Kyung-jun should've known this was a bad idea.

The moment Minji suggested cooking together, he had hesitated. Not because he didn't want to spend time with her—he always wanted to be with her—but because cooking with Minji always turned into absolute chaos.

And now, standing in their small apartment kitchen, he watched as Minji dramatically rolled up her sleeves like she was preparing for battle.

"Alright, husband," she declared, gripping a wooden spoon like it was a sword. "Tonight, we feast!"

Kyung-jun, leaning against the counter with his arms crossed, raised an eyebrow. "You do realize we're just making pasta, right? Not a royal banquet."

Minji ignored him. She was on a mission.

And Kyung-jun? He was on damage control.

The chaos began immediately.

Minji, in her excitement, poured way too much pasta into the pot. Kyung-jun noticed instantly.

"Minji," he said slowly. "Are we feeding an entire village?"

Minji glanced at the overflowing pot, then back at him with the most innocent expression. "I just thought we could have leftovers!"

Kyung-jun sighed, moving beside her to fix her mistake. "At this rate, we'll have enough leftovers until next year."

Minji pouted. "It's better to have too much than too little!"

Kyung-jun gave her a look. "Not when we have one fridge and a stomach that can't hold five pounds of pasta."

Minji stuck out her tongue at him, but let him fix it anyway.

The next disaster happened with the sauce.

Minji, being Minji, insisted on making it from scratch. "It's more romantic!" she said. "And homemade always tastes better!"

Kyung-jun sighed but let her take charge—until she started adding random ingredients.

"Minji." He grabbed her wrist before she could throw honey into the tomato sauce. "WHAT are you doing?"

Minji blinked. "Adding a little sweetness!"

Kyung-jun stared at her, horrified. "We're making pasta sauce, not dessert. What's next? Chocolate syrup?!"

Minji giggled. "Ooo, that's an idea—"

"No."

She huffed but let him take over. "You're no fun."

"You were about to ruin dinner!"

She giggled again, standing on her tiptoes to press a quick kiss to his cheek. "But I love how serious you get about it~"

Kyung-jun groaned, but his ears turned red anyway.

Then came the worst part.

The cutting board incident.

Minji was supposed to be chopping vegetables. Simple task. Harmless.

But then, Kyung-jun turned for two seconds—and suddenly, chaos.

"MINJI—"

She was hacking at the onion like it had personally wronged her.

Kyung-jun rushed over, grabbing her hands. "What the hell are you doing?!"

Minji sniffled. "The onion made me cry and I got mad!"

Kyung-jun stared at her, then at the absolute mess she had created. Onion bits were everywhere. Some were too big, some were microscopic, some were... questionable.

Kyung-jun closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. This woman.

"Okay. Step aside," he muttered, taking the knife from her. "I'm cutting the vegetables before you burn the kitchen down."

Minji, still sniffling, let him take over, happily watching him with a dreamy look in her eyes.

"You look so cool when you're focused," she murmured.

Kyung-jun paused for a second, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "Flattery isn't getting you out of cleaning up this mess."

Minji pouted. "It was worth a try."

Eventually, somehow, miraculously, dinner was ready.

The table was set, the kitchen was a mess, and Kyung-jun was exhausted.

Minji, however, was thriving. She practically bounced in her seat, taking a bite of the food with the biggest smile.

"IT'S SO GOOD!" she cheered, looking at him like he was some kind of culinary god.

Kyung-jun smirked, leaning back in his chair. "Told you I could fix your mess."

Minji huffed, but there was pure adoration in her eyes. "Okay, okay, I'll admit it—you're the better cook."

Kyung-jun smirked wider. "Say that again?"

Minji rolled her eyes, but then, before he could react, she stood up and cupped his face in her hands, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead.

"You're the best cook, my perfect husband," she whispered against his skin.

Kyung-jun froze.

Minji giggled at his flustered expression, ruffling his hair before sitting back down.

"Eat up, Junnie~ You need energy to survive grocery shopping with me tomorrow!"

Kyung-jun, completely speechless, could only stare at her.

And then, with a sigh, he muttered under his breath:

"...I'm never taking you grocery shopping again."