Ch.34Chapter 34. Delicious Dinner (1)

“Hah… Why didn’t you tell me about that?”

“Bro. I’m sorry.”

Jake sighed deeply as he turned away.

After interrogating Tom, he’d heard the whole story.

Apparently, the fight with the girl named Cuss was an incident their father had personally gone to the school to resolve.

Given that Cuss hadn’t received any punishment, it seemed Tom had done something pretty bad himself.

What was most infuriating was that Tom had conveniently cut out all his wrongdoings and only mentioned getting hit.

“Are you really going to be like that? Am I some kind of hired muscle?”

“I’m sorry… Really…”

I was wrong too, going after a freshman in blind rage.

Jake decided to stop scolding Tom.

He felt a bit sorry for his brother who always became so timid in front of him and their father.

He had stepped up wanting to boost his little brother’s confidence, but now he just felt bad for not being able to help.

“Next time, tell me the whole truth.”

“Okay. I’m really sorry.”

“Did Dad scold you?”

“Yeah…”

Jake let out another deep sigh.

No wonder Tom had seemed so down these past couple of days.

Since their busy father had to go all the way to school, Tom must have gotten thoroughly chewed out.

It didn’t seem right for him to pile on more scolding.

“Dad doesn’t scold you because he hates you. You know that, right?”

“I know…”

“Good. Now go on.”

“Okay…”

Tom shuffled out awkwardly and closed the door.

Left alone in the room, Jake’s expression immediately turned serious.

He was recalling what had happened hours ago when he’d gotten close to Cuss.

“What the hell was that…?”

He had put his knee between Cuss’s legs.

He had no ulterior motives.

He just wanted to apply pressure so she couldn’t escape.

But in that moment, a strange sensation that shouldn’t have been there transmitted to his knee.

A soft… squish.

“Shit. No way.”

Jake’s eyes began to twitch.

That couldn’t be right, could it?

Cuss was a girl.

From her clothes to her long hair to her appearance.

Anyone would see her as a pretty girl.

But between her legs…

“Wait a minute.”

Come to think of it, my knee was positioned quite low at that time.

Even if I had pressed it against a boy, I would have needed to position it quite high to make contact with that part.

But with Cuss, I made contact much lower than where it should be.

Jake spread his hands apart to estimate the length, and his mouth fell open.

“No freaking way.”

Is this even human-sized?

It’s not like it belongs to a horse, but how could it be this long?

And wasn’t it kind of soft and squishy?

If it were to become fully erect…

“Holy shit.”

It might push up her skirt.

Imagining that scene, Jake felt dizzy.

“That’s impossible. It can’t be.”

Jake, feeling confused, connected to the internet.

There’s no way someone with a female body could have a penis…

“Huh?”

But there was.

Apparently, if sex differentiation doesn’t occur properly during fetal development, there’s a low probability of being born with characteristics of both sexes.

So in Cuss’s case, does she have predominantly female hormones but was born with male genitalia?

Or is she just a pretty boy with long hair?

Could it be that she wears uncomfortable skirts to hide her large member…?

“This is driving me crazy…”

Regardless, the soft sensation he felt on his knee kept dominating Jake’s thoughts.

Looking so delicate on the outside, yet hiding something so formidable under her skirt…

Jake felt like he was going to lose his mind as he kept imagining what was under that skirt.

***

“Come on, Cuss. It’s okay, can you raise your arms? Arms up~”

Cuss backed away until she was blocked by the wall.

There was something strange about Juliane’s eyes.

How should she describe it?

Yes, it was similar to Jinsoo’s gaze when he tried to touch her chest.

But there was something like an inexplicable madness added to that gaze, making it terrifying to face.

“W-wait. Calm down.”

“Hmm? Why? There’s nothing strange about a mother and daughter taking a bath together, right?”

“…”

She wasn’t sure about that.

But given Juliane’s current state, it wouldn’t be strange if she was lying.

“Let’s undress. Okay?”

“Nngh…!”

The crisis was right in front of her.

Somehow, Juliane had blocked both sides with her arms and was pressing close.

Then she grabbed the waist of her dress and slowly started to pull it up.

Cuss had to escape from this situation.

“No!”

“Huh?”

“I’ll bathe alone!”

“But with mommy…”

“You’re not my mother! I don’t want to!”

Thud.

After barely managing to push Juliane away, Cuss quickly entered the bathroom and closed the door.

Juliane, who had been pushing forward with determination, was helplessly pushed back and landed on her bottom, staring blankly at the closed door.

“Ah…”

Juliane felt like she might tear up.

It felt like being told “I hate you, mom” by a daughter she didn’t even have.

Coming to her senses, Juliane sniffled and got up.

Well, it would be inconsiderate to bathe at Jinsoo’s house.

It’s more appropriate to bathe when she gets home.

Or is it? Since they’re pretending to be lovers, maybe it’s okay to bathe here?

“…”

Juliane stared at the door for a moment, listening to the sound of running water from the other side.

She considered barging in even now.

“She said no… hng.”

She shook her head and turned away.

It seemed it would take more time to be accepted by Cuss.

Even though their relationship was fake, they would be together for at least a few months.

If possible, Juliane wanted to get as close as possible to Cuss.

“Hmph. I’ll prepare dinner.”

Leaving the room without lingering, Juliane headed straight for the kitchen.

It would be too late to wait for Jinsoo to arrive, so she should feed Cuss.

At home, Taffer handled all the cooking, but Juliane wasn’t completely incapable of cooking.

If she had the ingredients, she could make simple pasta or soup.

First, she opened the refrigerator to check what ingredients were available.

“Hmm?”

She had expected somewhat exotic smells.

Surprisingly, the refrigerator was filled with familiar ingredients.

There were hardly any strange Oriental ingredients as she had expected.

There were also no leftovers or semi-prepared foods in the refrigerator.

It seemed she would have to cook from scratch.

“Next, the pantry.”

With a bit of anticipation, she opened the pantry.

The first thing she felt was a cold chill.

It seemed like the air conditioner was running at full blast.

“Eh?”

Looking up at the ceiling, Juliane was shocked.

Meat was hanging from strings attached to the ceiling.

And it wasn’t even wrapped in any container.

It was just exposed to the air.

So that’s where that slightly pungent smell was coming from.

It was definitely the smell of meat starting to spoil.

Thud.

Juliane immediately closed the pantry door.

She was quite shocked.

She had thought Jinsoo was a hygienic man, but…

Once again, she thought that Jinsoo was definitely not marriage material.

If it weren’t for cooperating to expose the scandal, she wouldn’t have had to pretend to date such a man.

“Alright. Let’s try making pasta.”

She was confident in making pasta.

With ready-made sauce in the refrigerator and pasta available, it was more assembly than actual cooking.

“Hehe. Jinsoo must like cooking.”

When she opened the cabinet, there were quite a lot of cooking utensils.

From among them, Juliane took out a small pot and a pan.

First, the pasta.

She poured the pasta into a pot filled with water from the sink.

Since it would shrink when cooked, she added a bit more.

This should be enough.

While the pasta was cooking, she prepared the sauce.

She chopped sausages and onions and tossed them into the pan.

The shapes were quite uneven, but she didn’t mind.

The sauce needed more seasoning.

She generously sprinkled pepper and salt over the sautéed sausages and onions.

After continuing to stir-fry until they seemed cooked, she would pour in the tomato sauce, but…

“Huh? Why is it sticking?”

The onions quickly burned and started sticking to the pan.

In a hurry, she immediately poured in the sauce.

Even though the sausages weren’t fully cooked yet.

As she was hastily stirring the sauce, another problem arose from the pot.

“Oh no!”

Foam was boiling over from the pot, causing water to overflow.

She quickly turned off the heat.

The induction stove and floor were soaked with pasta water, but that was okay.

She could clean it up before Jinsoo arrived.

“Hmm. It’s cooked well.”

At least the pasta was nicely al dente.

The sauce was also somewhat complete.

“Sniff, sniff.”

“Does it smell good?”

“Yes.”

“Dry your hair first.”

“Okay.”

Cuss had appeared beside her in pajamas.

Juliane sent Cuss back to the room and prepared to plate the dish.

She drained the pasta and added it to the sauce pan, then stirred it all together.

Following what she had seen online, she used tongs to twirl the pasta and place it on a plate.

“Wow… Wow. Even I have to admit this turned out well.”

Blinking repeatedly, Juliane took photos from various angles.

This couldn’t possibly taste bad.

Just then, Cuss came running from the room with her hair still a mess.

“It’s a bit early, but would you like dinner?”

“Yes!”

Cuss’s eyes sparkled as she rushed forward, and Juliane had to gently push her back.

Hehe. Now I can cook too.

She even worried that Cuss might get so used to her cooking that she wouldn’t want to eat Jinsoo’s food anymore.

If that happened, she’d have to nerf her cooking a bit for Jinsoo’s sake.

Juliane was already counting her chickens before they hatched.

“It’s tomato pasta.”

“Pasta! Are there meatballs?”

“Uh… no meatballs, but there are sausages.”

“Sausages!”

Drool trickled down Cuss’s mouth.

As soon as she received the fork, Cuss stabbed it into the plate with such force it seemed like she might break it, then twirled the pasta.

The motion seemed familiar.

“Ahhh…!”

With a face that looked delighted just to see the food, Cuss pushed the pasta into her mouth and then—

“Bleeeech…!”

“Wha?!”

Without even chewing, she spat everything back onto the plate.

Juliane felt like she might tear up again.

Come on, no matter how bad it was, did she have to spit it out?

“How bad could it be…?”

Trying hard not to show her disappointment, Juliane served herself a small portion.

She had used pre-made pasta, sauce, and sausages, so how could it taste bad?

With this thought, she elegantly took a bite and—

“Ugh!”

“See?”

She couldn’t help but spit it out as well.

It was way too salty.

Before she could even taste the tomato sauce, the pepper aroma and saltiness joined hands to dance and strike her brain.

“Hehe, it’s okay. I just need to adjust the seasoning.”

Smiling casually, Juliane took the pan to the sink and added a bit of water.

Then she stirred it with tongs, thinking the seasoning would…

“Uh…”

Be fixed.

The visual had become quite strange.

The sauce had become too watery and seemed to separate from the pasta.

By the time she brought it back to the table, the tomato and water had already separated into layers, with the sausages floating on top.

“It should be fine now. Here.”

“…”

As she served the pasta (or what used to be pasta) onto a plate, Cuss silently raised her head and glared at Juliane.

Is this what it means to curse someone with just a look?

It was as if she was saying, “You expect me to eat this?”

But despite that, Cuss picked up her fork again.

Juliane felt a tug at her heart.

Even after having a bad experience, she was willing to try again.

She hadn’t realized Cuss was so considerate of her.

‘I’m extremely hungry. I hope this is edible this time.’

Meanwhile, Cuss simply needed something to fill her stomach.

The food looked like it would make her vomit just by looking at it, but Juliane had said it would be okay.

As long as it tasted good, that’s all that mattered.

“Bleeeech…!”

Despite her determination, Cuss had to spit it out again after taking another bite.

This wasn’t right.

It really wasn’t.

The previous version might have been edible if she had held her nose, but this…

The taste was so repulsive that her digestive system simply refused to accept it.

She thought she might be able to eat it deliciously after starving for about a week.

“What did I do wrong to deserve this? This isn’t fit for human consumption!”

“C-Cuss…”

“Are you trying to torment me? Whatever it is, I’m sorry! Please forgive me now!”

“Hng…”

Cuss began to vent her frustration.

She looked like a wronged minister in a Korean historical drama being offered poison.

That pitiful expression was like a dagger that pierced Juliane’s heart.

But there was still another problem.

“Why… is there so much…?”

She was sure she had cooked for two people, but now that she looked at it, there was way too much pasta.

It seemed like enough for at least four people.

It looked like they’d have to throw it all away.

Just then, with the sound of a bell, the front door swung open.

At that sound, Juliane felt a chill run down her spine.

“I’m home. Have you been behaving, Cuss?”

“W-welcome back!”

Jinsoo’s friendly greeting.

Juliane greeted him with a trembling voice.

Jinsoo turned his gaze to the kitchen and froze.

The floor and induction stove were soaked with water.

And then there was the strange food waste mixture of water, tomato sauce, and bloated pasta.

Jinsoo barely managed to hold back a curse.

“You fu—”

Actually, he didn’t hold back.