Boundless Love

7.

“Let’s eat.”

Choi Mujin was the first to pick up his spoon. He tasted the doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) and immediately scooped some rice. He swallowed a large mouthful of hot white rice and picked up some fish cake side dish. He ate neatly without making a sound, but so deliciously that watching him made Haseo’s appetite return.

After looking over the food he had prepared, Haseo also picked up his spoon. Just like Choi Mujin, he tasted the doenjang jjigae and then scooped some rice. The freshly made rice he was tasting after a long time stuck to his mouth pleasantly. As he chewed, the slight sweetness that emerged nearly brought tears to his eyes.

Yes, freshly made rice was this delicious. Of course, the rice he ate in the past and the rice he cooked now differed in price by several times, but still, memories surfaced belatedly. Haseo used his chopsticks to pick up a generous amount of spicy seasoned bean sprouts and put them in his mouth.

Everything went well with white rice. Perhaps because he had learned cooking by watching his grandmother, her cooking taste came to mind. Of course, not everything was like that. To be honest, some dishes turned out a bit strange.

His grandmother didn’t like her cute grandson entering the kitchen. Still, she eventually taught him cooking, saying he needed to know how to do it to survive, but Haseo lacked talent.

“How can you not do this right?”

That’s what his grandmother would blurt out after eating Haseo’s cooking. Then, looking at Haseo, she would lie and say his skills were improving rapidly, but Haseo was perceptive enough to know.

‘I’m not good at cooking.’

Among the side dishes, some had improper seasoning, or the cutting was so messy that they felt strange to chew. Still, the rice was delicious, and before he knew it as he ate mindlessly, his rice bowl was empty.

Since his grandmother was hospitalized, he had been busy working and just eating whatever was convenient. Perhaps his stomach had shrunk as a result, as the amount he ate decreased.

His stomach had been satisfied with a triangle kimbap near its expiration date or a small cup of swollen instant noodles. Yet today, the rice went down easily. After finishing one bowl and standing up to get more, he noticed Choi Mujin’s rice bowl was also empty.

“Would you like more?”

Choi Mujin nodded. This time, he piled more rice than the first time. It was truly a heaping bowl. Yet he ate without saying anything, just as he had been doing.

‘Is it really okay?’

Haseo occasionally glanced at Choi Mujin while taking spoonfuls of rice. After finishing one bowl, reason returned, and worry arose. Each time Choi Mujin’s chopsticks touched the messily made side dishes, Haseo’s heart sank.

Just looking at his appearance, he seemed like a picky person. It was surprising that he ate without saying a word. After emptying another bowl, Haseo’s stomach was full and bloated.

“Phew.”

Haseo unconsciously let out a moan and slumped in his chair.

‘Did I eat too much?’

But how long had it been since he had a proper meal? To be honest, he felt somewhat happy. As he was thinking this, Choi Mujin, having finished his meal, spoke.

“I think.”

“Yes? Yes!”

Haseo quickly sat up straight and looked at Choi Mujin with a tense face.

“Lee Haseo. You need to apologize to the farmer.”

“What?”

Why is he suddenly looking for a farmer? While Haseo was shrinking in confusion, Choi Mujin continued.

“The fried egg. How can you make it look like a mop? To be honest, did you just crack an egg and fry it? And how did you sprinkle the salt? One side is too salty, the other too bland.”

Haseo’s face turned pale.

“And the doenjang jjigae. The zucchini was still attached.”

“I haven’t done knife work in so long…”

“The stir-fried sausage was too sour.”

“I guess I shouldn’t have added vinegar.”

“Does vinegar originally go in there?”

“I thought it would be better if it was a bit more tangy?”

“Didn’t you say you could cook as well as others?”

At Choi Mujin’s words, Haseo’s eyes rolled around.

“W-well, I thought other people would cook about this level too?”

“Other people too?”

Haseo’s shoulders shrank.

“How did you learn to cook?”

“My grandmother taught me.”

After this answer, Choi Mujin remained silent for a moment. No matter how cold-blooded he appeared, he wasn’t the type to casually discuss family matters. After a brief silence, Choi Mujin spoke again.

“What did your grandmother say?”

“Um, she said my skills were improving rapidly.”

Although it was a white lie, it was something she had actually said. Haseo decided to temporarily abandon his conscience for his life. Choi Mujin’s fingers tapped the table. It looked like he was debating whether to punish this guy or not, so Haseo said in a pleading voice:

“Really. I just haven’t cooked much, but I’ll improve quickly if I do!”

Only after speaking did he realize his mistake, but it was too late. Choi Mujin watched Haseo awkwardly smile, then closed and opened his eyes.

“One week. I’ll give you time. By then, cook like a normal person somehow.”

“Yes, I will!”

Haseo answered desperately. With those final words, Choi Mujin stood up and headed to his room inside. Only then could Haseo let out a sigh of relief.

“One week, one week.”

Could cooking skills that didn’t improve despite his best efforts while living with his grandmother improve in a week? No, this wasn’t a question to ponder. If the person holding his lifeline told him to do it, he had to. Haseo got up from the chair with a dying expression and cleared the table.

Although he wasn’t good at cooking, at least his cleaning was decent. As he filled the sink with water and soaked the dishes, he suddenly realized something. Despite criticizing his cooking, Choi Mujin had eaten almost all the side dishes. Well, that’s how he was able to evaluate them.

‘Tough bastard.’

To criticize someone, he ate all of it. Haseo gritted his teeth and grabbed the detergent for washing up. Then he noticed the dishwasher installed on one side of the sink.

He had seen them a few times while working part-time at restaurants. Though he had never operated one himself, he knew it could easily wash dishes. Haseo searched for dishwasher instructions on his phone and nodded.

“Seems easy.”

All he had to do was place the dishes in their designated spots and put detergent in the dispenser. Haseo followed the friendly instructions as described. However, there was one thing he didn’t know: dishwasher detergent is different from the detergent commonly used for washing dishes by hand.

As a result, the dishwasher began to spew foam uncontrollably during the washing cycle.

‘Ah! Aaaaah!’

Swallowing his screams for fear of being discovered by Choi Mujin, he frantically tried to contain the situation and belatedly unplugged the dishwasher’s power cord. However, even after unplugging, the foam didn’t stop immediately. The slippery foam made from detergent flowed down from where the dishwasher was placed and filled the kitchen floor.

“Ha.”

Haseo stood in a daze, looking up at the kitchen ceiling. Befitting an expensive home, even the kitchen lighting had a unique design.

“…How am I going to fix this?”

Before he could finish speaking, Choi Mujin’s closed door opened. With a tablet PC in one hand, Choi Mujin looked at Haseo, who was standing dumbfounded in the kitchen, with an expressionless face. When his gaze finally landed on the foam flowing from the dishwasher, Haseo tightly closed his eyes.

“…I’ll clean it up right away. I’ll fix it too.”

Even in this situation, words to save his life emerged.

“How will you fix it?”

“Somehow.”

As he spoke in a shrinking voice, Choi Mujin raised his hand to his forehead. Haseo subtly knelt down on the spot.

“Do you know why it became like this?”

Even if he wanted to answer, he didn’t know. And thirty minutes later, Park Dongsu arrived at the house. He bowed to Choi Mujin and immediately turned his gaze to Haseo.

Haseo was wondering if kneeling wasn’t enough and if he should raise his hands too, when he made eye contact with Park Dongsu and was startled. Then Park Dongsu’s gaze shifted to the dishwasher. After examining it, he nodded and said:

“Fortunately, it’s not badly damaged, so repairs shouldn’t be difficult.”

“T-that’s good.”

Haseo felt relieved at Park Dongsu’s words.

“However, it seems cleaning is necessary.”

As Park Dongsu took off his jacket and rolled up his shirt sleeves, Haseo waved his hands.

“I can clean it myself!”

At that, Park Dongsu turned his gaze to Choi Mujin. He let out a small sigh and said to Park Dongsu:

“Do it before you go.”

“Yes.”

Park Dongsu immediately filled the sink with water and brought several towels. Haseo couldn’t just stand by, so he diligently assisted. Since the foam was made of detergent, it couldn’t be resolved with just one wipe.

Haseo, along with Park Dongsu, diligently wiped and re-wiped the slippery kitchen floor. After working so hard, sweat dripped from his forehead.

“It should be fine now.”

Only after Park Dongsu said this could Haseo put down the towel. After fixing the dishwasher as well, Park Dongsu explained the usage instructions to Haseo in detail.

“You need to purchase dishwasher detergent separately.”

“…I’ll remember that.”

If he made the same mistake after going through all this, he would no longer be human. Haseo let out a deep sigh.

NOTES: 

반찬 (banchan) – Korean side dishes that Haseo prepared poorly.

고봉밥 (gobongbap) – A heaping bowl of rice, described when Choi Mujin takes a second serving.