[Kalim blinks at the plate of rice. It does look good: still steaming ever so slightly.

He looks back up to Shen Yuan.]

If you’re feeling all right, then it’s probably fine. Right?

[And yet the first mouthful almost makes him sad. The rice somehow manages to taste even better than it looks. Almost like something he’d eat back home, right down to the particular blend of spices his best friend would use.

It’s Kalim’s first meal in the city and yet it’s making him feel like this. Lonelier, in a way. How strange.

He should be grateful there was someone to taste-test for him, though. What would he have done without Shen Yuan?]

Thank you for trying the food first. It was nice of you to offer.