If he added a bit more, it seemed like too much, but if he added less, it looked insufficient. While hesitating, his heart rushed as the water boiled vigorously, so he grabbed more than what was in his hand and put it in twice.
Better to have more than not enough.
And he set up a small timer.
“Phew.”
Having solved one trivial yet important difficulty, Jiwon progressed further.
He grilled the remaining garnishes step by step and neatly arranged them on one side of the pretty square plate where he would place the steak.
Jiwon placed two new frying pans of appropriate size. He was thinking of making two kinds of pasta.
Remembering what the chef had done, he swirled olive oil around. In one pan, he only sautéed sliced garlic, and in the other pan, he put in garlic, onions, and bacon to sauté. There, he crushed and added peperoncino he had bought in advance to add spiciness.
Meanwhile, the timer went off.
“Gasp! Already?!”
He quickly turned off the heat and scooped out the pasta noodles. Jiwon’s hands, with more things to do, became increasingly flustered.
Jiwon, who had beads of sweat forming on his forehead and wiped them once with his forearm, quickly returned to the frying pan and stirred to prevent burning, pouring cream sauce into the frying pan with bacon.
At first, Jiwon had thought about making cream sauce too, but judged that it would be too much to make sauce while making several dishes at once, so he decided to use a commercial sauce with good reviews.
And Jiwon praised his past self very much for making that choice.
He poured milk over the cream sauce to add a savory taste, and when the sauce started boiling, he added half of the cooked pasta. He also added the remaining noodles to the opposite pan and added a bit of the pasta water he had saved without throwing away.
Lastly, he added a bit more olive oil, put in baby leaf vegetables, and lightly mixed and sautéed. Jiwon’s frantic hands went here and there.
Both pans had the sauce and noodles properly mixed. Like that, aglio e olio pasta was completed in one pan and cream pasta in another pan.
But the cooking didn’t end there. Jiwon moved the frying pans with pasta to the side and placed the grill pan to cook the meat.
And while the grill pan heated up, he took out two wide, concave white plates. It was a luxurious-looking dish with a thin gold rim around the edge.
Jiwon rolled the pasta noodles around long wooden chopsticks and transferred them to the dishes, as the chef in the video had taught him.
His face, concentrating all his nerves on the chopsticks, was quite serious.
He poured even the last drop of sauce without leaving any, sprinkled pepper, then pinched parsley powder with his fingers and sprinkled it as a point. And he neatly wiped away the sauce that had messily spread to the side of the dish.
“Ooh! Done.”
It came out in quite a presentable shape.
He placed the two completed pastas on the dining table. Leaving brief satisfaction behind, Jiwon busily moved his body again.
He carefully lifted the meat he had seasoned in advance when first preparing the cooking with tongs and placed it on the grill pan.
Perhaps the heat had risen appropriately, as the meat made a delicious sizzle— sound.
Even while the meat was cooking, Jiwon didn’t stay still for a moment.
He intermittently set utensils on the table and wine glasses, then put the dishes to be washed in the sink.
The sink was filled with used tools, bowls, and frying pans, forming a mountain.
Jiwon hurriedly went back to the grill pan with the meat on it. Busy running around the spacious kitchen, with heaving breaths from being out of breath, Jiwon held the tongs and flipped the meat with eyes full of expectation.
“…Not bad?”
Fortunately, the meat wasn’t burnt and had an appropriately cooked brown color. It was an appetizing visual and aroma.
Perhaps because he had chosen meat that was thick but not too thick, it cooked quickly. Jiwon adjusted the direction with his capable hands and flipped it once more to create a pretty grill pattern.
Then he turned off the heat and moved the fully cooked meat to the plate with garnishes, completing the steak.
“I’m done…”
Only after moving the completed steak to the dining table did he collapse on the floor with a thud.
He was truly burned out white.
I got greedy for no reason and made two pastas. Uhhh….
Jiwon, who was still just a budding cook, paid the price for being greedy.
He had moved frantically to give Seo Gangwoo a wonderful dinner. Though exhausted from cooking, since the food would get cold if it was too late, he clung to the chair and struggled to get up.
The result on the dining table was quite presentable. Seeing the completed appearance, his hard work was worth it.
Jiwon grinned and even prepared appetizer plates, then picked up his phone to capture his great achievement in a photo. If he showed the photo to his family, they would probably be amazed.
“Esper Seo Gangwoo-nim! Dinner’s ready. You can come out!”
Jiwon raised his voice to call Seo Gangwoo, who was resting in the room.
“Welcome~! Ta-da~ Welcome to Jiwon Restaurant.”
Jiwon scurried over to greet Seo Gangwoo, who was coming out of the master bedroom and approaching the kitchen.
Then, like a restaurant waiter, he guided him to his seat mischievously with an upright posture, extending one arm.
Seo Gangwoo, surprised by the wonderful dinner table appearance as if he had really come to a restaurant, opened his eyes wide. It was even more so because he knew it hadn’t been long since Jiwon had tried cooking.
After confirming that Seo Gangwoo had taken his seat, Jiwon inserted the opener into the cork stopper to open the wine, turning it with difficulty.
“I’ll do it.”
“Ju, just a moment. I can do it!”
Seo Gangwoo quietly watched and waited beside Jiwon, who declined, saying he would do it himself.
After moving the opener that had dug in appropriately and successfully opening the wine with effort, Jiwon once again imitated the waiter he had seen in dramas and poured the wine.
“It’s a treat with my first paycheck. I can’t guarantee the taste, but I worked hard.”
“It looks delicious. I didn’t know you would prepare such a wonderful meal.”
“I really burned out white. I got a bit greedy…. Ah! Just a moment. Let me take just one picture of us.”
Jiwon sprang up, placed various items at the end of the dining table here and there, turned on his phone camera, leaned it there, and adjusted the angle so that the dishes and their seated positions all came into view. A sense of mission surged to record this day commemorating the dishes he put effort into and his first paycheck.
A photograph is what makes it possible to remember this moment more vividly even as time passes.
It wasn’t for nothing that people said the only thing that remains is photographs.
“Look here~!”
Seo Gangwoo, who was swept up and took a picture, couldn’t take his eyes off the photo containing his appearance with Jiwon.
Unlike himself, who was awkward because he hadn’t properly taken any photos except for group photos during school days or ID photos, Jiwon was naturally looking straight at the camera and posing by making a V sign with his fingers.
In fact, Seo Gangwoo hadn’t understood people going around here and there taking pictures. To him, photographs were just annoying, unnecessary, meaningless acts.
Occasionally, when headquarters staff came into the gate with a camera saying they needed to film combat footage for promotional purposes, it was just uncomfortable, grating on his already sensitive nerves.
But now he perfectly understood why they took so many pictures.
It was absolutely not a useless thing.
Recording this moment with Jiwon was a very special and precious experience.
Seo Gangwoo, who had never had any desire for material possessions until now, couldn’t hide his desire to possess while looking at the photo containing Jiwon smiling brightly.
In the end, Seo Gangwoo, barely taking his eyes off the photo, asked Jiwon if he could send him the photo.
“Of course. I’ll send it to you later after we eat! Does it look like it came out well?”
“Yes.”
At the firm answer that came back, Jiwon grinned.
“Then how about gathering more photos later and printing them out physically? I’m looking at furniture to put in the living room, and I think it would be pretty to put them up in frames there.”
“That’s a good idea.”
Seo Gangwoo nodded with serious eyes. Jiwon’s shoulders rose proudly as it seemed he liked the photo they took together.
“Then let’s hurry and eat before the food gets colder.”
Jiwon recommended the meal while grinning from ear to ear.
“I’ll eat well.”
Seo Gangwoo picked up his fork and knife, cut the steak, and put a piece in his mouth. Jiwon, who was anxious wondering if it might not suit his taste, had eyes full of worry and expectation.
Soon, seeing Seo Gangwoo making eye contact and nodding to indicate the meat suited his taste, Jiwon felt relieved and stabbed a piece of meat cut to an appropriate size with his fork and put it in his mouth.
“Oh?!”
Jiwon’s eyes widened and he genuinely furrowed his brow. Juices burst out from the tender meat, filling his mouth.
“?”
Seo Gangwoo looked at such a Jiwon questioningly.
“What? Why is it delicious?!”
Jiwon was surprised that the dish he made tasted better than expected.
“Is it because I made it myself that it just tastes good? Or is it because it’s Korean beef after all…! How is it to Esper Seo Gangwoo-nim’s taste?”
“It’s very delicious to my taste as well.”
Seo Gangwoo, who ate food not so much for taste but merely as a nutrient supply source for energy use, wasn’t very picky about taste, but the dish before his eyes was definitely delicious.
Of course, even if it had been tasteless or the meat had been burnt black, Seo Gangwoo would have eaten it all cleanly if it was a dish made by Jiwon, but the meat that was properly seasoned and chewed tenderly with its juices was more excellent than most restaurants.
