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Gulp. Jeonggwan swallowed hard. Junjae seemed angry about the bucket list Jeonggwan had written as a childish joke, but Jeonggwan still felt a bit excited, immaturely. This pose was the scene he had always imagined.
Was he trapped under the arms of an alpha over 185cm tall? YES
Was that alpha very handsome? YES
Was that alpha angry? YES
Jeonggwan inwardly giggled, waiting for Junjae to roughly kiss him next, and as Jeonggwan expected, Junjae lowered his head. Jeonggwan thought, “Now’s the time!” and slowly closed his eyes.
“…”
However, even after waiting for a while, he didn’t feel any sensation on his lips. Puzzled, Jeonggwan slightly opened his eyes.
“This is what you wanted, right?”
Junjae was quietly looking down at Jeonggwan, but his eyes were slightly different from what Jeonggwan had expected. Usually, he would have looked at him with moist eyes and said, “Delete that bucket list. Erase it right now.” But somehow, now he didn’t seem like the usual passive forget-me-not, but rather quite charismatic.
This was the look Junjae usually only showed in bed, being typically submissive during the day but dominant at night. Jeonggwan didn’t expect to see it at his family home. With his family just on the other side of the door, Jeonggwan decided to soothe Junjae gently, worried that if he provoked him further, they might end up in an embarrassing situation in front of his family.
“…Hyung. We should just kiss. My lips can’t get swollen.”
He said this knowing that if he said to just kiss, Junjae would say “Just a little kiss” and end up sucking and biting for at least 5 minutes. But strangely, Junjae didn’t even give a short peck, let alone a kiss. He just hovered near Jeonggwan’s lips before lifting his head again. Jeonggwan, who had been waiting for Junjae’s lips, lifted his head with a dumb expression, saying “Huh?”
“Who said I’d do it for you.”
As if to say “Now you know how it feels to be desperate,” Junjae smiled leisurely, exuding a mature aura. Jeonggwan felt like he might get a nosebleed. Was this what they called adult sexiness coming from a composed adult? Feeling dizzy, Jeonggwan was about to pounce first, wrapping his arms around Junjae’s neck, when—
Knock knock-.
With impeccable timing, someone knocked on Jeonggwan’s door.
“Managing Director. The meal is ready.”
It was the unfortunate Jeongwon, who had to see his boss even at home.
Since six people lived in Jeonggwan’s house, the dining table was quite large compared to ordinary homes, but it had never been fully occupied. Until yesterday, that is. Jeonggwan’s father, who had always insisted that Jeonggwan invite Junjae for dinner whenever he went out to meet him, asked for a week’s time when Junjae actually agreed to come.
He then planned the menu for a week and today prepared a feast of 24 dishes so bountiful it could break the table legs. The table was so full there was barely enough room, yet Jeonggwan’s father lamented that he couldn’t make jellyfish salad due to lack of time.
“Oh my, I haven’t prepared much… I’m not sure if it will suit your taste…”
“There’s way too much… Is this a memorial service? A neighborhood party?”
“Hyung, what are you saying? We always eat like this.”
Jeonghyun gaped in amazement at the incredible spread before him, while Jeongwon, thinking that the day to submit his resignation letter tucked in his chest was not far off now that Junjae had come to their home, smiled and chided Jeonghyun as if to say don’t talk nonsense.
“Father, Mother. Thank you for the meal.”
“Oh my- You can call me father-in-law if you’d like…”
“Dad.”
Jeonggwan gave his father a warning look as he subtly revealed his true feelings in a small voice, but knowing that inviting Junjae home was no ordinary matter, Jeonggwan’s father didn’t miss the opportunity.
“So… Jeonggwan is twenty-three, right?”
“Yes. Soon to be twenty-four.”
“Ahem… That’s a perfect age for marriage…”
He began to subtly appeal to Junjae, saying things like omegas are usually at the right age for marriage now. Since the two of them had already decided when they would get married regardless of the family’s appeals, Junjae just smiled quietly. But thinking this might be troubling for Junjae, Jeongwon, who had been quietly devouring the braised short ribs, spoke up on Junjae’s behalf.
“What marriage at twenty-four? It’s not like he’s thirty-four.”
“Tsk. Jeongwon, you stay quiet.”
“Yeah. You barely talk usually… Just eat your food.”
But his father and Jeongwon immediately scolded him, telling him not to interfere, and Jeongwon, deflated, buried his face in his rice bowl again.
“Well, Managing Director, you’ll be thirty-three next year… So one of you is at the right age, it’s perfect.”
And the clever Jeongwon, who turned even that interference into an opportunity, made their mother secretly applaud inside. Our second son is doing well. She quietly placed the softest meat from the braised short ribs on top of Jeongwon’s rice.
“…”
Junjae, watching this from across the table, was moved, thinking it was just a mother’s overflowing affection for her son, unaware of Jeonggwan’s mother’s true intentions. And he vowed again that he must become part of this family.
“We’re not getting married.”
A sudden villain appeared at the harmonious dining table. Moreover, omitting the most important word “now” had quite an impact.
“…What?”
Clang. Jeonggwan’s mother, father, and Jeongwon dropped their spoons, their pupils creating hurricanes. What on earth does that mean? In that brief moment, the three of them had all sorts of thoughts. Is he saying he can’t marry because of our family? Is he just dating Jeonggwan without intending to marry? Well, why would a global conglomerate like the Won Group want to marry into our family… The three were already leading this story to a sad ending in their minds, even though Junjae hadn’t said anything.
Unaware of the family’s thoughts, Junjae quietly opened his mouth, recalling the ridiculous number 15 he had seen earlier on Jeonggwan’s bucket list.
“Why, you said you were going to marry me because you wanted to divorce me.”
“No… I told you that’s not about you, hyung.”
“Then who is it about?”
“There’s no specific person, I said it’s just a meme.”
What’s with this old man’s grudge? Jeonggwan grumbled and placed the softest meat from the braised short ribs on top of Junjae’s white rice, just as his mother had done, as if to say just eat.
“If it’s not a bucket list, then I guess I won’t give you a divorce.”
Junjae, looking at Jeonggwan lovingly, joked with words he didn’t mean. But Jeonggwan was always one step ahead of Junjae.
“If it’s a bucket list, will you give me one?”
“…I’ll cry.”
“Pfft-. Don’t change your mind later, hyung. Walking down the aisle with some other guy.”
“…Since everyone’s misunderstanding, I should add ‘dream’ in front of it.”
The gloomy dining table, except for the two of them, brightened as if someone had turned on a light. The family members looked at each other and were certain. Judging by their back-and-forth, these two would get married even if someone tried to talk them out of it later.
* * *
The winners of the domestic confectionery and baking competition are announced on the day of the event. This is because participants only need to make one dessert plate without a specific theme. The judges evaluate the appearance and taste on the spot, and after a brief discussion, they announce the winners from bronze upwards.
And Jeonggwan already knew what award he would receive even before the announcement. It was obviously bronze. Jeonggwan’s dessert taste was praised as the best among the entries, but due to a mistake in controlling the icing temperature during plating, the best he could hope for was bronze.
One might say that getting bronze in his first competition was good, but Jeonggwan couldn’t easily forgive his mistake because he was still a student representing his university. Of course, to the general public, it looked perfect enough to say, “What’s wrong with it? It looks great!” But the mistake was noticeable in the texture, and the judges immediately recognized it.
“Bronze medal. OO University, Kim. Jeong. gwan.”
As expected, Jeonggwan’s name was called for the bronze medal. Amidst the applause from those around him, Jeonggwan bowed respectfully to receive the bronze medal. Although disappointed, he vowed to practice more and definitely win the grand prize next year. After that, the awards ceremony continued in order until the grand prize winner was announced, and now as Jeonggwan was returning to his cooking station to pack his things to leave, it happened.
“Student Kim Jeonggwan.”
“…Oh, hello.”
The woman who addressed Jeonggwan was one of the judges, a professor from a famous French confectionery school. She was the only Asian professor at that school and was quite well-known not only in Korea but worldwide. She was also the judge who had accurately pointed out Jeonggwan’s icing mistake.
“I didn’t know you’d make the dough by grinding pistachios and rice. Usually, people use paste. And you used figs and chestnuts for the cream on top… You must have quite a refined palate? Your work was well-balanced overall and clever.”
“Ah… Thank you.”
“You must be disappointed about the icing.”
“Yes… That’s why I plan to practice more when I get back.”
So Jeonggwan was very nervous. If it had been another Korean professor judge, he might have joked around, but he couldn’t do that in front of her. He was afraid he might get scolded more if he acted cheeky.
“Jeonggwan, you’re in your 4th year of university, right?”
“Yes… I’m about to graduate.”
“Then, do you perhaps have some money at home?”
“…Pardon?”
“If you have money, would you like to come study at our school? I’ll write you a recommendation letter.”
At the judge’s words, Jeonggwan could feel the other competition participants around him start to murmur. This judge wrote recommendation letters for one person each year to enter her school, but her criteria were very vague. Sometimes she wrote it for the grand prize winner, and sometimes for someone who didn’t even get a bronze medal.
It seemed she had her own criteria for people she wanted to teach. However, even though she had been writing recommendation letters like this for nearly 10 years, only three people had actually enrolled so far. Although education in France was free, the cost of living itself was too high, and rent and living expenses were beyond what an average person could afford.
But now Jeonggwan had a 12 billion won building in Cheongdam-dong. The monthly rent from that alone exceeded what an average person could earn in a month, so he didn’t have to worry about money.
“…”
If it were any other concern…
