café r u ready? was located in the outskirts of town. it wasn’t one bit fancy, sure, but jisoo has always made sure to visit at the very least twice every month. the girl lived at the heart of the city, so the location proved to be a hassle alone. however, there was one thing that made her promise to return:

it tasted like home.

the café was more home-looking than café looking, as it was supposedly a resthouse, though due to the owner’s availability, they turned it into what it currently is. it was different from all the others, and that’s what made it stand out. though the café would be so small if placed near incheon’s majestic ones, it was special to jisoo because it tasted just like home. the ambiance gave off the vibe of home. the food reminds jisoo of the cooking of her late mother, and albeit impossible, it tasted amazingly just like her mom’s food. jisoo can even vividly remember the first time she went inside the café.

➳➳➳➳➳

it was a cold winter afternoon. the bells rang in her ears like a twinkle the moment she opened the door. warmth enveloped her being as she sat on one of the tables at the corner of the café, beside the enormous window, giving her a full glimpse of what was happening outside the place. nothing much was really happening, but the view was at least stunning. the white of the snow made the surroundings glisten, although it was mostly rural houses, for most. they were mostly traditional houses and jisoo found it cute. it wasn’t the life she was used to in the heart of the city, but she can make it work out if one day she feels like moving. a staff then approached her in a friendly way, asking whatever she’d like. since she didn’t have a clue of what they served, she just asked for their best-seller.

the time the food was served, she was feeling an awful lot warmer. the presentation of the food was simply amazing, and jisoo was enthrilled to know how the food would taste. so hurriedly, she took the chopsticks and took a bite off her meal. her grip of the chopsticks loosened, mouth slightly agape, eyes brimmed with tears. she choked trying to contain herself and her tears.

how the hell can the food taste just like home?

➳➳➳➳➳

it would usually be like that, but today is a different occasion. jisoo burst in, tears welling in her eyes, demanding to meet the cook. despite the constant palpitations and the dizziness present she still managed to calm herself though obviously, the desert fox-looking girl was in paranoia. mijoo and sujeong, two of the café’s staff that jisoo has grown to know has jisoo firmly in their grasp, trying to calm the latter down. older soojung, café r u ready?’s manager has stormed out of her office to see one of their most loyal customer’s outrage. lucky for them, nobody was in the café at this time.

“jisoo-ya, what’s wrong?” soojung calmly asked, facing the said girl. myungeun and yein who were behind the registers were caught in shock, unable to move. jisoo was, after all, a regular customer. no one has ever seen the incheon-raised girl this vulnerable. “who’s the cook?!” jisoo asked rather impatiently. she has been dying to see the cook ever since, and she can no longer wait. “jisoo, do you mean our main chef? she is out for today. she’s the one who’s usually cooking your meals. today, we only have jiyeon.” mijoo answered while visibly struggling to hold jisoo any longer. the latter sighed. “what’s the name of your main cook, then? i’ll… i’ll find her some other time.”

“yoo jiae.”

➳➳➳➳➳

the next week, jisoo came in, calmer than her previous outrage. she was frowning for a somewhat hidden reason, though. sujeong greeted her politely, with a smile so bright, it can possibly outshine the sun. jisoo returns with a smile of her own, albeit reluctantly. sujeong notes the obvious distaste, before leading her to a table near the kitchen. “jiae unnie; are you gonna ask for her again?” sujeong asks, her bright smile progressed into a mischievous grin. jisoo runs a hand through her hair before proceeding to rub it in her own face. she nodded slightly, her ears turning red. sujeong’s grin grew impossibly wider. “i’ll call jiae unnie for you. anything for the loyal jisoo unnie,” sujeong teased with a wink. “aish, whatever.”

sujeong proceeded into the kitchen. jisoo sighed, why did i act like that last week? she lowered her head, resting her chin on the table. she didn’t mean to make a scandal; it was just that her late mother’s death anniversary was nearing and the food, oh, how nostalgic it was. tears once more brimmed her eyes, threatening to fall. but jisoo wasn’t one to show vulnerability and cry in public. she held it in, most especially when she saw yein gaze at her- jisoo looked away once their gazes met, but she didn’t fail to catch the sympathetic look yein gave her, most especially the pity evident in the younger girl’s eyes.

she instead fixed her eyes on a potted plant near the corner of the café, until she heard the doors to the kitchen open. she looked at who exited the kitchen, and the doors revealed who she believes is yoo jiae in her cooking outfit. never has jisoo seen someone so exquisite in the glory and pride of an overly plain and slightly worn-out kitchen outfit. the way her bangs covered the length of her forehead up to her brows, her red orange-hair falls flawlessly on her apron whose red tint is fading accentuates her never-aging visuals. the girl gazes at her before cracking a gorgeous smile. her smile was neither too narrow nor too wide, her teeth brightly shining and snow white in color, her nose scrunched slightly and her wide eyes hid behind small crescents. jisoo has never, ever been so smitten over someone at first glance.

the girl walks over to her table, pulls herself a chair and sits down. “hi, i’m yoo jiae. i heard you’ve been looking for me the past week.” jiae’s low, velvety voice rang through jisoo’s (big) ears. despite her voice being low for a girl, the latter found it cute nevertheless. her voice is cute. just like her face. holy . jisoo nods shyly, “right. i-i’m seo jisoo. a pleasure to finally meet you, yoo jiae-ssi.” jisoo said, extending her hands which jiae accepted wholeheartedly. jisoo has sworn she’s never held a hand so supple and velvety, she almost never wants to let go. that’ll be too awkward for her liking, though. so she just shook jiae’s hand carefully, as if extremely delicate.

“may i ask what reason it is that you go in and find me, jisoo-ssi?” jiae asked, and jisoo’s ears turned beet red. she never liked her own name ever before, but if jiae would call her that again and again, she might just like her name a lot. “ah, because you’re cooking is… how do i word this? astounding. it tastes just like my mom’s- a-and, i-i was just… you know w-wondering if h-how you cook?” jisoo stammered, and this time it wasn’t just her ears that turned beet red, her cheeks were now in a deep shade of crimson. jiae chuckles in delight at the sight infront of her. “oh my, i learned how to cook since young. they were recipes passed on to me by my parents. is there anything wrong, jisoo-ssi?” jiae asked, the smile never leaving her face. jisoo wonders if her cheeks doesn’t sting or how long she could keep smiling straight.

jisoo shakes her head furiously, “there’s nothing wrong. in fact, it pushed me to return here again and again. it just so happened that the anniversary of my mother’s passing neared, and i can’t help but feel nostalgic. i’m sorry, have you heard what i’ve done last week? i’m sorry for that.” she answered, her head lowered down in shame. jiae’s smile faltered into a small, shy one. “i’m sorry for you loss,” jiae started. “...i do not wish for anyone to feel bad by my cooking. i do not know as well how my cooking vaguely resembles your late mother’s own, but i have practiced this since i was little. i have never intended to recreate your mother’s cooking, and this is my own version.” jiae finished off, the small smile still present. jisoo impossibly lowered her head even more, blood rushing to her face at an absurd rate. “i-i’m sorry jiae-ssi… i didn’t mean to make you feel bad about it, i guess i was just… utterly curious? oh… if you’ll be available… uhm, do you… c-can you teach me? l-like… h-how to c-cook…” jisoo stammered, her head still lowered. “b-but that’s only if you’re up for it!” she exclaimed, which cracked jiae to laugh. why the hell is her laugh angelic? ah, i’ve never been enamored like this ever before.

“of course, jisoo-ssi. here’s my number so we can maybe work out a schedule? oh, mind you that i live way in the city. would that be fine with you?” jiae stated, grinning widely. jisoo lifted her head up almost too quickly that jiae was afraid the girl might go whiplash for a second. “it’s- it’s fine, really! i live far from here, too… and i have a car, so it would be convenient too… ah, then here’s my number, jiae-ssi?” jisoo said, reading the digits out loud while jiae types it on her phone. once done, jiae looks up, the smile that jisoo has grown to love in less than an hour changed into a somewhat flashy grin. “may i ask, what year were you born, jisoo-ssi?” jiae asked bashfully despite the flashy grin that showcases her faux confidence. “oh, 1994, jiae-ssi. why, though?” her face showed evident curiosity.

“then i’ll call you jisoo-ya. we can talk informally, right? i’m an unnie, by the way.” jiae said, her smile still as bright as ever. the confusion is jisoo’s face faded into pure shock, “you’re an unnie?!” she exclaimed, covering afterwards. jiae just giggled, “yes, jisoo-ya. i’m your jiae-unnie.” jisoo who seemed to calm down earlier blushed a mad red.

she was too busy hiding her face to notice the other’s face was just as red.

➳➳➳➳➳

jisoo fidgeted in front of the gate. she hesitated on ringing the doorbell, because while she expected jiae to live in a fabulous home, she did not expect jiae to live in an abandoned-looking yet aesthetically pleasing huge- mansion. jisoo feels so small even if she lives at a high-end apartment at the heart of incheon, and is well-off herself. she stares at her phone and the address jiae texted her. it was correct, but really, does she live in one enormous mansion?

no , sherlock.

“hey, jisoo!” a voice from inside the tall gates emerged, startling the out of jisoo. “oh, jiae unnie. hi,” jisoo greets, bowing a full ninety degrees. jiae laughs wholeheartedly, “you don’t have to bow! wait, i’ll open the gates so you can come in. relax now.” jiae said, and the slightly stiffened seo jisoo relaxed, standing straight. jisoo notes jiae’s casual wear, sporting just a plain white long-sleeved blouse and jeans. it might as well mirror jisoo’s look ever you change jiae’s long-sleeved blouse into a light gray tee. the latter opened the gate, letting the baffled jisoo in. “i didn’t know you live in a house this big,” jisoo blurted. jiae giggled, “it’s too big for my liking, though. it’ll soon just be a resthouse, because i may move into an apartment or go back to seoul.”

jisoo’s shoulders dropped. seoul was a good hour away from incheon and that was via the train. jiae seemed to notice the younger’s distaste upon hearing her statement, so she wrapped an arm around jisoo’s shoulders. “but i’m not moving out anytime soon. you don’t have to be disappointed that much.” jiae joked. jisoo looked too serious and she was actually too serious to notice jiae’s joke. it made the older giggle a whole lot more, while the incheon-raised girl arched a brow. “go back to seoul? so you mean you grew up there, or something?” jisoo asked once they reached the door. jiae faced jisoo, her face immediately turning serious. why is a serious jiae unnie so cute? even if jisoo found the older girl’s expression cute, she can’t help but grow nervous because she’s never seen jiae this serious. obviously.

“i was born in seoul and i grew up there, jisoo. a few tragic incidents led me to move here, at our supposed resthouse. it… i guess, turned into my home,” jiae stated with an audible sigh. shock was written over the desert fox-looking girl’s face and all she could do was mumble incoherent ‘sorry’s for bringing up the question and