September 11, 2012

"Can everyone just F-off and leave me alone?!"

She slammed the door with full force and immediately threw herself on her bed.

The day was not going well for In Soo-Yeon, aged 19. She hated Mondays and she hated spending Mondays at school, the breeding ground for inconsiderate people who think they're all too smart. The week had just begun and it was already beginning to .

"Aisht!" she exclaimed, burying her head under her favorite pillow.

"Looks like someone's not in the mood today."

Soo-Yeon raised her head and saw her roommate, Hee-Jin, coming out of their shared bathroom in nothing but a towel.

"Rough day?" asked Hee-Jin, "That's funny, it's only Monday."

"Exactly," said Soo-Yeon, "Mondays are always the worst. You've got traffic and a bunch of whiners whining about how chemistry should be blacklisted from the school curriculum."

Hee-Jin chuckled as she made her way towards the closet. Soo-Yeon shuffled on her bed and hugged her big fat Pug-gy bear (a pug plush toy given to her by a dear friend) and continued to moan and groan silently. She hated Mondays and she wished Mondays were dead.

"By the way, bills are due tomorrow," said Hee-Jin, "Did you leave your share on my drawer?"

"Omo!" exclaimed Soo-Yeon, suddenly jumping out of bed, "I totally forgot!"

Hee-Jin raised a perfectly tattooed eyebrow at her. "Did you really?"

"I'm sorry, Hee-Jinah. Can you spare me for today? I haven't got the money right now cause I just paid some tuition bills and my mom forgot to send some," said Soo-Yeon, "I promise I'll pay you off as soon as I get the cash. Please?"

For a second, Soo-Yeon thought Hee-Jin would finally reject her plea. She pouted her lips and did the best impression of a poor puppy her roommate could not resist. Fortunately, it worked. Her roommate sighed and shook her head.

"Okay, “she said. Soo-Yeon flinched.

Hee-Jin, noticing the violent flinching of face, immediately retracted. "I'm sorry! I mean uh...all right!"  she amended, "All right!"

Soo-Yeon blinked, unconscious of the fact that her hands were balled into fists. When she did notice, she quickly unclenched them and took a deep breath. Her lips widened into an awkward smile.

"Thanks," she mumbled.

For a moment, awkwardness was in the air. It took a full minute before Hee-Jin blurted out: "Oh my god, Soo-Yeonah. Did I just ruin your day completely by saying that forbidden word?" she asked, her face mirroring that of an injured puppy.

"No!" exclaimed the 19-year old, immediately getting out of her bed and hugging her roommate, "You didn't, babe. You were just caught off guard, that's all. Don't you worry, I'll still pay you."

Hee-Jin heaved a sigh of relief. Soo-Yeon, seeing that she finally averted a crying fest (her roommate was very sensitive; making her cry was an immortal sin), released her Hee-Jin and approached her closet for a quick change.

"I don't know how you survive every day," remarked her roommate, "I mean, most people probably say that word around you. You must flinch a lot."

"Yeah, I try my best to keep it cool," said Soo-Yeon as she folded a jacket, "But I'm getting better at it. See, I just flinched."

"Violently, that is."

"I know, but I'm going to be fine," Soo-Yeon insisted as she closed her wardrobe, "It's not a big deal, all right?"

She heard Hee-Jin suppress a laugh. After two years of being roommates, Soo Yeong knew her roommate still could not fully understand her pet peeve ("That's not a pet peeve! It might a mental thing you should get checked on!" insisted Hee-Jin upon finding out about it). In fact, a number of her friends didn't. After all, what was wrong with hearing the word "Okay" on its own?

To them, it was normal but for Soo-Yeon, it reminded her of that day. And she'd rather not refresh that particular memory. If she could erase everything, she would.

But she couldn't and it .

"...hey? Are you coming?"

She snapped back to her senses. Apparently, Hee-Jin was trying to get her attention.

"What?" she asked.

"In-Na just texted me," explained her roommate, "A group of boys just moved into the male complex next door."

Soo-Yeon raised an eyebrow, "So? What's new? We always get transferees."

Hee-Jin giggled as she scrolled through her phone. "In-Na says they're a group of nine incredibly attractive boys. Bishounen, as she said. She's at the lobby right now with a bunch of other girls dying to see," she explained.

Soo-Yeon rolled her eyes as she tied her hair, "Isn't that sort of...pathetic?" she asked, "And what is it about bishounens and all that?"

Hee-Jin pouted and crossed her arms. "It's not pathetic, all right? Well, if you'd rather be stuck here thinking about Algebra than spy on hot boys with me, be my guest," she said, grabbing her jacket. She flipped her hair and proceeded to the door before stopping.

"C'mon Soo-Yeonah," she sad, "Life's too short to mope around and miss on the fun."

Soo-Yeon stared at her odd roommate whose face was wild with anticipation. She weighed her options for that night: she could lock herself and remain buried under quadratic (traumatic) equations or breathe some fresh air and spy on these incredibly attractive boys.

Finally, she heaved a sigh.