Chapter 90 - Chapter 90: Weight of Restaurants (2)

Kaya’s face stiffened up. No one could tell what she was thinking behind her shaking eyes. It was hard to tell if it was because of her pounding heart, rage, or fear.

It was hard for her to breathe. Her clenched fist trembled, and she breathed heavily between her lips. Underneath her messy bangs, Kaya’s eyes showed a spark. As soon as Jessica naturally lifted the camera in her face, Martin immediately covered the lens. Jessica looked back at Martin.

“Oh, long time no see, Martin!”

“… What brings you here? No, let me change the question. How did you know to come here?”

“Come on, it’s not a reporter’s nature to reveal their sources.”

“I’m not sure. I don’t think it’s right for reporters to take photos without permission either.”

“Hey, stop acting so uptight. We’re way beyond that.”

She smiled as bright as her blonde hair. Those who had been fooled by that smile knew all too well. It was a fake smile. Just like her dyed hair.

“If we’re that close, it shouldn’t matter if I’m uptight or not. Please go. We’ve never asked for interviews, and we have no intention of accepting it. If you don’t cooperate, I’ll file a complaint with Daily Street.”

“No need for that. Stop trying to scare me. You can’t even scare a rat away just by making it scared. All you have to do is feed it a little.”

“Once that rat’s full, they’ll just think my home is theirs. They’ll then dig holes all through my walls. Why would I let a rat make themselves at home?”

Martin’s eyes turned cold. Jessica’s eyes widened, and then she shrugged.

“You’re still so selfish. Okay. I’ll go back for now, but remember that the rat is still hungry. No matter how scared it is of the house owner, it could still come ripping up your walls and stealing your food.”

“Then the owner had better set up some mouse traps.”

Martin responded in an annoyed voice. Jessica smiled and didn’t answer. She then turned away. Her eyes then went to Kaya before they went to Cho Min Joon.

“Cho! I’m a big fan of yours. I hope you win!”

“Please go. You’re disturbing our show.”

“Okay, fine. I’m leaving. Oh, and Ms. Reuters. I’m sorry for putting a mic in your face as soon as you got here. I’ll try to be a little more respectful this time.”

As soon as Kaya tried to give her the finger, Cho Min Joon grabbed her hand. Kaya glanced at him with red eyes. There was no need for words for either Cho Min Joon or Kaya. Just by holding hands, they knew what each other was thinking.

“… Let go. I won’t do anything.”

Kaya’s voice was calmer than before. Considering what just happened, it would have been weird for her to be just fine. Cho Min Joon slowly let go of Kaya’s fist. She glared at Jessica, who was walking away while biting down on her lip. Chloe tapped Kaya on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it. There are lots of people like that.”

“I’m not worried.”

But her eyes looked sharp. Kaya sighed and fumbled her hands. She still felt the sensation of Cho Min Joon’s hand on hers. It was rough yet soft and somewhat strange, but she didn’t hate the feeling.

‘… Why don’t I hate it?’

He was a man. Even if he was just trying to help, she normally wouldn’t have liked it, but when Cho Min Joon held her hand, it felt weird. Was it because he was like a big brother? Or…

Kaya glanced over at Cho Min Joon. Many thoughts crossed her head, and only one remained afterward. Kaya stared at him.

‘Yeah, the important thing is whether he goes back or not. A war could break out on their land at any time…’

Thinking about his situation made her problem with Tess Gilly feel like nothing. Cho Min Joon sensed her staring and looked back at her.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“No reason. Just go. I can’t go in because of you.”

“… You’re so impatient.”

Cho Min Joon began walking while grumbling. They entered the restaurant called ‘On the Lake’. The judges were sitting inside the restaurant hall. One judge per table and there were two chairs at each other tables. Joseph, who was sitting in the middle, raised his hand and said,

“Oh, you’re here. Sit wherever you’d like. Just sit at your favorite judge’s table.”

Anderson sat at Joseph’s table without hesitation. Cho Min Joon hesitated. He didn’t want to sit at Emily’s table. He didn’t hate her, but he felt uncomfortable. On the other hand, he felt more comfortable with Allan and Joseph.

In the end, Cho Min Joon picked Allan’s table. As soon as Chloe tried to go there as well, Kaya beat her to it. She immediately linked arms with Cho Min Joon with a straight face, which made Chloe hesitate while Sasha sat next to Anderson. As a result, Chloe and Ivanna sat at Emily’s table. Each of the table’s judges opened their mouths. They spoke loud enough so that only their table could hear, “Do you know this restaurant?”

In response to Allan’s question, Cho Min Joon and Kaya shook their heads. Cho Min Joon wasn’t familiar with the States, and Kaya had never been to such fancy places. Allan continued in a calm voice, “On the Lake doesn’t have Michelin stars, but that’s not because it’s not delicious. It’s because it’s so new that no person has evaluated it. Take a look around.”

The entire restaurant was white and clean looking. Unlike places that kept it dark for the classy vibe, the large windows let in a lot of sunlight, and the lighting on the ceiling was so bright that they were blinded when looking upward.

The best sight was the view of the lake outside the terrace. The sparkling lake made them feel like they were on vacation. At that moment, various fish and seafood dishes were placed in front of them. They assumed those were the restaurant’s dishes, but what was beside those dishes that was the problem.

‘… Recipe?’

It wasn’t a window that only Cho Min Joon could see. There was a piece of paper containing the recipe on the table. When he looked at the other tables, their situations were similar. It was just their dishes that were different. In front of Joseph was pasta and risotto, and in front of Emily was what looked like appetizers. As soon as he saw that, Cho Min Joon realized what the mission was. Joseph raised his voice, “The places you see in front of you is the topic of this mission. Tonight, you must make the dishes that are in front of you. You’ll have about 4 hours. Please memorize the recipe and become familiar with it until then.”

“… Are these tables our teams?”

“Yes, that’s right. The customers’ opinions will be the basis of the evaluation. If you receive a less than satisfactory evaluation, you’ll have to pay the price. You mustn’t disappoint a single customer. Do you understand?”

They felt burdened. While Cho Min Joon gulped, Sasha raised her hand. Joseph looked at her.

“Go ahead.”

“… Are you going to tell which person will make what dish?”

“No. No need to worry about that. It will be revealed that the Grand Chef contestants made it, but the names won’t be revealed.”

Sasha sighed out of relief. If the names were revealed, the popular contestants would have an upper hand again, and that would benefit Kaya and Cho min Joon the most. She couldn’t help but worry about that aspect.

Cho Min Joon put a piece of salmon in his mouth. He tasted a bit of fishiness, but it seemed intentional. Thanks to the butter, that fishiness actually tasted savory.

The same went for the steak. It had a distinct smell, but it was so soft that the flavors were that much more intense, but that was it. Since the restaurant was still growing, no dish was that amazing.

‘That’s what’s difficult.’

It was easy to make delicious dishes. Even for amateurs, good dishes could be made as long as recipes were followed, but it was rare to make a dish that made people feel at awe.

For a restaurant that was expected to get Michelin stars in the future, nothing was all that special. Rather than a spectacular restaurant, it just seemed like an average place that was popular.

“Come to think of it, I heard there was quite the commotion on your way in. Are you okay?”

Allan asked Kaya in the middle of the meal. Kaya answered, “I’m fine.”

“You’ve grown. You would’ve gotten mad before.”

“I’m not mad all the time, you know.”

Kaya answered in a clear voice and tasted the mussel in cream sauce. Allan laughed. She must have forgotten the times when she fought all the time. He looked at Cho Min Joon and said, “It must be hard for you.”

When Cho Min Joon smiled awkwardly, Kaya was thinking something else in response to Allan’s remark.

It was about Cho Min Joon and Korea. She couldn’t stop thinking of guns and Korea at war, and that got in the way of her tasting the food.

In the end, Kaya took out her phone and went on the internet. The result of her search was simple. ‘Qualifications to register for refugees.’ But Korea didn’t qualify. Allan looked at Kaya and asked, “Aren’t you eating?”

“Oh, one second. I just had to search for something.”

Allan was angry at Kaya’s shameless voice, but it was hard to expect table manners from her since she had never been at fancy restaurants in her life. And if it was urgent, it was hard to scold her for it.

Q: What’s the fastest way for a Korean to immigrate to America?

She posted a question in a forum and turned off her phone. She wanted to do at least that.

War. Even for Kaya, that word sounded scary.

‘I thought Min Joon had a comfortable life.’

She wondered how hard he had it as a soldier. She stared at him with pity, and Cho Min Joon stared back at her strangely.

“Why are you staring at me?”

“… I won’t throw fits anymore.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? Did I do something wrong?”

“No. I’m just… Oh, wait. I got an answer.”

Kaya took out her vibrating phone from her pocket. She then read the comment she received. It was a long post that filled the screen. And due to her lack of education, she was a slow reader.

“Job immigration… Family immigration. Job immigration takes a few years, and it’s a little tricky… But family immigration must be faster.”

But as far as she knew, none of Cho Min Joon’s family members had a U.S. citizenship. She sighed out of regret, but the last part of the comment caught her eye.

A: If there’s no family, it’s the fastest to marry an American citizen, but that’s only possible if they’re dating someone they want to marry.