Editor-in-Chief Note

Hello, fellow Sooman High students! How was your lunar new year and your holiday in general? It was a rather bad winter in Seoul, I know. But I hope you guys were able to make sweet memories. Oh, and warm greetings to all the new students. You will have a great year ahead here, believe me!

As usual, I will remind you to stick with the rules. Don’t be late, don’t loiter around the school ground after school hours (except those with extra curricular activities), don’t get into fights (with or without reason), and always pay respect to those around you. For new students, you can get the list of afterschool activities in front of Student Council’s office, inside the green box. There are brochures in there. See if you can find what fits you.

That being said, our very own The Thunder Herald will greet you once in a week, as per usual. We have cancelled a few columns after many discussions, so don’t be surprised if you can’t find your favourite rubric anymore. But, don’t worry because we also added something new, namely Ask The Duo (forgive the lameness). You can ask almost anything (included, ahem, your love problems) to the columnists because there is nothing they don’t know!

Sooo, have a nice new day, everyone! Spread the love because remember, a person who is incapable of loving another cannot properly love himself ^^

Regards,

Kim Joonmyeon

Lu Han stared at the paper he was holding a bit too tightly. His eyes fixated on the number 15, a number he began to despise. To hell with the rest, the 15 was staring back at him in mockery. Annoyance was painted on his pretty face, pink lips pursed in a way that somehow only enhanced his beauty, stomping on every little chance he had to be called ‘manly’.

“You look so unsatisfied.”

Lu Han didn’t even need to look behind him. “That’s because I am, Yixing. You see this?”

Yixing peeked behind his shoulder. “Uh, yes?”

“This is atrocity!”

Yixing blinked his sleepy eyes. Mind was blank as he couldn’t find anything offending about the paper. “That’s… a regular white paper?”

Lu Han turned around so fast Yixing almost stumbled on his feet. “Wha—God, Yixing. Have you eaten your breakfast this morning? No, scratch that. Are you even awake, right now? The wrong thing is the names on this paper!”

Lu Han almost yelled at this point, inviting some curious stares from inside the Student Council office, but upon realising it was just Lu Han, they resumed whatever they were doing.

“How can there be only fifteen names on it? Football is one of the most popular sports in this country and yet, I only got this much? Seriously, a hundred and eighty new kids and only fifteen of them actually interested? Are they mocking me?”

Yixing was deep in thoughts. Lu Han nearly gave up, thinking his best friend had gone to his la-la land again when he finally answered.

“But that’s understandable. I mean, we were placed third to last in last year’s high school football tournament.”

Lu Han opened his mouth but no words were coming. “One should never rely on the past!” he shrieked because truth was nothing but a . “And I am the captain, now. It should make a difference.”

Wordlessly, Yixing took the paper from Lu Han’s gripping hand and smoothed it. He then began scanning the names.

“Hey, but not every one is from the new batch.”

“What do you mean?”

Yixing bit his lush lower lip; mirth dancing in his eyes. “Han, did you even read the names here thoroughly?”

Lu Han scoffed. “There are fifteen names on it, Yixing. Why was being thorough needed?"

"Because you missed something. Someone."

The beautiful Chinese quirked his eyebrow. "Who?"

"Kim Minseok."

ASK THE DUO!

Hiyya, fellow students! As our EiC has said before, we have a new thing here in The Thunder Herald: ATD! We are here to help you sorting AND solving your problems. We were chosen to be the columnists due to our intelligence and vast knowledge so you see, you can ask about anything and everything because there are no questions in this world that we cannot answer.

This is a pilot project, so questions below were from Student Council’s members and/or The Thunder Herald crews.  But you can start to submit your question soon now that you’ve figured out what this new sensation is about. Fear not, your privacy is something we hold dearly so don’t be afraid to write us <3

I Will Guard You wrote:

Don’t suggest anything to anyone that I will not approve of.

Jdae Master: … Whatever, Joonmyeon-hyung.

TooFabToExist: Man, he quoted Haruki Murakami this time. I mean, does anybody even understand what IQ84 was about? I can't believe him, sometimes. NEXT!

DunWorryBeHappy wrote:

Dear, Duos. Uh, this is a kind of question you only see in romcom movies, I guess. So don’t laugh at me. Um, uh, so. There is this person I know, who is very, very pretty, sweet, funny, and all around a cool being. We’ve known each other for as long as I could remember. You can say that we’re best friends. The problem is, lately I started to notice something different. And as it turned out, it was me. When we are together my heart will beat so fast. This has never happened before. I mean, I am no foreign to dating nor anything related to that but this time, it’s my best friend! This is so weird! What should I do?

Jdae Master: Okay. This is not a kind of question we only see in romcom. This is a kind of question we only hear in girls’ slumber party, but whatever. Mr. DunWorry, I believe what you feel now is crush. This isn’t weird; this is normal for two people who hang out a tad too much. In fact, I’d say this is bound to happen. Before you freak out about anything, let’s sort out your feelings first. Know yourself. Did you start to have a crush on her because she’s prettier these days? Maybe because you just learned that she’s so wonderful or is it just your newfound admiration? Is it the new haircut? Please, analyse your feelings first then write us some more. We would love to hear the development. Good luck!

TooFabToExist: Welcome to the wonderful land of love! … Or is it? MJ is right. Don’t jump into conclusion first. You guys have been together (as bff) for so long, so why now? Is it the hormones? Hmm, doubt it because it’s a bit too late for that (except you are a late bloomer but I somehow doubt that), so what is it? I have to cite MJ’s advise because it’s true: know your feelings. Delve deeper into them. Don’t be afraid of what you might find especially if it is love. Because love is the greatest thing in the world!

Jdae Master: Can you not be cheesy? Love is the greatest thing in the world? Really? You read Jinri’s fanfiction again?

TooFabToExist: Shut up. Besides, do you not agree? Just because Liyin noona rejected your advances doesn’t mean the rest of us have to dwell in self-pity, too. Also, dude, she is a senior university student! What would she want from you?

Jdae Master: She didn’t reject me! Apparently, you didn’t know that you can be awesome and young. Pity. Besides, what’s with all these MJs? People associate MJ with Mary Jane, for God’s sake. It’s Jdae Master or you should at least know how abbreviation works.

TooFabToExist: What’s the point? People will not even notice your name was a nod to Star Wars franchise. So MJ, it is!

David BeckHan wrote:

No sooner than two weeks, I’ll be engaging in an activity involving my three-year long crush. I was beginning to give up and just let it go but suddenly, all of these happened. What scared me is, I realised I am not ready! I never have been! Should I forsake every thing and be content with my old, pining self or to dive head first? This is terrifying.

Jdae Master: Hyung—I mean, David, we’ve talked about this before—

TooFabToExist: -for freaking two hours!

Jdae Master: Yes, for freaking two hours. Remember, this is your last year in high school. Meaning, this is also the last chance to have a closure for whatever clogs your heart! It’s not about the result; it’s about trying not to have a what-could-have-been case.

TooFabToExist: Thing is, you don’t exactly have anything to lose. Let’s say that in the end, everything doesn’t go the way you want to but so what? You’ll leave for a new place, new people, with a lot of opportunity to create new memories. You’ll be able to look back with a smile on your face, knowing that you don’t have anything to regret. Good luck, David. Wo ai ni!

It was exactly 4.00 when Minseok came. Lu Han was lying with his eyes closed, enjoying the warmth of the evening sun, all the while trying to calm his heart down. He had finished auditioning the fourteen new kids with relieving result. They were pretty good. Still needed a lot and lot of practices but they got the basic. Lu Han still had a long way to reform the team and the road was bumpy.

But it wasn’t impossible. Difficult, yes, but not impossible. Lu Han knew he was a good player (if he was being humble and great if he was being honest) but would he be a good captain? Lu Han wanted to have glorious days just like when he was a freshman; back when Yoon Doojoon was leading the team. But with what he had right now, Lu Han thought the burden was too heavy, even more so when Choi Minho announced that he was moving to US last year.

“I’m sorry. Am I late? Shoot, I am late. I’m sorry!”

Kim Minseok. Lu Han would know that voice anywhere and yet, he didn’t open his eyes right away. His ears registered pants and heavy breathing. Minseok had run on his way here.

“No, you aren’t late.” Lu Han answered, eyes still closed. To outsiders, he’d look like he was simply enjoying the weather and being too comfortable with the grass he was sprawled upon. But it wasn’t true. Lu Han needed more time to gather himself together, to plan his words, and how he should act towards Minseok. He couldn’t do that while looking at his face.

Years.

Years and years of pining, of watching from afar, of quietly admiring Kim Minseok. Memorising the way he walked through the hallway, the way he smiled his gummy smile, the way he’d duck his head in a bashful manner whenever his surroundings began to crowd, and how he’d always pick the vacant table to eat his lunch alone.

Lu Han drew a deep breath and opened his eyes. There he was.

He bowed, offering him his smile. “Hi, my name is Kim Minseok.”

I know.

“Name’s Lu Han.”