Saving the day works up quite the appetite.
Steven didn't truly realize how hungry he was, until Garnet set a shawarma bowl and Coke in front of him. The golden flaky bread, crammed with a generous helping of meat, lettuce, and tomato, slathered with sour cream for garnish, nearly made Steven smash his face against the food as an attempt to inhale it.
Squealing, he wraps his hands around the huge sandwich-like food, and takes a hearty bite. Golden flakes fly in the air, and crumble on the table. Sour cream smears his upper lip. A piece of lettuce hangs out the corner of his lip. But eating neatly was the last thing on Steven's mind - this sandwich was the best thing he probably ever stuffed in his mouth.
Invigorated, he chews excitedly, savoring the food. "Mmmh," He hums, content. He didn't even swallow what was already in his mouth, and Steven was preparing to take another bite.
Observant and cautious as always, Garnet cracks open the Coke, and nudges it to Steven so he won't choke. Pearl immediately leans over, and swipes a napkin across Steven's mouth. Amethyst is having a ball with her food, easily shoving two entire shawarmas into her mouth. Happy for the beverage, Steven chugs it down. The sweet beverage alleviated the gobful stuck in his throat, soothing it down. This further encourages Steven to wolf down the rest of his meal, without a care in the world.
Now that his belly is slowly being filled up with good food and drink, Steven observes everyone else. He, the Gems, and the Avengers are all huddled around a bunch of tables pushed together to accomadate the hungry crowd. A Together Lunch! Steven declares internally, triumphant.
The seating at the table is what follows: Steven sits on top Garnet's lap, to save the already miniscule space and chairs the modest diner had to offer. Pearl, poised and rigid as ever, is sitting across from Steven, shoved in between Amethyst and Thor, the most enthusiastic (and messy, much to her visible chargin) eaters at the table. Steve Rogers sits at the edge, his food untouched. He nods in and out of sleep, half-lucid. Natasha and Clint are seated closely to each another, their legs tucked into the other's seat. Tony is rocking his chair back and forth time to time, chewing slowly on his own food. Bruce is hunched over his meal, trying to make himself as small as possible, thoughtfully staring off into space.
No one is talking. There was no need to, nor did anyone expect it. It wasn't completely silent, though. In the background, the cashier is wiping the counter, while the cook sweeps the debris-coated floor. Car honks and ambulance sirens echo faintly from outside. The refrigerator for sodas is still miraculously working - the electricity humming is proof of that. Thor is chomping on his food, consuming with a hefty gusto. Amethyst is practically competing, flawlessly shoving shawarma after shawarma down her throat, including wrappers and soda cans on top of those. No one even batted an eye.
Natasha looks at Pearl's direction, slightly raising an eyebrow seeing that the Gem attempted to order nothing. She slides a water bottle to Pearl, a silent offer. Pearl straightens even more, her mouth forming into a surprised 'o'. She points to her chest gesturing, 'as in me?' Natasha responds by pushing the bottle closer. Smiling, Pearl takes the considerate gift. Instead of drinking out of it, however, Pearl simply takes a clean napkin, wets it with water, and pats it on her forehead. She promptly tosses the water bottle to Amethyst, who swallows it whole, plastic and everything.
This time, everybody paused to stare at the Gems.
They stare back, oblivious.
Tony snickers, shaking his head. Bruce's shoulders roll up and down, from low chuckling. Steve frowns, opens his mouth to nearly say something, but changes his mind, dozing back to sleep. Thor is gawking at Amethyst, clearly awed at her inhuman feat. She flashes a thumbs up at him. Clint gives an incredulous snort, nudging to Natasha, 'can you believe this?' And she shrugs, squirting mustard on her shawarma.
Seeing this gives Steven an idea, and he scrambles off Garnet. Hopping over a piece of rubble, the boy scampers over to the counter. He promptly grabs a Siracha and mayo bottle, bounding back to his seat. The grown-ups pause a moment, amused, and watch Steven. Getting to work, Steven squirts the condiments into the paper bowl. Satisfied, he proceeds to mix this concoction with the end of his shawarma, and bites into it.
"Mmhhh!"
Eagerly, Steven offers some of his shawarma to Garnet. She bites into it, swallowing. "Mm-hm." Garnet hums her approval, posing a double thumbs-up. Steven bounces up and down, elated.
Tony scoffs, unconvinced. Reaching over with his own shawarma in hand, he dips it into the siracha-mayo mix without even so much as a permission. Not like Steven minded, anyway. Everyone watches, mildly curious, as Tony chews. He is frowning deeply. Then, his eyebrows raise slowly but surely. His eyes widen, and chews faster. Tony is nodding his approval, and signs for more siracha and mayo.
Steven beams, pushing them over. Tony squeezes the red and white sauces all over his shawarma, then pokes Bruce, wiggling his eyebrows. Bruce gives a half sigh, but is smiling anyway, squeezing a cautious amount onto his own shawarma. He didn't even get a chance to try it, and Clint already swiped the bottles away.
He dumps the condiments on his own food, examines it, then chomps on it. Huh. Clint chews, not emoting his appreciation. It's so average, it was okay. But meeting Steven's starry and bright gaze, Clint at least gives a non-committal shrug. Natasha, meanwhile, squeezes just Siracha on her shawarma. She keeps a straight laced face as she eats the fiery flavored food. The humans look on, impressed.
Steve Rogers was hesitant at first, but upon seeing everyone's positive reaction, he pours a modest amount on his food too.
Taking his first bite, and chewing, Steven flushes red. He slowly sets the shawarma down, and fans his face like crazy. Tony starts cackling, figuring out quickly what's happening to the poor Captain's tastebuds. Garnet takes the unopened Coke sitting at the table, and pours it down the Captain's mouth. Steve gags, the soda splashing out of the sides.
"S'okay!" He wheezes, sheepishly taking the soda. Pearl offers a bunch of napkins, sympathetic for his plight. Steve gratefully takes them, and wipes his mouth. He turns an even deeper red, when the others realized that the old fashioned Captain simply couldn't handle the hardly-even-qualifying-spicy siracha.
Natasha's mouth twists with amusement. Clint grins at Steve's expense. Bruce is covering his mouth, seriously trying not to lose it. Garnet is stoic as ever, while Pearl and Thor clearly don't get what was so funny. Amethyst joins Tony's cackles. Steve is absolutely red, but keeps his head tall, and eats more of his shawarma. Steven flashes an encouraging smile at the super soldier.
Amethyst then grabs both the bottles and squirts the rest of the contents into her mouth. Thor harrumphs deeply, a bit disappointed he didn't get to try the sauce Steven introduced to the whole table. Everybody else just turn their heads slightly away in disgust at Amethyst's gluttonous display.
Otherwise, it was a peaceful and leisurely meal. A together meal.
Steven gulps the last of his food, sighing and patting his belly. He snuggles deeper into the crook of Garnet's arm, and looks at everybody again through half-lidded eyes.
It was perfect.