One Week Later...
The sharp click of scissors snipped through a red ribbon as camera shutters flashed.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the grand opening of Yoon-Ah & Ji-Hoon's Bakery" Croft's booming voice carried over the crowd.
Ji-Hoon stood beside him, dressed in his crisp white chef's coat, sleeves rolled to the elbow. His smile was small, but real. The scent of fresh bread and coffee drew customers inside.
Influential people who knew of Chef Lee's skill were all here. Manager Brielle and even the famous Mr. Armand was here too.
"Glad you could make it, sir," Ji-Hoon said with a small bow.
Mr. Armand smiled. "Congratulations! Kid."
Chef Lee and Croft were on the doorway, greeting the special guests.
Croft turned toward Ji Hoon, "You know... she would be happy."
He was with him, since the orphanage so he knew him better than anyone.
"Yeah..."
"But why did you choose this place?" Croft asked.
"She mentioned it once..."
* * *
"Noona... Do you have any place, you want to have your bakery in?" Young Ji Hoon asked.
Yoon-Ah stared at the slurry she was mixing for a while before she answered.
"Ehm... not necessarily but... I guess, there is this is old shop around of my university."
"Oh," Young Ji Hoon said, his eyes filled with ambition.
* * *
The bakery was a warm little haven, its golden light spilling through large windows that framed rows of freshly baked bread and pastries.
The air smelled sweet and buttery, mingling hints of cinnamon and vanilla. Along one side, a row of small wooden tables with mismatched chairs invited customers to linger.
Inside the kitchen, ovens glowed, mixers whirred, and the staff worked with practiced precision.
Ji-Hoon moved between stations, tasting, adjusting, plating.
It went like that for hours — laughter, orders, clinking cutlery — until the sun dipped low and the last customers left, full and smiling.
* * *
A week later…
Business was steady. Regulars had already claimed their favorite tables. Ji-Hoon's face had begun appearing in local food blogs.
That Sunday, he drove to a quiet hill outside the city. The cemetery gates creaked open, the air smelling faintly of rain. He carried a bouquet of pale yellow lilies and a paper bag.
He knelt by a small marble headstone.
"Han Yoon-Ah," the engraving read.
He set the flowers down, then pulled out the still-warm melonpan, as he munched on it.
"I kept my promise, Noona. Biggest bakery in the city." His lips twitched into the faintest smile. "I'd probably say the name's still lame, though."
A gust of wind rustled the trees. He stayed there a moment longer, then rose, dusting off his knees.
* * *
Meanwhile, in the kitchen…
Two cooks were cleaning down the counters. One of them, a wiry young man, slipped a cigarette from his pocket and lit it with a practiced flick.
"You're insane," the other muttered. "if Chef Lee catches you, you're dead."
"Relax. He's not here."
"Still, Croft's in the office. And you know he—"
"Fine, fine." The smoker sighed, crushed it out halfway, and stuffed it in his apron.
"Hey, Marline, I need help here." a voice called out.
"I warned you, Kevin, don't smoke, okay?" Marline looked at Kevin.
"Yeah, yeah, you and your naggings." he brushed it off, as Marline stepped out.
Later, alone at the kitchen, temptation won.
"Ugh, fuck it! I need to let the stress out."
He lit another, bringing it into his mouth.
"Puff... Ahh... that's right..."
Just when he was getting comfortable, footsteps echoed behind him. Panic struck. Croft's voice came closer.
"Yo, Kevin, the truck's here. Help us unload."
Kevin's eyes darted around nervously. Without thinking, he yanked the cigarette from his lips and flicked it into a metal grease bin sitting beside the prep sink — a grimy container stuffed with oil-soaked paper towels.
"Comin'~!"
He followed Croft out to the loading dock, heart still pounding.
The cigarette smoldered, tiny embers spreading through the oil-soaked paper towels inside the bin. A curl of smoke rose lazily, unnoticed. The heat licked at a cardboard box nearby, then at a plastic oil container.
The pop of splitting plastic came first. Then a whoosh as flames climbed the wall toward the overhead rack and the row of gas cylinder stoves hooked to a single line.
The nearest valve hissed as the heat warped it.
And then...
BOOM!!!
The chain reaction tore through the kitchen. Windows shattered. Fire alarms screamed.
* * *
On the road…
Ji-Hoon's phone buzzed in the passenger seat. He tapped the speaker.
"Chef—!" Croft's voice cracked, muffled by shouting and sirens. "The bakery—it's—" Static drowned the rest.
Ji-Hoon's knuckles went white on the wheel. He spun into a U-turn, the tires shrieking.
* * *
At the bakery…
When Ji Hoon arrived, the building had already belched black smoke into the sky. Flames licked out through broken windows. Croft and the staff stood on the sidewalk, coughing, faces streaked with soot.
Without thinking, Ji-Hoon ran towards the bakery, his eyes blank as if he lost his sanity.
"Ji-Hoon, don't—!" Croft grabbed for him, but Ji-Hoon tore free, shoving past the hands trying to hold him back.
"No! Noona's bakery—!"
He lunged inside. Croft tried to follow him but the old wooden door crumbled down blocking his way.
"Cough... Cough.. Damn it! Where are the firefighters!" Croft barked at Marline who was standing beside Kevin.
"They said they'll be here in 5-minutes." She replied.
"Ji-Hoon doesn't have 5-minutes!"
Marline looked at the burning store. "How the hell did this happen..."
Kevin standing beside her, looked horrified. "I-I..I was..I-It ca..n't be.." He kept murmuring.
* * *
Inside, the heat was suffocating. Tables and shelves lay in charred heaps. Smoke clawed at Ji-Hoon's lungs. He tried to stop the fire with tablecloths' as he coughed.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
And there, half-melted on a shelf near the kitchen door, was the framed photo: a younger Ji-Hoon, flour on his cheeks, grinning beside Yoon-Ah.
He snatched it up, clutching it to his chest. But the fire roared louder now, beams creaking overhead. The front exit was already gone.
Another crash... and the ceiling gave way.
Ji-Hoon sank to the floor, back against a scorched wall, staring at the smiling faces in the frame.
"…I kept my promise…" he chuckled, as he coughed. "...maybe I'll really see you in another life"
And just like that... the flames swallowed him.