Chapter 4-A: Breakfast Time!

Rubbing her forearm, Melty lifted her gaze to look at him. She slowly, but surely, walked to the dining table and sat on the chair.

"Eryn! Eryn!" Lofie was practically drooling, eyeing her breakfast very closely. "Can I start eating it?"

"Haha, go ahead." Eryn nodded. "Enjoy your meal."

Lofie immediately stuffed her mouth with the sandwich, filling her cheeks out while Iris took her time and took little nibbles. The contrast between these two sisters…

However, Melty had put no effort to touch her sandwich or her glass of milk. She… must feel terrible about what happened.

He moved his chair next to her and sat beside her. "Melty…" he gently caressed her hair. "Do you not like the food? I can make something else if you-"

"N-No…" Melty shook her head, sniffing. "This is… fine."

"… I see." Eryn hummed. "Do you want me to feed you?"

Melty's mouse ears perked up hearing that question. Though her eyebrows were furrowed, Eryn could see the corners of her lips curving up. Is she trying to hold back her smile?

Heh, isn't that adorable. Her behavior amused him. Eryn cut her sandwich into smaller chunks. He held a chunk and guided it to her little mouth. Is there where I go and say 'aaaa' or something? "Say aaaah…"

"Aaaa…" Melty opened her mouth to eat the sandwich and chewed it.

"… How is it?"

"… It's good." Melty puffed her cheeks and looked away from him. It was clear to him she was restraining herself from letting a smile form on her lips.

Is this her way of punishing herself? Eryn thought. Whatever she was doing, it was a sight for sore eyes. Immediately, an idea popped into his mind. Maybe he could take advantage of the situation.

"Oh, Melty…" Eryn let out a dramatic sigh, resting his face on his forearm, which was plopped upright on the table. "I suppose I need to punish you for burning my couch."

Iris and Lofie's eyes widened in surprise. They looked at each other, confusion spread across their faces. Melty's expression was one of horror.

"E-Eryn…" Melty tried to voice out, her hands trembling. "I'm s-sorry! Please don't kick me out!"

"No, no. I won't kick you out." Eryn waved his hands. "However, I'll forgive you if you listen to this request of mine…"

"I'll d-do it!" Melty answered without hesitation.

"I see." Eryn tried to hold back his laugh. He then poked her cheek. "Then, please… let me see you smile."

"… H-Huh…?" Melty blinked a few times. That was not a punishment now, was it?

"Yeah!" Iris nodded. "Melty, you shouldn't hold back your smiles!"

"M'eah!" Lofie apparently voiced her approval too, though her mouth was full of food.

It seems they noticed, too. Eryn hummed to himself. Well, they are sisters… aren't they? Eryn figured they weren't actually blood-related sisters, but that was a topic for another time.

"I wasn't holding back my smiles!" Melty huffed, puffing her cheeks at Iris. She folded her arms in defiance.

"Oh, really?" Eryn smiled, holding another chunk of the sandwich to feed her.

"Aaaa…" Melty opened her mouth to eat the sandwich. This time, she let the smile form on her lips as she chewed. "Hehehe!"

"… There." Eryn stroked her red hair. "That's better." Just seeing her little smile relieved some tension from his body.

"Eryn…" Iris puffed her cheeks out, pouting at him. "It's not fair Melty's getting all the attention!"

Eryn raised an eyebrow, blinking at her. "… I'm sorry?"

"I want you to feed me too!" Iris huffed.

"M-Me too!" Lofie followed, finally swallowing her food.

It feels like the bath all over again. Eryn let out a faint sigh. "Haha, well, you're nearly done eating your sandwich, Iris." He turned his head to look at Lofie's plate. "And Lofie… you're already done eating."

"… Oh." Lofie shifted her gaze down to her empty plate. In wanting Eryn's attention, she forgot she had finished her sandwich.

"You're a bit of a messy eater, aren't you?" Eryn chuckled, then took a napkin to clean Lofie's mouth. There were breadcrumbs around her cheeks. "Here." He gently rubbed around.

The family had a pleasant conversation over sandwiches and milk. Melty was her usual self now, so Eryn was grateful for that. Soon, the monstergirls were done having sandwiches and chocolate milk.

Eryn began stacking the plates and glasses together and brought them to the sink to clean them up.

"Eryn! Eryn!" Iris stood beside him and tugged on his shirt a few times. "Can I help wash the dishes?"

"Ah, it's fine." Eryn patted her head before resuming washing the dishes. "It's not much to do."

"Please…?" Iris folded her hands, pleading with her bubbly eyes. "I want to wash the dishes!"

"Hmmm…" Eryn hummed for a moment. I certainly would appreciate her help… he wanted them to settle in his house first since they just arrived yesterday. But as he stared into her soft blue eyes… how can I say no to that?

"Alright, alright." Eryn cracked a smile. "You can help wash the dishes."

"Okay!" Iris moved in front of him and tried to peek into the sink. She was barely able to see it because of her short stature. The sink was level with her eyes. Eryn found her attempts adorable.

"Let me grab a stool…" Eryn opened a nearby cabinet and took a stool out and placed it in front of him. He helped Iris to stand on the stool, giving her additional height. "There, that should be better. Do you know how to wash dishes?"

"… No." Iris shook her head awkwardly.

"… Oh?"

"B-But I want to help!" Iris tilted her head upwards. "I want to be helpful to Eryn."

"I… appreciate it, Iris." Eryn said. I hope she isn't pushing herself. "It's simple, really. Let me teach you."

Eryn turned on the faucet, letting the water flow into the sink. "First things first, let's prep these plates and glasses." He held each plate and placed it under the running water, letting the water clear the leftover scraps. "Let's try to clean them off first using water."

"Okay!" Iris attempted to follow Eryn's directions. She did the same with the milk-stained glasses, removing the little milk liquids in the bottle using the water. "Like this?"

"Great." Eryn smiled. He then took a sponge and dispensed soap into it. He put the sponge under the water, giving it a few squeezes. Always gotta give 'em a good squeeze. "You may know this is a sponge. We can use soap with it to clean the dishes!"

"Oh, oh!" Iris's tails began wagging around. "It's like washing our hands, right?"

"Sure, you could say that." Eryn nodded. "Instead of washing our hands, we're washing the dishes!"

He continued his demonstration of washing the plates with the sponge, scrubbing them clean, then rinsing them off. Iris did the same with the glasses, leaving them squeaky clean. Eryn observed her content expression as she washed the dishes. I wish I was this enthusiastic when washing dishes…

"… And done!" Eryn set the plates and glasses aside in the dishwasher, letting them dry off on their own.

"Did I do well, Eryn?" Stepping down the stool, Iris's eyes sparkled, looking up at him. Her tail was wagging much more intensely now.

"Of course, Iris." Eryn smiled sweetly, looking down at her. "You were very helpful."

"T-Then…" With a pleading look in her eyes, Iris's tail curled up around his leg. "Could I get some head pats?"

"… Oh, alright." Eryn rested his hand on her head between her ears, stroking it gently. I mean, I was planning on doing it, anyway…

"Mhmm…" Iris let out a satisfied sigh. She began purring under his touch, taking Eryn by surprise.

She can purr?! His eyes widened. I mean, she is a cat… why am I surprised?

"Eryn, ahm…" Iris nuzzled into his stomach. "I might have been… lying a bit."

"Lying?" Eryn raised an eyebrow in amusement. "About what?"

"I wanted to be helpful to you so…" Iris's cheeks were dyed red. "I could ask for head pats."

"Huh…" Eryn was so lost for words he didn't even know how to react. It was such an adorable reason he wouldn't call it lying.

Does she mean to say she has an ulterior motive? And this ulterior motive is that she wants head pats as a reward for helping me?

"You know, Iris…" Eryn crouched down and continued patting her head. "I can pat your head anytime. I don't see why I should only pat you if you help me."

"… Really?" Iris asked shyly. "C-Can I always ask for head pats?"

She… seems to like head pats, huh? "Well, sure… when I'm not busy, I suppose."

"… Okay." Smiling, Iris leaned into his touch and continued purring. Her purring was relaxing to Eryn, he discovered. I think I read on the internet that a cat's purr was healing, in a way.

"You've been so kind to us, Eryn. You gave us a bed, new clothes, and even made us breakfast." Iris said, her tone full of admiration and respect for him. "I feel bad when you give us head pats… I feel Eryn is spoiling us too much."

"… Haha, is that so." Eryn sighed faintly. I don't know if I'm doing a good job taking care of them yet. This should be the bare minimum. They deserve all this. Again, what kind of owners did they go through? What kind of shelters did they go through? If they didn't even get this level of care…

It might not be a good idea to talk about it, for now, it might bring up some bad memories.