Chapter 15: The Ghosts' Stories

Kang Jin drank with Bae Yong-soo and Choi Hocheol at quite a fast pace since there wasn’t much time left before midnight.

Slurp! Slurp!

Something peculiar about these ghosts caught his attention.

“When I worked at Wolramjeong, even though I was young, I held the position right below the head chef. If only I had lived four more years, that role would’ve been mine…”

“I fought against countless gangsters with this fist of mine. Back then, it felt like nothing could kill me, not even getting stabbed.”

“With my hands, I saved hundreds of lives… Yet now, after dying, I’m stuck as a ghost. Does any of this make sense? And to think they couldn’t even send me to heaven! Damn it!”

Bae Yong-soo and Choi Hocheol continued sharing stories from their lives while alive, unfolding before Kang Jin’s eyes.

Bae Yong-su was a renowned chef at Wolramjeong, a famous Korean restaurant, and Choi Hocheol was a police officer. The middle-aged ghost who accompanied Choi Hocheol was a doctor, licensed in both traditional Eastern medicine as well as Western medicine.

They told me not to ask about their lives when they were alive…but they can’t help but talk about it themselves.

Especially Bae Yong-su, despite being warned directly, kept discussing his life before death.

“I personally made the kimchi stew when high-ranking officials from North Korea visited.”

As Kang Jin listened to Bae Yong-su recounting his accomplishments, he glanced around the room. Ghosts seated at other tables were also incessantly chatting about their past lives without pause.

“The apartment complex I designed has dozens of units.”

“When I was in the army…”

“I’ve been to every country you can think of.”

The ghosts seemed to have diverse occupations and shared stories from their lives while drinking soju.

Kang Jin observed them curiously.

This doesn’t seem like…a conversation.

A conversation requires give-and-take between participants:

“I feel sick after eating breakfast this morning.”

“What did you eat?”

That’s how it typically goes. However, these ghosts merely spoke without acknowledging each other’s words. They focused solely on expressing themselves, paying no attention to what others said.

As Kang Jin listened to their conversations, he soon nodded with realization.

‘Are they perhaps speaking for me to hear?’

He discreetly glanced at Bae Yong-soo and the other ghosts. While engaged in their discussions, they kept stealing furtive glances at him, as if checking whether he was listening or not.

It was as if they were gauging whether Kang Jin was listening or not. Whenever their eyes met, though, they quickly looked away, seemingly trying to convey that he wasn’t supposed to eavesdrop intentionally.

Are they really talking for me to hear? Why?

As Kang Jin pondered this, Bae Yong-soo stood up.

“Alright! It’s one minute before 1 AM now.”

Upon hearing Bae Yong-soo, the ghosts checked their watches and hastily finished their food and soju with regret before standing up.

“We enjoyed our meal.”

Watching the ghosts leave the restaurant one by one, Choi Hocheol turned to Kang Jin.

“If any troublemakers cause chaos during your shift, just loudly call my name. I’ll take care of them.”

“My name?”

“All those from Hope Orphanage are like siblings to me. Since I’m sorry I can’t remember their names or faces, at least…”

Whoosh!

Kang Jin watched Choi Hocheol disintegrate into thin air as midnight struck.

As Choi Hocheol spoke these words, his image scattered and disappeared from Kang Jin’s eyes. It was 1am, marking the end of business hours, so Choi Hocheol had returned to being a ghost.

After Choi Hocheol vanished, Kang Jin looked around and said, “I’m not sure if you can hear me…but thank you always. If there is anything I can help with, please let me know anytime.”

In response to Kang Jin’s words, the glass slightly moved by itself. Despite losing its physical form, it seemed Choi Hocheol’s presence still lingered.

‘It appears ghosts can move objects too. Maybe those horror movies aren’t entirely fiction.’

Having seen similar scenes in movies, Kang Jin nodded and began clearing up the table where the ghosts had been drinking.

Klack!

While cleaning up and washing dishes, Kang Jin heard the door open.

“Let’s have just one more drink before we leave.”

“I was thinking the same thing; I could use another shot.”

“Hahaha! Indeed, Director Jang and I always seem to be on the same page.”

Kang Jin curiously turned towards the commotion.

‘Huh? But it’s past business hours.’

Ghosts were supposed to appear only during operating hours, yet there they were again. Setting down the dishes at the sink, Kang Jin glanced out into the hall where six men and two women sat at a table.

“But sir, with no other customers around, shouldn’t you be closed?”

“Let’s move to a better spot.”

“Why bother moving…over there!”

At their call, Kang Jin dried his hands and went out to the hall.

“You’re still open for business?”

“We’re not ready yet; we want one more round before leaving. Please stay open a bit longer.”

The middle-aged man referred to as Director smiled, took out his wallet, and handed over two fifty-dollar bills.

“Here, take this…”

“Sir, let’s put it on expense account.”

“Nope. This isn’t on expenses; I’m paying myself.”

“I gratefully accept.”

Watching the team manager bow repeatedly at the director’s words while others looked slightly disappointed, Kang Jin examined the money.

These are real banknotes?

“Um…you’re human, right?”

“Hahaha! You have quite a sense of humor, young man. Are we humans or ghosts?” Despite appearing quite drunk, the director spoke with proper etiquette. When Kang Jin worked part-time jobs at convenience stores or restaurants, some older customers would immediately speak to him informally. Compared to them, this Director was quite respectful.

“Let’s see.” With a smile, he scanned the area as if searching for a menu and then chuckled upon spotting the whiteboard hanging on one side.

“Pay what you want? Haha! This is an interesting concept.”

He turned towards Kang Jin.

“So, there’s only one dish, Dolsot Bibimbap? No other options?”

Kang Jin glanced at the whiteboard as prompted by Director Kim’s comment. Since he hadn’t updated it today, yesterday’s menu remained unchanged with only one dish listed.

“We also have spicy stir-fried pork or stir-fried pork with chili peppers.”

“Then two of each, please, along with soju and beer.”

Kang Jin smiled at the director’s order. Although surprised to have human customers unexpectedly visit, they had paid upfront before sitting down. As his first patrons, there was no reason for him to refuse their request.

“Certainly.”

Kang Jin placed bottles of soju and beer on the table, then brought out some side dishes.

Let me start with these.

He carefully portioned the side dishes onto plates and served them to the guests.

“Please enjoy these appetizers while you wait.”

“The restaurant provides complimentary side dishes. Thank you.” The Director nodded slightly as Kang Jin returned to the kitchen. he promptly placed thinly sliced beef and pork on the grill pan and started stir-frying them quickly.

“These side dishes are delicious.”

“They’re even better than what my wife makes.”

“How about you, Miss Se-hee?”

“The kimchi is amazing; it reminds me of home-cooked meals from my grandmother’s house.”

“If the side dishes are this good, I can’t wait for the main course.”

“As expected from the establishment chosen by our director.”

“Hahaha! It looked humble at first glance, but it seemed like one of those hidden gems with authentic flavors.”

“I know, right? Who would’ve thought such a modest place exists in Gangnam?”

The team manager is working hard to impress.

It might seem like flattery…but it’s just part of office politics one has to navigate.

With these thoughts, Kang Jin quickly prepared stir-fried pork with spicy peppers and thinly sliced beef, placed them on plates, and brought them to the table.

“Here you go.”

As soon as Director Park saw the dishes, he picked up some food and exclaimed excitedly:

“Woah! Try this. It’s really delicious!”

Following his cue, the team manager eagerly grabbed some stir-fried beef with chopsticks and, after tasting it, expressed surprise:

“You’re right, it’s truly amazing.”

Seeing their agreement, other employees also dug in with anticipation, having already enjoyed the side dishes which heightened their expectations for the main course.

The others also raised their thumbs after tasting the dishes.

“Wow! There’s this great restaurant in Nowon known for its charcoal-grilled pork, but this tastes even better!”

“The spicy stir-fried pork is delicious too.”

The director chuckled at the young man’s comment.

“We can’t have good food without drinks.” As he lifted his soju glass, the other employees raised their glasses of alcohol and water as well.

Seeing this, Kang Jin discreetly stepped away from them to look around the hall.

Since they’re our first human customers… I should make some more dishes. They seem like office workers nearby, so if word gets out, maybe we’ll get more human visitors.

After surveying the hall briefly, Kang Jin opened up his cooking practice book.

Sssshhhk!

He quickly flipped through the pages until finding two recipes and began reading them.