It’s only a couple of days before the start of the new semester and I’m pumped up to take on another adventure. Also, I’m studying Korean. Thanks to Hye Yoon Unnie who is so patient in teaching me. I know she just can’t say it, but I’m quite impossible to learn, mainly because of my short-term memory. Mrs. Choi even helped by teaching me how to count up to a hundred that took me three days to master and greet with honorifics. Yeah. I feel like a child learning her ABC and 123, but I’m thankful because no matter how hard it is to teach me, they’re not giving up on me.

“Good Morning!” Unnie, as usual, is looking so beautiful early in the morning. Looks like she got herself a day off from work again. We’re about to have breakfast without Mrs. Choi because she left for work early. As for Seunghyun, he never joined us for breakfast. During lunch, he asks the helper to bring him food either to his room or studio, depending on his mood, he’ll join dinner.  I’m always alone in meals.

My face is extremely bloated today for some reason. I feel like a steamed bun. So far from Unnie who looked like she woke up dolled up already. “I just had the longest sleep in my entire life” I told her. She burst out in laughter “Aigoo. I didn’t know that humans can really sleep that long”. I chuckled “I was dead beat last night”

Yesterday, Mrs. Choi and Unnie gave me permission to roam around Apgujeong and Samcheong-dong alone with only a detailed direction written on a piece of paper. At first I’m doing so well. Rode the bus to Apgujeong, shopped a little (a pair of flats, a sling bag, and a shirt). I’m seriously going on a budget and successfully keep up with it. Things are going smoothly until I got lost on the way to Samcheong-dong. Like the last time, I walked and walked and walked just to look for the right station and ended up on a different station. I didn’t give up or called Unnie for help, but the moment the sun started going down, I already feel the need to.

“Tsk! You’re really a babo” I heard him beside me. As far as I know, Unnie is the one picking me up. Why did she send Seunghyun here?

Sitting on the curb, I stood up and dusted my pants off. “Yeah. I am” I told him. It’s my first time admitting that I’m stupid. He laughed. This is what he’s good at, making fun of people. He’s really one of the most unpredictable people I’ve met. He snubbed me for days and he acted like we’re in total speaking terms last night. “Where’s Unnie?” I asked coldly. He smirked. “Noona’s busy you know. She asked me to “rescue” you”. “Thanks” I said with a forced smile on my face. “Whatever” he replied. The minute he started the car’s engine up until we got home, he didn’t speak to me again, not even a word.

“School starts in a couple of days” Unnie sounded so excited. I nodded “It is”. She stared at me with a grin on her face. I’ve been here for some time now and in one way or another, I can already read them. Well, except for the weird-o, Seunghyun.

Hesitant, “I’m all good Unnie. I swear. I’m good” I said, after hearing her plans for today. She shook her head like a little brat. “Na-uh. You’re not”. Honestly, I’m thrilled that someone is willing to give me a make-over because I’ve never met someone who is. But then again, I feel like it’s too much for Unnie and the rest of the family have helped me a lot already. After all, I’m used to looking like what I look like. TRASH.

No matter how I tell her that I’m going to be fine, she still insisted. We even reached to a point where she called Mrs. Choi just to help her convince me, which she succeeded. I don’t want to be so hard to the people who are just trying to help.

Giddy and anxious of what’s waiting for me, I prepared for my “transformation”. I feel like a Pauper, about to become a Princess. For the first time in my life, I looked forward to shopping, which doesn’t happen at all.

“Seunghyunie!” Unnie and I are about to go already when he come walking down the stairs, looking so comfortable in his house clothes, sweatpants and hoodie. He looked at us curiously “Going out?” Unnie nodded, “Yep! I’ll take Fili shopping. Wanna come?” she asked and he smirked. “Not in a million years Noona”

Looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed ONCE AGAIN. AS ALWAYS.

On the way to Cheondam-dong, Unnie keep on talking about the styles she think might suit me. From chic to street. I suddenly realized that I got myself into some serious overhaul.

“We’ll start with the undergarments!” she dragged me to a well-known lingerie boutique and began her search for the perfect bra and , while I convert whichever price tag I see to peso.

Seriously, spending a thousand pesos on a bra is too much when I can buy one, half its price or even lower. This is why shopping is not for me. I don’t care how beautiful an item is or if it looks good on me. If it goes beyond my budget, I will not buy it. Call me a cheapskate, I don’t care.

“This is –“ Really, how crazy can a lace bra can be? I feel like I’m not wearing anything. “Unnie
 “I called out from the fitting room. “Want it?” she called back. “It’s too –“ I thought of a good word to describe it. “Revealing for me”

“Oh !” I jumped when she opened the door. She told me not to lock it. Now I know why. So that she can barge in anytime.

“What are you talking about?” she obviously saw something I don’t. “You call this revealing?” I swear. It is too much. “Fili” she gripped my shoulders and faced me towards her. “You’re no teenager. No training bra can even fit you now. Those –“ she pointed at my s “Deserve more than a white granny bra. Get over being conservative and go a mile with being stylish”

And Hye Yoon Choi, won. After that, I let her choose everything for me with the only condition that I don’t want to wear high heeled shoes. I go the distance by agreeing to y cut and short dresses. Not that I’ll use them in school. According to Unnie, I need to have them in case I get invited by my future university friends to a party or go clubbing.

“Surprise me” Unnie told the hair stylist. They’ve been talking in Korean for close to twenty minutes already and they seem to be discussing seriously.

I was ushered to the wash room where they shampoo my hair. To my surprise, I have a team of beauty professionals who are so into my make-over, I don’t even have to say a thing for they already know what needs to be done. All I have to do is keep still and wait till they finish.

It’s only the second time that I ever went to a salon for a hair treatment. Originally, I have brown hair, not so typical for Filipinos. I had it dyed into a lighter shade of brown to make it standout, which is a wrong move because as the root