Principal Ha rifled through all the forms and admission essays until he found what he was looking for: the mail that had been sent to him a month ago; the point of this whole thing.
It was quite easy, actually. They had enough people and enough distractions.
Let the games begin
***
WooYoung looked around as he entered the huge building that would soon be his new home.
“Ya, ma, calm down! I’ll be fine,” he whined into his cell phone. He stared at his shoes as his mother went on and on about oral hygiene.
“—And don’t forget to drink milk before you sleep! Oh my little Woo! I’ll miss you so much, dumpling!”
WooYoung resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He knew his mom cared for him, but this was a little too much. True, he’d flown into another city by himself and wouldn’t be seeing her for quite a while, and as much as he liked speaking to his mom, she was really getting on his last nerve right now.
A look of relief passed over his eyes as a haughty-looking girl made her way towards him.
“Ma, I’ve got to go now. They’re going to give us the school tour. I’ll call you later. Love you!”
The girl raised an eyebrow.
“Who said I was gonna give you a tour? Psh.”
WooYoung looked the girl up and down. She was short; shorter than him, with burnt orange hair that had brown streaks running through it. She had very chubby cheeks, something he could relate to, and a stone cold look.
Not necessarily the first person he’d have liked to meet here.
“Ya, don’t just stand there looking at me like a bufoon! Tell me your name!”
“WooYoung,” he automatically replied, his eyebrows shooting upwards. “Jang WooYoung.”
“I’m just going to call you Chubby Cheeks. I’m Su Ji. Third year. By the looks of it, I’d say you’re one, too.”
WooYoung looked at the girl as if expecting her to continue, but she didn’t. Instead, she whirled around and left.
“See you at the assembly!” she shouted over her shoulder.
Assembly? WooYoung sighed. Where had his sister put his papers?
He looked around, frantically trying to find someone who’d be willing to help him, but everyone just brushed past him.
Think, Woo, think. Where would an assembly be? Obviously not on this floor. Maybe there’s an auditorium somewhere?
“Hey, you!”
WooYoung turned around and came face-to-face with a smiling girl, maybe a year older than her. She was very pretty, in a natural way, and she seemed very nice, not like that Su Ji girl.
“You look lost. Do you not have your papers?”
“Ah…yeah. Well, kinda. Someone told me we were having an assembly, but I don’t know where.”
“Oh, the assembly is going to be on the third floor, in the auditorium. Have you signed in, though? The first thing you’re supposed to do is sign in. That way, they can give you your room number and supplies.”
“Komawoyo. Thank you.”
The girl nodded and left.
WooYoung scratched his head. This was going to be a very… interesting experience.
***
NichKhun flipped through his book, slowly mouthing the Korean words. He’d learned the language years ago, but he didn’t want to mess up at all. As a Thai boy, he wasn’t used to Koreans, and he didn’t want them to think he was stupid.
“Excuse me!”
NichKhun snapped his book shut and looked up to see a dumpy-cheeked boy with an earnest smile, a confused look in his eyes, and the most childish face he’d seen.
“What do you want?”
Why was this kid disturbing him? Did he not see that he was reading? True, he was seated at the head of the stairs, but Nich didn’t want to be around all those people. He’d heard that Korean people were really judgemental, and he didn’t want any of that crap.
The kid took a step back, his boyish face closing up. “I just wondered if you were NichKhun. The secretary announced your name three times, and you’re the only person who seems to not hear it.”
NichKhun glared at the kid, who didn’t seem to get the message and bowed anxiously.
“I’m WooYoung. I think we’re in the same room.”
Khun’s face turned a light shade of crimson.
Way to start off on the wrong foot with your roommate, he thought.
“Sorry. Yeah, I’m NichKhun. It’s nice to meet you.” He gave a sheepish smile, his form of an apology. “Maybe we could go up to our room together, after I get my things?”
WooYoung’s face broke out into a grin. “Yeah, sure.”
Maybe Koreans weren’t so bad…
***
Not everyone was having the same luck as NichKhun and WooYoung, and Sunny was one of them.
“Ya, unnie! Why won’t you let me speak to anyone?” Sunny whined, tugging on her sister’s hair. Yuri turned around and slapped it away harshly.
“We’ve had this talk before. Either you stick with us or I won’t speak to you from now on.”
Sunny frowned. “But we’re sisters.”
“I don’t care.Why are you so keen on ‘making friends’, anyways? Nobody wants to befriend you. You’re a loser.”
“Ay, grow up, sis! You and Jessica watch too many American movies! ‘You’re a loser’? ‘Either you stay with us or I won’t talk to you’? You’re so dramatic. You want your life to be like those mean blond girls on the Disney shows, right?”
Yuri’s brow furrowed. “Wait…how do you know abou—You little bug! You went through my laptop again, didn’t you?”
Sunny shrieked as Yuri lunged for her, shouting out for help. Yuri pinched her thigh, which quieted her down.
”Ahem.”
They both whipped their heads around to see Jessica staring frostily at them.
“You’re attracting attention. And not the good kind of attention. The weird kind.”
Yuri blushed while Sunny rolled her eyes. Jessica had the literacy of a frog, but Yuri still acted like her opinion really mattered, which didn’t make sense, since Yuri was older than Jessica. Maybe it was Jessica’s blond hair and ability to pull off the Barbie look that made Yuri like that.
Sunny didn’t have time to think of such things. Yuri had started talking Jessica, and this was her only chance to run away before Yuri had time to do anything. Sunny’s small eyes scanned the next room and she picked her target: A black-haired, serious looking boy who was leaning against a wall, one hand in the pocket of his leather jacket; the other holding his cell phone, which he was peering at closely.
Sunny took small steps, turning around every now and then to see if any of the Dolls were watching her, and made her way across the room.
“Hi! I’m Sunny!”
The boy gave her the once over and one of those half-nods.
“Seungri.”
She opened her mouth to say something else, but he glowered at her.
“Um, okay. It’s nice to meet you, I guess. Uh, see you.”
Sunny’s mouth was set in a permanent line. Wasn’t anybody here friendly, or was her sister right?
Was she really a zero who nobody wanted to get to know? Was she doomed to spend the rest of the life with the Dolls, where she knew she didn’t fit in?
“This year’s going to suck.”
***
WooYoung entered the auditorium with NichKhun and Junho, their other roommate, whom they’d met an hour ago.
“—play the piano. I’m thinking of being a singer.”
“Good luck with that,” NichKhun snorted. “You might have a nice voice, but no amount of make-up will fix that horrendous face of yours!”
Junho laughed easily as Nich mussed his hair.
WooYoung was amazed at how friendly NichKhun was. True, he’d given a horrible first impression, but he wasn’t used to Koreans, so Woo couldn’t really blame him.
They took their seats and WooYoung checked his phone one more time, only to find a message from his brother telling him that his mom wouldn’t stop crying. WooYoung sighed deeply and stuffed the phone into his jacket pocket.
“Mom?” Junho asked knowingly. With his jet black hair, eyes that sparkled, and killer smile, he was a real catch. WooYoung had seen girls turn their heads as they passed. WooYoung glanced at NichKhun. He was something different to look at, too. He had that foreign air about him, and his charismatic eyes and cute grin had earned him a lot of stares. In fact, Woo had overheard one of the girls say that he was an American singer that had come to hide in the safety of this school.
So the rumors had started already. NichKhun would be a popular pick amongst the girls, no doubt about it. WooYoung couldn’t care less. He was just happy that his roommates hadn’t turned out to be the annoying kinds who had really bad habits or were naturally unfriendly. He couldn’t even imagine staying in the same room as someone like that Su Ji girl for more than twenty minutes without wanting to cut his own head off.
“Chubby Cheeks!”
Speak of the devil…
WooYoung turned around. “What do you want, ya?”
“Do you know who that kid is?” she pointed at boy with sharp cheekbones, really big ears, and an air of maturity.
“Never seen him before.”
“Well, I’m going to call him Elf Ears.”
“Why are you even talking to me?” WooYoung asked, trying hard to be polite.
She shrugged. “I dunno. Boredom, I guess. You’re right, though. I shouldn’t spend my time on you.” With that, she was gone.
Junho chuckled softly. “That’s Su Ji’s trouble, man. I’ve known her for a while. She and my sister were in the same class. She says that she doesn’t have a heart. She came to our house once, and she didn’t even bow to my parents. And she called me a duncehead because I told her piano was better than violin.”
WooYoung’s eyebrows went up.
NichKhun shushed them as the lights dimmed and a middle-aged, stern-looking man appeared on stage.
“Welcome to Seoul High.”
It was quite easy, actually. They had enough people and enough distractions.
Let the games begin
***
WooYoung looked around as he entered the huge building that would soon be his new home.
“Ya, ma, calm down! I’ll be fine,” he whined into his cell phone. He stared at his shoes as his mother went on and on about oral hygiene.
“—And don’t forget to drink milk before you sleep! Oh my little Woo! I’ll miss you so much, dumpling!”
WooYoung resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He knew his mom cared for him, but this was a little too much. True, he’d flown into another city by himself and wouldn’t be seeing her for quite a while, and as much as he liked speaking to his mom, she was really getting on his last nerve right now.
A look of relief passed over his eyes as a haughty-looking girl made her way towards him.
“Ma, I’ve got to go now. They’re going to give us the school tour. I’ll call you later. Love you!”
The girl raised an eyebrow.
“Who said I was gonna give you a tour? Psh.”
WooYoung looked the girl up and down. She was short; shorter than him, with burnt orange hair that had brown streaks running through it. She had very chubby cheeks, something he could relate to, and a stone cold look.
Not necessarily the first person he’d have liked to meet here.
“Ya, don’t just stand there looking at me like a bufoon! Tell me your name!”
“WooYoung,” he automatically replied, his eyebrows shooting upwards. “Jang WooYoung.”
“I’m just going to call you Chubby Cheeks. I’m Su Ji. Third year. By the looks of it, I’d say you’re one, too.”
WooYoung looked at the girl as if expecting her to continue, but she didn’t. Instead, she whirled around and left.
“See you at the assembly!” she shouted over her shoulder.
Assembly? WooYoung sighed. Where had his sister put his papers?
He looked around, frantically trying to find someone who’d be willing to help him, but everyone just brushed past him.
Think, Woo, think. Where would an assembly be? Obviously not on this floor. Maybe there’s an auditorium somewhere?
“Hey, you!”
WooYoung turned around and came face-to-face with a smiling girl, maybe a year older than her. She was very pretty, in a natural way, and she seemed very nice, not like that Su Ji girl.
“You look lost. Do you not have your papers?”
“Ah…yeah. Well, kinda. Someone told me we were having an assembly, but I don’t know where.”
“Oh, the assembly is going to be on the third floor, in the auditorium. Have you signed in, though? The first thing you’re supposed to do is sign in. That way, they can give you your room number and supplies.”
“Komawoyo. Thank you.”
The girl nodded and left.
WooYoung scratched his head. This was going to be a very… interesting experience.
***
NichKhun flipped through his book, slowly mouthing the Korean words. He’d learned the language years ago, but he didn’t want to mess up at all. As a Thai boy, he wasn’t used to Koreans, and he didn’t want them to think he was stupid.
“Excuse me!”
NichKhun snapped his book shut and looked up to see a dumpy-cheeked boy with an earnest smile, a confused look in his eyes, and the most childish face he’d seen.
“What do you want?”
Why was this kid disturbing him? Did he not see that he was reading? True, he was seated at the head of the stairs, but Nich didn’t want to be around all those people. He’d heard that Korean people were really judgemental, and he didn’t want any of that crap.
The kid took a step back, his boyish face closing up. “I just wondered if you were NichKhun. The secretary announced your name three times, and you’re the only person who seems to not hear it.”
NichKhun glared at the kid, who didn’t seem to get the message and bowed anxiously.
“I’m WooYoung. I think we’re in the same room.”
Khun’s face turned a light shade of crimson.
Way to start off on the wrong foot with your roommate, he thought.
“Sorry. Yeah, I’m NichKhun. It’s nice to meet you.” He gave a sheepish smile, his form of an apology. “Maybe we could go up to our room together, after I get my things?”
WooYoung’s face broke out into a grin. “Yeah, sure.”
Maybe Koreans weren’t so bad…
***
Not everyone was having the same luck as NichKhun and WooYoung, and Sunny was one of them.
“Ya, unnie! Why won’t you let me speak to anyone?” Sunny whined, tugging on her sister’s hair. Yuri turned around and slapped it away harshly.
“We’ve had this talk before. Either you stick with us or I won’t speak to you from now on.”
Sunny frowned. “But we’re sisters.”
“I don’t care.Why are you so keen on ‘making friends’, anyways? Nobody wants to befriend you. You’re a loser.”
“Ay, grow up, sis! You and Jessica watch too many American movies! ‘You’re a loser’? ‘Either you stay with us or I won’t talk to you’? You’re so dramatic. You want your life to be like those mean blond girls on the Disney shows, right?”
Yuri’s brow furrowed. “Wait…how do you know abou—You little bug! You went through my laptop again, didn’t you?”
Sunny shrieked as Yuri lunged for her, shouting out for help. Yuri pinched her thigh, which quieted her down.
”Ahem.”
They both whipped their heads around to see Jessica staring frostily at them.
“You’re attracting attention. And not the good kind of attention. The weird kind.”
Yuri blushed while Sunny rolled her eyes. Jessica had the literacy of a frog, but Yuri still acted like her opinion really mattered, which didn’t make sense, since Yuri was older than Jessica. Maybe it was Jessica’s blond hair and ability to pull off the Barbie look that made Yuri like that.
Sunny didn’t have time to think of such things. Yuri had started talking Jessica, and this was her only chance to run away before Yuri had time to do anything. Sunny’s small eyes scanned the next room and she picked her target: A black-haired, serious looking boy who was leaning against a wall, one hand in the pocket of his leather jacket; the other holding his cell phone, which he was peering at closely.
Sunny took small steps, turning around every now and then to see if any of the Dolls were watching her, and made her way across the room.
“Hi! I’m Sunny!”
The boy gave her the once over and one of those half-nods.
“Seungri.”
She opened her mouth to say something else, but he glowered at her.
“Um, okay. It’s nice to meet you, I guess. Uh, see you.”
Sunny’s mouth was set in a permanent line. Wasn’t anybody here friendly, or was her sister right?
Was she really a zero who nobody wanted to get to know? Was she doomed to spend the rest of the life with the Dolls, where she knew she didn’t fit in?
“This year’s going to suck.”
***
WooYoung entered the auditorium with NichKhun and Junho, their other roommate, whom they’d met an hour ago.
“—play the piano. I’m thinking of being a singer.”
“Good luck with that,” NichKhun snorted. “You might have a nice voice, but no amount of make-up will fix that horrendous face of yours!”
Junho laughed easily as Nich mussed his hair.
WooYoung was amazed at how friendly NichKhun was. True, he’d given a horrible first impression, but he wasn’t used to Koreans, so Woo couldn’t really blame him.
They took their seats and WooYoung checked his phone one more time, only to find a message from his brother telling him that his mom wouldn’t stop crying. WooYoung sighed deeply and stuffed the phone into his jacket pocket.
“Mom?” Junho asked knowingly. With his jet black hair, eyes that sparkled, and killer smile, he was a real catch. WooYoung had seen girls turn their heads as they passed. WooYoung glanced at NichKhun. He was something different to look at, too. He had that foreign air about him, and his charismatic eyes and cute grin had earned him a lot of stares. In fact, Woo had overheard one of the girls say that he was an American singer that had come to hide in the safety of this school.
So the rumors had started already. NichKhun would be a popular pick amongst the girls, no doubt about it. WooYoung couldn’t care less. He was just happy that his roommates hadn’t turned out to be the annoying kinds who had really bad habits or were naturally unfriendly. He couldn’t even imagine staying in the same room as someone like that Su Ji girl for more than twenty minutes without wanting to cut his own head off.
“Chubby Cheeks!”
Speak of the devil…
WooYoung turned around. “What do you want, ya?”
“Do you know who that kid is?” she pointed at boy with sharp cheekbones, really big ears, and an air of maturity.
“Never seen him before.”
“Well, I’m going to call him Elf Ears.”
“Why are you even talking to me?” WooYoung asked, trying hard to be polite.
She shrugged. “I dunno. Boredom, I guess. You’re right, though. I shouldn’t spend my time on you.” With that, she was gone.
Junho chuckled softly. “That’s Su Ji’s trouble, man. I’ve known her for a while. She and my sister were in the same class. She says that she doesn’t have a heart. She came to our house once, and she didn’t even bow to my parents. And she called me a duncehead because I told her piano was better than violin.”
WooYoung’s eyebrows went up.
NichKhun shushed them as the lights dimmed and a middle-aged, stern-looking man appeared on stage.
“Welcome to Seoul High.”
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