chapter 26

Chapter 26. Summer's Table (1)

The boat rocked more than expected.

"So-hyun noona must be having a hard time."

"Yeah, she gets seasick easily. And she's scared of everything."

As they predicted, So-hyun had arrived earlier and was lying down at the GaeYa Island health center.

"Ugh, I'm so dizzy."

The original plan was for Ahn Joon-ho and Han So-hyun to arrive first and film a tour of the island, but So-hyun was too seasick to move.

Meanwhile, Joon-ho, leaving So-hyun at the health center, was walking towards the traditional house where they would be staying for the next few weekends.

"Wow, this is pretty far from the village. Aren't you thirsty?" He tried to make conversation with the VJ filming him, but he received no response.

"Variety shows are all about talking to yourself, I guess."

He continued walking and arrived at a gray-walled house. The rusty gate looked like something out of a horror movie. Overgrown vines covered the gate, and the wind, rustling through the rusty metal, sounded like a scream.

"…Is this it? Really?"

Joon-ho looked at the writer accompanying him, who nodded silently. The eerie aura emanating from beyond the gate made him hesitant to enter alone.

"Um… whoa. I can't go in there by myself."

He turned back and returned to the health center.

He was dramatically recounting his experience to So-hyun when the field PD received a call.

"Yes, I understand."

"Jin-wook and Yeon-woo are arriving at the dock soon."

"Let's go, let's go!" So-hyun jumped up at the staff's announcement and headed to the dock with Joon-ho. Waiting for the boat had helped her seasickness subside.

The boat arrived.

So-hyun ran towards Jin-wook and Yeon-woo as they disembarked with the staff.

"Yeon-woo!"

Yeon-woo caught So-hyun in a hug and spun her around.

"Noona, don't run like that. You'll fall into the sea."

Ignoring Yeon-woo's scolding, So-hyun immediately started chatting with Son Jin-wook. The group seemed energized now that everyone was together.

"They're as close as real siblings."

"Sir? Real siblings would never act like that." The production team chuckled, filming the scene and brainstorming captions.

The actors were so visually appealing that even their mundane actions looked cinematic.

"Hyung, I went to the house we're staying at. It's a total wreck." Joon-ho complained to Jin-wook.

"Joon-ho, we have to catch fish if we want to eat."

"What?!" Fishing in a haunted house? This was getting worse and worse.

"Actors, this way, please. Let's go."

They got into the production team's car and drove along the winding road Joon-ho had walked earlier.

They arrived at the "haunted house."

"Here we are."

The PD opened the rusty gate, revealing a jungle of overgrown vines and weeds, evidence of long-term neglect. A narrow path led to the house.

"Wow, it's a jungle!"

"Ugh, do we really have to sleep here?"

However, the house looked better on the inside than it did from the outside. The interior seemed habitable with some cleaning.

The PD put down some tools and explained, "An elderly couple lived here until six months ago. The owners moved in with their children in Seoul. It's owned by the broadcasting station, so feel free to renovate it."

Clap! Clap!

Yeon-woo clapped his hands to get everyone's attention and put on a pair of work gloves he had found somewhere. "I'll clear the yard. Can you go inside and see if there are any usable tools or supplies?"

"I'll help Yeon-woo." Joon-ho quickly put on a pair of gloves as well.

So-hyun and Jin-wook went inside to start cleaning, while Yeon-woo began clearing the vines with a sickle.

"Wow, Yeon-woo is really fast." The writers were impressed by how quickly the small jungle was disappearing under Yeon-woo's skillful hands.

Compared to the hellish mangrove forests he had navigated during an operation in Laos, these vines were child's play. Yeon-woo efficiently cut down the main branches, and Joon-ho carried them away.

After about an hour, the spacious yard was cleared.

Jin-wook and So-hyun emerged from the house, having swept and mopped the floors and organized the supplies provided by the production team.

"Whoa, this place is huge!"

"Yeon-woo and Joon-ho worked hard. We could even play jokgu (foot volleyball) here." The house looked much more inviting now that the yard was cleared.

"Did you find anything useful inside?"

"Nothing much besides what the production team provided. But there's a vegetable garden in the back."

"It's a garden we prepared beforehand. You can harvest anything you find there," the PD explained.

Yeon-woo and Joon-ho went to check out the garden.

Joon-ho expertly navigated the garden, inspecting the plants. "There are cucumbers and peppers."

He was surprisingly good at finding hidden vegetables.

"Really? It all looks like weeds to me."

"I lived in the countryside until I became an adult. I used to tend a vegetable garden."

And so, Ahn Joon-ho became the designated gardener.

"PD-nim, where are the fishing tools?"

"There are some in the shed behind the house, left by the previous owners." The PD pointed towards a small, dilapidated shed.

Yeon-woo went inside and was pleasantly surprised. He found a fishing trap that looked to be in good condition.

"Hyung, noona, I'm going to set up the trap."

"A trap?" The others emerged from the house, intrigued.

"We need to eat dinner, right?"

"I'm coming too!" So-hyun exclaimed, putting on her shoes.

"Okay, you two go ahead. Catch a lot!" Jin-wook and Joon-ho waved goodbye.

Yeon-woo and So-hyun headed towards the nearby beach with the fishing trap.

"Yeon-woo, where are you going to place the trap?" So-hyun asked.

Yeon-woo surveyed the area. "The water is deep near the dock, which is good, but the line might get caught on a boat, and it's too far from the house. We should place it somewhere around here."

After a while, he stopped in front of a crevice between some rocks. "Noona, here. This looks like a good spot."

So-hyun and the cameraman followed him.

"Here? Do we just drop it in?" She held up the fishing trap.

Yeon-woo rummaged through his pockets. "Normally, fish heads or chicken guts are the best bait…" He pulled out a piece of leftover bread. "I have some bread from the rest stop. Let's try this."

"Bread? Will fish even eat bread?"

"They like it."

Yeon-woo removed the crust and placed the bread inside the trap, then tossed it into the sea with a practiced swing.

"Noona, give me the rope."

"Here!"

Yeon-woo took the rope and secured it tightly to a nearby rock, his knot-tying skills impressive.

"Wow, where did you learn to do that?"

"Just… you know, haha." He couldn't exactly tell her it was a technique he had learned for restraining hostiles.

"I wonder what we'll catch. I'm so excited!"

"I hope we catch something." They returned to the house, hoping for a good catch by dinner time.

Meanwhile, Jin-wook and Joon-ho were busy building a makeshift stove with bricks.

"Jin-wook, have you ever done this before?" the PD asked.

Jin-wook looked at him, incredulous. "Of course not. I've been completely deceived. You said this was a healing variety show."

The staff laughed at his complaint. Despite his grumbling, he diligently followed the instructions of the accompanying expert, creating air vents as he stacked the bricks.

"Ugh, why am I even trying so hard? I have to feed these kids." As the oldest, he felt responsible for the other three.

"We set up the trap," Yeon-woo and So-hyun announced, entering the yard.

"Good. There's rice in the kitchen, and I put it in the rice cooker."

"There's a rice cooker? I thought we'd have to use a traditional pot. That makes things easier." Yeon-woo surveyed the yard and then gave instructions.

"Joon-ho hyung, you're in charge of the garden. Go with So-hyun noona and pick some vegetables for dinner."

"Okay, let's go."

Joon-ho and So-hyun headed to the garden with a basket, and Yeon-woo rolled up his sleeves.

"Hyung, you built the stove, so I'll chop some firewood. You should rest."

"Ah, sounds good. My back is killing me from bending over all this time." Jin-wook stretched out on a wooden platform, groaning.

The PD, observing Yeon-woo's leadership, asked, "Is Yeon-woo usually the leader?"

"Of course, he's a smart kid. Our Yeon-woo," Jin-wook replied, still lying down, his eyes closed.

The gentle breeze made him drowsy.

Yeon-woo brought some firewood from the shed and started chopping it with an axe.

Whoosh, thud. Crack.

Thud. Crack.

The firewood split cleanly under his skillful, rhythmic swings.

"Wow, we have to use slow-motion for this."

"It's like watching a live photoshoot." The PD and the main writer, grinning, envisioned the editing possibilities, captivated by the cinematic quality of even such a mundane task.

Jin-wook, exhausted from the day's activities, had fallen asleep on the platform. Yeon-woo placed the chopped firewood in the stove and lit it.

The dry wood caught fire quickly, and Yeon-woo brought a large iron lid from the kitchen and poured some cooking oil on it.

Sizzle!! Sizzle!!

Jin-wook opened his eyes at the sound.

"Yeon-woo, you already started the fire?"

"Stay put. Let's have some fried rice for our first meal."

"Wow, something smells delicious!" So-hyun and Joon-ho returned from the garden with a basket full of vegetables.