A knock sounded at the door. "Minhee! Ready to go?" 

 

University was starting from today, and Minhee was beyond thrilled to get right into it. She had spent the past few days getting properly settled in and making sure all her belongings were correctly placed around the apartment. She had colour-coded her closet and had immaculately organised her stationary on one side of her dining table, where she would study and write. Her backpack for university was already filled up with folders, exercise books, sticky notes, stationary and her laptop. Being organised was incredibly important to Minhee, you could even say that she had some OCD-tendencies. 

 

She had caught up with her friend Hye-rim, who was still living in her home but was studying science at Seoul National University. Minhee had also met the girl staying on the same floor as her, in flat number 4-2. Luckily, the resident of 4-2, Somi, was studying the same writing course as Minhee. The Park girl was delighted to have a buddy to go to university with. 

 

Minhee opened the door. "Somi!" She practically jumped on the girl standing outside, cheerfully giving her a hug. "I'm so excited!"

 

"I can see that." Somi groaned, rubbing her eyes. "I'm hardly awake though." 

 

Minhee chuckled. She wasn't expecting her enthusiasm to be mirrored. Over the last couple of days, she had gotten a good idea of what Somi's personality was like. She was a talented writer, but didn't warm up to people very quickly. Minhee persisted in befriending her, as she could see that Somi was just sarcastic and cynical, but not actually unfriendly. 

 

"Let's go." Somi led the way to the elevator, and Minhee noted how the other girl was dressed head to toe in black. Classic. 

 

"Ugh Min, it's too early in the morning for this bright red get-up." Somi eyed her down as the elevator descended. 

 

"Hey, this red is stunning, and at least my leggings are black. That should be right up your alley." Minhee nudged her friend. "Just imagine that the red is blood instead, like in all those gory TV shows you love watching." 

 

Finally, a small smile started to appear on Somi's face. 

 

"Okay, yup. Just as creepy as the first day I met you." Minhee remarked. 

 

Their first day of university went by in a blur. New people, new teachers, new peers. They received their timetables for the semester, and were shown around the sizeable campus. For the writing course Minhee was doing, they would have lectures or writing classes 4 days a week, with the weekend and Wednesdays off. She supposed it made sense, since the university obviously wanted the students to have time to work on their writing projects both at university and also at home. Minhee, Somi and the other students had just walked out of an introductory lecture with the professor in charge of the writing faculty when she was called back into the lecture hall on her own. Somi gave her a curious look as Minhee walked back in the opposite direction to the rest of the students. 

 

"We loved your book." The professor raved, while some of the other university staffs nodded. "Most of us read the Korean version, since not everyone here knows English, but I read both, and honestly I was blown away. I just can't believe it was written by an 18 year old!" The elderly professor's round glasses almost slipped off his nose. 

 

She wrote the book last year, so she had actually been 17, but Minhee thought it would sound pretty obnoxious if she said that. So instead, she just replied with the honest gratitude that she felt towards the university. "Thank you so much for such positive feedback, it's really nice to hear and it really motivates me to write more. I am so, so grateful and honored to receive such an amazing scholarship from this university. I'm really looking forward to studying here." 

 

"Of course. Let us know if we can support you in any other way. You are not just any student, you're a published author! If you do want to publish something else you write, let us know and we'll have a read of it!" He continued. 

 

The staff members provided Minhee with some information booklets and explained all the details of her scholarship to her, just to make sure they were on the same page. She had free access to some university facilities as well, such as the gym. Hearing that made Minhee feel pretty damn guilty for being not athletic at all. Even the concept of jogging was foreign to her. 

 

Minhee thanked the staff members and the professor again before she left the lecture hall and went outside. Her peers had already cleared out of the area, so she could no longer see anyone she knew. The day was over for them, so everyone must be heading out now. She pulled out her phone and texted Somi. Are you still at university?

 

The reply was instant. Didn't know how long you would be so I left. I'm almost home. 

 

Home? Minhee realised that Somi was talking about her flat. Somi was from Busan, but obviously this was 'home' now. Calling her flat 'home' felt a little strange for Minhee at the moment, but she was sure she would get used to it. Remembering the curious look Somi had given her earlier, Minhee realised that she would probably have to fill her in about the scholarship when she got back. She texted her friend saying that she was going to grab some food on the way back. It was 5pm, but Minhee was already hungry. 

 

She walked out of the university, looking for a place to grab something to eat. After walking for about 2 minutes, she found a fried chicken place that looked very inviting. Actually, scrap that, it looked mouth-watering. Her eyes widened and she increased her speed to a power-walk to get to the food place quicker. Ironic that Minhee would only consider doing something remotely athletic just to get to food. Damn, she thought, why am I so lazy? 

 

She opened the door eagerly and almost hit 3 people. The place was completely packed with people. It looked like she had stumbled upon a popular food eatery. 

 

"Sorry!" She quickly apologised to the people around her as she stepped inside. 

 

The counter had a decent line in front of it. Minhee considered just leaving and going to a different place, but hey, there must be a reason why so many people were here. Hopefully it would be worth the wait. She stood behind the other customers and looked up at the menu, deciding to just get some regular chicken. 

---

 

Two boys were occupying a table at the chicken eatery, their hoods covering their heads and obstructing proper view of their face. 

 

"Great guy, but that photographer got all my bad angles, unfortunately." The freckled, golden-haired boy was saying. 

 

"I don't think you need to worry, the public doesn't seem to think you have any bad angles." His dark brown-haired friend reassured him. "It's just that we had to go to that studio straight after choreo practice and damn, I was exhausted." 

 

"I feel you bro." The other boy yawned. 

 

"But, Changbin, Chan and I are working on this new song, which is totally the style I like. You guys are gonna love it!" The brown-haired boy said excitedly. "At least, I hope." 

 

His friend gave him a fist bump. "I'm pumped to hear it." He then started talking about some new Korean words he had learnt, but the brunette's attention started to drift. 

 

He glanced around the eatery when his gaze fell upon a girl. Instead of looking back to his friend, the boy just paused for a moment, as he surveyed the girl he was seeing. The girl, oblivious to this fact, was fiddling with something on her phone. 

 

The boy observed her, his eyes wandering over her delicate features. He couldn't help but notice just how shiny her black hair was, as it fell like a waterfall around her face, stopping in layers just past her shoulders. She was not pale, with somewhat tanned skin that really suited her. She had a circular face which made her look quite youthful and cute. The fact that her face was small made her large eyes stand-out immensely. Her shirt and mid-length skirt hugged her petite frame, showing off her slim figure. 

 

"Jisung, hello?" His friend waved his hand in front of the boy's face. "Why are you ignoring me? I thought you loved me, man." 

 

The boy in question, Jisung, looked back at his friend. "Of course I love you, Felix! I was just..." His words trailed off as he wondered how he was meant to discreetly pass off staring at a girl. 

 

Felix turned his head to look at the spot in the restaurant where Jisung had been looking, only to find a girl who looked like she was about their age. "Were you staring at her?"

 

"N-No I was just blanking. You know when you stare off into the distance but you're not actually staring at that sp-" 

 

Jisung's explanation was cut off by Felix. "She is kinda pretty."

 

Felix looked at ease, but Jisung scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I mean...yeah." 

 

The girl suddenly pressed her phone against her ear and started talking to someone. "Yo, Minjun, just wondering if you're back from the hospital and if you want any chicken." 

 

Since she was now standing in the line near their table, Jisung and Felix could hear her side of the conversation, which was interestingly mostly in English. 

 

"This place is absolutely packed. I opened the door and could already have been charged for assault and battery!" 

 

"It was AWESOME! I got to meet all the other students, which was great. The professors and staff members seem great as well. I think I'll really like studying here."

 

"Yeah that was really nice of them. But dude, they started talking about the gym facilities and I just awkwardly nodded along, pretending that I go to gym 3 times a week. That was more fake than I've ever been." 

 

Felix and Jisung chuckled at her words, as the girl began to say bye to the person on the other side of the call. 

 

"She's funny." Felix whispered. 

 

Jisung nodded. "She is." 

 

"And she's an English speaker...that's so cool!" Felix said. "We should call her over to wait at our table after she orders. This place is packed anyway and you know how long they take to prepare the food." 

 

"I feel like that's a bit weird." 

 

"It's a nice gesture!" Felix protested. "Otherwise she has to stand around and get crushed by the people around her. You're just intimidated because you think she's cute." 

 

Jisung gaped at him. "I'm not intimidated! And plus, we're idols, we can't just expose ourselves in public." 

 

Felix pondered this for a moment. "I don't know...she seems like a foreign student so she might not even know us." 

 

"That's true." Jisung said after a pause. 

 

He noticed that the girl had finished ordering and was walking back to stand away from the counter. Since he had been provoked by Felix, Jisung felt spurred on to talk to her. "Excuse me." He said as the girl walked past. 

 

She stopped and looked at the two boys curiously. "Oh, hello." She greeted them politely. 

 

"It's pretty crowded in here, you can come sit with us while you wait for your order if you want!" Jisung gave her a friendly smile. 

 

The girl quickly looked around the store before agreeing to his offer. "Thanks, that's really nice of you." She said as she took a seat at their table and placed her order receipt on the surface. 

 

"I'm Minhee." She said, flashing a bright smile at Felix and Jisung. "I'm...new around here, I guess." 

 

"Hey I'm Felix!" 

 

"And I'm Jisung." 

 

Minhee's eyebrows shot up in surprise when she heard Felix introduce himself, not expecting the foreign name. 

 

"Yeah, I'm a foreigner." He guessed what she was curious about through judging her reaction. "I'm from Australia, actually." 

 

"We accidentally overheard you talking in English, so we suspected that you're also a foreigner like Felix." Jisung clarified. 

 

"Oh that's cool! Yeah, I'm from America, but I'm here to study. I'm doing a writing course at Seoul National University." Minhee explained. "Wait, so do you also understand English?" She directed her question at Jisung. 

 

"Yeah, my English is alright, since I did high school in Malaysia, but it's definitely not as good as Felix's." He said. 

 

Minhee tilted her head. "That's so interesting!" 

 

"Are you studying so that you can become an author?" Felix asked her. 

 

Minhee hesitated, not wanting to sound boastful, but she decided to just say it. "I'm actually already an author. I've had a book published. But of course, I always need to improve and do better." 

 

This got a wide-eyed reaction from the two boys. 

 

"How old are you?" Jisung asked, his round eyes open in curiosity. 

 

It was at this point that Minhee began to feel as if Jisung looked a little bit familiar. She wasn't sure why, but she had the feeling that she had seen someone like him before. "I'm 18."

 

"Oh. Same as us!" Felix said, resting his arms on the table. "You must be really talented then." 

 

Minhee waved her hand as if to brush his comment away. "Nah, not really. But maybe I'll give you guys a copy of my book if I see you two again. Then you can judge for yourselves!" She had a few spare copies of her book lying around in her flat. 

 

"We'd love to read it! What kind of book is it?" Jisung asked, fascinated. 

 

"Well it's a sci-fi novel, so it's set in a world that I made up." She explained. 

 

"That's so cool!!" The boys enthused. 

 

Minhee laughed. "So are you two students as well?" 

 

Jisung and Felix exchanged a cautious look, causing Minhee to become suspicious of their behaviour. She frowned and waited for them to say something. 

 

Jisung quickly spoke up. "Umm...no, we're actually kpop idols." 

 

This immediately put Minhee at ease. "Oh okay, y'all were acting like you're criminals or something. I was getting a little scared that you guys were gonna tell me you're on the run from the police!"

 

The two idols burst out laughing, shaking their heads to deny her allegations. "Nope, just singing, rapping and dancing for us!" Felix smiled. "Sorry about the weird behaviour, it's just kind of drilled into us that we have to be super careful in public." 

 

"Mmm I used to be really into Big Bang, but I haven't really listened to kpop music in a while...Now that I'm back in Korea for good, I'll check it out. What group are you guys in?"

 

"3, 2, 1." Jisung counted, before the two broke out with an introduction in unison. "Step out! We are Stray Kids!" 

 

Minhee giggled. "That was amazingly synchronised."

 

The man at the counter suddenly called out. "Order 67!" 

 

She glanced down at her receipt and saw the same number. "Oop! That's me. I should probably head out now, my brother just got back to our apartment complex and I've gotten some chicken for him too."

 

"Alright!" The boys gave her a little wave each. 

 

"Are you planning on coming here a lot?" Jisung felt the urge to ask. 

 

"Well, that depends on how good the chicken is." Minhee winked. 

 

"Me, Jisung and sometimes other members come here almost every Monday." Felix explained.  

 

Jisung nodded, a smile slowing taking over his face. "I'll vouch for the chicken here. So you're gonna have to stay true to your promise and come give us your book some time." 

 

Minhee grinned right back at him. "Will do!" She gave them a mock salute, before walking away to collect her chicken. She gave them one more wave before she left the store and started making her way 'home'. 

 

Jisung turned to face Felix. "You actually had a good idea for once." 

 

His friend shoved him. "I'm always right. She's awesome, I hope we can be friends! She knows English too, which is really cool." 

 

"It's actually kinda nice to just talk freely with someone we just met. I hope we can be friends with her too." Jisung agreed. He really thought that she was someone he could get along with really easily. And she was super cute. Not that Jisung was thinking about that, of course. 

---

On the way back to her flat, Minhee thought about her random meeting with the two kpop idols. She didn't know who they were, but they seemed really friendly. She had lived in Korea before, but it had been a while. So she still considered herself as 'new', and she wanted to know as many people as possible. As such, she was thrilled to meet some friendly people her age. She didn't really know tons about kpop idols, but she knew that they probably had lots of fangirls, which explained their cautious behaviour when she asked about them. And Minhee didn't really blame the fangirls...they were charming, good-looking guys! For some reason, she kept thinking that Jisung looked slightly familiar, but she didn't know why. Maybe that was just her brain's excuse for spending time thinking about a cute boy. He just had really distinctive eyes, and they were kinda pretty to look at... Minhee almost rolled her eyes at her own thoughts. She should probably just focus on making friends right now. 

 

As she arrived back at the apartment complex, Minhee went straight up to the 6th floor to see her brother. When she had called him, he was on his way home from the hospital, having an early finish today. His response on the phone was predictable, of course he wanted chicken, what kind of question was that? Minhee had never been so sure that they were brother and sister. 

 

She rang the doorbell, and Minjun opened the door. "Chicken!" His eyes went straight to the paper bag in Minhee's hands, and he grabbed it out of her grasp. 

 

"What am I, the delivery girl? No 'nice to see you Minhee'?" She jabbed her brother in the side, smiling at his antics. 

 

The two siblings ate the chicken on Minjun's table, chatting about their day. She filled in the details about her first day at university that she hadn't had the chance to say over the phone. Minjun spoke about some of the patients he got to work with at the hospital, and then went on to mention how much studying he had to do. As a med student, he was constantly studying and today was no different. 

 

So, Minhee decided against telling her brother about meeting two kpop idols at the moment. She figured that she could tell him that anytime, and she should probably let him study in peace now. She too, had some writing pieces she wanted to work on. Minhee went down to the 4th floor, and ran into Somi in the corridor. 

 

"Why'd they keep you back after our introduction session? Decided they don't want you anymore?" Somi joked, with a completely straight face.  

 

Minhee played along, sticking out her bottom lip and feigning a sad expression. "Yeah, I'm getting shipped back to America." She imitated a plane flying with her hand as she mimicked the accompanying sound.  

 

Somi chuckled. "What's the deal, though?" 

 

"Well, they were explaining the details of my scholarship to me." She gestured Somi to follow her as she opened her door. 

 

"Scholarship?" Somi echoed, towering over Minhee as she followed her into the room. "You must be really smart." 

 

"It's cause they liked my book." Minhee picked up one of the spare copies of her book from her table and held it up to show Somi. 

 

Somi grabbed the book and frowned. "Your book...? I've read this!" She exclaimed, as her eyes flickered down to the bottom of the front cover, where the author's name was listed. "MH Park." Somi read out softly, as it began it fall together in her mind. "Oh my god! Holy !" 

 

Minhee laughed. "I hope that doesn't mean you don't like the book?" 

 

"Are you kidding me? I read this a few months ago, it was epic! No joke, I have a copy in my room too." Somi hysterically explained. This was the most worked up Minhee had seen Somi in the short time she had known the girl. 

 

The two continued to talk about the book, as Somi had plenty of questions about the events that led up to Minhee publishing the book. Minhee happily explained everything to Somi, stoked that her friend had genuinely liked her book. 

 

Soon, Somi left the apartment to go work on her own writing as well. On her way out, she held up her pointer finger to Minhee's face. "When you come over to my flat next time, you need to sign my copy of the book, okay?" 

 

Minhee smiled and gave Somi a short hug. "Okay!" 

 

After her friend left, Minhee emptied her backpack and opened her laptop, sitting at her wooden table. There was something that she wanted to do before she got to work though. She opened up her search browser and typed in 'Stray Kids'. Results came up immediately, and photos of 9 boys filled up Minhee's screen. She was able to pick out the two that she had met today, Felix and Jisung. 

 

She clicked on the first video result she saw, which was a youtube link to their song 'Hellevator', and started listening. It was seriously good. They all seemed so talented, with amazing rapping and a chorus that almost had her headbanging. These guys definitely deserved some respect! She saw Jisung come up in the video a lot, since he appeared to be both rapping and singing, which was pretty damn impressive in her opinion. 

 

At the conclusion of the video, Minhee decided to move onto doing some work. But, just as she was about to close the tab, she glanced at the channel name that the video was posted under. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. JYP Entertainment. These kids were under her uncle's company! That was kind of an interesting fact for Minhee. She wondered how they were being treated and how they were being supported as young people in the spotlight. She had some degree of faith in her uncle, so she hoped that they were happy under JYP Entertainment. 

 

Minjun would probably not share the same belief. He didn't really keep up with kpop either, so she doubted that he would know who these idols were. But at the same time, he probably wouldn't be very happy if Minhee was hanging around with JYP kids. Minhee sighed. She felt like avoiding their uncle was just plain immature, and sometimes she wished that Minjun shared her opinion so that they could try and get their dad to patch things up with his brother. 

 

Almost as if on cue, Minhee's phone pinged, indicating a new text message had arrived. Not many people had Minhee's Korean phone number, since Minjun had only gotten it for her a couple of days ago. But she had called back home from her phone and chatted to her parents and her grandfather, so they would all definitely have her number. Minhee knew that her grandfather was determined to get the family back together, and her grandfather knew that Minhee was probably the only one who would willingly cooperate with him. So perhaps, it wasn't so surprising when she saw a message from her uncle. 

 

Hello, Minhee. This is Park Jinyoung, your uncle. Your grandfather has given me this number and I just wanted to check in with you to see how you were settling in. It's been a long time since I've seen you or Minjun, but I hope you two are well. I would like it very much if we could catch up and spend some time together as family. Let me know - I hope to see you soon, and extend my invitation to Minjun, even though I know what his response will be. 

- JYP