Day 1, Semester 1, First Year of High School (7th Grade)

It all started in the heart of Seoul, where I was about to start high school.

I ironed my uniform, looked for the best pair of socks then I ate the biggest breakfast of rice and some steak my dad made yesterday at his barbeque. My uniform was a light blue shirt, grey pants, a navy school blazer and a school tie. I put my uniform on but I left my tie hanging on a hook in my room so that I would put it on later. I brushed my teeth, combed my hair and packed my bag.

Then mum rushed me out the door, and I was so excited for high school. Once I reached the gates of the school, I remember Jaeseop and Kyoungjae talking to each other about how excited they were and how they were looking forward to high school. Kyoungjae saw me and waved me over as I slowly shuffled to them.

Jaeseop was my age, and he was probably the ‘hottest’ (using a word that other girls use) in the grade. His hair was brownish black, with a fringe that flopped on his face whenever he walked, and surprisingly that made him look ‘attractive’. He was taller than me by around 5 cm, and he was really fit since he practiced taekwondo. He was highly respected by teachers because his IQ level was higher than an average year ten’s one. So girls fell for him because he was smart, good looking and fit. They said his face reminded them of a teddy bear (girls will be girls).

Kyoungjae was just like Jaeseop’s twin, but he worried about his looks more than his education. He was the tallest out of the 3 of us, and he was also liked by plenty of girls. He had jet black hair, shining eyes and a body of a superstar (get it?).

I was also classified as cute, back then I had brown hair that was long for a boy, and had what the girls said, ‘a cute smile’. Only 1 girl had a crush on me back then, but honestly, having a girl fantasise about you every 2 minutes was too annoying for me. I wondered how Jaeseop and Kyoungjae tolerated it, because I wouldn’t survive a day with a girl acting like a e.

There was this girl named Rosie and she was bat-crud crazy for Jaeseop. She called herself 'Kim's Bae', and it seemed like he didn't mind. Well, at least he acted like it. He actually wasn't fond of her existence, but he wasn't rude enough to say it out loud. Kyoungjae on the other hand cared about eating, and only eating. He gave himself the nickname 'Kimchi King' but he didn't tell anyone.

Unlike those two, I on the other hand, wasn't quite good at anything. But luckily I had met them and they accepted me for who I was, even though things between Jaeseop and I were awkward since I accidently had gone out with his cheating ex-girlfriend last year, but since he doesn't seem to show any sign of discomfort around me, I guess he somewhat had forgiven me.

From then, Jaeseop promised himself to not go out with a girl until he had grown up, and I thought that it was the best choice for him. Kyoungjae was very supportive in that situation and managed to get us to be best friends again. Typical Kyoungjae; he was always the peacemaker of our small group.

The bell rang and we were assembled in the sports hall to get our new timetables, and to listen to the principal’s 'monotonous babbling', as my brother had called it.

It was only after the principal had commented on how great each of us had looked in our 'full school uniform' that I realised that I forgotten my tie, and I had a high risk of getting a detention. So I lined up in the area where my last name was supposed to be at and I was up next. I started sweating and my hands were all clammy. At that point, I thought that if I acted natural and polite, the teacher wouldn’t notice.

“My name is Daniel Im, sir." I said in the most polite manner and smiled, and the teacher handed me my timetable. I let out a sigh of relief and I turned around to the direction of where the other students were sitting, about to watch a presentation about high school, how it ran, and what the teachers expected of you.

“Daniel! Get back here!"

Crap.

I walked in the direction of the voice and I found myself face to face with an angry teacher. "Where is your tie? Didn't you read the school rules? School uniform must be worn at all times!" he exclaimed.

"I-I'm really sorry, but I f-forgot it." I stuttered.

"Principal's office, now." He ordered, and I had no choice but to listen to him. I sighed as I plodded along towards the entrance of the hall.

"OY! You there!"

I turned around, and almost immediately, a tie was shoved in my hands. I looked up from it, confused. Before I could say anything to the boy infront of me, he spoke again.

"Take it, and return it to me when you don't need it anymore." This random boy said before he his heel and walked off.

"Um...Thank you."

I didn't even know this boy. He also never knew me, but he was kind enough to lend me his tie and save me from meeting the principal several hours later. He had a small face, and his hair was shoulder length. he dressed nicely, with newly polished boots and blazer that was carefully ironed. He was quite short compared to a normal 7th grade boy. He looked very formal, but also he looked a few years younger than me. How is that possible?

After that I ran to the toilets and put on the tie, and the funny thing was that I forgot how to tie it. It took me 5 minutes to remember how to tie a tie, then luckily I was able to tie a crooked one, but I didn’t care at that point. The lines for collecting the timetables shortened so I returned to the seats where Jaeseop and Kyoungjae were waiting for me. It took them a moment to ask me where I was, but then they were too late and I wasn't able to reply in time because the principal was on the stage, holding a microphone, and was about to give us a speech about 'How a student must behave' and 'The Rules'.

Jaeseop instantly gave me the 'I-will-try-to-sleep-with-my-eyes-open' look (raising his eyebrows twice and opening his eyes really wide) and got comfortable in his chair. Moments later, one of the teachers poked him and he knew that it wouldn't be so easy to do so.

"Students. It is an honour for me to have you learn here. In this high school you must remember that bullying, unacceptable behaviour, relationships and failing is not tolerant. I will not tolerate such behaviour because we are supposed to be the most respected school in South Korea. There are five areas that we want you students to cover: academic, sports, talent, arts and music. We have been a respectful school for 173 years, and we will always be. We also want you to be on your best behaviour, on school grounds and even outside of school grounds..."

His speech went on for what felt like hours, and when I looked at the other students in my row, their eyes continuiously sank before they fluttered open again, except for Kyoungjae and myself. I guess the teachers understood that we were tired so they didn't mind. I mean who would even listen to someone who sounded so boring with life with their heads up and 'listen actively' (as the principal had pointed out at that point)?

I looked behind me and I realised that the boy who let me borrow his tie was sitting there and he gave me a smile. I smiled back, and at that moment, the presentation was suddenly over. Kyoungjae woke Jaeseop up with an abrupt, and rather painful-looking, pinch of the arm and we headed to the direction of the exit once we were dismissed.

I tried to look for the boy and actually get to know him, it would be quite rude to not to thank him properly after he lent me his tie and got me out of trouble. The thing that was so peculiar was how and why that boy had a spare tie in his bag. If I were him, I wouldn’t even bother to buy