Half an hour later, dinner was finally ready.
Because there were so many people, the number of dishes naturally increased as well. The table was filled with Masata's favorite fried shrimp tempura, shredded green peppers and potatoes, a seafood platter, braised octopus, miso soup, stir-fried seasonal vegetables, and—most anticipated of all—the lobster sashimi. The long dining table was completely packed, leaving no empty space.
Everyone took their seats, and after a simple pre-meal remark, the feast officially began.
The television in the dining room was playing a comedy show. Mina watched it with complete focus, bursting into silly laughter from time to time. Masata, however, couldn't understand what was so funny about those exaggerated expressions and over-the-top performances.
"Ah—!"
Masata had just picked up a piece of tempura when Mina suddenly laughed loudly at something on the screen. Her chopsticks slipped, and the tempura fell straight onto the table.
"Ah… it fell."
Mina stared blankly at the tempura lying on the tabletop, her expression suddenly turning serious.
"It's okay," Yaoyorozu said quickly, thinking Mina was upset about wasting food.
"Just throw it away and get another one."
But before she could finish speaking, Mina's chopsticks shot out like a dragon emerging from a flood. In an instant, she grabbed the tempura off the table and stuffed it into her mouth.
Everyone froze.
"…That's not sanitary," someone muttered.
Seeing the strange looks directed at her, Mina tilted her head, equally confused.
"What? Why are you all staring at me?" she said righteously.
"It only touched the table for less than three seconds. According to the three-second rule, it's still edible!"
—What kind of nonsense is that?
And who exactly invented this so-called three-second rule?!
Masata felt that his vocabulary simply wasn't sufficient to complain properly at this moment.
Just then, Asui spoke up calmly.
"Masata-chan, why aren't you eating much? Is today's food not to your taste?"
The table suddenly fell quiet.
Everyone turned to look at Masata with puzzled expressions. At school, Masata was famous for his bottomless appetite, yet tonight he had only taken a few bites. It was completely unlike him.
Masata didn't answer right away.
The dining room fell into an unusual silence.