The rules were simple:
Each team would receive a mystery box of ingredients. They'd have 40 minutes to create one dish that combined flavor, presentation, and creativity.
Utensils were limited, and the judges could randomly "sabotage" a team by taking away one crucial item or swapping an ingredient.
And of course, the producers were clearly hoping someone would set something on fire.
Aster glanced at the box in front of him and Adrian. It contained:
— Chicken thigh fillets
— Eggplant
— Ginger
— Salted egg
— Cream
— Rice cakes
— Basil
Aster blinked. "That's... actually not terrible."
Adrian already had his sleeves rolled up again, hands on his hips. "Do you want to lead, Chef?"
Aster narrowed his eyes. "Don't act like you're not the better cook here."
The other teams had already burst into chaos. One group dropped their cream. Another was yelling about their chicken still being half frozen. Team Three—the ex-idols—were having a very public spat over knife handling.
Meanwhile, Team Storm?
Calm. Quiet. Efficient.
"I'll prep the chicken," Adrian said, grabbing the fillets like a man on a mission. "Can you dice the eggplant and prep the salted egg sauce?"
Aster nodded, already moving to the cutting board. They moved in sync. Aster's knife work was quick and clean, something he hadn't done publicly in a while. Adrian glanced over once.
"Nice technique," he said casually.
"Shut up and stir the pot," Aster muttered, cheeks tinged with pink.
The cameras were eating it up. Literally. The close-ups were intimate, unintentionally domestic. Adrian taste-testing with the back of a spoon and offering it to Aster without a word. Aster wiping flour off Adrian's cheek with a flick of his thumb.
Who would thought that the Intimidating Business Giant would look domestic standing together with an actor ?
Even the host whispered to the camera, "They're like a married couple."
The Internet?
Exploded.
[#TheyDidNotJustDoThat]
[#DomesticStorm]
[#MarriedVibesUnmatched]
[#AdrianSeoHusbandMaterialConfirmed]
The producers, on the other hand, were starting to panic. This team was... too good. Not chaotic enough.
So of course—sabotage.
"Team Storm," the host announced gleefully, "you must now swap all your herbs and spices with Team Two!"
Adrian blinked. "But they have... marshmallows and sriracha."
Team Two, on the far end, screamed in joy and ran over with a tray of chaos. In return, they took Adrian and Aster's fresh basil, pepper, and grated ginger.
Aster stared at the sriracha bottle. "...We can make it work."
"You're insane," Adrian muttered.
"You like that about me."
Another comment section meltdown.
With two minutes on the clock, Aster was mixing a sriracha-salted egg cream to glaze the chicken. Adrian had crisped the rice cakes into golden chips and was plating it with a smear of eggplant mash.
Somehow—it worked.
The host walked by, visibly impressed. "You two pivoted surprisingly well."
Adrian, without missing a beat, smiled and replied, "That's marriage for you."
Aster nearly dropped the sauce ladle.
The host laughed. "So when will we expect the babies?"
"i didn't know he is this funny," Aster interjected immediately. "We just... work well together."
Adrian looked far too smug.
Their dish was plated last. A neat tower of glazed chicken with crispy rice cake shards and a surprisingly smooth, spicy-sweet sauce. Adrian placed a single marshmallow on the side with dramatic flair.
"For the sabotage," he said with a wink.
The judges took bites.
Silence.
Then nods.
Then one of them—a famed food critic—said, "This is the only dish that made the sriracha sabotage actually taste intentional. I'm impressed."
The host turned to the camera dramatically. "And that's how you cook under pressure, ladies and gentlemen."
Team Storm got the highest score of the round.
Back in the waiting lounge, the teams cooled off. The chaos had ended, but the social media storm had just begun.
Even the other contestants were buzzing.
One of them—a fellow actor Aster had once worked with—grinned. "I don't know if you're dating him or not, but if you're not, your acting chemistry is terrifying."
Aster offered a weak laugh. "We just... clicked, I guess."
Meanwhile, across the studio, the production assistant whispered to the director, "The netizens already want a spinoff cooking show with just them."