Chapter 39
Unlike before, Seo-jung’s face appeared with a gentle voice and a kind smile. If he says that much, then I, being open-minded, should give him a chance. A satisfied smile bloomed on Cha Yoon’s lips as he finished his simulation. His ear tips had long since turned red.
As his smile widened, Cha Yoon cleared his throat unnecessarily. He wanted to get home quickly. He started tapping his foot rapidly. It was the fastest speed he could manage.
But the world is not so accommodating. The situation kept unfolding differently from Cha Yoon’s expectations. It started with Seo-jung, who usually woke up early, getting up only after noon.
It was the same when deciding on meal and shopping duties. From six days of data, Cha Yoon knew that Seo-jung had never once gone to the supermarket.
That’s why Cha Yoon volunteered for meal duty instead of shopping. He intended to stay at home and talk with Seo-jung. However, once again, Ki Seo-jung shattered Cha Yoon’s expectations. He ended up joining the shopping team.
And now this. Cha Yoon couldn’t understand Seo-jung’s behavior at all. Why is he acting like this even after seeing the lavender I brought?
As Cha Yoon racked his brain like solving an unsolvable math problem, he came up with a hypothesis. The hypothesis that Ki Seo-jung might not be avoiding talking to him, but unable to. After all, he was the person who couldn’t remember Cha Yoon even after seeing the medicine packet he had brought, so it wasn’t that strange.
Moreover, they had talked with blushing faces just the day before. It might be difficult to start the conversation first. Cha Yoon nodded at this plausible guess. It wasn’t right to just pass by someone having difficulties. What could be done?
“Cha Yoon! It’s for seafood stew. I hope we can make it delicious…”
While he was thinking hard, Min-ha pursed her lips worriedly. Cha Yoon’s eyes, which had been fixed on Ki Seo-jung all along, suddenly lit up. This is it, the best way to create an atmosphere where Ki Seo-jung can easily talk to him.
There’s nothing better than delicious food to lighten the mood. Cha Yoon raised one corner of his mouth, imagining a situation where Ki Seo-jung would naturally talk to him.
“Let’s get to it.”
“Huh? Oh, yes!”
The meal preparation proceeded smoothly. This was because Cha Yoon laid out the ingredients quickly with fire in his eyes. Seo Min-ha moved hurriedly, following Cha Yoon’s instructions, seemingly overwhelmed. Song Joo-ah secretly chuckled at Cha Yoon’s passionate appearance, looking like a chef in a large restaurant. Seeing his occasional glances towards Seo-jung, she quickly figured out why he was acting like this. That kid. Instead of doing all this, he should just try speaking kindly. Joo-ah shook her head.
“It’s ready! Everyone, come here!”
Min-ha called out to everyone, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. Min-wook laughed, covering his eyes at Min-ha’s action. Min-ha looked shy seeing Min-wook like that.
The dishes made by Cha Yoon and Seo Min-ha were lined up on the large dining table. The main dish was, of course, seafood stew. Ki Seo-jung felt relieved seeing the rolled omelette and vegetable side dishes next to it.
Seo Min-ha started serving the seafood stew one by one. Cha Yoon, who had been staring intently at her hands, suddenly stood up. True to Ki Seo-jung’s character, the seafood stew that came to him was pushed to others. Cha Yoon noticed that only Ki Seo-jung didn’t have seafood stew in front of him.
“I’ll do the rest.”
“What? No! There’s just one more to serve…”
“I will.”
“Pardon?”
“I said I’ll do it.”
Seo Min-ha, please go eat. With those final words, Cha Yoon snatched the ladle from Min-ha’s hand. Min-ha, blinking her eyes, looked touched. Regardless, Cha Yoon had only one goal in mind. He would serve Ki Seo-jung’s portion himself.
He wasn’t particularly looking for praise, but he wanted to show that he made it himself. Cha Yoon deliberately filled Ki Seo-jung’s bowl with only the most delicious items. He selected and selected again, focusing on things like plump crabs and fat shrimp.
However, Ki Seo-jung’s face grew darker as he watched this. Ki Seo-jung looked up at Cha Yoon, who was placing the bowl of seafood piled like a mountain in front of him.
“…Thank you.”
Ki Seo-jung managed to offer words of thanks. Cha Yoon, unaware of his feelings, raised the corners of his mouth in satisfaction. This should be enough. Having achieved his goal, he sat down in his seat triumphantly.
“Oh, this is really delicious!”
“Right? Wow, who made this?”
Jung Soo-ho and Yeo Ji-yoon immediately reacted after tasting the seafood stew. Seo Min-ha smiled and looked at Cha Yoon.
“Cha Yoon did all the seafood stew. It’s really delicious, right?”
“It’s seriously amazing!”
Cha Yoon seemed uninterested in others’ praise, only looking at Ki Seo-jung from the corner of his eye. He hoped Seo-jung would pick up his spoon soon and show the same reaction as the others.
But only white rice was on Ki Seo-jung’s spoon. His expectations of “This time will be different, this time he’ll really eat it” were repeatedly dashed. Cha Yoon’s shoulders, which had been high, gradually started to slump as he watched the seafood stew being consistently ignored.
He even started to suspect if Seo-jung was acting like this because he said he made it all himself. Cha Yoon, furrowing his brow, poked at his rice aimlessly before shifting his gaze back to Ki Seo-jung.
Ki Seo-jung was pouring water into Yeo Ji-yoon’s cup.
“Ah, what’s this? Is Seo-jung taking care of Ji-yoon again?”
Gong Min-wook, who had been watching Ki Seo-jung and Yeo Ji-yoon like Cha Yoon, spoke in a mischievous tone. Everyone joined in, asking what had happened.
“Seo-jung really looks after Ji-yoon. He even stopped her from driving for a bit!”
“That’s right. I saw it too!”
The voices were playful, but there was a subtle expectation mixed in. With Gong Min-wook and Kim Sae-young’s words, the contestants’ attention turned to Seo-jung and Ji-yoon.
“…Ha.”
Cha Yoon, who had been looking at Seo-jung before anyone else, raised one corner of his mouth crookedly.
However, Ki Seo-jung had no time to care about Cha Yoon’s sharp gaze. He took in the expressions of the contestants, mixed with excitement and expectation.
What should I do? Seo-jung had already finished discussing plans to leave as the final couple with Shin Da-bin. It wouldn’t be good for her if his image became fixed as being paired with Yeo Ji-yoon like this.
Having finished his thoughts, Seo-jung reached out towards Min-wook.
“I’ll pour some water for you too, Min-wook.”
“Oh, how did you know my cup was empty?”
“I was watching because I wanted to take care of you.”
“Ah, I almost felt a flutter just now.”
You’re doing this to guys too? At the playful tone, Seo-jung smiled kindly as he filled Min-wook’s cup with water. In that gap, a muttering voice was heard saying, “They’re just playing around…” Ki Seo-jung pretended not to hear and handed the cup to Gong Min-wook.
“Here you go, Min-wook.”
“Thank you.”
Seo-jung smiled at Min-wook’s thanks. He was someone who could ease an uncomfortable atmosphere without being too serious. It took enduring many trials and errors to become like that.
Perhaps because of this, the other contestants no longer showed signs of trying to push the two together. As Seo-jung was feeling relieved at the changed atmosphere, it was Song Joo-ah who opened up a different topic of conversation. She brought up the food on the table again.
“Cha Yoon is good at cooking.”
Joo-ah, with a smooth smile, winked at Cha Yoon. Cha Yoon frowned.
It was what he wanted to hear, but not from Song Joo-ah. Cha Yoon, who had glanced away, fixed his gaze on Ki Seo-jung again.
The still-heaped seafood stew caught his eye first. It looked untouched. Cha Yoon felt his insides starting to boil more and more.
From moving the lavender pot late at night to cooking with such enthusiasm, all the things he had done for Ki Seo-jung came to mind one by one. Yet the person in question was busy chattering with others, not only failing to feel grateful but consistently ignoring his efforts. In this situation, it was natural for Cha Yoon to feel pissed off.
“Excuse me. Ki Seo-jung.”
In the end, Cha Yoon couldn’t hold back. This issue seemed to need clear addressing. He intended to ask why Seo-jung was acting so childishly, not considering the sincerity of the person who made the food.
At the voice calling him out specifically, Ki Seo-jung finally raised his eyes to look at Cha Yoon. Cha Yoon started pouring out his words even before Seo-jung could respond.
“Why are you eating everything except the seafood stew?”
“…Pardon?”
“You’ve eaten three of Seo Min-ha’s rolled omelettes, but you haven’t touched the seafood stew I made even once, right now.”
Cha Yoon, who had been observing Ki Seo-jung throughout the meal, increased the credibility of his words by mentioning exact numbers. Ki Seo-jung blankly stared at Cha Yoon’s frowning expression.
“I went to the trouble of serving you… Is it okay to ignore someone’s sincerity like this?”
Seriously, it’s not like you’re discriminating against people. With Cha Yoon’s continued words, the dining atmosphere instantly froze.
