9
Chapter 9: Trust Only Me
Han Songyi, Min-Oh’s classmate and a fellow orphan from Happy Orphanage, burst into the room.
“Come eat…”
She still felt awkward around him and couldn’t even meet his eyes properly.
Even so, she couldn’t take her gaze off the drawing Min-Oh had been working on for days.
‘He’s really good.’
Before Min-Oh arrived, Songyi had been the best artist not just in Class 1-4, but among all first graders at Sangnok
Elementary.
“Aren’t you coming?”
“I-I am…”
Embarrassed at being caught staring, she hurried out.
“What’s with her?”
“She probably wanted to see the drawing.”
Min-Oh responded casually and headed to the living room where ramen was ready.
At Happy Orphanage, the younger elementary kids returned early and ate lunch there.
They helped feed the younger children too.
The meals weren’t anything special.
Side dishes from the fridge, reheated soup.
But they were rarely satisfying.
Most of the time, the kids ate simply because they were hungry.
So sometimes, instead of the director’s simple meals, they chose instant noodles.
Today was one of those days.
“Ugh… this tastes bad…”
Even worse than usual.
Three nine-year-olds had tried cooking ten packs of ramen in one pot.
It was a disaster.
“Then don’t eat it!”
One of them snapped, grabbing a younger child’s bowl.
“I’ll eat!”
“Then stop complaining!”
Even the ones who cooked it couldn’t stand the taste.
‘Should we make it again…?’
But there were only three packs left.
And throwing away food wasn’t an option.
“Hyung, can I try fixing it?”
At that moment, Min-Oh spoke up.
“What are you going to do?”
“Can I try?”
“…Fine.”
“If it tastes bad, you eat it all.”
“Okay.”
He carried the pot to the stove.
“Hyunseung, help me.”
“Can you even cook?”
“Cooking is science.”
Hyunseung smirked.
‘Alright… I’ll trust him.’
But that trust wavered the moment Min-Oh added a big spoonful of soybean paste.
“Hey! What are you doing?”
“The main ingredient in ramen seasoning is soybean paste.”
“What?”
“Check the label.”
“…It’s true.”
“And the saltiness helps. Ramen tastes better when it’s stronger—within limits.”
“…Really?”
“Trust me.”
After stirring, Min-Oh turned off the heat.
“It’s done!”
Hyunseung took a bite.
‘It’s… good.’
It was familiar, yet better.
“Wow…”
Even the others were amazed.
“How did you do that?”
“Just added one spoon of soybean paste.”
“…Seriously?”
Even Park Sangjun, who hated soybean paste, kept eating.
“It’s good…”
“People think it smells bad, looks bad—but it tastes good.”
Then Min-Oh spoke.
“Don’t you want your own room?”
“…What?”
It was something they had never even dreamed of.
“Wouldn’t it be better if this place became nicer too?”
“How?”
“Follow along~”
He hummed a tune.
“House Full of Happiness.”
“…You mean that TV show?”
“Yes.”
“No way!”
They immediately rejected it.
“Why?”
“…You know why.”
“You’re embarrassed because we’re orphans?”
“Aren’t you?”
“Why should we be? Did we do something wrong? Everyone here already knows.”
“But others will know too!”
“So we should keep living like this just because strangers might know?”
The orphanage was old and cramped.
Even containers were used as rooms.
“Don’t you want a house with an indoor bathroom?”
“…Well…”
They hesitated.
“Will it even work?”
“It will.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re orphans. That alone makes it impactful. They might rebuild everything.”
“…Really?”
“Of course.”
‘This isn’t just any orphanage. It’s one with a genius.’
“Maybe they’ll build something even better than what I drew.”
“Drew?”
“Wait.”
Min-Oh brought out a drawing.
“Don’t you want to live here?”
The house was incredible.
A pool. A garden. A glass-walled two-story home.
“…That’s impossible.”
“Not if we give them something in return.”
“What?”
“Ratings. If their show goes from 50% to 60%, how much do you think they’ll spend?”
“…I don’t get it.”
“They could build even more.”
He smiled.
“So talk to the others for me.”
The show had already grown from simple renovations to full expansions.
Now, rebuilding entirely wasn’t impossible.
“…So we just apply?”
“Leave that to me.”
‘All you need to know is that embarrassment is temporary.’
In his first life, he never even considered it.
He had rejected opportunities, even interviews.
But now—
‘I know how harsh this world is.’
This time, he would act differently.
Even if it meant stepping forward first.