A:N/ So this brings about the second and probably final time that I'll be editing these chapters before I publish the succeeding chapters after chapter 15. Anywho, don't forget to favorite and review, as it helps the story become more popular, thank you again!

Disclaimer: I do not own Shokugeki No Soma

Surprise Pregnancy

A puff of smoke billows outside the cold home of Alice Nakiri. Underneath a tree a young raven-haired man smoked while in deep thought, he kept pondering about the numerous news that he had just received; with each hit he took from the cigarette in between his lips he felt the nicotine doing its magic, effectively calming down the agitated young man.

The stench of it clung onto him and its heat provided him with warmth from the cold outside weather. He thought about it some more, the news that had been laid unto him. Ryō was a cold and brutal kind of person, but growing up in the streets of Denmark did that to him, those days when he lived hand-to-mouth; the bitter cold nights he spent on the pub making meals for sailors. It was a bitter life he recalled, he was miserable, but he felt trapped in a cage. He had no choice. He either had to fight every day for his life or starve in the streets and die in the gutters.

Until he met her; until he met the girl that saved his otherwise gray colored life and provided a splash of color in it.

Alice…

The smell nicotine…

The stick of poison in his lips…

The overbearing news of him being a father soon…

It all took a toll on the usually quiet Ryō, him being a father?

'What a joke' millions of thoughts flooded him that night. He struggled to keep sane, struggled to keep quiet, and most of all he struggled to not run away. He took out another cigarette from his box and lit up the stick of nicotine. He looked at himself on the reflective metal casing of his cigarettes, grunting in annoyance and disappointment.

'What the fuck am I doing with my life...' he thought. He shoved his hands down on his pockets and headed towards a small forest near their house.

On that night a cool breeze hit him would hit him occasionally, unprotected from the cold the young man shivered from the howling winds of the woods. Leaves crunched beneath his feet with every step he took away from the home of his girlfriend, he noticed that little by little he was picking up the pace and was now briskly running. Smoke and the scent of nicotine clouded his vision. He spat out the cigarette from his lips and tripped on a root that he didn't notice.

Ryō landed on the forest floor with a thud and he groaned in pain. He hit his knee a little bit hard on some rocks, causing it to flare in pain. He tried to stand up, but winced from the pain when he noticed that his knee had bruised. The raven-haired young man grabbed a handful of leaves and grasped on them with frustration, crushing up the leaves into dry pieces.

Ryō chuckled darkly to himself and ran a hand through his hair, taking off his bandanna to use it as a make-shift support bandage to his knee. The young man looked up to see the moon illuminating the dark forest, he wondered about its mystic beauty. It reminded him of Alice's hair, her pale skin and her soft lips. He unconsciously ran a finger on his lips and remembered the first time Alice and him had kissed. He remembered it like yesterday, the fight that they had and the events leading up to after that day.

*Flashback*

"Ryō… Why're you smoking…" Alice asked him slowly, her voiced laced with obvious irritation. Ryō had a stressful day after numerous Shokugekis with different students. The number of things that took away on his usually peaceful time, it irritated him and drove him over the edge, now Alice spots him smoking by his usual spot.

'Just my fucking luck' he thought.

Smoking on campus was prohibited in the school manual, punishable by expulsion he winced at the thought. Caught red-handed he decided to face Alice's wrath by his own.

"Ryō… I'm asking you, why are you smoking?" Alice repeated, gritting her teeth and looking more and more agitated towards her aid.

"It's none of your business why I smoke. Fuck off." He said yelled back without a hint of hesitation. He continued to puff smoke from the cigarette he was holding, stepping away from Alice so that she wouldn't be caught in the secondhand smoke of it. Alice groaned in irritation and stomped over to him forcefully tearing away the cigarette from his lips, throwing it to the ground and putting out its embers. She glared at Ryō and gritted her teeth in frustration. If he had a smoking problem he should have told her! She thought.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Ryō glared at her, seeing her eyes welling up with tears. Alice quickly wiped them off and pressed him further for answers.

Alice was pissed; smoking was what she hated about the pub that she found Ryō working on years ago. The sailors and numerous fishermen there would drink and smoke while the young raven-haired boy would cook their meals, catching the second hand smoke of it all. She hated it. She hated Ryō reverting back to the hard life that he had back then in Denmark.

"How long do you think your body can handle the smoking? Please stop it Ryō! Do you even know how dangerous this is?" she yelled at him angrily and pounding her fist over to his chest in frustration. They were thankfully far away from prying eyes Ryō shoved her off him and shrugged, glaring at her with cold eyes while crossing his arms. He spat on the floor and looked at her with murderous eyes.

"Verpiss dich..."he muttered under his breath.

German, Alice recognized immediately what he had said and went over to him with tears brimming to her face and faced him. German was Ryō's preferred method of communicating back then, the sailors at the pub from which he worked on when he was young was dominated by Germanish folk, naturally Ryō picked the dialect up. Alice couldn't talk to him properly back then since she spoke Danish, but learned to speak German when she wanted to get closer to Ryō.

"DO YOU REALLY HATE ME THAT MUCH!?" she shouted at him, trying to wipe away her tears. Ryō rubbed the back of his neck and stepped away from the crying girl.

'Ahh crap, just my luck…' he thought with much annoyance from the girl.

"Ich hasse dich nicht..." He replied again in German, hugging the girl in front of him and apologizing. Alice hugged him back and huffed.

"You don't hate me... But I don't feel that you care about me either... So what is it?..." she asked, looking away from her aid and clutching her sides, gripping her uniform and trying to not let out a whimper. Ryō wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer to him. Alice covered her nose from the stench of nicotine that permeated off from his body. His muscular chest and pressed to hers and she blushed, the aroma of smoke had made him seemingly more-manlier and gruff, it had a weird effect but it matched him well, much to Alice's annoyance.

"I'm so sorry…"Ryō whispered to her, leaning his head onto her shoulder. He felt Alice shuddering and he felt her soft hand running through his hair after that.

"Mach mich nicht so beunruhigen..."Alice replied back, resting her head onto his shoulder and hugging the raven-haired chef. Ryō was astonished that she could speak German as well and he looked at her with this bewildered expression.

"When did you learn how to speak German?" he asked the Danish girl who offered him a small smile and twiddled with her thumbs, looking away to hide the creeping blush on her face.

"W-Well... When we first met years ago... You spoke in German with a few Danish... I thought about learning German then since it would be easier for you and I to communicate... But you know… There's always Japanese for that." she trailed off embarrassed by her ramblings. Ryō deadpanned at her and lightly pushed her back down onto the soft grass. The space created between them then vanished instantly when his lips crashed onto hers melting their lips together in a hot passionate kiss.

"I love you... I'm so sorry if I act so irrationally... Smoking... Smoking is my problem ever since I was young... I could never defeat this demon... I understand if you'd want to forget what happened. I'll just act like it never happen-" he was cut off when Alice caught her breath and dove into his lips for another kiss. She lightly pushed him down and he tripped on his feet causing the both of them to land on the floor with a small thud.

"I've loved you since we were kids... How could you be so dense to have taken all this time before you confessed to me..." she cried onto his chest, heaving from running out of breath.

"I know… I'm sorry… I was just so afraid that I'd lose you if I forget my place..." He replied, patting Alice's head gently in the process and sighing in content. He sometimes wondered if she's just this moody, but played it off because of the few times they fought like this for real, it was always because she was worried for him. It felt nice he thought, to have someone who'd ask if he'd eaten breakfast or would constantly bug him whenever she got bored. She grew onto him, her constant nagging and playful banters, it struck him as she's the only one who isn't intimidated by him to just spending time with him on her own whim.

*End of flashback*

"Fucking hell…" he sighed, burying his hands on his face in lament. Was he ready? Can he step up?

All his life he'd been alone, how the hell was he supposed to handle this kind of situation he put himself in? He made a mistake, he kept repeating to himself. A mistake that Alice had to pay, he added to his ever growing list of screw-ups he had. He looked up the sky and played with his lighter, a habit he grew into when he first started smoking.

"Ryō?" asked a voice he heard from afar. He saw a familiar face walking up to him carrying two bottles of beer with a grin on his face. He sighed in defeat now that Sōma had found him out here in the woods. He called over to his friend and clasped his hands, no longer taking a whiff of smoke from his cigarette. He carefully put it out and buried it in the ground as Sōma approached him. The young red-haired chef sat beside and had an all-knowing look on his face, offering him a beer and a lopsided grin to his friend.

"I came looking as soon as Alice asked around where you went. She's really worried you know?" he simply said, popping the cap off his bottle and drinking the cold beverage. Ryō looked at him and awkwardly shuffled his feet, rubbing the back of his head in shame. Thankfully Ryō, his friend for didn't feel the urge to pester him further. He just waited out for him and smiled, the two sat on the log while overlooking this small pond there in the forest.

"Alice is pregnant." Ryō said quickly, it was enough for Sōma to hear and he wasn't a bit fazed. He found it funny even, that even Ryō is not immune to things like these. He smiled on his friend and patted his shoulder.

"Congratulations then!"

"You're not getting the point, Yukihira…"

"Well what's bothering you then? Just needed some time to think?" Sōma asked back in reply, Ryō just looked at him and laughed hopelessly at himself, chugging down his beer and wiping off some of it that dripped down the side of his mouth.

"I'm not cut out to be a Dad. I never knew my parents and I just don't know what to do… She deserves better…" he looked at the ground, a few times in a moment before he would grab a small rock and skim it over to the pond.

"You'd be surprised… You think I'm a decent enough Dad? I'm really bad at this Dad thing when I started right off the bat." Sōma replied, grinning while scratching his nose a little bit from the chilly air that filled his nostrils.

"Well, your Dad knows right? At least you have some form of advice to get if you ask him." Ryō replied.

"True, but you do too you know? We're family, even if you think it might be embarrassing at first to ask for a bit of advice and help, you shouldn't take on the burden yourself! Plus you're a team now, you and Alice. Trust me having a kid is the best thing that ever happened to me." Ryō looked at Sōma, dumbfounded by the maturity of his words.

He smiled and then felt a familiar box on his pants. He took it out and gripped the pack in his hands with a bit of frustration. Sōma looked over to him and crossed his arms, arching an eyebrow at his raven-haired friend.

"It's for your own good that you stop. You were there for me when I needed some sense smacked into my head. I'm doing the same for you now." Soma said out loud in an easing manner, careful to not overstep his boundaries. Ryō laughed and threw the pack of cigarettes he had onto some pile of leaves, kicking some dirt onto it to bury the wretched box.

"You're right... Fuck this shit." He said, shoving his hands into his pockets and looking back to the moon the shone above them.

Conquered demons…

Anxiety subsiding…

A warming feeling…

The biting cold of the weather…

Ryō stood up and dusted off his pants, giving Sōma a hand. The young man then started the trek back to the house, his head held up high when he'd reach the conclusion of his pondering. Sōma was whistling some off-beat tune while they were on their way back.

"Oh by the way Sōma…" he said aloud while his hands still shoved into his pants. The red-haired chef looked over to his friend and saw him smiling a bit.

"What is it?" he asked back, slightly laughing.

"Thanks… You know uh for the help? I needed the sense talk and I'm sure as fuck that I wouldn't have gotten it if I asked Akira." The two laughed on their way back. Ryō felt alive, this warmth in his chest. The feeling of finally accepting what Alice's loving warmth had done for him, he loved her. He loved her with all his heart even if sometimes even he couldn't find the worth that she saw in him. He was thankful for her, he was thankful for the child that she was bearing. Most of all, he was thankful that his gray colored life was now a myriad of colors that sparked in the twilight with its brilliance. The bubbling happiness that wrapped him, the almost comedic skip in his walk, even he found himself suddenly humming in delight.

They eventually reached the house, and there on the porch he saw his girlfriend. The love of his life waiting for him with her hands wistfully on her chin while she drank some juice from a glass beside her. She sighed, still not noticing him. She huffed in annoyance and pouted cutely.

"I hate him so much! Arghhh..." she groaned in frustration, Sōma stopped Ryō in his tracks and had a sly grin on his face. They hid behind some trees and watched as Alice continued with her tantrum. Ryō looked over to Sōma and glared at his friend, mouthing something.

'What the hell are you doing?!' he mouthed to Sōma, who slightly shook his head and told him to wait.

'Just wait!' Ryō heard the sound of sniffling and immediately his heart sunk - feeling lower than dirt when he agreed to Sōma's idea. He was about to step-in to comfort her when he heard her saying more.

"Dammit Ryō... I'm so scared too you know..." she muttered, while wiping off some tears in her face. Sōma then looked over to Ryō who was stuck on his place and shoved his friend forward.

'Now!' he mouthed at his friend, urging him that this is the perfect time to comfort Alice. Ryō steeled himself and replied back.

"I'm not scared anymore. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Alice..." he admitted, Alice was frozen in her place and looked at her lover with tears welling up in her ruby-red eyes. Sōma chuckled at the two of them and decided to give them privacy, quietly walking away from the two.

They locked eyes for a brief moment.

In a heartbeat he ran towards her, and she ran towards him. Alice jumped onto him and they landed onto the ground with a thud. She cried onto his chest and he chuckled back, patting her head and sighing.

"I was so worried that you don't want the child! Idiot!" she cried more, Ryō caressed her and whispered.

"I'm sorry for making you worry... Don't ever leave me." he replied simply, hugging Alice and burying his head onto her shoulder. Alice looked up and huffed, crossing her arms and pouting at her lover.

"Oh so now I'm the one who's leaving you!?" she asked with irritation, pouting at him more. Ryō, the being the hot-head he was, hissed back and replied with frustration as well.

'Yikes… What the hell happened…?' Sōma thought back as he heard yelling from afar.

"How the fuck can you go from having this sweet moment to just go on and berate me! Being the moody cow you are, still going on and on about how I fucking left for about three hours after we got home! Jesus Christ woman! Just marry me already! Fuck's sake!" he threw his arms upwards and looked at her, and then he realized what he just said. It was one of those moments where Ryō bit back his tongue and winced inwardly. Alice tensed up and put a hand towards her drumming chest, asking him shakily what he had just said.

"Y-You... What did you just say!? Say it again!" she urged, red-faced and looking at her boyfriend with tears brimming in her eyes. Ryō sighed and looked back at her, putting his hands on her hips, earning him a slap on the face and a yelp.

'Alright fuck it, seems I'm proposing tonight…' he thought as he rubbed his sore cheek.

"Fucking hell, can you just stop being so neurotic and marry me already!?" he yelled, gritting his teeth and looking at her with the same scared expression.

"No! You said neurotic! The definition of neurotic - is causing something or someone a headache!" she shouted back, clearly missing what he said. Ryō lost in then and pushed her onto the floor, grabbing her wrists and forcing her to look at him.

"Let go of me!" she screamed, tearing up. Ryō sighed back and sat back down, crossing his arms and calming down. Alice wiped her tears and sat up with a defiant look on her face.

"I just asked you to marry me and you go on and on lecturing me about the textbook definition of the word I used... Sounds about right." he muttered, Alice gasped and put her hands onto his shirt, grasping it and shaking him for more answers.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY!? ARE YOU PROPOS-" Ryō silenced her with a kiss when he had enough of her tantrum. He licked her lips and caressed her cheek, deepening the kiss in the process, the raven-haired chef gently propped her onto his lap and Alice gasped in response, still the two were lip-locked. They broke apart, gasping for breath and Alice looked so cute when flustered. She looked at her boyfriend, not saying a word and waiting for him to ask again.

"If you still won't give me a fucking answer by the third time I ask you to marry me, I'll fucking walk out-"

"YES! YES AND A THOUSAND TIMES YES! I WILL MARRY YOU RYŌ KUROKIBA!" she lunged at him and kissed him again. They broke apart and Ryō looked at her with a mortified look. He'd just asked his girlfriend to marry him FOR THE THIRD TIME and then she finally agreed.

"Ahh, I forgot to bring a ring..." he muttered when he realized that none of this was planned, Alice giggled and sat back up.

"So let me get this straight... You're proposing to me and saying that you're not afraid of the child I'm bearing, but! You forgot to bring a ring?" she asked, raising the eyebrow and trying so hard to keep a straight face from her suppressing laughter.

"Sounds about right, I'm marrying you - ring or no ring." Ryō replied back, with much sass this time, surprising Alice. She bursts out in a fit of giggles, earning her a flustered look from her boyfriend.

"Who are you and what did you do to my Ryō?" she asked in between her laughter, Ryō growled back and tried to look away in shame.

"Shut up..." he replied, before walking back inside their house. Alice giggled and jumped onto his back. Ryō hummed and shut the door behind them, adding to his ever-growing list of things to do was shut Alice up for the display he'd put up for her earlier. He came up with an idea and grinned slyly at her.

"You won't be so bratty when you're screaming my name all night..." he said in a husky tone, Alice was flustered and watched as Ryō carried her up to their bedroom.

"Ryō!" she yelled, red-faced and wheezing in embarrassment.

Let's just say that it was a good thing that they had no neighbors that night.

'Alright I better get home soon…' Sōma thought with a wide grin of his face as he went on his merry way home.

~ End

A:N/ yikes so not a lot of things were edited in this chapter, just added a few things here and there and made spell-checking errors as well as grammatical stuff. I also added an explanation to why Ryō can speak German fluently, fun fact if you don't know, German is actually an elective subject in Denmark, so to the random guest who reviewed and told me off, you can say that I'm half right when it comes to Danes speaking German.

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