Chapter 3

Club Presidency

          Clubs are important she was told by the guidance counsellors at her high school, it shows how well you are on things other than the academics or in her case, this gives her extra credits. Lee Soo Jung has signed up for several clubs too late. Desperate, she decided to form a club of her own. It’s hard, harder than what everybody thinks.

          The purpose of having a club is for her to be able to interact with others who have the same interest and so far the only other person besides her is a computer genius named Lee Seok Min and a friend she’s mailed to join, not that Yoo Ji Ah (not to be mistaken for Korean History major Yoo Ji Ae) was always present (they had five meetings and she’s only been present in one of them) in the still nameless, purposeless club meetings.

          “I have just finished setting up our website. We could begin getting requests now... If you’re interested to go ahead and start...” Seok Min announces, not taking his eyes off the computer screen.

          Lee Soo Jung is busy writing about amoeba synthesis when the only other person in the room made his announcement. She’s sure she isn’t getting what he’s on about. “Huh?”

          “The matchmaking site... We were just discussing about it at last week’s meeting? I figured a website would be useful. Ji Ah did say she’ll be in charge of advertising it, I don’t doubt she can do that since she’s fairly popular with the student body.”

          “What?”

          “You said you’re pretty much an ace in meddling with other people’s business and have pretty much set up half of your class during high school thus the matchmaking club...”

          “I wasn’t... I didn’t...”

          “I have the minutes from last meeting... Would you want to read it?”

          She nods. Her head is still trying to wrap around the idea of a matchmaking club... Whose bizarre idea was it to come up with such a lame club theme?

          “Here... all signed up by you, Club President...”

          She accepts the paper and began reading:

Start Minutes

Start Time: 1500, Tuesday

SJ: We need a purpose.

JA: (filing her nails) Can we just... hang out here. Do nothing; pretend we are doing something important like what you guys do in your Biochemistry Department...

SJ: (glares)

SM: We can help each other in assignments, reports and stuff...

JA: No thanks, I have admirers to do that for me...

SJ: Tell me why I invited you to join the club again?

JA: Because you’re desperate and no one else wants to join...

SJ: Remember, I still hold incriminating evidence from your past...

JA: I do not—

SJ: Of course you do... Anyway since I’m the sole person here who wants this club to prosper...

SM: I want the club to prosper!

SJ: Thanks for that sentiment. But this really is going nowhere so I’ll make the suggestion. What talents do I have?

Pause.

SJ: (gnawing on her fingernails)

SJ: Ah! We should just do that silly matchmaking thing. I’m good at that you know, meddling with other people’s business and I have pretty much set up half of my class during high school... So there, we’d be a matchmaking club.

Duly signed by Lee Soo Jung

President & Founder

The Baby Soul Matchmaking Club

End minutes

End Time: 1600, Tuesday

          Lee Soo Jung wanted to knock her head with a pan.

          So the Baby Soul Matchmaking Club was born. And now that they have their own website, the madness begins.

~0~

          Five days into the conceptualization         of the club, they have acquired two more members. How it is possible, they don’t dare make sense of it.

• New members - check
• Website - check
• Request - nada

          The members have weirdly fallen into a routine. Most of the time they talk about mundane things or do whatever it is that they have to do for their majors. They do check the website once in a while but since no one appears to be interested in what they offer, the club has become a place where the members can study in peace without the usual library competition.

          Though as of the moment the club president is nowhere to be found.

          “Does anyone know where Lee Soo Jung is?” Seok Min, the only person in the club that is concerned about their president.

          Almost everyone shrugged. Yoo Ji Ah on the other hand has a playful smile on her face.

          “Ji Ah?”

          “Oh she’s somewhere, doing another hobby. This one she’s particularly dedicated. Her sole purpose in life...”

          There was a tense silence in the air. It’s not very comforting to hear that the one who established the club has another ‘sole purpose’.

          “Guys... We have lives outside of this club, right?”

          Blank stares on blank pages.

          “I guess not...” Yoo Ji Ah waves a perfectly manicured hand, dismissing the subject all together.

          “Anyway, I’ve made enhancements to the website. I think the reason why we’re not getting requests is that our visitors don’t know where to start. We have hits... they’ve been steadily increasing. So I decided to make a request form. One they need to drop on our mailbox. Anonymously if they wish to...”

          “Bravo! We’d be able to do something on club meetings aside from count dust motes and here I was thinking that the reason why we never get hits is because nobody is interested...”

          “Did you just... I think she just blasphemed the club, Seok Min-ssi...” The other newcomer sounds thoroughly offended not even looking at Yoo Ji Ah. “And I thought you were nice...”

          “Oh no... That’s my paternal twin, Yoo Ji Ae... Not that she’s overly nice. I’m just more evil...”

          A glaring match ensues. Lee Seok Min and the other nameless newcomer look at both uncomfortably.

Just then, the door of the club room suddenly slid open and the head of their club president popped up. “What did I miss?”

          “Everything... Take it away Seok Min...”

          “Well you see... we now have a request form...”

          “And apparently, a request has just come in...” One of the new club members (the nameless one not the one on the glaring contest), Hyun Seung Hee, who’s staying silent all throughout the earlier conversation, announced. Her voice giddy.

          “Finally...” Yoo Ji Ah exclaims, standing up and leaving the club room.

          “Hey!” All of the remaining club members chorused.