Chapter 5 - Confrontation

She awoke slowly, still embracing the redheaded boy next to her. She felt happy, and would have liked to have stayed like that for a while longer, but the usual pang of morning anxiety jolted her awake and made her reach for her phone. Crap, I didn't check my schedule last night. I'm probably late for something or other.

15 missed calls. 10 messages. All from Hisako. Starting quite sensible. "Erina-sama, where are you?". "Don't forget your meeting with the potential sponsors of the planned camp for the first years." And slowly devolving into panic. "Erina-sama! Are you ok?! Please pleease be ok". "I'm calling the police''. It was 10.30am, she'd overslept.

I'd better call her before she does anything drastic.

Soma stirred, watching Erina pacing at the end of the room, speaking quietly into the phone.

"Good morning" he said tiredly.

"Ah, good morning Soma-kun! Sorry I didn't want to disturb you."

"It's ok" he yawned, and checked his phone. "Well, I guess we're caught up on sleep now.". He smiled lazily. "What are your plans for the day Erina?" he stood up, stretched his arms to the ceiling, and made his way over to her and hugged her from behind. "If you like, we could hang out around here. There's a nice aquarium nearby. Or we could check out the amusement park if you like."

She held onto his arms. "Sorry Soma-kun, I'm already running late for something else. I'm going to have to get moving pretty quickly"

"Oh… that's a shame. Don't worry. The shower is just through here if you want. Have you eaten?"

"Thanks. I won't really have time to eat though..."

"That's ok, I'll prepare you something quick, something you can take with you."

She came out of the shower, mostly dressed aside from socks, and was continuing to dry her hair with the towel. She was going to have to leave it to dry out on it's own.

"Here, I've made you a breakfast roll, you can eat it here or take it with you"

"Can I take it with me? Sorry… I wish I could stay longer. I… I wanted to talk about last night"

"It's ok. I know how busy you are."

"Still, it feels uncomfortable leaving it like this."

He came over and placed the roll in front of her on the counter, carefully wrapped up and sealed in a small plastic container. He went and stood beside her, and put his arm on her shoulder.

"You know, you could just stay here, and blame me for everything. Hisako would believe you"

"I wish I could stay - though I can still blame you for being late", she grinned. She leaned in and kissed him softly.

"I know we don't have much time to talk about this, but I want to say something. I really enjoyed last night. And I want to see you again soon, because I like you" he said.

She blushed. "Soma-kun, you're so embarrassing sometimes!" He laughed, used to this reaction. "I'm still getting used to how straightforward you are with these kinds of things..." She paused for a second to think, before settling on words that would convey what she wanted, without feeling uncomfortably intimate. "I want to see you again too Soma-kun. I'll see book some time off so we can do something soon."

They hugged for a short while, before she kissed him once more, separated herself off, and started to leave. At the entrance, she looked back, and saw him smiling at her. She waved happily and left.

En route to her first appointment of the day, only a few minutes behind schedule, she thought about the previous night and felt the excitement course through her once more.

She looked down at the small meal that Soma had prepared, and unwrapped it. She had a quick look at it, and thought "why not". Behind its simple appearance was an incredible depth of flavour. One bite, and she started to feel more awake, energized, and felt like she was being embraced by the warmth of the flavours. It reminded her of Megumi's cooking, the sense of care and comfort that her dishes produced.

So this is what he wanted to show me with his cooking last night. I'll have to let him know what I think of it.

She looked to make sure the driver couldn't see her as she quickly ate the rest of it.

"How did your date go Erina?"

"What date Alice!? How would you know...". Erina was catching up with her cousin in the mansion, shortly before she was to return to Denmark with Ryo.

"I have my sources", she said, smiling knowingly.

"It… it was really nice", she said reluctantly, admitting to herself that the cat was out of the bag. Erina couldn't stand the slightly smug look on Alice's face. "And it's none of your business!"

"Something bothering you Erina? You seem a little edgier than usual"

Erina thought, and decided she would share what had been on her mind for days since she had seen Soma. "It's just... at the moment, I'm doubting things. Like at the time, I felt really happy. But I'm also worried that it's going to be taken away from me again. And I didn't feel fully myself at times... I just felt different"

"Well… I can't really tell you about it, not knowing what it feels like. But if you feel safe enough around him, and being there makes you happy, then I don't think it's a bad thing. But I think you can talk to him about it."

"Yeah..."

"Are you scared Erina?"

"I am not!"

"It's ok Erina. Everyone gets scared, even someone as strong as you"

"Ok, I might be. Just a little though! I do really want to see him again… I'm just not sure what to ask him..."

"Erina, honestly. You're a Nakiri heiress, you've got practically infinite resources." She tapped her fingers on the arm of the leather sofa they were seated on. "Maybe you could invite him on a holiday somewhere, you know, go to a nice place by the sea or something. I think you could do with getting away from work for a while as well".

Spurred on by her suggestion, after a little research she decided to invite him for a trip to Kakamura.

"Soma-kun, how are you? I hope you've been keeping out of trouble ;) If you have some free time from next Friday, would you like to come on a short break with me to Kamakura? We own a nice little place there near to the ocean"

Soma noticed she'd stop signing her text messages to him. Maybe Alice had said something her, he thought. "Erina! How are you doing? I'm good thanks. Staying out of trouble for the most part - Suzuki-san has been keeping me on my toes, he misses you already :) As for the holiday, I'd love to! I haven't been to Kakamura in years, and I bet doing it Nakiri-style will be super classy and fun! I can't wait to see you again"

She clutched her phone happily. Alice was watching her through the window in the door, and was glad to see her looking cheerful. Erina looked up and saw her looking at her - "Hey, stop spying on me!" Alice just waved innocently and walked off laughing.

He arrived at the train station, and she was there, waiting by her car. Outwardly, she looked a little impatient, but inside she was feeling uncertain of how they would act around each other after the last time they had been together.

"Yo, Erina!" he called out to her.

He walked over to her briskly with his travel case, and immediately embraced her. Well, I suppose there was no need to worry about awkwardness if Soma is involved she thought. They kissed briefly, before Erina pulled away slightly.

"It's a little embarrassing to do this in public Soma-kun..."

"Ah sorry, I wasn't thinking! I just really wanted to do that"

She took his hand, and pulled him into the car.

"Really takes you back, doesn't it!", he joked.

She slapped his arm playfully. It was a far cry from their first awkward journey together in a car. She checked that the driver wouldn't see them again, and then cosied up to him.

"I have to say, it's much nicer this way" she opined.

"Yeah... it was so awkward! I was looking forward to trying to break the ice a little then, didn't go so well though" he laughed.

"I bet you were" she smiled. "You didn't stand a chance back then. I was determined not to enjoy your company"

"It wasn't so bad though. I got to see a different side to you. You seemed like a different person when you were looking out of the window, you looked like you were really enjoying the scenery. You looked really pretty"

"You thought that?", she said, a little surprised, and flattered for her younger self.

"Yeah… though I was careful not to look too much, I think you would have had me thrown out of the car at high speed if you'd spotted me looking"

She laughed. "Quite likely. I'm not sure how I would have reacted to be honest, I don't think you being interested in me like this would have ever crossed my mind"

"I can guess at your reaction" he grinned. In a higher pitched voice, he said "Yukihira-Soma, do not think you can rest your lower class eyes upon me in such a manner. Something, something, this will only serve to accelerate your inevitable expulsion from Totsuki academy, and I will be most pleased". He crossed his arms in a surprisingly good imitation of Erina.

"I do not sound like that!" she half laughed incredulously, slapping his arm again. "Meanie...". She softly bit his arm at the shoulder.

"Ow!"

They arrived at the Nakiri owned property. Erina had completely neglected to mention the grandeur of the place. It was stunning. A large, modern property, with 3 floors, a pool, and a beautiful terrace on the second floor, situated just outside of the town, on the seafront.

"This place is stunning Nakiri..."

"It's one of the smaller properties we have in Japan, but it's one of my favourites."

Smaller!? Just how much money do these guys have?

They took their luggage upstairs to the second floor and looked at one of the rooms. It was a large corner room, with a king size bed, and huge glass windows on two of the walls, giving an amazing view of the sea.

"You can have a separate room if you like… or… you could share with me..." Erina had said, a little embarrassed.

"Hmm, I'm not so sure.", he said, pretending to be deep in thought. "What do you think I'm going to choose?" he said playfully. He then picked her up, and jumped on to the bed with her.

"What are you doing!?". He just laughed, and held onto her gently. She laughed as well, then picked up a pillow and attacked.

"Oh, so you want a pillow fight?" he said with a playful smile. He went to pick one up one for himself, with her continuing to hit him while laughing away. He hit her a couple of times to her body with the pillow, before gently throwing the pillow at her to distract her, and then leaping on top of her and pinning her down.

They looked at each other intently for a couple of seconds, before she put her hands on the back of his head and pulled him down, kissing him passionately. Soma rolled off her, and they lay down on the bed on their sides, facing one another.

She looked at him intently. "Boop". She poked him on the nose playfully and giggled.

She took his hand and looked at it, examining it.

"You've got surprisingly soft hands Soma. I thought they might be rougher given your years in the kitchen. Also, I thought you would have more cuts and scars, being as clumsy a doofus as you are" she cackled.

"Is that what you think of me?". He pretended to be hurt by this.

She laughed. "Funnily enough, that's exactly how I see you. Hurr durr I'm Yukihira Soma! I can't walk 5 paces without falling over. I tripped on the stairs today. How will I deal with this? I know! I'll challenge the person who made the stairs to a shokugeki. Shokugeki solves everything. Shokugeki shokugeki shokugeki...". He laughed at her impression of him. He supposed this was her payback for his earlier impression of her. He could feel her smiling as she kissed him.

"Heh... that's a little harsh! Shokugeki does solve everything though..." he said, thinking. He grinned back to her. "The bit about me falling over - do you know how I got this scar?".

"No, do tell"

"Well, it was when I was 5. There's a longer story behind it, but in short, it's because I fell over". She laughed.

"You know, I don't really think you're a doofus. Most of the time anyway. I think you're quite dashing, and charming." she said, cupping his chin. "Though I'm not going to tell you that too often, lest your head inflate even further". She poked him gently on the forehead and smiled.

They were both feeling the excitement for these few days they would have together. Finally on their own, with nothing else to worry about.

Just then, Erina saw something moving outside the window. There was a figure dressed in black who'd come through the gates, and was approaching the front door.

"Oh no… what's he doing here?"

Soma saw a look of panic on her face. "Don't tell me..." It was her father, Azumi. He was walking up to the entrance of the house.

"Erina, what do you want to do?"

The rapidly growing anxiety felt awful, but having Soma with her helped her to keep it from getting out of control.

"I… I don't want to run away. I'll stand up to him"

"If you want, I can go talk to him"

"No, it's ok. I'll do it"

"Ok. Whatever happens, I'm here, and I'll back you up if you want me to"

"Thanks Soma-kun"

They heard the door unlock, and Azumi stepped inside. They headed down to the first floor. Erina greeted him coldly from the stairs.

"What are you doing here father?", she said, her arms crossed in a strong pose, concealing her anxiety.

"Oh… hello daughter. I could ask the same of you, I didn't think anyone would be here." he looked surprised. "I had hoped I could talk to you though, since you've been ignoring my messages. I've had some time to think… and I wanted to apologise for my behaviour. I hoped we can have a civilised conversation"

"That's wonderful. But I don't want to talk to you now. Please leave"

"How rude. That's no way to talk to your father."

Erina snapped. "No and what you did to me growing up was no way to treat your daughter so frankly you can sod off"

"Erina!" he said, surprised at the level of anger.

"I think it's wonderful you're finally thinking about your behaviour, and that you feel that you're ready to talk to me. But frankly, you're still ignoring my feelings and only thinking about what's convenient to you. I don't want to talk to you right now, and that's final" she said firmly.

"This isn't fair..."

"You think just coming here looking sorry for yourself is enough to undo all those years of abuse, isolation, control? You think you've changed but you're still acting purely for yourself"

"But the things I did for you..."

"Don't you dare. I had no say in the things we did. So you DO NOT get to say that. Because it's not true, you did them for yourself."

Soma saw that she was shaking, and approached her. He looked at her caringly, checking if she wanted backing up.

"It's ok, thank you Soma, I'm alright" she said to him quietly.

Azumi was hurt by her comments, and subconsciously began slipping into his old behaviour, trying to reassert control. He spotted Soma, and focussed on him with a look of disgust.

"You? With him?" he said contemptuously. "Daughter… have you no shame? You don't understand the legacy of this family, and would sully the name...". Erina saw red.

"Fuck you"

Azumi was stunned. She continued, "You want to talk about shame? Shame for my behaviour… You should be ashamed of the awful father that you were. You should be ashamed that you're still wanting to push me back into that role with no regards for how I feel! Don't you dare talk about Soma like that"

"Why not? He's beneath you and..."

"I love him. He lets me be myself, he doesn't judge me, try to change me, try to use me as a tool for his own twisted goals. He makes me happy." she said looking at him directly. "You, father - I don't like you." She'd never said it before, but she felt the weight of the truth in those words. Azumi was devastated. " You hurt me then, and you're hurting me now. That's why I want you to leave"

Azumi, realising he'd gone too far, accepted defeat and stepped out regretfully.

Erina stood staring at the door furiously for a few seconds with her fists tightened, before tears started rolling down her cheeks.

"Why did he have to come here! Why did he have to come and ruin this..."

"Erina..." he gently put his hand on her shoulder. Seeing that she wasn't pushing him away, he held her lightly. She put her head to his chest.

"I'm sorry that you had to see that..."

"Stop apologising Erina. It's not your fault."

"I lost control… how could you see me like that. Now you know what I'm really like… horrible, pathetic, vindictive..."

"Erina, stop. I thought you were amazing to do that. You stood up for yourself. I'm proud of you, I hope you can be too"

She was still feeling the burn of adrenaline, but his words had at least taken her out of her spiral of attacking herself in shame.

"Thanks for being here", she said.

"I didn't really do anything, but sure" he smiled. "I'm not sure how you feel at the moment, but I can stay with you, or I can give you some space..."

"Stay"

He tightened his embrace briefly to acknowledge her decision.

"Come on erina, let's not hang around here. Shall we go and sit out on the terrace, get some air?"

Soma made some tea, and they went to sit on the outdoor sofa on the terrace. They watched the sea peacefully for some time. He waited patiently for her. She eventually broke the silence, and they spoke about the view, and the surroundings. It felt like she was slowly coming back. Soma decided to ask her about something she had said earlier.

"Something you said Erina… you said that you love me?". She felt a rush of embarrassment. There was no sign of teasing coming from Soma though. He was quick to add, "you don't need to answer now though, sorry this is probably a bad time to ask".

"I-I did didn't I...". She reflected for a short while, trying to think about it honestly. "I think I was a bit caught up in the moment. I'm honestly not sure if I love you or not though, because I'm not sure what that even feels like… but I know that I do like you a lot. Sorry if that's confusing"

"Don't worry, thanks for being honest. I like you a lot too Erina"