Chloe instantly grabbed her panini and wolfed the biggest bite she could out of it, chewing pretty loud and fast. The Bears observed her sudden devouring of the food. Ice's cooking might have been delicious, but Chloe doesn't really act this way.
As soon as her mouth was mostly clear of the monster bite, she shouted in a desperate attempt to change the subject "Wow Ice". Her mouth was still full of some food as she continued. "How did you learn to cook so well"?
She stared at Ice, expecting a response, but he said nothing. He stared at her, realizing her tactical strategy. He cared for Chloe, but didn't like being used, and he was not going to fall victim as a pawn. He wanted her to answer the question and just stood there, quietly eating his sandwich. Chloe realized she made another mistake by asking the cleverest of the bears to change the subject. Grizz and Panda meanwhile stared at Ice for a little bit, expecting him to say something as well. When the silence continued, they looked at each other and wondered why there was tension in the kitchen, especially when there was food around them.
Grizz eventually had to break the silence and asked Chloe "Is something wrong, Chloe?"
She stared down at her bitten food, swallowed what was left in her mouth, and sighed in depression. Grizz instantly realized what was going on and sincerely followed up his question by explaining to her "Look, you don't have to tell us about it if you don't want to. We understand if you feel uncomfortable."
This only made her grumble in anger now. It was the classic 'you-don't-have-to-,but-I-will-anyway' trick. She never has felt like such a doop in her whole life. She raises her head off the table after her grumbling ends and says with a straight face and tone "No, no Grizz. It's ok. I…I am ok with telling you guys. Let's just…go to the living room is all."
She takes one more bite of her sandwich that Ice Bear had prepared for her, so he wouldn't feel insulted, and got up from her seat to begin walking into the living room. Ice Bear, who was already standing, followed her under the archway. Grizz grabbed his last sandwich and followed behind, while Panda, being farthest from the opening, grabbed what was left of his grilled cheese and left his comic on the table, following the oldest brother.
The Bears saw Chloe standing on top of their round wooden table, waiting for them to take seats. Panda sat down in the middle after Grizz and Ice took the sides. Grizz put the dish with his last sandwich onto his lap, while Panda and Ice had just finished theirs. All was silent as they waited for Chloe to speak, but she seemed nervous. She sat down and tilted her head towards the ground, her arms on her pants, and her mind…who knew? Still, the bears just stared at her, patient and quiet. She took a deep breath, exhaled, and pulled her head up to start from the beginning.