[CONTENTID1]Ramyun[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2] 1 [/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]Characters with strange curves combined with angular lines are all neatly lined up in black ink across Shuhua's classwork. Hangul. In other words, Shuhua's (and probably all the foreign trainees') least favorite class. She especially disliked today's lesson because their classwork had no pictures to give her hints as to what the string of words could be trying to tell her. It didn't help that she hasn't been able to study as diligently as she wanted to because her dance practices stretched past midnight. At least today there was only one other trainee scheduled with her to take this class.

What was she doing here? Shuhua thought to herself. Maybe she bit off more than she could chew. Maybe her dream of becoming an idol should have just stayed a dream. Maybe she should've stayed in Taipei and gotten a conventional job or maybe even try to pursue an acting career. At least she would be able to articulate her thoughts out loud in Mandarin. But no. The 's' in eighteen-year-old Shuhua stood for stubborn and she just had to choose an occupation that required her to be in a foreign country. She had to succeed here. It would cost too much of her pride to turn back now. Even if she has been feeling like a toddler in South Korea for these past two months, only able to get by with gestures and small Korean phrases she's learned from hearing everyone around her communicate seamlessly. 

"Shuhua," the teacher called out with an encouraging smile on her face. "Please read the second paragraph." dried up. She wasn't expecting to be called on. The teacher, Kim Yonghee, or Ms. Kim to her students, was very understanding of Shuhua's situation and refrained from making her uncomfortable in class. Whenever Shuhua had spare time, she would ask the teacher to have one-on-one sessions with her so she could practice her pronunciation without the pressure of an audience. Her Korean was improving slowly but surely, and Yonghee thought Shuhua was ready for a two-person audience. Unbeknown to Shuhua, her teacher decided to ask one of her top students to attend her class today to help Shuhua start conversing daily. Yonghee herself didn't have enough time to have daily one-on-one classes with Shuhua every day due to all the other trainees that needed extra help. She was going to assign her as Shuhua's tutor. Learning new languages required confidence to utilize the vocabulary learned in books and class in the real world and she knew Minnie was a nice girl who wouldn't ridicule Shuhua's mistakes.

Softly, Shuhua began attempting to recite the words on her paper. Stuttering probably a few times too many. She felt warmth spread across her face. Her cheeks were tinged with pink as soon as she was finished. Sure, she had "read" the words, but she still had no idea what the group of sounds she created from meant together. Her eyes stayed fixed on the page, missing the approving smile from her teacher, "Good job, Shuhua! Alright, let's move on to you, Minnie. Read the next paragraph, please."

A confident voice from the seat beside Shuhua's, causing her head to turn. It was the antithesis of Shuhua's reluctant reciting. Minnie seemed to be sure that her pronunciations were correct, judging from her crisp, unwavering voice. Shuhua had never had a class with Minnie before. She would have noticed confidence of that magnitude in any tiny little classroom. Minnie elegantly finished reading her paragraph without making a single mistake, as far as Shuhua can tell with her very limited knowledge. She weirdly felt the urge to clap for the girl but instead opted for a shy smile. Minnie smiled back wide, eyes crinkled into crescent moons, holding up two thumbs up, trying to praise Shuhua as well, for the paragraph she read beforehand. Yonghee glanced at the two girls' short interaction with a pleased smile. It looks like they would get along just fine.

When class was over Minnie waited for Shuhua by the door. "Hi! I'm Minnie. I'm a trainee from Thailand. We should be friends!" the Thai girl exclaimed excitedly in Korean. Minnie came to class due to Ms. Kim's request, but Shuhua's sad eyes and shy demeanor reminded her of herself a year back when she fi