I look up, blinking, only then realising that everyone at the table is watching me while I’ve been absentmindedly stirring my spoon through my bowl.
“Yes, sorry. What was it?” I ask, straightening slightly.
Hunter is looking at me.
A slight frown appears on his face, his expression is tight, like he’s trying to figure out where my thoughts just went.
I look back at Adelaide, but it’s Ophelia who speaks first.
“Are you alright?”
I offer her a small, easy smile.
“Yes. Of course. I just got a bit stuck in my own thoughts for a moment,” I reply lightly. “I’ve been working on a new spin on the ice, and I suppose my mind wandered to that.”
She smiles back, though the concern in her eyes doesn’t fully disappear.
Hunter, however, clearly doesn’t believe a word of my lie.
Not even slightly.
His eyes remain fixed on me like he’s trying to figure me out, and when I briefly look back at him and offer a reassuring smile, the tension in his expression only worsens.
The men’s food arrives, and honestly, I’ve been saved by the arrival of food at least three times already today.
Milo looks at his plate before he lifts his fork and takes a cautious bite.
“Vegan eggs Benedict,” he says slowly. “That sounds contradictory.”
Isaak looks up from his phone and levels his cousin with a look.
“Because you lack basic comprehension skills,” he replies flatly.
Milo narrows his eyes at him as he continues eating.
“Fine, but why call it eggs Benedict at all? Just say it’s an imitation of real food. The menu is basically false advertising.”
“You can discuss menu terminology with Vass,” Isaak replies coolly.
Milo looks back down at his plate.
“So what I’m actually eating is plants?”
“It’s usually made from things like chickpea flour, tofu, nutritional yeast, oils. People chemically recreate the texture and flavour. It’s fairly straightforward.”Isaak says without lifting his eyes.
Milo stares at his plate for another second.
“Right…plants.”
Isaak finally looks up.
“That’s all you took from that entire explanation?”
Milo shrugs before he looks at Ophelia.
“See what you’ve done to me?”
Ophelia hesitates for a brief second, uncertainty passes through her expression, but the moment she notices the amusement in Milo’s expression, she relaxes slightly.
