This was supposed to be a one-shot, and now it is at five chapters. But it's completed! Thank y'all for reading and leaving reviews! I will write more of this couple again!

First half is in Soma's POV, second half I tried to put it in both of their POVs. (There is a word for it but I forgot what it was...)

Soma knew that apologizing to Megumi was not going to be easy.

It had been easier not even a week ago. He did not know how damaged her trust of his apologizes were even then, but at least she was still talking to him.

But now, she was actively averting him. And it hurt.

After leaving the twins in the office, Soma had made a beeline for Polar Star. Right now, he was standing in the kitchen. He came here first to prepare himself to talk to Megumi as this room gave him comfort. He could tell that someone had cooked not too long ago, as there was still a scent in the air. Curious, he checked one of the refrigerators and was able to pinpoint what had been made last because it still felt warm to the touch. He shook his head and closed the door. As enticing a snack sounded now was not the time to grab one.

He had something to do. Something that should have taken priority a long time ago.

The stairs creaked under him as he made his way up to his floor. Had they always creaked like this, each one sounding slightly different? The redhead decided to chalk that observation up with the rest of the things he never noticed before despite them being in front of him. He dropped off his bag and didn't bother to change as he went back into the hallway and stood in front of Megumi's door.

"Megumi?" He knocked. When he was met by silence, he frowned. He had a very strong feeling that she was in her room, as he had noticed that all her shoes were in their cubbies when he was taking off his own. He waited a second or two longer before he repeated his actions, but he waited a little longer after the second time. When there still was no sign of her answering him, he decided to hold off for now. He suspired quietly and went downstairs.

Soma knew that it was stupid of him to think that Megumi was going to answer him straight away. Her continuous avoidance was a solid example of that. But Soma was a person who would not accept failure easily. He was a person who would keep trying with different tactics until something worked.

However, as he had realized earlier, this was not a dish he could keep at again and again. This time it was a bridge between him and Megumi. He knew how bridges worked. They were something that he used to cross over ravines and rivers to get to where he wanted to go. It was how he was able to interact with Megumi with ease. But now he realized that he also did not know how bridges work. The last couple of days made him finally notice that the once sturdy bridge was now swaying. He could see the cracks that had form, the holes where material had fallen off. Megumi had been the only one keeping up with the repairs, and since she got upset with the work, it had gotten worse. It was now his turn to add some repairs. However, he had no idea how to fix the bridge. The advice that his friends had given him made him confident enough to at least try, though.

But one wrong step could bring the whole thing crumbling down into the ravine below and he would be stuck with watching his dear friend from afar for a long time.

He spent the afternoon deep in thought. He did notice when it was time for dinner, as he smelled the food and saw the people filter in. He also noticed that Megumi came from upstairs, confirming his suspicions that she had ignored him once again. He felt the now familiar pangs of loneliness as he watched her continue to ignore him throughout dinner. By the time she left early and still had yet to glance in his direction, he realized that he was getting sucked back into the waiting game. In order to avoid that, Soma decided on a risky plan.

He was going to ambush her in her room.

"You've come to end this."

Soma nodded, his eyes never leaving Megumi's gaze. Even though the lamp she left on was not as bright as the overhead light, he could still see her quite well. He couldn't place the expression on her face. Sad? Tired? Upset? Nervous?

Megumi was the first to look away from Soma's scrutinizing stare. She noticed that he had sat at her table, taking the cushion furthest away from her bed. Soma had done that on purpose in order to give her the choice to pick wherever she felt comfortable at. Megumi ended up sitting on the floor as well, moving the pillow so she sat in front of him without the table between them but still at a respectable distance. She took her time with that, so she could attempt to calm herself down. Soma continued to watch her quietly, adjusting himself once the female sat down. She, however, kept her gaze on the ground. The silence between them felt awkward, almost suffocating as time ticked by. Soma debated on speaking first, but only to invite Megumi to talk. He was here to listen to her. However, as Soma opened his mouth, he noticed that Megumi was trembling.

"Megumi?" She looked up, and he could see tears starting to form in her eyes. "You're crying." He started to push himself up to go to her.

"No. Stay over there!" She cried. She thought she could make it through Soma's declaration without too much emotion, yet here she was, with tears starting to run down her face. "Why are you even here? Shouldn't you be preparing for your next Shokugeki or for your next trip?"

"I came to talk to you." Soma replied.

"You didn't have to. I understand now. You don't want me around anymore. I drag you down. I annoy you. I bore you. I did something wrong. That's why you don't hang out with me anymore. That's why you ignore my calls and texts. It's not because you don't have the time. You always make time for things you want. I'm sorry that it took so long for me to notice, but I know now that you just don't want me around anymore."

"Megumi-" Soma tried to interrupt, but she kept on going.

"That's why I've been avoiding you. I don't want to bother you anymore. That's why I got so upset at you yesterday. You were supposed to be doing challenges with other people at that time like you usually do. Not looking for me." Megumi sniffled. "I'm trying to do exactly what you wanted, Soma. I'm leaving you alone. You don't have to take time out of your life to find me. I know that…you want us to stop being…friends."

Soma heard enough.

He shot across the little space between them and wrapped his arms around her kneeling figure.

"That's not what I want at all!"

"Eh?" Megumi was too shocked to say anything else beyond that, giving Soma the opportunity to go on.

"Fuck…" He cursed, moving his head to her shoulder. "I'm such a terrible human being. I can't believe I've treated you so badly that you think that I don't want you around anymore. But I do want you around. These past couple of days have made me understand how much you mean to me. I see memories of you everywhere, from the classroom to the kitchen here. I hear your voice. I see your smile. And to realize that those memories might become the only things left of our bond because of how fucking stupid I am..." This time, it was Soma's voice that cracked. He could feel himself start to tear up, but he did not attempt to rub at his eyes. Instead, his hug grew tighter. "You're such an angel, and I don't deserve you. But I want you, I really do. I'm really sorry that it took me so, so long to see that I was hurting you. I know that apologies alone can't make up for all the shit I did to you, but I'll do anything to cement just how precious you are to me. Just please…don't leave my side."

Soma sniffled, causing Megumi to widen her eyes. Was he crying? She had never heard or seen him cry before. That's how important she is to him? She was honored that Soma thought of her so highly. And he wanted her by his side! There was no doubt that she felt the same about him. She should have been over the moon because of this news.

But…

"I can't accept your apology." Megumi replied. She could feel him stiffen at the words.

"I see." Soma lifted himself off her, but Megumi grabbed his hands before he was too far out of reach. Two pairs of watery amber eyes gazed at one another.

"I can't accept your apology." She repeated. "At least, not yet. There's still a part of me that's scared to forgive you because the same thing might happen again like it has so many times before."

"I understand." He nodded. "I'm going to try my best to keep you happy by my side." He vowed. "Just please tell me if I'm doing something wrong. I wouldn't even have known something was wrong if you hadn't spoken up then."

"That's why I wasn't too angry with you. I knew it was my fault as well." Megumi admitted. "But I will try my best to tell you."

"Great." Soma grinned before pulling her back into a hug. This time, Megumi hugged him back. "I've missed you." He whispered.

"I've missed you, too."

The bridge was still intact from what Megumi could see. However, there were still many, many repairs that needed to be done before it could be deemed as secure again. There was even some new rot starting to form since she had last fixed it.

Soma had also appeared, but on the other side. He still wasn't used to seeing all this damage. Up until recently he had thought the bridge was just fine. Now that he could finally see the wear and tear, he wanted to help fix it. He looked across the ravine until his eyes landed on his best friend.

"Can you tell me how to fix the bridge?"

"Only if you'll listen."