“Is he the new kid?”

“Isn’t his dad the secretary for Jeguk Group? Wow, he must be rich.”

Comments like these flooded the school as Chanyoung gulped his insecurities and pressed forward through the school. It was a new year, a new semester. He would be okay. In the last four months, everything in his life seemed to be flipped upside down. His mother was still gone, they had moved to a new house (more like an apartment), and the worst yet to come, he had to go to a new school. The boy tried to remain optimistic, thinking that at least it was the start of junior high with seventh grade instead of coming in at the middle of the year or in eighth grade when all the friend groups had been established.

As Chanyoung walks through the school, he notices how different it was in terms of luxury and decoration. Last year, the school was like a second home – it had juice bars, an arcade, anything you could ask for. This one was known for its good academics, but definitely had less of a funding. Well, it’s what you would expect of a public school. The boy glances at the numbers of each door he passed by, looking down again and again at the small sheet of paper in his hand. 302. Where was this darn classroom? His eyes burned with frustration, threatening to explode in the one thing he hated – tears. Chanyoung knew it wasn’t immature to cry, but still he wanted to feel strong – he was still a teenager boy.

Two shoes suddenly stop right in front of him.

“Hey, Chanyoung right? You’re popular already! I’m Eun Sang,” A pretty voice surprises him and he looks up, happy to see a girl around the same height but a bit shorter in front of him.

“Ah, nice to meet you,” He smiles politely with a dip of a head, the greeting sent back to him.

“Here, can I see your schedule? I can show you around the school,” She smiles easily, holding out her hand.

“Oh! Yeah, of course, thank you so much…” A bit flustered, Chanyoung gives her the piece of paper, wishing it looked a bit nicer. He had been holding it in his hand the whole way to school, resulting in a few wrinkles.

“Alright, 302? Hey, we’re in the same homeroom!” Eun Sang looks up with a grin, giving him a high five. He claps her hand with a light laugh, happy that a genuinely nice person had crossed his path. At least he was having some good luck this year.

“Just follow me,” With that, the girl skips forward, the black uniform skirt flapping across her knees. Chanyoung clears his throat and hurriedly walks after her, knowing that he was going to start this year with the right step forward. 

--

--

“Bo Naaa!” It was hard not to recognize the high-pitched voice of Kang Ye Sol* as she came up running behind Bo Na, giving her a hard squeeze. “How was your break? We didn’t get to do anything together,” She pouted, her hands gripping her backpack straps in a way that made her look like a pre-schooler.

“Ah, sorry...” Bo Na says simply, continuing her walk to the main entrance of the school. It had been a rough couple of months, as her mom went from one man to another, whining and complaining about the woman who had hypnotized her husband, how hey had the short end of the stick since Chanyoung’s family obviously must be rich now, etc. He even moved, as if to signify that he was too good for them now. The girl lets out a glum sigh just thinking about the situation.

“What’s wrong?” Ye Sol pops a wad of gum in , happily chewing while glancing at her best friend. It was rare for Bo Na to be so down. That was more of what Rachel Yoo was in charge of.

“Nothing…” Bo Na says in a dismissive tone, not wanting to talk about her personal issues. Yes, Ye Sol was probably the closest friend she had, but she was also the worst person to confide to. Last time Bo Na had told her whom she liked, the whole school knew by the end of the day. Still, it wasn’t bad as she finally got to date the boy of her dreams, Kim Tan. That day, they had finally confessed their feelings for each other as if it was a drama. At least one lucky thing was still going for her.

As if it was meant for Bo Na to think about Kim Tan, she suddenly spies her handsome boyfriend at the entrance of the door, greeting students. He was the seventh grade class representative, but more importantly he was the son of the president of Jeguk Group who funded the school. Bo Na was pretty high on the ladder, but sometimes she couldn’t believe that the actual Kim Tan was dating her.

As the two lovebirds make eye contact, Ye Sol casts her a sideways glance before mumbling how weird her friend was and runs off to catch up with some other classmate. Bo Na combs through her hair a bit, knowing that his eyes were on her. She lightly runs up the stairs before hooking her arm around the crook of his elbow.

“Good morning!” Her eyes stare up at his, suddenly sparkling with delight unlike a few minutes ago.

“Morning,” Her boyfriend gives her a calm smile before unhooking her arm. “I have to say hi people, so I’ll meet you in class okay? Save me for lunch,” He leans in to whisper as she slightly blushes, nodding.

“Okay!” Happy with their small conversation, Bo Na happily walks through the hallways, so immersed in her glee that she bumps into Rachel Yoo of all people. Earning a glare, she tones her energy down slightly while walking to class, keeping her ears on and eyes open.  Lots of small talk and conversations were going on near the lockers that surrounded the walls.

“How was your summer?”

“I went shopping and got my new Ralph Lauren purse!”

“Yo, want to go with me to the arcade later?”

“My parents left for China early this morning, should we have a party?”

“Did you hear about Yoon Chanyoung?”

The sudden question between two strangers passing by makes Bo Na stop in her tracks, all happy-go-lucky emotions gone. No, she didn’t want to think about him. It would only make her angry. Angry that he had an amazing life while her father was gone.  She bites her lip with an intensity that makes her yelp in surprised pain as she could feel blood on her tongue.

“Ugh, I bet my lip gloss is all ruined now,” The annoyed girl mutters while walking slowly to her homeroom, knowing that the bell could ring any second.

“Poor girl, her lipstick is ruined,” The unmistakable sarcastic voice of Young Do passes by Bo Na, making her even more sensitive.

“Yah! It’s lip-gloss not lipstick, dummy! Come over here! Even if your Kim Tan’s friend you shouldn’t say that!” She chases after the troublemaker, only to have the bell start ringing. “Yah! Don’t run away! It’s class now!” Bo Na yells down the hall, but no figure comes back. Sighing again, she walks to her homeroom, mumbling a quick excuse to the teacher for why she was late. It was the first day of school; they wouldn’t give her a tardy.