Chapter 140 – GOY 140
#140
“Could you slice some zucchini for me?”
“Yes.”
“Dice it, please.”
“Yes.”
He answered obediently and washed the zucchini thoroughly.
As expected, it was a useless thought. There was no way a look like that was an act.
The kitchen was as vast as Joo Seung-hyuk’s house. I tried to slice some onions beside him, but Joo Seung-hyuk reached out.
“Give it to me. I’ll do it.”
“No. I’ll do this part.”
“Your eyes will sting, so you can’t.”
“It’s fine. Besides, you’re the one making the meal. I want to do it for you today.”
“I’ll just do this part. I don’t like it when Hyung cries.”
I don’t cry just from slicing one onion… Does this guy really think I’m a child?
But the onion was already in Joo Seung-hyuk’s hand.
“You have to leave after that. Got it?”
“Yes.”
“Promise. I really want to cook for you today.”
When I repeatedly asked for a promise, Joo Seung-hyuk gave a gentle smile.
“Yes. I’ll do that.”
Joo Seung-hyuk sliced the zucchini and then prepped the onions. Seeing him slice the vegetables quickly and with consistent [visit our site][unauthorized copy]spacing, I couldn’t help but be impressed.
“Wow, Seung-hyuk-ah, you’re amazing.”
“Do I?”
“Yeah. You’re like a real chef.”
“Do you like people who are good at cooking?”
“It’s cool. I’m kind of envious.”
“Then I should have shown you sooner.”
“Show me everything from now on. Show me and tell me everything. Don’t keep things to yourself.”
I wanted to know everything about Joo Seung-hyuk. What he likes and what he’s good at, what foods he loves and hates, what he looks like when he cooks, and what his Pheromone feels like—I wanted to know every single detail.
“I will. But is there anything else to slice?”
“No. You promised to only help up to this point.”
“Still. I want to keep showing Hyung my cool side.”
Joo Seung-hyuk chattered away with an excited face. Had he been thinking such things behind that scary expression?
“You’re always cool, so you don’t have to.”
“I am?”
His eyes widened. Was that something so surprising?
“Yeah.”
“Am I cool?”
“Of course. If you aren’t cool, then who is?”
“Since when did you think I was cool?”
“Since you became taller than me.”
“Then it’s been a very long time.”
His eyes were full of mischief. He was teasing me for being shorter than him.
“…Not that long. And you were tiny when you were little too. About the size of an onion.”
“…I didn’t know Hyung would become tiny so quickly.”
“…I’m telling you, I didn’t get smaller, you just grew fast. And I’m the standard height for South Korea. No, I’m 1cm taller than the standard!”
“Taller than the standard height? That’s impressive.”
Joo Seung-hyuk kept smiling. He seemed to find teasing me amusing.
“If you’re done slicing the onions, get out! I’m going to cook!”
I pushed him toward the door. If I didn’t get this guy out now, we might both go hungry tonight.
“Alright.”
With a smile still on his lips, Joo Seung-hyuk left the kitchen.
Finally, the moment had come to showcase my skills.
I was acutely feeling the gap between ideal and reality.
I wanted to prepare a warm, home-cooked meal for Joo Seung-hyuk. I figured he probably rarely had the chance to eat a simple home-cooked meal.
Doenjang-jjigae, mushroom steamed eggs, beef bulgogi, and Connie chicken nuggets. Along with steaming hot white rice. I cooked everything with great care. I had a fair amount of confidence in myself.
Out of all the dishes I had prepared for my younger siblings, this was an ambitious collection of the absolute best-received ones, narrowed down and selected carefully.
However, once it was all laid out, it felt far too humble compared to the dishes Joo Seung-hyuk had made.
Should I make one or two more things even now?
“Is it ready?”
As I sighed while looking at the food set on the table, Joo Seung-hyuk walked in.
“Ah, well…”
“Wow. You made all of this?”
“Yeah… I’m a bit embarrassed because there isn’t much.”
I scratched my temple awkwardly.
I thought he might be disappointed seeing the plain food, but Joo Seung-hyuk sat in the chair with an expression of admiration.
“What do you mean there isn’t much? Hold on a second.”
He suddenly ran to the room and came back with a professional camera with a large lens. Then, he began taking photos of the food on the table.
“Why are you taking pictures of this…”
It wasn’t even a phone camera; the food was too humble to be captured with such a professional camera.
“It’s the first meal Hyung ever made for me. Honestly, I want to preserve it exactly as it is and look at it for a long time, but since I can’t do that, I should at least take photos.”
“Wait, let me at least redo the plating.”
This was truly a natural home-cooked meal—or rather, a “living-alone” meal. The steamed eggs were lumpy, and the rice wasn’t scooped neatly.
I tried to slice some chili peppers to put on top of the bulgogi, but Joo Seung-hyuk stopped me.
“No. I like it just as it is.”
He took a few more photos and then pressed the shutter while pointing the camera up.
“Did you just take a picture of me?”
“Yes. Because Hyung made this for me.”
“I should at least take off the apron before you take a photo.”
“Then take it off and let me take another one.”
Joo Seung-hyuk grinned foolishly. It seemed he just liked everything.
“It’s going to get cold. Let’s eat first.”
“Yes.”
He took his seat. As Joo Seung-hyuk picked up his utensils, tension rose.
He took a large spoonful of the doenjang-jjigae and put it in his mouth. I watched his face, forgetting to even breathe.
“How is it?”
“It’s delicious!”
“Does it suit your taste?”
“Yes. This is the first time in my life I’ve had something this delicious.”
“Hey, that’s not true.”
“I’m serious. It’s truly the best.”
Joo Seung-hyuk had eaten dishes made by renowned famous chefs. I knew it was impossible for my food to be better than those, yet the corners of my mouth kept twitching upward.
He tasted the bulgogi and the steamed eggs as well, and each time, he repeatedly said it was delicious. I think this is the first time I’ve seen Joo Seung-hyuk look so excited.
“Hyung, you eat too.”
“Yeah. Okay.”
As I scooped a spoonful of rice, he placed a piece of bulgogi on top of it.
“Thanks.”
“Hurry and try it. It’s really delicious!”
“Yeah.”
As I ate, Joo Seung-hyuk’s eyes sparkled.
“How is it?”
Seeing his eyes full of nervous anticipation, a laugh escaped me naturally.
I was the one who made it, so why was he the one nervous?
“It’s delicious.”
“Right? It’s really delicious, isn’t it?”
He beamed with a wide smile, as if his own cooking had been praised. Fortunately, it really did taste good.
“Are these the Connie chicken nuggets?”
“Yeah. They’re shaped like baby dragons.”
“…They look like Tyrannosaurus Rexes to me.”
Well, honestly, they looked more like dinosaurs than dragons. I had felt a slight sense of incongruity since I was young, but I had never said it out loud.
Probably other children felt the same?
“…If you think of them as baby dragons, they’ll look like dragons.”
“Do they look like dragons to Hyung?”
“Yeah.”
After ten years of brainwashing myself that these were Connie, they now looked like Connie about 80 percent of the time.
“Then I’ll think of them as baby dragons too.”
There was no need for him to be brainwashed along with me…
Before I could say anything, Joo Seung-hyuk ate a Connie chicken nugget.
“Delicious.”
“Is it?”
“Yes, Hyung. Everything is delicious! You’re amazing.”
“Connie tastes the same no matter who fries them.”
“No. It’s more delicious because Hyung made them.”
Joo Seung-hyuk spoke firmly. That sight looked so cute and lovely.
“If you like it, I’ll make it for you every day.”
“I like it, but don’t. If it’s going to be made, I should do it. I didn’t bring you here to make Hyung suffer.”
“It’s not suffering. I just like seeing you eat.”
Seeing Joo Seung-hyuk happy while looking at the food I made made me feel good too.
“Then let’s do it together.”
“Yeah. Let’s do that.”
Living in the same house as Joo Seung-hyuk, waking up together every morning, and cooking together.
Such a daily routine didn’t seem bad at all.
Joo Seung-hyuk was a gourmet, but not a glutton. In fact, he had a small appetite, to the point where it was surprising how he maintained that physique. However, today he ate endlessly.
I had worried that I made too much bulgogi because I was too enthusiastic, but on the contrary, it was almost not enough.
It must have really suited his taste. I felt proud for no reason.
“Are you finished?”
“Yes. It was really delicious.”
“That’s a relief.”
“I’ll do the dishes.”
“Seung-hyuk-ah, wait a moment.”
I caught him as he tried to get up from his seat.
“Yes?”
“There’s something I want to tell you.”
A shadow fell over Joo Seung-hyuk’s face, which had been filled with smiles throughout the meal. He looked at me with a serious expression.
“Go ahead.”
“…Well, when I met Seonbae Park Geon-woo earlier, he told me to be careful of you.”
“…Really?”
“Specifically, he told me to be careful of the food you give me. Ah, don’t misunderstand. It’s not that I decided to cook because those words bothered me. I just wanted to do something for you…”
As I quickly explained so he wouldn’t misunderstand, Joo Seung-hyuk suddenly pulled me into a tight hug.
“I don’t misunderstand. I trust Hyung. Don’t worry.”
“Yeah.”
“But is it okay to tell me that?”
“Because I trust you too.”
Park Geon-woo told me to be careful of the food Joo Seung-hyuk gives. However, I had been with Joo Seung-hyuk constantly since our first relationship. For half a year, I had eaten at the restaurants he took me to and the food he personally made.
If Joo Seung-hyuk had put something like drugs in the food, a problem would have arisen long ago.
Moreover, if Joo Seung-hyuk intended to do something to me, he didn’t even need to use drugs. During the summer vacation, he could have done whatever he wanted, whether to kill or keep me alive.
And above all, my heart was telling me so.
He was a guy who didn’t even mention the events of the Horaitron Gate because he was worried I might recall scary memories. During Aaron’s incident, he worried I might touch the Dust, and at Achilles, he warned me to be careful not to eat food containing drugs. Furthermore, after the Rut, he took care of me with utmost devotion.
Even today was like that. If Joo Seung-hyuk had been secretly drugging me, he would have been flustered when I said I would cook. Because his plan would have gone awry. But he was as happy as a child throughout the entire meal I prepared.
There is no way Joo Seung-hyuk would harm me. I trust him now.
“There’s no way you would have put something like drugs in my food.”
“I might have.”
“…What kind of drug?”
Seeing Joo Seung-hyuk smile meaningfully, a sudden surge of worry rose within me.
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