Chapter 193: Searching for the Roots (4)

Posted on June 22, 2018 by miraclerifle — Leave a reply

Jo Minjun put another spoonful of samgyetang broth in his mouth . The fact that his mindset changed didn’t necessarily instantly change the flavor . However, the feeling he got from the taste was definitely different . It was because he  no longer thought that he needed to give up on this because of efficiency . The thought that was now in his head was about what he could do to utilize this taste properly to win people over .

Not giving up, but having hope . That small change alone made the table of food feel much happier than before . Satisfaction was on Jo Minjun’s face, and Kaya started to smile while watching Minjun as well . Lisa asked in a teasing voice .

“Is it always like this?”

“Hmm? What?”

“The two of you . I know you are a chef couple, but I didn’t know you dated while making it so obvious that you are chefs . ”

“It is because of Minjun . He’s always trying to open up discussions about food . ”

Anderson answered as if he was tired . He took a peek toward Chloe . She looked calm on the outside, but she was probably hurting quite a bit . Nobody would enjoy watching the person they like acting lovie-dovie with someone else . Anderson then looked toward Jo Minjun . Jo Minjun might seem dense at times, but he was a deep thinker and was pretty sharp about people’s feelings .

‘……Did he really do it on purpose?’

Maybe it is for the best . It would be easier for Chloe to resolve her feelings if he showed her the cold reality rather than giving her mixed signals . It was normal for any couple to seem like they would never break up, but he really could not imagine Kaya and Jo Minjun ever breaking up . After thinking for a while, Anderson sighed internally before picking up his chopstick .

‘There’s nothing more useless than worrying about someone else’s relationship problems . ’

The dinner went on for a while . It could not end quickly because of the number of dishes on the table . Normal people may only eat the food they like, but they were chefs . They wanted to taste every dish, and at the same time, didn’t want any food to go to waste . Of course, the latter was almost impossible to avoid……

“I can’t eat anymore ……”

Ella looked at the galbi-jjim at the end of a fork with sad eyes . Kaya responded bluntly .

“Then stop eating . You’ll get fat . ”

“……I won’t get fat . ”

“If you won’t gain weight because you don’t want to gain weight, there would not be anything called dieting . ”

Ella started to glare at Kaya before looking back at the galbi-jjim sadly . Jo Minjun started to smile as he responded .

“If I have a daughter, I want to have a daughter like Ella . ”

“……What? Who says you’re allowed to?”

Kaya asked in an upset voice to show that she had not agreed to that . Ella was the same . She looked toward Minjun with a shocked expression .

“Uncle, you’re going to have a kid?”

“I assume some time in the future I will?”

“…… I don’t want uncle having a kid . ”

“Why?”

“Then you won’t play with Ella anymore . ”

Ella’s shoulders dropped along with her depressed expression . Jo Minjun caressed the back of Ella’s head .

“Why would I stop playing with you? Don’t worry . I will play with you a lot . ”

“……You are talking like we’ve already decided to have a kid . ”

“Eventually we will . ”

“I never agreed to it . I don’t have time to have a kid and raise them because of work . ”

“I don’t know . That’s only if I marry you……ugh . ”

Jo Minjun started to shake as if he suddenly got shocked, before moving his hand down to caress his thigh . Kaya had pinched him with her toes . Kaya asked with a scary expression .

“Do you want to die?”

“……Fine . I’m sorry . ”

Jo Minjun answered in a quiet voice . If they end up living together in the future, he could clearly tell who would be in control . Lisa started to speak as if she suddenly remembered something .

“Now that I think about it, you said you planned on living together . Did you figure that out?”

“Not yet . We haven’t found a house yet……”

“Ah . Speaking of that . ”

Chloe started to speak . She continued in an awkward voice . ”

“Sorry . I’m going to have to decline . ”

“What? Why?”

Kaya asked in a disappointed voice . Chloe smiled as if to say she was sorry .

“Sorry . It is too complicated to explain in detail . I think it will just be difficult for me . ”

“There’s no need to be sorry, but ……”

Kaya trailed off . Her face was full of disappointment . It made sense . She was the one who was looking forward to living with Chloe the most . Jo Minjun quietly looked toward Chloe . He then slowly started to speak .

“You thought about it a lot, haven’t you?”

“Yes . I thought about pushing myself a bit, but in the end, I think it will be difficult . ”

Those short phrases carried a much deeper meaning than what they said . Chloe clenched her fist under the table so that nobody could see it .

‘……Yes . Good job, Chloe . ’

If she said that she resolved her feelings for him, Jo Minjun would definitely trust her . He was that type of person . But she could not do that . She could not betray him by leaning on his generous nature . She could not betray Kaya .

Maybe this was a confession of its own . Her feelings were still there, and it would be difficult for them to ever go away . It might even reveal that she was lying when she said she resolved her feelings . Maybe that was why, but as Chloe started to feel insecure, Jo Minjun started to speak .

“It’s disappointing, but what can we do? But it is not important whether we live together or not . The important thing is that we are friends and that will not change even if we live apart . Am I right?”

Chloe bit her lips the moment she heard that . She felt like she would cry if she did not do that . Jo Minjun was trying to console her right now . He was being understanding . And he was letting her know . He was telling her that her feelings would not destroy their friendship . Kaya continued on as if to say that was obvious .

“Of course . How many friends really live with each other? It’s normal to live apart . ”

“That is true . ”

Jo Minjun started to smile . At that moment, the door opened and Lee Tae Hoon came through the door . He looked toward the table and started to speak .

“Are you done? Should I bring dessert?”

“……Does the saucier normally come ask about that?”

“Not normally, but it is a different story when the saucier is a fan of the guest . There are also three beauties ……no, four beauties . ”

Lee Tae Hoon saw Ella’s glare and quickly changed his words . Jo Minjun looked around at the others before nodding his head and responding .

“Yes . Please bring it for us . Ah, also……would you be able to do me a favor?”

“What is it?”

“I want to take a look around your kitchen ……I’ve only seen Korean kitchens in movies . I’ve never been inside of one . ”

“Mm……that is not that hard . ”

“Me too! I want to go too!”

Ella shot her hand up in the air as she shouted out . Lisa started to scold her with an embarrassed expression .

“No, Ella . You’ll bother the chefs . ”

“……Okay . ”

Ella responded in a disappointed voice and lowered her hand . She might be a troublemaker sometimes, but she really listened to her mom well . Lee Tae Hoon smiled before speaking .

“No . It is fine . It is time for the chefs to take a break as well . I’m sure they will enjoy it if such a cute little lady comes to visit . ”

Ella lifted her head back up after hearing that and looked toward Lisa with sparkling eyes . In the end, Lisa shook her head as if she had no other choice .

“Fine . But you need to listen to Uncle Minjun, okay? Don’t let go of his hand . ”

“Okay! I will!”

Ella smiled brightly before clenching on to Jo Minjun’s arm . Chloe smiled and patted Kaya’s knees after seeing her uncomfortable expression .

“Relax, she’s just a kid . ”

“……I don’t know what you are talking about . I am relaxed . ”

“Your fist sure looks to be clenched tightly for being relaxed . ”

At that moment, Ella, who was walking while holding Minjun’s hand, turned around and stuck her tongue out toward Kaya . Kaya started to glare, but Ella had already turned back around . Lee Tae Hoon started to speak on their way to the kitchen .

“It will be a bit different than your expectation . ”

It was easy to tell why he had said that as soon as they entered the kitchen . Other than a few Korean clay pots, the kitchen was very modern . You could not really tell whether it was a Korean restaurant or a Western restaurant . There were tiles on the wall and floor, and he could see stainless kitchen appliances and refrigerator . Lee Tae Hoon started to speak .

“It doesn’t look as historic as you expected, does it?”

“I guess that was kind of what I was expecting . An island made of wood, or a fire pit made of rocks and sand . ”

“It is natural . The outside of the restaurant looks like the old tile houses . ”

Ella tapped on Minjun’s back while Lee Tae Hoon was speaking . When Minjun looked down, Ella lifted up both of her arms and asked .

“Lift me up . I want to see it from up there . ”

Jo Minjun lifted Ella up . Thankfully, she was not that heavy . Ella saw the clay pot before letting out a gasp of admiration .

“That looks like a turtle . ”

As she said that, an aged man approached them . He reached out his hand . Once Jo Minjun put Ella down and shook the man’s hand, the man started to speak .

“You must be that famous Jo Minjun . I heard a lot about you . I hear you work at Rose Island?”

“Ah, yes . ”

“My name is Gregory Adams . I am the head chef of this restaurant . ”

Jo Minjun looked shocked at that revelation . How could he not? Gregory was Black . Gregory started to smile as if he could tell what Jo Minjun was thinking .

“Why? Are you shocked that a Black man is working in a Korean restaurant and is the head chef at that?”

“No, well……yes . To be honent with you, I am a bit shocked . ”

“I like that you are honest . ”

“The food has a very Korean feel to it . Of course, there is a slight difference, but based on the ingredients used, you can’t even really call it a difference . That is why I was even more shocked . ”

“Sometimes, you can see things more clearly when you look at it from the outside . For example, you are Korean, but you are cooking Western cuisine . ”

“You’re right . I didn’t think I’d be like this, but I must have my biases as well . I’m sorry . ”

“No need to be sorry . Who in this country is clear of any biases? Even I get uncomfortable and wonder if I shouldn’t have gone to a restaurant if I go to eat sushi and see a White person cutting the fish . ”

Jo Minjun started to laugh . As he picked Ella back up, Gregory started to speak .

“Your daughter?”

“No, a colleague’s daughter . ”

“She’s the cutest kid I’ve seen all year . ”

“Thank you very much . ”

Ella shyly laughed as she answered . The conversation was not that long . Jo Minjun did not want to bother them too much . While they were walking back to their room, Ella put her chin on Minjun’s neck and started to speak in a sad voice .

“I wish Minjun was my dad and not my uncle . ”

Jo Minjun stopped moving . He wanted to say something, but it was too heavy of a subject to just say something without thinking about it first . Jo Minjun slowly patted Ella’s back before finally starting to speak .

“Do you really want to see your dad?”

“……Yes . Very much . ”

“Uncle can’t be your dad ……but I can love you as much as your dad . So don’t be lonely . Ella . Me, and the others, we are all by your side . And we all love you very much . You know that, right?”

Ella did not respond . Instead, she clenched on to Minjun’s neck even tighter .

What was going on? She was still the same light child from earlier, but Ella ……felt really heavy at that moment .

 

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Translator : Miraclerifle
Proofreader : Dragneel, Illidanstormrage

Both Dragneel and Illidan have RL things so let me know if you spot errors!