A Dash of Jealousy
"Good work today."
"You worked hard."
Woo Dan-wol slumped in his chair, completely spent. Han Da-sol was no different. All the stamina they had built up through their grueling schedules proved useless. From lunch straight through to dinner. Even when a quiet moment appeared, the frantic bursts that preceded it drained a person dry.
Hall service in particular demanded quick thinking, sharp judgment, and constant interaction with people. It was no easy task. Yet Woo Dan-wol had handled everything flawlessly, and as Baek Ju-yeon caught her breath, the corners of her mouth lifted in a warm smile.
She knew better than anyone how reassuring it was to have a hall server you could trust completely. Today she had truly been nothing but a cook, focused solely on the kitchen. Woo Dan-wol’s near-perfect adaptability was almost freakish.
One smile from him could melt a sour-faced customer. Even when complaints arose, he would apologize first and fix the problem later, massaging their hearts until they softened. In Spain, where tipping wasn’t customary, he still received tips.
"Why are you so good at Spanish?"
"I learned it from watching movies."
"......"
Baek Ju-yeon shook her head in disbelief. That answer made no sense. She had accepted it when she heard he was self-taught, but watching him converse with locals without the slightest hitch made it impossible to believe.
Baek Ju-yeon rose slowly. No matter how tired you were, cleanup could not be skipped. It was a principle she had always upheld in the restaurant business.
Woo Dan-wol immediately stood to help her. He tried to keep his expression neutral, but the smile refused to leave his face. When someone who had already worked so hard offered to pitch in on the chores, no adult could possibly dislike it.
In contrast, Han Da-sol’s face fell apart. She was so exhausted she felt like she might die. Her arms and legs trembled; her body was so drained she lacked the strength to stand. Yet here was Woo Dan-wol, already tackling the cleanup. How could she possibly stay seated after seeing that?
"Noona, you should rest."
"Ah, no… I can’t…"
She was a celebrity. She refused to compromise with fleeting comfort and risk creating problems later. But… it was simply too hard.
"Fighting…!"
"Instead of cheering, why don’t you actually help?"
"…?"
At Baek Ju-yeon’s words, a brief silence fell over the room. Han Da-sol looked stung for a moment, but since she was already getting up, her expression quickly smoothed. Her gaze, however, had turned toward the production crew. Then an unexpected remark from one of the women rang out.
"Me…?"
"Yes, PD Na Na-yeong."
"You want me to help?"
She nodded. Even from PD Na Na-yeong’s perspective, the situation was absurd. In more than ten years of working in broadcasting, she had appeared on camera before, but to actually join the program and take on menial chores?
"It would be nice if you could handle the dishes."
"I’m a slave now."
"Na Na-yeong the slave. That has a nice ring to it."
They were short-staffed. That was the conclusion they had reached after a full day of struggle. Another server was coming, but as Baek Ju-yeon had pointed out, without someone on dish duty the workflow kept breaking down. In the end, she rolled up her sleeves and put on the rubber gloves. The dishes had piled up anyway.
It felt as if she had been pushed into it, but what could she do? It would probably make for good footage. Na Na-yeong PD was far too much of a workaholic to get hung up on pride or authority.
"I’m going crazy."
"It suits you well."
The next morning, in a village in Santiago. A single rumor had spread like wildfire about the Korean restaurant where Woo Dan-wol worked: a strikingly handsome Asian man was employed there. Since it was for a program, he was obviously a celebrity.
Every customer who stepped inside was essentially consenting to being filmed, so the restaurant saw no shortage of patrons. In fact, even more people showed up than the day before, making the morning even busier.
PD Na Na-yeong in rubber gloves actually looked quite natural. She had always been sincere about work, so she threw herself into the dishwashing task with genuine passion. And then—
"Oh?"
The faces of Baek Ju-yeon and Woo Dan-wol lit up with relief. The local part-timer they had interviewed had finally arrived.
"Sophia?"
"Hello."
Her Korean was clumsy. Still, it was serviceable. The pronunciation was rough, but the interview had shown she could handle basic conversation. That was why she had been hired.
Between breakfast and lunch, Woo Dan-wol began training her in his role as hall manager.
"The table numbers are…"
He explained everything from table names to proper serving technique. Although she had experience, the rules here were different. And—
"......"
Han Da-sol watched them in silence. She wore no particular expression. The most accurate description was that she had simply zoned out.
Yet something felt off. Watching Sophia learn the job so diligently left a bad taste in her mouth. Even though she didn’t show it outwardly, the emotion was strong enough to torment her.
"Let’s give it our all again today!"
The breakfast menu was the same as the day before. There was still some of the marinated meat left over. Thanks to the enthusiastic response, it had sold out completely, so now it was time to prepare a new batch.
"Beef… radish… eggs?"
Woo Dan-wol, jotting ingredients in his notebook, gave a nod. The mere thought of the dish already made mouths water.
"Beef radish soup!"
"Uhahaha!"
His eyes sparkled. When Woo Dan-wol’s eyes shone like that, a hearty laugh burst from Baek Ju-yeon. It was time to go buy ingredients.
Normally he would have gone alone, but today the load would be heavy. He couldn’t ask the older Teacher Baek. Woo Dan-wol’s gaze naturally drifted toward Han Da-sol.
"I’ll help."
"…?"
Han Da-sol gave an almost imperceptible twitch. Her eyebrows fluttered faintly as her eyes slid toward Sophia. Yellow-dyed hair. Light brown eyes. As a foreigner, she naturally radiated an exotic charm.
"Sophia?"
"I know the way well."
Woo Dan-wol closed his mouth. When he thought about it, it wasn’t a big deal. It was just an errand. At most an hour.
Yet Han Da-sol felt a suffocating pressure in her chest. Her heart tightened as though crushed beneath a heavy weight.
She told herself it was worry. Yes, she was worried about Woo Dan-wol wandering around a strange country with an unfamiliar woman. That was why she felt this way.
Still, she could not hide the strange trembling in her heart. When she saw the upward curl of Sophia’s lips, Han Da-sol unconsciously squeezed her eyes shut.
If she stepped forward now, it would only come across as unreasonable. Han Da-sol knew that all too well. Woo Dan-wol had no language problems. There was no reason for him to take her instead of a local who knew the roads.
Just then, Woo Dan-wol’s soft voice broke the tension.
"Aigoo, I’m sorry I can’t pay you much per hour. But Noona is strong, so…"
"Should I… go?"
Han Da-sol’s mood brightened in an instant. The sparkle in her eyes and the lift at the corners of her mouth were impossible to hide. In contrast, Sophia’s face fell. She was only twenty-one.
She clearly wanted to argue that she was stronger, but this was both a restaurant and a filming location. Sophia was ultimately just the local part-timer. The ones who needed to capture the viewers’ attention were Woo Dan-wol and Han Da-sol, so the PD nodded in agreement.
"Let’s head out~"
"L-let’s go…"
Woo Dan-wol rose energetically and left his seat. Of course, he first bowed politely to Teacher Baek, saying he would see her later. Han Da-sol followed close behind him, letting out a short sigh.
She still couldn’t define the emotion that had made her heart pound so violently, but one thing was clear: her moment of clarity had arrived.
The emptiness that followed intense emotion. Just like Woo Dan-wol’s back as he walked ahead without a second thought. Nothing had happened, yet she scolded herself for letting her feelings run wild.
And so their date began. After walking for about ten minutes, the camera director stared at the monitor with a hesitant expression. The footage contained nothing particularly special.
"Should we get this?"
"Yeah, I think that’d be good."
The two had grown so close they seemed perfectly comfortable together. Woo Dan-wol, who normally held the firm belief that one must always speak politely to older people, had even slipped into half-formal speech. It showed just how familiar and at ease they had become. However, the scene unfolding was hardly suitable for the show’s concept. Woo Dan-wol and Han Da-sol shopping for seasonings and vegetables at the mart.
Is this really 100 Restaurant…?
The director filming them rubbed his eyes. At this rate, it looked less like a variety show and more like We Got Married. The pair appeared so cozy it was easy to misunderstand. From choosing simple seasonings to discussing the freshness of onions and radishes, they looked exactly like a newlywed couple.
"Okay, just the meat left."
"Good."
A man and woman walking side by side, pushing the cart together. A fresh, youthful atmosphere flowed from them like a painting.
Still, a variety show was a variety show. Woo Dan-wol knew how to create good angles.
When they reached the butcher shop, Han Da-sol naturally took a step back. Up until now, Woo Dan-wol had handled every conversation.
He flashed a mischievous little smile.
"Noona, you handle this one."
"H-huh?"
Han Da-sol. A woman in her late twenties. She suffered from English phobia and had weak foreign language skills overall. The greatest crisis of her life had arrived.