Jamais Vu

Chapter 8

Sunhee woke up with a start.

Her heart was beating fast and her hands clammy. She clutched her abdomen. She could still feel the pain as if it was yesterday. She looked around her as she sat and wiped her tears. She was in her room, illuminated by the outdoor lamp that streamed from the small window. Years had passed, will the nightmare ever stop? She wonders.

It was not as frequent as before. Therapy sessions did help a bit. She didn't have to rely much on her medications as she did before. It only dulls the hurt but it didn't wipe it off completely. Work was her only refuge but the memories do creep up whenever it wanted to. Make peace, advised the good doctor. It was not that easy. She had no control.

She felt helpless.

Sunhee looked at the alarm clock next to her. It was 2 a.m. She might as well start working as she knew sleeping would be impossible at that point. She reached out to the hairband next to her pillow and started to fold her blanket and the sleeping futon. She went out of her room and switched on the light at the baking area. The 2 types of levain inside the big buckets that she made from the starter last night already grew but it needed an hour more to get to the point that she needed for today's bake. Knowing that, she cleaned herself up and made a cup of coffee. She took a bread from the basket and heated it up in the microwave. She then took a block of butter and fruit preserves from the fridge to pair up with the bread. She needs sustenance before she gets to work.

She looked through the inventory in the store room. The supplier is going to make a delivery that day as scheduled. Strawberry is in season so she was able to make more preserves for the bakery. That would go really well with freshly baked croissant. She could almost imagine the warm buttery bread combined with the sweet and tangy taste of the preserves in her mouth. That would sell really well.

Her eyes went to the business card that she placed on the baking table just before she went to bed. It was beaming to her like a beacon. Hoseok's offer was playing in her head like a piece of carrot dangling in front of a donkey. The offer was too good to be true and it just fell onto her lap. The business would definitely benefit from the funding. Benefactor? Partner? Neither? She only had to choose which.

Three days had passed and she had better decide now.

She had a small meeting with the other two of the staff - Cha Haewon, Sunhee's right-hand woman as she was in charge with most of the orders and manning the cashier counter skillfully while she makes the meanest coffee Sunhee have ever tasted; and Noh Sehun, the kitchen help, also a baker in training. They were both ecstatic with the offer and agreed that the plan could be executed much faster than if they obtain the bank loan. Sunhee haven't told them the identity of the person who gave the offer. She was going to tell that when the deal is sealed.

She looked at the clock. It was still too early to call anyone up. She bit the bread and sent a message to Hoseok. She hoped he's the type of person who would sleep with his phone on silent. She hated bothering anyone at that hour. She also knew she's the type of person who forgets a lot when she was baking. Sending him a message at that moment was important.

Her phone suddenly rang and she stood right up. He's not asleep?

"Hi, Sunhee sunbae," Hoseok greeted.

Sunhee quickly chewed and swallowed the bread before answering him back. "Hi. I'm not your sunbae anymore, Hoseok," she reminded.

"Habit dies hard," he commented.

"Did my message wake you up?" Sunhee asked worriedly.

"Haven't been to bed yet. Just got home," he replied.

"That's late."

"My schedule is crazy right now. You and I definitely have to meet and work on this before I fly out in few days. I won't be around much after that."

"You're right," Sunhee agreed.  "We have to straighten up this deal before I get my lawyer to draw up the agreement for you. I'm at the bakery all the time. You can just drop by whenever you are free." She bet that his plan was already packed and he had to squeeze in another time for her.

"My whole day is full," he answered after a while which was what Sunhee expected.

"We can just discuss it through the phone. Any time is fine," Sunhee suggested. She really meant it. She had orders for the week but that can be adjusted easily. Sehun would be the one handling the delivery. "Or I could just ask my lawyer to draw up the provisions and pass it straight to you?"

"And if I don't agree on it, a lot of time would be wasted with the agreement going back and forth from my side to your side. I don't think so."

"I agree," Sunhee stood and went to look at her desk calendar. Time was of an essence and they have to be quick.

"The other possible time will be at night. I would be done tomorrow at about 11 p.m."

"Tomorrow as in Friday?" Sunhee asked for confirmation. It was already Thursday.

"Sorry, my day got messed up. It's already a new day now. Thursday. I'm free at that time tonight, but you'd be asleep by then, right?"

"I could work around it." She could adjust her sleeping time and slot in some nap if needed. At that moment the deal matters more than that. 11.00 pm sounds fine. There's no delivery nor baking at that hour. Just waiting for Freddy Jr and Livvy Jr to grow.

"Fine, so I'll meet you up at 11.30 tonight at the bakery," Hoseok confirmed shortly.

"Okay. I'll see you then," Sunhee replied. "I have to start working," she continued as she looked at the levain in the buckets. "Good night, Hoseok. Or is it good morning?"

"It's good night for me. Going to hit the bed," he said stifling a yawn. "Good morning and happy working," Hoseok paused. "Partner."

"You too," Sunhee smiled as she ended the call. She then looked at the order list on the notice board. She was going to have a long day ahead but her heart felt lighter. The nightmare was forgotten for the time being. It was time to get herself moving.

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Author's note

Levain: Levain refers to a portion of a starter that has been recently fed and is ready to be used in a recipe. The portion of a starter used in bread is considered the levain while the portion that is kept is considered the starter.