IT started with one question: Are you free? But when Mei didn’t answer it turned into ten more, including: How are you? What’s your favorite color? What was California like? And her least favorite question of them all: If you don’t call me I’ll call your parents, okay? So she dropped everything she was doing: which meant she sat on a bench in the middle of a crowded Lotte World, and dialed his number as quickly as possible.

“Wow that was quick.” He laughs the minute he picks up the phone.

Mei can swear he’s probably sleeping or lying on the couch. “Is there something you want Jun? I’m kind of busy.” The words were then shoved back done when a billion kids went screaming past her and the sound from the carousel beside her is heard.

“Busy, really?” He questions with a click of his tongue as a small chuckle leaves his mouth. “Doesn’t sound like it.” It’s at that moment in time that Mei regrets ever coming to Seoul in the first place. “Meet me at the Nespresso Boutique in Jamsil Dong.” Right after the information is pass down to her; she places her phone next to her and sighs in frustration. She didn’t even get a chance to decline the ‘offer’ if you can call it that.

Mei arrived first. It was only a five minute walk from the bench she was sat on to the café located inside Lotte world. The minute she got there she ordered two iced green teas and sat patiently for Jun. Thankfully, he didn’t keep her waiting. He came rushing in about five minutes later, his hair disheveled and his clothes—consisting of a loose black shirt, light denim jeans, and the same black converses from the day before—slightly tainted with sweat like he ran all the way here to meet her. “You’re here.” He says as he slides into the tan colored seat across from her and puts his hands immediately around the iced cup.

“You told me to come, I came.” She responds while dipping her head toward her chest instinctively while under his gaze.

He grins, “So, how long are you in Seoul for?”

“Three months.” She responds before taking a sip of her tea and adjusting her legs—one over the other. “Then I’ll be off, again. So…I’m not quite sure why you want to talk when it’s pointless because I’m not staying.”

Jun simply shakes his head, “You’re looking at it in the wrong way.” Her eyebrows pique up in interest. Was there seriously something she didn’t understand? He burst into a smile, “Your parents never went to the police. Did you know that?” She sighs, obviously they didn’t. That’s not hard for her to guess; they never cared in the first place.

“I assumed.” She mutters.

He takes a sip of his own drink, “Your friend—the loud one, she use to cry all the time. In class she would fall asleep and while sleeping she would start weeping. None of the teachers knew what to do or say. The day of graduation, when she crossed the stage—she said it was wrong how everyone acted like you didn’t exist, how she was the only person that ever cared for you, that your parents didn’t eve care, she said your father abused you, and that your mother use to abuse you as well. That you weren’t dead, but you finally left—she said you broke free.”

Mei took a sharp breath in. Jing Jing, she hasn’t even thought of her best friend in almost three years. She never tried to even keep get in contact with her. And she in no way realized how much pain she brought to her. “Do you know where she lives now?” Jun nods.

“A few months before graduation she got accepted into Pusan National University, it’s about a four hour train ride from here.” Mei nods. She’s now decided to take a visit to see her old best friend, sometime soon.

“Do you know exactly where?” Mei asks once more.

And again, he nods, “If you want, I can take you there.” Mei doesn’t really have an opinion on Jun but what she does know is she’ll need him to get to Jing Jing. “We can leave tomorrow, I’ll pick you up.” He says excitedly while clapping his hands together.

“Let’s just meet at the station instead. Okay?” Jun frowns but ultimately nods his head at her. “Is there anything else you want to talk about or can I leave?” The last thing she wants to do is spend another few minutes or hours talking to Jun like their best friends who just re-met each other.

“No, not until tomorrow. You can leave; I’ll pay for the drinks.” She nods before coming to her feet, bowing, and leaving straight after. There’s no point in lingering around or waiting. They aren’t friends. But they’re not strangers either. She’s not sure what they are. Old acquaintances with a messy past; and as she was walking away from him it reminded her vividly of one day in early April.  

A p r i l  3

2 0 1 1

T a i y u a n,   C h i n a

APRIL was a stuningly cold month staying at an average of seventeen degrees Celsius. Mei likes the cold, Jing Jing on the other hand—doesn’t. “How can you not have a jacket on? It’s freezing.” The taller brunette complains while running her hands up and down her arms for added warmth, not that it really works anyway. “I swear to God, you’re crazy.”

Mei scoffs as the two walk down the empty hallway of their school. “It’s not that cold out, daizi.” The brunette rolls her eyes and her upper lip curls into a playful threat with a scowl pointed toward her blonde best friend who acts like she’s done nothing wrong but say the truth. “We’re going to be late for class if you keep worrying about being cold.” She mumbles.

“Fight me.” Jing Jing says back while putting her fists up threateningly. Mei could only shake her head in a disapproving way as the both of them continued to walk down the hallway to their trigonometry class—located at practically the other side of the building far away from where they actual were. “Can I just be you for a day, so I don’t have to feel anything?” She begs and Mei laughs.

“Sure, you are me and I’m you.” Jing Jing stops in her place to stare at her best friend with serious eyes. “What are you doing?” The blonde questions.

“Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.” After a second or two Jing Jing burst into a fit of giggles while reaching out to slap Mei’s arm. “Being you makes me feel smart.” She says in between laughs which only makes Mei start to laugh at her strange best friend. Mainly at the girls way of thinking.

“Excuse me, but is one of you Zhao Mei Fen?” Neither of them look over at the person asking the question, and Mei regrets that; because, instead of Mei answering—Jing Jing does.

“That’s me.” Jing Jing says as the two giggle before turning toward the voice. Both of them jump in automatic surprise when they turn to look at the man who is tall, slender, dressed in black, with a ski mask covering his face. “Why?” Jing Jing stutters as Mei’s eyes widen in surprise.

The man reels his arm back, not muttering one word, before smacking it straight into Jing Jing’s side making her go flying to the floor with a boom. Mei gasps in shock as she tries to go to her friend. “Stay back.” The man yells while pulling out a sharp object, like a piece of glass, and shoving it toward her face. Mei can only nod as she takes hesitant steps back. “Now, you.” The man points the sharp object down at Jing Jing who's crying in pain on the floor from the previous blow. “Tell your father that the next time he rejects the offer—he’ll get it worse than you.”

It was at this moment, this exact moment where they stood in the empty hallway of Taiyuan Middle School, Jun Hui walked into the giant mess with a stoic look on his face. Mei’s eyes instantly go toward him with a look of pleading; if she could, Mei would fall to her knees to beg the boy for help. “What are you looking at?” The man taunts causing Mei to look over at him. He turns around towards Jun and sighs heavily. “You either leave and keep your mouth shut, or stay and keep your mouth shut. Which is it?”

Jun doesn’t ponder, he bows his head and leaves, walking away from the scene. Walking away from her. “Smart kid,” The man mumbles before facing Jing Jing once more. The man takes one glance at the still in pain Jing Jing before pressing the sharp object straight into her side—careful not to hit any major arteries or veins. The last thing he wanted was to have her die and the message never sent to her father. If only he knew. As mixed screams echoed in the hallways from the girl, the man plunged the knife into parts of her body before leaving it securely in the girl’s lower calf.

He glances once more at Jing Jing before looking over at Mei, “You don’t touch her until I’m gone—got that?” Mei nods her head carefully and with that the man makes his way off the campus as Jing Jing cries in pain, and Mei stands still without any tears falling out of her eyes.

“Jing Jing!” Mei screams as she falls to the floor next to her friend once the man disappears. “Stay with me okay?” She cries but the brunette is slowly fluttering her eyes close. “No don’t do that! Stay awake! I’ll get help okay, but you have to stay awake!” The girl’s tears are clouding her every movement as she tries hard to reach someone—anyone. Find someone, anyone.

At some point, maybe it was five minutes or so later, Mei found the school nurse and about ten minutes later Jing Jing was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. About twenty minutes later and Mei's sitting in her trigonometry class waiting for the detectives to come as everyone else waits for their parents. The only thing Mei does is glare at the back of Jun’s head. She doesn't hate him, nor does she blame him for what happened to Jing Jing but she just can't believe he left and acted like nothing ever happened.

“Ms. Zhao Mei Fen?” A brown haired man steps through the sliding door, with a shorter bald headed man following closely—both of them are wearing their olive green colored uniforms with their hats tucked under their armpits.  Immediately people look over at her. That day was the day people began to realize how troublesome Mei really is. First she gets lost in the woods with Jun, and now her best friend gets stabbed in the middle of the school.

“That’s me.” She mumbles while raising her hand.

The two detectives grab a set of chairs and drag them over to where she's sitting, and sit down on them before letting their gazes stay on her. She has never been in an interview before. She has never done anything wrong; at least, not in the eyes of the police. “You were there when a Miss Wu Jing Hua was stabbed?”

Mei nods,  “Yes sir, I was.”

“And approximately when did this occur?” The bald man asks.

Mei gulps, “I’m not quite sure—maybe about ten o’clock.” The other one, the one with the brown hair, jots down what she says and immediately Mei cringes. “It could’ve been around ten twenty. We were late to trigonometry so I’m not quite sure.”

“And why were you late to your class?” The bald man asks again.

She scratches the back of her neck in nervousness, “Our physical fitness class is located on the other side of the campus, and we only have five minutes to get to class, and we need at least ten minutes to get there but Jing Ji—I mean, Jing Hua wanted to talk on the way to class instead of run so it took us longer…sir.”

“Could you describe the man or woman who attacked Miss Wu?”

Mei shakes her head, “It was a man. He was very tall, and thin to where he was almost anorexic. He was wearing a ski mask, so I couldn’t see what he looked like. But his skin color: it was pale; almost like he had been inside for too long.”

“And how tall do you think he was?” The bald man continues.

She stares back at him, “About your height, sir.” Then it's quiet. Everyone in the room is focused solely on the two police officers and Mei Fen. While Mei Fen is focused on not revealing any information whatsoever.

“Did the man say anything to your or Ms. Wu?”

Mei blinks, and blinks, and blinks again. Yes, in fact the man said a few things, mainly involving her father and telling her to shut up. “No sir, no he didn’t.” The two officers stare straight into the girls eyes like they're analyzing her, and she can understand that, because police officers don’t trust anyone but theirselves.

“Do you know what he wanted?”

Yes. “He wanted Jing Hua’s purse. The one she carries her wallet in.”

“Not yours?”

Mei shakes her head, “I don’t carry a purse, sir.” The bald detective stares at her as the other continues to jot down notes on his sketch pad once more. “Is that all sir?” The bald man nods as he reaches into his coat before lifting a card out and passing it to her.

“If there’s anything else you remember, call that number. Okay?” Mei nods her head and the two police officers leave after shaking both her hand and the teacher’s hand.

Two hours later and a majority of the students have left, only leaving Jun, Mei, and their teacher Mr. Ren. “When will your parents be here?” Mr. Ren whines for the hundredth time and all Jun and Mei do is mumble 'soon' even though they both know that they may never come.

Another hour, and it's dark out, Jun’s mother finally comes marching in—wearing a tiny black dress and dark red heels. “I’m so sorry I’m late. Traffic was horrible.” She says as Jun rises to his feet. He gives his mother a quick hug as her eyes stay attach to the girl that's sitting behind him. “Mei Fen, is that you?”

Mei picks up her head, “Yes Mrs. Wen.”

“Wow, I haven’t seen you since you were—well, smaller.” She piques while laughing right after; though Mei know's she isn't amused at all. “Well, it was so great seeing you again.” She says while waving her hand, and once she turns around Mei puts her head back on her desk. She can hear a few whispers before Mrs. Wen talks again. “Mr. Ren, I’m Mei’s neighbor and a close friend to the family—her parents work pretty late, and won’t be here until at the very least, one in the morning. Would it be okay if I take her home?” The only thing Mei can focus on is the “close” part. Close doesn’t even cut it.

Mr. Ren sighs while looking between the door and his watch. “If it’s okay with Mei.” Mei lifts her head, looks at Mrs. Wen, sighs, grabs her bag, and follows them out of the school as fast as possible.

Mrs. Wen climbs into her silver van, with Jun climbing into the back. “Are you getting in? It’s not like you live ten blocks away, you’re our neighbor.” Mei didn't understand that. She still doesn’t. Jun said her mother hates her family, so Mrs. Wen must at least hate Mei as well—she wouldn’t blame her. Mei shakes her head definitely causing both Mrs. Wen and Jun to look surprised.

“I have to go to the hospital.” That’s all she says as she slings her backpack around her shoulders and begins her way from her school to the hospital. It isn’t that much of a trek to the hospital—she’s done longer. No kidding. When she gets there she immediately finds Mr. and Mrs. Wu standing outside a dimly lit room.

“Hello.” She says lightly when she reaches them.

Almost instantly Mrs. Wu wraps her into a comforting and tight hug. “She’s been wanting to talk to you since she woke up from surgery.” Surgery? Mei obviously know's there would be surgery with all those wounds, but still—her best friend had surgery because of her. “Head right in.” Mrs. Wu says as she slides the door open and shuts it once Mei’s inside.

“Jing Jing?” Mei calls as she steps further in.

She's greeted with the view of her best friend sipping a drink, her body covered by blankets but her left arm is visible and has a bandage wrapped all the way up and all the way down. Jing Jing smiles when she sees Mei but all Mei can do is tear up. “Oh my God Jing Jing, I’m so sorry.” She cries while flying to her best friend's side—hugging her as lightly as possible.

“Why are you sorry, it’s not your fault some psycho came to school.” She justifies with a small laugh at the end, only causing her to rapidly cough.

Mei shakes her head, “This isn’t a joke Jing Jing; it’s serious. Someone stabbed you…” Mei lowers her voice to a whisper and narrows her eyes at the brunette. “Because they thought you were me.”

“Jeez, I know.” She says while pouting. “Are you going to tell your dad?”

Mei shakes her head, “I can’t. I told the police the man didn’t say anything.” Mei pauses to sit herself on the side of the hospital bed. “Let’s just pretend it never happened. Okay?”

“You might need to confirm that with Jun.” Mei drops her head at Jing Jing’s comment. Jun could’ve heard everything, and if he did he could go to the police and tell them everything. But if he did hear, why didn’t he say anything while the cops were there? To Mei, Jun’s a complete mystery. One day the kid likes her, the next he doesn’t.

“I will.”

Jing Jing smiles, “Good, now fetch me some real food.” She points over at her plate of steak that had been put through a blender, leaving only mush. “Seriously, it’s disgusting and I’m starving.” Mei laughs.

“I’ll bring your favorite, Tounao.”

Jing Jing grins, “You better.”

“I will, daizi.” Jing Jing’s upper lip curls as she threateningly punches out her fist only making Mei laugh. “I better get home. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” The brunette nods her head as the blonde quickly hugs her before leaving to take the long walk home.

The next day, Mei walks into school alone. Without Jing Jing, Mei doesn’t really have anyone. But she's focused on one thing and one thing only. Finding out what Jun knows. Jun's easy to find. He's sat on the floor below his locker reading the book for his Literature class. And the minute she spots him, she walks over, and sits down. “Can we talk?”

“Sure.” He says while putting his book down to face her. “What’s up?”

Mei audibly sighs, “When you saw that guy with Jing Jing and I, did you hear him say anything?” Jun cringes remembering the day before vividly. To say he feels bad, is an understatement. Had he known that Jing Jing was going to get stabbed—he would’ve stayed. But what hurt the most was seeing Mei look so scared, and yet he didn’t do anything; because, he himself was afraid.

“No, I didn’t. Why?”

She shakes her head, “No reason.” The two stare awkwardly before she gets up and stretches. “Bye.” She waves her hand lightly and begins to walk away to her class.

“Hey, wait!” He calls out while standing up himself. She turns toward him, tilting her head. “My mom said I should walk you home since you don’t have Jing Jing, and your parents are always working too late.”

Mei denies, “It’s okay; I go straight to the hospital.” With that they each nod their heads at each other before going their separate ways; not once glancing back.

A u g u s t  9

2 0 1 5

S e o u l,  S o u t h  K o r e a

THOSE few days were probably the weirdest days of Mei’s life. She still wonders about what that man had said: Tell your father that the next time he rejects the offer—he’ll get it worse than you. What did her father do exactly? She know's her father was bad, but he’s not involved with anything that man does. All Mei can now think about is seeing Jing Jing again, for the first time in three years.

Does she have a new best friend? Probably, you can’t go throughout life without one. Is she dating? Jing Jing dating, that would be weird. Does she miss Mei? She hopes so.

d i c t i o n a r y :

• 17 degrees Celsius: is about sixty two degrees Fahrenheit—give or take.
• Daizi: Means fool/ nerd.  呆子.
• Middle School: Middle School in China is like the equivalent to High School, and Secondary School. Middle School in China is also known as Senior high school but the previous is more commonly used. Also to note that the only years of schooling that are actually compulsory are Primary School and Junior Middle School. (Primary is the equivalent to Elementary School or Primary education, and Junior Middle School is the equivalent to Middle School/Junior High and Primary education.) And most children start schooling at six, so it’s a bit late compared to most educational systems. Also ‘Middle School’ in China is only three years and you start at age fifteen.
• Tounao: Contains mutton, rice wine and vegetables in the soup. It was first created by Chinese polymath Fu Shan, who was proficient in medicine, for his old and illness-ridden mother as a food substitute for the ancient medicine Bazhen Tang (literally "Soup of Eight Treasures") using only locally available food materials that have similar effects as the original medicine. 头脑.