Chapter 4: Dinner

There's complete silence as Erina takes her first bite of food. She moans slightly; the lomos saltados Soma cooked is truly impeccable, and every instinct demands that she enjoy every part of it immediately. Her hand seemingly moves on its own, going to do just that. But Erina controls herself, instead bringing her fork to the pasta bolognese Takumi had prepared. She takes a bite and closes her eyes, savoring the balance of saltiness and sweetness.

The silence continues as she evaluates both dishes, considering the pros and cons of each. In their own right, both dishes were perfect. However, after several moments, she opens her eyes and points to Soma's dish. "Soma's wins," she declares.

"Ha!" Soma shouts triumphantly, punching his fist into the air. "Glad you liked it!" Their friends cheer loudly as Soma undoes the cloth around his head and wraps it around his wrist, their voices filling the small space of Yukihira restaurant. Erina had already scolded the group multiple times, warning them of an inevitable noise complaint if they kept being as loud as they were. But the cheers only grow louder as Takumi grabs the full mug of Ryoko-provided alcohol in front of him and downs it all, before promptly slumping against poor Megumi who has to keep her fiancé from collapsing.

Erina shakes her head at the scene in front of her. Whenever their friends have get-togethers, there are two things she can be sure of: shokugekis and alcohol. Many of their friends are already sprawled across the tables of restaurant Yukihira in a drunk daze, and most who aren't have half empty cups of alcohol in front of them. Even Soma - who had mostly kept himself sober so he could receive challenges from any who would present one – is looking shakier by the minute. The only ones who seem truly sober are Erina, Nene, Hayama, Hisako, and Megumi. But as if on cue, Hayama's voice rises above the cheers of the others.

"Yukihira!" he shouts. "My turn!"

"Bring it Hayama! Loser has to down a glass!"

Erina lets out a sigh. "Why do they always do this?" she grumbles. "It's like they want liver failure."

Megumi just laughs lightly as she joins the other girls in the corner, away from the inebriated rowdiness of everyone else. "It's been a while since everyone's been together like this," the blue haired girl notes. "They're probably all just really excited."

"That's true," Erina agrees. "But can't they show their excitement in a different way?"

The three other girls glance at each other. "I think we should just be grateful lady Alice isn't here," Hisako says. "Otherwise…" She doesn't have to finish her sentence. They all know exactly how chaotic a drunk Alice can be. "Besides, I think Ishiki-senpai is more than enough."

The four glance toward Ishiki, who – true to form – is wearing nothing but an apron. Nene lets out an embarrassed groan and covers her eyes with one hand. "I apologize for my husband's behavior," she mutters. "I swear I hid that thing away."

"No need to worry," Erina says, attempting to comfort her once-upperclassmen. "We're all used to it." Unfortunately, this has the opposite effect because it draws another embarrassed groan from the girl.

"Anyway, how's wedding planning going?" Nene asks Megumi, clearly trying to change the subject. "Oh yes, and congratulations on the engagement." All four girls take a moment to admire the ring on Megumi's finger.

"Thank you!" Megumi says. "Planning is… slow to say the least."

"I'm sure," Nene says sympathetically. "I remember how stressful my own wedding was."

Ever the optimist, Megumi just shrugs and smiles good naturedly. "Still, I'm really looking forward to it," the blue-haired girls says, and the other three can tell she really means it.

"Well, if you need any help with it, feel free to reach out," Hisako says with all the air of a professional secretary. "I'd be happy to assist in any way I can." Nene and Erina immediately volunteer their services as well, much to the thanks of Megumi.

"But enough about me, how's research coming?" Megumi asks, turning to Hisako. "Even from Italy, I've been hearing news of the success of your and Hayama's collaboration."

Hisako smiles lightly. "Collaboration?" she repeats. "That's one way to put it. Well, it's been going smoothly, all things considered." She goes to say more, but before she can, Soma's voice interrupts her.

"Hoi Nakiri!" he calls. "You up to judge another match?"

"Of course," Erina calls back, her mouth already watering at the prospect of tasting more of Soma's cooking. "But only if you make some for Hisako too." Even if her friend didn't say it, she knew she would want to be in on a match between their respective boyfriends.

"Got it," Soma says. "Two orders of… something coming up."

'Wonder how it's going to be this time,' Erina thinks to herself. Alcohol tends to bring out Soma's wildest ideas, so whenever he cooks under the influence, his dishes either come out amazing or terrible without much in between.

Fortunately, she doesn't have to wonder long, because it's sooner rather than later that the two chefs are presenting her with their dishes. However, with her first bite of Soma's Japanese curry, she instantly knows that this time alcohol did more hurt than good. She can taste cinnamon in the curry, probably Soma's attempt to pull off one of his usual twits. But the balance of flavors in the curry sauce is all wrong, so it's with little hesitation that both her and Hisako declare Hayama's perfectly crafted Indian curry the victor of the Shokugeki.

"Damn it," Soma mutters. "How could I lose to you?!"

"Because I'm simply superior," the white-haired chef responds.

Scowling, Soma takes the full mug of alcohol in front of him and downs it all in one go. Much to Soma's credit, he's able to remain on his feet for a solid eight seconds after finishing the glass of mystery alcohol Ryoko had brought with her. He even manages to shoot Erina his trademark smirk. But as the ninth second ticks by, the red-headed chef succumbs to the alcohol and begins toppling over. Luckily, Erina was expecting this, and she catches him before he can hit the ground.

"And on that note, I think it's time to call it a night," Erina says, helping Soma into one of the chairs. It's getting late, and as much as she loves her friends, Erina doesn't have enough energy to play host right now - especially with their friends in their inebriated state.

With half their friends semi-unconscious, it takes longer than it normally would for everyone to go their separate ways. Soma is still coherent enough to see everyone out, and Erina can hear him already planning their next hangout. But once the hugs are exchanged and the goodbyes are finished, Erina and Soma step back into the diner.

"Damn, how could I lose to Hayama?" Soma mutters as the two head upstairs. "It couldn't be the cinnamon…"

"It was definitely the cinnamon," Erina interrupts him. "If you're going to try something like that, next time do it when you're sober."

"But where's the fun in that?" There's a noticeable slur in his voice.

Erina showers and goes through her usual beauty routine. By the time she's finished, Soma's already in bed and half a sleep, no doubt the result of jetlag and alcohol. Erina crawls into bed next to him, opening her phone to check tomorrow's schedule as she usually does. But just as she open's her calendar and scans through the itinerary, Soma's voice snatches her attention.

"Erina?" he calls, his voice thick with sleep. Erina doesn't look away from her phone, but hums to let him know he's been heard. "I love you."

Erina smiles and puts her phone on the nightstand. "Love you too," she says, pulling up the covers and resting her head on his shoulder. "Good night Soma." And with the warmth of him next to her, Erina is able to fall into a comfortable, uninterrupted slumber.

Author's note: Hey all! Sorry it took so long for this chapter to come out. I was having a pretty hard time deciding which way I wanted this chapter to go. Like I even completely rewrote it once it was so bad -_- But hey, we're finally back! I promise the next chapter won't take as long to come out. Hope everyone is staying safe, and see you all next time!