Stretch Stretch Stretch Gymnastics!
Stretch stretch stretch gymnastics are the key to growing taller!! After waiting about ten minutes at the cafe near my house, I finally spotted Moddeok and Pyeongjipja. If Moddeok was bringing someone along, it had to be Pyeongjipja. That was the only possibility. But the person walking beside her was a girl I'd never seen before. She was tiny. Her height was barely a head shorter than Moddeok's. Moddeok's secret child? That didn't make any sense. Moddeok couldn't possibly be married, and even if she were, getting pregnant would mean she had the kid back in elementary school. This was ridiculous. Who on earth was that girl?
The two of them were chatting and laughing as they approached. They clearly got along well... Was she a niece? Bringing her niece along? I never heard anything about that!! Ah... ah!! She must be the niece who throws tantrums every New Year's. Moddeok was too nice, so she probably had no choice but to bring her. Moddeok really was kind. From inside the cafe, I waved my hand enthusiastically toward her. Moddeok noticed me right away and smiled, waving back.
"Ehehe." Such a proper lady. But the girl beside her reacted way too dramatically. She glanced between me and Moddeok, made a startled face, then burst out laughing. Why? The curiosity was driving me insane. I'd ask when they got here.
Moddeok and the girl slowly stepped inside.
"Seon-a, we're here."
"Yes!! Hello!"
My eyes immediately went to the little girl. Who was she? I had no idea. The three of us sat down, and the moment we did, Moddeok pointed at the girl.
"Do you know who this is?"
"Your niece?"
"Puhuhuhuh. Do I look like her niece?"
"Hmm... She's not your daughter!!"
"Puh-heh. Of course not."
"Right? I really have no clue."
The girl was clearly holding back laughter. Was an adult supposed to laugh while another adult was talking? "Want a hint?"
"A hint? Yes!!"
"It's someone you know."
"Who? Me?"
"Yep~ Someone you know too, Seon-a."
Someone I knew? I had zero idea. I stared at the girl, thinking hard. Who could it be? Hmm. Someone I knew. Someone who came with Moddeok. I still had nothing. "Hmph." I suddenly stood up and examined the girl closely. She was wearing a beige padded jacket, so it was hard to tell. Her phone... she was using an iPhone? Hmm... Was she a middle schooler? Which middle schooler did I know? Someone both Moddeok and I knew... Who? Huh? Could it be...? Without realizing it, I was glaring at the girl with wide eyes. No way. That couldn't be right. It just didn't make sense. But... the only person both Moddeok and I knew was...
"No way..."
"No way? Who do you think it is? Guess."
"Uh... Could it be... my friend?"
"That's right!!"
Moddeok clapped and laughed. I felt like I'd been struck by lightning. My friend Raming was this tiny girl? That was impossible. From her ASMR streams, she seemed like a full-grown woman. How could someone this petite do that kind of content? Why? "Height... height..."
"She's seriously short. Like 150cm?"
"152.5."
Once I heard her voice, I knew it was definitely Raming. No... this couldn't be happening. She'd taken way too much of that red pill. Where did the Raming I imagined go? "The Raming who was 167cm tall, had a big chest, wore short skirts, and was always called a loser... Where did that Raming go? What even is this farming version...!!"
"Kahahahahaha." Moddeok laughed even louder than before.
"No, Seon-a. There's a reason Raming is so small."
"What is it? Really?"
"Yep~ She didn't do stretch stretch stretch gymnastics when she was little."
"Stretch stretch stretch gymnastics?"
"What are you even talking about?"
"You should've done it. You can still grow if you start now, you know?"
"I've already finished growing."
"Does that even make sense?"
What was that supposed to mean? I slowly sat back down and searched it up on my phone. Stretch stretch stretch gymnastics. It was an exercise kids did to grow taller... I looked back and forth between my phone screen and Raming.
"Then let's do it...!!" It didn't look hard. Give me back my red pill. The Raming who was 167cm, had a big chest, wore short skirts, and was always called a loser. Give her back to me. I read the instructions and followed along. First, I stretched both arms straight up to the sky like I was cheering. "Stretch stretch stretch."
"Stop!! That's embarrassing. What are you doing?"
"Kek... kekek... Ha... ha... This is hilarious. My stomach hurts. Kek..."
"Stretch to the left... stretch to the right..."
At this rate, she really wouldn't grow taller. I refused to accept this farming version of Raming. So this was what they meant by the red pill. My image of her... Give it back!! It felt like I'd lost everything in the world. "This isn't Raming... I can't accept this!!"
Raming barely managed to stop Seon-a. Since she kept trying to do the stretch stretch stretch gymnastics at random moments, Raming ended up sitting right next to her to keep her under control. Raming was slowly sipping her coffee when she felt an intense stare from beside her.
"What?"
"Drinking coffee will stop you from growing taller."
"I've already finished growing."
"No... I don't know. Not yet."
"Seon-a will help you with stretch stretch stretch gymnastics!!"
Moddeok fanned the flames. Seon-a clenched her fists and nodded firmly.
"I'll do ten sets when I get home. I really... just up to 160cm... Okay."
"No, let's aim for 165."
"That's too much. We need to increase it gradually. I did PT when I was younger, you know? Gradual improvement is important."
"Oh! Then once you hit 160, we'll raise it to 165?"
"Sounds good!!"
"What are you two even talking about?" At Raming's question, Seon-a whipped her head around.
Seon-a was dead serious. She couldn't accept the farming version of Raming. Absolutely not.
"Growth."
"What growth?"
"Raming's height growth."
"No. I told you I can't grow anymore."
"You can. Have you even tried? Have you!!"
"I did try."
"...You were just going about it the wrong way. I'll guide you in the right direction."
- Ring ring ring ring.
A phone suddenly started ringing.
"Not me."
"Not me either."
"Not me?"
Moddeok's phone on the table wasn't ringing, and Raming checked hers too. Hers wasn't either. That meant...
"Uh... Whose... It's Seon-a's, right?"
"...Huh?"
"You said no without even looking. What?"
"Ah...!! My bad."
"What even is 'no-look no'?"
"Shh!! The call's coming in!!"
Seon-a held her index finger to her lips, then answered the phone.
"Yes~ Pyeong, what's up? Ah... ah. Yes. Yes. Huh? Oh. Ah...!! Then I'll send you my home address. Just head there first. Yes. Yes. Got it. Yes. Fighting. Uh... It's fine. It's okay. Uh. You know Moddeok, right? Seon-a knows too? Yes. Yes. No, there's one more person. Do you know Raming? Yes. She's here. Mm. It's fine. Just come over. Yes. Yes. I'll hang up now. Yes."
Seon-a ended the call and looked between Moddeok and Raming before speaking calmly.
"Pyeong said she's running late because of editing, so we should go ahead without her."
"Ah, really? Then let's head out right away. Where's the nearest mart?"
"There are plenty nearby. Any big mart should work. They're open even during the holidays."
"Then let's just go to the closest one and grab everything quickly."
"Yep!!"
"Who's coming today?"
At Moddeok's question, Seon-a looked up at the ceiling and muttered slowly.
"Hmm... Me, Moddeok, Raming... Pyeong will probably come too. That's everyone."
"What about Maru?"
"Ah!! She's coming tomorrow for lunch!!"
"Where are we sleeping?"
"Ah!! I already told my mom. She said since there are so many people, she'll stay at a nearby hotel!!"
"Oh... You didn't have to do that. It feels like we caused extra trouble..."
"It's fine. Mom and Dad need the exercise too!!"
Raming, who had been quietly listening to Moddeok and Seon-a's conversation, furrowed her brows. According to what Moddeok had told her, the content was just Seon-a and Moddeok making tteokguk while everyone else only had to eat it. That was supposedly the whole plan. So naturally, Raming had assumed they were doing it at the studio. But listening to their conversation now, something felt... off.
"Hold on."
"Huh?"
"What did you say we were doing?"
"Uh. We're us. I'm Seon-a."
"I'm Tteok."
"No, that's not what I meant."
Raming quickly raised her left hand. Her thoughts were a complete mess. But Seon-a, watching her, completely misunderstood.
"Want to do gymnastics? I'll help you!!"
"Our Ming wants to do gymnastics? Should I play some music? Stretch stretch stretch?"
"Ra... Raming!! I'll really help you. Let's try for 160cm together. You can do it!!"
Seon-a stretched both arms up to the sky like she was cheering. She started doing one-two, one-two on her own, then began lightly bending and straightening her elbows to the rhythm.
"No. We're not doing this at the studio?"
"We're doing it at my house? Studios are expensive."
"...What? Who? Why? Why at Seon-a's house?"
"Didn't Moddeok tell you?"
"No. She didn't say anything."
"Aha!! Then it's understandable you didn't know. Now you get it, right?"
"This isn't something you can just accept so casually. You never mentioned any of this beforehand."
Raming was dumbfounded. In her entire life, she'd never heard of anyone doing content at someone else's house. While she was still reeling, Moddeok cut straight to the point.
"Well, the water's already spilled. No point trying to put it back in the cup, right? Let's just do it. Are you going to leave?"
"I could leave, you know?"
"Then Tteok will beg. Sorry. Really sorry."
Seon-a joined in on the apology. She grabbed Raming's arm tightly and even rubbed her face against it.
"No!! Let's do it together. Seon-a is begging like this. Sob... sob. Let's do it together. Please."
Raming peeled Seon-a's face off with her free hand and said, "Ah... Fine, I get it... Just stop..."
"So we're doing it?"
"No. Can you at least explain first?"
"Explain what?"
"The content. From what I heard, you two are making tteokguk. And I just eat it."
"Exactly right. You heard it perfectly!!"
Seon-a nodded her head like a puppy. It had been so long since she'd invited a friend over to her house. She was really looking forward to it. The only downside was that all her bragging material was at her parents' house instead of her own place.