It was the first day of school for Jiyong since he just moved to Seoul from New York when his father had a business opportunity proposed to him by his ex-schoolmate, a joint venture between the two. Jiyong stepped into the classroom along with the homeroom teacher before he was asked to introduce himself to the class. He was then assigned to take the only available seat beside a girl who looked like school was the last place she ever wanted to be at, as she was engrossed in reading a book that has got nothing to do with the ongoing lesson. He noticed her immediately since she was the only one not paying any attention to him during the self-introduction earlier on.  When the school bell rang indicating lunchtime, the girl who sat beside him immediately stood up and grabbed some of her belongings to head out of class, leaving no chance for Jiyong to talk to her at all. He then went towards the school’s canteen to queue up for that day’s lunch menu. He walked towards an empty table to take a seat and began eating when suddenly the girl whom he saw walked away from him earlier on, sat opposite of him with a book in her hand. It came as a surprised to him and he could not stop staring at her, which she could no longer bear and was feeling burdensome.

“Would appreciate it if you don’t look at me in that manner…”

“Then how am I supposed to feel if not surprised? No words from you earlier and suddenly you are sitting in front of me?”

“I didn’t even hear a thank you from you…”

“Thank you? Thank you for accompanying me for my lunch? Is that it?”

“You really think you need to thank me for this?”

“Then?”

“Oh god~ you are indeed naïve… From the way you look I thought you are no longer innocent…”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well yeah~ I thought that you’re a player…”

“Hey~ that’s insulting…”

“I’m sorry but that’s what I think… I am still allowed to my opinion right?”

Jiyong simply looked at her straight in the eye still trying to figure out the girl seated across him,

“What? Last I checked this is still a free world… Isn’t it?” came another retort from her.

“Honestly… Why are you seating here? Don’t you have any friends?”

“Says the new kid in school~ the only reason I sat here is because you were too blind to notice the group of boys that were going to go after you earlier on…”

“What? Are they going to pounce on me like a pack of wolves?”

“Nah~ that’s too much trouble for a first day… But it may lead to that if tension persist…”

“Then what do they do for a first day?”

“Well for a start they pissed around the school compound for territory… And you look just like the perfect corner for them to do so…” said the girl with a smile on her face. The smile, the most beautiful smile he had ever seen which caused his heart to skip a beat, ignoring her words altogether.

Just then the school bell rang, and before Jiyong could say anything,

“Erm... Jiyong, right? See you in class… You don’t want to be late for Mr. Jang’s class...” and off she went walking with the book in her hand.

She was already seated in her chair when Jiyong stepped in the class and took his seat. When their teacher got into the classroom, the teacher began taking the role call and that was the first time Jiyong knew her name,

“Lee Chaerin?”

“Here…” and as if she knew that Jiyong was looking at her, she turned to him and whispered, “Yeah~ that’s my name… Sorry for being rude… I’m late for the introduction part.”

Their teacher finally gave them time to carry out some class work and the students were left on their own to complete it. Jiyong was facing some difficulty since the questions were all in hangul. He was proficient but when every single question is in a language that he was not exposed to every single day, it did take a toll on him.

“Chaerin ~ Do you think you can help me out here?”

“We’re not supposed to talk in his class…”

“But I can’t understand certain words here…”

“We shouldn’t break the rules…”

“You are definitely not someone who follow the rules…”

“Says who?”

“Says your action during the lesson just before lunch…”

“Goodness me~”

“Chaerin ~” said Mr. Jang in an assertive manner,

“Yes, Mr. Jang?”

“Detention after school… Along with the new boy beside you… Jiyong? You sure set a new standard… Detention on your first day…”

“Great just great~”

Chaerin huffed in frustration while Jiyong looked on with an apologetic face.

School ends and Chaerin was still pissed that she had to go through detention since she already had plans laid out for her. As they were waiting for the teacher-in-charge of detention to arrive,

“Chaerin ~ I am sorry…”

“Jiyong, if you are sorry for getting me into detention class, it’s no longer necessary…”

“What do you mean?”

“Whether you apologize or not, we still have to go through this… But thank you for ruining my after school plans…”

“Then I am so sorry for ruining your plans,” said Jiyong in a sincere manner.

“Apology accepted…”

“Thank you… I thought you would stay mad at me… Sorry that I realized the problem too late… I didn’t know Mr. Jang was like that…”

“Well now you know… That he is a cranky old man who is a sadist at the same time… I really cannot get into anymore trouble than I already am…”

“You have some kind of a reputation or something?”

“Reputation?”

“Yeah reputation... Because it is interesting that those guys would simply lay off me just because you sat in front of me, right?”

“I guess you are right… But no prizes for the correct answer though…”

“No worries… So what about your reputation?”

“Sorry… Can’t talk… The teacher is here…”

Chaerin’s reply definitely got Jiyong’s mind racing and wondering about just who she really is throughout the whole session. When it was all over, Chaerin said her goodbyes and left the class. Jiyong discreetly followed her from behind and observed her from a far. Chaerin by then had already changed into outside clothing, dumping her school uniform in her backpack. She greeted a girl who was wearing a similar outfit as hers and they were both seen entering a club. Jiyong wanted to get in the club but when he looked at his uniform, he knew he will not be able to stand near the compound much less enter at all. He then took note of the address by giving a quick look at the street name before heading home to change. He was definitely pushing his luck hoping that by the time he reached the club, Chaerin would still be there. Jiyong made a quick change of clothes and head out right away. As he was making his way towards the entrance of the club, Chaerin was already making her way out as they bumped into each other outside.

“Jiyong? Did I see right?”

“Yeah~”

“What are you doing here?”

“Am just walking around…”

“This street isn’t really meant for walking you know….”

“Really? I thought any street is meant for walking… So if it is not, then what is it for?”

“Hmmm… Well you are right about that… No denying it. But again no prizes for being smart!”

“What about you? What are you doing here? Clubbing? Partying? Leaving soon? Going home? Can I walk you home?” with Jiyong blurting out every single question he had in mind due to his nerves.

“Wait, wait, wait… Hold on a second…” as Chaerin let out a chuckle, “Which one am I suppose to answer?”

“Hmmm are you leaving the club already?”

“No… I’m out for a breather… It’s too crowded in there for me to have a peaceful smoke…” with Chaerin walking towards a less crowded area. Without a word Jiyong followed her as though he was already on a spell, “You smoke? Is that why you got into trouble in school before?”

“Yeah~ that’s one of the reason…”

“One?!”

“Yeah one.... You want a smoke too?”

“Do I look like one?”

“Erm… Honestly yes…” to which Jiyong took a stick from her before she passed him the lighter.

“So what else got you into trouble?”

“Why do you want to know so much?”

“So I will be more careful in the future?”

“Afraid that I’ll be a bad influence on you?”

“No… Not that… I just don’t want to get you into further trouble that’s all…”

“I see… Noble thought… Thank you…”

She was halfway through the stick of cigarette when her friend called her,

Where are you?

“Am outside… Smoke break… Too noisy… You know how I like it quiet when it comes to this…”

I know I know… But we need you now… Our turn is almost up…

“All right… Got ya…”

Chaerin dropped the cigarette on the floor and snuffed it off with her sneakers.

“Where are you going?”

“Inside…”

“Huh?”

“I told you… I’m not going home yet…” replied Chaerin who saw how lost Jiyong looked before she extended an invitation,

“You want to come in and watch us?”

“Watch?”

“Yeah~ it’ll be fun… Seoul is just as great as New York you know~”

Jiyong stood rooted before Chaerin urged him, “Are you in or out?”

“I’m in…”

Chaerin took him in straight into the club, the second floor to be specific, and before she left him,

“You stand here… The best spot in the club… You’ll get a full view of the some extraordinary things that is about to unfold. So be a good boy now… I need to go…”

“Are you leaving me here alone?”

“Nope… I’ll get back to you later… But for now you should just watch the stage…”

Jiyong stood where Chaerin had told him to, and he was nervous and fidgety since never in his life would he have hang out in the club alone in the manner that he did. His initial thought was to spend some time with Chaerin, hoping to get to know her better and from what he saw so far, he definitely do not have the slightest idea who she really is, and true to Chaerin’s words earlier, what was unfolding on stage definitely caught his eyes.

It was Chaerin dancing along with four of her other friends. In fact it was the finals for the competition that the dance crew she had been a part of participated in. Jiyong was in awe looking at how she moved her body to the beat and the smile on her face indicates just how happy and free she felt while on stage. When their performance was done, they remained where they were and was joined by their opponent on stage as they eagerly waited for the result. To add the cherry on top, her dance crew won and Chaerin was seen in a group hug to celebrate their win. She was drinking straight from the bottle of champagne when it dawned on her that Jiyong was on the second floor.

“Girls… Sorry… I need to meet someone…”

“What?! Meet someone?! We just won Chae~ and you have plans?” stated Soo Joo in disbelief.

“Not that I had it planned in advance… It just happened…”

“Unnie, is it a boy?” asked the maknae and the best dancer of the group, Minji.

Chaerin simply smiled in reply.

“OH. MY. GOD. It IS a boy! You like him?” said Dara in the most dramatic voice ever.

“I guess so… Maybe…”

“Does he know of your condition?” as Bom spoke in a more serious tone.

“Nope… Didn’t we talk about this already?”

“Well…”

“Bommie… I don’t think he needs to know anything about me besides being his classmate… He’s new in town anyways… That’s why he is hanging out with me in the first place. Do you think he would be hanging out with me if he knew?”

There was a sudden stillness in the air before Chaerin broke the ice again,

“So, do you want to meet him?” asked Chaerin nonchalantly.

“Of course! Of course! Of course we do!” came a reply from the four girls, easing off the tension that was definitely brewing within a short period of time.

Chaerin immediately went to the second floor and got to Jiyong,

“Hey there… You’re still here…”

“Well you told me to wait… So I did…”

“I don’t remember asking you to wait…”

“Yeah that’s true… But you did tell me that you would get back to me… So I assume that you were asking me to wait…”

“I guess you didn’t make an of you and me then…”

“Huh?”

“Oh nevermind~”

“Okay… Anyways you deserve the win… You were great~”

“What a heap of lie…”

“Hey~ I’m telling the truth…”

“Jiyong-sshi… You didn’t even watch the other group perform… That’s a bias judgement… Bad way to assume if you get what I mean…”

“I know so…”

“Why?”

“Because you are not in their group…”

“Oh god~ such a sweet talker and you tell me you are not a player…”

“I stand by my words…”

“Fine then… Anyways… Do you want to meet my friends?”

“What? Friends?”

“Why? They are great girls… I'm sure you'll like them and their boyfriends… Cool is what I'd like to describe them...” before Chaerin took his hand and brought him to where the girls and their partners were.

“Ladies and guys, this is Jiyong… Jiyong these are ladies and guys,” as Chaerin kept the introduction real short.

“That’s really mean Chae…” said Bom before she extended her hand to Jiyong, “Hi I’m Bom…” before the baton was passed onto the next person beside her, “I’m Seunghyun… Nice to meet you…”

When everyone had introduced themselves,

“Can you even remember their names by the end of the introduction? No right? That’s why I rather kept it short and simple…”

“No wait… I have good memory…” came a reply from Jiyong suddenly feeling challenged by the comment that Chaerin had made.

“Okay… Go ahead and say it…”

“Bom, Seunghyun, Xin, Soo Joo, Dara, Seungri, Daesung, Minzy and Youngbae…”

“Wow~ I’m impressed… Well sure then you got it fast…” as Chaerin gave him the acknowledgement before facing her group of friends,

“I really got to go… See you guys around… And enjoy yourselves…”

“Sure we will…. Take care Chae on your way home…”

Chaerin was grabbing her belongings when Jiyong whispered to her, “Going home now?”

“Didn’t you say you wanted to walk me home just now?”

“You heard that?!” asked Jiyong surprised.

“I’m not deaf you know…”

When they stepped out of the club, Chaerin took a deep breath of air before carrying her backpack only to be stopped by Jiyong.

“What do you think you are doing?”

“Let me carry it for you…”

“I am more than capable to carry it myself… So I shall refuse your offer…”

“Why? You have a boyfriend or something?”

“At the moment no… Why? Are you offering yourself?” asked Chaerin candidly.

Jiyong was taken aback by her bluntness that he went silent before Chaerin’s laughter took over the silence.

“I was just kidding… You don’t have to be all tensed like that… Loosen up a bit…”

“Okay…” as Jiyong began to breathe steadily again, “So is dancing another one of your hobbies?”

“Yup… Another? You know what are my other hobbies?”

“Yeah~”

“Really? What’s the other hobby?”

“Reading… And now dancing…”

“You are indeed observant…”

“Well thank you…”

“Observant if it’s a compliment... But I think you are just nosey…” as Chaerin yet again.

“I don’t appreciate that at all,” said Jiyong when suddenly Chaerin began to look into her bag as though she was looking for something important.

“What is it that you are looking for Chaerin?”

“Wait~ wait~ I got it…”

“What is it?”

“Here you go~ your sense of humour…” as Chaerin stuck out her empty palm with a toothy grin across her face to which Jiyong could only shook his head while a smile began to slowly creep across his face.

“Now that’s settled, tell me about yourself? What do you like to do? Since you know already know two of mine, we are not on a fair trade here…”

“Well… I love photography…”

“So you enjoy taking photographs?”

“Yup I do…”

“Why?”

“It’s therapeutic…”

“What kind of stress do you go through at your age for you to call it therapeutic?”

“If you have successful parents… With an overachiever AND married older sibling… Photography is definitely therapeutic… Yourself? Family?”

Chaerin remained silent before Jiyong nudges her, “Fair trade, remember?”

“It is fair as of now… You know two of my hobbies while you told me about one hobby and family… Which makes two… Yup… It’s definitely fair…”

“You call that fair?” and before Jiyong could complaint any longer, Chaerin cut him off, “This is the way to my house… So I’ll see you tomorrow okay?”

“Wait… I’ll take you home… Right to your doorstep… It’s late…”

“Don’t worry about it… You go home… We still got class tomorrow and first period is Mr. Jang’s… You don’t want history to repeat itself right?”

“You sure about this?”

“Yes... Of course… What… You think I’m five or something?”

“All right then… Good night… See you in class tomorrow…”

Three months had passed since the first day they met each other and they sometimes hung out and kept each other companied with Jiyong introducing her to photography, while Chaerin became his tour guide as she brought him to places where he could take beautiful pictures. And precisely due to that fact, Chaerin managed to evade questions in regards to her family and her life in general. One weekend evening, after they ended one of their many picturesque trips, as usual, Jiyong would walk her to the exact same spot he first walked her to.

“So see you tomorrow, Chaerin?”

“Yeah… See you Jiyong … Take care on your way home…”

“Will do…”

The next day came around and even though it was Mr. Jang’s class, Jiyong was excited to go to school since he knew Chaerin would be there. On top of that, she had helped him a lot in his Korean and he felt more at ease now. However, it did not turned out the way he had expected it to be, Chaerin did not attend school that day. He felt uncomfortable and was worried sick since he tried to message or call her but to no avail. He decided to go the places where they usually hang out to look for her when he chanced upon Bom and Seunghyun together.

“Have you seen Chaerin?”

“Ermm… Nope… What’s wrong Jiyong?”

“She did not attend school today… Do you know where is she?”

“Orh~ She went to visit her uncle…”

“Then why isn’t her phone working?”

“It’s in the countryside Jiyong… The reception isn’t that great over there…”

“She talked to you?”

“She called this morning to cancel our meet up… Because her uncle is unwell…”

“I see… Sorry that I ruined your date by barging like this…”

“It’s okay Jiyong… I understand… Don’t worry about it okay? She’ll be back in a couple of days…”

“Yeah… Okay… I was worried for nothing then…”

“Yes you are…”

After Jiyong took his leave, Bom could no longer hold in her tears and Seunghyun immediately wrapped his arms around her to console her saddened heart.

“Are we not going to tell him?”

“Chae will never allow that to happen…”

“Then what are we supposed to do if he were to come and asked us again?”

“Dear~ we have to let her do the talking… Not us…”

“For now… Shall we go and visit her then?”

“Yes…”

The young couple made their way to the hospital where Chaerin was recuperating. In fact Bom received the call from Chaerin’s father in regards to her friend’s condition early in the morning. Bom had made plans to meet up with Seunghyun to visit Chaerin at the hospital. When they reached, the usual group of friends that Chaerin hung out with was present while waiting for her to wake up. Bom approached Chaerin’s father to ask about her friend,

“Ahboenim…”

“Neh Bommie…”

“How are you feeling?”

“What more can I do? She is so stubborn… It’s bad enough that she hates me… Now she even refused to take her medication…”

“Ahboenim… Don’t say that… She does not hate you…”

“She does… She is ashamed of me… But I do not blame her… Because who would want a crook like me to be her father?”

“Ahboenim… She really does not hate you… She cares for you in her own way…”

“Do you think that you could help me and keep her companied for today? I don’t think she wants to see me when she wakes up…”

“But…”

“Just for today okay?” to which Bom nodded her head in agreement.

“Thank you, thank you so much… I’ll inform the nurses that you’ll be here…”

“Okay Ahboenim… Don’t mention it…”

The clear hesitation from Bom was not due to the fact that she was not willing to accompany her childhood friend but for her it was high time for her friend and her friend’s father to reconcile and establish good relationship while there is still time. She stood there in silent for a moment to gather her emotion when Seunghyun came out of the room to meet up with her.

“Sweetie~?”

“Neh~”

“Was that her father?”

“Yup…”

“Why didn’t he stay?”

“Because he said that Chaerin wouldn’t want him to be here… And you know the reason why…”

“So I guess I’ll stay here with you to keep her companied…”

“Thank you dear…”

“You don’t have to thank me baby girl… She’s my friend too…” before he gave her a kiss on her forehead.

They walked back towards the ward hand in hand, and when they entered to see Chaerin still not awake whi