Lately, Hana has been super focused on farming. She’d wake up early, scarf down her rice, and head straight to the vegetable garden. Because of this, the office staff started following her around like ducklings. They couldn’t just leave her alone outside—what if something big happened? So, they’d tag along, help out, and hang out in the garden.
“Haru, can you move this for me?”
Hana pointed at a giant watermelon while dragging something that looked like a cart. Haru, standing next to her, had transformed into a part-time farmer.
The cool warehouse was slowly filling up with watermelons from the garden. Haru asked Hana,
“Hana, what are you gonna do with all these watermelons?”
There were already dozens of them. If Hana tried to eat them all by herself, it’d take a year. Hana puffed out her chest and declared,
“I’m gonna share them with the research institute staff!”
Haru covered her mouth in awe. Kids her age usually don’t think about sharing watermelons with others, but Hana was oddly kind to the staff. Sure, the staff didn’t bully her, but still—she’s in a new place, trying to adjust, and yet she’s thinking about others? Amazing!
Haru rolled up her sleeves, full of determination. She’d dressed lightly for farming, but the weather outside was scorching. The greenhouse wasn’t as hot since it had temperature control, but the watermelon greenhouse had to be warm, so even a little movement made you sweat buckets.
“Haru, don’t overdo it!”
Haru was working harder than Hana, like a daily wage laborer. So much so that Hana had to tell her to take it easy.
“This is a gift for our research institute staff—I can’t slack off!”
Haru kept picking watermelons and hauling them to the warehouse, with Hana trailing behind. The greenhouse was huge, and the watermelons, fed by Hana’s hair (apparently), had produced a ton of baby watermelons.
Seeing all these plump watermelons gathered in one place filled Haru with pride. She felt like she understood the hearts of manual laborers. Sweating and working hard, then seeing the fruits of your labor—it was soul food.
“Profit!”
But Hana looked exhausted from moving so many watermelons. Haru rushed over to help her carry one. It was a bit too heavy for Hana, a grade-schooler, to handle alone. Even Haru, an adult, found it tough.
And so, the warehouse kept filling up with watermelons.
—
Gu Jun-yeop, the assistant manager, got his summer special bonus. He’d heard the Starlight Research Institute’s performance bonuses weren’t great, but what he received was no joke. It was more than what some petrochemical companies handed out.
Back when he first joined, the bonuses weren’t this good. The passage of time hit him, and he almost teared up. Seeing the company he chose thrive filled him with pride. That’s what every corporate employee should feel, right?
Company life isn’t about individual success—it’s a team effort. If you want to succeed on your own, you should start a venture or a business. But Gu Jun-yeop knew his limits and decided to stick with this job.
The current projects were thriving, not shrinking. Honestly, it’d take a seriously cursed entrepreneur to ruin this. Just maintaining the status quo kept Starlight Research Institute running smoothly. Rumor had it they’d be hiring new employees soon.
Hiring new staff was proof the company was doing well, so Gu Jun-yeop felt secure about his future. While he was thinking this, his eyes landed on the mysterious watermelons instead of the bonus money.
He’d heard Hana was growing them, but this was his first time seeing them in person.
“What’s this…?”
“These are the watermelons Hana’s been growing. They’re supposed to be super tasty. She’s giving them out to the office staff.”
“Whoa…”
Gu Jun-yeop was impressed. These watermelons were way bigger than usual, and their color was so deep it looked like they’d been dyed. If Hana grew them, they had to be top-tier. He was sure these watermelons were going to be amazing.
With his bonus in hand, Gu Jun-yeop worked hard and headed home after work.
He came home and left a watermelon on the dining table. His mom, seeing the watermelon, asked Goo Joon-yeop, “Hey, why did you buy a watermelon?”
Feeling that the sturdy watermelon wasn’t just randomly bought, his mom told him, “With your usual eye for things, I can’t believe you picked out such a watermelon. It looks like it was chosen by a top-notch expert.”
“Oh, this? It’s from the vegetable garden at work. They gave it to me to try,” he replied.
“Really? Go wash up. I’ll cut the watermelon,” his mom said.
“Thanks, take care of it,” he said before heading to wash up.
The family’s attention shifted to the watermelon. His sister, a nurse, admired it, saying, “Wow, I didn’t expect you to bring home such a watermelon. It looks top quality!”
Goo Joon-yeop, with his poor taste, hadn’t even managed to get a girlfriend, let alone think about marriage. Despite working at a big company and having saved up quite a bit, he still couldn’t figure out why he couldn’t get a girlfriend. He thought it was still too early for him to meet someone, but considering he was about to hit his 30s, it wasn’t that early.
Most office workers either get a girlfriend or prepare for marriage before hitting their 30s.
His mom came with a knife and cut the watermelon into large pieces. His sister stuck close by to watch. When the watermelon was cut open, its bright red flesh greeted them, and there were no seeds inside.
“Isn’t this that genetically modified watermelon or something?” his sister exclaimed, amazed as if she had seen something straight out of a textbook.
But Goo Joon-yeop, who had just finished showering, dismissed her speculation. “What modification? It’s just grown in the garden, but the method is unique…”
“How do you grow it?” she asked.
“That’s a secret,” he replied.
The secret was watering the watermelon with water that had dissolved a strand of Hana’s hair. Even if he told them, they wouldn’t believe it, and the efficacy of Hana’s hair wasn’t something he wanted to reveal yet.
“Wow, this looks delicious!” his sister said, admiring the neatly cut watermelon. She took a big bite, and her eyes widened in amazement.
“It’s delicious!!!” she exclaimed.
Hearing her praise, Goo Joon-yeop also became curious about the taste. He knew it was good, but he couldn’t quite gauge how good. He took a big bite and was blown away.
“Oh… oh!” he thought, his mind exploding with fireworks. Both the strawberries and watermelons Hana grew had extraordinary tastes. He thought if these were sold in the market, the watermelon market would be destroyed.
Seedless and this delicious? It was a done deal. But considering the cost of growing these watermelons, it was unlikely to happen. Most ordinary people wouldn’t spend hundreds of thousands of won on a watermelon, though those with money could afford it.
“This tastes really fresh!” his mom said.
“Right, mom? Brother got a really good watermelon!” his sister added.
Both his mom and sister devoured the watermelon like crazy. Watching them, Goo Joon-yeop felt oddly pleased. Seeing people enjoy something so much gave him a sense of pride.
