Epiphany | Yukihira Soma X Fem!Reader

Chapter 03: Selection

(Y/N)'s POV:

"You, over there, come here," Erina looked directly into your eyes. 

"Yes?" you replied, walking towards her.

"You pass the examination. Take these files and report to the first room on the third floor," she said. You were surprised to the bones but not as much as Soma.

"Did I hear that wrong or is she getting the privilege of not doing anything and getting accepted directly?" Soma slightly shouted, pointing his index finger to you.

"I don't need to explain myself to the likes of you," Erina answered his query.

Well, you didn't know the hell that was going on. Anyhow, it was to your advantage, so. 

"All of those years to prove my worth to you. Hah, get to work, dumb boy," you teased Soma, with a smirk on your lips.

"Tch, there's nothing all that great about you, they might've got the wrong person," he said in annoyance and envy, walking towards the kitchen table.

Erina's POV:

Her identity doesn't quite click to me at the moment but I could tell. I could tell she wasn't like the rest of them. I could sense the hidden potential.

And then, there's this boy. His fate is decided though, all of this is a formality.

"Thank you, Erina-san. I'll take my leave now," said (Y/N), bowing fifteen degrees down.

"Just call me Erina," I replied.

"As you wish, Erina," she said and winked at me, heading for the door.

She seems interesting, I may as well look forward to this year.

My thoughts were soon interrupted by this Soma guy, "Thank you for waiting." he said, placing just scrambled eggs on my palate. Like I initially thought, this guy is just messing with me. He really is ordinary.

"In the end, it's still the work of a second-rate cook. It fails to arouse my appetite," I stated, ever so confirmed in my judgement. "This examination is over."

"But you haven't seen its true form yet," he smirked.

3rd Person POV:

Erina was confused, but it changed as soon as she saw something hidden beneath the egg. She wanted to taste it; it whose appetizing aroma filled the entire room.

"I suppose I can deign to take one bite," Erina said, flustered in her desire to taste the dish served in front of her.

She loved the dish; it was unlike anything she'd ever eaten but confessing that would go beyond her judgement. It would be evidence that her judgement was wrong. She didn't want to accept it, admit it.

"It's—" she said, Soma and her assistant curious to hear her ratings. "It's disgusting!" she exclaimed, betraying her true feelings, and earned an "Ehhh!?" from the cook of the said dish.

Erina dialled a number on the telephone and announced, "Report that only one person passed the exam today, (Y/N) (L/N)."

Soma walked out of the room and pondered over his day.

The next day, you both headed to the assembly first thing in the morning. Soma didn't tell you if he passed or not and you didn't ask either. You'd come to know anyway.

"Next, we will be presenting the new students with their class badges," the host of the assembly said. "High School Division, 1st Year, Nakiri Erina"

"Yes," replied Erina and walked towards the centre of the stage with confidence and her superiority complex assisting her as always.

"Ah, Erina-sama."

"Exquisite as always."

"Beautiful and at the top of her class."

"She is perfection incarnate!"

"If I could go on a date with her, I'd die peacefully," continued the awed audience as the beautiful, gifted blonde made her way through the stairs and acquired her badge of honour.

Erina's POV:

This academy's name holds so much weight because of the intense competition, allowing only a select few to complete their education. Should one succeed in advancing to graduation, their stardom in the culinary world is guaranteed.

But I pity all those of my generation. Since the moment they were born, they were destined to fight over second place for the pinnacle of the Totsuki Academy and of the Japanese world, belongs to me—Nakiri Erina.

"Finally, we'd like to introduce two transfer students who will be joining our ranks today," the host continued. Two?

(Y/N)'s POV:

Hearing that, a smirk made its way on your face. So, he made it after all.

You made your way up to the stage to say a few words, so did Soma. He reached the mic first and started speaking as you waited for your turn.

"Okay, I'll keep it short. Just a few words from me. Uh, I'm Yukihira Soma. To be honest, this academy's just a stepping stone for me. I wasn't expecting to transfer here, but I don't plan on losing to folks who've never served a single customer before. Anyway, what I'm getting at is, I just want to make it clear that the number one spot is mine." he said.

As anticipated, the audience was in pandemonium. You liked that—surprised yet angered faces. At your turn, you grabbed the mic from him and faced the audience. The said spectators of the assembly were taken aback by your phenomenal beauty and alluring presence on the stage. That was until you expressed your intentions, much like him.

"As this guy mentioned, our transfer here wasn't expected. But, no, the first spot is mine. The name's (Y/N) (L/N). Remember it," you announced in the fewest of words.

You could hear the snarky comments and remarks from the crowd but chose to ignore them. Because haters gonna hate and players gonna play. You descended the stairs  

You descended the stairs and walked over to Soma looking ever so hot. Your heartbeat increased rapidly. Many thoughts crossed your mind when you saw him. The fact that you wanted to kiss him was just one of them. But exactly why would you want to kiss him? You didn't like him, you didn't at all. So, you settled for hugging him after much debate. You convinced yourself that you were only doing this to congratulate him on his enrollment; nothing more, nothing less. Your heart rate accelerated and all you could hear was that alone in a few seconds. It was as if you had arrhythmia. Soma looked over at you in worry.

"I see you made it here," you said, hugging Soma and pecking him lightly on the cheek, concealing all your emotions into one breath-taking smile.

"W-What are you doing— We're in public—" he blushed a deep red and panicked.

"Bold of you to assume I care," you laughed at him and pulled away in relief. Of course, you cared about doing this in public, but you just couldn't resist the urge to hug him.

You started walking away but were stopped by a hand on your wrist. Soma.

Soma's POV:

I don't know, she suddenly hugged me and kissed me on the cheek. My heart skipped a beat, I swear I felt it. She pulled back right away and started walking away but I grabbed her wrist on instinct.

Why do I want to touch her so badly?

__________

(1248 Words)