Hyemi jogged across the hall of her dorm at the small university she attended in upstate New York. She turned towards the door, descending the stairwell until she reached the building’s lounge on the second floor. Within it was a tiny kitchen and damn it if she let her popcorn burn. The microwave in her room occupied with uncooked kernels too. Every Monday night her roommate and a few friends collected in the place to watch the most amazing show ever created. The girl said “hey” at acquaintances around while walking over to the machine before opening it. To her relief, the smell was that of a soft white cheddar, not the harsh musk that emitted if she left it in for too long. She tugged at the corners of the bag to release steam and headed back to the staircase.

    “Aye girl, why you in such a rush?” a guy from her biology class said as she sped walk past him. His short body sprawled out across one of the multiple couches.

    “Drag Race is starting, it’s the first episode of the season,” she replied and didn’t wait for a response before leaving the room. She hopped up the steps and did a balancing act as she dug in her pocket for the key to unlock the entrance. Footsteps sounded coming up behind her. She turned to hold the metal open with her back, taking the time to pull apart the popcorn bag and measure if it cooled enough to eat.

    “Thanks,” the girl spoke as she approached the door. She gave a smile and let out a ‘no problem’.

    “Want a handful?” she asked, holding the sack out to the student she recognized. The other smiled and said sure as she passed through the doorway, letting Hyemi walk into the carpeted hall so the dense metal eased closed behind them.

    “It’s white cheddar,” She stated. The other shrugged as she dug in the popcorn. “A bunch of us are watching RuPaul’s Drag Race, you can come,” she finished, taking her own handful, shoving it into .

    “I have to revise my notes, thanks though,” the girl said, and Hyemi could swear her name was Rachel, or maybe Rebecca? She nodded and took small steps to keep in pace with the taller student.

    “Study hard. If you ever see my door open, stop by and say hi, I won’t bite,” she replied, making the words audible between the gross mush. The other laughed and said okay as she stopped at her room and pulled out her key to unlock the entrance. Hyemi waved and walked along the hall to where her shared dorm sat with an exposed entryway. Inside were seven residents of their floor with her roommate Stephanie, their residential advisor. It was February of her freshman year and she was glad she used the time getting to know the students who lived in her building. The over friendly resident assistant having rubbed off on her. The theme music finished playing and their chattering simmered as she stepped between criss-crossed legs on the ground and found a spot on her bed. 

She knew most of the girls, but when you mention free popcorn, a few drifters bound to show. No one minded, the more who watched the sillier the reactions became. Both girl’s flat screen televisions sat atop their wardrobes and the same program, providing for a full viewing experience. Just as the first queen walked into the workroom, Hyemi’s phone buzzed on her desk. She glanced at the display but felt too lazy to climb over the person next to her to retrieve it. After a few more entrances and several comments from the students watching, the device shaking again.

    “Do you want me to hand it to you?” Alyssa, her friend sitting on the end of the bed beside her desk asked. Hyemi nodded, wondering who it was at this hour. She handed the phone over and cheers sounded throughout the room as more popular queens appeared on screen. She gave the bag of popcorn to another person who sat on the floor and unlocked the device. It was a text in Korean so her brain took a few moments to register who it was. She clicked on the message and didn’t realize a creepy grin had grown on her face as she read through the words and thought of how to respond. Once she hit enter and was rechecking what she wrote, a commerc