Strawberry Cake and a New Unnie
Seha-ya, did you want that strawberry cake? Our eyes met. The other person was a young woman who looked to be in her early twenties. An awkward vibe passed between me and her for a moment.
Maybe realizing my situation, she cleared some space on the table for me to sit. She even smiled and gestured for me to hurry up and take a seat. 'If I ignore her and leave in a situation like this, that'd be its own problem.' Resigned to the fact that things had already gone this far, I sat down in the chair. I chose a spot diagonally across from her—the kind of seat that said, "Let's not talk, just eat quietly and part ways on good terms."
"…."
"…."
Not brave enough to make eye contact again, I kept my gaze fixed on my plate and mechanically shoveled food into my mouth. How many minutes had passed like that? Despite the awkwardness of sharing a table with a stranger, the food was so good that I'd already polished off one plate. After a month on the 1F Meadow eating nothing but fruit with Dingdong, it was only natural for my eyes to glaze over at this luxurious spread.
'Heh heh, next up is dessert time~ Gotta devour that cake, macarons, cookies, all of it!' Unable to contain the grin creeping onto my face, I smirked to myself as I prepared to grab the next dish. That's when I felt an impure gaze from somewhere.
'First, deep breath.'
"Hoo!"
I consciously pulled my lips back down and side-eyed the source of the stare. Sure enough, it was her from the same table, watching me intently. Not just watching, but with this incredibly fond, fatherly smile—like she was beaming with paternal pride.
'Nope, time to bail.' Sensing something ominous, I tried to make a quick exit, but her mouth moved faster than my sluggish ten-year-old body.
"Little one, what's your name?"
"…."
"Won't you tell unnie?"
Her "little one" was obviously referring to me. Everyone else here looked like adults except for me, and I was the only one she could possibly be talking to anyway.
"Jeong Seha."
I barely managed to keep my composure as I replied.
"Got it, Seha-ya. Unnie's Yi Yisul. Family name Yi, given name Sol."
"Okay."
"Seha-ya, you came here after getting separated from your parents at such a young age. Anything tough for you?"
"No, I'm fine."
'What is she trying to say, beating around the bush like this? I'd prefer if she just got to the point.' Even giving short answers drained a ton of energy when talking to people. Just as my patience was wearing thin, she spoke up again.
"Wanna go to the cooking corner together then?"
There was no reason for me to turn down that offer. Earlier, some food I wanted was on a shelf at my shoulder height, so I'd struggled to reach it before giving up and grabbing something else instead. If I asked her, I could probably snag a wider variety.
I nodded in response, and her eyes lit up with slight surprise before she smiled warmly and stood. In a flash, she was at my side, extending a hand like she was escorting me, waiting patiently for me to get up from my chair.
Even though I was a girl now, physical contact with another woman wasn't easy—especially a young, pretty one. 'But with this body, light skinship should be fine, right?'
To an outsider, we'd probably look like a perfectly normal mother-daughter duo. Yisul snatched my hesitant hand in an instant and pulled me along with surprising strength, whisking me right up to the food.
I piled whatever caught my eye onto my plate, but it ended up being nothing but desserts like macarons. She peeked at my plate and gave me this look that screamed, 'What else would a kid pick?'
'Just call me a friendless hikikomori instead. Getting babied by a college-aged woman is too embarrassing.' I couldn't say it out loud, so I just prayed desperately in my head. That's when something caught my eye.
The food that grabbed my attention was a strawberry cake that looked incredibly sweet. Layers of fancy whipped cream and cake, topped with a single, haughty strawberry. Just imagining popping a piece in my mouth and having it melt away in supreme sweetness made my mouth water.
But if I went for the cake too, she'd treat me even more like a kid—and the shelf was taller than me anyway, so I couldn't grab it myself.
I stretched on tiptoes, grunting, but it was no use. 'Talk about pie in the sky. Or cake in the sky, I guess?'
'It's not like this is my only chance.' Thinking that, I turned to look for other food.
"Hic!"
I spun around to find Yisul crouched right in front of me. The total surprise made me hiccup. She gave my startled self a light smile and spoke casually.
"Seha-ya, did you want that strawberry cake?"
"…."
I shook my head side to side more firmly than any response I'd given so far. 'I've already shown such an embarrassing side—if I admit I want the strawberry cake now, I'll die of shame.'
"Aw, what a shame~ That strawberry cake looks so tasty. Guess I'll have to eat it myself."
She teased me as she placed the cake on her own plate. I desperately wanted to say, "Sol-unnie, actually I love strawberry cake too!" right then, but flipping my stance would trample my last shred of pride. This must've been how Zhuge Liang felt, weeping as he cut down his own warhorse.
To hide even a hint of childishness, I grabbed a cup of coffee and headed back to the table. As I settled into my original seat, regretting the missed cake, Yisul followed and plopped down right next to me.
"Huh?"
She'd definitely been diagonally across at first? She switched seats so naturally that I stared at her in bewilderment.
"What? Something on my face? Or did you fall for me too? Oh my, a little kid can't be crushing already."
Speechless, I went back to eating. 'This must be how girls hang out.' I'd barely ever gone out, and even then it was just for kimbap or burgers, so I had no clue what girl talk felt like.
She chattered on, asking if my hair was dyed, complimenting how nice it was for a kid, even asking if she could pinch my cheeks once. I gave short answers while finishing my food. Of course, I refused the cheek-pinch request outright.
The only downside was that my shrunken stomach post-body-swap couldn't handle it all—I left a bit of the stir-fried pork and sweet-and-sour pork. But as the saying goes, dessert stomach is separate; I demolished the macarons and cookies.
Yisul, who'd barely touched her own food and just watched me, finally asked a question.
"Seha-ya, how'd you clear the 1st floor?"
My expression darkened at that. Thinking of the mysterious achievement, the inexplicable clear, and leaving Dingdong behind without a proper goodbye made my chest tighten.
"Sorry, I asked something too personal. My bad."
"No, it's just... the coffee's bitter."
It really did taste insanely bitter in this kid body, so it wasn't a total lie.
"Bitter coffee goes great with cake. Want one?"
Looking closely at her plate, I saw two pieces of the exact strawberry cake I'd eyed earlier. 'It's not like I absolutely have to have strawberry cake, but if she's going this far... eating it would be polite.'
I quickly snagged a piece with my chopsticks onto my plate. Gotta thank this gracious benefactor.
"Thanks for the strawberry cake."
I bowed my head with a slightly awkward smile. 'Gonna stick three thumbs-up stickers on Yisul in my heart.'
The cake was sweeter than I'd dreamed.
I thought she was a peculiar kid. When we first moved to the square, everything was chaotic and I couldn't focus, but even then, that girl stood out crystal clear in my vision.
In a square full of mostly adult men, a cute girl with sky-blue hair naturally drew eyes—but that wasn't why I noticed her.
Others were basking in victory over the brutal 1st-floor boss, trembling in fear for their lives, or even panting from leg pain after fleeing full-tilt. Everyone was venting their emotions intensely, but not her.
A girl who couldn't be more than ten stood there all alone, gazing wistfully at the empty air. 'If I get the chance, I'd love to talk to her.' Whether it was curiosity or pity, I couldn't say.
Luckily, the chance came sooner than expected. While eating in the cafeteria, I spotted her passing by my table. Shoulders slumped, walking all forlorn like a lost kitten—it was adorable. If I'd had my phone, I'd have filmed it.
She looked lost for a seat, so I waved her over quick. She hesitated a bit, then scurried to sit. And bam, straight to eating like her life depended on it.
'Where'd she come from, starving all day? How's a tiny thing like that packing away so much?'
I wanted to chat, but she was so serious about her food that I couldn't find an opening. 'Still, it's cute. I get why people watch mukbangs now.'
I got lost watching her, and suddenly her plate was empty. 'Jeez, no one's chasing her—why eat so fast?'
As she stood to grab her tray, I got greedy. If I let her go now, who knows when I'd see her again.
"Little one, what's your name?"
'Wait, isn't calling a kid "little one" supposed to make 'em mad? She doesn't seem to mind.'
Her replies after were curt, but at least we'd communicated a bit—felt like the distance shrank some. Especially when she fixated on the strawberry cake: national treasure-level cuteness. Mouth saying no interest, eyes glued like lasers. If I'd waved the cake up and down, her head would've followed like a cat chasing a laser pointer.
Of course, pulling that on a stranger might ruin things forever, so I held back with superhuman patience.
Maybe I got too excited after. When I couldn't hold back and asked how she'd cleared the 1st floor, the mood froze—I snapped to my senses.
'Knew she had some backstory, and I poke the sore spot? Close call.'
Good thing the strawberry cake I'd saved cheered her right up. On the way home with Seha—same gender, same building, so same destination obviously.
That's when a guy popped out and addressed me. I startled into guard mode, and he backed off like he hadn't meant to scare. With a quick apologetic bow, he said there'd be a survivors' meeting in the square after lunch tomorrow and vanished if I could make it.
"Guy delivers the message and poofs—looks busy, huh?"
Seha's only reply was a small nod. After that, we did small talk from MBTI to favorite foods, and suddenly we were at our building.
"Let's eat together tomorrow too! Lock the door tight."
Again, Seha just bowed silently and shut the door. 'For a first meeting, not bad—she seems less guarded.'
I wouldn't say it aloud since it's rude, but Seha reminded me of a stray kitten abandoned somewhere. Shying from too much contact, backing away if you step closer.
'Could just be she doesn't like me, but nah—she responded well enough.'
That darkened look when I asked about the 1st-floor clear seemed tied to her past.
"Even if it's hard now, someday I hope you can live carefree like a normal little girl."
No adults around but me, so I whispered it unconsciously, wanting to seem more reliable.