[ He's sure both Sousuke and Hamaji would have made the tea even better, but he's been doing this on his own for months, and it's paid off. He smiles, not saying anything, but that's his visible pleasure over having made something acceptable when he's been feeling rather alone.

He sat in the chair to Shi Qingxuan's right on prompting, holding his own tea but not taking a sip. ]

I can always make more, too. You should see how Sousuke brews tea, or Hamaji... they're both way better at it than I am.

[ It's sad, missing them right now especially, but not mentioning their names is so much worse for his heart. ]