Chapter 142 - Chapter 142: People Above the Crossroad (1)

A plate left the kitchen. An empty plate returned to the kitchen, and how sweet the bridge between those two situations was evident without the need to think about it.

That was how it was for the three of them—Anderson, Kaya, and Cho Min Joon’s plates. As soon as they placed the last plate of pasta at the last table, they felt relieved. Cho Min Joon turned off the stove and sighed.

“This is fun.”

“… It is, but it’s too hot.”

Kaya wiped off her sweat and flapped her shirt. She then whispered in Cho Min Jono’s ear. He smelled the scent of sweat before hearing her husky voice.

“Let’s go to the fridge.”

“No.”

“Can’t you just go along with it?”

“Stop throwing a tantrum. Also…”

Cho Min Joon grabbed Kaya’s chin with an awkward face. He then coughed.

“I’m hot, too. Get away from me.”

“… You cold bastard.”

Kaya glared at Cho Min Joon and took off. Anderson clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“Do you know how frustrating it is to see you two together?”

“… I know what you mean, but shut it.”

“I don’t like to criticize others, but I can’t help but feel frustrated.”

Cho Min Joon looked at Kaya instead of answering. She approached Bertha, who was doing the dishes, and spoke to her with a playful look on her face. Cho Min Joon’s true feelings about her then surfaced just like how tissue melted in water.

“Kaya is a good kid.”

“… It’s hard to see that unless you’re blind.”

“You know what I mean. She lived a harsh life, and her words may be rough, but her heart isn’t.”

“She’s only nice to you. You haven’t seen the kids that were hurt because of her words.”

“Maybe.”

Cho Min Joon shrugged and walked toward Allan. It wasn’t because he had something to say to him. He wanted to see how the customers were enjoying the linguine.

There were only three tables left eating their linguines—an old couple, a young couple, and a family of 4. Every time they put linguine in their mouths, Cho Min Joon gulped. And as soon as they smiled, he sighed out of relief. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“I want to go out there and ask.”

“Ask what?”

“I want to ask them if my linguine is delicious.”

“Then why don’t you?”

“I’m worried that’ll make them feel less touched by the food. I can’t interrupt them if I can’t make it taste even better. Also…”

Cho Min Joon spoke in a choked-up voice, “There’s really no need to ask.”

The old couple, the young couple, and the family were all eating with satisfied looks on their faces. He couldn’t hear their conversations, but he had an idea.

Sarah approached Cho Min Joon and looked toward the hall. She then opened her mouth.

“How does it feel when you see that as a chef?”

“It’s the best. What else could I want? Chefs exist to give customers great memories of food. If customers leave the table satisfied, that means that chef was acknowledged. The smiles on their faces… are telling me that my life wasn’t in vain. I’m happy.”

“… I’m jealous.”

“Of what?”

“Everything. I’m jealous of your palate of envy, and the fact that you’re so happy because of a customer’s smile.”

Cho Min Joon looked over at Sarah. At that moment, Sarah flinched. He was a young man who was three years younger than her, but his eyes looked deeper than hers.

‘… Why is he looking at me like that?’

His eyes made her feel nervous. She felt like he could read her mind. She wondered if that was what Kaya fell for. Sarah gulped. She felt the muscles on her face stiffen up. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“You’re a good food critic, Sarah.”

“What makes you say that?”

Sarah showed a provocative smile, but that was only on the outside. Cho Min Joon could see the anxiousness hiding behind her confidence.

“What do you think a good chef needs the most?”

“… I’m not sure. The greed to make good food?”

“That’s true. Whenever we talk about that amongst chefs, there are mixed opinions. Some say they have to put the customers first while others say they have to keep to their own philosophies. But to be honest, there’s really no right answer. But…”

Cho Min Joon looked into Sarah’s eyes. He then spoke in a teacher’s voice,

“You just said it yourself—that chefs should have the greed to make good food. If you want to enjoy food as a food critic, isn’t that all you need? Don’t be jealous of me, Sarah. You shine brightly all on your own.”

Sarah sometimes saw negative comments about her online. They accused her of being a fake food critic who relied on her looks, but Cho Min Joon didn’t agree with that.

Sarah fully understood the structure of food, and it wasn’t because she was a level 8 in tasting. After all, everything she ever said was about food. Cho Min Joon thought of Sarah as a good food critic, so he couldn’t agree with her sense of shame. Sarah spoke in a trembling voice, “Do you really think so…?”

“People think I’m nice, but that’s not true. If I didn’t like you, I wouldn’t have comforted you.”

Sarah shut her mouth. All sorts of thoughts passed through her head. She didn’t know how to feel about being complimented by the person she respected and felt jealous of. Did she have to tell him that he was better than her? Or just thank him?

What was for certain was that Cho Min Joon’s words comforted her. What Emily told her wasn’t much different, but it felt different coming from Cho Min Joon. Sarah stared at Cho Min Joon before opening her mouth.

“Do you squirt your ketchup all over your fries or dip it?”

“I dip it.”

“I squirt it all over.”

Cho Min Joon looked at Sarah in confusion. Sarah then smirked and continued, “Just because the perfect palate dips doesn’t mean it’s wrong to squirt it all over.”

Emily, who watched them talk, smiled. Allan then saw Emily’s expression and asked, “Why are you smiling?”

“Something was missing when I said it, but when Min Joon says it, she changes her belief. I guess it really depends on who says it.”

“… That’s true. Even when it comes to complimenting my food, my happiness varies depending on who says it. When someone like Rachel… or a great food critic like you says my food is delicious, I can’t help but feel even happier.”

“Jeez Don’t say that kind of stuff in front of the camera.”

Emily flushed with embarrassment. While they had their conversation, Rachel was smiling in front of Kaya and Anderson.

“Both of you did a great job today.”

“What did we do? We just helped Min Joon.”

“There’s no dish without aides. Just the fact that you fulfilled your roles perfectly deserves praise.”

Anderson scorned himself, but Rachel continued to smile because she meant it. It wasn’t only Cho Min Joon who was impressive. The fact that they didn’t make a single mistake in hours meant that the two of them did a great job. Rachel smacked her lips and continued,

“I feel like a greedy elder saying this stuff in front of the camera… But I can’t help but say it. Anderson and Kaya, I’d like to make you the same offer I offered to Min Joon.”

Anderson’s eyes opened wide. He knew what that offer was. Rachel was telling them to work for her at Rose Island. Anderson immediately opened his mouth before shutting it again. He felt like he would sound like a fool if he spoke now. Rachel tapped Anderson’s arm with an apologetic face.

“You’ve always been so respectful to me, but this is all I can do for you.”

“N-not at all. Thank you. Thank you so much.”

He felt like he was going to cry. Anderson sniffled and swallowed his tears. Anderson looked at Rachel with determined eyes.

“I’ll repay you for trusting me.”

“It’s good to be determined, but don’t feel pressured. This isn’t for you but for the customers. The heart of a chef always comes through in the food.”

“I’ll always cook happily in your kitchen.”

Rachel nodded with a smile and looked at Kaya. Kaya was unable to answer from the surprise. Rachel spoke with understanding,

“I know you can’t give me a clear answer right now, Kaya. But the expiry date of this offer is longer than you think. I think I told you during Grand Chef, too. Hold my hand when it’s time, but I feel like that’ll be after you’re finished with Grand Chef’s activities.”

“… I’ve never thought about it, so it’s hard to answer. I’ll think about it seriously.”

“Sure. I hope to hear good news.”

Following their conversation, they all got on the bus to return to their accommodation. Kaya sat next to Cho Min Joon and thought about Rachel’s proposal.

It was a tempting offer. There were two choices once Kaya finished her activities with Grand Chef. First, she could become a head chef at a medium-sized restaurant… or slowly work her way up at a huge place like Rose Island.

And the result would change depending on what choice she made. If she did a good job, she could become a head chef at a young age. But if it was the latter, she could grow slowly yet surely. Since she had never received proper training, what Rachel could teach her was valuable.

But the reason why she was tempted by Rachel’s offer wasn’t Rachel. The main branch of Rose Island. If she went there…

‘He’d be there, too.’

Kaya lifted her head. He must have thought for a long time because Cho Min Joon was sleeping. She thought about leaning her head against her shoulders like in the movies, but that didn’t’ happen. Cho Min Joon’s neck was stiff, and his posture was proper.

She looked around. Emily was texting someone while Allan was talking to Rachel about the kitchen. Jeremy was asleep, and Sarah was looking out the window to enjoy the scenery.

All that was left were installed cameras. Kaya flapped her shirt because of the heat and then took off her cardigan and placed it on top of Cho Min Joon’s lap. She was worried he would wake up, but that didn’t happen.

Underneath the cardigan, Kaya’s fingers wriggled through. Once she got a hold of Cho Min Joon’s hand, Kaya smiled. Kaya touched the top of Cho Min Joon’s hand before grabbing it. Her heart pounded like crazy, but she strangely felt at ease.

She felt like she was going to fall asleep. Just as Kaya closed her eyes, her pocket vibrated. Kaya took out her phone and looked at the screen.

And a moment later, she squeezed tightly onto Cho Min Joon’s hand.