Soon, the woman returned with a steaming bowl in her hands.
Kiah studied it curiously. The broth smelled rich, almost like beef, but she was certain the flavor came from packets.
Picking up her fork, she stirred the bowl gently, watching the steam curl upward before taking a cautious bite.
It wasn't bad. In fact, it tasted almost real. Almost.
Still, it was way better than the blob of despair.
Hunger quickly overpowered hesitation. She took another bite, then another, until she was eating steadily.
All around her, patrons filled the small room, some eating quietly, others chatting noisily about work and neighborhood gossip. A few men nearby laughed about their nagging wives or the new woman one of them was trying to woo.
Suddenly, a violent coughing fit broke out at a nearby table. One man seemed to have swallowed wrong, pounding his chest as his friends panicked.
"Flora! Can we get some water?" One of them shouted.
