Ryo believes he's now engaged to Alice, and finally gets her a Christmas gift.

(a/n ahh thank you guys for the reviews they give me life especially to new readers who binge-read this long-ass fanfic ???? how do you all manage??? anyway please enjoy this update, reviews always appreciated!)

It surprised Alice, the Christmas when they were nine, that Ryo actually had a gift for her, for once.

She had overlooked the matter of gifts, and never really told Ryo he needed to get her anything. She was young, and at times naive, but she knew enough to tell that Ryo wasn't entirely swimming in cash. After all, he almost always wore the same shirt to work, the boots on his feet way too worn, and he only owned one winter coat. She asked things of him, but all things that never really required money.

It surprised her, that one Christmas, Ryo simply handed her a small fabric pouch.

"So, here," he said, almost thrusting the pouch at her and quickly looking away. "Merry Christmas, Alice."

"Ryo-kun! You didn't have to, but thanks!" Alice said, with a bright smile, almost tearing up the pouch to discover the item inside it.

It was a small, silver ring, plain and simple in it's design. Ryo watched almost anxiously as Alice studied it, like the scientist she was.

It seems to have met her expectations, because the next thing Ryo knew was that she was giving him a tight hug. "Aww, it's so cute, Ryo! Thanks a bunch!"

"Yeah, sure," he said, his cheeks suddenly feeling warm. "I can't have my fiancé going around with a ring after all."

Alice's hug suddenly turned slack at that statement.

"F-Fiancé??!"

Ryo was genuinely confused by her reaction. Alice looked absolutely shocked.

"Huh, I won that cooking contest last year, so that means you're engaged to me," he said, watching Alice's face turn completely red. "I thought that was what that contest was about."

"Well, yes, but--! You just fought in my place, that's all!" Alice insisted, tugging on Ryo's sleeve anxiously. "I never said anything about... m-marriage!"

Ryo blinked, trying to recall the events. "Well, all I remember you saying was that I should win. Pretty sure that meant you don't mind being engaged to me."

He did have a point. If Alice was being honest, out of all the boys in that room that night, if she had to choose one of them to win...

It would be Ryo, without a doubt.

"And then Miss Leonora even went and said I'm supposed to look after you from then on," Ryo continued. "Pretty sure she means she's leaving you in my hands coz we're... y'know. Engaged."

"O-Oh my god," Alice gasped, face still red as a tomato. "R-Ryo-kun! That's not how engagements are supposed to go! I-It's so unromantic! Who gets engaged over a cooking competition?!"

"Apparently, you do," Ryo said.

"That wasn't really my idea now!" Alice protested, with a pout. "That was all mom's idea! It doesn't mean I accept it."

Ryo blinked slowly, and realized her point. She was right. Whether or not he won, it was still Alice's say at the end. And Ryo knew enough to know that it was no good to force a girl into something she didn't want.

"Oh, alright then. So, give it back."

Alice looked confused.

"The ring," Ryo said. "Give it back. It's supposed to be a gift for my fiancé, so..."

"No!" Alice resisted, clasping the ring so preciously in her hand and pulling it away from Ryo when he reached out. "It's your gift to me, Ryo-kun! No takebacksies!"

"I got it coz I thought we were engaged," Ryo said, reaching up as Alice held her hands up, even jumping so that Ryo wouldn't be able to pry the ring from her hands. It was useless, since he'd outgrown her by a few inches now. He held onto her hand, balled into a fist. "I'll get you something else, miss,"

"I don't want something else! This is your first gift to me, so it's special," Alice said, pouting.

Ryo sighed. "...Look, if you're gonna hang on to it, might as well wear it, you know."

"Fine, but i-it doesn't mean anything!" Alice said, blushing. "It's like, a mistress-aide ring! Something like that."

"...Yeah, sure. Whatever you say," Ryo mumbled. There was simply no arguing with Alice. She finally released the silver band from her fingers, and Ryo took it. He held up the little girl's hand, and by sheer guesswork, managed to slip it right to her ring finger.

"It's cute!" Alice beamed innocently. "Thanks a bunch, Ryo-kun! I'm gonna take good care of it! Oh, wait! I'm gonna go and show mom!"

Alice excitedly barged into her parent's bedroom, seeing them both already in their sleeping robes, cuddling together on the couch, enjoying some Christmas hot cocoa.

"Alice!" Leonora greeted the little girl, surprised. "You're not in bed yet?"

Alice completely skipped the question, and showed off the silver ring on her little fingers. "Look, look! I got a ring!"

She held her hand out in front of her parents, who began to examine the band around her finger. Leonora looked confused. "Who gave you such a cheap piece of--"

"Ryo-kun gave it to me!" Alice said, hopping in excitement. "His Christmas present!"

"Oh my!" Leonora smiled widely, clapping her hands together, grateful she didn't finish that earlier statement. "How nice! It's so cute!"

Beside her, Soe Nakiri began coughing and pounding on his chest, choking on his cocoa.

Despite outright denying that it was for an engagement, Alice did keep wearing the silver ring. Ryo wouldn't outright tell her, but it made him happy that she did.

Now, if only she stopped misplacing it almost every single day. He had found it left on the kitchen counter. In the pub. On her bathroom sink. Under her nightstand.

Eventually, even Leonora had enough, and gave Alice a silver necklace so she could wear the ring around her neck instead.

That aside, the matter of the "engagement" was not brought up again, almost as if it had never been.

Ryo knew that he fought in that contest so that Alice wouldn't be tied down to someone else, so she would be free. It didn't make sense to tie her down to him instead, unless she wanted it. Freedom just didn't didn't work like that.

The "engagement" was never mentioned again... unless Ryo was particularly frustrated with her.

"Alice, enough," Ryo said, his voice with a quiet threat. He held on tightly to her hand, squeezing on it ever so slightly, before she runs off again to another store, points to another dress, and he ends up with another shopping bag in his hand with the other dozen he was already holding onto.

"But Ryo-kun! The night is still young!" she tugged on his hand, hoping she would release him. "We haven't entered that one store yet!"

Ryo shook his head in frustration. He was functioning as Alice's aide now, and looked after her budget. "Don't burn through your allowance, miss. We're not halfway through the month yet."

She pouted. "I could always ask daddy for more. You know he always ends up giving in anyway."

He did, but Ryo thought it was his job at least try to stop Alice before it reached that point. They could only spoil her so much, after all. Eventually, she was going to have to grow up. Sooner or later she would have to realzie she wasn't always going to get things her way.

"...Be a good girl and listen to your fiancé once in a while, Alice."

He had said it out of exasperation, but Alice heard it and froze, and then slowly turned around, punching Ryo on the chest. He didn't flinch, and even thought he had to teach her to throw a punch one of these days.

"Ryo-kun! You did not just say that!"

"Say what?"

"The 'f' word!"

Ryo paused, and remembered. "Oh. That. ...Maybe you should listen to your fiancé once in a while, miss.

Her entire face turned red, and while Ryo knew she was annoyed, he found the look on her face somewhat cute. He smirked ever so slightly, holding on tightly to her hand brazenly bringing it up to his mouth for a kiss.

"Don't make things too difficult for your fiancé, now... Miss Alice."

Alice turned even redder. Now she definitely knew he was just trying to get a rise out of her. Ryo fought the urge to chuckle.

"We're going home! Alice said, stomping her foot. "And we're going to have a shokugeki. We're going to set this straight once and for all!"

At least once a year, when Ryo pulled the 'fiancé' card, Alice would immediately jump at him and challenge him to a shokugeki. To get her own hand back, she said.

She lost every single one of them, though.

She would pout, and be upset, and then just walk away. At one point, Ryo wondered if she was mad, but over time, as she kept losing, another thought dawned on him.

"...I think you're losing on intention, miss," he told her.

"What?!" Alice pouted and turned red. "Absolutely not! You won, but don't gloat about it now!"

Ryo was thoughtful as he packed up his knives, wondering if he should argue further. He knew that if Alice wanted to win--really wanted to win--it was a simple matter to her. She would just win, the way she did with those Imitation Peanuts when she was eight, when she had so badly wanted him to spend Christmas with her.

But each and every time, Ryo could tell she didn't entirely take it seriously. She fought him with dishes that were experimental--wacky even, at times. As if she were treating it like a contest where she would pull out whatever zany idea she had at that moment. It annoyed Ryo when she was like that, but at the same time...

...Maybe she did it because she didn't really mind being 'engaged' to him.

Alice Nakiri never won that fight, even up to fifteen years later.

Eventually, they would finally be engaged for real.