Part II

Jonghyun wants to meet you. Breakfast is to be ready by 9am, he's giving you an extra hour.

- Minho

Key looked down at his phone, reading the text he recieved just a moment ago from his clients assistant. It was 6am right now and he had an hour to get ready to leave. The younger was currently in bed, hair a mess and his eyes crusted. Key sighed in relief, he was incredibly anxious last night hoping everything went well with his clients dinner, it seems as though he got some sort of reaction since his presence was being requested.

Quickly getting out of bed to get ready, Key took a quick shower and made himself look presentable. He needed to make a good impression, he was a well known chef after all. Looking in the mirror, he checked himself out.

He wore black jeans that hugged his body just right, a white loose shirt and a thin grey sweater to top it all off. He looked simple but perfectly dressed to go officially meet his new client.After examining his outift, he packed his black book bag, fixed his raven coloured hair and stepped out of the house; driving to his clients house to start his day.

Once he arrived, Key got out of the car only to be met by Minho, who was standing by the entrance of the house, waiting for the chef to arrive.

"Good morning, Key! Glad you made it here safe!" Minho announced, as he walked towards the younger.

"Hey Minho, hows your morning?" Key asked, smiling towards the assistant.

"It's going really well so far. It's going to be a long day for you though." Minho trailed off.

"Yeah well, making breakfast, lunch and dinner takes a lot of time out of the day. I'm sure it'll go by super fast though." Key said, reassuring himself along the way.

."I hope you're right..." Minho said as they walked into the villa and towards the kitchen. The same atmosphere of calmness and comfort came back to Key, making his senses relax. The younger needed to find out what kind of aroma the CEO used to make his villa smell this surreal.

"I'll go get Jonghyun. You can start setting up." Minho announced, walking out of the kitchen to go upstairs.

Key nodded and started removing items from the fridge; eggs, fruits, milk, butter, everything he needed to make a hearty breakfast for Jonghyun, Minho, and of course the cleaning lady who was scheduled to clean that morning. He decided to make some pancakes, along with fruits that were cut in the most artistic shapes. Key wasnt sure what kind of eggs his client preferred so he was going to make three different types, scrambled, sunny side up and eggs benedict. It seemed like a lot of food, but his job required him to feed a minimum of 3-5 people at least.

As he put the apron on, he heard some footsteps nearing towards him.

"Key, meet Kim Jonghyun." Minho announced.

The chef automatically looked up, his eyes landing on Minho then moving to the man standing next to him. He was a bit shorter but his build made up for his height, he wore black slacks and a black silk button down shirt that had the first few buttons open, showing off a bit of his muscular chest and a beauty mark in the middle. Jonghyun had dark brown hair that was parted at the side, making him look professional and extremely handsome. Almost god-like.

For the first time ever, Key's heart skipped a beat.

"Nice to meet you....." Jonghyun said, trailing off unsure of what to call the chef, Key or Kibum?

"Kibum. Call me Kibum. Nice to meet you as well." Key almost stuttered before catching himself, trying to remain professional and unaffected by his clients appearance.

Something flashed in Jonghyuns eyes as he wore almost a sad smile, confusing the chef a bit. "I hope you've been finding everything up to your standards, Kibum."

Key smiled shyly at his client, "Yes, everythings great. Thank you very much. Was dinner okay last night?"

"That's what I wanted to speak to you about, Kibum." Jonghyun said, as he slowly made his way over to the island, standing on the other side of the chef.

Key gulped, unsure of what to expect. Either he hated dinner or he loved it. Which one was it going to be?

"Dinner was...up to par. I need you to really prove yourself."

Key looked at his client confused, his eyes furrowing. So he didnt like his food, Key concluded. Sadness and disappointment washed over him. "Y-yes, sir. I'll do better."

"Fancy food isnt going to impress me. I need you to be a bit more creative. Think outside the box." Jonghyun said, his eyes wandering a bit too long on Key's figure.

"Is there anything specific you would like to request?" Key asked, slightly annoyed, his professional voice coming back and his confidence slowly building back up. He needed to stand up for himself, not cower away. He was just as important as this guy that called himself a CEO, Key was the private chef to only the exclusive celebrities and tycoons. This guy was just another one of those, so called billionaires that only cared about themselves. 

"Not really." Jonghyun smirked, "I'll be watching you today, so do your best to impress me." 

If Key could scoff right now, he would, however, he didnt need a bad referral. Either he was going to impress this guy or he was going to quit. He wasnt going to let this guy push him around, and he could tell that his time here was going to be filled with that.

"Yes, sir." Key looked into Jonghyuns eyes, daring the CEO to piss him off more than he already has.

Jonghyun smirked and walked away, leaving Minho and Key alone in the kitchen.

"I didnt realize he was such a ." Key said, letting out a breath he didnt know he was holding.

"He's actually not usually really like this...maybe you just trigger something in him." Minho smiled.

"Great. Love that I trigger '' tendencies from my boss." Key rolled his eyes, turning around to make breakfast, this time scratching everything he had in mind to cook that morning. If Jonghyun wanted Key to 'think outside the box', the younger was going to do just that. No matter how confusing it sounded to him. He just needed to think.

"Don't stress about it too much, Key. Just relax and do your thing." Minho said, "He's a bit of a homebody, do with that, what you will."

Key looked up at Minho confused, a homebody? If that didnt confuse him more, he didnt know what did. He sighed, "Okay. I got this." After giving himself a small pep talk, he got to work.

Minho smiled at the chef and left the kitchen, giving Key all the space he needed to do his job and impress Jonghyun.

The chef started chopping vegetables, deciding to cook some Korean style egg roles, delicious soybean stew with pickled veggies and kimchi. Making sure to fry some zucchini pancakes on the side, he hoped it impressed Jonghyun enough, making sure the taste was unbelievably flavourful and mouthwatering. Nothing like Jonghyun would have ever tasted before, or at least he hoped.

After setting the plates on the dining table and telling Minho breakfast was ready, Key made sure to clean the kitchen right away. Scrubbing down the pots and pans, making sure everything went back to the way it was when he got there.

Sounds of footsteps came down the stairs leading to where the chef was. Key removed his apron, folded it and set it aside before Jonghyun and Minho entered the dining area connected to the kitchen. Two plates were set up with stainless steel covers, keeping the food warm while Key cleaned, the smell surrounding the villa was so incredibly inviting.

Key looked up towards the two men who were walking to the dining table, his boss, Jonghyun sitting at the head of the table, while Minho sat next to him at the side.

"Wow Key, it smells amazing!" Minho beamed at the chef, making him blush and smile gently.

Key really hoped it was to Jonghyun's standards. He stood at the other side of the table, across from Minho and next to Jonghyun. Waiting for them to take the first bite.

"You're not going to sit down with us?" His boss asked, glancing his way.

"W-what?" Key stuttered, not expecting to hear that.

Minho looked at Jonghyun, narrowing his eyes and giving him a questioning look. 

"Make yourself a plate, and have a seat with us." Jonghyun said, looking back at the steel cover on the table.

Key looked at Minho, giving him a questioning look but only getting a shrug in return. "O-okay." The chef turned back towards the kitchen and made himself a plate before sitting across from Minho.

"Please, enjoy." Key said, uncovering the food, the steam flowing out as Jonghyun and Minho observed the breakfast that was displayed in front of them.

Minho dove in right away, chowing down on everything that Key cooked, smiling in delight as he enjoyed the food. Key watched happily as the assistant ate the breakfast, then glanced at Jonghyun who was silently looking at the food. As if he was judging it. It made Key grow nervous, not able to pick up his chopsticks. The younger didnt feel hungry at the moment with all the anxiety running through him.

Finally, Jonghyun picked up his spoon and started trying the soybean soup. Slowly and delicately tasting it as he stayed silent. Next, he moved on to the eggroles, breaking one in half and slowly chewing it, then doing the same thing with all the other smaller dishes. 

The chef still had not picked up his utensils as he watched the older eat his breakfast, not speaking a word but silently eating.

Minho smiled as he finished his food, glancing up at both Jonghyun and Key who were being a bit too quiet. He definitely enjoyed everything that Key made, and he was sure Jonghyun did too, so he just watched in amusement as his boss and the chef slowly tiptoed around one another.

Finishing his meal, Jonghyun leaned back and wiped his lips with the white handkerchief laying on his leg; both Minho and Key observing him.

Glancing at the chef, Jonghyuns face remained expressionless. "You didnt eat."

Keys eyes widened in realization as he looked down at his full plate, "I...guess im not hungry." He smiled gently at Jonghyun who in return was staring into his eyes, making him look away from the deep gaze.

"Make sure you eat." Jonghyun said, standing up to leave.

"H-how was it?" Key said in a hurry, noticing Jonghyun hadnt mentioned anything about the food.

Jonghyun stilled in his steps, his back facing the chef as he spoke, "It was...better." The man then steps out of the kitchen, leaving a bewildered Key, a look of shock in his eyes.

Key sat there silently, his mind running in circles as to where he went wrong.

"Thats it?"

"Hm?" Minho glanced at the chef.

"Thats it? He's not going to say anything else? Just an — 'it was better'?!" Key hissed, anger slowly rising in his body.

"I think he really liked it!" Minho smiled at Key, trying to make him feel better despite Jonghyuns odd silent treatement.

Key scoffed at the assistants words, "Liked it? More like hated it. I have no idea what this man wants from me."

Minho chuckled, "Relax, Key. A true artist is always harsher to themselves then their worst critic. In my eyes, I think Jonghyun's your biggest fan."

The chef laughed out loud, his voice resonating through the room. Biggest fan?! Minho must be joking.

"Right, thanks for trying to make me feel better Minho." Key said, "I'm gonna get lunch ready and pack it for him. Hopefully he doesnt spit it out."

Minho sighed in defeat, "Okay, Key. Just keep doing what you're doing. The fact he hasnt gotten rid of you yet, should speak volumes."

Just why couldnt Minho be his boss instead of this Jonghyun guy? He was so sweet and kind, to top it all off, his good looks were an extra bonus. Not that Jonghyun wasnt hot, the man was gorgeous. Key wanted to hit himself for having thoughts like these.

Key smiled gently, "Thanks Minho." 

The assistant stood up, bowed his head and left the chef to his work. 

Key felt frustrated, on top of that, he wanted to rip his hair out. Jonghyun was giving him a hard time, first telling him to 'think outside the box' and then insinuating he didnt do a good enough job. The chefs pride was on the line. Usually his clients would devour their food and give him nothing but positive feedback, but this time, he was having a bit of a harder time. Jonghyun wasnt giving him any feedback at all, nothing good nor bad. He had no idea what the older was thinking.

Making sure to think thoroughly in what he was going to make for lunch and dinner, he wrote in a notebook he brought with him, just in case he needed to write a few notes. Either Jonghyun is going to like what he made for today or else he'll just quit and cook for another client, no one was going to break his confidence, not even the handsome devil Kim Jonghyun.

Key packed up the last of the bento boxes, making sure to cover each lid tightly and pack them against one another. Once he put them into two seperate bags for Jonghyun and Minho, he heard the two making their way towards him from the stairs leading to the second floor; the open concept of the house allowing the chef to observe his boss walking down the stairs. His build looking extra muscular today and his hair flowed a little differently too, making the younger almost unknowingly gawk at the CEO.

Key noticed his employer's good looks the day he laid eyes on him, but the younger wanted to ignore all of that. He was here to work not flirt and find a boyfriend. Sighing to himself, he watched as Minho walked up to him, greeting him for a second time that day, standing beside Jonghyun as they faced Key.

"Your lunch is ready and packed. Please let me know how it suits your taste." Key said professionally, holding out two bags.

"Thanks, Key!" Minho said happily, taking his lunch bag from Key's hand, leaving the other for Jonghyun to take.

Key smiled at the assistant, then drifted his eyes towards his boss, his hand gesturing for the older to take the lunch bag from him. Jonghyun's eyes stayed perched on the chef, as if to study him before making a move to take his own lunch. Their hands slightly brushing, causing the chef to suddenly pull his hand back, an attempt to avoid any unessesarry touching that may cause his heart to stop. 

"E-enjoy...please let me know how you like it." Key stuttered, not realizing he said the same thing twice. His face turned a shy colour of pink, embarassed at his own reaction to the touch.

Jonghyun smiled, a smirk hidden behind his lips. "I will." 

Key couldnt help but look into the CEO's eyes, their gazes locked on to one another for a short moment until the older broke contact, smiling as he walked away. The younger gulped...how dare this guy act so condescendingly arrogant and proud? Did he think he had the chef wrapped around his finger? Key didnt think so, this time, Jonghyun better like his food. Or else, he can find another chef to entertain him. Key was here to work, not be pushed around by this .

He didnt even say 'thank you'.

Minho gave him an apologetic look, bowed and followed Jonghyun out the house to start their busy day. Thankfully, the chef only needed to stay around to cook dinner for the men and he was free. Taemin was coming over to his place tonight and he needed to rant to the younger. Luckily, Taemin was bringing extra wine.

Key huffed to himself and went back to clean the kitchen, once he was done, he noticed he had some extra time before needing to get dinner ready. So, he decided to clean around the villa. He felt a bit bad watching the ajumma clean the whole house on her own, plus, what else was he going to do? 

Walking towards the living room, Key saw it was already cleaned. Ajumma must be upstairs cleaning one of the rooms, the chef thought to himself. 

He climbed up the stairs to the second level, the whole house brightly lit by the light of the outside. Glass walls making the house look bigger than it already was. As Key got to the top of the stairs, he saw a door on his right and two on his left. Hearing sounds coming from the first room to the left, he walked over to the open door of an area that looked like the guest bedroom, seeing the ajumma folding down the king sized bed. 

Immediately hearing Key's footsteps, the ajumma looked up and smiled at the chef. "Hi there, Kibum. Can I get you anything?"

Key smiled at the older lady, her grey hair falling at the sides of her face as she flattened the sheets on the bed. "Actually I came over to help." He chuckled at her shocked face.

"Absolutely not, Kibum. You're already so tired from cooking all morning, just relax." The old lady gently said, motioning Key to go downstairs and rest.

"Please?" Key pleaded. 

The older lady was unable to resist his cuteness, she smiled and sighed. "Alright. You can clean Jonghyun's bedroom. Take some cleaning supplies from the closet in the hallway before you go."

Key nodded happily, "I'll make sure its squeeky clean!" 

The chef almost skipped out of the guest room, leaving behind a chuckling ajumma who shook her head at his stubborness. 

Jonghyuns bedroom matched the older man extremely well. It was an all grey concept, stone marble walls mixed in with an all glass window view, leading to the back of the house. A circular king bed was placed in the middle of the room, floor to ceiling bookshelf and stone sculptures decorated, along with candles covering the room. Key smiled, the older definitley had great taste, but this didnt mean Key liked him.

Key sighed and started cleaning by moving towards the bed. However, it seemed like Jonghyun made his bed already. Did he do that every morning? Shrugging, he moved on to dusting and wiping down all the surfaces. The room wasnt too dirty, maybe because the home was cleaned almost everyday, but still, men who were bachelor's rarely ever picked up after themselves, let alone dust their shelves. But, Jonghyun was slowly changing the chef's perspective on that after seeing how clean the older man was.

Key noticed that there wasnt any pictures of the CEO and his family which was odd but not surprising. A lot of the celebrities he worked for, removed any kind of photo that lead to their families, mostly because they had to deal with many stalkers and break ins. This made Key wonder just how famous Jonghyun was. Did Jonghyuns family have the same personality as him? He really hoped not. 

He walked towards a door that connected to the bathroom, the same concept running through. A dual marble sink for two people, a large white ceramic tub placed near the middle of the room, a large all glass shower in the corner, all glass walls covering the room with a tint of blur to ensure privacy from the outside, Key was stunned. Did Jonghyun ever get to enjoy the benefits of his home without being so busy all the time? This place looked absolutely untouched.

Key sprayed down the surfaces and cleaned the bathroom deligently, making sure he didnt miss a spot. After finishing his cleaning, he put away the cleaning supplies and went downstairs, seeing the ajumma turning on the mini robot vacumme.

"I'm done!" Key announced, smiling as he walked towards the older woman.

Looking up at Key, the ajumma wiped her hands and smiled back. "Thank you so much, my dear Kibum. You're not only beautiful, but you're hardworking and kind too."

The chef blushed at the compliment, "I can never match the beauty and strength that you have though." In return, the older lady laughed as she moved to take Key's hand in hers.

"You keep cooking, alright? Don't let Jonghyun bring you down, he's a sweet boy but sometimes he's blind to a few things. Just keep being the pretty and wonderful Kibum I know." She squeezed his hand in reassurance.

Key gently smiled, "Thank you." He really needed to hear that.

The next few hours until Key had to get dinner started, him and the ajumma talked and grew closer as the minutes passed by. Key grew to really love and appreciate the older woman, as well as Minho. He'd be devastated if he got fired after tonight's dinner. 

Once evening hit, Key had dinner all ready and plated on the dining table. The ajumma left a while ago, so he was starting to feel lonely until the front door opened, revealing Minho and Jonghyun walking inside.

"Were back!" Minho announced as he entered the kitchen area, Jonghyun left to go upstairs to his room without sparing Key a glance, making the younger feel agitated already.

"Hey Minho." Key smiled at the assistant, happy that he didnt have to deal with the CEO alone.

"How was your day?" Minho asked.

"It went well, just cleaned up a bit and hung out with ajumma." The chef smiled at the memories he created with the older lady.

Minho's eyebrows raised, "Really...how was that?"

"It was nice! She's really sweet and hardworking, I think we actually became best friends." Key chuckled.

Minho had a shocked look on his face, which confused Key. "What's with that look?" The chef narrowed his eyes, still smiling and now confused.

"Umm—" Minho started but stopped as soon as Jonghyun walked into the kitchen/dining room area.

Jonghyun went to sit down in front of the food Key plated, the smell was incredibily inviting as always. Key watched as Minho followed his boss and sat next to him, eager to start eating after their long and busy day.

"Where's your plate?" Jonghyuns voice startled the chef.

Key's eyes widened, was this guy serious? 

"Actually, I have to go. I have other obligations to attend to tonight." Key said, his voice sounding stern as if to show Jonghyun that he couldnt be pushed around.

It grew silent as Key waited for Jonghyun to give him the approval to leave, as if he needed approval, he was just here to cook. Nothing more. But Key didnt want to seem disrespectful, especially if he was hoping to keep this job.

"Arent you leaving?" Jonghyun suddenly said, not looking at Key as he began to eat his meal. 

Key was completely taken aback at the comment. The younger didnt even know why he waited, he shouldve expected this type of attitude from Jonghyun. The chef rolled his eyes, "See you later, Minho." Only bidding farewell to the assistant and ignoring the older, if Jonghyun wanted to play this game, then he can play it better.

"Bye..." Minho waved at Key, watching the chef leave as he glanced at Jonghyun. The CEO was silently eating his meal with no expression on his face. Minho shook his head and smiled.

"What?! THE KIM JONGHYUN?!" Taemin shrieked, his eyes widened at the information Key gave him.

The chef rolled his eyes for the hundredth time that day, he swore, if he had a dollar for every time he did that, he'd be a billionaire. "So what? His personality is the worst." 

Taemin narrowed his eyes at the older, "Do you even know what he does? Who he is? Maybe you'll understand him a bit better."

"No I dont, and I dont want to know. I feel like i'm gonna get fired by tomorrow anyways. This guy hasnt said a word to me about my food, nothing. No feedback, no comments, nothing. I've never had such an infuriating client in my life." The chef frustratingly said.

"Well i'm telling you anyways. Kim Jonghyun is an international singer, he stopped singing for a while to manage his business. Now he owns ten music studios and has a record company, hes a frickin legend!" Taemin explained, too excited that his best friend was working for the world renowned Kim Jonghyun.

Key sighed, "Great. A legend and an . Love that."

"Come on, Key. You said that his assistant and his cleaning lady liked your cooking. Maybe he's just giving you some 'tough love'?" Taemin shrugged, trying to make his friend feel better.

"Whatever. Either way, I'll find out tomorrow morning if I still have the job. By the way....I think you're gonna love Minho. He's amazing...and your type." Key suggested, eyebrows going up and down as he smirked.

Taemin groaned, "Are you serious? I told you to find a man for yourself, not me. I'm not interested."

"You havent even seen the guy, he's hot as hell. And, he's your favourite celebrities assistant. What more do you want?" Key shrugged his shoulders. 

"Being the assistant to a world renowned artist isnt going to impress me.......is he tall?" Taemin added, almost mumbling the end part.

"Tall, muscular, handsome, kind, everything you could ever want."

"And why don't you have him?"

"H-huh?" Key didnt know why he stuttered.

Taemin smirked, "Why dont you just date him and I'll have Kim Jonghyun."

"He's too short for you." Key retorted, almost too fast for his own liking.

"And what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Is he too short for you?" Taemins eyebrows wiggled, smirking a bit.

"No—I-I mean.....s-shut up...." Key stuttered, his face turning red.

"Pffft, clearly he's just.your.type."

The chef rolled his eyes and sighed, "Doesnt matter. He's a client and that goes against my rules. Plus he's a ."

"I'd bet you'd love to see that ." Taemin smirked, squealing when Key jumped to hit him.

"I'm gonna kill you, I swear!" 

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Thank you so much for waiting & subscribing to my story!

I'm so glad ya'll like it so far — look forward to Part III coming out soon!!!

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