Chapter 163 - 164: The Winner

Chapter 163: Chapter 164: The Winner

Lily lifted the spoon with the kind of slow, deliberate motion that made everyone in the room lean forward and hold their breath and wait with the kind of nervous anticipation that came from knowing that everything was about to be decided in a single moment of taste.

She brought it to her mouth and tasted Daniel’s dish first.

The room was silent with the kind of heavy, expectant silence that made every small sound seem magnified and every heartbeat seem louder than it should be, and everyone was watching and everyone was waiting and everyone was hoping for the outcome they wanted.

Lily chewed slowly with her expression unreadable and her eyes closed and her face giving nothing away.

Then she opened her eyes and smiled a wide and genuine smile that transformed her face and made Daniel’s team feel like they had already won.

"This is delicious," she said.

Daniel’s team cheered with the kind of loud, unrestrained joy that filled the small house and echoed off the walls.

Fluffy bounced on her heels with excitement. "Fluffy’s meat is the best!"

Mittens smiled with pride. "The vegetables are good too."

Daniel nodded with satisfaction. "We did good."

Lily nodded and reached for another spoon and reached for the other dish and brought it to her mouth.

She tasted the other team’s dish.

The room was silent again with the same heavy, expectant silence, and everyone was watching and everyone was waiting and everyone was hoping for the outcome they wanted.

Lily chewed slowly with her expression unreadable and her eyes closed and her face giving nothing away.

Then she opened her eyes and her expression was complicated in the way that expressions are complicated when someone is trying to be kind but also honest.

"This is..." she started and then paused as if searching for the right word.

"This is... interesting," she said.

Lyra’s face fell with disappointment. "Interesting?"

Lily nodded. "Interesting."

"That’s not good."

"It’s not bad."

"It’s not good either."

Lily sighed with the kind of diplomatic patience that came from trying to be kind about something that was difficult to be kind about. "It’s... something."

Lyra buried her face in her hands with the kind of dramatic despair that made Daniel want to laugh despite himself. "We lost."

Cheeky looked down with disappointment in her eyes. "We lost."

Brick Head grinned with the kind of oblivious pride that only he could manage. "We made food!"

Lyra glared at him with frustration in her eyes. "We made terrible food."

"We made food!"

"Terrible food!"

"Food!"

Lyra groaned with the kind of frustrated groan that came from knowing there was no point in arguing with someone who was incapable of understanding the argument.

Lily set the spoons down and looked at both teams with their hopeful faces and their nervous eyes.

"The winner," she said and then paused with the kind of dramatic timing that made everyone lean forward again, "is..."

The tension was thick and the silence was heavy and Daniel’s team held their breath and the other team held their breath and Brick Head was picking his nose with the kind of oblivious contentment that suggested he had no idea what was happening.

Lily smiled. "Daniel’s team."

Daniel’s team cheered with the kind of loud, unrestrained joy that filled the small house and echoed off the walls for the second time.

Fluffy jumped up and down with excitement. "Fluffy won! Fluffy won!"

Mittens smiled with happiness in her eyes. "We won."

Daniel nodded with satisfaction. "We won."

The other team slumped with defeat in their postures and disappointment on their faces.

Lyra sighed. "We lost."

Cheeky nodded. "We lost."

Brick Head blinked with confusion. "We lost?"

Lyra looked at him with the kind of tired patience that came from explaining something for the hundredth time. "Yes. We lost."

Brick Head thought about it and then shrugged with the kind of casual acceptance that made Lyra want to scream. "Okay."

Lyra stared at him with disbelief in her eyes. "Okay?"

"Yes. Okay. We lost. It’s fine."

"It’s fine?"

"Yes. We had fun. That’s what matters."

Lyra was silent as she thought about it and processed it and realized that he was actually right in his own strange, simple way.

"You’re right," she said. "We had fun."

Brick Head grinned with pride. "See? I’m smart."

"You’re not smart."

"I’m smart enough."

Daniel walked toward Lyra with a warm and gentle smile on his face. "Good game," he said.

Lyra looked at him and smiled back with a small and tired smile. "Good game," she said.

"You did well."

"We lost."

"You did well anyway."

She laughed with the kind of genuine laugh that made Daniel’s chest feel warm. "Thanks."

Daniel nodded and looked at Cheeky with her disappointed face. "You did well too," he said.

Cheeky looked up with hope in her eyes. "I did?"

"Yes. Your vegetables were good."

"They were undercooked."

"They were good."

She smiled a small and fragile smile. "Thank you."

Daniel looked at Brick Head with his grinning face. "You," he said, "are a disaster."

Brick Head blinked with confusion. "What?"

"Your toast was burnt."

"It was crispy."

"It was burnt."

"It was crispy."

Daniel sighed with the kind of defeated resignation that came from knowing there was no point in arguing. "Whatever."

Lily walked toward them with a smile on her face. "That was fun," she said. "I haven’t had fun like this in a long time."

Daniel looked at her. "You should have fun more often."

Lily nodded. "I should."

She paused. "You know," she said, "you’re welcome to stay here. Until the exam. It’s not much. But it’s safe."

Daniel looked at her with her kind face and her gentle eyes. "Thank you," he said.

Lily smiled. "You’re welcome."

The day continued with cleaning up the kitchen and washing the dishes and putting everything away, and then they sat around the table and talked and laughed and joked with the kind of easy camaraderie that came from shared experiences and shared meals and shared moments of joy.

Daniel looked at his team and his family and his friends and saw that they were happy and relaxed and together. He smiled a warm and genuine smile. "This is nice," he said.

Lyra looked at him. "What?"

"This. Being together. Having fun."

She nodded. "It is."

"We should do this more often."

"We should."

He paused. "After the exam," he said. "We’ll do this again."

She smiled. "Promise?"

"Promise."

The sun set and the sky turned orange and the clouds turned pink and the stars appeared, and they sat around the fire and were tired and full and content.

Daniel looked at them and his team and his family and his friends. "Tomorrow," he said, "we prepare for the exam."

They nodded.

"We train. We study. We get ready."

They nodded again.

"But tonight," he said, "we rest."

They nodded with happiness in their eyes.

Daniel lay back and looked at the ceiling and the fire and the light. "Goodnight," he said.

"Goodnight," they replied.

The fire crackled and the stars twinkled and the night was quiet, and they slept.

The sun rose slowly and gently and the sky turned from black to purple to pink to orange, and the stars faded and the moon disappeared and the world woke up.

Daniel was the first to wake and he opened his eyes slowly and felt the rest in his body and the clarity in his mind and the readiness in his heart.

He sat up and looked around at the quiet house and the dying fire and the others who were still asleep.

Lyra was beside him with her head resting on his shoulder and her breath slow and her face peaceful.

Paul was on his back with his mouth open and snoring softly.

Cheeky was against the wall with her cloak wrapped around her and her hood pulled low.

Fluffy was in the corner curled up in a ball with her tail wrapped around her body.

Mittens was beside her with her cat ears flat and her tail still.

Brick Head was sprawled on the floor with his arms spread wide and his legs tangled and snoring loudly.

Daniel smiled a warm and genuine smile and looked at the window and the sunlight and the new day.

"Today," he whispered. "We prepare."

[IMPORTANT... NEXT Chapter IS Chapter 166 INTEAD OF 165, SORRY UT WAS AN UPLOAD SCHEDULE MISTAKE...]