When he tore the transparent wrapping, the rich scent unique to chocolate spread widely. With a fluttering heart, he placed it on a plate. He tried to tear it with his hands, but it seemed difficult, so he brought a fork and a small knife.
“Wow…”
When he cut it in half, olive-colored contents appeared. It was Dubai chocolate that he had once seen in a YouTube video.
“I really wanted to try this, but I couldn’t bring myself to because it was expensive. Thanks to you, Executive Director, I get to eat it.”
He had wanted to buy and try it once because people said it was incredibly delicious, but the price was quite expensive. Strictly speaking, it wasn’t Dubai chocolate.
However, not only was the outside of the bread coated with chocolate, but it was also filled with pistachio cream and kadayıf. It was as if the bread was embracing Dubai chocolate inside.
“Please eat first.”
“You don’t need to give preferential treatment to elders, so hurry up and eat.”
Ganghyuk pushed the fork that had been held out toward him toward Ian’s lips. Not refusing the kindness, Ian opened his mouth like a baby bird and ate.
A sweet yet soft taste spread throughout his mouth. The kadayıf was crunchily chewed, and the pistachio was savory yet sweetly bitter. While neutralizing the sweetness of the chocolate, it was smooth like butter, which was excellent.
Both of Ian’s cheeks heated up beautifully. Looking at that sight, Ganghyuk thought it was good that he had listened to Jaehyun’s words.
After finishing things with Tae Minjae, he was about to return to the company but changed direction. He felt that if he left the house empty today too, the kid would be too lonely.
Although it was sex by mutual consent, he had pushed the kid, for whom it was his first time, too hard and made him suffer for a whole day.
Taking responsibility for just one instance of sex was ridiculous, but he was well aware of the fact that he couldn’t go back to before they had sex.
He concluded that he would withhold accepting his feelings only until someone else Ian liked appeared.
There must be plenty of people better than him. However, he planned to watch from the side so that he wouldn’t get hooked by some weird bastard. Seeing him like himself, it seemed the kid had no eye for judging people.
‘Executive Director, should we stop by a bakery? Kids these days really like sweet things. Ian-ssi will probably like it too.’
Ganghyuk looked at Jaehyun, who was mentioning Ian, silently for a while. Jaehyun didn’t avoid Ganghyuk’s gaze and just smiled faintly.
Ganghyuk, who had been tapping his knee with his index finger, nodded lightly. Jaehyun, who pulled the car over to the shoulder, quickly went into the bakery and came out.
‘I bought the popular ones. Turns out it’s a place famous for Dubai chocolate desserts.’
He didn’t know why they attach a country name to chocolate. Thinking it was better than going in empty-handed, he placed the bag he received on the passenger seat.
When his temples started throbbing from the sweet smell coming from the bag, he wondered why he was doing this, but seeing Ian’s happy face, he felt like it didn’t matter anyway.
“Really, really, really delicious! Please hurry and try it too, Executive Director.”
The voice emphasizing ‘really’ three times was cheerful. If he had known he would like it this much, he should have bought it for him sooner.
“I’m fine. I don’t really like sweet things.”
Excited Ian picked up another piece with a fork and held it out, but Ganghyuk shook his head. The smell alone was enough to make him dizzy. He could bet Sucheol on the fact that if he put this in his mouth, he would want to rinse his mouth with whiskey.
“Just one piece. I feel too bad being the only one tasting it.”
However, Ian didn’t know how to give up. Ganghyuk’s brow furrowed. Even though he was showing this much of his dislike, one would think he’d back off on his own, but Ian opened his two eyes even more round and bright.
Ganghyuk, who let out a small sigh, eventually opened his lips. The moment the cross-section of the bread touched his tongue, his cool eyes flinched.
A shock occurred as if his taste buds were paralyzed by the sweetness that far exceeded his imagination. The more he moved his jaw, the darker the atmosphere surrounding Ganghyuk became.
Ian, who had been reading the situation, filled a cup with white milk and handed it over. He felt guilty thinking that he had forced someone who said he didn’t like sweet food to eat it.
But to his mouth, it was really ecstatically delicious.
It was a bit puzzling. The fact that the same taste could make someone feel like they were floating on air, while to another it was terrible.
Ganghyuk silently emptied his cup. It was definitely better drinking it with milk. As he wiped the milk on his lips with his thumb, he could see Ian constantly checking his mood.
“Eat more. Don’t keep offering it to me.”
Once was enough for this taste. Ian, who nodded slightly, ate the remaining bread pieces with a happy expression.
It was truly fascinating. A face that looked like they’d gained the whole world over something trivial.
And it was truly fortunate. That he’d discovered this child that day, in that place, before they completely lost their light. Come to think of it, it was thanks to Tae Minjae. If not for that bastard, Ganghyuk would never have gone to that party rampant with drugs. Maybe he shouldn’t have messed up his shoulder.
“Can I eat one more?”
After devouring in an instant what he himself had found difficult to chew, the face pointing at the bag was so innocent that his heart grew heavy. He felt like trash all over again for having pushed this kid until they got sick.
“It’s all yours. I’ll buy more again, so don’t eat them all at once.”
At the words promising a next time, Ian’s eyes curved round. It was a smile as pretty as flower pollen fluttering. Unconsciously, Ganghyuk’s Adam’s apple bobbed. The sweet taste he’d thought had disappeared was still remaining in his mouth, tormenting him.
ლ
“Ian-ah, isn’t it hard doing business every day? You’ll get sick again at this rate. You should rest one day a week.”
At what Soyeon, who was sitting at the table trimming chives together, said, Ian fell into contemplation. His body was definitely being pushed too hard. Moreover, because his stamina was completely depleted after work ended, he hadn’t been able to solve even one of the problem books he’d bought. Doing both business and studying was nearly impossible for him right now.
The more he worked, the more he could only think how amazing it was that his grandfather had managed to do business every single day. Except for holidays or when Ian was hospitalized, he’d opened the soup restaurant every day without any particular days off.
Since he was operating the soup restaurant in accordance with his grandfather’s will, he’d also been working without setting aside any separate days off, but he was realizing every day that this really wasn’t an easy task.
“How about reducing operating hours too? Since you have way more customers in the morning, you could just close right after the evening peak hours pass. Around seven? After cleaning up after that, time goes by quickly anyway. You need to look at the long term. It’s not like you’re going to do business for a month or two and quit.”
The movement of the paring knife in Ian’s hand gradually slowed. Soyeon, who clicked her tongue lightly, snatched the knife from Ian’s hand. If she left him alone, he’d end up trimming his fingers instead of the chives.
“Don’t space out when you’re holding a knife. It would be good to hire one part-timer, but that’s difficult. There’s a limit to me coming to help like this occasionally when I have free time.”
Even though they’d been trimming for a while, there were still plenty of chives remaining. Soyeon took off her vinyl gloves covered in dirt and set them down on the table with a thud.
“I need to make some sweet coffee and drink it or this won’t work. My head is spinning from the chive smell. Ian, do you want some too?”
“Ah, I’ll make it.”
“It’s fine. My back hurts from sitting for so long. Just sit there. I know where everything is in the kitchen anyway.”
While Soyeon, who’d entered the kitchen, looked for instant coffee and cups, Ian brushed off the dirt clumped on the chives, lost in thought.
The soup restaurant’s sales were sailing smoothly. Thanks to Ganghyuk’s consideration, 90% of the sales were Ian’s, so he was putting some of the cash that came in every day into the piggy bank in his room.
