Chapter 565: Earnestly and Instinctively (2)
Chapter 565: Earnestly and Instinctively (2)
Of course, Minjoon could learn more from June, but he had already absorbed almost everything she could teach him. If later lessons remained, he could learn them elsewhere, not necessarily in New York. As a head chef, he was stepping into a completely new world.
Jesse, grumbling, asked, “With your skills and reputation, you could have a stable life. So why choose a stressful, nomadic one?”
Minjoon replied, “Because complacency never leads to the top.”
“Why is reaching the top so important?” she countered.
He had no ready answer—everyone’s view differed. He had even wanted to ask June whether climbing to the top or simply moving on mattered more. She’d likely surprise him with her reply.
“Live logically,” June advised.
“Logically?” Minjoon echoed.
“Meaning: if you’re hungry, eat; if not, don’t. If you want to travel, board the plane; want to swim, put on a swimsuit. If something must be done, do it; otherwise, you’re running away and being lazy.”
“Do you realize what you just said?”
“Come on—do you think I have dementia now?”
She crossed her arms, smiling. Since becoming head of Rose Island, she’d become slimmer, her cheekbones more prominent.
“You’ve been good to me all this time. You’ve given and taken a lot. It’s not that I have nothing left to learn from you. Maybe now I need you more, a sous chef I can trust even when I’m away.”
“I can stay here.”
“I know, but you shouldn’t. Staying because I need you wastes your time and others’. I hate watching people waste their lives for me. I’d rather marry Dave than see you stuck here.”
“I think that’d be a good idea.”
“Shut up!”
Her words sounded harsh, shaped by her workload and mounting stress, some self-imposed.
“I’m ready, Minjoon. Who sees you as a sous chef? No one cooks better. You have to be a head chef. But I’m not handing over Rose Island to you yet.”
Calmly, she continued, “Go back to Los Angeles. I’m not sending you right away—we need time to wrap up here. But I’ll start looking for your replacement. In the meantime, prepare your cuisine for Los Angeles.”
“I don’t know if I’m ready.”
“You don’t start running fully ready. When you’re aware, the whistle’s blown. So just run.”
He looked at her—so calm, lacking sadness about his departure.
She opened her mouth again.
“The whistle’s blown. So just run.”
“I’ve wanted to tell you this for a long time.”
“What?”
“I feel you’re like a sister to me.”
She frowned. Sister? Did he feel so close that they were siblings?
“Sounds like you want to kill me.”
He laughed. He didn’t explain; she knew he didn’t mean it.
It was strange—though their relationship wasn’t old, they understood and accepted each other like lifelong friends.
Maybe it was because they were alike in some ways—both tired of constantly chasing the top.
Come to think of it, it’s strange.
Whenever she felt fully understood by him, she felt strange. He enjoyed the limelight far more than she did. Comparatively, she was nothing. In fact, she was behind him when equal.
Yet he cheered her struggles more than anyone.
When she struggled, sometimes he appeared more stressed. Maybe people now grasped how sharing burden comforts when times are tough.
She looked at him, then said dryly, “I didn’t expect to have a younger brother at my age.”
“Well, I never thought I’d have a sister like you,” he smiled.
She deflected, “You better prepare for marriage, right?”
“Pardon?”
“You once said you’d marry Kaya when you opened your restaurant, right? Or was that to ease your hard times? If so, I’m disappointed.”
“That’s not true. To be honest, I hadn’t thought that far…”
She sighed, expecting that answer.
This is the dilemma of dreaming: when treasures like dreams exist, one can’t fully dedicate to them. Even ordinary people struggle pursuing happiness with loved ones. You can’t have your cake and eat it.
Dreamers must be greedy, grasping all they want. They must work harder than anyone to hold that greed, like June.
But such life isn’t always happy, honestly.
“Minjoon.”
She placed a slender white hand on his shoulder. Her grip was firm, perhaps due to years of chef training—or the weight she felt then.
“If you want to run away, you can.”
“I can’t believe you just said that.”
“I say it as one who never ran. I vowed not to regret anything, so I never ran. But over time, I felt differently—I regret not running.”
Slowly, she pulled her hand away, turning around. From her office window, the beautiful New York skyline stretched—where everyone dreamed. Yet she felt no hunger was satisfied.
“My life is not wonderful. Every day feels neither wonderful nor happy. So if you’re worried about me, don’t take my path. As your senior, I’m not someone to emulate.”
“In other words, you want me to hold on tight to Kaya?”
“You’re smart!”
“Don’t worry. I won’t lose her.”
He had no hesitation: if he married one day, Kaya would be by his side. He was sure of that.
Still, he feared changes. Marriage might shift their relationship, losing current feelings. Even if positive, he’d regret losing what they shared now.
“I like Kaya, and she likes me equally. So unless we grow cold, it won’t matter if things go awry. If love fades, it won’t hurt not to be connected.”
“Even love can’t always protect a relationship,” she said bitterly. He said nothing—he knew this in regard to her relationship with Dave.