After taking a shower, a servant came to my room.
“Miss, everyone else is already downstairs for dinner.”
“All right. I’ll be down shortly.”
Back when I was with the Jaya family, mealtime meant I had to cook the food. Everyone had different favorite dishes, and they were extremely picky eaters. I had a hard time deciding on the daily menu because the food they wanted was always different. Whether I liked it or not, I had to make as many as five different dishes every day so they wouldn’t complain. They wouldn’t even eat food that had been put in the fridge, so I had to calculate the portions very carefully.
That was why mealtimes had always been such a heavy burden for me. I went downstairs and saw that everyone really had gathered around the dining table. My eyes fell on the dishes spread across it: grilled shrimp, sweet-and-sour crab, fried chicken, and caviar. It was the first time I’d ever seen such a luxurious collection of food for a single meal. I quickly realized that my mouth had fallen open in awe, so I closed it before anyone could think I was strange. I walked over and sat in the empty chair beside my mother, across from Jega. A plate of rice was already waiting in front of me.
“Amora’s here. Let’s start eating.”
They had been waiting for me. That was why I’d been confused earlier when they hadn’t started eating even though they were already at the table. It would have been fine if they’d eaten first. I began taking food one dish at a time and ate enthusiastically. I felt like crying—it was the first time I’d ever experienced the warmth of a family and a warm meal.
“Come on, Amora, eat as much as you want. Just take it slow so you don’t choke,” Anisa said as she tried to put a shrimp on my plate. I pushed my plate closer so she could reach it. Apparently, I’d been eating so enthusiastically that Anisa teased me about it without my realizing it.
“Thank you, Anisa. This is the first time I’ve ever eaten together with everyone. I used to always eat leftovers at the end.” I lowered my head.
After I said that, I could see my family looking at me with pity. Because of that, they paid even more attention to me, taking turns filling my plate with side dishes.
“From now on, you’ll always eat the best food,” Jega said.
I was quite surprised by him. He looked cold, but he was capable of saying something so touching. I ate enthusiastically and had three refills of rice. My family only laughed at my behavior, in complete contrast to Anisa, who didn’t look happy about all the attention I was receiving.
After we finished eating, the household staff cleared the dining table. We moved to the family room. Suddenly, my father spoke.
“There’ll be a welcome party for you tomorrow evening, Amora.”
“For me?”
“Yes, so everyone will know that you’re our biological daughter,” my mother said from beside me as she reached for my hand and held it.
“Really?” I said, my eyes sparkling. “But what about Anisa?” I turned toward Anisa.
“That’s fine. I’ll tell everyone that she’s our adopted daughter.”
I looked at Anisa’s face as she once again held back her anger. Her hands, resting on her thighs, were trembling, and she stared at me while breathing heavily. She looked like she wanted to devour me alive right then and there. But she certainly couldn’t do anything to me now, with everyone here.
“I am adopted, so it’s only natural,” Anisa said with her trademark forced smile.
“Okay.” I deliberately replied in an extremely enthusiastic tone.