Tanaga and Ashley ate their lunch in silence. They didn't make eye contact, yet they could sense every move the other made. The atmosphere in the room was tense. Tanaga ate quickly, consuming more food than he usually did without noticing. Ashley, however, had little appetite and picked at her food.
Tanaga couldn't bear to see that she wasn't eating. He shook his head. "Are you so frightened of me that you've lost your appetite? You've barely eaten. You have to be famished!" There was a heaviness in his voice as he spoke, looking intently at Ashley.
She had been in a daze, unaware that he had finished his meal and had been watching her for quite some time. His angry voice breaking the long silence had surprised her, but in her dazed state, she hadn't actually comprehended his words.
"I'm sorry. What did you say?" She managed to ask nervously, now on the verge of tears.
