The First Pet Hatching
It felt suffocating. I couldn’t breathe. It was as if something was blocking my airways, pressing down hard. The discomfort was unbearable.
Peep peep.
“Ugh…”
Was someone trying to assassinate me in my sleep? The dark thought floated through my drowsy mind. I struggled to sit up, but my exhaustion-drenched body refused to cooperate.
“Come on…!”
Get up, Kang Changjae! If you fall here, Mom will be next!
Peep!
“Pwah!”
My body finally snapped awake. At the same moment, whatever had been clogging my breathing vanished.
“Haa… haa… haa…? What the hell?”
Still half-blind with sleep, I scanned my surroundings. Mom lay beside me. Seunghee was on the other side. Both were sleeping deeply. They’d pushed themselves hard yesterday, so waking early was unlikely.
…That aside, the culprit who’d blocked my nose was—
Peep peep.
“Oh… whoa.”
It was completely absurd. A yellow chick sat on my pillow, staring at me with calm, round eyes. A chick I had never seen before.
…What the hell is this?
“Ah.”
It clicked. The Pet Egg. The one with the shortest incubation time should have been ready to hatch by now. I turned my head and confirmed it—one of the three incubators lined up neatly had vanished.
“Mmm… Oppa…”
Seunghee mumbled and squirmed in her sleep. She didn’t seem ready to wake up yet.
“Changjae? What’s the matter…?”
Mom had woken up. She rubbed her sleepy eyes, looking adorably disheveled in a way that felt strangely seductive.
“Mom. A chick hatched from the egg.”
“A chick…?”
She muttered, still half-lost in a dream. Instead of answering, I simply pointed. The chick tilted its head curiously.
“…Oh my.”
Her drowsy expression slowly transformed into pure astonishment.
“Oh my, oh my, oh my.”
Peep peep.
As if greeting her, the chick flapped its tiny wings toward the surprised woman.
“Oh my, oh my, oh my—goodness!”
Mom was now fully awake. She cautiously extended a finger. The chick immediately rubbed its head against her hand like an affectionate puppy.
“What am I going to do? It’s too cute…”
I was relieved she liked it. I’d felt a little deflated that something so expensive had only produced a baby chicken, but her delight made it worth it.
Mom cupped both palms together and held them in front of the chick. Without hesitation, it hopped right into her hands as though it could read her mind.
Peep peep.
“Look at this, Changjae.”
“Yes. I’m watching.”
“Isn’t it just the cutest thing?”
“Yes. It really is.”
Considering the incubator timer, this chick could only have been born a few hours ago. Yet it already looked like a perfect little chick. Most newborns were wet and scraggly, but of course nothing on this island followed normal rules.
“Mmm… a chick…?”
“Ah, sorry, Seunghee. Did we wake you?”
Seunghee was stirring too. She blinked blearily, hair a charming mess.
“Uung…?”
Her sleepy gaze landed on the chick nestled in Mom’s palms. Her half-lidded eyes widened bit by bit.
“…A chick?”
“It hatched from one of the incubator eggs.”
“Ah!”
Seunghee finally remembered the eggs and incubators.
Peep peep.
The chick flapped its wings again, showing off for her.
“Wow! Oh my god, it’s adorable!”
“Right?”
“Sister, can I touch it too?”
“Gently. That should be fine.”
Following Mom’s advice, Seunghee reached out carefully. Once again, the chick rubbed its head against her fingers.
“Aang~ What do I do~.”
“Looks like it enjoys your petting, Seunghee.”
Both women were utterly enchanted. I felt like the odd man out, standing beyond some invisible fence. Come to think of it, this little creature was the one who’d stopped me from breathing earlier, wasn’t it?
Should I just eat it?
“If we’re raising it as a pet, we should give it a name. Any ideas?”
“How about ‘Fried Chicken’?”
“Oppa! What kind of name is that!”
“Yeah. You shouldn’t pick names as a joke.”
“I wasn’t joking…”
“Oppa’s already planning to fatten it up and eat it, isn’t he? No way!”
“Changjae, you’re not really going to eat it, are you?”
Seunghee glared at me. Mom looked a little hurt. I hadn’t even done anything yet, but I suddenly felt unfairly accused—like everyone assumed I was the type of person who would obviously devour a baby chick.
Prejudice and discrimination were running wild in this hideout.
Of course I’d considered it. But only considered. I hadn’t acted on anything.
“…No. Eat something this cute? Never.”
“See? Mom believes in you, Changjae.”
“I’ll be watching with fire in my eyes.”
Peep peep!
…It looked like secretly eating it later would be difficult.
If I wasn’t going to eat it, what was the point of raising it? At least I hoped we could get eggs from it eventually.
“What should we name it?”
“Since it’s a chick, maybe Ari? Or how about Peep?”
“Ari? Peep? Both are cute, but I like Peep better.”
“It’ll turn into a chicken soon anyway, so Peep feels a little…”
“Come on! Oppa, at least try to get into it!”
In the end, the chick’s name was decided as Peep. My opinion was not required.
It was my pet, though…
“Peep, come here!”
Peep!
When Seunghee clapped and called from across the room, Peep waddled over with surprising speed.
“It understands human speech strangely well.”
“Maybe Peep is a genius?”
From the moment it hatched, Peep had completely monopolized the women’s affection. It understood words, it was cute, and it was overflowing with charm. Thanks to that, my own popularity was… ha.
“Oppa, please buy some pet food.”
“I thought you were going to buy and raise it yourself.”
“Can I really?”
“…Fine. Wait here.”
Pet food was sold in the shop. The small bag cost 10 coins, the large capacity 90. Since two more eggs would hatch soon, buying the big one made sense.
“Peep, eat up.”
Peep!
The pet food looked exactly like ordinary kibble. When Seunghee poured some into a small bowl, Peep began pecking at the pieces one by one.
Even while Mom prepared breakfast, Seunghee watched without growing tired of the sight.
“Seunghee, you’ll be in charge of Peep from now on. Food, water, and cleaning up after it poops.”
“Got it. Peep, you have to do your business only in the bathroom, okay?”
Peep!
“Good girl. Our Peep is so smart~!”
Did it actually understand and respond? No way… or so I thought, but maybe it really did. After all, this wasn’t a normal creature. Could we even call it a living being? It was probably just data given form. Hmm.
“Changjae, Seunghee, food’s ready.”
“Okay.”
The table was set just in time. The spicy aroma of stew filled the air.
“We still had some pork, so I made kimchi stew.”
“Looks delicious~!”
“Did the smell spread through the hideout?”
“Not at all. I didn’t even realize you were cooking. The ventilation must be excellent.”
“That’s a relief, but…”
“That’s because you were completely distracted by the chick.”
“Sister, Peep is really incredible. It understands every word I say.”
“It does seem unusually smart.”
Even during the meal, Seunghee could talk about nothing but Peep.
“The other pets are supposed to hatch tomorrow and the day after.”
“Hehe. I wonder what they’ll be?”
“It’d be nice if we got another chick.”
What a terrifying thing to say. After all the time and coins we’d invested, three chicks would be a massive loss.
“Don’t jinx us. What would we even do with three chicks?”
“Why not? They’re cute.”
“Does ‘cute’ put food on the table?”
“You never know. Maybe when Peep grows up it’ll hunt a wild boar for us.”
“Hunt? We should be grateful if it doesn’t get hunted—
…Wait.
Did it have to be that way? Common sense didn’t apply on this island. There was no rule saying a chick had to grow into an ordinary chicken. Weren’t chickens supposed to be descendants of dinosaurs? Maybe Peep would become a Tyrannosaurus rex.
It was an unusually sharp observation coming from Seunghee.
“Hmm… You know what? A chick might not be so bad after all.”
“…Oppa, you just had another weird thought, didn’t you?”
“No. Not at all. And Seunghee, have another bowl. You need to gain some weight.”
The kimchi stew was delicious.
*
Peep peep! Peep!
“Hmm.”
“Oppa. I think Peep wants to go outside.”
“…Looks like it.”
I’d been thinking the same thing while watching. Peep was flapping its wings and pacing restlessly in front of the iron door. Every now and then it pecked at the metal with its beak. It clearly wanted out. That made sense. Being trapped in a narrow cave would be stressful for any animal.
And the same went for people.
“…Oppa. It’s dangerous outside, right?”
Seunghee asked cautiously. I nodded without speaking.
“Sigh…”
She looked visibly disappointed. She wanted to go outside too. It was obvious she was trying her hardest not to act spoiled or complain. Mom hadn’t said anything, but she had to be feeling just as cooped up. I’d gone out on occasional reconnaissance, but the two of them had been stuck inside the entire time. They were probably reaching their limit.
“Hmm.”
I pulled out my phone and checked the map. The area around the hideout was clear. Expanding the view, I spotted a few red dots that appeared to be wild animals.
Thanks to the thorough cleanup Seungpil and I had done on the first day, we’d secured our territory. Still, we couldn’t prevent new creatures from wandering in. Even so, the numbers were manageable. I could probably handle the nearby ones alone.
After clearing the immediate threats, letting them breathe fresh air outside for a short time during daylight hours should be safe enough.
Having made my decision, I moved immediately.
“Mom. I’ll be back soon.”
“Hm? Where are you going?”
“Hunting.”