Chapter Text
The first cracks of sunlight started to shine through the windows, keys jingling as he fumbled with the lock and walked in.The ovens hummed in hello as he turned them on and adjusted his apron, tying it round the back. Opening the fridge full of orders, he pulled out a halfway decorated cake and set it on the counter, ready to add the finishing touches.
“Da-rae’s 1st Birthday!” Was piped on the top in pink icing, with flowers decorating the outside. Steadying his hands, Dae-ho started to decorate the border with a swirling blue pattern, doing the same on the top. Some old pop song played on the radio as he worked, taking care to not let his hands shake.
He wondered who the cake was for. He knew it was for a baby girl- well, judging by the name and design- but who bought it? Was it the mother? Or maybe the father? Did she have siblings? Was she born here or did she move? Whoever did it, loved her to spend that much.
Setting aside the cake, he placed it carefully back in the fridge so he could work on the restocking for today. His leg aching slightly, he moved to the other side of the cramped kitchen
Frowning, he opened a cupboard and pulled out a black notebook covered in ink from when he chewed too hard on his pens.
Running low on:
Eggs
Self rasing flour
Brown sugar
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He would need to sort out another delivery soon, he thought, closing the cupboard and straightening back up.
——
Ding! The bell on the door announced the arrival of a short young woman, the blonde tips on the end of her dark hair catching in the light and reflecting off her eyebrow piercing, the bar shining silver in the sun.
Looking up from behind the small counter, Dae-ho smiled,
“Hey! Can I help you?”
She nodded and walked up, fumbling in her bag for a receipt,
“Yeah, I should be picking up a cake? The order number is 0222, it’s under Jun-hee?”
So she was the one who ordered the birthday cake.
“I have that just in there, one second,”
Retreating to the back, he smiled to himself and lifted the cake precariously out of the fridge and into a box which he taped up before brining it back out to the front.
“Here we are! Is Da-rae your daughter? She’s very lucky to be getting this,”
“Yeah, though the floor will probably eat more than her. She’s decided she’s in her home renovation phase which consists of decorating every available surface with her food instead of eating it,” she smiled, picking up the box.
Dae-ho chuckled, grinning at the description,
“Well I hope she enjoys the parts she does eat,”
“If she doesn’t, me and my mo-“ she faltered, adjusting her words, “…Geum-ja will. So will my friends, although they’ll pretend it’s only because they don’t want such a pretty cake to go to waste,” she talked about her friends with a fond expression on her face, making it well known she truly cared about them, “speaking of, I should probably go. I dread to think how Young-mi’s decorated the living room,”
“I’m sure it’ll look great, tell Da-rae the baker said happt birthday!”
“Will do, have a good day!”
“Thanks, you too!”
She walked back out the door, leaving him to go back to wiping the counter and humming along to the radio.
She was nice, he thought. Unlike the man who had screamed at him yesterday for putting “inconsistent sugar flowers” on his wife’s cake. And they weren’t inconsistent in the slightest.
——
Ding! Ding! Ding! The bell went off again and again whilst two, probably high, men walked in. One had purple hair, the other had black that was cut into a bob around his chin. His sleeves were pushed back to reveal tattoos up his arms, snakes that twisted and curled. The taller approached the counter and mentally Dad-ho groaned. He could tell this wasn’t gonna be a fun order.
“Have you seen min-su?”
“Sorry?”
“My boy min-su!”
“I don’t know a min-su”
“We just want to talk to him,” said the shorter one, now standing next to his friend (although they stood a little too close to just be friends, but he didn’t like to make assumptions)
“Sirs. I don’t know a min-su. Did you want to buy anything?” He was trying to keep his patience, though now he was slightly worried for this mysterious man named Min-su.
“Do even sell anything?”
“…yes, this is a bakery” he blinked. They were either high, stupid or both.
“I don’t want bread. Nam-su, let’s go”
“Nam-gyu.”
“Yeah that’s what I said,”
The pair left, and Dae-ho leaned on the counter sighing. They would probably be back. Atleast neither had threatened him, which he took as a good thing.