Title: Red

Summary: One color could mean so many things to different people. Power, health, vigor, life and joy. To Kuga Terunori, it was a destiny and a future he looked forward to.

Author's Note: Hey, guys! It's been exactly one lunar year since I made the fic Enchanted on Chinese New Year and guess what I'm about to do this year.

Oh, yeah.

Consider this a part two to the soul mate head cannon.

Kuga lovers, you're welcome.

Disclaimer: Shokugeki no Soma is not mine. Well, at least this fic is.

When a soul is born, it has a pair. Another soul that is bound to them for an entire lifetime. Now two souls have found their way to each other. It is the color of life that bound them and it shall bind them still until the end of time.

A color was a shade. It was something that merely reflected different light waves in the way an object reflects or emits light. It was a thing. A property. A characteristic.

And it never seized to amaze Kuga why something as simple and inexplainable as color affected and heightened human emotion.

One of the age long questions that people ask is what is one's favorite color. To many, it was trivial and to others, a pain. He himself didn't really know what to answer it, as billions of other people did. She had asked that question to him once and for some reason, he never really got around to finding an answer for it.

How could one choose when the possibility of many other combinations, shades and hues existed?

"Well, what about you? What's your favorite color?" he threw the question back at her, earning a surprised look from the small girl next to him.

For a while, she said nothing. The sounds of people passing in in the park square filled the silence between the two of them. She leaned her head on Kuga's shoulder and smiled contentedly as she took in the smell of his cologne. "Wouldn't you want to know?" she teased.

Kuga frowned. "I wouldn't ask if I didn't care," he said in an as-a-matter-of-factly voice. He turned and buried his nose into her hair. He took her hand and placed it on his lap. "Well, what is it?"

(Name) giggled. She hummed in thought. "I do like red." She looked down at herself. "As you could see, I'm wearing a red sweater. Most of my clothes are in red." (Name) shrugged one shoulder. "It wouldn't be too difficult to figure out."

Kuga hummed in agreement. "Yeah, that does make sense." He held up a finger in realization. "Most of the things in your side of the room are in that color. And not to mention, you get really defensive when Yukihira-chin commented about how that dress you liked looked weird on you."

She attempted to hit him on the back of his head. He hopped away from her just in time and her boyfriend blew a raspberry. Kuga broke out into laughter. Her cheeks flushed.

(Name) stood up, her arms firmly on her sides. "That's it," she fumed. "I'm out. Good luck celebrating New Year alone." She turned on her heel and started to leave.

Kuga's face broke into confusion. "Aw, you don't mean that, (Name)-chan!"

"Heh, sure." She rolled her eyes.

Kuga ran up to her. "C'mon, I was only joking about the dress!"

The night ended with the two of them in their favorite tea house, Kuga sipping tea quietly and (Name) fuming and stabbing the dimsum with her chopsticks. After a while, she suddenly burst into laughter and surprisingly leaned over her side to give Kuga a peck on the lips. Kuga became a spluttering, blubbering mess.

His cheeks flushed. "What, what was that for?!"

"You win." She smiled. "I guess I just can't resist you, after all."

To say he short circuited was an understatement. He might have as well said that he lost a couple of screws after that.

Kuga took a swig of the milk tea he had on hand and wiped his mouth with his free arm's jacket sleeve. He coughed a laugh. That memory was definitely one of the weirder ones. Actually, every moment was weird when you were around but there were just some of those that trumped all the rest.

He took off his jacket and placed it over his lap. He felt something sticking out from one of its pockets and fished out a small red silk drawstring pouch. Pulling it open, he spilled the contents onto his hand and smiled.

Why his brain chose to remember that one moment as he sat on the sides of the town square's fountain, he didn't know.

He did, however, realize something because of it as he played with the object in his hand.

Red. It was the color of his destiny.

It was the color of the Lunar New Year, the day you two first met as soul mates.

It was also (Name)'s favorite and it reflected her very well.

(Name), sweet as the strawberries she ate on her shortcake.

(Name), warm as the sunrises that she would drag Kuga to see at the beach near her house on summers when he would come to visit, even if he did whine about it.

(Name), comfortable as the autumns they shared, jumping into high piles of fallen leaves and lying next to each other's warmth afterwards as they listen to the sounds of their out of breath giggles.

(Name), fine as the red Chinese silk her dress was made out of when they went out on their first New Year date.

(Name), wild as the Ferraris she wished to drive and quite ironically, the same shade of the mini van which almost killed them both one time because she wasn't paying attention to the road.

(Name), quirky and eye catching as the poppies that scream liveliness and a hint of flirtatiousness that made Kuga go insane each time.

(Name), bright as a tiny sparkle which grew into a flame he could no longer ignore.

(Name), who was all of these things combined into one special girl that Kuga wasn't sure he actually deserved.

(Last Name) (First Name). The woman to whom this velvet box belongs to and the one who held Kuga Terunori's heart in her very hands.

When they met, he wished that she wouldn't break it.

Kuga Terunori, a proud person who always held up on his own, begging for this one person to spare him of hurt and give him a chance.

The best part was (Name) did.

So there was nothing else to say.

(Name) was the one.

Kuga kept fiddling with the box in his hand. If he was so sure, then why was he here in the first place? What, then, was he doing, causing a panic to those he left behind in the resort?

Was he, the fearless Kuga Terunori, actually afraid after all?

Wait no, that did not sound right.

He broke out of his train of thought when he heard his phone ringing. Annoyed, he picked it up and asked for the caller.

"Master Kuga, we have been trying to reach you for two hours! Please explain to us exactly what is happening!"

"Oh? I just went to get some air!" He stood up and shoved the box into his pants pocket. He smiled menacingly. "Besides that, didn't I tell you to call me when it's something really, really, really, really important?"

The other line cleared his throat. "Sir, it's urgent news. Miss (Name) is gone. She thought you walked out on her."

His blood ran cold. "What?"

"Sir, she was in tears. You haven't picked up your phone when she called several times and no one could find you anywhere. Not to mention that the rings were missing. She left the hotel without telling anyone, the last person who saw her being your mother." Kuga heard a small sigh. "She is heartbroken, Master."

Kuga remained silent for a second. This was seriously not happening. Of all of the crappy things that could happen today. His eyebrows knit together. He clucks his tongue. "Moron."

"Excuse me, sir?"

"What a big, big, big, big, big moron she is!" Kuga yelled into the receiver, catching his head servant in surprise. He threw his jacket on and strode to his car. "Call her and tell her not to move! If she does, I'm going to tickle her sides until she runs out of air!" He slams his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. "No wait, hang up. I want to talk to her personally."

"Uh, of course sir." The call ended.

Kuga searched up your number and dialed it. He placed the phone on loud speaker as he started the engine. As he stepped on the gas and started going at high speed towards the Tootsuki Resort, he waited for your call. No way. No way in hell was he letting you walk out on him! Not after all the crazy things that you had done to him and all the things he had to go through just to get you to say yes!

The ring tone stopped. "If you think—"

"And where the hell do you think you're going?!" he screeched. "A couple of missed calls and you suddenly bail on me?! What is wrong with you?! Are you out of your fucking mind?!" Kuga swerved sharply into one corner, causing other drivers to curse at him.

"No, Terunori! Are you out of your fucking mind?!" you yelled back at him on the other end, your voice cracking. "I've been looking for you—hell, everyone's been looking for you—and you were not there! What the fuck would you think if the groom suddenly disappears on your wedding day and the rings also magically fucking disappear, too?!"

Kuga grit his teeth. He heard you sniffle on the other line.

"I,I don't know if I can do this. You don't open doors for me anymore. You stopped liking to go out on dates with me. You don't miss me anymore. You've…completely changed, Terunori. You're not the Terunori I knew ten years ago."

He didn't want this. He didn't want any of this.

"I…I don't know what to do anymore."

"Don't move," he said in a low voice.

"What?"

"I said don't move," Kuga repeated. "I'll come to you." His eyes shone, determination written all over his face. He slammed his foot on the breaks and did a complete U turn in the middle of the road. In such a situation, he would have thought he would have a fit. Instead, a calm feeling rushed over him.

"If I'm not there in five minutes, you can leave."

"Teru—"

"But if I find you there, ceremony or no ceremony, I will marry you." He gripped the steering wheel hard. "I will take you home today if it's the last thing I do, whether you like it or not."

He smiled. "And this time, for good."

He didn't notice how the other line was so silent, but you were breathless at his words. The confidence in what he said made you clutch your hammering chest. A blush bloomed on your face and thank God he wasn't there to see it, or else he would make fun out of it even more.

You hung up the phone. As you stared at the bright blue April sky above you, the tears streamed down your face as the cherry blossom petals flew by.

Hurry, Teru. Before I change my mind.

Four minutes and seventeen seconds. That was the fastest record that Kuga had ever attained and probably it would earn him a couple of ominous tickets but he didn't care about it now.

The minute the wheels rolled in, Kuga floored the brakes, parked the car and threw himself out of the car door in seconds. He sprinted towards the children's park that was immediately up ahead and headed for the entrance. He craned his neck to search for your familiar petite figure in the quiet landscape.

"(First name)!" He cupped his hands over his mouth and tried again. He scoured the area as he yelled out your name once more. "(First name)!"

"Teru?"

Kuga snapped his head towards the sound. You were there sitting on the swings, hands on chains that suspended the seat. A trail of dried tears were on your face, your (eye color) eyes boring at him. A crushing feeling grew in his chest and he approached you.

"Teru, how—But I didn't—How did you—" you started through your hiccups.

Kuga knelt and brushed the tears away with his thumb. "I brought you here, dummy," he said with a small laugh. "Of course I'd know you'll come here. The cherry blossoms in April, you've always liked them."

Damn it, you felt your stomach tighten again as he said those words. "No, I don't."

He stood up and took a seat on the swing beside yours. "Oh really?"

"I like chrysanthemums, jerkass," you said in hiccups.

"Liar," he said as he playfully flicked your forehead with his thumb and index finger. You yelped in pain and glared at him.

"Do you want me to stay or don't you?" you asked him dangerously, expecting Kuga to reply angrily at what you said. However, he looked at you with a smile which made your heart race instead.

"Whether you leave or stay, that's up to you." He shrugged. "However, I would still drag you back here anyway if you chose to go."

You laughed bitterly. "So either way, I don't have much of a choice, is that what you're saying?"

"Of course, (Name)-chan!" he cried out. "Not when we've finally paid for everything that will happen today, of course you don't have a choice! Just being honest, I high likely think that you or your entire family wouldn't be able to pay back the debt of having this entire wedding arranged at my family's expense!"

If looks could kill, you would have murdered the man next to you right now.

"But really, you wouldn't do that. I know it."

You quirked a brow at him. "Oh? What makes you so sure?"

"Now that's just mean!" Crocodile tears threatened to fall from his eyes. "You know I proposed to you here on an April day like this! And I did it under the cherry blossoms too, even if they did get in my hair or on my clothes because you liked them so much! You even cried on that day, you know you love me!"

You couldn't help but giggle. "Yeah, yeah, I get it." The small smile turned into a frown. "But that was before you…you changed. When you still missed me and liked having me around." You hunched and dropped your head, your vision starting to blur. "When you…when you were still the Kuga I knew."

"Who said I don't?"

You turned to him. Kuga was still looking at you even as you turned away. "Whenever I'm away, the only thing that gets me really, really, really, really excited to go home is the thought of you, waiting for me in our apartment. It gets really hard when I get to resched because it would only frustrate me because I know that you'd feel bad about it."

He reached into his pocket and took out the red velvet box. "And so I thought of the most brilliant solution ever!"

He opened the box to reveal two Chinese gold rings. He took out the one with the bright red ruby in the center and took your hand. "If I could finally spend the rest of my life with you, I can bring you to where I am and you won't have to feel bad anymore."

He slipped in the ring into your finger as you wordlessly watched him. Kuga slowly looked up to meet your gaze with a tender loving look. "If I finally marry you, I won't have to miss you anymore and that is more than enough for me. Ceremony or no ceremony."

"Oh, Teru…" You said breathlessly. He got up and kneeled in front of you on one knee. He took your hand and kissed it.

"When a soul is born, it has a pair. Another soul that is bound to them for a lifetime. Although they may have been born together, Fate is mischievous and keeps them apart all in the name of a game. They have no way of knowing whether they have met or have yet to meet but they may only rely on one thing: waiting for themselves to see in full color."

Your eyes widened in realization. He was quoting the book you read as a child!

"But no matter where they are or how long it would take, they will still find their way to each other. And once they are close, the listless world around them finally blooms into the vibrance of the spectrum."

You stared at him in awe as he stood up, saying nothing more. The silence between the two of you stretches for a couple more seconds as you slowly registered everything that had just happened. Then without warning, he tells you that you have three seconds to slap him.

"What?"

A devious smile was on his lips. "Three seconds and no more."

"What the hell are you—"

You were cut short as Kuga pulled you up and placed his hand on the back of your neck and waist as he placed his lips on yours. His lips were soft against your own and you felt his warmth in the chilly April spring air. You felt your eyes widen in shock and the tears fell. The taste of the salt in your flowing tears was on your lips and it only made the pleasure great. You shrieked a bit, and eventually moaned slightly into the kiss. He slightly dips you as the kiss deepens, causing you to moan again. The feeling was electric and it ran through every part of your being.

This was the Kuga you were missing and you realized something as you allowed yourself to melt.

He had never really changed or left.

When the two of you let go, both of you were gasping for air. After the mind-blanking experience, your brain slowly registered everything and you were suddenly a spluttering, blubbering red mess.

"What, what was that for?!" you screamed, ramming your fists into his chest as Kuga laughed.

"Revenge!" he replied proudly. "For that New Year with the dimsum kiss! One!"

"You moron, that was years ago!" you spat, hitting him even harder.

"Two!"

"What the hell—"

"Three!" He raised his hands up in the air. "Ding, ding, ding, time's up!"

You shook your head, both in confusion and irritation. "I do not know what just happened."

Kuga laughed. "Well, you don't have to understand it. I couldn't help it." He placed his hands behind his head. "I guess I just can't resist you, after all."

You gave him a surprised look before bursting into laughter. Kuga stared at you and smiled. A warm wave of giddiness came over him and he laughed along with you. Somehow, he knew that seeing you and the ruby ring on her finger would mean that everything would be alright. Yes, he was laughing with you underneath the fully bloomed cherry blossoms and he knew that he would still be tomorrow and forever as well.

Kuga took your hand and linked it with his, his fingers filling in the spaces of your own small dainty hands. "We ought to go. Everyone's waiting for us."

You nodded. "Let's. We have to make this official."

He brought your hand close to his lips and nodded. "Yeah. And then we can go home."

"Yeah."

At that moment, the red jewel's glint shone brighter than anything in he saw, reaffirming its role as the reminder of the promise and foretelling of the bright future that was to come.

It was something that Kuga Terunori and (Last name) (First name) would remember for the rest of their lives.

And that was a wrap for part two of the Kuga Terunori and reader oneshots! Thank you guys for having made it this far. I wish you all a prosperous and happy New Year on this Year of the Dog! More nian gao and mace for everybody!

Cheers!