Yongsun ran her gaze around the hall. It was filled with her classmates, some chattering excitedly, others be their fate. She was one of the few who weren't vocal at all. If you don't have anything nice to say, don’t say it right?

Yongsun sighed internally and looked down to the placard in her lap, at the name printed on it. Another hopeful student wanting to get into the medical field. Probably someone who wanted to help as many people as they could, to save lives and cure diseases. Good for them.

"Who did you get unnie?"

Yongsun looked up at the person sitting a seat away from her. She hadn't been one for making friends, but Mina was quiet and reserved like her, though not to the same extent. The girl had a massive following on campus for her looks and ignored most of it in favor of maintaining her class rank just under Yongsun, a trait which made her immensely more tolerable than everyone else. The age difference and her gentle soul just cemented a soft spot for Mina in Yongsun's mind.

"Jung Wheein. How about you?"

"The eagle girl." At Yongsun's curious look, Mina held up her card. "You know, Kim Dahyun. She went viral for a dance she did in church."

"I haven't heard of her. She doesn't sound like a medical type." Mina just shrugged in reply.

"Who knows?"

Her phone buzzed, the alarm she had set for herself going off. "Well good luck with her, time to get this started."

"You too unnie."

Yongsun put her placard on the seat next to her, several students around her doing the same after seeing her. She made her way up to the podium. A short script was waiting for her, not that she hadn't memorized it already. The student body stood and went quiet as she tapped the microphone.

"Good morning classmates." A collective murmur answered back before sitting. "As you all know, we are the highest-ranking medical students the department has to offer. This made the university's decision to propose a mentor-mentee program quite natural. Those of us here have read through the agreement, signed our approval of, and willingness to participate in, the program. We will be spending the remainder of our time at this university furthering our own education as well as helping others to do the same."

Yongsun lifted the paper for the others to see.

"The administration chose not to include this page in the agreement sent to each of you, preferring that we go over it together before our new students and Director Dohoon arrive. They have asked me to inform you that, should you not agree to these terms, you may withdraw from the program."

At this the students began to turn to each other, whispering about what it could be. Yongsun put the paper back down, her gaze never leaving the people in front of her.

“There are only three additional points to discuss. The first is the duration of your mentorship. Administration would like to reiterate that you will be a mentor for the rest of your time here, no matter how long. They would like to clarify, however, that your randomly selected student will not change for that time. Would anyone like to withdraw at this time?”

There were no hands raised. People just shrugged and looked at each other.

“Secondly, there is a scholarship opportunity present.” This got whispers of excitement. “The mentor-mentee pair that earns the most points, outlined in the agreement, will be eligible for a twenty-thousand-dollar monetary reward. This will be awarded once every school year, with the points resetting after each recipient.”

The auditorium lit up with chattering and discussion. Yongsun could hear them all from her vantage point.

Dude that’s insane!

They’re turning education into a game, that’s messed up.

It doesn’t matter, we all know Yongsun is going to win it anyways.

The last comment was also the loudest. Students stopped their conversations as they realized it was a true claim. A sense of disappointment and barely concealed jealousy filled the hall.

“However,” Yongsun continued, making eye contact with the man. “Those of us who rank within the top five of the class at this moment will not be included in that scoring. We will instead receive ten thousand dollars for maintaining or improving our rank. This includes me, Myoui Mina, Kim Namjoon, Ahn Heeyeon, and Lee Jinki. Those of you who would like to leave may do so now.”

Oddly enough these five were the ones least interested in the scholarship, but the rest of the mentors sat with renewed fire. In their eyes, they had a chance now.

“The final topic is housing. Your student will be living with you for the duration of the program. Those of you who may be sharing a dorm will be reassigned. Would anyone –”

Yongsun didn’t get to finish her question. Some students already were leaving, their distaste evident. Others were looking at them in disbelief, a sort of ‘are you serious?’ look on their faces.

“Very well, if we could get a hand raised next to every person who left, we will bring in other mentors.”

Her job done, Yongsun sat back down. The doors in the back were opened and students came in one by one, announcing their name and finding the raised placard before sitting next to their mentor. Slowly the atmosphere grew louder and more boisterous as the younger students chatted excitedly. Yongsun couldn’t help but hear them and rule some of them out. Some were too overconfident and others were much too meek. A brief greeting to Dahyun as she sat between her and Mina was the only interaction she had. The two hit it off instantly though. Director Dohoon eventually came out, tapping the microphone to announce himself. Immediately the hall went silent as hundreds of heads swiveled to the man who would ultimately decide whether they succeeded or failed. All except for Yongsun.

Her eyes were scanning between bodies that were both younger and taller than her, looking for her student. The doors had already closed. Any students left were already heading to other seats. She just shook her head in disapproval. Of course she would get someone who slacked. Oh well.

She could hear the rustling of paper as the director brought out his own script. She turned to face front as he cleared his throat.

“Good morning students, today marks –”

“Hello! Sorry I’m late, my name is Jung Wheein.”

An entire ocean of bodies turned to look at the short girl with a loud voice, some very much amused and others scornful. The girl seemed oblivious to all of this.

“Ah yes Jung Wheein. Would her mentor please raise their card?”

Yongsun sighed and raised the card. Mentors all across the room shook their heads in pity for lamb about to be slaughtered.

“Remember to be nice unnie.” Mina’s whisper reached only Dahyun and Yongsun.

“We’ll see.” Was Yongsun’s short, clipped answer. She could see the surprise on Dahyun’s face at her words but ignored it.

“Well, Ms. Jung, you seem to have gotten lucky, though you will be losing points for your tardiness. Yongsun-ssi is our best at the moment. I would advise you to learn everything you can.” The director gestured towards Yongsun, who nodded her head in thanks, before continuing.

To her credit Wheein hurried down as fast as she could while staying relatively quiet. She offered Yongsun a quick bow, going a little pale at her stern expression, and turned her focus to the Director on stage. Yongsun noticed quickly that the Director was just going over the details of the contract again and took the chance to discreetly examine her student.

Wheein was … odd, to say the least. Yongsun thought she seemed like a pile of contradictions. She looked excited enough to be in the program, even asking questions when given the opportunity, but she was late to the very first day. Yongsun wasn’t one for excuses. She had a feeling that Wheein would surprise her though. She paid rapt attention to every word Director Dohoon said but was fidgeting with everything within reach. Her bag strap, the sleeve of her hoodie, even twisting a strand of hair between her fingers.

“…will now show you around the campus. Best of luck to each and every one of you.”

Yongsun almost laughed out loud at that. Luck had nothing to do with it. Either a person worked hard enough to succeed, or they didn’t. Nobody just gets lucky and breezes their way through medical school, if they did there would be more doctors in the world. Yongsun looked away from the director and towards the podium he was standing behind instead. Emblazoned on the dark mahogany wood was the crest of the school and, under that, the school motto. Achievement through passion and commitment. Yongsun had hated it the moment she saw it.

As if Wheein could tell something was off, she stayed in her seat even though others around them were leaving. Mina and Dahyun waved to them as they walked by, and Wheein folded her hands in her lap. Her leg began bouncing up and down, the heel of her shoe tap, tap, tapping away. It broke Yongsun out of her thoughts.

“Why were you late today?” The tapping stopped right away. “It’s only the first day.”

“I kind of got side tracked on the way over here…” Wheein’s words faded off.

“Side tracked by what?”

“There was a uh… a kitten. In the park across from the administration building. It was stuck in a tree.”

“A kitten.”

“A really cute one.” Yongsun turned to face Wheein. The kitten must have been extremely cute because Wheein was already looking happier by the mere mention of it. Her smile faded a little once she met Yongsun’s eyes though. “Sorry.”

Yongsun just sighed and stood, gesturing for Wheein to do the same. “Just make sure it doesn’t.”

“It won’t, Yongsun-unnie!” The return of Wheein’s loud voice startled Yongsun, giving Wheein enough time to tangle their pinky fingers and press their thumbs together. “I promise!”

Yongsun pulled her hand away and looked questioningly at Wheein.

“What? Pinky promises aren’t just for kids.”

“They are for children. But that wasn’t what I meant.”

“Huh?”

“Unnie?”

“Oh! I just thought, you know, since we’ll be living together and all… ah never mind. Sorry about that.” Wheein bowed to Yongsun quickly, her fingers returning to fumble with her bag strap. “It’s nice to meet you Yongsun-ssi. I hope we’ll work well together.”

“Likewise.”

---

“Unnie?” Wheein’s voice came through the door.

“Yongsun-ssi.” Yongsun corrected her. "But yes?"

“Right, sorry. I brought some stuff for the kitchen with me and I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to move any of your stuff.”

“I’ll be out in a second.”

Yongsun was much more tired than she liked to admit. In her mind the tour was going to be short and simple, just a quick stop to each of Wheein’s classrooms, the cafeteria, and the library before heading back to give her plenty of time to unpack. But Wheein’s habit of getting sidetracked seemingly was not reserved just for cute baby animals. She started up a conversation with each of her professors, all of whom coincidentally had also been Yongsun’s professors, helped the cafeteria staff unload a shipment of food, and even organized the library’s return bin. All the while Yongsun was standing or sitting nearby. The moment they got back to Yongsun’s dorm, she showed Wheein to her room to unpack and left to lay down in bed.

“What things did you bring… with you?”

And now her kitchen was being taken over by cups.

“I was going to make some room in that cabinet, but I wasn’t sure if you’d rather me use this cupboard instead. The one with your Tupperware? I think there’s enough room in the cupboard if we move everything to the top shelf of that cabinet though. Unless you want that one just for plates an –”

“How many of these did you bring?” Yongsun felt a headache building at the flow of words. Her small dining table was completely covered with cartoon characters printed onto mugs.

“Hm? Oh, I have all the princesses, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald and Daisy Duck, Goofy, Pluto, basically everyone from The Lion King, Finding Nemo, and Toy Story too. Umm… there’s also –”

“Okay, okay. I get it. You’re not planning on putting all of those in the kitchen, right?” Yongsun carefully pulled out the chair and sat down.

“Of course not! I just wanted to see if you had any favorites so we could keep those out here.” Wheein looked at her collection fondly. “So which ones do you want?”

“I don’t have any favorites. I never watched the movies.”

Wheein’s head whipped straight to her new roommate. “You’ve never watched any Disney movies? Like, at all?!”

“I just didn’t watch them growing up.” Yongsun shrugged. “And then I just wasn’t interested enough to go out of my way and watch some kids’ movies.”

“But they’re not just kids’ movies!” Wheein waved her arms excitedly. “They throw some serious stuff at you these days. Female empowerment and pro-LGBTQ stuff and things like that!”

“That sounds… cool.” Yongsun offered. “I’m too busy to watch movies though.”

“But you have to watch at least one! You have to.”

“Maybe. Anyways just put your mugs away.”

“But you haven’t picked which ones you want yet.” Wheein whined. She walked behind Yongsun, putting an arm on the back of the chair and looking over her shoulder. “Just pick the ones that you think look the best then. We’ll watch those first.”

“We’re not watching a movie tonight. And do I really have to pick one?”

“At least two.”

Yongsun turned to stare at Wheein, only to find her student already looking straight at her, her expression dead serious. Yongsun held her gaze steadily, only for Wheein to break into a pout.

“Pleaaaase?”

“…”

“…”

“You can put your mugs in the cabinet. Just stack the small plates on top of the bigger ones.”

Yongsun turned around in her chair, crossing her arms. Wheein’s sigh drifted by her shoulder and she started picking out a few mugs, moving them over to the counter before reorganizing the cabinet in question. Yongsun just looked blankly at the mugs still on the table.

For some reason Mina’s words from earlier floated into her mind. Sure, her student wasn’t the most academically minded, but she was going to be living with Wheein for a few years at minimum. Something like this was harmless and would probably help her settle in. It wouldn't do Yongsun any good if Wheein had reason to believe the rumors going around campus. Yongsun looked through the characters again, picking out a couple.

 “I like these two. What are they?” Yongsun was almost embarrassed to be asking about cartoons. But Wheein just broke into a huge grin, taking the two mugs and putting them on the shelf, pointing at each mug respectively.

“This one is Tinkerbell and that one is Mike Wazowski.”

“Mike what?”

“Wazowski.”

“Okay…”

Wheein’s smile stayed glued on her face as she bounded away. She gathered up as many of the mugs left over as she could carry before skipping (Yongsun had never seen someone actually skip in real life) in the direction of her room. Thank god for Mina. They were both geniuses and introverts but at least she was approachable.

“Yongsun-ssi?” Wheein called out.

“Yes?”

“I’ve been meaning to ask since we got here but why is your dorm different from the others? It’s not like the ones they showed us at orientation.”

Yongsun turned in her chair to vaguely face Wheein’s direction. “It’s the dorm they give to the student whose ranked first. It’s just a little bigger.”

“More like a lot bigger. You have hallways that connect the rooms. And there’s the fact that there’s even more than one room.”

“Okay it’s a lot bigger. But you got a room out of it so count yourself lucky.”

“I wouldn’t have minded sharing a room with you.” Wheein waggled her eyebrows as she passed by with another armful of mugs.

“Excuse me?”

“I meant for sleepovers!” Wheein feigned offence. “What were you thinking of, Yongsun-ssi?”

“I was thinking there would be no sleepovers of any kind.” Yongsun deadpanned.

“Awww. Not fair! You and your old roommate probably had sleepovers, how come I can’t?”

“Because I didn’t have a roommate. So it’s fair.”

“Wait.” Wheein’s head poked out from her room. “You didn’t have a roommate?”

“No.”

“And how long have you been here?”

“Four years.”

"Doesn't it get a little, you know, lonely?"

Yongsun just shrugged again. She was doing that a lot today. "I'm used to it."

Her new roommate stared blankly at her for a while, hesitating slightly before asking, "Do you want Chinese food tonight? I'll order in a little bit."

"Sure."

Apparently Wheein didn't have anything to say after that, almost reluctantly going back into her room instead. Yongsun gazed around the dorm. The four years she had spent by herself barely showed. A small door mat was the only thing that hadn't already been there, and even then it was more out of necessity than any desire to decorate.

But Wheein had already made her mark in the few hours she had been there. Extra slippers were neatly organized next to the door, the fluffiest blanket Yongsun had ever seen was thrown haphazardly across the couch, and now the mugs in her kitchen. Or rather, their kitchen. That would take some getting used to.

And as Yongsun slowly got up to head back to her room she realized there was a lot more to get used to. Sharing a bathroom with someone who seemed to own an entire store's worth of products. Having to discuss what food they each liked and disliked. The foreign concept of talking to someone that wasn't Mina while not in class.

"Hey Yongsun-unnie! Do you want peanut sauce? I'm not the biggest fan but we can if you want."

"I'm fine with no sauce."

---

It was only later that night, when Yongsun and Wheein were spreading their takeout across their small table, that Yongsun realized she let Wheein call her ‘unnie’. But for some reason she didn’t mind. It was different from Mina calling her unnie. She did it out of respect for their age and Yongsun's experience. But Wheein's was more close. Less gentle than Mina's but just as warm.

It was… nice.

A/N: Its been a while and I'm sorryyyyy *bows profusely*. I got a promotion (woop woop) but with all good things comes paperwork and more responsibility so I was swamped for a while until a senior manager helped me get the hang of things. Things should be much calmer now. My apologies again.

I wanted to finish this new version of August Light and upload the whole thing at once, but my brain refuses to let me continue it, so this is part one. Part two will be up either this Friday or Sunday ^-^