Chapter 16

Chapter 16

16. Hale Makani's Secret Restaurant

Waikiki Sun Beach Hotel lobby.

“What? Where did the reporters go?”

“They all went to Hale Makani Hotel.”

“Why the hell would they!”

“Eve Callaway apparently arrived in Hawaii today. And she's staying at Hale Makani.”

“No, that doesn't make any sense! Why today of all days! And why that damn hotel of all places!”

It was a shout mixed equally with rage and disbelief.

“Find out right······.”

“Chairman, 4X has arrived.”

Unfortunately, the chairman wasn't even given time to fully vent the anger boiling inside him.

The Asian singers he'd waited so long for were entering the lobby.

“We're 4X.”

“Hoho, welcome. I'm Victor Hale of Waikiki Sun Beach.”

- Clap, clap, clap······.

The employees gave a strangely deflated round of applause,

and the world's most awkward VIP welcome ceremony began at Waikiki Sun Beach Hotel.

The source of the awkward atmosphere was obvious from the faces of the people shaking hands.

Their mouths were smiling,

but their eyes clearly looked like they'd seen something irritating.

And for good reason.

One side had stood at the airport like abandoned luggage for over two hours,

while the other had watched every reporter they'd painstakingly cultivated run off to photograph a different singer.

Unless they were saints, there was no way either side could feel warmly toward the other.

Still, money had changed hands, so the scheduled program had to continue.

And the one who had to bear the full brunt of this miserable schedule was the marketing team leader who'd planned the promotional event.

“Th-Then I'll show you to your room!”

“Yes.”

“Ahem.”

Chairman Victor and 4X reluctantly followed the team leader.

The moment they reached the suite, the film crew hurriedly began preparing.

“We'll begin recording from here. One, two, three.”

- Clack.

The slate snapped shut,

“This is the pride of Waikiki Sun Beach Hotel, the Imperial Crown Suite!”

“Ooh!”

“Sugoi!”

“The entrance floor uses Italian Carrara marble. Each slab was selected and installed so the gray veining flows in one direction, requiring more than ten times the material of a standard marble floor. As you walk in, the grain naturally guides the eye toward the living room. The entrance walls are paneled in Hawaiian koa wood······.”

“Ah······.”

The explanation alone took nearly five minutes just in the entrance,

and even 4X's reflexive reactions gradually began dying out.

The prepared room-introduction script was twenty full pages of A4 paper.

And for the grand finale, Chairman Victor himself was scheduled to tell stories about all the famous people who had stayed there.

Everyone watching the filming had the same thought running through their heads.

‘We're screwed.’

‘This is doomed.’

***

At the same time, inside Hale Makani's suite.

“This is the master bedroom. If you need any service, press 1 on the phone beside you. Please enjoy your stay.”

‘Hmm, nice. Even the manager isn't overdoing it.’

Eve gave a small nod after arriving in Hale Makani's suite.

Among the countless hotels she'd stayed in while touring, this was easily one of the cleanest room introductions she'd ever received.

Other hotels were so proud of being the best hotel with the best suite that they never skipped a single detail.

The lighting was custom-made by some designer,

the painting on the wall was by some artist,

and so on.

They'd endlessly explain things she had absolutely no interest in.

Compared to them, Hale Makani was already close to a perfect hundred out of a hundred based on the room introduction alone.

- Click.

“Hup!”

After Frank left, Eve immediately pulled out her phone.

“You're filming already?”

“Yep!”

“We just arrived. Don't you want to rest first?”

“A lot of fans are waiting. I should film it quickly.”

This was her first vacation after finishing the concert tour.

But for a world star, even rest was an extension of work.

Especially during the off-season, the casual SNS videos she posted were one of the biggest reasons Eve Callaway was so loved.

- Beep.

“Hey, guys! The concert was fun, right? I came straight to Hawaii after it ended! This is the room I'll be staying in during my vacation. What do you think? Cool, right?”

Eve's phone camera swept across the suite.

“The terrace is huge! I could sunbathe out here! Wow! Even the sauna is authentic Finnish style, just how I like it!”

Maybe it was thanks to Frank's restrained introduction.

As she walked through the suite with the broadcast running, Eve's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

“I'm going to rest here for a while, then start working on my album. Sorry, but that's all for today! See you next time!”

- Beep.

And with that, the short three-minute shoot ended.

“That's today's schedule done too. Hup!”

She tossed her phone carelessly onto the bed and jumped right onto it herself.

“I'm getting hungry. What's dinner?”

“Traditional Hawaiian barbecue. Here.”

Her manager handed her the catalog that had been sitting on the dining table.

“Is all of this really coming for dinner tonight?”

“Yes. Starting tomorrow, they'll prepare it immediately as long as we request it the day before.”

“Really?”

The catalog she was looking at showed dishes from Imu House,

the same company we'd hired for the barista festival.

As one of the most expensive restaurants in Hawaii, the food pictured in the catalog only made her hungrier.

“I want to eat now. Is dinner still far away?”

“It's only early afternoon.”

“Should I ask them to bring it for lunch starting tomorrow?”

“Huh? You're going to eat it again tomorrow?”

“You don't like it?”

“You get bored of food so quickly. I'm sure you'll change your mind by tomorrow.”

“Ha! I love pork barbecue. I could probably eat this my entire vacation and never get tired of it.”

“Sure. Then I'll book just tomorrow's for now.”

Once again, her manager perfectly predicted Eve's fickleness.

***

It had already been two days since we picked up global singer Eve at the hotel.

Since this was our first VIP guest, there were plenty of things that needed attention, but things seemed to be going well enough.

At least, Frank hadn't reported any problems.

They'll handle it!

And right now, I had no time to worry about such minor matters.

I'd become completely absorbed in decorating my own Korean rooftop room.

“Should I raise it more?”

“Hmm. The left side is a little low this time.”

“Like this?”

“Now it's too high.”

“Here?”

“Perfect.”

“That's where it started.”

“······.”

“So I can hammer it in?”

- Nod.

At Sullivan's confident nod, I started hammering with all my strength.

- Bang. Bang.

Two nails went into the wall,

and soon a cheap wooden wall-mounted clothes rack sat neatly in place.

Yes! You need this for the proper studio-apartment vibe.

Now all I had to do was casually hang a shirt and jeans on it······.

“Um, Mr. Woo-jin.”

“Yes?”

“Didn't you say this was the full Hawaii course?”

“We went everywhere today, didn't we?”

“Well, yes, but!”

The first day had unfortunately overlapped with our hotel's VIP arrival, so I hadn't been able to entertain him properly, but today was different.

Waikiki Aquarium in the morning,

a pineapple farm and Diamond Head in the afternoon.

Hadn't we completed the textbook Hawaii tour schedule?

And dinner was the long-awaited Korean rooftop feast.

Though before that, I'd made him help with a little work.

“Everything's finished now. Let's start getting dinner ready.”

“What? We're eating here too?”

“Of course.”

I went into the kitchen and brought out a portable gas burner and today's secret weapon: a cast-iron pot lid.

“Don't tell me we have to cook everything ourselves too.”

“That's part of the charm. This is a dish you can barely find even in Hawaii.”

I meant it.

Even I had been planning to make it for ages and was only trying it now.

The menu was genuine pork-belly kimchi stew made with half an entire head of kimchi.

“Just watch.”

I sat the skeptical Sullivan down on the wooden platform and immediately lit the burner.

The cooking itself was surprisingly simple.

First, grill pork belly around the outer rim of the upside-down pot lid until beautifully browned.

Then, once the fat collects in the center, place half a head of whole kimchi right on top of it.

- Sssssizzle.

“Smells amazing, right?”

“Well, the smell is pretty good······.”

Pretty good, my ass.

He'd already swallowed several times without realizing it!

“Do we eat now?”

“No.”

The kimchi had been fried perfectly in pork fat, so it would undoubtedly taste great just like this.

But not yet.

I poured a bottle of water directly onto the pot lid and added various vegetables and a little sugar.

The burner wasn't powerful enough on its own, but the pot lid was already blazing hot, so the well-cooked kimchi stew quickly began bubbling.

Right, I'd forgotten something important.

“Sullivan, I'll get the alcohol from the fridge. Pick some peppers and lettuce from that planter.”

“Pardon?”

“Over there.”

I pointed to a plastic basin in one corner of the rooftop.

A DIY vegetable garden specially bought from a Korean supermarket.

It contained Hawaiian peppers and lettuce.

I wasn't confident enough to grow them from seedlings, so I'd simply replanted mature crops,

but emotionally speaking, it looked just as rustic as anything from a back-to-nature TV show.

- Clink. Clink.

I took the soju and beer I'd chilled in the freezer until they were just starting to frost over and stepped back outside.

“Who are you!”

“Me?”

Sullivan stood there holding an entire pepper plant he'd ripped out by the roots, staring over the edge of the roof with a bewildered expression.

“You're paparazzi, aren't you?! Don't move!”

What? What's happening?

- Thump, thump.

A moment later, someone pounded harshly on the rooftop door.

When I opened it, Eve's manager and bodyguards stood there glaring suspiciously.

“What is it?”

“Oh? You're an employee? Perfect! There's paparazzi hiding up here! He definitely made eye contact with me··· That man over there!”

“I'm not paparazzi!”

“What is it? What's going on?”

As the commotion grew louder, Eve Callaway herself came up to the rooftop.

And then,

“Huh? That's kimchi stew! I've only ever seen this in NewTube videos!”

Everyone's gaze turned toward the bubbling kimchi stew.

© Kim Mangcho#1ond5