⁓ Pass ⁓
The Squid Game Guards - deadly, brutal and…the world's best babysitters. You hate it when your Father has to deal with something important (again)….but so you get to help the Circle Guards with an important task….and you are the world's best assistant!
"I understand… this Problem requires immediate Action. I'm on my way"
As you hear these Words, you immediately drop the purple pen in your hand to the Floor. Luckily it wasn't a felt-tip pen, otherwise the floor would have had a few unsightly marks… not that it would have been noticeable in all the black.
You look up abruptly and watch as Hwang In-ho makes the technological device disappear into his jacket pocket.
You don't understand much of the boring adult language… but the tone and the seriousness that Hwang In-ho displays, oh, that sounds all too familiar.
And you hate it when your father speaks in this tone to other adults over the telecommunications connection. It means that he has to leave again urgently.
But this time you're not going to let him get away with it.
You only arrived on the island a few days ago and you wanted to help him find new guards! (Actually, In-Ho sits in the VIP lounge of the complex with an expensive tablet and just swipes from right to left to look at potential candidates, whose probable location he then passes on to the salesman and you are sometimes allowed to press the power button on the tablet or swipe on the display and of course you are really helping your father with that!) - aaaand he wanted to braid your hair after all! Like Elsa! Because this is an island and you are the unofficial princess!
And you really had to be soooo patient, because your father wasn't so good at braiding and styling your hair from the start….well, someone like the frontman who is suddenly confronted with a female toddler in his life has to learn too….and with learning came a lot of time, setbacks and frustration. Yet you absolutely don't like the fact that he's on the move again.
So you stand up and walk towards your father with clumsy steps and try to cling to his right leg , like a little koala and give him a loving hug….but unfortunately In-Ho knows you very well by now and in a rehearsed movement, he stops your attempt and takes you by the hand instead, while he addresses the following words to you in a stern but still determined tone.
"You´re going to spent some Time with the.....", your Father started to explain but you now tried to grab his left hand little finger, to convince him to not go away....at least not withouth you....and to cut him off during his words.
"Daddah no by by! Stay!" - you said sad and carefully In-Ho picked you up and hold you close to his chest.
"We've had this conversation several times now and it always ends the same way, hm? It won't take long and in the meantime you're in good hands….."
"Help Daddah? me by by island too?"
"No, dear…it's better if you stay here, the guards will look after you well…a business meeting would be boring"
"…Play with Circleleys?"
The stern, cold mask that In-Ho wore, was replaced for a moment by a brief, amused smile.
The few guards , who came back year after year and were almost a basic staff of the games…had received this…more cuteness like names from you.
You got along with almost every Guard...you were not scard of the Mask or the Weapons they carried with them...your Father said they wouldn´t hurt you....they are....like your Friends....Friends that knew not to mess with the Frontmans Daugther.
So you are used to this....maybe strange Island with all this colorful rooms and of course the Guards were your friends. And the Circleleys are the most funniest ones ever!
"Don't let the others hear that you favor the Circle Guards… otherwise I'll have to send more new recruits to the salesmen....and that will be a whole nother game to deal with"
"No no! Tree-Angel and Squary Friends too" - you say with a serious expression on your face.
The Triangle and Square Guardians are just as much your friends as the Circles… but maybe you like the Circle Guardians a little bit more than the rest? They always make you laugh.
"Then it won't be a problem if you spend some time with the circles, hm?"
"Yes, playing with Circleleys!"
"And you'll keep your composure and not cause any trouble?"
You giggle and nod, your father gives you a gentle kiss on the top of your head before he takes you to the control room, where his second in command, a high-ranking square guard, takes you, holds you in his arms and after you wave goodbye to your father, the square guard takes you to the playing field for the second game.
You feel safe in the adult's arms, he doesn't hold you as tightly as if you were an expensive vase or a cat that could get angry at any movement - there are some of the new guards that your father entrusts you to… you can definitely tell , that they have already held a small child in their arms and then there are the newbies who are… clumsy.
Sometimes when you're having a bad day and you're being picked up like a piece of wood or something, it doesn't take three seconds before you start to whine and cry. Sometimes the experienced quads find it amusing how panicked the new recruits react.
As you pass the colorful stairs and get closer to the room where game number 2 will be played in a few weeks, you chat euphorically to the adult who is carrying you, about what you have already experienced today and that you also took your afternoon nap well, even though you had a little tantrum beforehand and were not tired at all, and you tell the square guard that your father said purple crayons are not for eating and are not a good snack.
While you continue to be carried, from staircase to staircase in the adult's arm, you do not notice how he gives the instruction over the walkie talkie, to keep the colorful Gong-gi figures out of reach… better safe than sorry.
You soon reach the room that will definitely be one of your favorites, you like the bright rainbow colors on the floor and it's really wonderful to run around in here, play catch or just take a nap on the floor.
And when you recognize three of the circle guards, you wave to them and bounce impatiently up and down in the adult's arms.
"We have a special task that you can help us with, OK? Come with guard number 32 and we'll be right there," said one of the circle guards as you were passed from one arm to the other and finally led by guard number 32's hand to the back of the room.
"Will we get the number of players back to 456 this year?"
"Positive. The boss wants a complete run through of the standard protocols before arrival"
"Setting it up…"
"And…"
"Yeeeeees…..no sugar after 6 p.m. otherwise we'll have the same incident as two weeks ago"
You didn't hear any of the other short conversations because the Circleley guard let go of your hand when you reached a table and a chair.
"Okay, princess…..can you roll the little ball there so that it touches the stone?"
You nod and try your best…of course you are not aware that the little ball does not have the effect that is expected in the Flying Stone game…but that is not the point…the guard just wants to practice the reaction when someone has passed a task together with his colleagues who also went to you.
And after you have rolled the ball and it comes to rest in front of the small stone , without anything major happening, you look up at your Circle friends and a computer-generated voice says - Passed -
The Circle Guards make a circular hand gesture that is reminiscent of an O.
And just moments later the playing field, is filled with bright children's laughter and clapping - the Circleleys seem to be practicing their reaction to - Passed - well.
But in just a few weeks, this playing field would be coverd in blood, dead bodies, fear and the more often reaction - Failure - with the corresponding reaction from the Circle Guards.
And there would be no toddler laughter , echoing across the field…it would be a crazy mix of euphoric adult cheers and fear-filled screams.
So many fear-filled and panicked Screams.
THE END
