But The Future Must Be Met

I Refuse To Be Cinderella, Who Indulges In Ill-fitting Footwear.

"Hey, you're here."

I smile. "Hi, Joshua."

He takes a swig from his bottle. Shirt nearly soaked through with sweat. "What are we eating?"

"Dumplings."

"You've been to the mart?"

I'm confused. "Uh... no?"

He stares at me for a moment, then looks at the container I have, with dumplings dusted in flour to stop them from sticking. "You made dumplings?"

I freeze. "Was that... bad?"

"No! No, no." His eyes widen. "When did you make so many?"

"This morning."

"Whoa."

"Did you eat mid-morning?"

"Yeah."

"Good."

"You didn't need to make that many dumplings. You could have just bought some."

I can't respond. There's nothing to say. If he doesn't understand my function as a member of staff by now, he never will.

"Anyway, we're done in there now, so..."

The tap on the back of his hand is light, but he recoils from me like I'm a viper. "Ow!"

"Don't you lift that steamer, or you'll ruin them."

"That hurt!"

"It couldn't possibly!"

Joshua cradles his hand to his chest, and I can't tell whether he's entirely serious or not. It doesn't take long for guilt to creep into my chest and make me feel bad. "Does it really hurt?"

"Yeah!"

"Do you need me to get the first aid kit?"

His eyes widen a little, and if you think that's not possible on somebody with huge puppy-dog eyes like Joshua, you're wrong. "No... it'll be okay."

I pause. "Do you want me to kiss your boo-boo better?"

He stops, too, thinks about it, then holds his hand out with a shit-eating grin. "You wouldn't dare."

I lean in and peck his hand quickly. "Don't dare me to do thing- oh shit. Lipstick. Here, wash it off before Seungcheol comes out here and beats me."

"He wouldn't do that," he reassures me as I drag him over to the sink.

I'm not so sure, buddy.

"Make sure you guys don't start dance practice immediately after eating, either," I mutter as I rub the lipstick off his hand. "You'll all get sick."

"We know how to eat. We're grown men, you know."

Strongly disagree, but okay. "Sure, sure, but I have it on good authority that you also don't know when to take a break. I know I'm just a cook, but I am well-versed in what the human body tends to do when it's physically stressed, so just take some time."

"Okay, aunty," he chuckles.

"There. All clean and dried and nobody can claim I have molested you. Ha-ha. One-nil for Loxley."

Joshua grins, and for a moment, it feels like we may have a snippet of camaraderie.

"I'm starving."

"Sorry, Minghao." I point to my phone, precariously balanced on the edge of the countertop. "When the timer goes off, you can eat. If you're already that hungry, you can grab a bowl and take some kimchi."