"Erina awoke to the midday sun's rays filtering in through the sheer curtains. As she drifted back into consciousness, her senses returned to her slowly—the scent of fresh linens and lavender pillow mist, the sound of easy breathing beside her. Then her face warmed as she became aware of Yukihira-kun's hand on the small of her back and his toned chest beneath her cheek.

The night before she had taken great pains to position herself on the far edge of the bed, so that another person could sleep between them if they saw fit. So how the hell had they managed to get tangled up like this?

As Erina attempted to shimmy out of the embrace, all the while trying not to spontaneously combust from the close contact, Yukihira's eyes blinked open.

He regarded her with tired eyes and a lazy smile. "Mornin' Nakiri."

Erina cursed herself, scarcely unable to come up with a thought unrelated to how adorable he was.

"Morning?" she scoffed, willing the besotted flush to leave her cheeks. "It has to be at least two in the afternoon."

"Fuck, I've gotta get to work!" Suddenly, he looked ready to sprint downstairs and start his shift.

"Relax," Erina said, stretching languidly before sitting up in bed. She ran her fingers through her short tresses, trying in vain to neaten them. "I called you out. You're fine."

"Thanks for that," he said. "Head chef threw a live lobster at the last person who showed up late for a shift."

Erina chuckled a little. "Sounds like my kind of guy."

"You'd like him. But he's not as creative as you are with his insults."

"As if anyone could be," she said, finally scooting off the bed. "I'm going to go shower, and then start packing."

"You're heading back to Japan soon?"

"Tomorrow," she said. "And I um..." Erina glanced down, nibbling her lower lip. Even with what she'd learned last night, this was all still so difficult for her. "I was wondering if you would come home with us."

Yukihira met her eyes with a stunned expression. "Really?"

"I mean," she said, tucking strands of hair behind her ear, "you have to agree it would be best for the academy to have the full Elite Ten on campus."

He smirked at her. "Remember when you thought having me thrown out of school would be best for the academy?"

Erina rolled her eyes. "Don't think I haven't ruled that possibility out!" she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "But...I think we've both grown a lot since then. Just think about it."

"I will, and..." he paused. "Do you want to go for a walk later tonight?"

She raised her eyebrows fractionally, half-ready to ask what he was up to, but the voice of reason took hold and replied, "Sure. Why not?"


Takumi had headed down to the gift shop for the third time that day, determined to finally decide which mugs he would buy for his mother and nonna, when he saw her.

Megumi was wearing a white sundress and flip-flops, toting about a dozen postcards and clearly on the lookout for more.

"Good afternoon, Tadokoro-san," he said once he'd made up his mind to approach her.

Her smile was calm and gentle as the slow lapping waves at low tide. "It's good to see you Takumi-kun. It feels like we haven't spoken much lately."

Takumi released a small sigh. What a fool he had been.

In the weeks after her jaunt to New York City, he had kept his distance, convinced that her affections would remain with Yukihira for the foreseeable future and that it would be better for him to move on. But each time he saw her smile that smile he would slay demons for, he was reminded of the sheer futility of his efforts.

"Sorry if I've seemed distant."

"No worries," she replied, "Everyone's been really busy getting ready for graduation."

"Do you know what you'll do?" he asked.

Megumi sighed. "I always assumed I'd go straight back to my hometown and be with everyone."

"Big family?" he asked, nodding towards the host of postcards in her hands.

"Not really, but everyone in the town feels like an aunt or uncle or cousin." She closed her eyes, lost in memories of her childhood by the sea. "But now, after everything I've seen in these past few years I..." She shook her head. "Sorry. I didn't mean to just unload all of this on you. Normally I'd talk to—"

"You can talk to me, Tadokoro-san. About anything, at any time."

And then the smile was there again, demure and dazzling in equal parts.

"You're always so kind, Takumi-kun," she said, one of her hands drifting up to her braid. By now Takumi recognized the gesture as one of her nervous tics—but what reason did she have to feel anxious?

"What is it?"

"It's nothing, just..." She paused and cleared her throat, her cheeks pinking. "Maybe...before graduation we could maybe..."

"Get coffee sometime?" he asked, unable to keep the grin off his face.

She nodded, flushed and wordless, and Takumi swore he'd remember that look she gave him when he was in his eighties.

"There's a new espresso bar that opened close to campus," he said, trying to sound casual, like he hadn't visited the place three times already to ensure that it had the right atmosphere. "Maybe we could go together after classes one day."

"I'd like that a lot," she said. "Now let's finish up here so we can finish packing on time."


As promised, Erina went out to meet him on the beach that night, after getting massages with Alice and confirming the details of their return home with Hisako. When she had inquired about the possibility of an extra seat on their private plane, her best friend had responded with a nod and a knowing smile.

She had taken a moment to wonder, as she walked through the cool sand in her flip-flops, how her best friend had become privy to all of Erina's secrets while safeguarding her own, but the thought left her mind the moment she saw him.

Yukihira in dark jeans and a button down shirt—it had to be the most dressed up she'd ever seen him.

She smirked, crossing her arms. "You almost look like a real adult there. Is it because the rest of your clothes are already packed?"

Yukihira's contented grin, the one with which he always seemed to appraise her as of late, fell and he released a sigh. "Nakiri."

Erina held her breath, her every muscle tense, as she prepared for his next words to break her heart. "Don't 'Nakiri' me," she said, managing to keep her voice from wavering. "Just come home."

He shook his head. "That dish you made last night confirmed it," he told her. "Right now, there's still a world of skill between you and me. I can't make the kind of food that you're looking for the way I am now. Maybe in a few years, after I've trained some more overseas—"

"You'll still be an idiot, won't you?" Erina said, mostly to herself.

"Then I'll be the idiot whose cooking you find delicious," he said with a shrug. "But until I reach that goal, I won't come back to Totsuki."

Erina's eyes drew closed and she felt the warming prick of tears beneath her lids. She had caused this, all of it. "If your mind is made up, I can't stop you. But you should know this." She paused, exhaled deeply, and forced herself to look up at him. "I know I don't always act like it, but even if I hated every dish you made for the rest of your life, I would still want you around me. A...and beyond that, if I had to eat your cooking every day, I doubt I'd ever be disappointed. I don't know if this changes anything for you, but I thought I'd tell you anyway."

Yukihira stared at her for a moment, processing. "So this whole time..."

Erina sighed. "Yes, this whole time. You have never served me a dish I didn't like on some level. Not once."

"Then, why did you always—"

"If I knew what made me act like this, do you think I'd still be doing it?" she asked. "Anyway, now you know. So I guess I'll see you in six more months, or a year, or whatever you had in mind." With that, Erina turned on her heel and started back in the direction of the hotel, but she only made it a few steps before she felt his hand on her arm.

"Since when do you walk that fast?" he asked her, all jokes and easy smiles again. "What time are you leaving tomorrow?"

"Ten a.m."

"I'll be there," he told her. "I'll bring you breakfast in the morning if you want."

Erina nodded, a small smile finding its way onto her lips. "You better not oversleep again."

"As long as you don't touch my alarm clock, we'll be fine there. Good night, Nakiri."

"Good night."

They parted ways then, each secure in the knowledge that it wouldn't be forever, that it wouldn't be for long, and Erina was left to contemplate why that knowledge brought such serenity to her. But somehow she felt sure that she would find out soon enough.

Author's Notes: Thanks for reading, everyone, and sorry about the late update. I am currently working full time and in grad school, so I have not been able to spend as much time on writing as I did in the summer. Please let me know what you think, and have a good day!