Sebestian was watching Allen nervously during his first few bites, trying to pretend he was enjoying the food himself. In fact, he was too nervous to pay attention to the taste, other than finding it bland and lacking. He was chewing slowly, taking small mouthfuls with his chopsticks from each dish until he had tried every one of them. Only then did he tilt his head slightly to the side and give him a look of honest surprise.

Allen's biological father came to meet her one day, ...