Chapter VII
The weeks flew by. Before she knew it, the big day had come. All the awkwardness with Ryo dissappeared so suddenly she wondered if she'd just imagined the whole thing. Everything was back to normal. Ryo was much busier than usual for some reason, darting in and out of her grandfather's office with piles of paperwork. Yet, as an aide, he was more attentive than ever. He would complement her in the mornings and bring her all these snacks and sweets he'd been tinkering with in the kitchen. In the past, he was only ever like this when he did something wrong. Alice waited for him to come clean, but he just went on being his best, most obedient self.
She spared no time and expenses on the party and everything was exactly how she wanted it. To think when she was a Totsuki student, she could barely manage a simple festival booth with Ryo and Hayama. They really have grown up, haven't they?
She took Ryo out for an elaborate six-course meal, which she pretended was her present for him while her real gift was being set up. Right as finished their desserts, Alice got the message from Erina. Perfect timing. Time to go.
"I enjoyed dinner. Thank you miss."
"Wait!" Alice stopped him just before he went back into his room and change out of his suit.
"I have one more present to give you," she grinned slyly and ran back into her room.
She emerged seconds later with a box. He looked at her before opening it. Inside was the blindfold he'd seen a week ago.
"This––" he didn't know what to say, and she gave him no chance to say it.
"Hurry! Put it on!" Before Ryo could respond, she had already taken out the blindfold and put it clumsily around his head.
The blindfold was top quality, he gave her that. Not even a sliver of light could peek through the fabric. In the dark, he felt a warm hand clasp around his.
"Come on!" Alice yelled and started to drag him forward.
Ryo's head was spinning.
So this was what she was trying to hide?
They walked through the corridor and into the elevator. He heard the doors close.
He knew by sound that Alice had pressed the top button: balcony. Before they'd even arrived at the top floor, he could already hear distance voices and lots shuffling through the door. By then, he'd put all the pieces together.
It seemed his mistress had underestimated his senses, but it was still sweet.
The door opened right out into the cool night air.
"Surprise!"
He took off the blindfold and saw the gleaming faces of Yukihira, Hayama, and dozens of their friends back from Totsuki.
"Happy birthday Ryo-kun."
She had a proud look on her face as if to let him know this was all her doing. Mesmerized by her glistening face in the moonlight, he placed a hand on her waist, pulled her closer, and kissed her cheek.
The crowd exploded.
"Thank you," he whispered in her ear.
No one saw the sadness pooling in his eyes as he pulled away.
Alice stood in a daze for so long, she never saw when Erina and Yukihira had appeared in front of here.
"There's our other Nakiri!" Yukihira cheered. "Long time no see! You know I'm technically now one of the Nakiris too, right?"
"Cut that out or I'm never appearing in public with you again." Erina snapped.
"Yes ma'am," Yukihira poked back at his wife. "Anyway, can't believe everyone's here! Did you actually fly the Aldini's in from Italy?"
"Yep!" Alice chirped.
"Kurokiba will probably end up spending all night doing drunken shokugekis with everyone."
"Though he didn't look very surprised…" Erina chimed in. "Are you sure you didn't tip him off somehow, Alice?"
"Of course not! He was totally surprised, right Ryo-ku-?" Alice turned instinctively to her side only to find her aide long gone.
She scanned the crowd for that familiar mess of unruly raven hair.
"Alice, you've been standing there for so long, Kurokiba had to go and greet the guests by himself," Erina said with a sharp disapproving tone. "See?"
Alice followed her cousin's gesture and looked to the far side of the room.
There he was, talking to Tsukasa-senpai, Rindo, and––Her grandfather…?
Alice tilted her head like an owl, puzzled by the bizarre group configuration. Something weird was going on, and it couldn't be good.
"There's the man of the night."
An irritatingly gentle voice called out from behind, cutting off Ryo's conversation with the Aldinis. Eishi Tsukasa and his co-restauranteur Rindo had a made their way next to them at the bar.
Sensing an off atmosphere, Isami –now the better looking Aldini–dragged his brother away from the scene.
"Come on nii-chan. Let's get some more of that sparkly champagne you like so much."
"Hmph, I only drink proper wines."
"It's pink!"
"Maybe just a taste…" Takumi's voice faded into the distance.
"Rindo senpai, Tsukasa…what a pleasure," Ryo said unenthusiastically.
Of course Alice invited him.
"You have me to thank for all this, you know," said Tsukasa.
"This little fucker helped Alice do all the dirty work so she could keep the party hush hush!" Rindo hooked her elbow hard around Tsukasa's neck and winked. "Right Eishi?"
She tightened her hold, ignoring her white-haired friend's desperate gasps for air.
"It's so like you to go through all this trouble for a girl you don't even have a chance with."
"I know…I tried my best but she was much more occupied with Kurokiba-kun."
"So…" Ryo was still trying to process the information that's been thrown at him. "You and Miss Alice aren't dating?"
"She rejected me after the first date. I even drove the Rolls-Royce like you said…" He sobbed into Rindo's shoulder.
"There there…" Rindo cooed, patting his head like a child.
So all this was a misunderstanding. Ryo was mortified by his petty jealousy, and even worse for the relief he was feeling in this moment. After all, what difference did any of this make? Alice was eventually going to get on with her life. it didn't matter if it was this guy or another.
Even as a child, Ryo always understood the world to be a lonely ruthless place. Everything no matter how good or how bad, was bound to fade away eventually. What was the point of holding onto something that never belong to you in the first place?
"Neat whiskey," Ryo turned briskly to the bartender.
He drained the glass in one gulf and asked for another. That was how they did it back in Scandinavia.
"Enjoying yourself I see?"
Ryo almost chocked on his drink. There went yet another voice he wasn't thrilled to hear tonight.
"Good evening sir," everyone bowed at the sight of their former headmaster.
"How lovely see so many former students here tonight. You are all friends of Kurokiba?"
"Well, not exactly but Alice invited Eishi and I invited myself," Rindo chirped.
"It's comforting to know Alice has such excellent friends. She'll be needing more of your support from hereon out."
"What do you mean?" Rindo batted her cat-like eyes.
"Kurokiba, I assume you haven't told everyone the news?"
"What news?" Tsukasa senpai asked.
"I haven't had time to mention it," Ryo answered begrudgingly.
"What news?" A new voice repeated sharply.
Ryo felt his blood freeze inside his veins.
"What are you all talking about?" Alice walked up from behind and wedged herself between everyone. "What's going on, Ryo-kun?"
Ryo pressed his lips together and looked down at his feet.
"You mean you haven't told Alice yet?" Senzaemon scowled. "She'll need time to make the necessary arrangements."
"I was looking for the right time to tell her."
Ryo gritted his teeth. This was clearly the worst possible time to be put on the spot.
"Tell. Me. What." Alice was nearing the end of her patience.
"Ryo Kurokiba has accepted a position as the lead researcher and chef of the Nakiri International Marine Research Facility."
"You mean the one in…"
Alice recalled her parents mentioning a new research site. She hadn't paid much attention, but she remembered it being located in Northern Canada for its climate and vibrant marine life.
"When the hell were you gonna tell me?" Alice yelled.
"Alice, stop it. you're acting like a child," her grandfather said sternly.
"I don't care!"
A crowd was gathering around the commotion.
"And you took the job without even asking me first? How dare you dare disrespect me like this!"
Her face was red as she punched Ryo over and over in the chest. He just stood there, taking the blows.
There was that childish side of her again. Others had been criticizing him for years , and Ryo knew they were right. He was the reason Alice was like this–childish, unreasonable, expecting everything to go her way because she knew he would somehow, always, make it happen. He admitted, he wanted his mistress to always rely on him so that things between them would never change, but his selfishness was holding her back from becoming all that she could be. He wanted her to be happy, and be free. So, he had to let go.
"I'm your mistress, don't I get a say in this?"
"No miss, you don't."
Alice was taken aback by his bluntness. She never thought he would turn on her. All this time, he'd been making plans behind her back to leave her without so much as an explanation.
"We've all witnessed Kurokiba's competence," Senzaemon continued. "And we all agree this role will be a wonderful next step for him. You should congratulate him, as you know more than anyone how far he came to get there."
"Oh yeah?" Alice was in no mood for reason. She kept her fiery gaze on Ryo and curled her lips into a cool smirk.
"If you're so good that you think working for me is beneath you, then prove it. Let's have a shokugeki. Everyone here can be the judge. If you beat me, I'll let you go."
Seeing how quickly everything escalated, Erina rushed to calm her cousin down before things got out of hand.
"Alice, I don't think this is the place to ––"
"Why not? This is my house, and my party. I can do whatever I like."
"Miss–" Ryo looked up at last. A feral grin had spread across his face. "You're on."
No one could believe how quickly the tone of the night shifted. Moments before, they were having a party, enjoying themselves, and suddenly they were caught the middle of a battlefield. The crowd was piled into the Nakiris' great hall, where Alice Nakiri and Ryo Kurokiba stood at opposite ends of a banquet table. Between them sat none other than the God's Tongue herself. This would've been an incredible thing to witness if only the surrounding circumstances weren't so horribly upsetting.
The theme of the food war–cream.
The innocent sounding theme felt at odds with the intensity of the battle but made sense in giving neither party an advantage. Alice presented her dish first, a vanilla soufflé injected filled with layers of hot and iced custard. Erina took a spoonful, and the fillings gushed out and congealed into a sweet smooth paste around the dessert like a frozen lake at the peak of winter. It exceeded all she knew about Alice's cooking. It was bold, a bit messy, and fearlessly experimental in both concept and flavor.
Ryo followed. When he revealed his dish, the room went silent.
"This is…" Erina couldn't believe what she was seeing. "Cream stew?"
"Yess," he hissed. "Now eat."
It was so unlike Ryo to make a plain home-styled dish like this. At a glance, there seemed nothing special about the scent or flavor. Then, she tasted it.
For what felt like eternity, the room was still and no one dared make a sound. Alice stared anxiously at her cousin, waiting for her verdict. Sweat was dripping down her forehead from the heat.
Erina lifted her head from the stew slowly but firmly. A teared had rolled down her cheek.
"Kurokiba…wins."
The crowd erupted in disbelief. Alice felt the world cave in around her.
"Erina," Alice slowly made her way to her cousin, shaking in her steps."Why…"
"I'm sorry Alice," Erina whispered before leaving the table to find Soma, who kissed her on the head and put his arm around her.
Alice hear Ryo's firm steps behind her, coming closer. She inched away instinctively.
"Not bad miss," he said in his deep provocative tone. "But your flavors are confused, incoherent, and that's why you would've never beaten me."
She wanted to turn and yell at him, or slap him, but she just couldn't bring herself to look at him. So, she kept still and lowered her head.
"If you don't trust Miss Erina's judgement, just try it."
His voice was cold, but his breath felt hot behind her ears as he reached around her and placed a silver spoon on the table. When she picked it up to try the cream stew, she suddenly became paralyzed with fear. She didn't understand why she was afraid, but somehow knew. Whatever she was about to discover was going to shake their worlds forever.
She dipped her spoon in the thick pale broth and lifted it to her lips.
The spoon hit the floor with a loud clang.
The stew was warm and smooth, yet one bite was powerful enough to make her weak in the knees. It showed an ease of control that elevated it above everything he'd ever made in their decade together. It gave her a powerful feeling.
Freedom.
All this time, while she was trying to keep him comfortable in his place, he was pining for freedom. So that's what all his strange behavior was about…first acting out and distancing himself, then being overly attentive like he'd done something wrong…She was so stupid to believe she could make him happy when what he really wanted was to leave her. After all their years together, the stray dog was ready to be set free.
She threw her head back to draw back the hot tears pooling in her eyes.
You really never go easy on me, don't you Ryo-kun?
She took a last deep breath and turned to face her rival. She looked into his deep red eyes with the calm dignity befitting of a proper mistress.
"Looks like you win," she smiled.
"Happy birthday."