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makeitmingi · 3 months

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The Cat and Dog Game [Chapter 14]

Genre: Romance, Fluff, Comedy

Pairing: Yunho x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Chef!Reader, RestaurantOwner!Yunho, MaitreD!Hongjoong, Waiter!Yeosang, Waiter!San, Waiter!Mingi, SousChef!Seonghwa, SousChef!Wooyoung, PrepChef!Jongho

Summary: Yunho's dream was to open and run his own restaurant. But he doesn't know anything when it comes to cooking. Until you came along and accepted the job, bringing with you a small crew. How will the black cat tame the energetic golden retriever?

Word count: 3.2K

Yunho chewed on the nail of his thumb nervously as he sat in his car. How was he supposed to act when he saw you today? He left you, asleep on your couch last night. Well, he wrote a note but should he have woken you up?

"Argh!" He fell forward onto his steering wheel. Yunho inwardly cringed, imaging how if his mother knew, she would nag him for being 'un-gentlemanly'.

*KNOCK KNOCK*

Yunho looked up to see San there, tilting his head in confusion, having seen the taller's quiet outcry.

"You okay?" San asked. Yunho nodded glumly. He gathered his things and got out of the car. Seeing the two other cars parked there, he knew that the kitchen crew was in already.

"We had a break yesterday, why do you look more tired?" San chuckled, slinging his arm around Yunho's shoulders.

"I'm fine, San. I just stayed up too late playing." Yunho said.

"Yeah, after abandoning Yeosang and I mid-game. What gives man?" San raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry, I just had to suddenly go somewhere for... a thing..." Yunho tried his best not to give anything away, making San scoff. They walked in together and the kitchen was already bustling, as expected. While San greeted everyone excitedly, Yunho ducked into the locker room to put his stuff down.

"Morning." Yunho gulped, greeting everyone. You were standing at the other side, your back to him. With your music playing in your ears, you didn't hear his soft greeting.

"Are you okay?" Seonghwa asked. Yunho nodded his head, going to the front of the house to get the barista counter ready.

"I'll start the bacon garnish for the bacon quiches coming out." You said, turning around.

"Before that, taste test this, please." Jongho placed one of the pastries on the board and cut into it with his knife. The crisp sound of pastry sounded through kitchen.

"So layer of puff at the bottom, layered the thin potatoes over and doted camembert cheese with thyme and black pepper." He said.

"Mmm, it's good. How did you prep the potatoes?" You asked while chewing the bite.

"Thinly sliced, then cooked in cream for a bit until just before tender then I laid it over the pastry. Oh, I also shredded some gruyere over. And 5 minutes before it was done, I cracked the black pepper over, was worried it might burn in the oven." He explained.

"Good decision. Hwa, Woo, come taste." You called them over. Jongho cut them wedge to try. Seonghwa nodded in approval while Wooyoung happily leaned on Jongho.

"This is amazing. You, just promote him to sous already." Wooyoung said to you.

"He's been doing the duties of a sous for so long, he just doesn't want to take the title." You scoffed, rolling your eyes.

"I would rather not work the pass. I'm fine doing prep when I can." Jongho said, bringing the other potato camembert pastries to the side for service later.

"Working the peanut butter frosting now for the chocolate cake." Wooyoung announced, running to the mixer.

"Orange pound cake ready to hit the ovens." Seonghwa said.

"I'll start on the candied orange peel topping while you make the drizzle?" You asked him. He nodded and you both started on those tasks. Yunho peeked through the small window, you seemed fine. You weren't unhappy and Seonghwa didn't look like he wanted to kill Yunho so maybe he was fine.

"Aww." He whimpered with dread, his shoulders slumping slightly. Mingi, who was standing there, watched his best friend with much confusion. He chuckled before moving over.

"Yunho."

"AH!" Yunho jumped, falling back slightly while panting with his hand over his chest in fear.

"Buddy, what is wrong with you?" Mingi asked. Having heard Yunho scream, you poked your head out. Yunho and Mingi both looked over at you.

"Everything okay here?" You asked with a raised eyebrow. Mingi shrugged, nodding over to Yunho.

"I'm fine. Thanks, (y/n)." Yunho cleared his throat, straightening up. You nodded slowly, not really knowing what was happening between them but you didn't really care to get involved.

"Oh, yeah. Yunho, you left your scarf at mine last night. It's in my cubby." You said and Yunho nodded before you went back into the kitchen. Mingi's eyes were wide, his jaw slightly slacked as he turned to his best friend.

"You left your what where?" Mingi asked.

"She invited me to her place for dinner last night." Yunho explained with a sigh.

"Is that why you've been distracted and jumpy?" Mingi questioned again. Yunho nodded then shook his head, then ultimately just let his head drop in frustration.

"Ah... no, it's not that." Yunho grumbled, rubbing his temples. Mingi just playfully smirked.

"It's okay, Yun." Mingi teased, wrapped his arm around his best friend.

"What's going on?" Hongjoong came over.

"So our dear boss here, apparently left San and Yeosang mid game yesterday. Yes, they complained to me about it. But what I've heard is that our boy here, actually left to go to (y/n)'s place for dinner. Even left his scarf there." Mingi informed. Hongjoong's eyes widened as Yunho facepalmed.

"You suck, Mingi. I'll explain what actually happened when I clear my head." Yunho rolled his eyes and entered the kitchen.

"Hey." Yunho came to you. You held a hand out to him as you were stirring something in the sauce pan, taking a spoon to taste it.

"Yeah. What's up? I already told you that your scarf is in my cubby, get it yourself if you need it." You said, still moving along the bench but at least were listening to Yunho now.

"No, not that. Thanks by the way. I just... you're not mad?" Yunho winced as he asked.

"Mad? Why would I be mad?" You scoffed.

"Because I just left you there on the couch...?" Yunho rubbed the back of his neck. You stopped, staring at the wall before turning to look at Yunho.

"And what do you think you should have done instead? Yunho, I'm not mad. I would have been if you had actually woken me up. And anyway, the person who should be mad is you. I invited you over and fell asleep." You shrugged.

"No! I'm not mad at all! I know... it's tiring cooking a lot. I'm still really grateful and enjoyed myself." Yunho gulped. By now, the entire kitchen had gone quiet, with the 3 listening in.

"Nice to hear that you did. I brought leftovers if you're interested." You told him.

"You did?!" His eyes sparkled.

"Yes, I just said I did." You side eyed him. Yunho let out a sigh of relief, throwing his head back as he began to laugh. He was worried over nothing, you weren't mad.

"There's not much time. You need to open the restaurant." You checked the wall clock.

"The restaurant?... Oh yeah! Opening time!" He jumped and ran out the door to the front, leaving you there, blinking.

"So..."

"Shut up. It's nothing." You rolled your eyes, cutting Wooyoung off. Seonghwa just chuckled at how Wooyoung whined at your lack of sharing. He was curious too, he hadn't heard you mention anything about Yunho being over when he called you yesterday. Maybe he'll ask you later.

"I'm more interested in what you cooked him. He was so excited about leftovers." Jongho raised his hand. You sighed while Seonghwa and Wooyoung burst out laughing.

"Short rib bourguignon..." You mumbled softly, looking at your fingernails instead of directly at them.

"What?"

"Short rib bourguignon..." You said again, albeit a little louder but still tried to keep your voice low. There was suddenly a wave of silence that washed over the kitchen.

"You made him our favourite dish?! Don't tell me you made it with bone marrow."

"How could you?"

"We've been asking you to make that for so long!"

All the protests came at you. You scrunched your nose, rubbing your temples before turning back to your counter and finishing your work. You've never given into their short rib bourguignon request just to mess with them and hold it over them.

"Fine, yes, I made it for him with bone marrow, everything. I wanted him to try it okay? Because his favourite thing is galbi jjim so I wanted to let him try it." You said.

"Mash or pasta?" Seonghwa asked.

"Both. Roasted garlic mash and pappardelle." You told them, taking the trays out of the oven when the timers were up.

"Wow... Even gave him options..." Wooyoung shook his head with a click of his tongue, conveying the betrayal that he felt. You shot him a flat look.

"You guys have had it before! And you guys are capable of making it on your own." You hissed.

"And don't tell me that Yunho can make it on his own too because we know he can't." You glared at them before they could reply.

"Alright, alright. We accept your apology. Now, let's discuss the dinner menu." Jongho patted your shoulders. You cast him a look, you didn't even apologise to them.

"Let me bring this out for service." Seonghwa brought out the other bacon quiches to display. You grabbed a piece of paper and your sharpie, beginning to brainstorm with Wooyoung and Jongho on dishes for tonight's dinner menu. Hongjoong said that there were already quite some reservations coming in.

"We should do a chopped romesco sauce. Don't blend it, do a fine chop on the board for texture." Wooyoung suggested. You nodded, writing it down.

"Sorry, what are we serving with that?" Seonghwa came back in, having heard Wooyoung's idea.

"Chicken roulade. Stuffed with perilla leaf and garlic chives. Sous vide and finish off in a pan to get some colour on it." You said.

"If we have the sous vide going, let's do barramundi on the grill. Sous vide cherry tomatoes and fennel in that Korean aged white soy sauce to serve alongside." Seonghwa raised his hand.

"I think we need starches. With the chicken, potato parsnip puree? And I think with the barramundi, like a rice pilaf."

"What do you suggest we flavour the rice with?" You asked Jongho.

"Mixed herbs, paprika, lemon zest and we make it slightly creamy with emulsification of cold butter to finish it off. Just slightly to accompany the meatier fish and tartness of the cherry tomatoes." Jongho replied.

"Main starch?" Wooyoung asked. You put the sharpie down, scratching your head as you walked into the walk in to check the ingredients that you had.

"Seafood pasta. Blend the roe of the scallops, make a light sauce. Serve it with seared scallop meat, grilled prawns, clams, squid. I want the prawn shells for a prawn oil to go over." You said.

"Yes, chef." The 3 replied.

"Are we doing bucatini?" Seonghwa clarified. You nodded your head slowly, too focused on the sauce instead.

"Let's mix some chogochujang (spicy sauce usually served with seafood and Korean raw fish) into the sauce to add brightness. I want the tartness from the vinegar."

"Sure." They all took their own notes for what they would be doing for the night.

"Okay, let's discuss appetisers before we get too hung up on the mains. Then desserts." You pulled up another piece of paper. Yunho came in to listen to your brainstorming session. But with what happened earlier, Seonghwa, Wooyoung and Jongho stopped talking, looking at him.

"What?" You looked up from the paper when they went silent. Turning around, you saw that Yunho was standing there. You hadn't even heard him come in.

"Guys, focus." You frowned.

"Right... So I was saying yukhoe (Korean raw beef) but with a chimichurri. We got a fattier cut of beef, it should cut nicely."

"Okay. Hwa, you're on that for tonight then." You hummed and wrote it down.

"I kind of want to do a soup. What soup can we do with what we have?" You asked. Jongho and Wooyoung walked into the walk in to check the inventory.

"White bean?" Jongho suggested.

"I would like to save the white bean for cassoulet stew tomorrow. What are our other options?" You said.

"We can do wild mushroom soup with doenjang." Wooyoung proposed. You all thought about it as a concept, mushrooms do go well with heavier, more fermented flavours. You nodded and added it to the list.

"You okay to handle that on your own?" You asked. Wooyoung gave you a thumbs up. Then you moved onto desserts. Yunho watched you quietly, he was always so mesmerised by you.

The way you commanded the attention in the room, the way the others looked at you with such respect and reverence.

"Alright. That settles it. Let's get the sous vides going and we'll break for the day." You said.

"Anything I can help with?" Yunho asked.

"Yes, actually. Help us fill those bins and stick the sous vide in while we begin the prep." You said. Yunho nodded, he knew how to do that, you've taught him before.

"(y/n) and I on the tomatoes and fennel. Hwa hyung and Jongho on the chicken? We'll help when we're done here." Wooyoung asked.

"Sure." Seonghwa and Jongho started on the chicken. When Yunho was done setting the sous vides up, he went to help them. Jongho gave him the mallet to pound the chicken until it was flat and even. Seonghwa prepared the filling of mainly perilla leave and garlic chives that would go in the middle.

"It reminds me of a roll cake.... but like, meat." Yunho chuckled as Jongho explained the dish to him.

"Well, that's essentially the idea." Seonghwa said. While you made the 'marinade' for the vegetables, Wooyoung quickly prepared and sliced the fennel.

"What's that?" Yunho asked.

"White soy sauce." Leaning over to grab a tasting spoon, you pour a little on and handed it to Yunho for him to taste it.

"It doesn't look and taste like soy sauce. It's sweeter? And not as salty as I expected. How do they make the colour so light?" He asked, tasting the bit of sauce.

"White soy has more wheat than soy beans and is fermented for a much shorter period of time. That means less sugars are broken down, that's why it has a sweeter taste." You explained.

"Can you use it as a dip? Like for fish." He thought out loud.

"Not really. It is used more in cooking to enhance flavours. So the cherry tomatoes we got are a little sour, that's why we're using the sweetness and lightness of the white soy to balance it without adding straight sugar." Wooyoung added.

"Doing the same for the fennel." You said. You held open the sous vide bags for Wooyoung to dump the ingredients in.

"How's the chicken coming along?" When you and Wooyoung prepared the vegetables, you went over to where Jongho and Seonghwa were.

"You can start trussing the meat while we finish up." Seonghwa said. You hummed and grabbed the butchers' twine.

"Ooh, what's going on here?" Yeosang came in.

"Watching them prep for dinner. And helping." Yunho said. Yeosang leaned down to watch you secure the rolled up chicken with twine after Wooyoung rolls it with filling.

"Looks like a lollipop." Yeosang laughed. That made you let out a small laugh, nodding in agreement.

"What is the green filling?" He asked.

"Perilla leaf, garlic chives, salt and white pepper." You replied. Yeosang nodded his head, impressed and interested in the dish. He took his phone out to take a picture of the rolled up chicken. When Hongjoong came in for his break, Yunho went back out to support the other boys.

"Okay, let's start a timer and head out." You instructed. The 4 of you went to get your things. You grabbed Yunho's scarf and container of leftovers, tucking them beside his bag.

"Bye. See you tonight." Hongjoong waved with a smile, Yeosang too. The 4 of you headed out for the rest of the day.

"Kitchen crew just went home." Yeosang said, stretching his arms over his head.

"This is bomb." Mingi said, stuffing his face with a slice of bacon quiche. San leaned over with his mouth open for Mingi to feed him but Mingi merely pulled his plate away.

"Get you own." Mingi growled.

"I just want a bite! And that's the last slice!" San whined. Mingi rolled his eyes, giving in and letting San have a bite.

"Mmm, it is good. The meaty bacon in the quiche with the crispy bacon on top." He said as he chewed. Yunho waved for San to help make the drinks for the orders that were coming in. Mingi continued to have his break behind Yunho.

"So, can you explain what's up with you and (y/n) now?" Mingi asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

"A little busy here." Yunho replied, keying in the order so San would get the ticket to prepare the drink. He stepped away from the cash register to help San.

"Thank you. Please come again." He smiled, handing the drinks to the customers.

"There's something going on between you and (y/n)?" San asked while scooping ice into the cups.

"Nothing. Mingi is just spouting nonsense. As usual. (y/n) and I are just... friends." Yunho rolled his eyes, ignoring the way his chest felt warm when he called you a 'friend'. Mingi scoffed at Yunho's words.

"You were at her house yesterday." Mingi pointed out.

"You're at my house all the time. Does that mean there's anything going on between us?" Yunho raised an eyebrow.

"Well, there can be. But you playing. I told you we could get married if the law allowed it." Mingi teased, making San laugh. Yunho sighed, facepalming at Mingi's words. People would seriously misunderstand if they had heard him. Yunho's mother thought Mingi was serious when he mentioned marriage prospects jokingly.

"Wait, is that why you left me and Yeosang to die?" San asked in disbelief and betrayal. Yunho ignored him so he turned to Mingi, who nodded in confirmation.

"Wah, Yunho ah. How could you?" San shook his head with much disapproval.

"She invited me for dinner. That's it. Nothing happened. We talked about food and cooking." Yunho said briefly.

"You just left after eating?" Mingi tilted his head.

"She fell asleep on the couch. It felt awkward for me to continue to stay so I left." Yunho revealed. Mingi and San burst out laughing, making Yunho shush them since customers were around.

"Were you so boring that she fell asleep?" San could barely get his question out between his laughs.

"She was tired from cooking. The dish she cooked me was a difficult dish and it took her a long time to cook it." Yunho frowned.

"Wow, she put in that much effort to make dinner for you? That's really nice, Yunho ah. You should do something to thank her." Mingi adviced. Yunho nodded, he knew he should repay you but he didn't know how.

"How? I didn't even know what kind of gift to bring to her house. I brought her my favorite cold brew coffee... She said she liked it but I don't know." Yunho rubbed the back of his neck.

"You'll think of something." San patted his shoulder with encouragement.

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