unlike with the other two, was pride.

Why pride?

Tiffany was a firm believer in honour.

And sitting in a room with someone with whom she was not comfortable was hard enough. But now, receiving food from someone she was so suspicious of and still was suspicious of, that was too much for her.

Her honourable mentality could not take it.

And so, she remained silent, her lips pursed and her teeth gritting.

Ken: (thinking: Oh... poor Tiff.)

He then continued to take another bite.

And then Rose began to get bothered.

Rose: Tiff?

She was only barely hiding her discomfort. Why? Because even being dishonest was discomforting to her.

Julianne: Hmmm... (thinking: What's wrong with her?)

And so it begun to happen, Max slowly begun to slow down as he ate, paying more attention to Tiffany, Julianne's eyes were fixiated on her, as were the others' eyes...

It only took five seconds, but she was now the main state of attraction in this dinner party.

Just how would she say this?

"I don't want to eat because...."

No, even saying that would be wrong.

So.... what would she do?

In truth, her mind was not at all made up.

Julianne: Well... if you're not hungry....

And that statement made her feel even worse.

She couldn't even look into Julianne's eyes.

Rose: C'mon Tiff.

She turned to Rose, who seemed quite concerned.

Rose: At least give it a try.

She said this with a smile, and Tiffany wished her friend could understand just how wrong this felt, but was also glad that she didn't.

However, luckily for her, before any suspicions from Max or Rose could rise...

Luke: Hey... try some.

She was stunned for a moment.

Her eyes met Luke's. She knew what he meant. After all, she knew he would understand.

He was saying... "It's ok. You can eat."

She held in her sigh, and more importantly, her pride, and took her first bite of the fish cakes.

Everyone in the room held themselves in anticipation, awaiting her reaction. Although Max was not all that interested.

But Rose and Julianne were especially expectant.

Julianne: Well... how was it?

The girl bit her pride once more, hiding her inner pain, her eyes still not facing Julianne....

Tiffany: It tastes great.