Here's my contribution for Sorina Week 2018! Hope you enjoy!

Gressmann.

It just wasn't Erina Nakiri's day.

First of all, the normally punctual princess accidentally slept in, leading to her rushing her morning routine in order to make sure she wasn't late to school. For most girls, this would mean that they would show up to class, appearance hastily thrown together as a mark of their hurrying.

But Erina wasn't like 'most girls'. She had a reputation to uphold, and she wouldn't let some measly lost time get in her way.

As such, even with the obstacle, Erina still was as beautiful as ever when she stepped into class.

But that didn't mean her mood was in the same state. And it didn't when she remembered what her first class of the day was.

This is the second reason why Erina wasn't having the best of days.

It was the only class that she had with him.

Soma Yukihira.

The boy had been the bane of her elegant lifestyle since the moment he stepped into it. He had completely her world upside down; he seemed to breeze through life, without a care for anything that happened to him. No, that wasn't it. It's not like he didn't care, he was the one who had saved Totsuki from her father's reign of terror. He simply didn't let negativity affect him. And that infuriated her to no end. Her, whose life had been defined by negativity, from her father's abusive treatment, to the criticism she placed on other chefs with her God's Tongue.

But despite his contrary living, she had much to be thankful for. He was the one who nearly singlehandedly brought the Rebels from extinction. The two had worked as partners, equals, when facing Azami's cohorts. She had even begun to nearly, barely respect his skill as a chef. But being who she was, she knew she wouldn't let him catch on.

And it wasn't only thankfulness. Being able to truly relax after her father's banishment, Erina had begun to notice things. She had never realized how bright Soma's eyes shown when he presents a dish, or the dopey way he smiles when with friends. How he rubs the back of his neck when embarrassed or nervous (Which, she had also noticed happened much more often when he's talking to her), the way his hair just never seems to go down.

The way her heart feels, like it's jumping every which way when their eyes meet. The way her cheeks blush when he smiles at her. She had always taken these reactions as symptoms of being annoyed, but recently...

"Yo Nakiri! Are you just going to sit there, or what?" The boy in question asked (More like yelled directly into her ear), shocking her out of her thoughts.

Yeah, definitely annoyance.

Erina noticed that she had sat down at her desk without her knowing it, being too caught up in her reverie to notice. She looked up to Yukihira, catching his gaze in her own.

And her heart started beating in that senseless manner of its, the traitor.

"What was that, Yukihira?"

"Oh, you didn't hear, huh? The teacher told us to get into partners, and it looked like everyone was too afraid to pair with ya, so..."

Looking around, Erina saw that, yes, all the other students had already paired off.

"So?" She asked.

"Will you be my partner?"

Yes, today just wasn't be her day. But she didn't have the heart to refuse such a direct offer.

Naturally, the duo aced the assignment, with plenty of time to spare. So, the two sat, side by side (Soma's decision, not Erina's), causing what must surely be some sort of heart condition in Erina's chest. An uncomfortable silence filled the space between the two, absorbing them into their own awkwardness, until Soma broke it.

"So, do you want to be my partner for other assignments?"

Erina shot a glare that would normally kill any man besides Soma at him.

"What makes you think that, Yukihira?"

"I just thought it would be really cool," He rubbed the back of his neck, "We make a pretty good team, y'know?"

Erina just blushed and looked away, "Choose your next words carefully, Yukihira. They will determine whether you leave this classroom alive."

Soma hesitated, before saying, "It's just that, I like being your partner. Whenever I see you working on a project by yourself, I always think about how much better it would be if we were to work on it together."

"I don't need your help on assignments, Yukihira. In fact, I would think you would bring down my grades if you tried," Erina interjected.

"That's not what I meant! I... I really, really like working with you. Whenever I do something wrong, you're always there to correct me, or to tell me that I'm being dumb. A-And whenever you're in the kitchen, I can see how happy you are doing the things you do, and I want to keep seeing that. I like it when you smile, Nakiri, I really do. And you are always smiling when we succeed by working together. I want to see that smile every day, so will you allow me to?"

The two had changed positions, Erina facing away from Soma, Soma talking to her back. Erin's hadn't stopped blushing, and the racketeering of her chest had only grown stronger as Soma spoke.

"Y-You've been practicing that, haven't you?" She asked, still looking away.

Soma rubbed the back of his neck again, "Yeah, you caught me," He said, "I've kinda been wanting to ask ya for a long time, so I had to make sure it sounded good."

"But that wasn't you, was it?"

Along with the other things Erin's had noticed from knowing Soma was the way he spoke. And the mini speech he use gave to her wasn't his normal talking.

"I may have had Pops help with some of the wording."

"Say it again."

"What?"

"Say it again, but only you saying it."

Soma's breath hitched for a moment. He took some time to think, almost making Erina think that he wouldn't answer her. Dejected, she was just about to turn back when he started talking.

"Nakiri, I've known you for a while. And I've, uh, noticed some things while knowing ya. Like, the way that you always step first with your right foot, how you always flip your hair in a certain way. I've noticed how you walk so... high and mighty, yet I've noticed how nice and cool you really are. I've noticed the way you handle food and dishes so lightly, it's like you're lifting them up with magic. I've noticed how your hair perfectly surrounds your face with your pointy bangs, or how your smile lights up everything around you. And I really, really want to keep seeing that smile, again and again."

Erina's breath was taken away.

"So, will you be my partner again, Nakiri?" Soma asked.

And, traitorous as it is, her heart spoke on her behalf.

"Yes."

No, it wasn't one of her days. But Erina couldn't find herself getting angry for it.