SEOUL ACADEMY CAMPUS

“Mom, don’t worry too much okay? I will be fine” A twelve year old little girl by the name Irene said, trying to assure he mother that she will be alright. This is the first time she’ll be apart from her mother for more than a week to attend a national sports’ fest so she actually understands why her Mom is acting so weird and worried.

“I will check on you everyday, okay? So if there’s any problem, you tell Aunt Bora” The lady said as she fixes her daughter’s hair. She can’t imagine how her daughter has grown. Irene brought so much happiness to her life; she’s her light and healing. And even their life is a little hard; she’ll never give up on Irene.

“Mom, I’m just going to Busan. I’m still in Korea. And don’t worry, you taught me English so well so I can communicate with foreigner students, they can’t trick me. No one can play with Tiffany Hwang’s daughter.” Irene said proudly, showing her eyesmile; eyesmile she got from her Mother.

“But still. I’ll miss you my little princess” Tiffany said sweetly. Tiffany knows that Irene is right; she will be fine for she taught her how to be strong and smart but she can’t help not to worry about many things if it is about her daughter.

 She looks at her Irene’s face for a while and kisses her forehead.

“I’ll miss you too Mommy” Irene replied before giving her mother a peck on her lips.

“I’ll take care Mommy, don’t worry. You take care too okay?” The girl smiles

“Okay Journalists. Please fall in line” Irene’s coach called. Irene is one of the Journalist team for Seoul Academy, who will take care of taking photos and making articles for the highlights of the sports' fest, and she’s not a simple student journalist, she’s been doing great and even won a national article contest at age nine.

“Okay. I will visit you if I can hmm?” Tiffany said as she walks her daughter to the teacher in charged.

“Mom, No. No need to do that. Just keep the money you’ll use for fare, you need that for your final exam” Irene said. Tiffany is still studying to finish her Marketing course, as she stopped at seventeen, after knowing that she’s carrying a child. She’s the only one who takes care of Irene since she gave birth; when her parents knew she’s pregnant, they left her in Korea alone. She’s been working as a café assistant since Irene was two, and after six years of working, she was given a scholarship by her Italian Boss to finish her study.

“Let’s not talk about that okay? Mom knows what to do” Tiffany said holding Irene’s hand “Pali. I’ll walk you to Aunt Bora”

“You have everything in your bag okay? You have powder, and your vitamins don’t forget” She’s telling her kid as they walk. Irene just kept quiet and listened to her mother.

“Aunt Bora” Irene runs as she sees her teacher Bora, who’s also her mother’s bestfriend; she hugs her tight snuggling on her stomach.

“Take care of her please?” Tiffany said looking at her friend. Bora smiles and nods, Irene’s back

“Don’t worry too much dear. I’ll check on her every day. She’s mine for three weeks” Bora winked.

LAX AIRPORT

“Call me anytime you need me? Okay?” said a man by the name Taeyeon. He’s now sitting with his daughter in LAX airport while they’re waiting for their flight. It is not compulsory for parents to accompany their children to Busan but Taeyeon wants to, to check and make sure his daughter will be safe for three weeks.

“Why Mom can’t be with us?” A little girl by the name Sinb asks while leaning down, with her elbows on her knees, looking straight to the floor. She’s really mad about her mother choosing a meeting than to be with her and wish her luck for attending a sports’ fest.

“She’s proud of you, you know that” Taeyeon said trying to cheer his daughter up. He knows his wife Jessica has been very busy since she built her own line and he is trying his very best to understand her.

“That’s what you always say Dad, so okay then” Sinb rolled her eyes, still leaning down.

Taeyeon sighs as he hears his child and lift her face by holding her chin up.

“She is. And I am” He smiles trying to assure his daughter. He is really proud of all the things Sinb achieved. She’s maybe twelve but she won many swimming tournament, she’s been always the top of her class, and even the junior president of the student’s council despite being an Asian.

“I love you so much Princess. You know that right? And I will accompany you there. Be happy for Dad please?” Taeyeon smiles, finally making the girl smile as well.

“I love you so much too Dad” Sinb said hugging her father.

“Good evening Teachers and Participants. Welcome!” The Head of Seoul Department of Education is on stage, welcoming everyone. It’s 8:00PM Korea time when they’ve first gathered. Students from different countries came 4:00PM and had their rest first before everyone were called for dinner.

They’re in a big hall, with long tables for each team.

“Tomorrow, we will have our official first day. Schedules are given to your head teachers so we expect you to follow the rules and be on the respective places on time. We expect you to make friends and have fun. We’re not here to prove who’s the best and the least, but here to gather and show what each one of us can showcase! ENJOY YOUR DINNER! AND ENJOY THE REST OF THE DAYS!”

~OoO~

“Baby, I’ll just check our quarters okay? Have your dinner” Bora said.

“Okay Teacher” Irene whispers smiling so wide. Bora smiles back knowing that Irene meant they must treat each other as teacher and student and not as Aunt and niece (Bora always say she’s her niece, not in blood but in heart).

As Bora left, Irene got some soup and chicken. She is peacefully having her dinner when she saw a blonde boy from the other table playfully slurping spaghetti in wide eyes, sauce around his mouth and his friends are looking at him laughing. She can’t help not to take a picture of that. She took her camera and took a picture of the boy.

“WOW!” Irene almost shouted in glee seeing the photo she got. Words are running through her head what is the best caption she can put there and how it can be the highlight of the first night of the festival. Suddenly her friend cut her imaginations with a call.

“Irene, eat first” Her friend Seulgi said. Irene smiles, she took her fork and knife and was about to cut the chicken when a girl suddenly said: “Yeah, you eat Irene. I know you only eat for “real” in occasions like this”

That hurts Irene, but she just kept quiet, she’s used being bullied, and it’s somehow true

“Can you please shut up Dayum? Stop being rude” Seulgi said, so mad

“Why? It’s true!” Dayum smirks. “If not because of the scholarship, do you think you’ll be able to study in SA? Look at you! You even wear the same shirt you wore last year” Dayum continued. Well, she’s just a rude kid “Oh! What can we expect to a daughter of a café assistant?”

“Excuse me” Irene, walks away in teary eyes. She can’t help it; she can’t help it not for herself but for her mother. She run as fast as she could, trying to escape so no one can see her cry, but she bumped onto a man’s back

“Ow!” The man, who is Taeyeon, turned around and looks behind him as he feels someone bumps onto him.

“I’m--” He was about to said his sorry when he realized it’s a kid but suddenly, he felt the kid hugging him around his waist, crying so hard.

“Hey? Why?” Taeyeon asks. He held the kid’s hand and takes it off him as he knelt in front of her.

“Why?” Taeyeon asks again, wanting to see the girl’s face.

“Why?” And Sinb behind Taeyeon, asks as well. She feels so bad for the girl for she can feel how hurt she is with her sobs.

“Hey it’s okay” Taeyeon said. Irene finally lifts her face up and looks at Taeyeon eye to eye. Taeyeon can see Irene’s wet cheeks and he can feel her pain. He’s supposed to ask her again what the matter was, but a striking feeling seems hitting him as he looks at the girl’s eyes clearly; he feels different with her, he feels like he knows Irene for a long time and he can feel a sincere pity towards her.

“I’m sorry Sir” Irene said in English; that made Taeyeon feel a more indescribable feeling. The kid’s voice reminds him of someone; the girl’s eyes, her nose and her aura, perfectly the same with the lady he once loved.

“Dad.” Sinb cuts her dad’s thoughts. Taeyeon clear his throat and speaks,

“Oh…--It’s Okay sweetheart, what happened?” Taeyeon wipes the girl’s face. In every eye contact he has with Irene, and in every touch of her face, he feels something he can’t explain; a light yet unexplainable feeling.

“I’m sorry Sir. Excuse me” Irene said and bows to Taeyeon and Sin