Charles was not unthinking, so he made them stop by a local shop and bought a small five kg rice, some tin tomatoes, and other canned foods and drinks for her. He turned a deaf ear to Thalia's protests. He already felt bad enough that he was not treating her to a sumptuous meal outside and in a restaurant after they agreed to date because it looked like she was treating him to a meal.
"I will not take the little that you have for yourself and Flora. I see how you girls work your butt off daily to make ends meet, and I will not take even a fraction of that. If you do not want to go out to eat, we'll buy like this so that I can contribute to what we eat together. Let me do this, okay?"
She reluctantly nodded because she understood that it would not be fair to Flora in the least if she served her boyfriend from their budgeted meal money and resources. After this exchange, they returned to her room.
