Chapter 175: The Person Who Showed Up on a Truck (1)
Chapter 175: The Person Who Showed Up on a Truck (1)
“Good work today, Chloe.”
“Ah, thank you. You worked hard too.”
Chloe turned back towards the producer and smiled brightly. For a moment, he simply admired the expression on her face. When people worked together for long periods, they inevitably relaxed around one another. Once the faces around them became familiar, it was only natural for their expressions to grow more neutral and their manners less formal.
Chloe, however, was different. From the day they first recruited her until now, she had remained consistently kind and respectful, and because of that, the producer’s own voice naturally softened whenever he spoke to her.
“How have you been lately? Isn’t filming exhausting?”
“Compared with you and the rest of the staff, it’s nothing. All I have to do is cook the way I normally do and follow the script.”
“If it ever becomes too difficult, tell us. We’ll do whatever we can to help.”
“Please continue to take good care of me.”
Chloe smiled gently, then slowly headed out of the studio.
Every staff member she passed on the way out greeted her with a bright smile. Quite a few of the men even asked whether she was free for dinner, but as always, Chloe answered them with an apologetic smile and continued on her way.
Peace did not come even after she left the studio. Rather unexpectedly, Chloe had become a popular television personality. If one looked only at the numbers, she might even have had more fans than Kaya or Jo Minjoon, at least among housewives.
Unlike Grand Chef, which had featured complicated dishes that most ordinary people would never attempt at home, Chloe’s current programme, Recipe Pro, focused on recipes that were easy to follow in an ordinary kitchen. It had become common for viewers deciding what to cook for dinner to search online for ‘Chloe Jung recipe’.
Because of that, people frequently stopped her on the street to ask for photographs or autographs. Perhaps the constant attention was taking its toll, because Chloe looked unusually tired as she crossed the car park. Her agent, walking beside her, noticed immediately.
“Chloe, are you all right? If you’re exhausted, should I try to push back the rest of your meetings today?”
“You already know they can’t be rescheduled. Don’t worry. If I sleep for a while in the car, I’ll be fine.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s my job.”
Chloe forced herself to smile for him, though the expression looked weaker than usual. She took out her smartphone as they continued walking, while her agent, unsure what else to say, simply stayed beside her.
Then Chloe suddenly stopped.
Her agent turned towards her in confusion. She stood completely motionless, staring at the screen as though she had frozen in place.
“Chloe? Is everything all right?”
Chloe slowly raised her head.
The expression on her face at that moment was one her agent knew he would never forget. He even found himself regretting that he was not an artist. If he could somehow capture the expression Chloe was wearing now, he felt certain the painting would be remembered as a masterpiece.
“I want to say that something happened…”
Her voice sounded as though she were about to cry.
“But now… it has nothing to do with me.”
“…Looks like they’ve decided to go all out now. Completely all out.”
In the dining room at Rose Island, Anderson stared at his smartphone with a disgusted expression. The screen displayed photographs of Kaya and Jo Minjoon. Ordinarily, there would have been nothing unusual about that; the internet was already full of pictures of the two of them. These, however, were different.
“A hot-dog kiss, a French-fry kiss, and now even a mask kiss… What kind of film were they shooting for the last two days?”
“…I hate films.”
Ella muttered miserably, her eyes already beginning to redden. Anderson reached over and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.
“Me too.”
“Santa Claus won’t give presents to film directors, right?”
“No. They’ll probably get more than most people.”
“…Sob.”
Ella collapsed onto the table and began to cry. Janet, who had been watching from the side, gave Anderson a look that plainly asked what kind of person would say something like that to a child, but Anderson merely shrugged.
Pictures of Kaya and Jo Minjoon had begun appearing online the previous day. At Kaya’s level of fame, constant paparazzi attention was unavoidable, but the story had grown even larger because the two of them had shown affection so openly in public places such as cafés and restaurants, apparently without caring who was watching. It was not only professional photographers either; ordinary people had uploaded plenty of pictures taken on their phones.
And photographs were not the only thing spreading.
News that Kaya had met her biological father had also begun appearing in articles almost immediately.
The first reporter to publish the story was—
“Jessica Prada.”
The same woman who had broken the story involving Tess Gilly.
How she had learned about the meeting and managed to publish an article so quickly was anyone’s guess.
As usual, Jessica Prada had twisted the details into something more suitable for gossip. Kaya’s father had remained silent for eighteen years, only to appear once his daughter became famous. Unlike Kaya, he was wealthy, while Kaya herself had supposedly treated him with open hostility.
Naturally, Kaya’s agent released an official statement not long afterwards. The explanation was simple enough: Kaya’s father had indeed approached her after she became famous, but the timing was coincidental, as he had already been searching for her when Grand Chef began airing. He had only become wealthy relatively recently, and Kaya had come to understand the circumstances surrounding his absence.
At first glance, the situation seemed serious enough to cause concern, but Anderson was not particularly worried about Kaya. It had nothing to do with their usual love-hate relationship.
Jo Minjoon was beside her.
Anderson trusted that Minjoon would take such thorough care of Kaya that she would barely have time left to worry.
There was someone else he was more concerned about.
…Is she suffering by herself right now?
A sigh escaped him. Just as he was about to exhale the last of it, the door opened and Jo Minjoon walked into the dining room with a perfectly casual expression.
Every demi-chef, prep cook, baker, apprentice Justin, Lisa, and even Ella turned towards him at once.
Jo Minjoon stopped under the sudden barrage of stares.
“…Why are all of you looking at me like that?”
“Uncle!”
Ella jumped down from her chair and ran towards him as quickly as her short legs could carry her. She stopped directly in front of him and stretched out both arms.
Jo Minjoon immediately glanced towards Lisa. When she gave him a small nod, he carefully lifted Ella into his arms.
Ella buried her face against his neck and puffed out her cheeks until they looked like two dumplings.
“Uncle, you’re not going to leave after you get married, are you?”
“Hmm? Why would I leave?”
“But are you getting married?”
“I don’t know. At least, I don’t think I’m getting married right now.”
“Then you’ll keep staying with Ella?”
“Yes. So you don’t need to worry.”
Watching Jo Minjoon gently comfort her, Javier spoke admiringly.
“Minjoon really is popular with the ladies.”
“Why are you saying that while looking at me?”
“I was just wondering whether you liked him too.”
“…The only emotion I need to bring into the kitchen is competitiveness.”
“That isn’t a particularly welcoming answer when it’s obvious we’re both aiming for appetisers.”
Janet looked at Javier indifferently.
Javier flinched.
“Ah. Sorry. Please don’t look at me like that.”
“I’m looking at you normally. My eyes slant upwards, so perhaps it looks as though I’m glaring.”
“Come on. What do you mean slanted…?” Javier studied her face for a moment. “…I suppose they are a little.”
Janet’s gaze sharpened.
Javier blinked in admiration.
“Oh. This time you really do look like you’re glaring at me.”
“This time I am glaring at you.”
“…Ah.”
Javier scratched his head with an idiotic expression.
A little later, Jo Minjoon and Anderson finally came face-to-face. Once the strange atmosphere in the room had settled somewhat, Anderson asked in an even voice,
“So everything worked out?”
Remembering that Ella was still in his arms, Jo Jo Minjoonse his words carefully. Ella was in a situation somewhat similar to Kaya’s, and he did not want to casually throw the word father around in front of her.
“I’m sure the pain in her heart hasn’t completely healed yet. It had been a very long time… since they last saw each other.”
“Who hadn’t seen each other for a long time?”
“Someone Ella doesn’t know.”
“Was that person important to her?”
“…I suppose so.”
“It must hurt.”
Ella murmured the words quietly.
Jo Minjoon sat down and settled her on his lap before looking at her. Ella stared back with her large, round eyes.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“…No particular reason. You just sounded very grown-up.”
“If you don’t see someone for a long time, it hurts. I hurt sometimes too. I want to see my daddy.”
Ella’s voice became watery.
Then she cautiously looked towards the kitchen. Lisa was standing off to one side, deep in conversation with the assistant bakers about a new cake recipe. Even if Ella had spoken normally, Lisa probably would not have heard her, but perhaps out of guilt, Ella lowered her voice to a whisper anyway.
“Don’t tell Mummy. She’ll be sad if she hears.”
“All right. I won’t tell her.”
“Heehee. Thank you.”
Jo Minjoon lifted Ella back into his arms.
She was such a lovable child that her innocence only made him feel more sorry for her.
Watching the two of them, Anderson thought he finally understood what Minjoon had meant earlier. A wound in the heart that never fully healed. Something that forced a child to stop behaving entirely like a child and instead worry about her mother’s feelings.
Anderson sighed and deliberately changed the subject. There was no reason to keep holding onto a conversation that would only make everyone feel heavier.
“Come to think of it, you wouldn’t know about this. While you were gone, Teacher Rachel left us an announcement before she went out.”
“An announcement? What was it?”
“A sous-chef is coming tomorrow.”
The next morning at ten, everyone—including the demi-chefs—gathered in the dining room.
The reason was simple. They were there to greet the sous-chef who was supposed to arrive with Rachel.
Not that they had prepared a welcome card, pamphlet, or anything equally troublesome. None of them felt enough enthusiasm to go that far, and even if they had wanted to, they did not know the person’s identity.
“…Even Chef Rachel has a mean side.”
Janet sounded tired.
Jo Minjoon nodded in agreement.
“I think Teacher has been influenced too much by Martin.”
“Martin… the producer you mentioned before?”
“Yes. He loved keeping people in suspense like this.”
Javier looked between them.
“Who do you think is coming?”
Neither answered immediately. It was not as though they knew every sous-chef in the country.
Perhaps realising the problem with his question, Javier quickly amended it.
“Actually, that was a bad question. What kind of person do you think will come? In terms of experience or specialities.”
“We can at least be sure it won’t be someone from a hotel.”
Jo Minjoon answered without hesitation.
Javier nodded.
Aside from successful chef-owners, hotel chefs were among the best-paid people in the profession. If someone left a major hotel kitchen, it was usually to open a restaurant of their own, not to become a sous-chef somewhere else.
Of course, Rachel’s reputation complicated matters. There were probably chefs willing to accept a sous-chef position simply for the opportunity to learn from her. But Rachel would never hire someone whose only goal was to study her methods and leave. She needed someone genuinely committed to Rose Island.
Javier scratched his head.
“Most of Teacher Rachel’s disciples are head chefs now, so there’s no way they’d come here as sous-chefs…”
“Maybe she’s recruiting a sous-chef from another restaurant. Or perhaps transferring one from a Rose Island branch.”
“I’m not sure about that,” Janet replied. “Then the other restaurant would lose its sous-chef.”
Jo Minjoon made a brief sound of agreement, while Janet simply shrugged and said no more.
Then Anderson spoke.
“A freelancer.”
“…A freelancer?”
“For example, someone who used to be a head chef but failed when they opened their own restaurant. Most owners would hesitate to hire someone after that. They might still have the skills, but nowhere to go. Someone like that could accept a sous-chef position here. When I was growing up, I saw quite a few chefs we knew stay at our restaurant for a few months at a time between jobs.”
“I don’t know,” Javier said. “Isn’t that basically the same problem? Would someone like that really want to stay here? They’d probably want to become a head chef again eventually.”
In the end, they reached no conclusion.
Everyone simply fell silent and looked towards the clock.
Then an unusual engine noise sounded from outside the front of the restaurant.
Through the window, they saw a pink ice-cream truck pulling up.
Jo Minjoon stared at it with disbelief.
“There’s no way they’re planning to start selling there, right…?”
It would not have been completely unusual.
While Rose Island had been closed, food trucks had often parked in front of the restaurant to sell snacks to tourists who came to see the famous building. But that could no longer be allowed. Once Rose Island reopened, they would have to prevent other vendors from occupying the space directly in front of the restaurant.
Justin suddenly spoke.
“Ice cream! That sounds good. Should I go buy some?”
Jo Minjoon silently stared at him.
Justin blinked, then finally realised the problem.
“Ah. Right. I’ll go tell him he can’t sell here.”
“No, wait.”
Jo Minjoon stopped him and walked towards the window.
Ella had pressed herself against the glass and was staring blankly at the writing on the side of the truck.
Jo Minjoon smiled.
“It feels a little rude to send them away without anything. Why don’t we at least buy something first?” He looked down at Ella. “Do you want ice cream?”
“Uh… uh…”
Ella immediately glanced towards Lisa.
Lisa sighed and shook her head.
“Minjoon. Ella’s teeth will rot.”
“…I suppose not. Ella, your mum said no.”
“Okay…”
Ella lowered her head in obvious disappointment.
Jo Minjoon looked from Ella to Lisa, then back again.
Eventually, Lisa gave in.
She did not dislike the fact that Jo Minjoon cared so much for Ella despite not being related to her.
Lisa looked sternly at her daughter.
“Ella. If you eat ice cream, you brush your teeth immediately afterwards. Understood?”
“Yes! I even brought my strawberry-flavoured toothpaste!”
Ella answered with a brilliant smile.
Jo Minjoon took her hand.
“Anyone else want one? Ice cream’s on me.”
“Me. Cookies and cream.”
“If you want one, come with us.”
“Never mind. Too much effort. I don’t want it anymore.”
Anderson slumped back against his chair with a grumpy expression.
In the end, only Jo Minjoon, Ella, and Janet set off on the short expedition to the ice-cream truck.
Perhaps Janet genuinely loved ice cream.
Or perhaps she simply wanted to see Ella’s delighted expression when she ate it.
Either way, Janet cared about Ella far more than Jo Minjoon would have expected.
They stopped in front of the truck.
Behind the open serving window stood a white man with red hair. The moment he saw them, he nodded pleasantly.
“Congratulations, gentleman and little lady. You’re my first customers of the day.”
“There’s one unfortunate thing we need to add to that,” Jo Minjoon replied. “We’ll probably have to be your last customers too. I assume you heard this place used to be closed before you came, but that’s no longer the case.”
“I know.”
“Yes, so because of that… huh?”
Instead of explaining further, the man placed a small plate with two spoons in front of Jo Minjoon.
They were the sort of spoons commonly used in restaurants for amuse-bouches.
At the bottom of each spoon sat something resembling a pale green sorbet, and nestled in the centre was a carbonated cherry.
Jo Minjoon stared at it blankly before murmuring,
“Molecular… gastronomy?”