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"Okay! I'll be done in a bit, just have to make sure the chicken's cooked all the way through." Mia pulled out the meat thermometer, pushing it into the largest section of one chicken breast. Once she was sure it and the other were cooked, she moved them from the pan and set them on two plates.
Simon nodded, grabbing a big serving spoon or something for the fruit salad. He moved the bowl to the center of the counter once he was finished. Actually doing something for once felt really nice.
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Mia carried the plates over, offering one to Simon as she sat down.
"Looks good!" She said, smiling.
Simon smiled back, proud of his work. “Thanks! Let’s eat!” He said, taking his plate from Mia and sitting next to her at the kitchen counter.
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"Yeah!" Mia took up her fork to pull off a piece of the chicken, putting it in her mouth. She smiled, taking a spoonful of the fruit salad as well onto her plate.
Simon started eating, still not enthusiastically, but he wasn’t having to force himself to as much which was a significant improvement. He smiled softly, feeling a small sense of pride.
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Mia was proud, too. Really, really proud. Simon was doing much better now than before Astral had shown up, so whatever had actually happened had helped some. While Mia still hated Astral will all of her fiber, she had to admit this was nice.
Simon hummed softly, still trying not to think about the food in front of him too much, worried that he'd lose his appetite. But so far, so good. Hopefully it’d stay like this, at least for a few days. He still ate pretty slowly, so he’d take longer than Mia would.
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Mia did finish first, but she didn't get up. She stayed sat at Simon's side, smiling at him occasionally.
At some point, Simon needed a break. Just a short one though, he was determined to finish what he had on his plate. He looked over at Mia, smiling. “Did you like the fruit?” He asked excitedly.
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"It was really good!" Mia smiled, looking at Simon. "I enjoyed the fruits you paired together, you're really good at it."
“Thanks! I’ve had to make a lot of meals in my lifetime. I’m very much a house…husband type of guy I guess?” He said, definitely making the term up on the spot.
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"Ah…" Mia giggled a bit at the term Simon used. "Well, it's really good, for sure. I'm a bit jealous."
“Aw what are you jealous about?” He asked, an inquisitive look on his face. He was definitely in a talkative mood right now, another good sign.
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"Maybeee…" Mia giggled some. "I'm good with meat, but fruits and vegetables? Not so much."
“But being good with meat is so impressive though! I feel like meat’s really weird, especially when you’re just learning how to cook it. You don’t have to do much with fruit besides chopping it up.”
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"Cooking with fruit is so hard, though! And making pie, oh, you miss one thing and it's ruined." Mia smiled, shaking her head.
“True! Pies can be really hard. Baking in general is just really hard if you miss even one thing.” He agreed.
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"Yeah… and I always do end up forgetting something." Mia let out a sigh, a small playful pout coming to her lips.
“Welllll now you have me to help if you ever want to make something! I’ll make sure you won’t forget anything!” He replied, giggling a bit.
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"Yeay!" Mia giggled in turn, her smile returning to her lips. "We should bake something together sometime, it'll be fun."
“Yeah we should, but not today, some other time. That would be really fun.” He smiled.
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"Right. I'm good with that." Mia smiled in turn, turning to face Simon a bit more. She was proud of the man, of how much he'd been able to eat. It was more than anything he'd had recently, and it was a good sign.
Simon turned back to his plate, managing to finish up what food he had left.
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Mia offered to take Simon's plate when he finished, offering a small grin.
"Feeling okay?" She asked, standing.
“Mmm I think so.” He said, standing up with her. He seemed to be pretty steady on his feet.
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"That's good, then." Mia smiled, shifting over to lightly hug Simon from the side.
Simon hugged her back, a content smile on his face. He was really proud of himself too, glad that he’d managed to finish.
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Mia had a hard time thinking of the last instance Simon had finished the entire plate of food. She moved from the hug to go clean up their plates, a smile still lingering on her lips.
Simon wanted to go help but was too tired from having been moving around for longer than he was used to, and sat back down.
