Ch.7Chapter 7. Date

# Juliane Stadtfeld.

She’s a German woman from San Francisco Station.

According to rumors, her father was a three-term congressman and her mother still works as a professor at The Ohio State University.

This elite of elites, Juliane, inexplicably runs a flower shop in Los Angeles.

She must have been terrible at studying.

Still, seeing her run a fairly large shop on her own at such a young age, it was clear she had full financial support from her parents.

In short, she was the perfect target to pursue.

It might be a bit much for a man in his thirties who wasted ten whole years in prison, but…

Well, what can I do if she’s already falling for me?

But damn.

“Jinsoo?”

“Ah.”

Everything’s ruined.

All because of this damn girl.

I invited Juliane over for dinner tonight.

I even bought groceries and a bottle of wine, but after taking a nap, I completely forgot about it until now.

“You look beautiful today.”

“Thank you. But who is that…?”

“Ah. I’m sorry I haven’t mentioned her until now. She’s my daughter.”

Well, shit.

This is really screwed up.

What young woman would be interested in a man with a child?

Honestly, I couldn’t blame her if she just silently backed away right now.

“Is she… your biological daughter?”

“No. I recently took her in on impulse. I’m raising her now.”

“Oh! Is she an orphan?”

“Not anymore.”

“Ah… But you know, Jinsoo, normal fathers don’t usually twist their daughters’ arms.”

“That’s true.”

I immediately released her arm.

Cuss glared at me with a vicious expression while rubbing her shoulder.

Damn it, I should be the one who’s annoyed, you crazy girl.

Are you going to take responsibility if I can’t win this woman over because of you?

“Haha. Children grow up through discipline, don’t they?”

“Um… Is that how they teach in the East?”

“Yes. In the East, they even make special sticks just for hitting children.”

“Oh… I see…”

Her face was already turning pale, clearly shocked by Korea’s proud culture of corporal punishment.

This seems to be going downhill already.

Where should I find my next woman?

“Yes, well, that’s how it is.”

“So?”

“So what?”

“No, I mean, you said you’d treat me to dinner tonight. I was wondering why you’re just standing there.”

“…”

Juliane flashed a smile.

I stood there frozen, unable to say anything for about three seconds.

Ah, now I get it.

She might not be interested in me, but she still wants the free meal.

What a freeloader.

It was so absurd I couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’ll prepare it right away. Would you like to wait in the living room?”

“I’ll do that.”

“You, go to your room.”

“Aren’t we eating together…?”

“She already ate something earlier.”

“I’m hungry. I want to eat too.”

“…”

Oh, come on.

You’re not helping.

Would it kill you to just go to your room instead of getting in the way?

“You’ll throw up again if you eat so soon after having your stomach pumped.”

“St-stomach pumped? Why…?”

“A little bit is fine, she said.”

“You never eat just a little bit, you little sh—brat.”

Whew. I almost said something terrible in front of Juliane.

“I can control it! I will control it!”

“How can I trust you?”

“Jinsoo, you’re not trying to starve the child, are you?”

Did you see what this girl did this morning?

Did you clean up the bright blue vomit that reeked of bleach?

So I’m the bad guy here? Right?

“Sigh… Wait quietly. Don’t cause trouble for Juliane.”

“Okay. I don’t know what ‘trouble’ means, though.”

It was incredibly unsettling, but I had no choice but to leave Cuss and Juliane waiting together in the living room.

Yeah, go ahead and act up like you usually do.

Make that woman run away so I won’t have to prepare dinner.

‘Damn. She only behaves when I don’t want her to.’

I glanced at the living room and saw Cuss sitting unusually quietly, focused on the television.

She was even keeping her tail well hidden under her skirt.

She’s really selective about when to act up.

Today’s menu is steak with vegetables.

I’m planning to recreate a recipe we used to make when we caught wild boars while working at the mining labor camp.

Back then, we cooked over an open flame with no temperature control, so we’d burn the outside while the inside remained completely raw.

We just ate it like that, thinking it would strengthen our weak immune systems.

This time, since I’m using pre-cut meat, such disasters shouldn’t happen.

I chose asparagus for the vegetables.

Cutting them into bite-sized pieces and sautéing them in butter and meat juices made them glisten appetizingly.

To be honest, I’ve never actually eaten them before, so I don’t know how they taste.

For the appetizer, I’m making soup.

It’s a modified version of the salt water porridge we used to make while working at the salt farm.

Originally, we only had food scraps left by the guards and seawater, but I remember occasionally stealing milk to add to it.

It was practically a life-threatening recipe, as getting caught meant waterboarding with seawater.

It seems about ready, so I taste it to check…

“Hmm.”

It tastes exactly the same as back then.

Like milk mixed with salt water.

After making sure Juliane wasn’t looking, I spat it into the sink.

Damn, how did I ever find this delicious? And even risk my life for it?

I think… we must have been insane back then.

“I need something better than this.”

This won’t do.

I quickly took some broth from the pan where I was cooking the meat and vegetables and poured it into the soup.

I sprinkled in some flour and added all the clams I’d been hesitating about.

That made it somewhat edible.

Still, it seemed too salty, so I hurriedly took out some potatoes, chopped them, and added them in.

Hmm. Now it has a thicker, more soup-like consistency.

The problem is that it’s become an unidentifiable hodgepodge.

But who cares? As long as it tastes good.

“It’s ready. Sorry for the wait.”

“No problem. Come sit down, Cuss.”

“…Okay.”

What’s going on? What did they talk about while I was cooking?

This girl never listens to me, but she’s obediently following a stranger’s instructions.

After we sat at the table and I served the steak and soup, Juliane put her hands together and began to pray.

She must be a devout Christian.

Even her religion exudes class.

The slums are packed with Muslims, after all.

Me? I’m not religious.

People always ask if I’m Buddhist.

Those fucking racists think all Asians are Buddhist or Hindu.

“You look beautiful even when you’re eating.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“…”

Look at that cold response.

Just as I was thinking this was a complete disaster, Juliane’s eyes widened after tasting the soup.

“Mmm! It’s been a while since I’ve had clam chowder!”

“Pardon?”

Clam what?

Why are you suddenly using difficult words?

“This soup. You made clam chowder, right?”

“Ah, yes. That’s right.”

“Mmm. You used Manila clams as a variation? It’s quite good.”

I don’t know what she’s talking about, but apparently there’s already a soup similar to my hodgepodge.

It’s a bit disappointing.

I thought this terrible soup was one of a kind.

“Hot hot!”

“Hey, eat slowly. Do you have any learning ability at all?”

“It’s your fault for serving it too hot.”

“Then let it cool down first, idiot.”

“Should I use that cooling machine?”

“Why would you use the refrigerator? Cool it with your mouth. Blow on it. Like this.”

“Why should I go through such trouble… You should have served it at the right temperature from the start.”

“Then eat by yourself later.”

“Pfft…!”

“?”

Just as I was about to lose my temper, I heard laughter from beside me.

I turned to see Juliane covering her mouth, giggling.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. Just… hehe… I was a bit worried at first, but I think you’ll make a good father.”

It was as if someone had pressed a laugh button—Juliane’s laughter showed no signs of stopping.

After shaking with laughter for quite some time, she finally wiped her tears and caught her breath.

A good father, she says.

That’s obvious, isn’t it?

Taking in this creature that’s worse than an animal already makes me pretty great, doesn’t it?

Dinner with Juliane proceeded in a more harmonious atmosphere than expected.

Surprisingly, Cuss didn’t act up.

She kept carefully watching Juliane—I wonder why.

Did Juliane establish dominance somehow?

If I get the chance, I should learn her technique for subduing Cuss.

“That was delicious.”

And so, my home date with Juliane ended with just dinner, both the first and last.

Originally, I had planned for us to watch a movie alone together.

Then some physical contact, and naturally things would progress… but thanks to this unexpected daughter, everything fell apart.

“Well, I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“I didn’t know you had a daughter… but it was fun having such a lively dinner because of her.”

This comment snapped me back to reality.

Damn, what was I thinking trying to pursue a young woman as a single father…

Maybe I should just throw her out.

“See you next time.”

“Yes, of course.”

I know that’s just empty talk.

I don’t have Juliane’s contact information.

She only knows my home address.

It’s obvious she won’t come back.

“So. Who was that female?”

“Someone who could have been my spouse. I ruined everything because of you, brat.”

“Spouse? Is that different from a mating partner?”

“It can be the same or different. If you mate with a woman and live with her for life, she’s your spouse. You can also mate without living together.”

“Complicated… Why do humans live such exhausting lives?”

“Everything seems complicated to someone who just went around beheading people all day. Oh, right.”

“…?”

I remembered something I’d forgotten.

There was something interrupted by Juliane’s arrival.

“We were in the middle of something, weren’t we?”

“Aaaagh! It hurts!”

“What were you planning to do with that knife? Tell me.”

“I was just holding it… Aaaagh!”

“Yeah, right. Then I’m just holding your ear too, right?”

“Ahhhh! Why is the human body so fragile…”

“You lost to me even in your monster form, idiot.”

What should I do with her?

As I was pondering this, I noticed a note on the dining table.

What’s this? Did Juliane leave it?

-Here’s my contact information. I’d like to meet with you and your daughter again.

“Oh!”

Contact information. Juliane’s.

I thought I’d never get another chance.

I thought I’d been rejected for being a single dad.

I don’t know what she found attractive, but apparently I still had a coin left to play.

For a moment, I couldn’t believe it.

When I turned my head, I found Cuss biting my wrist.

This little…

“Aaaagh! It hurts!”

I immediately bit her shoulder in retaliation, which made her scream and release my wrist.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, you idiot.

What a stupid alien who doesn’t even know Hammurabi’s code.