Soojin startled as something splashed onto her chest.

 

"Sorry," her classmate Shuhua immediately said, bottle of what seemed to be grape juice still in her hand and eyes widened. "Yuqi, you made me spill my juice on Soojin!" she said, turning around to her friend who rushed to offer help.

 

"I'm really sorry, I was playing around with Shu. I must have pushed her too hard," Yuqi said as she tried to absorb the spill with tissues. It wasn't really efficient.

 

"It's okay, I'll just go wash it quickly," Soojin said, gently pushing Yuqi's hand away.

 

Except it wasn't okay at all. She had no idea if the stain would go, especially since she barely had ten minutes before her class started, and the only things she could use were tap water and soap from the girls bathroom.

 

She hurried there, putting her jacket in the sink and opening the water tap. After retrieving soap from the pump bottle, she started to scrub, trying to be as gentle as possible.

 

That jacket was her most precious belonging and she didn't want to ruin it.

 

It was the symbol of all the sacrifices she had to do as a teenager to be accepted in one of the most prestigious culinary school in South Korea, spending hours in her kitchen practicing, doing the same recipes over and over again until she would know them by heart.

 

Her parents had to make sacrifices too for her to attend that expensive school and she was determined to make their efforts worth it. They had believed in her and she would not let them down. She would one day be a successful pastry chief.

 

The stain didn't completely disappear but she was lacking time. It would have to do for now. She put the piece of clothing under the hand dryer.

 

Having no way to check the time, she hastily put her chief jacket after a moment and dashed to the kitchen where her lesson would take place. She sighed in relief when she opened the door and saw that her teacher hadn't arrived yet. She entered the big room with white walls and rows of inox work surfaces.

 

Some students found the decoration bland, but Soojin liked it because she was sure most professional kitchens looked that way. So, although she was only a second year student, every time she set foot in one the school's kitchens, it was almost like she was already a real chief.

 

"I'm really sorry, Soojin," Shuhua said as Soojin passed next to her, grabbing her arm to get her attention.

 

"It's fine," Soojin answered with a tight smile. What else could she say?

 

She reached her spot and after a moment her pastry teacher Mr. Do came in, making the background noise disappear. Soojin wanted to sink through the floor as he arched an eyebrow at her jacket which was still moist and full of creases. Thankfully he didn't comment on it and announced that they would not have a regular class and would instead be given a challenge, create a modern dish inspired by the baba rum.

 

"Don't worry too much, it won't be graded. I just think it's a good exercise, even if we generally start those in third year," he said. "You'll have two hours and can use whatever ingredients you want."

 

They all rushed to write down their ideas and get ingredients in the pantry. Soojin was confident, she had done that dessert a lot of times. She simply had to change a few details about the recipe.

 

Two hours flew by but Soojin knew how to manage her time so she wasn't caught short when Mr. Do announced that time was up. One by one, students were invited to walk to the main counter to present their work to everyone. When it was her turn, Soojin moved forwards as well.

 

Her hand slightly trembled as she placed her plate on the table. She still couldn't get used to having both her classmates and teachers, people that she respected and admired, judge her cooking.

 

Soojin had opted for multiples little round baba rums saturated in orange syrup instead of the traditional rum syrup, with whipped cream resting on top of them. Mr. Do eyed her creations, spinning the plate to see them from every angle.

 

"Nice presentation," he said.

 

He grabbed his spoon and let it sink into Soojin's pastry before putting it in his mouth. Soojin watched him eat silently for what seemed like hours before he decided to speak again.

 

"There's nothing to say about the technical part, all the elements are perfectly executed," he said and Soojin let out a sigh of relief. "However, it's too classic, Soojin, both in taste and in shape. You need to be more creative."

 

Soojin clenched her jaw, trying to control her emotions. What did he mean by being more creative? She had modified the original baba rum, which was exactly what he had asked them to do, so how could he be unsatisfied with her work?

 

She hid her disappointment and nodded politely before taking back the half-emptied plate and going back with the other students.

 

"All right," Mr. Do said after he was done trying all the dishes, "you all actually did pretty good for a first time." He beamed, proud. "Next challenge will be in the form of an assignment that you'll do in pairs, and no, don't start glancing around, I will make them."

 

There was a general grunt of disapproval which made him laugh, and he started making the teams.

 

Soojin bit her nails while waiting for her name to be called. She didn't really like groupworks, especially since her friend Minnie wasn't there.

 

"Seo Soojin with..." he made a pause where his eyes scanned the little group of students in front of him before he smiled. "Yeh Shuhua," he finally said.

 

Soojin looked around and said girl excitedly grinned at her.

 

"Now that all the pairs are done, the classic that I want you to revisit is the éclair. You have two weeks to create a recipe. Any questions?" His gaze went across the room and as no one raised a hand or said anything, he went on. "Then I'll see you all tomorrow for a regular class."

 

Soojin peeked at Shuhua and saw her heading out. She walked to Mr. Do who was putting his counter in order.

 

"Can I talk to you, sir?" she asked and he looked up.

 

"Of course. What is it?"

 

Soojin bit her lips. "I wondered if I could get another partner?"

 

His eyes immediately hardened. "Excuse me?"

 

"I know this is not usually allowed but I'm not sure Shuhua and I would be a good match."

 

He redirected his gaze on his counter, the frown on his face still apparent. "You won't always work with people you like, you know."

 

"I have nothing against her but-"

 

"Enough, I know what I'm doing, Soojin. You can learn a lot from Shuhua," he said firmly. "It's very rude of you to discuss my choice." He looked up at her for a second before his gaze went beyond her. "Especially when your partner can hear everything."

 

"What?" Soojin turned around only to see Shuhua standing a few steps away and Soojin immediately knew she had messed up tremendously because she had never seen such expression on the other's face.

 

"Now go, I believe you two have a class that is about to start."

 

Soojin looked back at her teacher and bowed.

 

When she turned around once again, Shuhua was gone.

 

__

 

"Are you okay?" Minnie asked. "You ain't eating anything."

 

Soojin kept teasing the food with her fork without bringing it to her lips. After disappointing one of her teachers and being thrown death glares by both Shuhua and Yuqi all morning, she had no appetite, even though she might be in one of the only schools where cafeteria food was actually edible.

 

She glanced a few tables away where the two girls thankfully seemed too busy eating to look daggers at her. "I'm fine," she said.

 

Minnie wasn't buying it. "What happened?"

 

Soojin hesited. "Mr. Do gave us a pair assignement and Shuhua heard me ask him for another partner," she still said.

 

"Why would you do that?"

 

"She's a bit clumsy... And teachers always say she lacks technique."

 

Minnie stayed silent for a moment. "That was a nasty move, Soojin, and I'm sure you know that," she said. "How would you feel if she had been the one doing that?"

 

Soojin looked down as she took in Minnie's words and realized that her friend was right. Asking for another teammate was degrading, it was like saying 'I don't want her, she's not good enough', and the worst part was that it was exactly what she had thought. And she had decided on her own that it would be better for them to part ways instead of trying to talk it out with Shuhua. It was selfish and unfair. Who was she even to judge the other when she was herself far from perfect?

 

"It's okay, just apologize," Minnie said.

 

Soojin looked at Shuhua once again and couldn't bear the guilt she felt. "I'll talk to her later."

 

"You know what I think? The sooner the better."

 

Minnie gave her an encouraging smile and Soojin reluctantly stood up, a tight feeling in her stomach.

 

Shuhua and Yuqi were laughing but their expressions changed as soon as they saw Soojin approaching them. Shuhua leaned back and crossed her arms, a defying look plastered on her face. No one said a word until Soojin finally found the courage to speak up.

 

"I just want you to know that I didn't have bad intentions," was the first thing she said.

 

"Of course you didn't." Shuhua snorted. She went on, voice cold. "You just think I'm too careless, right? Mr. Do said you're not creative enough yet you didn't see me rushing to ask for someone else."

 

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't realize how it would make you feel. I assumed you would be a burden and I had absolutely no right to think like that. And you're right, I'm too conventional so I'll probably be the one holding you back. I'm really sorry." She bit her lips. "Could we... start over?"

 

Soojin could see the anger in Shuhua's eyes as they delved into hers. It was overwhelming but she forced herself not to look away. She wanted Shuhua to explore her eyes freely and see the sincerity in them. Shuhua stayed silent for a while and Soojin started to believe she wouldn't be forgiven so soon. Yet, as she was about to say something else, Shuhua answered.

 

"Okay," she simply said, her features immediately relaxing as she uncrossed her arms. "Let's meet after our last class, then?"

 

Soojin was quick to nod.

 

__

 

During their brainstorming, Soojin was surprised to see that Shuhua and her could work really well together. Undeniably, they were very different and Shuhua was indeed carefree. But she was also full of ideas and compensated for Soojin's lack of creativity. She didn't hesitate to suggest something even if it wasn't traditionally supposed to be done or used that way.

 

Soojin was impressed because she was sure those ideas would never cross her mind even if she spent days racking her brain. For her part, she brought suggestions about the technical aspect, like what was doable or not and how they should execute everything for the image Shuhua had in her mind to become true. They reached an agreement and were now back in one of the student's kitchen for the first tryouts.

 

Shuhua whistled. "I would definitely revise more if I made that kind of notes," she said, eyes glued on the few pieces of paper that Soojin had brought with her. They were filled with neat handwriting and detailed drawings of their dish in each stage of its production. "It's amazing."

 

"I kinda messed up, though." Soojin winced as she looked at the flaws she was the only one to see.

 

"What? You could literally sell them, Jinjin," Shuhua said, using the nickname she had made up for the other.

 

"Thanks," Soojin answered quietly.

 

She thought of something and mentally looked for the best way to express it. "I can share my class notes with you if you want," she said. "I mean, you said it could help you revise."

 

"Are you sure?"

 

"Yeah, my friend steal them from me all the time anyways." She shrugged, looking away. "I just need to take pictures and send them as PDF documents."

 

"Then I should take the chance. Thank you," Shuhua said, beaming. "Can you imagine? Maybe I won't at technique anymore." She placed a hand in front of in mock-shock, eyes playful, but Soojin could only look down, still ashamed of what she had done. "It's okay, Jinjin, you've already apologized, so we can laugh about it. You're technical and I'm creative, we complement each other. It's going to be a piece of cake for us. No pun intended."

 

Shuhua winked and that time Soojin coudn't help giggling at the other's antics.

 

"So, Miss Creativity, are you ready to try our recipe?"

 

Shuhua nodded eagerly and they quickly set up the kitchen counter with everything they needed. They were working quietly, surrounded by the sound of their utensils, when Shuhua spoke again.

 

"Why cooking?"

 

Soojin looked up. "Mm?"

 

"Why did you choose to become a cook?" Shuhua clarified, electric mixer in her hand as she prepared the pastry cream.

 

"Oh, it's stupid, really."

 

"I'm sure it's not."

 

Soojin looked down again to monitor her chocolate glaze, gently stirring it to dissolve lumps. "Do you know the movie Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ?"

 

"No, what is it?"

 

"It's about a company's owner, Willy Wonka, who opens its factory again after years and hides five Golden Tickets in random chocolate bars. Those who find them are invited to visit the factory and, long story short, the hero is offered to become Wonka's heir and come work with him.

 

"I was obsessed with that movie, I probably saw it a hundred times. I asked my parents if golden tickets existed and they said yes because they didn't want to break their child's fantasy." Soojin smiled as she recalled her childhood memories.

 

"I would spend all my pocket money buying chocolate bars and one day my mom said we should use them to make a chocolate cake. Little by little I started to use other ingredients and gained interest in cooking salty food too. I still prefer baking though."

 

Soojin stopped as she realized that she had overshared. Shuhua probably thought she was ridiculous. But as she looked aside, she only met a soft smile.

 

"It's sweet," Shuhua said and the look she gave her was so gentle that it flustered Soojin.

 

"What about you?" she quickly asked in an attempt to distract herself from the weird feeling that embraced her.

 

"It won't be so cool," Shuhua said, chuckling. "My parents are both cooks so I grew up in that universe. I love it though, they never put any kind of pressure on me. They would totally support me if I wanted to do something else. But my heart chose cooking."

 

Shuhua smiled once again and Soojin was about to say something but the timer's alarm rang and her words were forever lost as they got back into the flow of work.

 

__

 

Soojin looked at the little pastry box sitting on her desk.

 

Shuhua had randomly showed up and gave it to her as Soojin was going back to her campus room, saying that she had made too many desserts for a family gathering so she sould as well share with friends. It sounded unlikely, but Shuhua had seemed nervous so Soojin had simply thanked her. Who would turn down free desserts anyways?

 

Opening it, she saw a few small pastries resting there. They were simple chocolate spheres with a piece of edible gold leaf on top of them which brought an elegant touch. They looked so beautiful that it would almost be a waste to eat them.

 

Yet, Soojin couldn't resist raising one to her lips, both because it looked delicious and because she was curious to taste something made by Shuhua. She took a mouthful and her chewing slowed down as she recognized the flavors one by one. Along with the sweetness of the chocolate came a slightly acid blueberry compote and nuts that crunched under her teeth, and the mix made her taste buds melt.

 

Her eyes widened. Had Shuhua done it on purpose?

 

She chuckled. So that was what Mr. Do had meant by being creative. She needed to think outside the box and explore with new flavors associations. She needed to share a part of her story, a part of herself even, through her cooking.

 

She finally got it.

 

All thanks to Shuhua.

 

__

 

Soojin was biting her nails when she felt a pressure on her hand, pushing it away from her angry mouth. She looked aside to the woman standing next to her and her heartbeat seemed to slow down when Shuhua smiled at her, intertwining their arms and slightly tugging on hers.

 

"He's a fool if he doesn't like it," she said. "I'll write a protest letter. I'll even do a hunger strike!"

 

Soojin smiled. "Really? You would do that?"

 

"Of course I would!" she said with a wink.

 

Soojin couldn't believe Shuhua was so good to her after what she had done. She had forgiven her as if it was nothing and had even went all the way making pastries for her, probably trying to help her improve. And Soojin was almost sure she didn't deserve any of that.

 

"Thank you," she said.

 

She didn't specify what she was thanking the other for but she had a feeling Shuhua knew as she answered with a kind smile.

 

The previous pair came back, it was their turn. Shuhua gripped onto their plate and took off, Soojin following her with weak legs. Entering the kitchen, Shuhua greeted Mr. Do brightly, and Soojin wondered how she could do that. Her stomach was tied in knots, and the feeling only worsened as she walked further into the room.

 

"So, did you two manage to work together in the end?" Mr. Do asked, teasing evident in his tone and Soojin was glad he didn't seem to be mad at her anymore.

 

"Yes, sir," Shuhua answered straight away.

 

"Great. Then, let's start," he said, grabbing the pen resting on the table. "Please, tell me about your work."

 

"We used a regular choux dough that we filled with black sesame pastry cream and honey. The regular dark chocolate icing on the top is used to balance with the sweetness of the honey and we added white chocolate stripes that we combed to recreate the visual effect of a mille-feuille's icing."

 

Shuhua had been inspired by black sesame buns for the filling and Soojin had brought the idea of reversing mille-feuille's toppings' design just ealier as an afterthought. She was really proud of them, but her heart still skipped a beat as Shuhua was done presenting their dessert and Mr. Do took a hold of their éclair, ready to take a bite out of it. A hand her back in a comforting manner and she sent a grateful look to Shuhua who was once again helping her manage her stress.

 

When they looked back at their teacher, he was already chewing, taking his time to absorb the different flavors and textures. After a while, he put it back on the plate and remained quiet for a few more seconds before he finally spoke.

 

"See, I told you I knew what I was doing," he said.

 

__

 

Soojin was crammed in her small room with Minnie. They were too lazy to do anything special over the weekend and had ended up there, Minnie shamelessly sprawled on Soojin's bed, leaving the latter with no other option than the desk chair to sit.

 

A few weeks had passed after the end of her assignment with Shuhua, and Soojin had come to realize all the things that she liked about the other. It was strange, because some of those things were the exact reasons why she had once tried to escape their pairwork. But now, she liked how carefree Shuhua was (although she was trying to be more diligent), her spontaneity and her energy. Soojin didn't know why or when but it had all become important to her. She simply felt comfortable around Shuhua, in a way that was different from how she felt with friends. Shuhua was both a rush of adrenaline and a sense of peacefulness, a thrill that made her shiver and a fire that melted her down.

 

She didn't know if she should make a move. There was no way Shuhua felt the same or would be willing to give her a chance. She was almost sure anyone would describe her as boring.

 

The sound of the doorbell shrieked through the room, interrupting Soojin's thoughts. She lazily got up from her chair and opened the door but there was no one outside. When she attempted to step forward and take a look in the corridor, her foot bumped into something. Looking down, her eyes landed on a medium-sized cardboard box that read:

 

'For Jinjin.'

 

She crouched down to take the package and went back in, Minnie not wasting a second before letting her curiosity show up.

 

"What's that?" she asked.

 

"I don't know. It's from Shuhua."

 

Soojin took the pair of scissors resting on her desk and sat back. She carefully cut the tape that shut the box and opened it.

 

"Why is she giving you sweets?" Minnie asked as her eyes scanned the content of the box.

 

"I have no idea."

 

They started to unpack everything, putting the items on the bed. Then, in the middle of the box, they noticed a sticky note on the packaging of a chocolate bar.

 

'You should really try this one.'

 

Unable to resist chocolate, Soojin started to rip the packaging while her friend kept going through the box, and her movements halted when she removed the top part of the chocolate's wrap.

 

She was probably going crazy.

 

She carefully took it out, unable to believe her own eyes as it slowly unveiled itself.

 

A golden ticket.

 

She barely had time to admire it that it was already out of her grasp and Minnie read out loud:

 

'From Miss Yeh Shuhua! I shake you warmly by the hand. For now, I do invite you to go to the movies and be my date for one whole day, I, Yeh Shuhua will conduct you around the city myself, showing you everything there is to see. Here are your instructions. On the first of february, you must meet me at the school's main entrance at 10 A.M. Sharp. You are allowed to bring one member of your family to look after you (but I would prefer you not to). Until then, Yeh Shuhua.'

 

Minnie cracked up and Soojin used the occasion to snatch it back, startling her friend.

 

"What? Don't you think it's too much?" she asked.

 

Soojin's eyes lingered on the ticket, a huge smile on her face. "It's not," she said.

 

It definitely wasn't.