This body is great because it doesn’t feel back pain.
The Jelly Girl muttered this to herself while sprawling face-down on the bed, twirling her feet around.
The soft, wobbly body of the Jelly Girl lay curved into the bed, and truth be told, this was a position that would have likely caused pain if she were human.
However, as the Jelly Girl no longer possessed a back capable of pain—
She merely lay there, her squishy body lightly rustling against the plush bed.
While aimlessly rustling about with nothing to do, the Jelly Girl suddenly realized that the other Jellies who had gone outside had yet to return.
The Jelly Girl twisted her upper body around, leaving her lower half in place, and recalled the events from earlier.
After watching the bizarre video letter with Han Seori, the Jelly Girl had returned to the room only to be immediately ambushed by the Jellies upon entering.
It wasn’t exactly a Jelly revolution aimed at overthrowing the oppressor Jelly Girl.
Simply put:
Thud! Thud!
Jung-sik crashed into the Jelly Girl with his body, slamming into her abdomen.
Daesik, with his tiny doll-like hands, lightly tapped the Jelly Girl’s thighs.
Caught off guard by this sudden violent display, the Jelly Girl observed the Jellies’ actions with a slightly perplexed expression.
“Why are you guys doing this all of a sudden?”
Though it didn’t hurt, this was unusual behavior from them (with Jung-sik being the exception), which greatly confused the Jelly Girl.
In particular, Daesik’s betrayal, who had always playfully pushed against her for hugs, shocked her deeply.
While staring at the Jellies in shock, the Jelly Girl suddenly realized the cause, as if struck by a bolt of lightning.
Repeatedly colliding into her lower stomach could be excused for Jung-sik, but Daesik, who had been tapping her knee, swung his little doll-like arms wildly before bowing his upper body and clutching his stomach.
Noticing Daesik bringing his hand from his stomach to his mouth, the Jelly Girl slapped the jelly lightly and realized the truth.
‘…They were hungry.’
Upon reflection, she remembered not providing food for the Jellies since trapping them in the room due to Yang Ha-na’s sudden appearance.
It seemed their behavior was the result of hunger.
Feeling somewhat sheepish, the Jelly Girl idly rubbed her squishy back while making an apologetic gesture towards the two Jellies.
Had the Jelly Girl’s apologetic feelings reached them?
Jung-sik, who had been in a full-blown tantrum, finally stopped crashing into her and began gently shooting out blobs of jelly from his back.
The Jelly Girl, still sticky from the jelly splattered on her, glanced around the room and noticed the absence of one particular Jelly.
She then spotted Sosik lying flat on the floor with his hands propped on his stomach.
…It was as if a castaway had lost all will, sprawled on a raft.
The Jelly Girl shook her head at the absurdity.
He’ll gobble it all up once I bring the food.
As she debated whether to head to the dining area, stroking her chin, she felt an indescribable sense of laziness.
After burning a lot of energy moments ago, she didn’t feel like doing anything else.
Lying lazily on the comfy bed sounded far more appealing, as there was no activity to look forward to.
‘Isn’t it about time someone else took care of them? My shift is over after all…’
The Jelly Girl idly played with a blob of jelly and recalled a conversation she overheard before leaving the control room earlier.
‘Did you assign a room to Ms. Ha-na?’
‘…There wasn’t a bed available right away, so I gave her the room I used to occupy.’
‘Ah… hmm, you seem more perverted than I thought.’
‘Ah, no, that’s not it! How could I leave someone rolling around in the snow lying on the floor?!’
‘I was just joking. Anyway, let’s see… Ms. Cheon-soo, you were about to freshen up, weren’t you…?’
Recalling that conversation, the Jelly Girl chuckled inwardly at the thought of Kim Cheon-soo flustered by Han Seori’s teasing.
‘Still, though.’
Han Seori must be really bored. She doesn’t usually make as many jokes.
…Or does she?
Unsure, the Jelly Girl shrugged.
Anyway.
The most important piece of news was that Yang Ha-na had been given a room and was now presumably asleep.
If that were the case…
Isn’t it unnecessary for me to personally go and fetch food?
Given the Jellies’ relatively high intelligence, they should be able to find and eat the leftover food in the fridge, right?
After coming to this conclusion, the Jelly Girl fetched a memo pad lying on the floor and a pen that had been rolling around under the bed.
She then drew a picture on the blank sheet of paper.
A refrigerator.
Next to it, a picture of the fridge door open.
Then a drawing of food coming out of the open fridge, accompanied by illustrations of jubilant Jellies hopping around.
Awakening even Sosik, who had been sound asleep, the Jelly Girl showed them the drawings.
Upon seeing the pictures, the Jellies excitedly prepared to leave, much like adventurous children setting off on an expedition.
Daesik, positioned on top of Jung-sik like a princess on a horse, thrust his tiny fist forward.
Jung-sik wagged his jelly-like tail, ready to bolt at any moment.
The Jelly Girl watched them fondly.
…She then helped position Sosik behind Daesik.
Though slightly burdened by the extra weight, Jung-sik seemed to manage well, whether because of hunger or the lightness of the Jellies.
As Daesik thrust his fist forward once more, Jung-sik enthusiastically set off…
…dragging Sosik along the floor as he headed towards the kitchen.
After sending off the Jellies and aimlessly squirming in bed for some time, the Jelly Girl finally noticed something amiss and had no choice but to leave the bed and head towards the kitchen.
‘…Why aren’t they coming back with food already?’
The Jelly Girl thought the Jellies meeting Yang Ha-na wouldn’t be an issue.
After all, Yang Ha-na would soon become one of “us” like Kim Cheon-soo and Han Seori—likely within the next day or so.
What concerned her more was the possibility that the Jellies might have trashed the kitchen.
Fearing she may have underestimated their behavior, the Jelly Girl worried.
No matter how smart they were… they were still jellies, after all.
They had a habit of eating with their tentacles and bare bodies—causing mishaps was not out of the question.
They might have even eaten the entire fridge.
‘This is inconvenient…’
Plop, plop.
The Jelly Girl’s steps grew increasingly hurried as anxiety built.
Praying for nothing untoward to have occurred, upon reaching the kitchen she noticed the lights were off.
Had they been unable to turn it on?
Or, had they eaten the bulbs in their hunger?
Hastening her steps, the Jelly Girl peeked into the kitchen.
What she saw…
…was an unsettling scene.
First in her view was the largest figure present—Yang Ha-na.
Though she had only seen her on screen until now, the sight of her in person felt somewhat familiar thanks to the footage.
Perhaps she was the “something” responsible for bringing Yang Ha-na here.
But that wasn’t important at the moment.
Yang Ha-na’s face was covered in sticky, opaque jelly, and she lay unmoving, seemingly unconscious.
The Jelly Girl, feeling a chill, quickly approached and cautiously extended a jelly-like arm.
Relieved to confirm Yang Ha-na was still alive, uncertainty remained about the details of the incident.
One thing seemed clear, however:
If Yang Ha-na had seen the Jellies…
…their introduction, albeit unofficial, had likely left a very bad first impression.
Having ensured Yang Ha-na’s condition, the Jelly Girl looked for the culprits.
She then saw the wide-open fridge door.
Approaching cautiously, inside she found the Jellies comfortably huddled together, sharing meals.
…Did they just make someone like that and not care?
Well, at least she isn’t dead.
Exhaling a glob of jelly inwardly in lieu of a sigh, the Jelly Girl closed the fridge door.
Though the problem remained unresolved, clearing it from sight felt somewhat refreshing.
With the Jellies dealt with for now, the Jelly Girl moved on to Yang Ha-na.
Kim Cheon-soo had mentioned she would be staying in his room, so dragging her there and letting her tumble off the bed seemed like an acceptable solution.
But what if she wakes up while being dragged?
That would be… annoying.
After some deliberation, the Jelly Girl decided on another course of action.
In her head, she thought strongly:
‘Kim Cheon-soo wants to come to the kitchen. Kim Cheon-soo wants to come to the kitchen.’
Though reluctant to use her abilities this way, she rationalized the necessity to prevent further trouble.
With that resolve, it wasn’t long before:
“Hey, what’s this?”
Kim Cheon-soo entered the kitchen, wearing multiple layers over his pajamas.
Startled, Kim Cheon-soo confirmed Yang Ha-na was unharmed and turned his gaze to the Jelly Girl.
Her frantic head shaking clearly communicated “I didn’t do it.”
To clarify her point, the Jelly Girl opened the fridge door, revealing the Jellies floating amidst the food, then closed it again.
“Why are they in the fridge again?”
The Jelly Girl shrugged nonchalantly while avoiding Kim Cheon-soo’s accusing glare, which only deepened his sigh.
Kim Cheon-soo entered the kitchen with cleaning supplies and carefully wiped Yang Ha-na’s face.
He then approached the Jelly Girl with a somewhat dissatisfied expression.
“Hey, what about me?”
The Jelly Girl, confused, was suddenly picked up by Kim Cheon-soo and dropped—
Squelch.
—into the very fridge where she had confined the Jellies.
Gripping the fridge door, Kim Cheon-soo looked down at her like a prison guard monitoring through a crack in the door.
“This is my payback.”
Kim Cheon-soo muttered meaningfully before closing the fridge door.
Closing the door, Kim Cheon-soo felt a peculiar sense of relief.
Was it due to all the stress he had been holding in?
…He couldn’t say for sure, but considering all he’d been through, this felt fair.
‘Besides, she can probably endure the fridge just as well as outside.’
Isn’t it more refreshing?
Feels like a vacation, not punishment.
It’s absolutely not because he felt wronged about sleeping in the lounge.
Shaking his head slightly, Kim Cheon-soo tiredly scooped up Yang Ha-na, who was lighter than expected, and left the kitchen.
The kitchen appeared to regain its peace.
…For now.
