Seven years ago…

“Nae, Umma. Everything is done already. I’ll back home tomorrow”, said a young boy while stood near window on his hotel room. He leaned his side on wall while his left hand held his phone and his right hand held a cup of warm tea. His eyes looked through the window, enjoying his last night at London.

“Ani… You don’t need to. I can ride taxi, Umma. Don’t worry. Beside I just bring a small suitcase. Ah, all my stuffs already arrived home?” He inhaled the faint scent of bergamot which mixed with black tea before he sipped his tea. “That’s a relieved. I’ll leave this midnight. Nae, Umma, arasso. See you later, Umma.”

He hanged up and put his phone into his pocket. He finished his tea and then wore his black coat. He grabbed his case and dragged it out from that room. He headed to airport. It was 10 PM, two more hours before he flied to his hometown, Seoul.

Seoul

He sighed when he walked out from arrival gate and saw a driver of his family smiled warmly and waved his hand to him.

“Welcome home, Young Master”, said him politely while bowed slightly to him.

“Ahjussi, long time no see. How are you?” The younger one flashed a smile to the older one.

“I’m fine, Young Master”, said him while took the case and dragged it to parking lot.

“Aish! Umma seriously sent you here, Ahjussi. I already told her to not to…” He sighed while helped the older one to put the case into the car.

Ahjussi chuckled a bit. “That’s because Madame really worried about you, Young Master.”

“But I’m not a kid anymore”, said him while got into the car.

“That was what Master said but, well, Madame has her own opinion”, replied Ahjussi while got in and drove the car to home.

Park Residence

“My Hyunsoo is back!” beamed a middle-aged woman once the Young Master got out from the car. She hugged him. “How are you, my baby boy?”

“Umma…”, whined Hyunsoo while pushed his mother lightly. “I’m not a kid anymore. Don’t treat me like this.” He walked into the house.

“Yah! No matter what happened, you still and will forever be my baby boy”, said his mother while walked following him. “Let’s eat! Umma already cooked your favorite foods. You must be hungry, right?” She dragged him to dining room.

He looked around the house. I had been ten years since the last time he saw and lived in this house. There was nothing change here. He took a seat around dining room and looked on the table. There were few Korean foods served in front of him. All of them were his favorites.

“Now, eat a lot, Hyunsoo ah”, said his mother while gave him a bowl of steamy rice.

Hyunsoo took chopsticks. “I’m eating!” He started took few dishes on his bowl and then ate it.

“How is it? Good?” asked his mother while sat beside him. He smiled and nodded. “Glad you like them. Ah, about your study, Umma already take care your transfer draft and you can start going to University next Monday.”

He nodded and listened while chewed his meal.

“And about the apartment… Hyunsoo ah, are you sure you want to stay at student apartment till you graduated?”

“Yes, Umma. Why? We already talked about it many times, right? And if I’m not wrong, Appa and Umma already agreed to let me stay at student apartment till I graduated from that university.”

“But…”

“Don’t worry, Umma. I’ll be alright. Do you already put all my stuff to my apartment room?”

“Yeah.” She sighed. “And your car…”

“Umma. I don’t want a car. I don’t need a car now.”

“But, dear…”

“I want to live as a normal student from a normal family. I’ll stay at cheap apartment room and go to my university everyday with my non-expensive bike.”

She sighed again. “Like father, like son. Aigoo… You just came home but you will leave your old mother again in two days.”

“Umma, come on. I’ll back home every weekend. Beside it’s still in Seoul, not in another city or another country.” He reassured his mother.

“Okay. I’ll give the key to you later. Mr. Lee will send you there Sunday afternoon.”

“Umma, it’s okay. I’ll go there by taxi.”

“But, Hyunsoo ah…”

“It’s alright, Umma. I just don’t want my identity is revealed.” Hyunsoo smiled.

First Day

He arrived to that student apartment on Sunday afternoon. The manager of that apartment, Mrs. Kim, greeted him and told him about the term and condition during his stay at there. From Mrs. Kim information, his university was pretty close, only 15 minutes by bike and 30 minutes by walk.

His room wasn’t really big but not small either. It almost similar with his friend’s cheap flat on London. His stuffs were already there and arranged neatly. He guessed it was his mother’s work. He entered his room and flopped his tired body on his new comfy bed and slowly fallen asleep.

In the next morning, he woke up early and prepared himself. He went to his new university by his moderate bike. Mrs. Kim was right. It was only 15 minutes from the apartment to here. He parked his bike and fixed his backpack. He looked around. That university was pretty large. He hoped he wouldn’t get lost while wandering around. He looked around to find someone he could ask for the direction. Perhaps he was too early that time. He kept walking through that long corridor then he saw someone walked in opposite direction toward him.

That person was a petite cute boy. He wore a black cap which barely covered his short brown hair. He wore glasses and a backpack hanging perfectly on his shoulders. He walked while typed something on his phone. A smile appeared on Hyunsoo’s face. He approached that petite boy.

“Excuse me”, said Hyunsoo in perfect Korean.

That boy stopped his path and looked at Hyunsoo. “Yes?” He blinked.

Hyunsoo startled once he heard that boy’s voice. It sounded so childish and girly. That boy didn’t have a deep and low voice like other boys. “Can you tell me where’s the department’s office?” asked Hyunsoo.

“Oh! I’m in my way to there too. Let’s walk together”, said him with a friendly smile.

“Sure. Gomawo”, said Hyunsoo. He has a weird accent too and his Korean still a bit broken.

“Are you a freshman?” asked him while both of them walked to the office.

“Oh, ani. I’m a transfer student”, replied Hyunsoo.

“Ah! I see.” He nodded. “Here we are”, said him while pushed the door.

“Gomawo.”

“Cheonmal.”

Then that boy entered a teacher’s room while he walked to receptionist and talked to her about his transfer stuffs. After talked few minutes, Hyunsoo received his class schedule. His first class would be started in one hour.

“Miss Kim!” said a familiar voice for Hyunsoo. He turned to his side and saw that boy stood beside him. “Prof. Ahn said that I can add one more class for this term. Can I enter Mrs. Lee’s class?”

“Wait a minute, Yiyun”, replied Miss Kim. “I’ll check it.”

“Nae”, said him brightly. Then he realized that Hyunsoo stood beside him. “Oh, transfer student. Annyeong”, greeted him.

“Annyeong. Oh, I’m Park Hyunsoo, and you?”

“Liu Yiyun.”

Hyunsoo startled. Yiyun? He’s a girl? “Nice to meet you, Yiyunssi.”

“Nah, just call me Yiyun.” She smiled.

“Okay.”

“Oh, Yiyun, you can enter Mrs. Lee’s class. It will be started today, in less than one hour”, said Miss Kim.

“Really?Kamsahamnida, Miss Kim”, said Yiyun.

“Oh, can you help Hyunsoo to find his classes today? He has a same schedule with you.”

“Sure.” Then Yiyun turned to Hyunsoo. “What’s your first class?”

“Umm…” Hyunsoo looked at his schedule card. “Mrs. Lee’s class.”

“Really? Then we should be in a hurry cause she won’t let a late student attends her class.” She grabbed his arm and dragged him to that class.

Hyunsoo blinked in confused while being dragged by that tomboy and weird girl.

That tomboy girl was indeed weird for him but basically that girl was very friendly and kind. They didn’t take a long time to be close friends. Liu Yiyun helped him a lot on his first week at that university. After almost one month studied there, Hyunsoo already had few best friends and that tomboy girl was one of his best friends.

Yiyun often teased Hyunsoo about his weakness points to darkness and scary stuffs. She even made daily joke for him but strangely he wouldn’t mad at her more than one day. Sometime he just laughed at her lame joke toward him in the end of classes or in lunch time at cafeteria.

Then there was a girl who captured Hyunsoo attention once he saw her for the first time. Her name was Jung Soojung. She was smart, pretty, and kind. She was like the other girly girls, had long and soft hair, wore skirt and heels, and anyone could smell a nice scent every time she passed by. Shortly, Hyunsoo had a slightly crush to this girl. But too bad, she was already taken. Hyunsoo didn’t know who that lucky guy who captured Soojung’s heart. He only heard about this boy from stories which he accidentally heard when the girls talked around his seat. Hyunsoo only barely knew his name but never had an opportunity to see his photograph or his face. That guy’s name was Kim Jongin.

One and half years later…

Jung Soojung was in her miserable state. From the girls’ stories, Hyunsoo knew that she just broke up with that Jongin guy. He didn’t know whether he should happy or sad with this news. But it was his rare chance to get Soojung’s heart. He decided to not let it slips from his grab.

On one good afternoon, he asked Yiyun, his best friend and also Soojung’s, to help him to win Soojung’s heart without knowing that Yiyun had one-sided love to him. Hyunsoo was like other normal guy, not really that sensitive of someone’s feeling. He couldn’t read a girl’s mood and mind. He didn’t realize that that day he just shattered Yiyun’s heart into pieces as a terrible early birthday present from him to that poor tomboy girl. Although it felt like being stabbed with thousand knives, strangely she agreed to help him to be closed to Soojung.

September, 18th

It was Yiyun’s birthday but it seemed like Hyunsoo forgot it. His mind was full of Soojung and Soojung. There was no space for a girl named Liu Yiyun, not even a little. Without thinking about her feeling, he kept chasing her all day, begged her to start help him being close to Soojung.Then something happened that day. That was so weird and awkward, for him, for her, for them.

They accidentally met with Yiyun’s crush when she was in LA, Will. From that second, Hyunsoo felt something strange appeared from the bottom of his heart, something which he never felt before. He just met that Will guy but since the first second Hyunsoo saw him, Hyunsoo strangely hated him without any reason. When Will invited Hyunsoo and Yiyun to have dinner at his place in the next day, Hyunsoo felt a bit uncomfortable but for the manner shake, he accepted that invitation.

In the way they back to Yiyun’s home, the street seemed more crowded than usual. Yiyun almost bumped to someone if Hyunsoo didn’t quickly hold her hand and pulled her next to him. She was surprised and confused