Chapter One

Getting a scholarship to study at Seoul High should have been the highlight of his education. It was a prestigious school where only the rich and the extremely smart students could attend. The rest weren’t given a chance. Seoul High wanted the nothing but the best. There were two ways to get into the school – you could either work really hard for it or be born rich. Scholarships were only offered once every year, and only ten places were available. These scholarships provided everything – from the $2000 monthly school fees to the school uniform. The students around Seoul fought for these ten places. Ten is a small number, considering the number of high-school students in Seoul.

And Byun Baekhyun was one of them.

Unlike others, he had a different point of view. He thought of Seoul High as a school with rich, snobby students, and he wasn’t wrong.

*****

His first day at Seoul High went by pretty uneventfully, to say the least. He wasn’t used to the air-conditioning of the place, he wasn’t used to the formal blazer and pants the school uniform consisted of, the taut atmosphere of the school.

In Seoul High, students hung out in distinct cliques and a clique would not approach another clique, but instead they would shoot each other glares that Baekhyun swore could burn holes in the metal doors of the lockers in the hallway.

Back at his old school, they didn’t have the money for air-conditioning, the uniform consisted of a simple white polo shirt with blue collars and light brown Bermuda shorts. The atmosphere was a complete opposite, instead of keeping to their own cliques, the hallways were usually filled with the loud and incessant chattering of students, and it seemed like a marketplace. Baekhyun chuckled at the fond memories.

The first class was terrible. His teacher, Mr Song, made the new students in the class do self-introductions.  They started two weeks later than the normal cohort of students, so they stuck out like a sore thumb. Baekhyun noticed that the other student, Kyungsoo, exuded confidence whereas Baekhyun muttered and was unable to introduce himself properly. The teacher led Kyungsoo to a seat in the second row, while he led Baekhyun to a seat in the fourth row, beside the window. For the rest of the lesson, Baekhyun daydreamed and gazed out the window.

No one would approach him, they all stuck to their own cliques and ate at their own lunch table while Baekhyun sat alone at the table at the far corner of the room. Baekhyun looked at the chair opposite him and sighed. If only Chen was here. He had been best friends with Chen, who was in most of his classes so they talked lots and were close. Baekhyun wondered if he could ever find a friend like Chen here in Seoul High.

He regretted even coming to Seoul High in the first place – it wasn’t his decision to start with. He only did it because his mother wanted him to go. He could have rejected the scholarship but that would surely result in a scolding and lots of crying. He didn’t want to see his mother cry. It hurt him whenever those eyes of hers watered up.

*****

Soon, Baekhyun realized he was going to have to do a self-introduction for every class he had to attend. He soon wrote up a short and simple self-introduction in his head, which he repeated for every class he went to that day. Every time Baekhyun walked in the hallway to get from one class to another, he could feel the stares of the other students, so he always kept his head down. Mostly the students were quiet, but there were occasions when he overheard them gossiping about him, and snickering at him. Baekhyun pretended not to hear the students; he just wanted this day to be over and done with.

*****

“How was your first day at school?”

Baekhyun had just stepped through the front door and his mother was already asking about school.

“It was fine.” Baekhyun lied, untying his shoelaces and removing his socks.

“What did the teachers do? Were they too fast for you?” His mother implored.

“They did the usual, you know, algebra.”

Another lie. Baekhyun hadn’t been paying attention during class, which was very unusual of him to do so. He was usually hardworking and paid full attention during class, taking notes and listening attentively.

New school, new life, right? Baekhyun thought to himself as he sighed as he put down his bag on the couch.

 “Did you make any new friends?”

Baekhyun closed his eyes, wishing his mother would stop asking him questions.

“Yes.”

Baekhyun felt bad about lying. He really did. But sometimes lies are needed to conceal the ugly truth.

*****

After he had eaten his lunch, Baekhyun grabbed his bag and ran to his room. He plopped himself on his bed before squeezing his eyes shut. He thought about his day at Seoul High. It felt like his world did a completely 180 degree turn. From the hardworking, friendly kid he used to be back then, he had changed to what the cool high school kids called him – a loser.

He wasn’t one, but he certainly did feel like one.

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Author's Note:

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never thought I would even get a single subscriber haha.

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