Both Leah and Helen looked up at him with a surprise look on their faces.
'Did he just...' Both ladies had the same thought spiraling around their minds.
They were unsure of if they had heard him correctly so they remained silent to listen to what he had to say.
Rudy set his spoon down and his hand slowly curled into a fist as he continued. "I'm sorry for last night. For saying those things and for everything before that. I know I've been cold and ungrateful to the two of you but I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have pushed you two away when you've been nothing but kind to me. I really appreciate all you've done for me and I promise it won't happen again." Rudy assured them as his fist tightened even more.
Helen was a best friend to his late mother, so it explained why she had decided to raise him when no one else could.
She had every right to kick him out of her house but she didn't and Rudy was grateful for that.
The young boy had witnessed his parents being torn to shreds so he was reluctant about being close to anyone else.
A part of him feared the demons would return again, so it was better for him to remain distant to both Leah and Helen with the hope that he won't feel hurt if something were to ever happen to them.
But there was no way Rudy was going to let that happen.
He was prepared to do whatever it takes to protect them because he knew both Helen and Leah won't hesitate to do the same for him, despite how the young boy had treated them in the past.
Meanwhile, Helen and Leah were still in shock by what they had just heard.
Silence reigned in the room as Helen blinked blearily with a stunned look on her face and Leah's mouth parted open as though she wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words to say.
For a long moment, neither of them moved
But then, Helen's lips curved into a smile and her eyes slowly welled up in tears as she reached across the table to place a hand over his.
She had a lot she wanted to say to him but the only words that could come out of her lips were "..... Thank you."
Helen was so happy right now and her heart had never felt so relieved to see how matured the little boy had grown.
She wanted to stand up and give him a hug but she knew that would be a little too much for him right now.
But what she didn't know was that, Rudy would definitely not mind to be hugged by her, with his head resting upon her huge marshmallows.
After all, it's not every day he gets to hug a beautiful rabbit-eared demihuman.
Meanwhile, Leah's cheeks were now pink as she ducked her head towards her plate to hide the cute grin tugging at her lips.
She was pleased with how Rudy had man up to apologize for what happened last night and her ears twitched happily as she shoveled a spoonful of broth into her mouth.
Rudy smiled as he noticed this, then he picked up his spoon again before focusing on his meal.
Rudy grabbed a spoonful of broth and his eyes widened in surprise the moment it touched his taste buds.
He glanced down at the meal in surprise and Helen noticed this as well, so she asked. "Rudy? What's wrong? You don't like the food? If you don't, I can help you....."
"No, it's not that. The food is good, I love it."
"Really?"
"Yes." Rudy nodded with a smile and before Helen could say anything, she watched as Rudy hungrily wolfed down his meal, causing his cheeks to look cute like a little hamster.
Helen giggled and said. "Slow down Rudy."
But Rudy didn't stop.
Instead, he continued to eat as though he had never eaten anything as sweet as Helen's cooking.
Although that was the case but it wasn't the only reason why he was eating so much right now.
Back on Earth, Rudy's chronic illness allowed him to have a low appetite, so whenever he had eaten a little bit of food, he would be satisfied with it.
But with his new body, Rudy felt like he could eat five plates and he still wouldn't be satisfied.
Was it normal for people in this world to feel this way?
He wondered but he didn't really care about that right now because he was simply enjoying his meal.
Seeing this, Helen couldn't help but ask "Would you like more?"
Rudy nodded instantly.
It was almost like a how a child would nod in excitement, and Helen happily scooped another portion onto his plate.
It was the first time he had ever requested for seconds and Helen was more than happy to give him more but while she was doing this, Rudy noticed how little she had served herself.
In fact, her plate was barely touched and the reason for this was simple.
Due to what had happened between them last night, Helen had been unable to think straight since then.
She was worried about what would have happened to him if they hadn't found him in the woods as quickly as they did last night.
But even though they had healed him and he was now okay, the thought of what happened before he stormed out of the house had been troubling her still.
And that's why she has unknowingly dishes a small portion of food for herself.
But now that the awkward atmosphere between them had been resolved, Rudy saw no reason for her to eat so little.
"What are you doing?" Helen noticed as Rudy stood up to reach for the bowl before adding more onto her plate.
Then he pushed it closer to her.
"You need to eat too. We have a long journey ahead of us, so you'll need all your strength along the way."
Helen was startled by his kind gesture.
It took her a while to process what had just happened but her lips swiftly turned into a smile and a soft laugh escaped her cute lips as she nodded in understanding.
"Alright, I'll eat. Thank you Rudy."
Rudy nodded firmly, then he turned his attention to Leah who had been watching him closely the whole time, almost as though she wanted him to do something.
Of course he knew what she wanted and Leah's cute pink eyes widened the moment she noticed his hand scooping more food onto her plate.
"You too Leah, eat well." He said with a grin and Leah's cheeks flushed pink.
Her lips trembled in a cute way, almost as though it couldn't decide between smiling or pretending not to.
But it eventually settled on a smile and Leah responded with a nod.
Her ears twitched happily as she dug back to her meal and a huge smile appeared on Rudy's lips as he watched both ladies eating with a cute smile on their faces.
The atmosphere had changed significantly and Rudy was pleased to see the system screen popping up in front of him.