Chapter 5 of 100
Chapter 5: The Fruit Ripens
8 min read2,099 words
Chapter 5: The Fruit Ripens
Sejun tightly held the fish in his hand, which was thrashing and opening its mouth wide to attack. It snapped its jaws shut with a loud sound.
Click! Click!
The sharp teeth clashed, making a sharp noise. Each time this happened, Sejun gripped it even tighter. If he were to get bitten, he felt that one of his fingers might be cleanly severed.
Sejun, still holding the fish tightly, ran to the spot below the hole in the ceiling where there was a fire. During this time, the fish, which had been fiercely resisting, gradually began to breathe more rapidly and its body went limp.
Upon reaching the fire, Sejun carefully laid a large fern leaf on the ground. He gently placed the fish on the leaf and covered it with another fern leaf.
Then,
Swoosh.
He tore the fern leaves into strips about the thickness of his fingers, wrapped them around the fish in a cross pattern, and tied them securely.
"Be delicious."
Sejun carefully placed the fish, wrapped in fern leaves, in the center of the fire.
Then,
"..."
He waited.
He watched for a long time.
Sniff. Sniff.
"Ah, it smells good."
The rich, oily aroma mixed with the rising steam began to fill the cave, permeating the air.
It reminded him of his childhood. When his mother was preparing a meal, the smell of food from the kitchen would spread throughout the house.
When he came home from school and the house was filled with the smell of his favorite side dish, he felt happy. Back then, the time spent waiting before eating also seemed joyful.
Rumble.
A sound interrupted Sejun's thoughts. He was hungry but held back, determined to fill his empty stomach with something delicious.
Rumble.
"Just a little longer. I'll give you something really delicious."
Sejun patted his stomach and waited patiently, hoping for the best flavor to be achieved.
When the smell became even stronger and more intense,
"Done! I can't wait anymore!"
Sejun used the dried, stiff fern leaves to pull the fish, wrapped in fern leaves, out of the fire. He carefully untied the strings.
Whoosh.
As he untied the strings and removed the fern leaves, the rich aroma of the fish mixed with the scent of the ferns spread out.
"Wow!"
Sejun's face lit up with delight at the moist, glistening appearance of the fish.
Chomp.
Sejun folded the fish in half and tore off a piece of the flesh, putting it in his mouth.
"Mmm...!"
It was well-cooked. There was no fishy taste, and the texture was tender and juicy, with a mild flavor that spread in his mouth with each chew.
'Amazing!!!'
Chomp, chomp.
Sejun ate the fish voraciously.
"Whoa! When did I finish it?"
Sejun looked at the fish, now reduced to bones, and felt a sense of despair.
At that moment,
Squeak...
Squeak...
A sound of despair came from the side. It wasn't just Sejun who was feeling despondent.
"Huh?"
Sejun looked in the direction of the sound and saw the rabbit couple staring at the bone-filled fish with a look of loss.
'No way?!'
No, it can't be... What rabbit eats fish!
But thinking about it, the rabbit couple seemed to prefer cooked food, like the ferns Sejun had roasted.
"Do you eat meat too?"
Sejun asked, and the rabbits turned their heads simultaneously, as if to say, "You only figured that out now?" They seemed upset that Sejun had eaten everything.
"Sorry. I didn't know you eat meat too..."
Sejun scratched his head and got up to go to the pond, intending to catch more fish. There were more fish in the pond than before.
"But where do they come from?"
Sejun held a torch and examined the pond. He saw a hole about the size of his hand in one corner of the pond.
"Huh?"
At that moment, a fish entered through the hole.
"Oh, they come in through that hole."
It seemed they were attracted by the light of the torch. Sejun finally understood where the fish were coming from.
Unconsciously, Sejun brought the torch closer to the pond to examine it further.
Splash!
A fish leaped out of the water toward the torch, opening its mouth.
"Huh?!"
Whoosh.
Sejun quickly raised the torch to avoid the fish.
Click!
The fish snapped at the air.
Splash.
The fish, having failed its attack, returned to the water.
"What?"
Sejun cautiously brought the torch close to the water again.
Splash! Splash!
The fish leaped out of the water, trying to attack the torch.
Whoosh.
Sejun raised the torch to avoid them.
Click! Click!
Splash. Splash.
The fish, having failed their attack again, returned to the water.
"Aha."
Sejun realized what the fish were reacting to. They would leap out of the water whenever something moved near the surface, thinking it was food.
Now that he knew how to make the fish jump, catching them was easy.
Sejun waved the torch near the pond.
Splash!
A fish leaped out of the water, opening its mouth.
'It's coming!'
Sejun focused on the fish's movements. When the fish reached its highest point and was about to fall,
'Now!'
Thud!
Sejun swung the torch, hitting the fish and sending it out of the pond. The fish, now on the ground, wriggled to breathe.
Meanwhile,
Thud! Thud!
Sejun sent two more fish to the ground.
With three fish, whose breathing had stopped, Sejun approached the fire.
Squeak!
Squeak!
The rabbit couple, who had been upset earlier, now looked at Sejun with admiration and cheered.
"Ahem."
Sejun felt a sense of pride. For a moment, he felt like a hero.
Squeak!
Squeak!
The male rabbit brought fern leaves and offered to help with the cooking.
Swoosh. Swoosh.
The female rabbit, on the side, tore the fern leaves into strips to make strings.
"Done."
Sejun said as he placed the third fish in the fire. The cooking was quick, as he only needed to wrap and tie the fish in fern leaves.
And once again, the happy waiting began.
On the 11th day of being stranded, Sejun and the rabbit couple filled their stomachs with fish and went to sleep.
***
Squeak. Squeak.
[June 19, 6:00 AM]
It was the 41st day of being stranded.
"Ah!"
Sejun woke up and approached the pond. However, there was a small pond next to the main pond, which hadn't been there before.
It was a small waterway connected to the main pond to avoid fish attacks. He used it for washing and fetching water.
Splash! Splash!
Sejun washed his face and went to the field. In the field, the leeks were in front of the rock where Sejun usually sat, the cherry tomatoes had grown to about knee height, and the sweet potato sprouts were visible on the right.
Finally, the sweet potato sprouts he had been waiting for had grown. All the crops he had planted on the first day of being stranded had finally taken root safely in the tower.
"I feel accomplished."
A lot had happened since then.
On the 32nd day of being stranded, the Blue Moon appeared again. This allowed Sejun to determine that the Blue Moon cycle on his floor was 30 days.
A few days ago, there was good news. The female rabbit gave birth to six baby rabbits, increasing the family size.
Squeak!
Squeak!
The sound of the baby rabbits crying from inside the den made the male rabbit run to fetch fern leaves.
"I need to prepare breakfast."
Seeing the busy rabbit couple, Sejun wanted to help them.
Crack. Crack.
He broke off 10 fern leaves and put them in the fire, drying the rest on the ground.
He then approached the pond and waved the torch over the water.
Splash! Splash!
The fish leaped out of the water to attack the torch. Sejun swung the torch at them.
Thud!
Today, he was lucky and caught two fish in one go.
Flap. Flap.
He wrapped the two fish in fern leaves, tied them with strings, and put them in the fire.
Meanwhile, he took out the well-cooked fern leaves and ate them.
"The warmth is soothing."
After eating the cooked ferns, Sejun watered the crops and spent some time daydreaming.
Sniff. Sniff.
The delicious smell began to spread, indicating that the food was almost ready.
Tap. Tap.
Sejun took the fish out of the fire and started to untie the strings. At that moment, the male rabbit shuffled out of the den.
"Rabbit!"
Sejun called out to the male rabbit.
Squeak...
The male rabbit, who seemed tired from taking care of the babies, responded weakly.
"Share this with your wife."
Squeak.
The male rabbit, touched, hurriedly took the fish into the den.
However,
Squeak!
Squeak!
The babies, who had just been put to sleep, woke up, and the rabbit couple had to wait a while before they could eat the fish.
***
Squeak. Squeak.
[June 19, 5:00 AM]
It was the 50th day of being stranded. The smartphone, which had been giving alerts, finally died.
Fortunately, the rabbits woke up at exactly 5:00 AM and went to sleep at 7:00 PM. Following their rhythm would prevent the constant daylight from disrupting the time difference.
"Good job."
Sejun put the dead smartphone, along with the already dead laptop, into his bag.
At that moment,
Squeak!!
Squeak!
The rabbit couple, now more accustomed to taking care of the babies, came out of the den to greet him.
"Yep. Good morning."
Whoosh. Whoosh.
The male rabbit watered the crops with a watering can while the female rabbit cut fern leaves.
Thud!
Thud!
Sejun caught fish from the pond.
He then took the fish to the fire, wrapped them in fern leaves, and put them in the fire. The female rabbit took out the well-cooked fern leaves, arranged them neatly on more fern leaves, and gave them to Sejun before going back into the den with the male rabbit.
They were preparing the babies' breakfast while the fish cooked.
Nom. Nom.
Sejun ate the ferns, satisfying his hunger.
"Ah, the warmth is soothing."
After eating the cooked ferns, Sejun watered the crops and spent some time daydreaming.
Sniff. Sniff.
The delicious smell began to spread, indicating that the food was almost ready.
Tap. Tap.
Sejun took the fish out of the fire and started to untie the strings. At that moment, the male rabbit shuffled out of the den.
"Rabbit!"
Sejun called out to the male rabbit.
Squeak...
The male rabbit, who seemed tired from taking care of the babies, responded weakly.
"Share this with your wife."
Squeak.
The male rabbit, touched, hurriedly took the fish into the den.
However,
Squeak!
Squeak!
The babies, who had just been put to sleep, woke up, and the rabbit couple had to wait a while before they could eat the fish.
***
"Ah!"
As soon as Sejun woke up, he approached the rock wall in the cave.
Then,
Swipe.
He used a fish spine to make a mark on the rock wall. Next to it were two '正' characters, and above them were ten marks.
It was the 61st day of being stranded. Since the smartphone had disappeared, he had been recording the days like this.
'Already the 61st day...'
Just as Sejun's mood was about to sink, the cave became noisy.
Squeak!
Squeak!
Squeak!
In the morning, the baby rabbits followed their parents out of the den in a line.
Squeak!
Squeak!
The rabbit couple greeted Sejun and asked for his help.
"Sure. I'll come."
Recently, Sejun had been helping to watch the baby rabbits. It wasn't much, just making sure they didn't go anywhere dangerous.
While Sejun watched the baby rabbits, the male rabbit watered the crops, and the female rabbit cut fern leaves to prepare breakfast.
The baby rabbits ate peacefully, and after the meal, the rabbit couple took them back into the den.
Sejun washed his face and went to the cherry tomato field. The cherry tomato field, which had started with a few flowers, was now a field of flowers.
Sejun gently shook the branches with cherry tomato flowers.
"Be fruitful. Be fruitful."
Now that there were too many flowers, he didn't pollinate each one individually but gently shook the branches while reciting the pollination spell.
At that moment,
"Huh?"
Among the fallen petals, he saw a very small, green cherry tomato, smaller than a pea.
On the 61st day of being stranded, the fruit finally ripened.
It was the day before the Blue Moon.