Zaejin the Troll & Perik the Room Monster: Part Two (special preview)

“Shit,” you grumbled under your breath. “I think I fucked it up again.” Under the cover of an old dish towel was a bowl, filled with an unimpressive and somewhat liquidy lump. You tossed the towel aside and dumped the lump onto the floured countertop where it spread out rather than maintaining a doughy shape like it was supposed to.

“I thought I knew how to do this,” you grunted.

The days were becoming cooler, and the idea of baking bread didn’t seem so unappealing as it did during the overly hot summer. The cold was also causing Zaejin to sleep in, which you thought would give you time to surprise him with that promised loaf. Instead, your baking skills seemed to be imagined.

You cleaned up the mess, tossing away the failed loaf and going back to the cookbook. “What the hell am I doing wrong?” You grumbled as you pored over the recipe again.

“What seems to be the problem?” Perik poked his head out from behind the door. “I thought I would be smelling bread baking by now.”

You pouted. “Not so lucky. Apparently, I greatly exaggerated my baking prowess.” You slammed the old cookbook shut and leaned back in your chair. “I keep messing up.”

“Awe, now, don’t be so hard on yourself.” Perik turned the book around to look at it. “Perhaps you could try another recipe. There could be an issue with the one you’re trying.”

“Maybe I could go into town and buy a loaf somewhere and make Zaejin think I made it. He’s been sleeping so much, he’d never know,” you murmured mostly to yourself.

Perik was flipping through the pages of the book, murmuring to himself. “That would be cheating. And Zaejin would know, trust me.”

Glancing out the window of the kitchen door you could see Zaejin’s bridge. You’d spent time cleaning it up, getting rid of debris and overgrowth to make it look nice for Zaejin. But still, he had kept harping on that bread you promised ages ago.

“Ah-ha! Here we are. A nice simple recipe.” Perik pushed the book in front of you.

“Are you sure that’s even bread?” You asked, taking the book. “It’s mainly water and flour.”

“That can be said about a lot of bread related items,” Perik replied.

Looking over the page, the bread did seem extremely simple compared to the other you were trying before. “I’ll have to go into town. I don’t know if I have enough flour.”

Perik got a look and he shifted slightly. “How many attempts have you made since you last got groceries?”

The look you gave him in return was hopefully enough to tell him you didn’t want to talk about it, at all.

Perik sighed. “I’m not much of a baker myself, but I can try and help you out with this.” He raised his hands up and all the silver bangles and trinkets on him jangled loudly. “Keyword is try.”

“Well,” you smiled at him. “I suppose two tries can make a right.”

Perik lowered his arms and tilted his head to the side. “Is that a saying?”

“No. But for the intent of this project, we’ll pretend it is.” You snapped a photo of the recipe. “Ugh that drive into town is so long. Do you mind cleaning up the kitchen for me?”

“I suppose,” Perik sighed dramatically.

You gave Perik a soft kiss, lingering for a moment as you really didn’t want to have to go into town. “I’ll bring you back a treat. Promise!” You changed into a non-floured top and gathered your purse.

Leaving the house, you saw Zaejin climbing out beside the bridge. You hesitated, thinking about leaving, but then Zaejin stood and stretched.