Chapter 185: The Return to Chaos
Jiyeon could already feel the exhaustion creeping in as she and Yura stepped out of the car, back at the manor. The entire drive had been filled with light bickering about Yura's complete lack of culinary prowess and Jiyeon's unsolicited critiques, but the comfortable weight of the conversation was now replaced with the dread of having to face the disarray that awaited them inside.
The door creaked open, and Kang's voice boomed from somewhere within the house. "If you don't get your asses in here and save me from this hell, I'm quitting. I swear to all that's holy, I will."
Jiyeon let out a sigh, tossing her keys onto the nearby table as she glanced at Yura. "Can't we just… go back to the restaurant? Fake an emergency?"
Yura smirked, shrugging out of her coat with all the grace of someone who'd mastered the art of ignoring disasters. "What, and miss Kang's impending meltdown? Not a chance. Besides, this is going to be fun."
"Your definition of fun is severely warped," Jiyeon muttered, rolling her eyes.
As they rounded the corner into the living room, they were greeted by an unusual sight. Kang was standing in the middle of what looked like a battlefield. Every cushion from the couches had been strewn across the floor, empty wine bottles decorated various surfaces, and a strange smell wafted through the air—one that Jiyeon was sure did not belong to any food she had ever cooked.
"What… in the world?" Jiyeon blinked, trying to process the sheer chaos before her.
Kang threw his hands up in the air, exasperated. "Do you see this? Do you see what I've had to deal with? This isn't a house anymore. It's a post-apocalyptic war zone, and I'm the lone survivor."
Yura bit her lip to stifle a laugh, her eyes glinting with amusement as she looked over the carnage. "Kang, I'm not saying this is your fault, but I'm definitely implying it."
"Oh, bite me," Kang snapped, glaring at her. "This isn't my fault! You two left me here with—" He paused, clearly searching for the right words. "With this."
Jiyeon's eyebrows shot up. "With what exactly? You're making it sound like a wild animal got loose in the house."
Kang gave her a look that was equal parts incredulous and defeated. "You're not far off. Your wonderful sous-chef decided that 'cleaning up' meant rearranging everything in the most chaotic way possible, and don't even get me started on the attempts to cook in your absence."
Jiyeon pinched the bridge of her nose. "Please tell me nothing was set on fire."
"No fire," Kang said, holding his hands up in a gesture of defense. "But we're not ruling out food poisoning just yet. I wouldn't touch anything in the kitchen if I were you."
Yura chuckled, leaning against the doorway as she watched Jiyeon slowly unravel. "Sounds like we missed quite the party."
"Oh, shut it," Jiyeon groaned. "Why do I feel like every time I leave this house, something goes horribly wrong?"
Kang gave her a flat look. "Because it does."
Yura walked over, plucking a half-full bottle of wine from the table and swirling it around. "I think the real problem here is that everyone's too sober. Maybe if we all just took a drink…"
Kang glared at her, his voice laced with sarcasm. "Oh, yes, because getting drunk will surely solve the mystery of who tried to bake lasagna without pasta."
Jiyeon's eyes widened in horror. "What?!"
"Don't ask," Kang muttered darkly. "I threw it out before it became a sentient being. I didn't sign up for an alien invasion."
Yura shrugged, clearly enjoying herself at this point. "It's all part of the experience, right? A little chaos keeps life interesting."
Jiyeon turned to Yura, giving her a withering look. "You're not helping."
"I'm not trying to help," Yura replied, her smile as smug as ever. "I'm just here for the entertainment."
Jiyeon rubbed her temples, trying to fight back the wave of frustration rising within her. "Okay, new plan: Yura, you're in charge of keeping the alcohol out of everyone's hands for the rest of the night. Kang, you're coming with me to the kitchen. We need to assess the damage."
Kang groaned but followed her obediently as they marched toward the kitchen. The second they stepped in, Jiyeon froze. The countertop was covered in a thick layer of flour, like a snowstorm had hit the room. Bowls were overturned, utensils were scattered, and a mysterious pot was bubbling ominously on the stove.
"What… in the name of all things culinary… happened in here?" Jiyeon's voice was barely above a whisper, but the disbelief was palpable.
Kang gave her a look that screamed I told you so. "This is what happens when you leave amateurs unsupervised."
Jiyeon slowly walked over to the bubbling pot, peeking inside. The contents were… unidentifiable. Some sort of soup? A stew? Possibly a potion from a low-budget horror film?
"What… is this?" Jiyeon asked, leaning closer to inspect the concoction.
"I think it was supposed to be soup," Kang said, crossing his arms. "But then things got out of hand. Like, really out of hand."
Jiyeon shot him a look. "How could soup possibly get out of hand?"
Kang raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe it was the decision to add entire cloves of garlic—unpeeled. Or the fact that someone thought sardines would 'spice things up.'"
Jiyeon gagged. "Sardines?! In soup?!"
"I wish I were kidding," Kang replied grimly. "But this… this is what we're dealing with now."
Jiyeon turned off the stove, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Alright. Here's the deal. We're throwing everything out, cleaning this place from top to bottom, and then—"
"Drinks?" Yura piped up from the doorway, holding up another bottle of wine.
Jiyeon shot her a death glare. "No drinks until this kitchen is spotless."
Yura feigned a pout, though there was a glint of amusement in her eyes. "Fine, fine. But you're no fun when you're in chef mode, Jiyeon."
Kang, already armed with a rag and a bucket, sighed dramatically. "You think she's bad now? Just wait until we get halfway through this cleanup. I'm fully prepared to be screamed at for breathing too loudly."
Jiyeon threw him an exasperated look. "I don't scream at you."
Kang raised an eyebrow. "Really? Want to take a poll? We can ask everyone who's ever worked under you if they've been emotionally scarred by your 'gentle encouragement.'"
Jiyeon rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress the smile tugging at her lips. "Fine. Maybe I'm a little intense. But I'm not the one who destroyed the kitchen."
"Yet," Yura chimed in, grinning.
Jiyeon pointed at her. "Don't you start. I still remember the last time you tried to 'help' in here. I had to replace two pans and a blender."
Yura held her hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. No need to dredge up past failures."
Jiyeon sighed, turning back to the mess in front of her. "Alright, let's just get this over with. The faster we clean, the faster we can all pretend none of this ever happened."
As they began scrubbing down the kitchen, the banter continued, punctuated by Yura's teasing and Kang's grumbling. Despite the mess, there was an odd sense of normalcy in the chaos—a reminder that, no matter how many disasters unfolded in their lives, they'd somehow always end up back here, cleaning up together.
And, as Jiyeon glanced at Yura, who was still holding the bottle of wine like a lifeline, she couldn't help but smile. Because, as much as she hated to admit it, there was something comforting about this kind of madness.
"Alright, once we're done, then you can break out the wine," Jiyeon finally conceded, tossing a rag over her shoulder.
Yura's grin widened. "Now that's the spirit. You know, we make a pretty good team."
Kang snorted. "If by 'team,' you mean Jiyeon does all the work and you provide sarcastic commentary, then yeah, sure."
Jiyeon chuckled, glancing between them. "Hey, at least we're all in this together."
Yura raised the bottle in mock toast. "To surviving another kitchen catastrophe. May we live to tell the tale."
"And may I live to see a kitchen that doesn't make me want to cry," Kang muttered, scrubbing furiously at the countertop.
Jiyeon just laughed, shaking her head. "One disaster at a time, Kang. One disaster at a time."
As the kitchen began to resemble something more functional and less post-apocalyptic, Jiyeon wiped her brow, finally feeling some semblance of satisfaction. Kang had managed to scrub away most of the flour-covered disaster zone, and Yura, despite her lack of effort, had somehow still made the cleanup mildly entertaining.
"I swear, if I ever leave this house again, I'm locking every single one of you in a room with no access to food," Jiyeon muttered, leaning against the counter, her eyes fixed on the spotless surfaces.
Kang let out a groan, dropping into a chair. "If you do that, I'll gladly accept the punishment. Anything is better than being left alone with these culinary hooligans."
Yura grinned, popping the cork on the wine bottle she'd been clutching. "Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad. You should embrace the chaos, Kang. Life's more fun that way."
"Fun?" Kang snorted, his eyes narrowing at Yura. "Your idea of fun is my nightmare. Next time, you can be the one trying to save this disaster zone."
Yura raised her glass. "Next time, I'll leave it all to you. I'll stick to the drinking part."
Jiyeon shook her head, a smile playing on her lips.