Chapter 2: The Beginning

Spice anxiously held her cinnamon pendant necklace as the car stopped at the grand gate. She recalled her conversation with her mom two days ago.

"No way!" Spice exclaimed as she finished reading the letter sent to her. Surprised, her mother turned to her.

"What is it?" Her mom curiously asked.

"F-full scholarship at MFSCA, Mom. I won a full scholarship at MFSCA!" was Spice's unbelievable answer to her mother as she handed her the letter.

Her mom read the letter thoughtfully and looked at her. "Eating competition, eh? Dear, as long as it's food, you're always game on, right?" Her mom teased. "Well? Congratulations! So, what's your decision, dear?"

"I don't know, Mom, I'm just so overwhelmed right now! How about Dad? Will he agree? How about you? I'll leave you. Then there's Blaire and everyone else. I don't know, Mom, it's just so..." she replied, confused.

"Ice..." her mom held her hand. "This is a significant and lucky opportunity for you. Don't you want to study at MFSCA? To become like dad and me? MFSCA is a great schoolchild. Your dad and I graduated there, and look at us now; whatever you decide, dear, we'll support you. All the way, "her mom calmly said, smiling proudly at her.

""I want to go, Mom. I mean, this is it! But I'm scared. What if I don't belong there?"

"Don't you ever doubt your abilities, Cinnamon? You can do it. It would be best to believe in yourself alone and not in what other people say to you. You inherited your talent from your dad and me. Remember that, dear. You'll do great things there. Believe in yourself."

"Believe in yourself..."

Spice's meditation was interrupted when the driver called to her. "We're here, Miss," the driver aroused its attention to her. She turned to the car window and was startled by the MFSCA main building. Everything around the campus is just so magnificent. The vehicle stopped at the entrance of the main building, and he got out of the car.

Spice rolled her eyes all over the place. "It's beautiful. I never imagined it'd be so beautiful here," she whispered.

"I'll be the one to bring your luggage into your dorm room, miss, but you have to stay here first at the reception. Someone will fetch you for your orientation," the driver said, immediately distracting himself with his luggage. Patiently, she sat on the sofa as she waited.

"Hi! Are you Spice?" A cute voice asked her. She looked back and saw a petite black-haired girl with hazel-brown eyes smiling sweetly at her.

"Uhm, hi, yes, that's me," she answered timidly.

"Great! I'm Vanille, and I'll be the one to orient you," the girl exclaimed as she pulled her hand and shook it." Let's go! We still have to get you to your dorm."

****

"MFSCA is subdivided into four branches. The north side is for the seniors, the south for juniors, the east for sophomores, and the west for freshmen. All of the offices in the main building are from the highest of ranks up to the lowest, as well as the function hall where all the events are held," Vanille explained to her while pointing out all the buildings. "Do you see the buildings in between each department? Those are the dorms, and each dorm has its restaurants and cafes. The dorms also have their kitchen in case the students prefer to cook what they want to eat."

Amazed by the whole place, Spice can't help but be speechless as she views her surroundings. "Anyway, do you have your keycard to your dorm room, smartwatch, and HoloPin?" Vanille asked her.

"Ah yeah, I got it," she immediately replied as she showed her everything.

"Oh good, then there'll be no problem for you anymore. Do you have any questions?" Vanille asked her as they stopped walking in front of a glass door bearing the symbol of MFSCA with a Roman numeral III. "This is your dorm building; please scan your HoloPin ID over here to get inside, and then you'll see your dorm room number in your key card. As for the smartwatch, you'll find all your class schedules, teachers' contact information, and event schedules for this semester. "

"Oh, okay. But wait, I have one question. Is this dorm coed?" She asked awkwardly.

Vanille smiled at her slyly. "That's for you to find out if you go. Good luck!" Vanilla pushed her into the dorm.

"W-wait, Vanille?" Confused, she calls her as the door closes. Spice rolled her eyes across the dorm. "Why so quiet? Nobody's here?" she asked herself. Spice was about to walk towards the stairs when suddenly a paring knife flew in her direction. She turned her back to where the paring blade had come from.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" a man wearing a hoodie and facemask asked her.

"A-ah, hi? I'm S-Spice. I'm the new transfer student in this dorm," she answered nervously as she showed her HoloPin ID.

"Transfer student?" the man questioned him doubtfully. "Why don't I know anything about you?"

"Kale!" at the same time, they looked at the source of the voice. A blue-haired girl approached them hurriedly. "Oh, sorry! Sorry! I wasn't able to tell you that we have a new student here" The girl turned to her and apologetically smiled, "I'm so sorry for what happened earlier. Kale did not know that someone new was coming today. I'm sorry. By the way, I'm Saffron. It would be best if you were Spice. Am I right? "

"A-ah, y-yes," Spice answered as she nervously glanced at Kale, still holding a paring knife.

Saffron noticed that and immediately kicked Kale. "Keep that away, will you? It's not nice to welcome our new dormers with a paring knife. Apologize to her, pronto."

Kale immediately hid the paring knife, " I'm sorry," he said briefly.

"Anyway, welcome to Dortoir étoile du sud! But before anything else, Spice, you have to do something so that we can fully receive you in the dorm," Saffron told her with a smile.

"Huh? Need to do? What? she asked them confusingly.

"It's simple, and you must prove that you deserve to be in this dorm. There must be something special that you can do. I mean, you won't be selected by the chairman to live with us here unless there is something special about you," said Kale.

"I don't understand. Something special? Selected by the chairman?" Spice confusingly asked the two. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, you don't know? It's like this: in every dorm, there are only ten students who the chairman selects to live in the dorm. Each student has an extraordinary ability in cooking. They are not ordinary students who only know how to cook like me, and I am an expert on spices and herbs. I can manipulate spices and herbs in food and make it more palatable to the palate, "Saffron explained to her.

"Is there something like that? Why didn't anybody tell me?" was Spice's startled answer.

"Who recommended you here?" asked Kale

"No one. I won the scholarship through an eating contest."

"The hell?!"

"What?!"

Spice smiled shyly at the two because of their reactions.

"You got the scholarship through an eating contest?" Saffron asked her.

" Uhm, yeah," she replied shortly.

"Just how on earth did that happen? The scholarship is not just given unless you have proven to the panel that you are worthy of studying here at MFSCA," said Kale.

"I don't know. I know I won Dulce Brielle's annual eating contest, and that's the prize," Spice replied to the two.

"That's impossible. How did you get in here, huh?" Kale asked her forcefully.

"In the annual eating contest! Why are you not believing me?" She was starting to get annoyed.

"Okay! Anyway, Spice is here already. She's a scholar of MFSCA. Kale, accept it, okay?" Saffron waved at the two of them.

"Whatever," Kale replied. "Anyway, if you think you deserve to stay here, then prove it."

"Asshole!" Spice shouted at her thought. "What should I do?" she asked here.

"You tell her, Saffron," Kale replied sharply, looking at Spice.

Saffron immediately complied and dragged Spice to the dorm kitchen. "Well, before we officially accept you in the dorm, you should do it first to convince us that you deserve to stay here. Just think of it as a rite of passage, "Saffron explained. One by one, Kale laid out the food ingredients on the island counter.

"To prove to us that you deserve to be here, out of these ingredients, you have to make comfort food that you can also serve in a 3-star restaurant. If it passes our taste, only then you'll be accepted in this dorm, " Kale informed.

Looking at the counter, Spice stared at the ingredients in awe. "half a stick of butter, a used onion, some shredded cheese, vegetable stock, and a loaf of hard French bread. A three-star gourmet food? Is this man crazy?" Spice asked herself.

"Cat got your tongue?" Kale smirked at her. "You still have time to give up. You can still go home if you want."

Annoyed, Spice grabbed the apron and immediately tied her hair, showing her sun-shaped birthmark just behind her right ear. Kale noticed it immediately and then stared at it for a moment. "What are you staring at?" Spice commented to him.

"Nothing," he answered flatly. "So? Shall we get started? "

"Yeah, whatever," Spice replied, annoyed.

"Uhm, Spice? There's another thing that you need to know," Saffron snapped at her, "you have at least to gain a rate of 9 from the dorm president to pass the test. If not, your dorm membership won't be approved."

"Oh, okay," Spice nodded, "Who's the dorm president?"

"That would be me," Kale declared, smirking at her. "Good luck on winning my approval," annoying her even more.

"You'll regret this, jerk," she murmured, giving Kale a deadly look. "Air-head asshole," Spice grunted to herself. "What do I have here? Onion, French bread, cheese, and butter. Comfort food that I can also serve in a restaurant? "she was still talking to herself until an idea popped into her mind," Oh, alright. I'll go French! "

While Spice was busy with herself, Kale stared at her intently. "Saffron, do you know anything about her?"

"Nothing much, Kale. I was only informed earlier that we have a transfer student coming today. The office didn't tell me anything else. Even the student council didn't know it. But from what I've heard, the Director was present during the eating contest at Dulce Brielle. He is also said to have granted the scholarship to Spice." Saffron told him.

"How curious," Kale muttered. "Does anyone else already know this?" he was referring to the others with them in the dorm.

"No, they're all busy preparing for the Autumn Show. Besides, her admission here is also sudden. That makes it more strange because it's almost the end of the semester, yet she was admitted here with the Director's recommendation."

"I hate people who use their connection just to fit in," Kale murmured as he looked at Spice.

While Kale and Saffron were busy talking, Spice started cooking for them. Picking up the knife, she finely sliced the onion and started to sauté it with some butter, then she added the leftover vegetable stock and let it simmer for a couple of minutes. After the soup was about to boil, Spice transferred it to a lug soup bowl and added a big slice of French bread. After which, she then sprinkled the shredded cheese and toasted the soup in the oven. The toasted cheese and onion aroma scattered across the kitchen a minute later.

"Here you go, thank you," Spice said as she placed the bowl on the table.

"What the-" Kale suddenly said as he looked at the table, "are you done?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Spice answered sarcastically.

"That was quick! Now you're starting to amaze me, Spice," Saffron said in amazement.

"Thank you, and Saffron," Spice beamed at her.

"Don't be too confident. We haven't tasted it yet," Kale told him formally. Annoyed, Saffron just rolled her eyes at Kale. "Anyway, a moment of truth. Let's taste your dish."

As Saffron opened the lid, the smell of cheese and onion directly hit her senses. " Wow, she made all of this from scratch?" she broke the bread and scooped it along with the soup, "Gratin?"

" It's onion soup. She toasted the cheese, so the soup stays warm," Kale muttered as he tasted the soup. "The combined taste of the onion soup and cheese along with the bread was balanced perfectly, leaving a warm sensation to the mouth."

"I didn't expect an onion soup made from scratch to taste like this. She didn't even use any spices and herbs, yet the soup still tastes amazing" Saffron continued to evaluate the food.

"The bread also didn't soak up the soup immediately because she toasted it with cheese on both sides." Kale added. " how did she manage to create something like this so easily?" he questioned himself.

Spice looked at the two nervously as they tasted what she had cooked. "Did they like it? What if not?" she mumbled lowly. "Uhm, is everything alright?" she asked them.

"Everything's great, Spice! I tasted this onion soup made from scratch just now, yet it looked like it came from a fine dining restaurant," Saffron praised her.

"Thank you," half-relieved Spice beamed at her. She immediately shifted his gaze to Kale, who gave her a blank expression. "Well?" she asked him.

"Saffron, lead her to her room," Kale commanded as he left them without another word.

"OMG! Welcome Spice! You are now officially a member of our dorm," Saffron greeted her happily. "Come on, let's go to your room to get you settled."

****

Dortoir étoile du sud, also known as the Southern Star Dormitory, is a three-story building with a farm and a lake. Ten students and their dorm keepers occupy the dorm. It has the most advanced kitchen area in the school, and the farm produces its fruits and vegetables for the dormers. The dorm also has a poultry area and a lake that houses various fish. Each student has dorm rooms, and their dorm keeper heads them. Entering the dorm inside, you can immediately see the grand staircase to the second floor. On the left side, you can see the lounge area where the dormers can hang out. To the right is a hallway leading to the dining hall and grand kitchen of the dorm. Going up to the second floor, you will find ten students' rooms. On the third floor of the dorm are the conference room and library.

Spice quietly watches around as she follows Saffron, who explains to her the rules and regulations of their dorm. Saffron stopped at the third door of the room and turned to Spice, "Here it is your room," she excitedly said to her. "Just scan your HoloPin here at the door lock, and your bedroom door will automatically open."

Spice immediately complied and scanned her HoloPin. The bedroom door opened, and she was directly exposed to a suite that looked like it was in a 5-star luxury hotel. Spice stepped inside her room and couldn't help but feel amazed as she scanned the whole area. "Is this a dorm? It's more like a resort. "she murmured.

Saffron chuckled gently, "Amazing, right? That's what I also felt when I first arrived here. Everything just seems to be so magical."

Spice turned to Saffron with a frown and asked, " Is the dorm president always like that? Welcoming someone by throwing a blade at them?"

"Nah, I'm really sorry about what happened earlier. Kale is a good guy sometimes. Hahaha. But seriously, he's just being cautious. There is quite an issue right now, and it involves us. Anyway, I'll be leaving you, for now, Spice. I still have work to do for the Autumn Show" Saffron smiled at her, "I'll see you later, okay? And don't be shy to call me if there's a problem, bye! "

"Bye," Spice replied as she closed the door.

Spice rolled her eyes again inside her room. In the middle of the room is a king-size bed. The room also has a balcony where the lake of the dorm can be seen. In front of the bed is the door for her on-suite bathroom. Spice walked over to her bathroom door to check it out. When the door opened, she immediately saw the vanity sink, and in front of it was a shower next to a bathtub, "This is too luxurious," she said as she closed her bathroom door. She walked off to the balcony to breathe some fresh air. The scenery was breathtaking. The lake sparkled as the sunlight hit its aquamarine waters. The trees were giving off a lovely shade, and the air was breezing with coolness, even if it was almost noontime. Somehow, a weird feeling deep inside her makes her feel at home in MFSCA. It was as if she belonged at the place ever since. Spice was busy enjoying the view when her phone rang.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Mon chou, how are you?" the caller greeted.

"Dad!" she exclaimed. "Oh, Dad, I missed you and Mom and Naia so much!"

Her dad laughed gently, "We missed you too, mon chou, especially Naia. She's always looking for you here, and she keeps on asking when you will be home. O-oh wait for a while, Naia, I'm still t-talking--" her father's voice faltered.

"Hello? Spice?" a cute little voice replaced her father's voice on the phone.

Spice smiled as she heard her little sister. "Hello, Naia"

"Spice!" the little girl started to cry, "When are you going home? Don't you want me anymore? Am I annoying? I miss you, Spice. Come back home, please. I don't have a playmate anymore," Naia continues to sob.

Spice pinched her nose as she recalled what had happened earlier at her house before she arrived at MFSCA.

(Flashback)

"No! I don't want Spice to go!" screamed Naia as she hugged Spice's right leg, "Don't go, Spice, please!" the little girl begged. Asking for help, Spice looked at her parents regarding her younger sister, who was now clinging to her leg. Naia still wouldn't stop crying.

"Naia, dear. Let go of Spice, and she'll be late," their mother pleaded.

"No!" Naia shrieked as she held on to Spice tighter.

"Naia, you already know Spice has to go there, right? It's her dream, right? If you don't let go of her, she won't be able to go. Do you want Spice to be sad?" their father said.

Naia stopped crying and looked up at Spice, "You'll be sad?" she questioned.

"Yes, little monster, I'll be sad. You know how much I dreamed of this, don't you?" Spice implored.

"But I don't want you to be sad," Naia pouted.

"Then what should we do? You don't want me to leave?" she appealed.

Naia let go of her hug and cried, running to their mother, "Mommy, I don't want Spice to go, but if she doesn't go, she'll be sad, and I don't want Spice to be sad."

"Oh dear, what should we do?" their mother replied.

Sobbing, Naia looked at her, "Okay, Spice can go so she won't be sad."

Spice slowly smiled as she kneeled in front of her sibling, "I'll be back for vacations, little monster, and I'll video call you always, okay? I won't be gone for long. I'll be back as Chef, and then we'll cook delicious food again, okay? "

"You'll be back soon, promise?"

"I promise," Spice answered as she swore to her younger sister.

(End of flashback)

"We've talked about this before." She sighed," You know how I wanted to be a chef, right Naia? Just like mom and dad. Okay, I'll go home there, but I won't be able to cook delicious food for you because I won't study here anymore. I'll go home there so that we can play. Do you like that? "

"No," Naia replied in a small voice. You will come home, right?"

"Of course, little monster," Spice chuckled, "and I'll bring you much delicious food, okay?"

"Okay!" Naia replied enthusiastically, "Mommy said she wanted to talk to you."

"Okay, give Mommy the phone," she commanded, "Mom?"

"Ice, how are you?" her mother asked.

"I'm fine mom, just got in my room. This place is so amazingly breathtaking, as you said. It's like I'm in a luxury hotel and resort, not in a school," she joked.

Her mother chuckled over the phone, "I'm happy you liked it there, dear. So tell me, where are you staying?"

"I'm at the Southern Star Dorm," she replied. Suddenly her mother on the other line fell silent. "Mom? Are you still there?"

"Y-yes, dear, I'm sorry. Where are you staying again? "Her mother asked again.

"Southern Star Dorm, mom," she replied.

"O-oh, so you're staying at the s-selected pupils' d-dorm. Have fun there, my dear, and please be careful, okay? W-we love you," her mother stammered as she ended the call.

"I love you t ---" she would have answered her mother, but suddenly the call was cut off. "Well, that's weird," she thought. Spice went back inside and lay down on her bed. While lying on her bed, Spice looked at her suitcases, "Oh, I still need to unpack my things" She would have stood up, but because she was tired from the trip, her eyes suddenly felt heavy, and minutes later, she was already sleeping soundly.

****

Spice runs down the hallway to their classroom the next day, "Shit! The first day of class and I'm late! Ugh!" She muttered annoyingly to herself. "Why did I forget to set the alarm?" she cursed. Spice looked at her smartwatch again to see the direction to her classroom, "Ugh! Why is this school so big?" She ran as fast as she could not find her way when suddenly she hit someone.

"Ouch!" they both shouted at the same time.

"Omg! Blanche, are you alright? "a girl asked.

"Oww..." caressing her butt, Spice stood up. "I'm sorry, I didn't notice you. I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry," she apologized for the collision while picking up her belongings that were scattered on the floor.

"Hey, dumbass, it's forbidden to run in the hallway!" a student rebuked her.

"You hit Blanche! Who are you?" the other girl asked.

"I'm sorry I didn't notice you," Spice apologized.

"Don't you have eyes?" the girl she collided with asked sharply.

Spice immediately looked at the girl who spoke. A girl with soft golden locks wearing the same uniform as she was looking at her with irritation written all over her face, "I already apologize, didn't I?" she said calmly.

"Sorry? Just sorry? Don't you know who I am?" the girl questioned in a high voice.

Sensing the irritation in the girl's voice, Spice immediately calmed herself before she answered. "I said I'm sorry. I'm late for my class, that's why I'm running. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," she calmly replied and left the girl, sprinting again towards the direction of her classroom.

Catching her breath, Spice stopped opposite a glass door with the letter S symbol on the side and scanned her HoloPin. She could see through the glass that many people were inside, so she immediately entered, still thinking that their class had already started,

"Good morning, everyone! I'm sorry I'm late. My name is Cinnamon Spice Leblanc, and I am a transfer student! Nice to meet all of you!" She introduced herself to everyone.

All the students in the classroom immediately fell silent and looked in her direction. Surprisingly Spice's gaze met all the pairs of eyes staring at her as a woman wearing a chef's uniform, roughly aged 25 and over, entered the classroom.

"Alright, that's quite an early introduction, Spice, but you're right on time. Shall we start over again?" The woman smiled at her.

Bewildered, blood ran through Spice's cheeks as she felt hot because of embarrassment, "W-what?!"