After they both had eaten breakfast, Mina asked Yuri what she wanted to do. In the States, Yuri had been learning all her Korean secondhand from Mina. Despite Mina being a very good teacher, Yuri was limited by whatever Mina could remember to teach her. Therefore, Mina was considerably more fluent at Korean than Yuri. Still, Yuri was quite capable, and could hold a pretty steady conversation. Of course, her American accent was still as thick as a storm.

          Yuri agreed to Mina’s sensible suggestion of going out shopping together and splitting up later if they wanted to. Mina knew she had to drag Yuri along because she happened to know that, if left alone, Yuri could easily spend all the money she had on her, simply on food. Unfortunately for Yuri, they both needed that money for furniture. So, sadly, the wondrous street food had to wait a while.

          The two of them stopped at the furniture store on the fifth floor of their building. Their home was on the twelfth floor. It was good exercise which fully wakened up Mina, while only tiring Yuri.

          At the furniture store, Mina was delighted to find most of the furniture on her wishlist that she had spent hours researching in order to put together. That was simply the type of person Mina was. Thankfully, all her hard work paid off, for the furniture suited both of their tastes and was reasonably priced. For hers own self, Yuri bought two flexing lamps, one tall and one desk sized, as well as a small side table. Mina bought an overstuffed beanbag chair and a shaggy carpet. She also bought a desk lamp as well as a tall bookshelf. Yuri rolled her eyes. She loved reading too, but Mina took it to the next universe.

          After dragging their stuff back, along with the couch, coffee table, and the other furniture they had chosen for their living room, the two friends took a short break and ate lunch. As always, Yuri ate about twice as much as Mina. It wasn’t that she was a huge eater, although she could if she wanted to be, it was also that Mina didn’t eat as much as she should. And it was not like she was on a diet or anything like that. She just didn’t eat.

          That afternoon, they both took the bus to the mall about twenty minutes away. Mina could tell that her friend was not going to adapt to such long commutes quietly. Ten minutes in, and Yuri was already bored out of her mind. She wished she had remembered to bring her ipod to listen to music.

          When they finally arrived ten minutes later, Yuri was about to burst. It was so awful to sit for SO LONG. She wondered how Mina did it. Shrugging, Yuri chalked that up as another point on the “Reasons Why Mina is Not Human” list. Still, as they walked towards the entrance to the mall, Yuri was secretly very happy inside. Mina had promised ice cream if she behaved, and ice cream was one thing Yuri could not pass up. Of course, Mina was exactly the same. They wandered through the many stores, buying stuff they needed, like batteries and food and stuff. Of course, they could not resist the store that sold art supplies. Yuri left carrying a bag with three sketchpads, another set of drawing pencils to add to her collection, a mechanical pencil set of three with four packs of lead, and a pretty journal with silver butterflies on the cover. Her hand unconsciously clenched around the bag handles as she thought about the journal. She definitely could not lose that.

          On the way back to their apartment, happily eating their ice cream while balancing their many bags carefully, both girls couldn’t help but wish that every day could continue as fun as this. But tomorrow was college, and that would signal the start of their very hard life as Korean students.          At the next stop, Yuri remembered that the university she was attending was nearby. They both agreed to stop and check it out before walking the rest of the way. The University of Korea’s Fine Arts, or UKFA for short, was magnificent as the sun slowly started its crimson descent. As the two girls happily turned towards their new home, they failed to notice the face in the passing people that was gazing at them, mildly interested. 

               Yuri’s alarm started ringing for the second time that morning, before Yuri bolted out of the bed and frantically started running around getting ready. Even though her university was relatively close in walking distance, she definitely was not going to be late on her first day. Breakfast was rice again. Honestly, Yuri didn’t mind at all. She could live on rice. That’s why she had persuaded Mina to buy the thirty pound bag and a large container to store it in. Mina had simply rolled her eyes and agreed on the condition that Yuri would make chicken that week. Yuri happily accepted the responsibility of cooking for the two, if only to escape the horrendous experience of Mina actually cooking.

          Mina slowly staggered out of her room just as Yuri was about to leave. Her classes started an hour later than Yuri’s, and besides, Mina was just not a morning person. Yawning, Mina made herself a cup of coffee and then sat down to leisurely eat breakfast.

          Yuri, on the other hand, was quickly walking the distance to UKFA. On the way, her smile from talking to Mina that morning quickly faded. Slowly, her facial expression, even her body language, melted away. By the time she arrived, Yuri’s entire expression was frozen in ice. As she walked to her class, one would have perceived her as confident, yet distant and cold. And that was exactly what she was going for.

          Yuri hated people. Well, you could more accurately say that she hated interacting with people. Back in the States, Yuri could feel those eyes on her wherever she went. In her small town, everyone knew about her, about the incident. Yuri hated those looks. So slowly, she started building walls, layers and layers of them, around her heart. I guess it could be called a sort of defense mechanism. She had decided that if the world could not accept her then she would not need the world. Yuri was perfectly fine around Yoona and people she trusted, which numbered a grand total of two at its highest point, but when it came to everyday interaction, Yuri just shut down. So here she was, with the cold demeanor and lack of presence that nicknamed her “The Shadow” back in the small town she had spent her life in.

          So, there “The Shadow” was, sliding into the back corner seat of the lecture hall. Honestly, she didn’t find it necessary to sit in that spot, as it usually attracted the attention of some concerned person, but it was nice to be able to observe most of the people in the class. Yuri was awful at remembering people’s names, and was even worse at putting a name to a face. However, she had a good graphic memory, and so concentrated most on their hairstyles and notable features. This exercise really helped teach her who to avoid.

          Mina, who had by now gotten ready and was about to set out for her college, couldn’t help but worry about Yuri. No doubt she was shutting herself off again. Mina had been one of two people Yuri had ever learned to trust in her life. She and Yuri had been best friends since 7^th grade. Mina had been really sad when she was told by Yuri that she would never learn to trust people. There was nothing she could do but stand by and watch her sometimes distant friend hide from the world. So, Mina could only hope that Yuri didn’t get targeted by the wrong people. If you weren’t intimidated by Yuri’s dark aura, she could make the most loyal friend, but she was also not someone you wanted as an enemy if you’re provoked easily. Mina smiled as she headed out the door. Thankfully Yuri always had a friend who would care for her right here.