Eventually, Steve and Ira leave, with Steve reminding Zev and Nova that they can call him any time, and Ira chiming in with a brief anecdote about calling him at half one in the morning to pick her up from another city entirely.
Zev sits at the counter, nursing a cup of tea, and wonders if he should offer to help. Aaren only has so many hands.
Well, 'Chelle's in the kitchen as well, and rescues her Dad's phone, winking at Zev. "Yeah, Uncle Steve, you know what Dad's like, we're gonna have far more food than any of us could possibly eat."
Inexplicably, she pulls a packet of breadsticks out of one of the cupboards and adds it to one of the bags.
"Yeah, we'll be ready to leave in about half an hour? Yeah, probably better for you to come here, I think all of us squeezing into Dad's car's gonna be a bit of a push..."
"Alright, cool, see you in twenty."
She hangs up the phone. "Uncle Steve's gonna come over here so we can split into two cars."
"Makes sense," Aaren agrees. "Okay, I think I've got everything. Is Lan awake yet?"
"M'wake," Lan mumbles as he stumbles into the kitchen. "S'that coffee? Coffee!"
Lan takes the mug 'Chelle hands him, and takes a big gulp before replying. "Stare pitifully at the kettle and eventually have to figure out how to use it before all my faculties are online?"
“Yes, truly my one weakness is big sad eyes,” Zev says, grinning back at Lan before he noses into Nova’s head.
Aaren takes a break from making sandwiches to push a breakfast roll into Lan's hand. "Man cannot live on coffee alone."
“Mmm, just the one,” Zev says somewhat dopily, wrapping his arms around Nova.
To Aaren: “Don’t challenge him to that.”
"Everyone knows Lan can't resist Dad's cooking. He'd be eating again before the first day was out."