Jiyeon was in full chef mode, pacing the kitchen like a lion ready to pounce, while Kang scribbled furiously on his clipboard, muttering to himself. Yura, ever the amused observer, leaned back against the counter with a smug grin, occasionally making sarcastic remarks that were mostly ignored but occasionally earned her a withering glare from Jiyeon.
"Okay," Jiyeon snapped, stopping in front of Kang, "what's the status on the sauces? I swear, if that béchamel isn't silky smooth, I'll personally strangle someone."
Kang didn't even look up, clearly used to her threats by now. "Calm down,
Gordon Ramsay
. Everything's fine. Béarnaise is ready, béchamel is smooth as silk, and your garlic gochujang sauce? It's currently working its magic on the lobster."
"Good," Jiyeon said, narrowing her eyes at him, "because if it's not magic, it's death."
"Dramatic much?" Yura chimed in, casually flipping through her phone as if she didn't have a care in the world. "You're going to give yourself a heart attack before the event even starts."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Jiyeon snapped, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "I didn't realize I was surrounded by culinary experts who've all cooked a five-course dinner for a hundred people while having their sanity questioned by a cockroach."
Kang raised his hand lazily. "I take offense to that. I prefer the term
indestructible pest
."
Jiyeon glared at him. "Keep pushing me, Kang. I'll find a way to destroy you."
Kang just shrugged, clearly unfazed. "I'm still here, aren't I? You've been threatening to 'destroy' me since we opened this place. I'm basically immortal."
Yura snickered from her corner, clearly enjoying the back-and-forth. "You do realize the only reason you're still alive is because Jiyeon needs someone to yell at, right?"
"Oh, I'm very aware," Kang replied, smirking. "It's called job security."
Jiyeon rolled her eyes, but a small smile tugged at her lips despite herself. She turned back to the task at hand. "Alright, fine. Job security or not, I still need everything to be perfect. This pop-up dinner isn't just a regular night at the restaurant. This is
The Rose Manor
. People are going to judge us, and I'm not about to let anyone leave thinking they could've done better."
"Wow," Kang deadpanned. "No pressure or anything."
Yura chuckled, walking over to Jiyeon and lightly patting her on the back. "You need to chill, babe. Seriously. If anyone can pull this off, it's you. Even with Kang trying his best to sabotage you."
"Hey!" Kang protested, but his grin betrayed his enjoyment of the teasing.
Jiyeon sighed, rubbing her temples. "You two are going to be the death of me, I swear."
"Well," Yura said, her eyes twinkling with mischief, "at least you'll die doing what you love: being a perfectionist."
"And yelling at Kang," Jiyeon added with a wry smile.
"Of course," Yura agreed. "Can't forget that."
"Alright, enough," Jiyeon said, waving them off. "I need to focus. This isn't just about the food; it's about the experience. Everything from the presentation to the way the room smells needs to scream
luxury
. I want people to be talking about this for weeks."
Kang raised an eyebrow. "Does that mean we get to hire a DJ? Maybe bring in some strobe lights? You know, really give them something to talk about."
Jiyeon's glare could've melted steel. "If you even
Yura didn't even flinch. She raised an eyebrow, smirking as she replied smoothly, "Well, I'm clearly the best at it. But if you want me to come in there and 'help'—" she made air quotes with her fingers, "you'll be responsible for whatever disaster follows."
"Oh please, you couldn't even julienne a carrot," Jiyeon scoffed, flipping a piece of fish on the stove with expert ease.
"Excuse me!" Yura huffed, putting her hands on her hips. "I'll have you know, I'm
great
at delegating. Which, as you can see, is a very important skill."
Kang burst out laughing from the other side of the kitchen, narrowly avoiding a tray of crème brûlée as it zoomed past. "That's rich coming from the queen of takeout!"
Jiyeon didn't miss a beat, adding, "Yura probably thinks chopping vegetables is a crime punishable by law."
Yura crossed her arms and gave them both a mock-glare. "I don't need to chop vegetables. That's why I married a chef, remember?"
Jiyeon rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress the small smile tugging at her lips. She didn't have time to respond, though, because Kang's voice suddenly rang out with a note of urgency.
"Uh, Jiyeon, we have a situation," he called out, glancing nervously toward the front of the house.
Jiyeon's head whipped around. "What kind of situation?"
"One of the guests is allergic to shellfish," Kang said, grimacing. "They didn't tell anyone until after the lobster was served."
"For the love of—!" Jiyeon threw her hands up in exasperation. "Why do people always pull this crap at the last second?"
Yura raised an eyebrow, amusement playing on her lips. "Sounds like you're about to have a meltdown."
Jiyeon gave her a dangerous look. "If I have a meltdown, you'll be scraping melted chef off the floor."
Kang chimed in quickly, trying to de-escalate. "It's fine, we'll swap out the lobster dish. We've got the coq au vin as backup, right?"
Jiyeon sighed heavily, rubbing her temples. "Yes, but now I've got to rearrange the plating. I swear, if one more thing goes wrong tonight..."
"Oh relax," Yura said, stepping closer to Jiyeon and gently placing a hand on her arm. "You've got this. And hey, at least you get to yell at Kang. Isn't that your favorite part of any event?"
Kang muttered something about "verbal abuse" but was already moving to correct the dish issue.
Jiyeon, despite the stress bubbling inside her, found herself chuckling at Yura's words. She turned to look at her wife, a small smile breaking through her frustration. "You're insufferable, you know that?"
Yura grinned. "That's why you love me."
Before Jiyeon could respond, another call came from the front of the kitchen.
"Chef! Table five says the spice level on the escargot is too high."
Jiyeon blinked in disbelief. "It's supposed to be spicy! What did they think
gochujang
meant?"
Yura patted her on the back. "It's fine, Jiyeon. You'll survive."
"Barely," Jiyeon muttered, shaking her head as she went back to work, adjusting the seasoning on the next dish. "Remind me to never do this again."
Kang snorted from across the kitchen. "You say that every time, and yet here we are."
"Shut up, Kang," Jiyeon called back, but the grin on her face betrayed the warmth beneath her words. Despite the chaos, despite the stress, this was where she thrived. And with her team—and her annoyingly supportive wife—by her side, she knew they'd get through the night.
Even if she did threaten to murder them all along the way.