“Can you believe we already have an assignment in Physics?” Minah prattled in my ear as we headed down the East corridor for our next class.

“I know, on the first day back from spring break!” I agreed, adjusting my bag over my shoulder.

The pressures of exams were bearing down on us harder than ever. I longed for this time last year, when I had only a smattering of assignments and projects were to complete, instead of exams.

I looked up from my exam paper to see a lean figure I didn’t recognize and I’ve been going to this school for over four years now.

“Who’s that?”

“What?” Minah glanced up from her phone to see where I was looking. “Oh, that’s Do Kyungsoo, he’s in my homeroom. He’s in our year and he’s new.”

“New? We have ten to eleven weeks left! How can he be new?”

“He was removed from some other arts school here in Korea.”

“Oh.” I nodded, watching as the new boy turned to cut across the grass.

“Why was he exchanged to this school?”

“No one knows. I heard it from Kim Jongin.”

“Oh,” I repeated. I gazed back at Kyungsoo curiously. He had milky colored skin and dark brown hair that flopped around his ears. His walk was confident, but also with a no-care attitude. I tried to remain secretive as he came closer; he was carrying several books and a black backpack over his shoulders. I noticed as he got closer, his backpack had words that spelled out EXO.

I thought he glanced at me as we walked by, but that could have been the trick of the light.

“Jaehee, I saw you watching as he passed by! Don’t tell me you’re interested in him,” Minah teased, but I cut her off.

“Why not? He’s new! Of course I’m going to stare. He’s asking to be stared at.”

She merely grinned. “Whatever, hurry we’re going to be late.”

And I would have another chance to see Kyungsoo, as it turned out. I was snatching my Calculus binder back from Kyungsoo when slouched in, glancing up at me before taking the empty seat in front of me.

“We have a new student today. Mr. Do, would you care to introduce yourself?” Ms. Lee spoke.

Kyungsoo didn’t exactly jump out of his seat in excitement. He paused; his head still down, and then hauled himself out of his desk like he weighed more than he could bear. He then stood straight and looked up.

“I’m Do Kyungsoo. Uh, I work at this music store down the street. I go to school here now.” He stopped and looked at Ms. Lee with a vacant expression. She nodded brusquely when she realized that was all he was going to say, and waved him back to his seat. He fairly fell back into his chair, but not before we made a few seconds’ eye contact..

He sat like a rock the entire lesson, except for his pencil, which flew around the page in some sort of strange, silent dance. I realized I was finding it hard to concentrate with Kyungsoo in front of me. Stupid—I hadn’t said two words to him, I couldn’t actually like him. I was being dumb. I was just curious about him, I told myself. I wasn’t actually interested in him.

The next day, however, I found myself making an introduction when he came into Calculus. “I’m Jaehee,” I said before he could collapse into the seat and face away from me.

He paused and then nodded. “Kyungsoo.” Then he dropped into his seat, and that was that.

Or at least, I thought it was. When he sat down, a piece of paper fell out of his pocket. I hesitated, and then set my foot on it and slid it closer to me so I could pick it up. After Ms. Lee began the lesson, I unfolded it quietly on my desk.

It was a sketch. But the word ‘sketch’ didn’t begin to describe it. The drawing looked like it had been done with pencil, as it reflected the fluorescent light above me when I tilted the page, but it was so detailed, so fine, and so exact, I could barely believe it. I knew exactly where to stand to get this perspective. It was beautiful.

When the bell sounded, I tapped Kyungsoo on the back of his shoulder. He turned slowly, his dark eyes boring into mine again. I almost forgot what I was going to say, afraid that those eyes could read into my mind.

“Did you draw this?” I asked, offering the paper forward.

His eyes narrowed. “Where did you get that?” he said, his voice hardened and with more character than I’d heard before. He reached forward and snatched it up, folding it up roughly and pocketing it.

“It fell out of your pocket. Jesus, it’s amazing! You should give it to Mr. Park. He’d frame it.”

Kyungsoo stood up, slinging his bag over his shoulder. He turned the corners of his mouth up, but it wasn’t a smile.

“No,” he said simply.

Dumbfounded, it took me a moment to find my voice. Even then, I had to scramble out of my seat and gather up my belongings to chase after him out of the classroom. “Why not?” I demanded. “It’s fantastic.”

“It’s mine,” was his short reply.

“So? It needs to be shared.”

“Goodbye, Jaehee.” Kyungsoo ducked into the boys’ bathroom, leaving me standing outside clutching my books as students on their way to class buffeted me from both sides.

I didn’t stop nagging Kyungsoo. The next week, I found him after school, walking to catch the bus into town. He couldn’t see me at first, because I was trying to figure out how best to approach him. I merely stared at him for a moment. He was scribbling in a notebook, his pencil doing that same dance. I wondered what he was drawing. As I watched, he tore the sheet off and tossed it into one of the trash bins.

I stared at the bin. No, Jaehee, don’t do this, I told myself, but my curiosity was too strong. The city bus came and Kyungsoo left. I went to the bin and lifted the paper out of it.

The handwriting was strong and clear. I devoured it quickly.

I will forget you who doesn't love me
everything I wanted to do, I do them and live
you're not being erased from my mind, why?

Why do you keep on pushing me aside?
Was it due to my selfish feelings?
I can't escape from these kind of thoughts
is this really love?

I wasn't prepared for break-up Wait a minute (for me)
the wait is so long Has no limit
I keep calling you ,who doesn't answer, I hear only the echo
oh oh oh oh

I hate living while having lost you but
someday I will fade
Tell me what is love
Tell me what is love

I showed it to Kyungsoo the next day after class. He merely groaned and pulled it away from me, stuffing it into his bag and slinging it back over his shoulder.

“Wait! This is so good, Kyungsoo!”

He didn’t say anything, so I kept going. “Really! Did you write this?”

“Yes.”

I grinned. “So who is ‘she? She’s pretty lucky if you ask me, if you write this poetry about her.”

Kyungsoo merely shrugged. “Tell me who she is please.”

“She isn’t anyone.” Kyungsoo stopped walking and looked at me through his dark hair. “I don’t have anyone to write about. She’s just in my head.”

“Oh.” I was disappointed, but slightly thrilled that Kyungsoo had said more than three words at once. “Still, you’re so… artsy. Next you’re going to tell me you’ve been playing the guitar since age six.”

“No, I don’t play the guitar.” He adjusted his bag over his shoulder and kept walking. I frowned and started walking along next to him. We usually separated after talking to go to our respective classes, but this time we talked longer. “I play the piano and sing,” Kyungsoo said, and I looked up to see him smirking. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. “It’s a song.” He turned entering the band room, and I stared after him before remembering I had to rush to Economics. It took me a moment to figure out what he meant by “it’s a song.” Then I realized he was talking about the poem. It wasn’t a poem, it was lyrics.

After school, I ignored Minah and went to the music room. We didn’t have music classes, but we did have a choir with a piano and guitar accompaniment for services. It was empty when I entered, so I went straight to Mr. Choi’s piano. My dad had played the piano when I was little; now not having seen him in years I didn’t exactly know what he done with it, or even if he had been good at playing it anymore. I wondered if Kyungsoo was as good at piano as everything else his hands touched. I walked over to the opposite side of the room to find a white sheet over the shiny piano. I played a short melody and stopped when I heard someone enter the room.  

“Wrong, Jae.”

I looked up quickly. Kyungsoo was standing in the doorway, a small smile on his face. He lifted his bag over his shoulder and set it down, then slowly shrugged off his jacket.

“Yah, what are you doing in here?” I asked, but then started thinking, what a stupid question.

“Firstly, I have choir and you don’t, so the real question is, why are you in here?” Kyungsoo said, approaching me. I held still, and he stood behind me. “Let me teach you.”

He put his arms around me as I turned my gaze to his surprisingly long fingers. His chest was pressed against my back, and his right hand closed around mine next to the strings.

“This is my song.” He moved his fingers around mine. He moved his fingers again, playing two more note chords.

I could feel his breathing, from his ribs against my back to his breath on my neck. I couldn’t move, and I didn’t want to.

“Let me play, I’ll learn easier.” I said. He then gently moved my right hand out of the way of the keys.

He began to play single notes, and I was struck by the gentle rhythm of the song. I closed my eyes to listen.

He stopped short after a minute or two, and the spell was broken. He pulled away from me, closing the piano lid.

“That’s as far as I’ve got.”

“Why didn’t you sing the lyrics you wrote down?”

He shrugged. “You didn’t ask me to.”

“Why did you leave from Baekseok Arts High?”

He averted my eyes, for the first time in a while appearing like he had those first few days here, where he spoke to no one. “I wanted to be normal,” he said shortly.

I blinked. “Normal? Hold on, is that why your backpack has weird lettering that spell O?”

“EXO was the group I was suppose to be joining and the entertainment company was SM… Anyway, people treated me like I was the big thing because I won a singing completion twice in a row and that entertainment company came after me, asking if I’d become a trainee.”

“Why didn’t you just take the offer? What kind of a person would pass something like that up?”

He clenched his jaw, finally looked back at me. “Jaehee, are you being serious? Didn’t I just say it, I want to be normal and stay normal. Maybe one day in the future I’ll join that opportunity, but not now, not at this age.”

“You just ran away from your talent Kyungsoo.”

He stared at me with dark eyes and gave another small smile. “I didn’t run away, I’m still doing what I love and anyways I found a muse.”

I felt color creeping up my face. “I thought I was annoying you.”

He smiled wider.

“Not at all Jaehee, not at all. So, you maybe want to go get boba, drinks on me.”

I flushed fully this time. Yes, I was interested in Kyungsoo.

I grinned.  “With me? You sure?”

“I’m sure.”

I hesitated, and then grinned again. “Truly?”

He laughed. “Truly.”