Yuri

Mornings at Baeyoung High School always start out the same way. A homogenous mix of South Korean teenagers in navy blazers- guys with ties and trousers and girls with pleated skirts (some hemmed shorter than others), all start to spread out amongst the perfectly cut and green lawn of Baeyoung campus grounds. When it’s almost time for school to start, there are some last stragglers racing to slide safe into campus before the gates are shut.

Here at Baeyoung, most people stick together in cliques, much like in other high schools.  We've got the big, brawny douche bags that do stupid things conveniently out of teachers’ line of sight, tormenting weaker students and generally just being pains in the . There are the few druggies that chill out near the back of the building, exchanging their daily portions of cigarettes, booze, pot or whatever other substance they abuse that kills off the few brain cells they have left.

Then we have the preps, jocks and cheerleaders who seem unreachable and better than everyone else- always flaunting their “greatness” and moving around in packs. There are those overachievers and nerds who also group together, although more for safety in numbers, always with their calculators out and punching in numbers. There are just so many different kinds of students here, in this tiny part of Seoul, which is only a miniscule part of the world, all trying to fit in and longing to feel like they’re worth something.

Even though we’re all dressed the same, it’s not that easy to blend into a crowd in Baeyoung. We’re all damningly judgmental of each other and in many instances, “friendships” are only pathetic facades used to make it easier to backstab each other- particularly with the preps and the jocks.

Call me jaded, call me disillusioned, I don’t really care. But if you knew what really happened in this high school, you’d agree with me. I used to be a prep- a cheerleader in fact. But I don’t really hang out with those people anymore.

I’m not so pessimistic as to not have friends though- there are a few girls I trust, including some of the unnies on the cheerleading squad.

But boys are s. I’ve learned that firsthand.

It was approximately 7:30 AM Monday morning, a week after the first day of school. I didn’t know it yet, but my life would cease to be the way it had been before. I had just left the dance room that Hyoyeon-unnie always has reserved just for us, the Hip Hop Girls. Right now, it’s just me, Hyoyeon-unnie and Amber-ssi, but even with just the three of us, I always have a fantastic time doing dance routines with them. After I quit cheerleading, I wandered around the gymnasium after school, trying to figure out what sort of activity I could do- and thus I discovered a new passion in dance.

Speaking of cheerleaders, I spied some walking down the hallway right towards me. There were three of them- Taeyeon walking next to Jea, who was in the middle and Sekyung, the youngest amongst them struggling to keep up and trying to look like she really belonged. I pitied the girl- we used do routines together and she was nice enough.

When they passed by me, Taeyeon spotted me and gave me a smile and a little wave. Sekyung kept her eyes averted away from me. Jea seemed to have been in the middle of telling a story- when she looked up and saw me, a look of irritation flashed in her eyes, which disappeared as quickly as it came as she gave me a sweet, incredibly fake smile.

I decided to be the better person and smile back at them. I even said “Good morning”- though it was only meant for Taeyeon and maybe Sekyung. Jea is the head captain of the varsity cheerleading squad- and a manipulative, overbearing, backstabbing . I have no idea what forces decided she was fit to be better than everyone else (which is funny because she almost never practices so her skills have, for the most part, gone down the drain), but she, I suppose you can say, “rules” over the cheerleading squad. Her dominion spreads over other students too. It might be because she’s got a pretty face and an enhanced chest, so boys flock to her like the typical es they are. 

Break probably hasn't done anything to shirk her ridiculously high opinion of herself- or her need to be on top. Jea is civil enough to at least pretend to be friends with other people, but if there’s someone she feels is threatening her top position, she will use ugly methods to bring down whichever girl unfortunate enough to cross paths with her. I know because I’ve seen it happen before multiple times- and plus, Jea’s never really liked me anyway. She thinks I'm some threat to her and thus talks about me behind my back.

Even before I reached the classroom, I could tell something happened. Walking in,  I was met with a huge crowd of classmates, mostly girls, gathered around a single desk. A new student maybe...? I guessed. 

The homeroom teacher walked in right after me and rapped the board with his fist, calling for order. I took my time walking over to my seat in the middle of the third row from the windows. Everyone else scurried back to their seats as well and the crowd cleared up enough for me to realize that the new student’s seat was, in fact, in the row row to the right and just one seat behind me.

When I made a quick glance over my shoulder, I wasn’t sure if what I saw was real or not.

Long-ish wavy brown hair that just touched the collar of his shirt swept across his forehead in magazine-styled perfection. He sat a good half head taller than most of the other students in the classroom and the somewhat brooding look on his face perfectly aligned with his features like those eyes and lips…okay, I’ll admit it. He was pretty hot- gorgeous, in fact.

Wait,Yuri...stay focused- looks never mean everything, I reminded myself. The weirdest part was that…he was staring at me. And I’m not talking about spacing out staring, although he did look like the type to zone out frequently. No, I mean, fixated staring.

At first, I wondered if I still had crumbs left on my face from eating breakfast and did a quick, subtle sweep with my fingers. Nope. Was there some huge pimple that I didn’t notice when I was in the bathroom this morning? Nothing.

I shifted uncomfortably as his gaze was still directed towards me. What is his problem? I wondered. I glanced nervously over my shoulder again but when I made eye contact with him, I gave him a cold, disapproving look, hoping that would shoot him down.

Not a chance. He was still staring. What a weirdo.

The teacher said, “Everyone, we have a new student who just transferred here from Gunhwa High School. Choi Minho, please stand up and introduce yourself.” The boy named Minho who sat in the row next to me stood up and made a small introduction- all while still keeping his gaze on me.

Hyoyeon

I knelt down into position, feeling the music’s booming beats vibrate against the polished wooden floor. Snapping up, I executed some popping and locking moves, letting the rhythm take control of my body and setting myself free at last.

By the time the song ended, I was on the floor, gasping for breath with sweat dripping down my forehead- but I didn’t feel tired at all.

Dancing is my passion. Honestly, I could go on forever,  just submerging myself into the music and letting my feelings flow naturally through my movements. This spare studio of Baeyoung has been my sanctuary for the past three years- this will be one of the few places I’ll be sad to leave come graduation.

Everything else can pretty much go to rot. I don’t even have words to describe the superficiality of the people around here. For the most part, I have gotten used to it- I’m just not sure if some people realize that I can hear them calling me ugly behind my back.

No, I’m not what you would call a girl with a pretty face. It’s something I’ve long come to accept and I have realized that it really isn’t worth destroying my self-esteem and dignity over. Yet I face the repercussions of this accepted fact almost daily.

It might be because of this that I use dancing as a way to escape from the judgmental side of the world. Or maybe because it’s one of the few things I can do that makes me feel like nothing matters, so long as I live and can express my true emotions through rhythmic movement. Whatever the reason you prefer, dance has basically become a part of me. And I wouldn’t be able to stand having that part of me get taken away.

I can’t even stand the idea of the passion I share with others being taken away from them. Yuri and Amber are amongst the greatest club members I could have asked for- but it’s still not enough for the school. We need a minimum of four people in order to make the Hip Hop Girls a legitimate club that can compete in competitions. And most people don’t really care about a small group like ours.

No, instead, they choose to check out our rival group the B-Boys which is led by my biggest enemy Lee Hyukjae. Every time I think of him and his stupid gummy smile I get so damn angry. He loves to bully me and rub it in my face whenever his group wins a competition.

Yes of course I’m jealous. Because that dumb monkey Hyukjae always gets what he wants through whatever means necessary. We’ve been rivals, but lately in high school, he’s been a real pain in the .

Just like when I looked up and saw him by the doorway grinning at me from ear to ear and saying, “That’s pretty good form, Hyoyeon. It’s good enough to win first place in a competition.”

I glared at him and said, “Keep your sarcasm to yourself  Hyukjae, before I stuff it back down your throat myself.”

He raised his hands up and said, “Whoa, easy there Hyoyeon- it was a real compliment. So how’s the search for your fourth member going?”

“If that was any of your business, Hyukjae…”

“Okay, okay I get it. Jeez, Hyoyeon, you really have to calm down. I’m just looking out for you, that’s all.”

“Yeah sure, ‘looking out for me.’ That’s real funny.” I snorted. Hyukjae just shrugged his shoulders and left the studio.

“Pabo…” I muttered before getting up to the boom box and changing the track.

Jessica

Beauty is a concept that has completely transformed in its meaning in this modern day and age. I hear it being discussed by boys when they debate over which girl they would rather do more; I’m forced to listen to hormone-driven girls gush about their latest favorite eye candy, especially during cheerleading practice.

Everyone in Baeyoung seems to be caught up in this era of spontaneity, recklessness and, well, . It's an era that I for one am sick and tired of. Put simply, having a pretty face and a hot body will do wonders to your social status and likewise, increase amount of people who want to take a piece of the innocence that should be protected.

I think I would have a pretty good idea of what I’m talking about after being in about seven relationships so far. All of them which have ended badly.

Especially my last one in my 2^nd year before school let out for break. I don’t know what I was thinking accepting Taecyeon’s suggestion to go on a few dates with him. They almost always led to either Taecyeon bragging about how he’s scored other girls or him bringing me around to his giant mansion to show off. When I told him that I thought we should just be friends…let’s just say I could easily see him as being an abusive husband.

I passed by a group of girls in the hallway. One of them gave me the evil eye and another said, “Hey Jessica- how many guys got lucky with you last weekend?” Without batting an eye or changing my facial expression, I replied, “More than you’ll ever get if you don’t get a plastic surgeon to fix your nose.” The other girls had to hold her back.

I’m called “Baeyoung’s Ice Queen” for a reason.

I’m well aware of what others think of me. It’s really amazing what kinds of things people say about you when they think you won’t ever know about it. Well I’m sorry I look this way- sometimes I feel like I would trade my physical appearance with other girls who hate me. “Beauty” has landed me in more trouble than what it is really worth.

It was about to land me into even more trouble on Monday morning when I walked into class. I could feel the usual leers of fellow male classmates and glares from some female classmates bore into my back as I approached my seat. Two rows away, Donghae noticed me and gave me a smile which I returned. He’s such a nice guy. Sometimes I feel so bad for him whenever I see him with Sunye and she’s not even looking at him. He deserves a girl who would give him her full attention.

 Jea sat in the row next to mine texting with her feet up on my chair- she didn't even bothering to look up when I approached her. Only when I cleared my throat did she mumble an apology and slide her thin legs off my chair. That girl really has no regard for other people. I can always remember that time when she purposely knocked a 1^st year cheerleader down and nearly broke her arm- just so she could look best in the spotlight. I really have no idea how Taeng and I put up with her for the past three years. Hopefully I’ll never have to deal with her again after I graduate.

BoA-seosang set up her things and called the class to order. After taking attendance, another teacher rapped on the door and called her outside. When she came back, she announced, “So it appears that we have a new student who just transferred here from Gunhwa." Turning back into the hallway, she told the student, "Please come in and introduce yourself..."

The new student walked in with a certain swagger, like he owned the place even though he just got here. When he turned to fully face the class, I think I heard a girl literally swoon out loud.

I didn’t blame her either. The cocky grin was enough to thaw and melt my own heart. His dark brown, perfectly wind-swept hair would have made a model turn green with jealousy. He was a little on the short side, but his looks completely made up for it.

“Hello everyone- I’m Kim Jonghyun and I just transferred from Gunhwa.” Jonghyun. It was a y name for a guy. It also sounded awfully familiar, like I’d heard it from somewhere. “I hope to become well acquainted with all of you.” Almost as soon as he said this, I could see big dopey grins on many girls’ faces and Jea eyeing him up and down like she couldn’t wait to eat him up.

When it was break time, everyone crowded over to Jonghyun’s desk, even the guys. I figured that he would, like any new student, just sit there and bathe in the attention he was receiving. But nobody, least of all me, would have expected him to suddenly get up from his seat and walk over to me while I was standing by my desk reading. 

Despite how distracted I felt from just looking at him, I gave him my coolest glance and asked, “May I help you?”

There came that smirk again. “Help? Yeah sure…I’d like some help…to get to know you again.” And before I could even blink, he had me backed up against my desk and his body startlingly close to mine- so close that I could feel his breath hitting my neck. I glanced around nervously, but BoA-seosang had left the classroom and everyone was watching us intently.

“Um…excuse me? Is this how you greet people you just met?” I said, still keeping my expression collected and staring him right in the eye.

“Just met?” he chuckled. “My, my Jessica, I can’t believe puberty worked so well for me that you don’t even recognize me anymore.” What the hell…?!

“What do you mean, recognize you? I don’t even remember you at all, assuming I’ve ever met you and…how do you know my name?” He was both pissing me off and . What a weird mix.

“But I remember you,” Jonghyun said, his voice turning husky. “I remember you and I remember how you tore my heart to pieces five years ago very well. I’ve remembered you for all this time, Jessica Jung. The only question is…do you remember me yet?”

It hit me. I suddenly recalled the vision of a short, gawky little kid with huge glasses offering me a rose, back in the first year of middle school.

“That’s right, Jessica,” he said, relishing the shocked expression on my face. “It’s me. ‘Four Eyes Jjong’ has come back.”

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A/N: Hello everyone! Cee-Cee here <3 so sorry for the delay, finals are coming up and i must study! 3 here is the long awaited first chapter. i hope you guys like it :D the pattern of this is basically three girls per chapter. and there's really no particular order, it's just going as how the story shall flow. 

by the way thank you SO SO SO SO SOOOOOOOO MUCH to you readers for your awesome & encouraging comments and for subscribing. this is the first time so many people have subscribed to a fic of mine- when the first chapter wasn't even out yet! geez i need to develop a more constructive posting schedule x___x but thank you so much guys. i love you all <333333 i'm going to work hard and develop a great story :] ^o^