Chapter 76: a balanced lunch

Chapter 76: Chapter 76: a balanced lunch

The Foundation Dining Hall was noticeably livelier than it had been that morning.

Unlike the small lounge on the second floor used by student volunteers during seminars...

The Dining Hall served the Foundation itself.

Foundation employees gathered between shifts before returning to their respective departments.

Community representatives who had finished their morning meetings quietly enjoyed lunch near the windows.

Several outreach volunteers had only just returned from morning visits and chatted over trays before heading out once more.

Today...

The six students joined them.

For the first time...

They weren’t simply attending the Foundation.

They were working alongside it.

After collecting their lunches...

The six found an empty table near one of the large windows overlooking the Foundation gardens.

Peter carried a generously filled tray.

Roasted chicken.

Rice.

Steamed vegetables.

Soup.

Jessica had chosen a simple but balanced meal.

Oliver selected grilled fish with steamed vegetables.

Sophia spent nearly two minutes deciding between two desserts before finally choosing fruit instead.

"...I’ll probably regret being responsible later."

She laughed softly.

Vivienne smiled.

"I know exactly what you mean."

Then...

Damian placed his own tray upon the table.

Grilled chicken.

Roasted vegetables.

Brown rice.

A bowl of vegetable soup.

Fresh fruit.

And a glass of water.

Everything on the tray looked carefully chosen.

Nothing excessive.

Nothing lacking.

Simply...

Balanced.

Finally...

Vivienne set her own tray beside his.

A small sandwich.

A bowl of fresh fruit.

A generous slice of strawberry shortcake.

And a glass of water.

Damian glanced from her tray...

To his own.

"...Is that really lunch?"

Vivienne looked down.

"...I’m watching my weight."

His gaze shifted toward the cake.

"...I noticed the cake survived."

Vivienne looked almost offended.

"Dessert doesn’t count."

Peter nearly laughed into his drink.

Sophia quickly covered her mouth.

Even Jessica’s composed expression softened.

Damian studied her tray once more.

"The fruit is good."

"The sandwich is..."

He paused thoughtfully.

"...Rather lonely."

His eyes drifted toward the cake again.

"...The cake, however, appears to be doing very well."

Vivienne followed his gaze.

Then looked back at him.

"...When you put it that way..."

"It does."

Without another word...

Damian stood.

"I’ll be right back."

Before anyone could ask what he meant...

He walked back toward the serving counter.

Peter watched him leave.

"...?"

A minute later...

Damian returned carrying another tray.

A bowl of warm vegetable soup.

A grilled chicken salad.

He placed both gently beside Vivienne.

"There."

Vivienne blinked.

"...Damian?"

He resumed his seat as though nothing unusual had happened.

"Now..."

"...it resembles a proper lunch."

He gestured lightly toward the dishes.

"Vegetables."

"Protein."

"Fruit."

Finally...

He inclined his head toward the cake.

"...And dessert."

Vivienne looked at the newly expanded meal.

Then at Damian’s tray once more.

It looked...

Suspiciously healthy.

"...Have you always eaten like this?"

Damian glanced down at his lunch.

"More or less."

"Balanced meals become a habit."

He spoke so matter-of-factly that it sounded almost self-evident.

"...Among other things."

Vivienne nodded slowly.

"...I suppose that explains a lot."

She looked down at the soup and salad he had brought her.

She let out a tiny dramatic sigh.

"...Well..."

"Since you went through the trouble of bringing all this for me..."

"...I suppose I should do it justice."

"...All right."

"I’ll eat everything."

Damian nodded once.

"A wise decision."

She looked at him for another second.

Then...

A mischievous smile slowly spread across her face.

"But..."

"If I’m listening to you..."

"I think it’s only fair that you listen to me too."

Damian raised an eyebrow.

"...Oh?"

Vivienne gently slid the dessert plate toward the center of the table.

"You said balanced meals become a habit."

"So..."

"You can help balance my dessert."

Peter almost laughed.

Sophia lowered her head, trying to hide her smile.

Even Oliver quietly cleared his throat.

Jessica simply took another sip of her tea.

Damian looked at the cake.

Then at Vivienne.

"...Is that how balance works?"

She nodded with complete confidence.

"I think so."

"It sounds perfectly reasonable."

A quiet chuckle escaped him.

"I somehow doubt that."

"But..."

He picked up the dessert fork resting beside the plate.

"...I suppose one bite won’t undo years of good habits."

He took a small bite.

Chewed thoughtfully.

Then nodded once.

"...It’s good."

Vivienne smiled triumphantly.

"I knew you’d agree."

Damian simply shook his head with quiet amusement before returning the dessert fork to the plate.

"...One bite."

"Don’t expect a second."

Vivienne laughed.

"We’ll see."

A few quiet chuckles spread around the table.

With that...

Everyone finally turned their attention back to lunch.

For several peaceful minutes...

The only sounds between them were the occasional clink of cutlery against porcelain and light conversation drifting from the surrounding tables.

Somehow...

The easy silence no longer felt awkward.

It simply felt comfortable.

Little by little...

The conversation began again.

This time...

Without the formality that had filled the morning.

Someone remarked on the Foundation’s archives.

Another responded with a laugh.

Before long...

The conversation gradually drifted away from partnership records and implementation plans.

Sophia admitted she had nearly changed her proposal three separate times before finally submitting it.

Peter confessed that, despite volunteering the previous year, he still occasionally lost his way in the Foundation archives.

Oliver spoke about how surprised he had been by the sheer amount of documentation required for even a single outreach program.

Jessica smiled faintly.

"You’ll get used to it."

"It only looks overwhelming at first."

Vivienne listened with genuine interest.

She asked Peter what had first inspired him to volunteer.

She thanked Jessica for returning to the Foundation for a third consecutive year.

She asked Oliver what had convinced him to join the Community Outreach and Development Program.

Soon...

Everyone was talking.

The formality that had filled the morning quietly disappeared.

Across the table...

Peter glanced once toward Damian.

Mr. Blackwood wasn’t leading the conversation.

Nor was he quietly steering it, as Peter had seen him do so many times before.

Instead...

He simply listened.

Occasionally adding a comment.

Occasionally answering a question.

Whenever the discussion naturally shifted toward the project...

His eyes would drift toward Vivienne.

Almost as though waiting to hear what their Project Lead thought first.

Peter lowered his gaze.

...He’s doing it again.

Jessica appeared to have noticed as well.

Neither mentioned it.

Objectively speaking...

There was nothing unusual about allowing the Project Lead to guide the discussion.

If anything...

It was exactly what a Senior Coordinator ought to do.

And yet...

Knowing Damian Blackwood...

It still felt strangely unfamiliar.

The meal gradually came to an end.

Trays were emptied.

Glasses finished.

Vivienne looked around the table before smiling.

"Ready?"

Peter nodded.

"I think we’ve got an afternoon waiting for us."

Jessica gathered her notebook.

"And quite a lot to organize."

Damian stood, picking up his tray.

"Let’s get back to work."

The others rose together.

As they returned their trays and made their way toward the Dining Hall doors...

They no longer felt like six students who had simply been assigned to the same project.

Somewhere between the morning’s discussions...

And a slice of shared cake...

They had quietly begun to feel like a team.