Heaven's Senses

XXXIII

~~~~~Soma~~~~~

The entire stadium was silent as the judges talked over who would win the Fall Selection. They had tasted all of our dishes and gave us roaring comments, but now it was finally time to see who won the entire thing. Who would be named the winner of the Fall Selection?

But one thing I noticed change was my sister just a bit. After Ms. Leonora talked to her in a different language, Hikari walked back to her spot next to me and she looked like she was deep in thought. Not even the silence of the audience could compare to the silence my sister was giving off. Her eyes were drawn to her feet, her hand to her mouth as she thought. But then, she shook it off and smiled at me.

"You ready to see who's the better chef, big brother?" She chuckled.

I smiled back, "I always am, sis. But just know, I think I just might have beaten you this time."

Hikari smirked and shook her head, but I saw her hands starting to shake. Her medication was wearing off. She was getting overwhelmed, and I don't care what she would have to say about it, she's taking a day after this competition.

I reached out for her hand, the one with the white headband wrapped around her wrist. It was a little tradition that we did together only a few times before. She calls it a connection between twins, which sounds as cheesy as it is. I call it a way to calm ourselves at the same time.

If something bad could possibly happen, we would do this. A stressful tests, nervous about a new dish experiment. Anything that could cause us to get stressed or nervous, it was a reminder that no matter what happened to us, we were there for each other.

Hikari gripped my hand and we turned back to the headmaster, who stood up to finally make his announcement.

"I'll begin with saying masterfully done." He started, "This was a clash of individuals worthy of being in the Finals. And all of you successfully showed us your approaches to taste. Let's begin with the cooking skills. In this retrospect, all four were equally matched. Next, we choose you based on your ability to choose ingredients. This undoubtedly goes towards Akira, Ryo, and Hikari. However, Soma was able to keep up with the three of you with the use of that ingenious technique."

The crowds cheered and Hikari turned the dial on her hearing aids, muting their cheers and cries while squeezing my hand tighter.

"However," The headmaster continued, "We were surprised to learn that in our final judging that all four of the dishes were essentially matched in their deliciousness. But one stood out just a little more than the others." The headmaster then pointed directly to my sister.

"Hikari Yukihira has perfectly shown the transformation from a warm summer to a cooling fall with the simplicity of her addition to lime at the edge of the bowl, thus, bringing her dish above the others."

We all turned to Hikari who was smiling brightly at the praise. But I saw the dark circles under her eyes.

"Sis, you're taking a day." I whispered to her.

"I won't argue." She whispered back which shocked me. She hardly ever agreed with taking a day for recovery. Her condition must've been really bad for her to say yes to taking a day off.

"With all that said and ruminated over, the deciding factor was whether or not the showing of the essence of the chef." The Headmaster said.

"The essence of the chef?" I repeated questioningly.

"Yes, Soma, the essence of the chef." Leonora answered, "You see, if a dish truly bursts with one's originality. By simply tasting it, the essence of the chef's aura and personality should become visible in the mind of the eater."