*This chapter takes place six weeks before The Birthday Paradox*

The week leading up to the finals was the least sleep Soma had gotten since he came out of the womb. Between scouring every piece of culinary literature in search of everything written about saury, to test-batching different aging processes with his friends, and kicking out the doubtful self-talk that he wouldn't be able to measure up to Ryo's killer instinct or Akira's gifted nose, he had no time to sleep. But he knew he was pushing his brain into information overload. Soma was too anxious about everything, and that was the worst way to win the finals, let alone cook a dish worthy of winning the Fall Selection. He ripped off his apron and pulled on his navy blue Yukihira Diner hoodie. He'd lost all sense of time since the tournament began, and had picked up the habit of staying on campus too late and walking the long way home from his assigned test kitchen at odd hours of the night.

Tonight was no different. The crisp autumn air was refreshing after cooking over all the burner heat. With only two more sleeps before the day that would either stamp his name in Tohtsuki history or make his opening ceremony remarks sound like a load of shit, Soma Yukihira absentmindedly walked down a long, winding road along the outskirts of Tohtsuki. He was exhausted and teeming with nervous energy. The walk was all he could do to not turn his nerves into fear, which was good because all he wanted was to take a bath and crash into bed tonight. It took him walking through an entire Japanese jazz album before Soma realized he had no clue where he was or how to retrace his steps. The acres of fluffy trees informed him that he was still on campus, but he'd never even seen this side. The school's private land seemed endless.

"Yukihira?"

Soma's heart skipped. Why did he hear Erina's voice in his head? Was he losing his mind? He swiveled around the dark woods until his eyes fell upon his answer. "Erina?" He croaked out, his heart racing at the realization that she had been passively on his mind the entire walk. The moonlight streamed a spotlight where she stood in a white knee-length night slip, an oversized fur coat, and bare feet. She looked like an ethereal spirit of the woods.

"Nakiri, hey! What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing. This is my backyard."

Soma spun around, staring at the massive plot of trees. Come to think of it, Soma had noticed that the grass path he took was perfectly manicured. "Your what?"

"You're on my family's estate. Private property, might I add."

"How rich are you?!" Soma gaped at the heiress.

"Yukihira, what are you doing here?" Erina folded her arms, and her coat swallowed her frame. Soma couldn't take his eyes off her. "Hey! Stop ignoring me!" She stamped her feet into the wet ground, crushing blades of grass and soil between her toes.

"Sorry, sorry! I, um, went for a walk and lost track of time, then I got lost…"

Erina silently nodded and eyed him for a while. Soma squirmed under her steely gaze. "Well, I should go." She began turning around. Soma didn't want her to leave.

"Why don't you have shoes on?" He couldn't help his tongue from spitting the words out

Looking over her shoulder, she was smug. "Unlike you, Yukihira, I like to touch grass occasionally."

"Because I have shoes on? I can take them off if you want."

"Huh? No, that's not what I—" She sighed and shook her head. "Never mind. Forget it. Would you like a ride back to your dormitory? It's hard to find the path back at this time of night if you don't know where you're going."

She turned around and began walking toward the mansion's façade, which Soma suddenly noticed was just ahead. Some side windows were lit beyond the trees.

"Uh, yeah. Thanks," Soma hesitantly accepted. He wanted to stay with her but questioned whether returning to her house was appropriate so late at night. Then again, she did invite him over. Soma doubled up to catch up to her.

"So, this is your backyard, huh? I didn't know Tohtsuki even had a private lake. Well, another one," Soma amended, remembering the hidden oasis near the dorm that Isshiki had taken them to over the summer.

"Tohtsuki has many private lakes and ponds. But this is Nakiri Pond. My late grandmother Yoko's legacy. I like to come here and sit at her shrine when I want to be alone with my thoughts."

Soma kept his eyes on her as she shared a quiet truth. Erina had never spoken a sensitive syllable in Soma's direction, so this slip into her vulnerability caught them both by surprise.

"Don't you tell a soul I told you that, Yukihira!" It was sweet how she was trying to sound strict but it was too late to hide the timidity in her voice.

Soma shot his hands up in surrender. "Not a soul," he swore. They silently held each other's gaze. The moon's glimmer had been quietly moving along with them. Soma's peripheral vision caught the tiny space between their pinkies.

Then, an exhilarating idea came to mind. He kept his gaze forward, but his pinky crawled to close the gap between their fingers. Adrenaline rushed through his body when he felt the cool touch of her soft flesh. Soma's chest tightened, waiting for Erina's violent reaction.

But no punch or slap came. He lingered a little longer on the initial delicate touch before hooking their pinkies together and thought he heard her slight breath hitch. Erina subtly leaned into his shoulder as their steps synchronized. Their fingers remained loosely locked, naturally slipping apart before gently touching again.

They walked the rest of the way to the mansion in silence.

But this wasn't awkward this time. No, Soma thought. The air between them was nothing like their first ride together last spring. This time, it felt comfortable to be alone together. A subtle breeze blew past their heads, and the ends of her feather-fine hair wafted in his face. He took a deep breath, and an aroused chill ran down his spine.

She smelled delicious.

a/n: i hope you enjoyed a new chapter. good news! i've been typing fast like kermit the frog, working on future chapters, so trust that the story goes on and on and on and...you get the point lol.

sending much love to all the student readers; we're almost at the end of the semester. power through, and good luck on finals! secondly, thank you to everyone for reading, following, and favoriting this story and its sequel, Comfort Food! i appreciate you reading my work, and i read every review...maybe too many times lol so please know that i am grateful for it all, and am trying to figure out a cute and kind way to better engage with your comments. so if you have any suggestions on how i can do that, feel free to comment below. until the next chapter...

-You're Welcome!-

8.20withlove