“Ladies and gentlemen, Chanyeol-ssi’s done it again! As you all know, our beloved Sehun hates the taste of bell peppers, and here he is, eating—what was it exactly, Chanyeol-ssi?”

“It’s a puréed tomato and red pepper soup, topped with some seasoning and green onion, Luhan-ssi.”

“It sounds very delicious indeed, Chanyeol-ssi! What do you think, Sehun?”

“I usually hate the taste of bell peppers, and even the slightest bit in a dish would ruin it for me… but I can’t taste it at all in this soup… I never thought there would be a day that I would be eating anything with bell peppers in it…”

“And there we have it, folks! Once again, our star, celebrity chef, Park Chanyeol, has created a dish that even someone who dislikes the taste of the main ingredients is eating very well! Look how well our Sehunnie is eating!”

A wave of hushed tones of ooh’s and aah’s swept throw the crowd.

“And that’s all the time we have today! Thank you for joining us on Lu’s Lunch Time, and a warm thank you to our brilliant guest chef, Park Chanyeol! For those who would like to try this star chef’s cooking with their own tongue, you can find him in the heart of Seoul, in his five-star restaurant, LOEY. We hope to see you on our show again soon, and to all our viewers, thank you for tuning in, and we’ll see you next time!”

The audience erupted into applause as the lights dimmed and the hosts waved amicably at the camera.

---

Park Chanyeol sipped his coffee as he scrolled through the reviews of his restaurant through his iPad. All positive, of course. He didn’t spend half his life studying with the finest chefs in Paris for nothing. The mere thought that anyone would dislike his cooking made him laugh.

Turning on the television to watch the morning news, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the first image that flashed through the screen. It was some newbie actor-singer who had recently caught the attention of the media for some small part he had played in some drama Chanyeol had no time to watch. With the second year anniversary of his restaurant coming up, he really had no time to be keeping up with social media. Unless it pertained to his restaurant, of course. Besides, all these rookies were the same. Get caught up in the smallest bit of attention the media gives them, star in a couple ty movies, try to make a comeback with a few songs, and a few years later no one even remembers their name.

Flipping through the channels in boredom, he settled on yet another cooking show. Oh, and what a coincidence. It just happened to be the show he had been on a few months ago. A little boost to his already inflated ego. Just what he needed.

Chanyeol couldn’t help but swell with pride as the prissy Gucci model raved about how delicious his pan-seared salmon topped with avocado sauce was. The panda-eyed man was known for having an Asian tongue, but after that dish, reports immediately came flooding in that he fell in love with Western food. Instagram pictures arose of the model dining in many different European restaurants. He even visited Chanyeol’s establishment a few weeks after their show, practically begging him to make another dish. The Gucci model became one of his regulars from that point on. And with those reports and visits came more publicity for Chanyeol and his “miracles.”

Chanyeol was a humble man. And by humble, he meant basking in the glory of all the praises and wonder the world gave him when some famous person fell in love with his food. While they ate his food, he ate up the reviews that added to the hype of his five-star restaurant.

Going back to his iPad, he snickered as he read a few more overly zealous reviews. Most of them were fan girls who complimented him more than his cooking. Not that he minded. After all, he was quite a looker, if he could say so himself. The only thing better than his cooking was his face.

A loud ring caught his attention. Putting his tablet down, he answered his phone with a simple, “Park speaking.”

“Park, I got 10 minutes, so shut up for once and listen to what I have to say.”

Chanyeol rolled his eyes. His manager could be a real pain in the sometimes.

“Alright, I’m listening.”

“I said shut up.”

He really should pick best friends more carefully.

After his manager was satisfied with the silence on Chanyeol’s end, he continued. “So, I got us a pretty sweet deal. You know Do Kyungsoo’s show, right?”

Does he know Do Kyungsoo’s cooking show, Cooking with D.O.? Any idiot with half a mind knows what it is! Anyone who’s anyone knows that to get a spot with the cooking host takes months of preparation and dedication, and usually only the most popular chef with the highest reputation gets an invite. To say Chanyeol had been working his off for the past few years to get a spot on this show was an understatement. The chefs that come back from a session with Do were all embraced by stardom and celebrity contracts, getting restaurant after restaurant built in all parts of the globe. The mere thought of having that kind of luxury had Chanyeol salivating.

“Anyways, the best manager in the world, who is also your best friend, might I add, managed to snag you a spot in four weeks.”

Four weeks? Beautiful! That gave Chanyeol plenty of time to prepare. He would just have to research where to get the best ingredients, what Kyungsoo’s least favorite dish is so he can make one that’ll blow his mind, prepare his wardrobe—

“But-” Oh no. “-there’s a catch.”

“Kris, I was just about to start celebrating, what do you mean there’s a catch,” Chanyeol groaned.

His manager/best friend laughed sheepishly. “You’re not cooking for Kyungsoo.”

Chanyeol blinked. “What?”

“Apparently, he’s trying out a new thing where he invites some celebrity to host the show with him. He said it was something he thought would be cool to do, and that’s the only way he can work us into his show schedule,” Kris confessed.

“Are you ing kidding me?”

“Hey, I don’t make the rules,” Kris defended himself. “It took me ages to even get through to the guy. His secretary wouldn’t even let me get a word out!”

Chanyeol pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed in frustration. “Alright, fine,” he finally growled. “Who am I cooking for then?”

“Some up-and-comer,” Kris reported back. “A pretty boy… name is Byun Baekhyun.”

Oh. Up-and-comer. Of course.

“Did you tell Lay yet?” Chanyeol sighed.

“Called the head chef first,” Kris replied. “Besides, it’s your sous’s day off, let him relax for once.”

“He’s always relaxing, I’m usually the only one doing the work,” Chanyeol snapped back. As much as he appreciated Kris’s work and getting him a spot on the show he had been pining for since the start of his career, he didn’t appreciate having to share the spotlight with some diva barely out of acting school.

“He needs a break from your ty attitude is what he needs,” Kris snapped back with equal hostility. “If you’re that against sharing, I’ll just ing cancel—“

“No, no, don’t you dare!” Chanyeol gasped quickly. “Fine, I’ll do it,” he sighed. “Thanks for all your troubles, man, I really appreciate it.”

“Sure,” Kris snorted. “Just make sure not to this up, alright? It’s not like this is literally what we’ve been working for since the beginning.”

“Yeah, yeah, just get me all the usual information so I can prep beforehand,” Chanyeol said dismissively.

“Least favorite food, right?” Kris replied distractedly. “Are you sure about that? It’s a pretty big show this time, if anything goes wrong—”

“Nothing’s gonna go wrong,” the arrogant chef snorted confidently. “I’ll wow this Baekhyun guy with my amazing dish, per the usual, get that one way ticket to stardom and live the rest of my life in fame and fortune!”

“Whatever you say, man,” Kris scoffed. “Just deflate your ego a bit before you go on Do’s show, it’s not good for publicity.”

---

Everything was set. Kris dug around and found out that this Byun guy absolutely hated cucumbers with a passion (for whatever reason, Chanyeol couldn’t fathom, nor did he care). To keep things simple, he decided to make cucumber-fried rice. The simpler the dish, the more impressed the audience and hosts would be when the newbie gets blown away by how delicious his cooking is.

And just like that, four weeks of studying recipes, testing different versions of fried rice, and lots of leftovers that Kris and Lay both had to help him finish (both of them looked ready to puke when Chanyeol brought out yet another bowl of cucumber fried rice for them to try), ended, leaving the confident chef standing in front of his giant closet, trying to decide what to wear onto the cooking show tomorrow. Should he go formal and wear a suit and tie? No, then the viewers would think he’s uptight and stingy… Casual street wear? Then they would think he’s too young and immature… So many choices!

He even consider calling his manager and sous-chef for their opinion, but considering it was almost 2 in the morning, Lay was asleep by 11 pm and wouldn’t wake up to even an earthquake (how he did it would always bemuse him and Kris both), and Kris had threatened to take his phone away from him if he dared tried contacting him at ungodly hours again, he had no one to consult. Since his quest for fame, he hasn’t exactly had a large contact list. More like sponsors and celebrities that owed him favors.

After another hour of digging through his closet, he finally decided on a nice gray sweater and black jeans. By this point, 2 am had gone and past, and he knew he was going to regret staying up so late the next morning when Kris was going to kick down his door and drag his out of bed. He had to make sure to look his best on national television. He had to woo the audience as well as his hosts. And from the pictures of Byun Baekhyun that he had looked up, Do’s petite cohost wasn’t bad to look at either.

Oh hell, who was he kidding. This kid was ing gorgeous. The new actor had a cute face and a small, slim frame. Chanyeol could see why all of Korea seemed to love him. His droopy eyes, puppy dog smile and slender hands were oddly appealing, and the chef was even considering watching some of the actor’s dramas when he had free time. From his research (aka internet stalking), Baekhyun was preparing his first album debut, having sung a few OST’s for his dramas (Chanyeol was pretty sure they were the most played on his iPod, he had the voice of an angel), and Chanyeol was actually looking forward to meeting the newest celebrity.

Finally satisfied with his outfit, he went to bed happy, confident he would impress everyone with his cooking tomorrow on live broadcast and hopefully score his newest celebrity crush’s digits. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

The next day, as he predicted, he awoke to a loud pounding at his bedroom door. He never regretted picking Kris as his manager more. Before Kris could actually break down the door, he groggily climbed out of bed and crankily called out “I’m up, er!”

After washing his face with cold water and changing into the outfit he had painstakingly picked out, he pushed the door open, slightly disappointed that Kris wasn’t still standing there so he could hit that door against his annoying manager’s face. Lay was already at work, cooking up a nice omelet for the head chef and their manager before they had to leave for Do’s station.

“Good morning, Chef,” Lay greeted him politely. Despite being older than him, Lay preferred addressing Chanyeol respectfully since he was just the sous. It didn’t bug him; hell, it just added to his already inflated ego.

“Morning, Lay,” Chanyeol yawned, taking a seat across from his manager, who was busy messaging on his phone.

“Made you a bacon and cheese omelet.” Simple. Just the way Chanyeol liked it. “And I’ll be leaving soon to open up the restaurant, but I wish you the best of luck on your show today!”

“Thanks,” Chanyeol grinned. He really couldn’t ask for a better second in command. Zhang Yixing was one of the sweetest people to grace the planet Earth and anyone who said otherwise could go choke on a burger. The nice, gentle chef balanced out Chanyeol’s arrogance and egotistical manner; if it wasn’t for Lay, Chanyeol was pretty sure the world would hate him. But today was different. Do only allowed solo chefs to appear on his show. Chanyeol would be working alone.

And that meant seriously watching what he says and how he acts.

“This is delicious, you’ve gotten a lot better,” Chanyeol complimented as he bit into his food. He could still remember the first time he met Lay, fresh out of culinary school and barely able to crack an egg.

But that was years ago. The Chinese man had improved. A lot.

“Eat fast, we gotta go soon,” Kris informed him, scarfing down his own omelet, only to cough and fan his mouth at the still too hot meal. “This is delicious, though, thanks Yixing,” Kris managed to choke out, gulping down the water the sous brought over for the struggling manager.

Quickly finishing their meal, Kris piled Chanyeol into the car as Lay waved goodbye to his friends. Chanyeol took deep, calming breaths as Kris merged onto the freeway. Was he nervous? Pssh.

…Just slightly…

“Game face, Park,” Kris muttered, half to himself as he weaved through the cars. “We can’t this one up, it’s the big one we’ve been working for.”

“I know, I know,” Chanyeol replied soothingly. Wasn’t Kris supposed to be reassuring him… when did their positions switch? “It’ll be fine, trust me.”

Chanyeol could see a flash of unease cross Kris’s face for a split second. It was gone by the time they passed the next car.

---

“Hi, Kris Wu and Park Chanyeol?” Kris told the receptionist when they finally got to Do’s studio. It was huge, and one of the fanciest buildings Chanyeol had ever seen. The floors were polished marbled that shined brighter than any light. Beautiful vases of flowers adorned the walls, sitting on pedestals worth more than a meal at LOEY.

“Do-ssi has assigned a dressing room for Park-ssi,” the receptionist replied once she found the necessary documents. “Just go down the hall and take a left, you’ll see your name on the door. A makeup artist will be there shortly to attend to you. Wu-ssi, please stay here and sign some papers for me…”

Nodding a stiff goodbye to his best friend (Kris thumped his chest with his fist as encouragement), Chanyeol made his way to the dressing rooms. As he turned left, he collided into something and almost lost his balance. Holding on to the walls, he looked down, ready to apologize, until he saw the person he had hit and the words caught in his throat.

If the floors of the lobby were bright, it didn’t even compare to the small man standing before him.

Byun Baekhyun was more beautiful in person. The pictures did him no justice.

Said angel was shaking his head in a daze, before looking up and opening his mouth in shock. Ugh… those eyes. Chanyeol never thought droopy eyes could be attractive until today. And his pretty, pink lips… so delicate, so kissable—

“I’m sorry!” the person of his daydreaming gasped, awkwardly fluttering his hands over Chanyeol’s shoulders, brushing dust off of his sweater (Chanyeol honestly didn’t know, he was too preoccupied with the fact that this angel was touching him) and grinned sheepishly. “Junmyeon-hyung told me I should watch where I’m running… I’m really sorry!” The angel bowed deeply, his brown hair flopping cutely and Chanyeol felt his heart drop with him. He was such a goner.

“I-it’s ok,” Chanyeol managed to stutter. “A-are you alright? I think you took the hit worse than I did.”

“Oh, I’m fine,” the angel laughed. God, even his laugh was melodic. Was there anything about this man that wasn’t perfect? “I’m stronger than I look,” he teased. Chanyeol disagreed; the angel looked like he would shatter from a single touch. “I’m really sorry, Mr…”

“Chanyeol,” the chef answered hastily. “Park Chanyeol.” He awkwardly stuck his hand out. “I’m a chef.” Wow. That was the best he could come up with? Smooth.

The angel stared at the flustered chef, amusement dancing through those beautiful eyes. “So you’re the person cooking for me today,” he mused. The angel grinned (Chanyeol felt his heart skip a beat) and shook Chanyeol’s outstretched hand. Chanyeol tried not to freak out over how smooth and soft his small hands were against his own large, rough ones. “Byun Baekhyun,” the angel introduced himself. “I was trying to find my manager when I ran into you. Literally.” Chanyeol laughed, although it sounded a bit strained. How he was this mesmerized by someone he had ignored for the past few months was beyond him.

“Anyways… have you seen a short guy with nerdy glasses and looks ready to pop a blood vessel any—”

“Byun Baekhyun!” A new voice interrupted the angel’s sentence. Chanyeol was slightly disappointed. He wanted to hear Baekhyun’s voice some more.

Baekhyun looked away from him, instead tipping his head cutely to the side to look behind the giant. “Junmyeon-hyung!” Baekhyun called happily, skipping past Chanyeol to greet his manager. Chanyeol felt like Baekhyun had just left with his heart. “I was looking for you,” the actor whined. An arrow shot into the chef’s chest, Baekhyun’s puppy whines were too cute.

“I told you to stay in the dressing room until I got back,” the manager chastised, flicking Baekhyun’s forehead lightly. This drew out another whine from the petite man, and yet another arrow through Chanyeol’s chest.

“But I got bored,” Baekhyun sulked, sticking out his lower lip in an adorable pout.

Look at that. Third arrow, buried right over his Chanyeol’s heart.

“Who’s this?” the manager asked, raising a brow at the tall man melting in the corner. “New friend?”

“P-Park Chanyeol.” The rattled chef stuck his hand out, yet again. “I’m the chef that will be cooking on today’s show.” Great, now he was making coherent sentences.

“Kim Junmyeon,” the manager replied tartly, giving Chanyeol’s hand a single, firm shake (miles apart from Baekhyun’s multiple, cute, excited ones). “Our Baekhyunnie’s manager,” he continued, a slight possessive hint in his voice. “I’m sorry to cut our meeting short, but we need to get back to make-up—”

“Of course!” Chanyeol said quickly. “I-I should go find my dressing room too.”

Baekhyun looked sad to say goodbye so quickly (was it wishful thinking that he was sad because he had to leave Chanyeol?), but smiled and gave the chef a cute wave. “I’ll see you on stage, Mr. Chef!” he called back enthusiastically as his manager dragged him away.

And like that, the angel was gone.

Chanyeol felt determination burn through his body.

He was definitely going to get the actor’s number by the end of today.

---

“And we’re on! In three, two…”

“Good afternoon, everybody! Welcome back to Cooking with D.O.! I am your host, Do Kyungsoo, and joining me today are two very special guests!” The main host smiled brightly with his heart shaped lips, turning to look at the chef and actor seated in plush armchairs besides his own. “After years of studying with the finest chefs of Europe, as well as starting his own, chic, five star restaurant with celebrities lined up out the door, Korea’s newest, hottest chef, Park Chanyeol!”

The audience applauded loudly, many of them screaming his name and jumping from their seats. Chanyeol smiled at the audience and waved to them and the camera.

“And next to him, the newest celebrity on the scene, fresh from his last drama, Moon Lovers, ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Korea’s Little Star, Byun Baekhyun!”

The small studio erupted into roaring and clapping. Usually, Chanyeol would be annoyed if the reactions he received were less than the other guest, but this was Baekhyun. If he weren’t on stage with the two hosts, he wouldn’t even spare a second and scream the actors name with the rest of the audience. Baekhyun blushed at the nickname netizens had given him, smiling shyly and waving at the camera, albeit a little less confident than Chanyeol’s.

“Now that introductions are over, let’s be friends,” the host joked amicably once the screams and applauds dies down. “Chanyeol, you have a restaurant named LOEY, is that correct?”

“It is, Kyungsoo-ssi—”

“Kyungsoo is fine,” the owl eyed host laughed. The audience laughed with him; several girls yelled encouraging things to the chef.

“Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol corrected. He allowed himself to be a little more relaxed, not wanting to seem too nervous in front of the most famous cooking show host of all of Korea. “You’re welcome to stop by any time you’d like.”

“Well, let’s see how your food today tastes, and I won’t hesitate to give you a call,” Kyungsoo laughed, signaling laughter from the audience as well. “Now, we all know you as the ‘miracle chef’ who can make food so delicious, people will keep eating it even if it’s their least favorite food.”

“I didn’t know about being called ‘miracle chef,’ you praise me too much,” Chanyeol laughed. More laughing from the audience.

“Now, Baekhyun is here to try the food with me today,” Kyungsoo looked over to his other guest. “What is your least favorite food, Baekhyun?”

“Cucumbers,” Baekhyun replied almost immediately. All hints of shyness were gone. He spoke confidently and casually, as though he had done this a million times before; he was in his element. “I don’t know what it is about them, but I can’t stand the taste at all. Even the slightest hint of cucumber will make me queasy.”

“Quite a challenge for you, Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo said teasingly. “How about we jump right into todays main course? I’m looking forward to what you will make for us today, Chef Park!”

“Of course,” Chanyeol nodded enthusiastically. He stood up with the hosts, towering over the much shorter men as they moved over to the shining kitchen area. Chanyeol was slightly in shock that he was finally able to cook in Do Kyungsoo’s famous, elegant kitchen, and the realizations of how much was at risk here made him feel numb. He could ruin his reputation, his career, and at worst, his restaurant. The weight of Kris’s words crashed down on him. He really couldn’t afford to this up.

Nervously casting a glance off stage, he felt somewhat relieved to see his manager standing there. Kris had his arms crossed, staring intently at his best friend and nodding encouragingly. Chanyeol could see Junmyeon standing nearby, concern flickering through his face.

The kitchen counters were already stocked with all the ingredients and utensils he would need to make his cucumber-fried rice. A cameraman stood in front of him as he introduced all the ingredients, and would follow him as he cooked the meal. He felt bad when Baekhyun took a few steps back when he started cutting up the cucumbers. He really didn’t think anyone could hate a vegetable that much.

Finally, after an hour of chopping, mincing, washing, and frying, the most delicious pan of cucumber-fried rice was complete. They had made small talk for the sake of the show as Chanyeol cooked, explaining the steps he took to make the food for the people watching from home. Chanyeol could see Baekhyun’s growing unease as Chanyeol cooked, and he was starting to regret his decision to make the cucumber-fried rice. But what’s done is done. Turning off the stove, Chanyeol evenly divided his food into three bowls, garnishing the top with roses made of cucumber slices he had demonstrated how to make as they waited for the rice to cook.

“Well, I must say, Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo looked impressed. “This looks and smells absolutely wonderful.”

“You should try it and tell me what you think,” Chanyeol replied, handing Kyungsoo and Baekhyun a bowl with a pair of chopsticks politely. Kyungsoo took the bowl happily, ready to dig in, but Baekhyun looked a lot more hesitant.

“Baekhyun, this looks very good, doesn’t it?” Kyungsoo asked encouragingly, trying to prompt his cohost to talk.

“…I’m sure whatever Chanyeol cooks is yummy,” Baekhyun replied slowly, prodding at the rice cautiously. “Can’t wait to try this.” He sounded anything but happy.

Kyungsoo took the initiative and took a few bites. The studio went silent, everyone standing still to hold their breath and wait for the host’s reaction. Even the camera people seemed to be on edge as they leaned in in anticipation.

“This is delicious!” Kyungsoo gasped, his large eyes widening in delight. The audience erupted into applause, amazed at Chanyeol’s “miracle” yet again. Kyungsoo happily ate his fried rice, complimenting the chef’s dish between bites.

“Baekhyun, why don’t you try it?” Kyungsoo asked, looking at his cohost questioningly. “It is really tasty, I promise.”

Baekhyun had been politely contributing to the conversation as Kyungsoo raved about Chanyeol’s cooking, but never once touched the food itself, instead setting the bowl down after it was handed to him. He jumped when Kyungsoo suddenly brought the attention back to him, and forced a smile. “I will,” Baekhyun reassured. “Eventually.”

“Try it now,” Chanyeol encouraged. Kyungsoo nodded eagerly, looking to the audience to signal them. Immediately, the audience started yelling words of motivation, trying to convince Baekhyun to try the food. Soon, they were all chanting, “Try! It! Now! Try! It! Now!”

Pressured by the audience and his cohost, Baekhyun finally (albeit extremely unsurely) picked up the bowl. Grimacing, the little actor took a bite of fried rice.

The studio went silent as he chewed, the tension even worse than Kyungsoo.

It was so quiet everyone could hear him swallow.

The cameraman moved closer, trying to get a closer look at the small man’s reaction.

The actor blinked and smiled lightly, opening his mouth to speak—

Then immediately turned and ran off the set, a hand covering his mouth, looking positively green. And that stupid cameraman had to follow the fleeing actor backstage, fully capturing the worried manager wrapping his arm around the short celebrity’s shoulders, guiding him away and trying to push the camera away.

It even caught Baekhyun throwing up into the nearest trash bin, spitting up the contents of his stomach as Junmyeon and Kris struggled to block the camera.

The studio was dead silent, the only sound the muffled chokes and coughs from behind the stage. All eyes were on Chanyeol.

The embarrassed chef looked over at his manager.

Kris looked furious.

He ed up.

 

---

LMAO so this is just a quick little something i wrote over summer and decided why not imma just post it today for my kid

Enjoy!

Most likely gonna be a two-shot so don't expect much L O L