Chapter: I’m Groot
Even though an enormous incident had occurred on Jeju Island, the kindergarten’s daily routine did not stop.
At Saebom Kindergarten, everyone was busy preparing for the year-end talent show, step by step.
The classes of the children younger than Gru had already begun practicing the fan dance.
And while Gru was away on Jeju Island, it seemed that the four-year-old Chicks Class had decided to put on a play.
“Here, this is yours, Gru.”
“Yeees!”
Gru accepted the script handed out by Teacher Jeongyun.
After distributing scripts to all the children in the class, she said loudly,
“You have to take your scripts home and show them to your parents, okay?”
“Yeees!”
Her first play! Her first role!
‘Thump-thump!’
Come to think of it, she knew someone who could help her with a play.
Gru immediately picked up her phone.
Uju!!
Uju, Uju, are you busy?
Uju
No!!!
Why?
Help me!
Gru, I got an amazing role at kindergarten.
Uju
Kindergarten? What are you doing?
A play!
The Fairy and the Woodcutter.
So, Uju,
Do you want to come to Gru’s house?
*
The Fairy and the Woodcutter.
In the play, which had been adapted to suit the children’s level, Gru’s role was none other than ‘Tree 1.’
However, so that the children who had been given minor roles would not feel disappointed, each and every role had been given an elaborate character setting…
‘Tree 1’ was a character who dreamed of taking revenge on the deer that ate its young leaves every day. Then, one day, an unexpected opportunity arose.
A hunter had appeared to catch the deer.
That was why Tree 1 had exactly one line.
‘Hunter, over there! The deer is over there!’
On the living-room sofa, Uju looked closely over the script Gru had handed him, then raised his eyes.
“How is it?”
Seeing Gru’s eyes filled with anticipation, Uju pretended to be calm and said,
“Not a bad role.”
She wasn’t the fairy, the woodcutter, the hunter, or the deer, but Tree 1—the tree that sold out the deer…
Uju firmly resolved to teach Gru some amazing acting while he had the chance.
If Gru enjoyed acting because of this play, perhaps they could film something together someday.
Then, as her senior, he could guide her…
And they would be able to spend even more time together.
‘All right.’
“To act well, you first have to immerse yourself in the role.”
With a deliberately serious expression, Uju raised both arms like branches.
“Mm-hmm.”
Gru raised both arms the same way.
“Have you acted as a tree before, Uju?”
“No. This is my first…”
Uju answered hesitantly.
“But I can still do it well. Just trust me.”
“Mm-hmm, mm-hmm!”
“From now on, think of yourself as a tree.”
“Got it.”
I am a tree… Gru is a tree!
Just as Gru was about to immerse herself completely in her role, Uju suddenly asked,
“Hey, by the way. You know what you mentioned before?”
“Mm?”
“Preschool. Are you really going?”
“Huh? Mm-hmm. I have to take the test the week after next.”
Even though it was called a test, it was designed for young children, so the difficulty wasn’t very high. Gru had said she only needed to be careful about a few things.
‘Read the questions carefully, don’t write ‘jijon’…’
As she recalled the points Seol Yeo-jin had emphasized, Uju quickly said,
“About that—I decided to take the test too. I got permission from my dad.”
Gru’s mouth fell open. Uju? Taking the test for Eustitia Preschool?
“Really, really?”
When she brought her face right up close, Uju shrugged.
“Y-Yeah. …Would you hate that?”
“Nooo! It’d be fun to go together with Uju! I’m super, super excited!”
“R-Really?”
Uju’s face reddened like a tomato, and he turned his head away.
Actually, it had already been some time since he had begged his father and submitted an application the moment he heard that Gru was going to preschool.
He had simply spent three sleepless days and nights worrying about how to tell Gru.
He had been concerned that she might dislike him for following her around, but who would have thought she would be this happy?
‘Well, Gru likes me.’
A swell of pride and excitement made his heart beat faster.
Uju, feeling elated, was about to sneak a look at Gru when he suddenly sensed someone watching him and whipped his head in the opposite direction.
“……?”
A hamster was staring fixedly at Uju, drool streaming from its mouth.
‘What is that? Why is it looking at me like that?’
Without taking its eyes off Uju, the hamster wiped away the drool running down its chin with the back of its hand.
‘……?!’
Just as the strange, unpleasant feeling was making his mood sour—
Beep-
The door lock opened, and Jurim appeared.
Yeongran came out of the kitchen and hurried over to greet him.
“You’re home, sir.”
“Yes. Nothing happened, right? Did Gru get home safely?”
“Oh, our little one…”
Yeongran covered her mouth with one hand, trying to hold back her laughter.
Puzzled, Jurim looked into the living room.
“……?”
He stopped short when he saw the two kindergarteners standing there with their arms raised.
She had said that she wouldn’t come to the company after kindergarten today, but would go straight home to play with Uju…
“What are you doing?”
“Being trees.”
“Being trees.”
Uju and Gru answered at the same time.
“……Trees?”
When Jurim asked again with an utterly bewildered expression, the housekeeper, Yeongran, added,
“Our puppies are putting on a play for the talent show, so they’re practicing acting like trees.”
“Trees?”
Jurim looked at his daughter, who had brought home a professional child actor—who had even won an award—to practice acting like a tree.
“Do they even have lines—”
Just as Jurim was about to ask whether they had lines, Uju cut him off.
“Mister, we’re in the middle of immersing ourselves in our acting, so please don’t talk to us.”
Gru, who had a sprout attached to her head, firmly agreed.
“I am Groot.”
“……”
Yeongran burst into laughter and patted Jurim’s dumbfounded back.
“Why don’t you go in and change, sir?”
“……”
Jurim opened and closed his mouth soundlessly, then walked past the kindergarten trees and entered the dressing room.
*
▶ String Instrument Minors Group Chat
Oppa Serhi! When are you getting discharged?
Gidan
Ser-ser, when are you getting discharged?
Serhi
Why are you acting all cutesy? Are you four years old?
Gidan
Baby Gidan is 16 years old
Baby Gru is 4 years old
Gidan
LOL cute
Serhi has left the chat.
Gidan invited Serhi to the chat.
Gidan
LOL
Serhi
Ah
...
(An emoticon of a squirrel standing awkwardly with its hands behind its back)
Hey, Oppa Ser-ser
Serhi
You too?
Gru is putting on a play at her kindergarten’s talent show next Saturday…
Can you come?
Gidan
Big bro Jurim and Nayeon noona are both going
You should skip the hospital and come too
Serhi
Okay, I’ll go
I’m getting discharged today anyway
Yay!
Gidan
Oh
Serhi
But what play is it?
What role do you have?
Gidan
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
*
“……A tree?”
At Serhi’s mutter, Jin Siwon, who was helping him get discharged in the hospital room, asked,
“Gru?”
“What? You already knew?”
“I was invited to that… talent show they’re holding at her kindergarten.”
After finishing his sentence, stumbling a few times over the unfamiliar word, Siwon smiled gently.
“But are you really ready to be discharged already? You could stay a few more days.”
“I’m already bursting with energy.”
Serhi lightly stretched and opened his status window.
[Damage is being repaired due to the effects of the elixir… 98%]
The elixir Gru had given him was regenerating everything smoothly, even the calluses embedded in his hands.
His body felt so light that it was almost as if he could fly, and staying in the hospital was making him restless.
‘Though that’s not the only reason.’
Serhi glanced sidelong at Jin Siwon, who was packing his belongings beside him.
What the elixir repaired was every defect in its target.
Because of that, the defects in Serhi’s memories had been repaired as well.
When his memories of the orphanage were inadvertently revived, Serhi lowered his eyes.
He recalled the face of the young older boy who had brought him bread and patted his head. As he rubbed the back of his neck, he suddenly froze.
‘Damn it! I shouldn’t think about this!’
As expected, when he whipped his face toward Siwon, the man was sniffling as he discreetly dabbed away his tears.
Serhi pressed a hand to his forehead.
‘I knew this would happen.’
Over the past few days, Serhi had learned all too painfully that he must not think of just anything in front of someone with the Reading skill.