[Totally un-weird.]
The tentative greeting, however soft in reality, was loud in Francis' ears. He had noticed Dietre walking around behind him the few times he had done so, but Francis still hadn't been expecting to be engaged in conversation. Dietre had been surfacing from his room more lately, and even spending time in the general area Francis was, but they rarely spoke during those times. It wasn't like hanging out; was more like being alone, just together.
At first it had bothered him, but because Dietre was so unobtrusive Francis had quickly gotten to the point where he felt comfortable sharing the same space as the kid for extended periods. That and he could always retreat to his own room if he got tired of sharing.
Sometimes he wondered why Dietre would make the effort to join him, when he could be doing the same thing sitting in his room, probably more comfortably. However, most times he didn't bother to wonder. He didn't need to know, and it was remarkably easy to convince himself he didn't care. It wasn't his business. In fact, it made it easier for him to keep an eye on the scientists' object of concern.
"Hungry?" Francis asked, after spotting the kid standing next to the fridge. "Dinner's not even close to ready yet." He turned back to the pumpkin and set his knife down, pulling the two halves of it away from each other with his hands while the pumpkin itself protested creakily. There were other pumpkins sitting on the counter waiting to be cut, but Francis scooped the innards and seeds from the current one before moving on.