You can do this!

I was starting my first day as a doctor’s assistant on my apprenticeship at the best all boys school in Seoul. Luckily for me, my uncle worked there as a coach and gym teacher.

Whoa… an all boys school...hopefully it goes well.

I turned the key of my little blue scooter and the engine cut, making the world around me foreign and quiet… and awkward.

I took off my helmet and sat it on the seat, throwing the keys in my bag. As i slung my bag over my shoulder, I saw a familiar face approaching me from the front of the parking lot.

“Brooke! It’s great to see you, I missed you so much! How was your flight? Have you met anybody here yet? Have you gotten to tour Seoul yet? How are you?” my Uncle Min bombarded me with questions as he pulled me into a tight hug.

“I missed you too Uncle Min! And…” I carefully remembered the order of his questions, “good, long, no, and tired,” I laughed and returned his hug.

“Brooke, call me Gwongmin, Uncle Min makes me feel…. old…” he stepped back and ruffled my hair.

“Ayyaaaaaa!” I backed up and tried to fix my hair, frantically running my fingers through my long curls.

“Worried about your looks already? Tssk! Tssk!” he shook his head and laughed slightly,

“aren’t you too young to worry about petty things like that?”

“Uncle M-”

“Ahem...hem” my Uncle coughed a few times to correct me.

“Gwongmin”

He smiled triumphantly and crossed his arms over his chest as he listened.

“I’m eighteen, most girls worry about their appearance when they’re…” I noticed the blank look on his face and abandoned trying to explain, “Haha nevermind, I’ll try not to worry too much”

“Ahaa! That’s my girl!” He punched my shoulder playfully and I grabbed my suitcase from the back of my scooter. My uncle immediately grabbed the suitcase from me and began to carry it up the stairs to the main building of the school. He looked back at me over his shoulder, “So, are you planning to try out for the soccer team here? I know you’ll make it! It’s a given since you made it to Nationals last year.”

“Gwongmin…. its an all boys team… it’s an all boys school”

“Ah-right… Well you can at least help coach the team! I’m close with the soccer coach, I can talk to him and see if he can-”

“No thank you… I think I’m going to just try to stay in the background for a while, I don’t want to attract too much attention here”

“But you-”

“I will, later… I promise. Just, not now”

He sighed and continued to carry my suitcase up the stairs.

“You know,” I started. My uncle looked back at me, “the suitcase has wheels…”

He looked down at the suitcase and once his eyes made contact with the wheels, his eyes widened and his face went red, “Psh! Ha! Pfft!” he started to stutter, “Yah! I meant to carry it!” I gave him a doubting look and shook my head laughing, “Really! I did! I’m exercising! A real man never takes the easy way out!”

“Mm-hmm” I laughed at my uncle’s foolishness and continued up the stairs, glad that I had at least one familiar face in the massive school.

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“You’ll be fine settling in on your own?” my uncle handed me the handle of my suitcase (which he had finally started rolling) and I took it.

“I’ll be fine, Gwongmin,” it felt so weird calling him by his name.

“Jeez, Brooke! Just call me Uncle Min again hahaha! It’s so weird hearing you call me Gwongmin,” he patted my head like he did when I was five.

“Okay, haha! And yeah, I think I’ll be good in here… will I have a roommate?” I slid the key of my dorm in the lock and heard the click of the deadbolt as I turned the key, “a deadbolt?” I raised an eyebrow at Min, “you don’t think that’s a bit too much?”

“You don’t have a roommate because the only other woman in the school is Teacher Lee…” he fell into some sort of daze as he said her name. I snapped my fingers and he continued as if he never stopped talking, “and she has her own house. I originally wanted you to come live with me, I would have had more peace of mind without you alone in an all boys school… overnight… every night… the only girl…”

“Uncle Min!” I slapped his arm

“Right! Sorry... Anyway, as you know, my new apartment is too small and there isn’t a spare room. But,” he held a pointed finger up and smiled widely, “I was in charge of the decorating and renovations on this room, so I hope you’ll be comfortable!” He looked down at his watch, “I should be going, though. Have fun unpacking!”

I stepped forward and gave my uncle another hug, “I miss mom…”

He sighed and patted my back as he hugged me tightly, “I miss her too, babygirl, I miss her too.”

I felt tears welling up in the back of my eyes and I blinked them back immediately, pushing the thoughts of my mom to the back of my mind. I stepped back and adjusted the straps of my backpack, “I’ll see you at dinner?”

“Of course, kiddo,” he ruffled my hair and laughed as he walked away, leaving me alone in the hall in front of my dorm. I turned the handle of the door and was immediately amazed by my room. The ceiling was nearly fifteen feet above my head, opening into a large living area with two blue sofas. The whole room was blue and purple (my two favourite colors).

Uncle Min! You’re the best!

The walls were the most beautiful part of the room, blending from a sky blue at the top to a lavender purple at the bottom. I opened the door to my right to find a huge bathroom, all white with purple and blue mats and towels. A jacuzzi tub sat at the back of the bathroom, next to a walk in shower.

Jeez… How much did this all cost?

I left the bathroom and wandered into the back of my dorm. Stairs led to a loft that overlooked the dorm, and below the loft was a small art studio. Two easels were set up beside each other in front of the window that overlooked the garden of the school. Along the walls were shelves filled with paints and brushes of all kinds. I walked over to a desk on the opposite side of the art studio and opened the drawer to find multiple sketchbooks and a set of sketching pencils.

Am I dreaming?

I closed the drawer and went to explore the last section of my dorm, the loft. I climbed the spiral stairs and once i reached the top, my breath was taken away.

There was a bed in the centre of the room, below a mural on the wall of tropical fish. On either side of the bed was a small glass table, each with a lamp. To my left, there was a cubby in the wall where the window was, it had a small bench to sit on and a row of books below the bench. Everything was perfect.

I collapsed on the bed and inhaled deeply, the air escaped my lungs as a giddy fit of giggles. I rolled over onto my stomach and noticed a small photo, framed and placed on the bedside table. The photo was from my first soccer tournament, a little ten year old me, with my mother and Uncle Min on either side of me. All of us were smiling brightly as I held up my medal for the photo.

I felt tears welling up in my eyes again as I placed the photo back on the table.

Watch over me, mom. This is going to be one heck of an adventure.