Maru entered the interview spot, all tense and jittery. Even though the number of interviews she’d done had now hit double digits, she couldn’t help but feel nervous every single time.
No matter how much she tried to get used to it, it was a task she just couldn’t get comfortable with. And honestly, she shouldn’t have gotten comfortable with it anyway. Having done so many interviews just meant she’d failed just as many.
At first, the interview went smoothly. The questions she’d memorized on the bus came up, and she silently cheered herself on. But as the interview neared its end, the questions started veering into topics that had nothing to do with the research institute.
“Do you happen to like children?”
“Do you have experience taking care of younger siblings or nieces and nephews?”
“If a child were in this kind of situation, how would you respond…”
It didn’t feel like an interview for a research institute at all—it felt more like they were hiring a kindergarten teacher. Maru, having worked part-time jobs taking care of kids during college, handled the questions with ease.
In fact, she was relieved these kinds of questions came up. She’d much rather answer these easy questions than get stuck on some super technical ones.
The interview ended on a warm note, and Maru felt a good vibe for the first time in a while. Like she might actually pass this one.
A week later, Maru got the acceptance call.
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“Hehehe…”
Today was the day the newbie was coming in. I got up early, washed up, and put on my dinosaur pajamas to prepare for welcoming the new employee.
How should I greet them? Should I give them a cold, stern look? Or should I be warm and welcoming? While I was pondering this, I heard the elevator ding. I dashed down the hallway and stood in front of the elevator.
I planned to intimidate them with a mighty dinosaur roar.
“ROAR!”
As soon as the doors opened, I threw my hands up and let out a huge roar. If anyone else had been around, they’d have run away in terror.
But the new employee didn’t seem scared at all. Instead, their eyes sparkled as they looked at me. I was taken aback by their lack of fear. In that moment, my gaze shifted upward—the new employee had picked me up and was holding me in their arms. I dangled helplessly as they carried me into the office.
I wanted to wag my tail back and forth, but since I didn’t have the ability to move it, my dinosaur tail just drooped pathetically.
“Why… why aren’t you scared?”
I thought for sure they’d run away after my dinosaur roar, but instead, they were all giggly and playful. This new employee seemed to have an unusually high tolerance for fear.
“You’re too cute to be scared of!”
They even questioned my question, tilting their head. But then, as we reached the office, the new employee set me down gently and put on a serious expression, like they were about to enter battle. I mimicked their expression and followed them inside.
“Hello! I’m Maru, the new employee starting today!”
I quietly followed behind Maru, but soon I couldn’t keep up. Maru had entered the meeting room inside the office, and someone grabbed me by the waist and lifted me up.
It was Haru who had picked me up.
“Hana, you need to get ready for school.”
Oh, right. I was a student. I often forgot my actual job. Reminded once again, I got ready for school. Haru had already ironed my uniform, so all I had to do was put it on.
——————————————–
“Hello, Ms. Maru.”
The HR person greeted Maru as she entered the meeting room. Maru sat frozen in her chair.
On the table in front of her was a confidentiality agreement. What kind of top-secret work required this level of security?
Maru’s mind raced with scenes from dramas she’d seen—strict bosses, grueling workdays, and workloads so heavy they demanded endless overtime.
The HR person explained the details to Maru. The salary and benefits were so good they could rival those of major corporations. But when she heard about the work she’d be doing, a small question popped into her head.
That kid earlier, the one named Hana—was it really okay for that creature to be wandering around so freely? The monsters she’d seen on TV coming out of the gate all seemed to…
Because it was threatening, it looked that way in Maru’s eyes, which held the gaze of an ordinary person.
And taking care of Hana like that became my main job, which was a bit disappointing. It wasn’t the work I expected when I joined a big company.
But Maru’s thoughts didn’t last even a week after joining. Taking care of a child wasn’t easy.
“Hana!!!”
Maru was running around the hallway again today, looking for Hana. Hana had disappeared somewhere after lunch. Maru found Hana sitting in a massage chair in the lounge area.
“Hana, let’s go get a massage.”
Maru, now familiar with Hana’s name, pulled Hana out of the massage chair. It was hard to understand why Hana was sitting in a massage chair to get a massage. Maybe it was because Hana was still new to society.
After getting a massage on the 1st floor and carrying a limp Hana, Maru headed back to the 10th floor. Leaving Hana in the room, Maru stepped out again. Hana loved playing around more than a niece, so much that it made Maru sweat.
“Maru, Hana really loves to play around, huh?”
Bora suddenly appeared next to Maru, handing over a coffee from the building’s cafe.
“It’s okay. Kids Hana’s age love to play around.”
“Still, it’s good you joined. Hana seems to like you.”
“Hehe…”
Maru had tamed Hana with the skills accumulated so far. It was to the point where Hana, who didn’t easily give in to half-hearted taming, acknowledged it. It was tough at first, but after a week, things had stabilized.
As night fell, Maru, on the first night shift, was looking over the tasks piled up by seniors. Just seeing the progress was helpful for the job.
It had only been a week, so Maru hadn’t been given proper tasks yet. Well, taking care of Hana was a task in itself. And taking care of Hana was harder than most tasks. Hana listened well, but taking care of kids could lead to big accidents if you took your eyes off them even for a moment.
While wrestling with the computer, Maru suddenly felt the air freshen. This scent… it must be Hana.
“Rawr!”
Hana appeared from behind, wearing dinosaur pajamas. Maru pretended to be startled by Hana’s roar. Maru already knew because of the scent, but reacting like this made kids happy.
“Hehe!”
Hana, pleased with Maru’s reaction, laughed and snuggled into Maru’s arms. Maru hugged Hana and patted her head. It felt so good to touch Hana’s soft hair, like petting a cat.
In a way, Maru might have found their calling. Maru always liked kids, and now getting paid to take care of such a cute kid.
It was something unimaginable during the job-seeking days.
“Maru! Let’s watch a movie, a movie!”
Hana, sitting on Maru’s lap, said. Maru nodded and turned on the OTT on the computer. The research institute’s stance was to do whatever Hana wanted, so Maru could legally get paid for this.
Hana picked up the mouse and clicked on a children’s animation.
The movie had cute animal friends, but the content was unusual.
It was about animals living in the DMZ joining forces to blow up Panmunjom to prevent unification between North and South Korea, to protect their ecosystem.
“Is… is this the right content?”
Maru was bewildered by the movie’s content, which seemed like it was made under the influence of something. But since Hana was enjoying it, Maru didn’t say anything. And as Maru watched, it was surprisingly entertaining.
