Two weeks had passed since the morning Kamishiro Renji woke up with the memories of his previous miserable life flooding his mind.
In the grand scheme of an eighteen-year existence, fourteen days was barely a drop in the ocean. But for the atmosphere within the Kamishiro estate, and the social ecosystem of Kosei Academy, those two weeks had brought about a quiet, tectonic shift.
…
The early morning sun poured through the massive bay windows of the estate's ground-floor kitchen, reflecting off the pristine stainless-steel counters.
It was 6:15 AM, and Renji was already standing at the cutting board, casually rolling the sleeves of his crisp white dress shirt up to his elbows.
"Young Master, you truly don't need to do this," Honda, the family's veteran head chef, said with a mixture of immense pride and mild panic. "It's my duty to prepare the morning meals."
"Relax, Honda-san," Renji replied smoothly, picking up a specialized square pan and setting it on the stovetop. "I'm just handling the tamagoyaki today. I wanted to try recreating that specific dashi ratio you used last Thursday. It was excellent."
Honda's chest puffed out slightly at the compliment. Over the last two weeks, the kitchen staff had experienced absolute whiplash. The previously polite but completely untouchable young master had suddenly started wandering into the kitchen, asking genuine questions about the ingredients, and occasionally taking over a prep station just for the fun of it.
"If you are certain, Young Master," Honda said, smiling warmly as he went back to grilling the silver cod. "Just keep the heat medium-low. Patience is the secret to the layers."
As Renji expertly folded the layer of egg in the pan, the heavy kitchen door swung open. Miya, the young maid, walked in carrying a stack of freshly pressed napkins, and froze the moment she saw him.
"G-Good morning, Young Master," Miya bowed quickly.
"Morning, Miya-san," Renji said, not taking his eyes off the pan. He expertly flipped the golden-yellow roll. "By the way, how did your younger brother's high school entrance exam go yesterday? You mentioned he was aiming for a pretty competitive district."
Miya stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening. She had mentioned that in passing to Tanaka, the head butler, three days ago while cleaning the hallway. She had no idea Renji had even been listening, let alone remembering the detail.
"He… he passed, Young Master!" Miya said, her face lighting up with genuine, unrestrained joy. "He got the acceptance letter last night! Thank you so much for asking!"
"That's great news. Tell him congratulations from me," Renji smiled softly, sliding the perfectly formed tamagoyaki onto a wooden cutting board. He sliced it into neat, uniform pieces. "Make sure you celebrate with him this weekend. You work hard enough here."
Before Miya could stammer out another heartfelt thank you, the kitchen doors burst open again.
"Onii-chan!"
Yume charged into the kitchen like a tiny, sleep-deprived missile, wearing one of her usual oversized pajamas. She completely ignored the chef and the maid, launching herself directly at Renji and wrapping her arms tightly around his waist.
"Morning, Yume," Renji chuckled, resting his hand naturally on top of her head. He let his fingers thread through her messy hair, giving her the morning headpat she had now come to aggressively demand every single day. "You're up awfully early today."
"I smelled food," Yume mumbled against his side, leaning her entire body weight into him like a lazy cat. "And I wanted my headpat before nee-san tried to act all cool and steal your attention."
"I heard that, you little gremlin."
Akari walked into the kitchen a moment later, already perfectly dressed in her Kosei Academy uniform. Her sleek black bob was immaculate, but the cool beauty mask she usually wore like armour was noticeably absent. Instead, she looked entirely relaxed, offering the kitchen staff a polite, genuine smile before walking over to her siblings.
"Morning, nii-san," Akari said, stopping beside him.
"Morning," Renji replied. He picked up a small, warm end-piece of the tamagoyaki he had just cooked and held it out. "Taste test?"
Akari didn't hesitate and leaned in and ate the piece directly from his fingers, a faint, happy blush dusting her cheeks. She chewed thoughtfully for a second before her blue eyes widened. "That's actually really good. It tastes just like Honda-san's."
"A high compliment," Renji smirked, wiping his hands on a towel.
The morning routine had completely transformed. It was no longer a silent, rigidly polite affair at the dining table, instead, it was warm, and slightly chaotic.
For Renji, who still perfectly remembered the freezing, lonely mornings of his past life, even the simple act of cooking for his little sisters was a treasure he would guard fiercely.
…
Thirty minutes later, Renji was walking down the familiar, tree-lined path toward Kosei Academy. The cherry blossoms that had blanketed the streets two weeks ago had mostly fallen, replaced by the vibrant, energetic green leaves of mid-spring.
He reached the usual intersection right on time.
"Renji!" Takumi shouted from half a block away, jogging toward him with his uniform tie already hanging loose. "Man, I am still sleepy! I stayed up until 3 AM trying to beat the final boss of that new RPG."
"You have a history quiz first period today," Renji reminded him dryly as Takumi fell into step beside him. "I assume you studied for that too instead of just gaming and sleeping?"
Takumi froze, the colour completely draining from his face. "…There's a quiz? Today?"
"I'm not letting you copy my answers," Renji said smoothly, though a highly amused smile played on his lips.
"You're a demon! A cold, heartless demon!" Takumi wailed, dramatically grabbing his own hair.
"Good morning, Takumi-kun. Renji-kun."
They turned the corner, and Hina was waiting by the brick wall, right where she always was.
When her hazel eyes met Renji's, her smile grew noticeably warmer, and the slight nervous fidgeting had mostly vanished.
"Morning, Hina," Renji greeted her. He noticed she was holding a familiar, carefully wrapped bento box in her hands. "Looks heavy today. Did you make the tamagoyaki recipe I wrote down for you?"
Hina's cheeks immediately flushed a pretty pink, and she hugged the bento box slightly closer to her chest. "I did. I practiced it twice this weekend. I… I packed a little extra, can you try it at lunch and give me your opinion."
"I'd love to," Renji smiled genuinely. "I'll look forward to it."
"Hey, what about me?!" Takumi complained. "I want extra tamagoyaki too! My brain needs protein for this quiz I'm about to fail!"
"You get whatever is left over," Renji said without missing a beat, smoothly leading the way toward the school gates. Hina hid a small, happy giggle behind her hand looking at Takumi's sulking expression. After all, she always practiced making delicious food for Takumi.
As they walked through the grand iron gates of Kosei Academy, the usual morning rush was in full swing.
Down the hall, a group of second-year girls were struggling to carry a heavy stack of club recruitment flyers.
"Let me help with those," Renji said charmingly, ignoring their stunned, blushing faces as he walked with them to the bulletin board. "The photography club, right? The new exhibit in the hallway looks fantastic."
By the time he casually set the flyers down and rejoined Takumi and Hina, the entire hallway was buzzing. It wasn't the distant, awe-struck whispering like it used to. It was genuine, excited chatter. The Prince of Kosei Academy hadn't lost his flawless aura, but he had suddenly become approachable, easygoing, and undeniably magnetic.
"Man, you're in a weirdly good mood lately," Takumi muttered as they walked into the Class 3-A homeroom. "Usually, you just ignore everyone until we sit down."
"I just realized it takes more energy to build walls than it does to open doors," Renji replied cryptically, dropping his bag onto his desk by the window.
At the desk adjacent to his, Nishimura Mika was already seated. The platinum-blonde gyaru had her compact mirror out, expertly applying a fresh coat of glossy lip tint.
"Morning, Nishimura-san," Renji said, taking his seat and leaning back comfortably.
Mika snapped her compact shut and shot him a sideways glance with her bright purple contacts. A playful, challenging smirk touched her lips.
"Morning, Prince," Mika drawled, resting her chin in her hand. She intentionally dragged her long, intricately painted acrylic nails across the surface of her desk. "You're awfully chatty recently. Trying to run for student council president or something?"
"Hardly. I just prefer a harmonious environment," Renji countered smoothly, resting his elbow on the desk. "Besides, if I became president, my first act would be to officially recognize your uniform modifications as a hazard to Takumi's blood pressure."
Takumi, who was desperately speed-reading a history textbook in the desk ahead of them, shrieked. "Don't bring me into this! I'm busy!"
Mika let out a genuine, husky laugh. "Please. Taku-chi's blood pressure will be fine. But I'll take the compliment, Kamishiro."
Renji smiled, opening his own notebook. He was slowly but surely changing his ways. After knowing about how his life was arranged to be, no way in hell, was he going to keep following his previous way of communication with others.
…
When the lunch bell finally rang hours later, the routine shifted into motion. Renji pushed two desks together in the middle of the classroom.
Takumi immediately dragged his chair over, complaining loudly about the history quiz. Hina quietly pulled her chair up beside Renji, carefully unpacking her massive, beautifully prepared bento.
Renji glanced across the room. Mika was still at her desk, scrolling through her phone. Her flashy gyaru friends from Class 3-C usually texted her to meet up in the cafeteria, but she hadn't moved yet.
"Nishimura-san," Renji called out, his voice cutting clearly through the lingering classroom chatter.
Mika looked up, her guard instinctively raising a fraction. "What?"
"Takumi is about to eat my entire lunch because he skipped breakfast," Renji said, gesturing to the empty seat. "Why don't you pull up a chair and help me defend the perimeter."
Mika blinked, surprised by the casual, open invitation. In a school governed by strict social cliques, the Prince, and the rule-breaking Gyaru wasn't a common sight after all.
"Whatever," Mika huffed, though the small smile betraying her lips completely ruined the dismissive act. She grabbed her convenience-store sandwich and dragged her chair over, dropping into the seat next to Takumi. "But if Taku-chi tries to steal my food, I'm stabbing him with a chopstick."
"I wouldn't steal your food! It's just a sad egg sandwich anyway!" Takumi protested indignantly.
"It's called a diet, idiot," Mika shot back, immediately stealing a cocktail wiener from Takumi's open lunchbox just to prove a point. Takumi squawked in outrage, trying to protect the rest of his food while Mika laughed brightly.
Amidst the loud, chaotic bickering, Renji felt a gentle tug on his sleeve.
He turned. Hina was holding out a small, separate container filled with perfectly rolled tamagoyaki. Her hazel eyes were soft, filled with a quiet pride.
"Here," Hina murmured softly, keeping her voice low so only he could hear. "Like I said this morning."
Renji picked up his chopsticks and took a piece. He ate it slowly, savouring the sweet, savoury dashi flavour. It was excellent.
"It's perfect, Hina," Renji said, holding her gaze with complete sincerity.
Hina's entire face lit up with a brilliant, shy happiness.