``` Chapter 34
โHere, Zinnia, the shrimp you wanted.โ Yannis set a plate of shrimp in front of her.
Zinnia had just stuffed a beef taco into her mouth. The spicy flavor and the sour cream made her squint with satisfaction. She was about to try something else when she saw Yannis place the shrimp in front of her. โThanks,โ she said.
โZinnia, why are you so cold to me? Did I do something wrong?โ Yannis raised an eyebrow, noticing her attitude. The smile in his eyes faded a little.
She was clearly not as warm to him as she was to Jackson and Perry. Yannis frowned slightly, wondering if it was because Zinnia still remembered what happened last time.
But that was just an accident. He didnโt think she should treat him differently because of it.
โWell, you did tease her before,โ Perry laughed. โZinnia, donโt mind Yannis. Just tell me what you want, Iโll get it for you.โ
โIโm sorry,โ Yannis said. โIโm just treating her like a child.โ
Yannis had planned to tease Zinnia a little when he came over. But when he saw her blank little face, the urge to joke just vanished. Her clueless expression made it hard to mess with her.
Still, he didnโt want to admit that, so he said seriously, โZinnia, you look like a generous person. Donโt let Perryโs bad influence rub off on you. Heโs just a clown.โ
He even threw in a jab at Perry, since Perry had teased him before too.
โI wonโt,โ Zinnia said, pressing her lips together. She thought Perry was childish and Yannis was kind of dumb.
Yannis looked a little awkward. He could tell she didnโt think much of him.
โAlright, enough joking around. Arenโt you guys hungry? Come on, eat. Iโll take care of Zinnia,โ Jackson said as he pushed a plate with two chicken wings in front of her.
โOf course Iโm hungry. I skipped lunch. But I can take care of Zinnia too,โ Perry said.
โYour appetite problem again?โ Jackson looked at Perry, who had been anorexic for some time.
Perryโs hand paused around his fork for a second, but then he smiled. โNah, just didnโt feel like eating. But now that Iโve got you guys hereโespecially โcute little ZinniaโโI suddenly feel hungry again.โ Then he started eating some potatoes.
Zinnia slowed down as she gnawed on her chicken wing. She glanced across the table and noticed that Perry really didnโt look well. His smile seemed relaxed, but his face was pale and his lips almost colorless. He clearly wasnโt eating enough.
She made a mental note to make him some digestive pills when they got back.
Perry managed a few more bites, then put his fork down. He really didnโt have much appetite.
โHere.โ Yannis passed him a glass of juice and stopped him from grabbing a drink.
Perry looked at him and gave a bitter smile.
โZinnia canโt eat lamb. Sheโs allergic,โ Jackson said quickly as Yannis set down a plate of roast lamb in front of her.
โAlright. If sheโs allergic, weโll skip the lamb. Donโt want her to eat it by accident,โ Yannis said. โIf she had a reaction, someone would definitely come after me.โ
He waved at the waiter to take the lamb away and checked the table for other lamb dishes, having them all removed.
Zinnia was eating shrimp when she heard her name. She blinked in confusion, clearly having no idea what they were talking about.
Yannis looked at her and almost laughed. She gave him this weird mix of being clueless and clever at the same time.
โZinnia, are there any other foods youโre allergic to?โ Yannis asked. โYou should let us know, so we donโt end up bringing you something you canโt eat later.โ
She didnโt answer, so Yannis turned to Jackson. If Jackson hadnโt reminded him earlier, he mightโve ended up serving Zinnia something she couldnโt have.
โShe doesnโt eat onions or garlic. She only eats lean meat, no fat at allโฆโ Jackson listed off a whole bunch of things. This was why he had let Perry and Yannis go ahead and eat, while he stayed behind to look after Zinnia.
Jackson had forgotten to mention Zinniaโs dietary restrictions earlier, so there were quite a few things she couldnโt eat on the table. Some of them Zinnia didnโt even remember she didnโt like, but Jackson did.
For a moment, she felt like she was back with her master, who had always been so careful about her diet.
In truth, Zinnia wasnโt that picky. There were a lot of things she didnโt like, but if something she didnโt like appeared on the table, she wouldnโt say anything about it.
If she didnโt like the food, sheโd just eat a little less. If she liked it, sheโd eat more. If nothing she liked showed up, sheโd just nibble on some bread.
Back at the Shaw residence, since the Shaw family preferred light foods, Zinnia hadnโt really had a proper meal for a long time. She used to just eat a little, then stop.
But after moving to the Lynn residence, there were more dishes she liked on the table, and her appetite gradually increased.
A few days ago, she hadnโt eaten much spicy food because her throat was bothering her from a cold. Today, when she saw the spicy tacos at the chili con carne, her eyes lit up immediately.
โWow, Zinniaโs so picky! Iโll have to be careful choosing where to eat with her from now on,โ Yannis said.
After mentally noting down everything Zinnia couldnโt eat, Yannis looked at her and thought, โNo wonder sheโs so small. It must be because sheโs so picky.โ
Zinnia actually wanted to tell him she wasnโt picky, that sheโd be fine with just some bread. But then she thought it wasnโt really necessary to explain that to Yannis since they werenโt close. So, she just gave him a faint nod.
Yannis glanced at the food on the table and then brought over a plate of steak for Zinnia. The steak had no fat at all and was very tender.
โYannis is right. Zinnia, youโll have to be more careful eating out in the future. Allergies are no joke.
โIf you ever come to this mall again and want to eat, just come to me. Iโll give you a free meal, and Iโll let the waiters know what you canโt eat,โ Perry added, nodding in agreement. Eating out could never be too careful.
โYannis, howโd you end up here? Arenโt you busy? Did you go see your dad after coming back?โ After talking to Zinnia, Perry turned to Yannis.
Yannis had been abroad for a couple of years and had only just returned recently. Perry didnโt understand why Yannis had come to him.
โGo back and what? Let him beat me?โ Yannis lazily picked up a taco and added more sour cream on top. Seeing Zinnia across from him, he lowered his gaze and took a bite of his own taco.
It did taste pretty good. ```