nytis
"finally you two decided to come in." jeonghan commented from behind the counter. "i was getting bored here." soonyoung flashed jeonghan a nervous smile making him finally notice the fancy hair and outfit.
"oh? you two going on a date?" he smirked from behind the counter, "you can steal him for the day of that's what you're wondering." jihoon's face bloomed red as he glared at jeonghan.
"shut it." jihoon hissed.
soonyoung chuckled weakly. "unfortunately, no." this simple comment caused jihoon's heart to beat erratically. there's definitely something wrong with me, he thought.
"i'm actually here for.." he shot jihoon a look and nudged him. tell jeonghan why i'm here!
"he's all dressed up today because he wants to work at the bakery." looking at jeonghan's expression, he could already tell that the man was beyond happy to hear those words.
"ji... he wants to work at my bakery?" blinking his eyes, jeonghan wasn't sure if he heard correctly.
"that's right.. mr jeonghan." soonyoung responded seriously.
both bakers snorted at soonyoung's words. "mr jeonghan?" jihoon questioned, amusement evident on his face. jeonghan paid no mind to jihoon's comment.
"well aren't you just adorable." jeonghan cooed. "but drop that 'mr'. it makes me sound old. ji, you should learn a thing or two from him. look how polite soonyoung is. i bet that he would never tell me to shut up like you do."
already hating where this was going, jihoon only grumbled some incomprehensible things under his breath.
"anyways... you have no idea how much i want to hire you! i've been nagging jihoon for the longest time to try and convince you to work here.. and now you finally are!" jeonghan wiped away an imaginary tear. "this is a dream come true."
"wait.. so i'm hired?"
"yup." jeonghan grinned.
"no interview.. no papers.. no test?"
"no-mmpf!" jihoon took this as his chance and quickly covered jeonghan's mouth.
"a-actually, jeonghan made a mistake, he must be getting old. there is a test, a baking test." jeonghan raised a brow and stared at jihoon, oh, so that's what he's trying to do. fine, it doesn't matter. i'm hiring soonyoung even if he can't bake.
jeonghan pushed the hand off his mouth. "okay jihoon, why don't you tell soonyoung about the test?" he said, playing along.
"one of us chooses a recipe and you have to bake it. we get to judge if you pass or not." jihoon nodded, satisfied with the idea he made up on the spot.
laughing at soonyoung's facial expression, jeonghan unlocked the side door. "come on in soonyoung, i appreciate you dressing up but by the end of this i guarantee that you'll be covered in flour."
"hey what were those things that soonyoung first bought when he came here? it was those puff pastry lemon knots right?" jihoon nodded. "those aren't super difficult, i think soonyoung could manage." jeonghan leafed through folders before finding the recipe. "what do you think ji?"
jihoon wanted to protest and find one of the most difficult recipes for soonyoung but ended up nodding along to jeonghan's idea. "yeah.. that's good i guess." he mumbled.
"great!" holding the recipe the two bakers walked out the back room only to find soonyoung fiddling with the oven. "i suggest you don't touch that unless you want the shop to burn down." jeonghan chuckled, pulling soonyoung away from the oven.
"here's what you're making," jihoon handed soonyoung the recipe. "we expect you to make the puff pastry from scratch but other then that, it shouldn't take too long. jeonghan and i will be looking at three things. your technique, presentation and the taste. don't burn down the kitchen, good luck."
both bakers took a seat on the side and watched soonyoung stand frozen in his spot not sure where to start. "ah right.. don't forget to read the recipe first.. and wash hands.." jihoon couldn't help but sigh. grabbing a spare apron from the wall he tossed it over to soonyoung, landing it on his head.
"apron first." jihoon said monotonously.
"thanks jihoonie!"
jeonghan looked at the other with twinkling eyes. "oh so you're helping him now? you were the one who created this idea in the first place."
"quiet. it was and is going to be the only time i help." jihoon huffed, sifting back down.
"yeah?" jeonghan chuckled, not believing his words at all.
"yes, now shut up."
a few minutes later and jihoon was already bouncing his leg anxiously into his seat. soonyoung was doing better than when making macaroons but that doesn't mean he was doing good.
there were so many things that jihoon wanted to correct at soonyoung's workplace like the dirty measuring tools and the ingredients strewn all over the counter but he bit his cheek and refrained.
"soonyoung what step are you on?" jeonghan asked, pacing near the boy.
"i think i need to restart my dough.." soonyoung said, sighing. "it doesn't match the description.." curiously, jihoon looked of soonyoung's shoulder to see what happened. the dough looked surprisingly okay, the only problem was that the chunks of frozen butter were starting to melt in the bowl.
jeonghan hummed, not saying anything before walking away. jihoon on the other hand, could watch this any longer. he covered the bowl and shoved it in the freezer. "pull it out in twenty five minutes." he rushed back to his seat only to see a smirking jeonghan.
"i only helped him because i don't want him wasting more ingredients!" he whispered harshly. "stop smiling like that!"
"whatever you say jihoonie.."
after that, everything went smoothly with the dough. only when soonyoung started to prep to make the lemon knots did he start getting anxious again. not only did the boy forget to preheat the oven, the way the lemon was wobbling under soonyoung's knife was really starting to scare him.
ignoring jeonghan's look. he quickly rushed over and swiftly cut the lemon in half for him and on his way back preheated the oven for soonyoung. "just to be clear, i'm only doing this because i don't want you losing any fingers and accidentally burning your food."
watching jihoon hurry back to his seat, soonyoung couldn't help but smile. the way he acts like he doesn't care but internally really does, makes soonyoung want to pinch his cheeks and tell him how cute he is.
throughout the rest of the recipe, soonyoung refrained from messing up too badly. he did accidentally burn the powdered sugar and lemon mixture but other than that, the boy didn't need to redo anything.
"last step soonyoung!" jeonghan clapped his hands. "congratulations on making this far with.." he eyed soonyoung up and down, "not as much flour on you as i expected. the presentation might sound like an easy step but remember, we eat with our eyes first so make sure your food looks appetizing."
taking jeonghan's words seriously, soonyoung chose his best three pastries and piled them up prettily on the plate. he drizzled glaze over top and decided to add some lemon zest over everything. "there! i'm done!"
the two bakers walked over to the dish and looked at it. "in terms of presentation, i give you an eight. it's not bad at all but probably would've looked better if you added something that makes the dessert uniquely yours." soonyoung breathed out, very happy with his first score.
"in terms of technique," jihoon crosses his arms, "i give you a three. you were bad." he said bluntly.
"oh come on ji, he wasn't that bad.."
"fine," the boy sighed, "i give you a five. it was okay but you need work." jeonghan nodded, agreeing with the score.
"that's not too bad for someone who never bakes."
for the last category taste, both bakers grabbed a lemon knot and tried a small bite. "how is it?" soonyoung asked anxiously, rubbing his hands on his apron. "is it good? is it bad?"
jihoon's face scrunched up as he swallowed the bite, coughing afterwards. "why is this so salty?!" jeonghan laughed between coughs.
"looks like soonyoung mixed up salt and sugar! rookie mistake.. rookie mistake."
soonyoung let out a whine. "no! did i seriously do that?!" this was the end of him. he was going to get a low score and the. jeonghan would kick him out-
"you're hired!" jeonghan said cheerfully. jihoon looked less pleased but nonetheless still had a small smile on his face. "i was going to hire you even if you couldn't bake." the man continued, "but it turns out you're not too shabby at baking which is even better!"
soonyoung's jaw dropped. "i'm hired?"
"yup, now all you have to say is 'you're the best jeonghannie!'"
"you're the best jeonghannie!"
jihoon let out a sigh.
at the end of the day, jihoon was finally adjusting to having a third person in the bakery. waving goodbye to soonyoung and jeonghan, jihoon locked the bakery door tightly. both soonyoung and jeonghan lived in the opposite direction he did so neither of them could accompany him back home. jihoon had to admit he was a little jealous and wished he had someone to chat with while walking. listening, he could hear jeonghan's voice in the distance.
"you got to get here at 7 am sharp. if you're late i get to smack you with the broom."
"i won't be late!"
jihoon giggles quietly. soonyoung treating jeonghan like a boss was kind of hilarious and jeonghan was clearly enjoying this feeling. a light wind swept by and jihoon couldn't help it but feel like there were a pair of eyes watching him.
whipping his head around he only saw jeonghan and soonyoung joking around nearby. scanning the other shops no one in particular stood out to him. it was just soonyoung or jeonghan, right?
"oi, jihoon! how long are you gonna stand there?" jeonghan called out. "hurry on home before it gets too dark."
"yeah.." he called out giving the two a half assed smile.
it was probably just your imagination.