(A/N as of Christmas eve 2020: I edited the end of this chapter, so check it out! As always, I only own the ideas of this story, nothing else)


Pans are moving.

Fires are burning.

On the moon shadow, the sure sign of cooking was going on. The rebels were continuing their training for the regiment de cuisine.

On one side, Tadokoro Megumi and Takumi Aldini were working hard; chatter was going on, but there was a sense of harmony between the two of them, a controlled intensity in their kitchen. Their teamwork was plain to see, a strong force keeping them in sync.

In the other kitchen…

"I swear to God, Yukihira-kun, just follow what I'm doing for once!"

"Oh, come on Nakri! Just taste this quick so I can figure out what I'm messing up!"

"I don't need to taste it to tell you that it's disgusting! Just help me out here!"

"You're just gonna stop me from doing anything!"

We weren't doing as well as Tadokoro and Aldini were, according to Saiba-sama. That was quite an understatement.

Despite our now growing friendship, we were just too stubborn to stray away from our own ideas while cooking. Inevitably, we would start arguing, the both of us trying to go our own paths, before Saiba-sama calmed us down.

One thing was changing though. Our friendship. Ever since I told Soma about the fears I had about my father, we've gotten closer. Behind the constant arguing, there was a sense of happiness I felt. At this point, we've been bantering like this for so long, that it felt comfortable. After the calming down from Saiba-sama, we would share a small smile (after an annoyed sigh by me. Seriously, for all of Soma's kindness, he could sure be such a nuisance) and continue with our work. While Tadokoro and Aldini had a calm unity, we had united under competition. Always trying to outdo the other, a smile of satisfaction on our faces the entire time.


It was a cold night on the train, as was to be expected. I was walking around, awake, despite it being past midnight already. Soma's kind words calmed my anxiety about my father greatly. Since that day, I haven't jolted awake due to a nightmare relating to my father.

I was awake tonight just to take in some of the sights. Every other time I got the chance to ride the moon shadow, I never took much time to simply look at the sights of Hokkaido. It's beautiful, with the abundance of snow falling, passing the train by in a blur.

While I was walking, I could hear the faint, but definite sounds of cooking going on. I rolled my eyes, automatically knowing who would still be cooking at this hour. Honestly, even now, I still couldn't believe that Soma was still staying up, when the regiment was inching ever closer. Maintaining his energy is going to be important, and a good night of sleep would help.

Making it to the kitchen train car, the sounds were growing, and as I peeked my head in, I could see that flash of red hair. Soma was indeed cooking, his movements flowing with the intensity and fun that his style lent himself to. I could smell browning meats and vegetables, and Soma was continuing his cooking, dicing some onions as he was keeping an eye on the stations to his side.

Entering the train opposite his cooking station, his back was facing my direction. Not wanting to disturb him, I quietly made my way to the seating area, settling at one of the tables and began to observe.

His actions were reserved, something that most people would not associate with the normally charismatic chef that everyone sees during Shokugekis. Not that his actions were dull, mind you; they were simply not as over the top. It felt calculated, at least compared to his normal style, evidence of him trying to perfect whatever he was making. A small smile graced my face. Knowing him, it was likely a dish designed to get me to say it was delicious.

That promise was truly amazing. Without it, it is likely that none of this would have happened. Soma would not have been as involved in my life as he is now, and my dismissive, princess like attitude would probably have persisted. Even with all the effort in the world, I couldn't deny that Soma and the rest of the Polar Star members have been able to break me out of my shell.

I was broken out of my thoughts at the sound of a curse. Looking back to Soma, he was clutching his hand, a bit of red visible as he shook his head. It wasn't often that Totsuki students cut themselves while cooking. To see someone with Soma's skill do so was concerning. I felt compelled to do something about it. Breaking my silence, I got up, and walked over to the redhead, who perked up at the sound of footsteps that weren't his.

"Nakiri?" he called out, eyes wide with surprise. "How long have you been here?"

"Just for a few minutes. I didn't want to disturb you while you were cooking." I smirked his way, looking at his cut. "Although, it looks like I didn't have to do anything to mess you up."

I meant it in a joking manner, and I was ready for him to laugh along with me, but I could tell that something felt off. When I looked to his face, he had an empty stare, feeling as he was looking past me instead of at me. Despite that, he let out a wry laugh, only adding to my confusion.

"Guess you're right. Didn't even notice you." He once again chuckled, the sound not feeling as genuine as I would associate with him. I frowned, walking over and looking at his hand in more detail. It was just a little nick on his knuckle; nothing life threatening, but it still needed to be looked at.

"Just stay here. I'll grab some bandages." Before he could reply, I turned away, walking over to the first aid station near the seating area. As I was grabbing the kit, I couldn't help but feel worried. There was something odd about Soma's actions tonight; it was subtle, but knowing his mannerisms for a while tipped me off. I wanted to say something about it, but it didn't feel right to talk about it to him. Our friendship to me was only now starting to grow; it felt like I would be overstepping my boundaries if I pried too far.

At the very least, I would try. Soma has been there for me; it's only fair.

As I made it back to him, he followed my instructions. He didn't move from his spot, and shot me a smile as I returned, one that I gave back in kind.

"Alright." I said as I put the kit down, opening it up and quickly finding the bandage. I tore it open, handing it to him. "Here."

Soma sheepishly took the bandage from me, and quickly put it on his cut. "Thanks, Nakiri. You're a lifesaver."

I scoffed, rolling my eyes at his dumb joke. "Don't be overdramatic. You weren't going to die or anything."

Despite a shared smile between us, we were left with an awkward silence. I wondered if now would have been a good time to ask what was possibly wrong. Before I could ask however, Soma beat me to it.

"Well, since you're up, you want some food?"

I chuckled at the obvious question.

"If I said no, you would have pressured me anyway. Why not?" I shrugged. I looked at Soma, who was smiling at my confirmation. "Before you continue, get me a chair to sit on." I commanded, causing Soma to laugh.

"So high maintenance, aren't you, Nakiri?" Despite his joke, he did grab me a chair, and I sat down at the kitchen island, allowing a closer look at the food being prepared.

There were various items cooking, and Soma was back to cutting up the vegetables that were stopped due to his cut. As I thought about it more, I felt compelled to ask now that he seemed to be back in the groove.

"Yukihira-kun?" I asked, and getting a hum in response, I prepared to ask my question. "Is everything all right?"

I got an answer I expected: Soma chuckling at my inquiry. "Of course. Not much to worry about right now, is there?"

I tsked at his response. "We have the regiment coming up in a few weeks, if you didn't know."

"I told you, Nakiri, we're not gonna lose the regiment if I have anything to say about it."

I smiled at his confident answer. It seemed that some of his energy and wit was back.

"Of course. You will not be forgiven if we lose." My face shifted back to a small frown. "But… is there something else? You appeared to be a bit out of it before you cut your hand."

Soma's blank expression was telling. I knew there was something going on. The more I kept talking however, the further I was pushing the boundaries. I could feel the risk of pushing this conversation too far and ruining our friendship. I didn't want to mess everything up… But I didn't want to just leave this problem hidden away. I wanted to try and help, the same way Soma did for me.

"…"

The silence didn't help matters, and I looked to Soma, who stopped his chopping, the only sounds coming from the train car being the sound of cooking food and the train moving along the track.

"Yukihira-kun?"

"Don't worry about it, Nakiri." He turned to me with a grin. "It's not much! Just a bit tired, you know?"

I rolled my eyes at his remark. "Idiot. How much sleep have you gotten in the past few days?" I glared at Soma, who had a sheepish smile, hand rubbing the back of his neck.

"Maybe 10 hours, probably."

I felt a surge of annoyance well up, and I got out of my chair and punched him on the arm. I let out a sigh while Soma rubbed his arm.

"Ow…"

"You're unbelievable. You are going to finish cooking this food, then you are going to sleep." I stated. Soma shook his head in surprise, clearly not expecting my forceful words.

"But what about-"

"Shut it, Yukihira-kun. I am not going to let you stay awake and torture yourself." At my maintained glare, Soma simply sighed, a small smile on his face.

"Fine, fine. Take a seat again, Nakiri. It's almost finished."

After eating Soma's dish (which was decent, but oddly, slightly below his usual standards), we walked over to his cabin, which was across from mine.

"Ok, Yukihira-kun. You are going to sleep, understand?" I said, Soma laughing in response.

"I got it, I got it. What, are you gonna come to my room to make sure I fall asleep?"

"Y-" As I was about to exclaim that I was about to do just that, the connotations of that rung in my head, and I started blushing. I instinctively smacked him on the arm again, but not as forceful as before.

"I-idiot. I just want to make sure you don't do something stupid again…"

I blushed harder at Soma's laugh. Obviously, he was getting a kick out of this.

"If it really will make you feel better, you can stay in my room for as long as you need."

I scoffed. "Pervert. You better not do anything weird."

A few minutes later, and I was in Soma's room, sitting in a chair, staring at his prone form. It's amazing to see someone who is normally so energetic being so calm and quiet. It was a good look on him; if he was like this more often, I wouldn't have to snap at him all the time.

Despite the stillness, however, there was something wrong. Soma was turning in his bed, his face contorting into a frown. His eyebrows were scrunched up, and his breaths were shaky. Whatever he was thinking about made him uncomfortable, and I felt so helpless. I didn't know what was wrong, and I didn't want to wake him and strain our relationship further than I already have. Not thinking of any other option, I grabbed his hand, hoping that the touch of another person could aid him through whatever was causing his pain. To my relief, it seemed that it worked, and Soma's movements calmed down considerably. His breaths were becoming stable, and while his face was telling a story of hurt, my touch relaxed him a bit.

After seeing him calm down, I thought about what I was doing. And I felt a blush rising to my cheeks. I was glad that my friend wasn't awake right now, as there would for sure be a teasing remark directed towards me. I didn't know what came over me… I just knew that I had to do something to ease whatever was going on, and the first thing that came to mind was holding his hand. Alice would do the same for me when we were children when I was feeling down or scared. Doing this with a boy brought a sense of embarrassment that I wouldn't have known before, since it felt so intimate. Despite my self-consciousness, however, I wasn't going to let go; not until Soma looked better.

After it looked as if he was recovered and fully asleep, I gently pried my hand from his. I didn't want to do anything to wake him up after doing so much to make him fall asleep in the first place. Staring at his sleeping form once more, I smiled at the rest he was finally able to have, and went back to my room.

The sudden change in Soma's attitude back in the kitchen was still concerning. I was able to get him to go to sleep, but I knew there was something there that hid beyond those golden eyes. I felt that we weren't as close as I thought we were, a thought that brought on a sadness that I didn't expect. I thought that we were growing close, but there was clearly something that Soma didn't feel comfortable telling me about.

But I wanted to figure out why I saw those blank eyes tonight. Maybe I can help Soma.

Until then, I'll do my best to understand him better, I suppose.


Chapter End


A/N: Hello everyone!

Honestly, it's been reassuring, seeing all your comments, and I ended up just getting into a groove with this chapter.

Thankfully, this chapter did not go on for too long, as I wanted this to simply be a mini chapter, detailing the pair's growing friendship, and whatever is up with Soma. (If I haven't said it yet, this will diverge from canon)

I hope you guys like the chapter, as it was fun to write something new after so long of just revising. It's not my best work, but it was nice to do something to get my mind off the stressful stuff up ahead. Keep the reviews coming, they never fail to put a smile on my face. :)

I hope to see you guys soon! Stay safe out there!

(It Was You Chapter 6: Insomnia - uploaded November 30, 2020 - Update to end of chapter on December 24, 2020)