"Accept the challenge."
Etsuya Eizan sat in his darkened office feeling queasy. He'd really fucked up. "Tch!"
He wasn't admitting it; Soma Yukihira was putting the rich prick on notice. He was a gangster; he knew a real threat when he heard one.
"Then I'll sign the agreement, Yukihira."
Yeah, something deep within him knew he was messing with the wrong one.
But it was too late to go back now...
-8-
This new Central regime was a real pain in the arse.
In the same week that he battled and called out his crush's boyfriend, her father decided to enforce a new school ordinance:
All Research Societies and Seminars across the academy were to disband officially. Effective immediately.
Under the Yakuza-style direction of the Ninth Seat, Director Azami even sent out goons to do his dirty work for him against the clubs that actively resisted the new rule. Many research societies fell against rigged Food Wars judged by bribed-out judges.
So when Etsuya Eizan set another target in his sights and named it the Polar Star Dormitory, Soma lost it. He could not believe just how far the most coveted governing body in the school was willing to go so low as to make teenagers homeless without a second thought. Not everyone was born with a silver spoon in their mouth or an overflowing sippy cup in their hands. Even in his short time at the academy, he knew that Tohtsuki was always brutal and cutthroat, but never like this.
The meanest lesson that Soma kept having to repeat throughout his first year at this institution, full of the most pretentious pricks walking the face of the earth, was the damn audacity wealth gives people. It was one thing for all these rich kids to underestimate him at every turn, but to want him to become a lackey and then try to demolish his home was just plain disrespectful. At this point, he'd gotten tired of how they went about it. Soma did not like to be humbled by arrogant assholes parading as bad boys when they were just rich kids with inferiority complexes. He did not need to be humbled by anyone who would willingly sabotage another chef's dish. He couldn't trust such people. Mishandling food to win a petty war when allergies and other health concerns were at stake was such cowardice bullshit, and Soma had enough.
The dorm that crafted his father into the man and chef he became was sacred to him. The home he shared with friends who felt like family was in jeopardy. The impregnable fortress where the girl he had dedicated all the food he'd cooked for nearly a year had sought refuge was at risk of being demolished.
He was by no means a petty guy; grudges weren't his jam, and he definitely wasn't a street fighter, but don't push him.
Apparently, Eizan didn't get the memo.
So he'd have to send the boy a personal message.
How could he stand by and do nothing? How could he ever sleep well at night knowing that he did nothing? How could he save Erina from being trapped in a living hell if he didn't even try?
-8-
"I'm doing this for me."
That's what he told Eizan yesterday afternoon in that empty school hallway.
But the truth was too raw to share with his enemy.
That morning at breakfast, he saw Erina banter. She laughed and smiled, and she was brilliant with her comebacks! Sharp and witty. He genuinely keeled over a few times into a belly laugh at her roasting his friends. He'd never seen that playful side of her before. She looked like one of them for once—a regular high school teenager hanging out with her friends.
He had to protect that laugh.
So, as he grabbed his kitchen set, without a single word to the full house of other residents, he slipped out of the home he refused to abandon with only one thing on his mind: He had to win— for her sake.
Soma Yukihira was about to embarrass the fuck out of the Ninth Seat, and he absolutely could not wait another second. By any means necessary, he'd ensure the weak tricks of a joker failed miserably.
.
.
.
As he made his way to the competition kitchen, he thought about the nine people, plus Miss Fumio, who had made that dorm a safe and exciting home, especially for him. (He counted Erina in the group because she had been settling in quite well, and honestly, it felt like she'd always lived right next door.) This was the home he wanted to continue honing his craft, and these were the people he wanted to do so with. How could he leave these incredible people without knowing they'd be okay? Their daily livelihoods were hanging in the balance! How dare he call them his friends and let them get evicted, or worst yet, expelled just off of the narcissistic whim of elitist, out-of-touch chefs?
There's only one correct way to cook? Pfft! He'll show them what a load of crock that narrowminded sentiment is. He'll show all of them!
Erina, too?
Huh?
Will you show her the same thing? Erina's the same way, you know?
Not anymore. I can see her changing. She's starting to believe.
You don't know that. It's her father, her boyfriend, and her Council mate. How can you trust that she's not also in on this coup?
This voice nagging him? Soma didn't like it. That voice of doubt that crept in whenever he made a decision he knew would change everything annoyed him to his wit's end.
Why? You need me. Doubt is the antidote to grandiosity, you know? I have to keep you humble. You can't get too caught up in being the hero, Soma.
Why not?
Because the hero always dies.
I won't.
You don't fear uncertainty enough.
Why should I? I make up my life the way I want it to go.
You're not in control of when this empire falls. The princess at the top is more in control of that, and look at how she came running.
I know, but I can try.
Soma, be rational. When it's all said and done, she'll go running back to her rich boyfriend and wealthy daddy and affluent lifestyle, and you and all your friends will be homeless, expelled, and assed out. Do you think that little recipe you've been working on will simply undo sixteen years of grooming? Don't be naïve, Soma! She's one of them. Don't be dense just because you have a crush.
Stop it. I don't have time to doubt her right now.
Why not? This is the perfect time — you're risking everything. You heard her grandfather. Her trauma runs deep.
I don't want to. She needs to know she's not alone. Polar Star is my home. I want her to have somewhere safe to hide from the drama.
You understand that your home is in jeopardy because she made it her hideout?
I don't care. She's here now, safe now, and I'll make sure it stays that way.
But what about the sellout judges?
I'm not worried about them. They'll learn that money can't replace talent. I will win.
But what about-
NO. NO MORE FROM YOU. SO, SHUT UP AND WATCH ME PROVE ALL THE UNBELIEVERS WRONG.
He tightened his grip on his suitcase handle; losing was not an option.
-8-
The silly little trick Eizan played failed but was sure to have a ripple effect in the coming days.
The second the fresh, early evening air hit his face upon swinging the double door wide open after unanimously winning, he thought of her. Soma knocked his head back, his eyes closed, and his hands flayed out. He took a deep, satisfied breath.
Erina, I won. You're safe.
But the instant he saw her standing tall on the front step, their sparkling eyes met when he returned to Polar Star to emotional cheers and angry applause—Yukihira, you idiot! Thank God you're alive, you nincompoop! OMG, you won! And against the Ninth Seat! Bro, you saved us! I'm so relieved! We thought you were a goner for sure! You dummy, why'd you run off by yourself to do something so rebellious and reckless?! Never sacrifice yourself for our sake like that again! I hate you, Yukihira! But I love you because I didn't want to leave, so thank you so much!"—of his dorm mates in hardhats and helmets; he corrected himself.
No, we won.
.
.
.
They threw him a party to celebrate his leading the charge in saving the dorm. She said she didn't want any of his cooking, but how could he resist cooking for her? He tied his apron tight around his waist and entered the kitchen.
-8-
Soma could not stop thinking about the look Erina gave him when he gave her a plate of ginger pork simmered in chicken-tomato stock and a bowl of white rice. It was...different. He didn't know what the look meant, but he felt something shift within him under her gaze as if something had shifted within her first.
So, he decided to talk to her about it at the party tonight, celebrating Tadokoro's Food War victory against Central on behalf of the RRS. He had much to say to Erina privately that he couldn't verbalize the other night he effectively saved Polar Star from destruction. However, his plan and the party were short-lived the second the doorbell rang, and her father interrupted the festivities.
.
.
.
It was still early at night when he began sharpening his knives on the limestone block, lost in his thoughts.
"The advancement exams will also clearly demonstrate what happens to those of you who do not align with Director Azami's vision," Eishi's voice echoed in his ears.
She's one of them, his doubting voice repeated.
His rice cooker beeped, and the steam whistled out its vent.
He took out two frozen eggs and placed them in cold water.
A light rap at the door broke through his playback of the last couple of days.
"Nakiri?"
a/n: sometimes, a chapter is conceived from the very beginning, and sometimes, a chapter spontaneously falls out of thin air when you're finalizing the one you initially intended to release next. this is that chapter. i don't care to give etsuya eizan much attention in this love story. however, he did initially have a more significant role (but i cut it in place of another major storyline); still in canon, soma's battle against etsuya is a pendulum swing that steers them on a completely different life track {*cough* the train arc} than i think would've happened if he'd lost or never tried. (if you want to read a heartbreakingly good au-fic of soma losing, please read kishoto's 'i'm leaving everything to you') but here, i wanted to focus on why soma tried bc losing was not an option. i also appreciate doubt's role in our psyches when making life-changing decisions. for my (interpretation of) soma, i like to think of his external impulsivity as being driven by a richly reflective internal sensibility. he acts quickly bc he thinks and feels deeply. we see hints of this rich internal world in canon, and they're some of my favorite soma scenes, so it's only fitting to stretch it out here. i would love to read your reflections on the chapter and/or the relationship you have/desire with doubt bc soma shows us that to doubt is human, but to push past it is heroic.
p.s.: as always, i love reading your comments, so pls leave a review, follow, favorite, and share this one-shot series with someone in the fandom you think would enjoy reading it, too!
p.p.s.: there's a bit of c.g. jung philosophy within this chapter; if you're interested in further exploring more about the archetype of the christ imagery used in this chapter, check out my most recent post, 'luffy is the christ' where i go into depth about it on my shonen spirituality substack! [link in bio]
-You're Welcome!-
8.20withlove
-i don't own the rights to Shokugeki no Sōma, wah wah wah-
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