Philia is concerned with the deep comradely friendship that developed between brothers in arms who had fought side by side on the battlefield. It was about showing loyalty to your friends, sacrificing for them, as well as sharing your emotions with them.

WENSEUL [i] Philia, or deep friendship

    Wendy was terrified walking into the choir room of Richmond Hill. Not because she couldn’t speak the language (she was studying abroad after all, but she’d been here since fifth grade c’mon) but because she was a freshman. She had been terrific in junior high, but she was terrified that her talents would be submerged into the ocean of people that were crowded in groups in the high school.

    Ambling in, she took a seat on the second stair of the ‘stage.’ Wendy nibbled gently on her bottom lip, tugging at the supple flesh in an act of complete nervousness and routine. The door lazily creaked before swinging open, revealing their choir teacher. A Canadian woman with platinum hair that had forgotten strands of grey woven throughout their low-ponytail. (Ms. Smith was their name if the winding cursive across the chalkboard was any hints). But what caught Wendy’s attention more than the teacher was the small girl following behind her.

    They were of Asian descent, and at least twenty centimeters shorter than the choir instructor. They had bear-like features, and their eyes swarmed with curiosity, confusion, and an innocent happiness. Wendy leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands.

    Ms. Smith slapped a ruler against her hand, causing everyone to jump. “Attention! I know you bunch of freshman and sophomores are cocky and in your prepubescent ‘glory’ days. But! I have an introduction.” She gestured to the girl beside her, who confusedly turned to them. Before their eyes widened in realization, she turned to the class gathered before her and waved brightly, their eyes turning into beautiful crescents.  “Introduce yourself if you will.”

    “Hello!” Wendy’s attention was peaked, the girl’s accent sounded awfully familiar. “Uh… I’m from Korea!” That was it. “I am going to studying here for the year or maybe longer. I’m Kang Seul- No… Seulgi Kang! Please take care of me.” She finished her introduction with another bright smile, that had Wendy’s heart constricting and thumping in her chest.

    Ms. Smith directed Seulgi with a polite smile to the chairs. Seulgi scanned the seats before locking eyes with Wendy, and she bounded up to take a seat directly to Wendy’s left. “Annyeonghaseyo! Wait- Uh… Hello!” She greeted politely despite the hurdle.

    Wendy grinned back at them. ‘I’m Seungwan or Wendy. Don’t worry I’m from Korea too. Nice to meet you.’ She spoke back in Korea, and the response delighted her. She was met with a shocked but delighted expression. Seulgi exhaled in relief.

    “I’m not… good at speaking English.” Seulgi mustered out, trying her best despite the Korean accent they lay thickly on her words. Wendy couldn’t help but smile at how much they were trying.

    Their bonding session and first meeting was interrupted by a ruler-slap on the board and a yell of ‘GIRLS!’ It left the two giggling despite how petrified Wendy was of getting in trouble by anyone in authority over her.

    Wendy barely saw Seulgi until lunchtime. Where she approached Seulgi and offered to eat with her near the windows. Wendy scrunched up her knees and opened up her lunch, it was simple for an average Westerner. A simple salad with some fruit. Seulgi on the other hand had rice with sesame seeds and some raw veggies.

    The two ate in a comfortable silence until Wendy glanced up and saw Seulgi had paused eating and was staring at Wendy. “What?” Wendy mumbled out between bites. Seulgi grinned back, her cheeks puffing up.

“    I just heard that fruit overseas is much better than in Korea.” Seulgi said simply. Wendy nodded, plucking a strawberry up and handing it over to Seulgi. To which the other plopped in the other and chewed with their mouth slightly open in a cute, babyish manner.

    “Mhm~!” Seulgi hummed, she swallowed audibly. “Wow! That is better! Wow maybe this is why I’ll stay here instead of Korea.” Wendy laughed heartilly and gentle shoved Seulgi.

    “Yah! I’m older than you.”

    Wendy laughed, the Korean behavior was typical and the little taste of her home country was welcomed. She had almost forgotten about the difference in treatment of age between the East and West. “‘94~” She sang, taking another grape for herself.

    Seulgi groaned.

    The Canadian raised an eyebrow. “What? Are you younger than me~”

    “No! We’re the same age so I can’t use it as an excuse.” Wendy laughed and offered another strawberry over to Seulgi with a wink. Seulgi stared for a moment before blinking both her eyes, an attempted wink maybe? Before she snatched up the strawberry and munched on it in an animated manner.

    Wendy looked them over. “Want me to bring you an extra thing of fruits tomorrow?” Seulgi nodded animatedly, flashing them a thumbs up.

    “Yeshh~” She said with filled with strawberry.

    The two fell into the comfortable routine of exchanging fruits, and eventually Seulgi began offering Wendy half a serving of white rice with green onion as a peace offering. Their trading off and on was casual and peaceful.

    Halfway through the semester, while walking to lunch together a question popped into Wendy’s mind. “Seulgi?”

    “Yeah?”

    “Why’d you choose to do choir? Most foreign students do something else, y’know, easier.”

    Seulgi looked at them with an innocent expression, their rounded face falling slightly. “Are you calling me a bad singer?” She whined out

    Wendy panicked and waved her hands animatedly, defiantly demanding that is not what she meant and she tried to sputter out as many explanations as she could before she was interrupted by Seulgi. “It’s okay! I was joking! I’m not completely no-jam.” Thankfully the older of the two didn’t hear the mutter of ‘yes you are’ from Wendy’s behalf, and if she did Seulgi pretended not to notice. “I do singing because I love it. It makes me happy, and it gives me something physical to be proud of. I want to become a singer someday, I even auditioned at SM before I came overseas. Do you know?” She asked, gesturing to Wendy for a response.

    Wendy nodded quickly, “Yeah! What’d they say.”

    Seulgi shook her head. “They haven’t responded. It’ll have been a year in two months I think. Maybe they lost my application or something.”

    Her friend and companion since the beginning of the school year shook her head, and reached for Seulgi’s hand in an unexpected act of skinship. “No! You’re amazing and better than everyone in our choir class.” Wendy demanded, stomping her foot unexpectedly on the ground. She turned to face Seulgi and stood on the balls of her feet to try and reach eyelevel with Seulgi. “I promise.” She said, her voice softening upon meeting Seulgi’s earnest gaze.

    Seulgi smiled and nodded, reaching to hug her newfound best friend. Hoping that Wendy considered her a best friend as well. She mumbled into Wendy’s shoulder. “I hope you can audition at SM one day too.” Letting the phrase melt into the soft fabric of a school uniform and never reach the intended listener’s ears.

    The last day of the semester came quickly. The announcement for winter break came too. It hasn't snowed yet surprisingly but the forecast said it would. Seulgi was ambling around the front of the school, wondering why Wendy had sent her a text phrased so urgently:

♡ wan ♡

    3:00

     “Wait for me in front of the school!!!! PLEASE!!! ♡♡!!”

    “SEULGI!” Said name’s owner turned around and saw Wendy waving her over from the right side of the courtyard, though confused she followed running to meet Wendy’s excited jaunt. They reach a ladder.

    “Wendy?”

    “Trust me!” Wendy said adamantly with a smile, she started climbing up the impossibly tall ladder and Seulgi couldn't’ help but follow the other along up the ladder. After the end of a prolonged test of ‘don’t look down’ they reached the top. The rooftop to be exact.

    Before them spanned the courtyard and in the distance peaceful suburban houses could be seen lining the horizon. Dressed in homely colors of greys and browns, Seulgi smiled. She glanced over to see Wendy sitting with her legs dangling off the rooftop, leaned back relaxedly with her head thrown up towards the grey sky.

    Seulgi walked to join them, and took her seat beside Wendy, not minding the hand that was absentmindedly placed on top of her own. “Uh… Wendy.”

    Wendy glanced to Seulgi, her eyes filled with concerned at the usually bubbly bear being so nervous. “Hm? Is something wrong.”

    Seulgi shook her head waving her hands at Wendy with a reassuring smile. “No- of course not! But I have something to tell you actually.”

    “What is it?” Wendy wasn’t answered by words but a rustle of papers, a clean letter was in front of her. The logo of SM planted in the top left corner proudly along with an address. Her heart should’ve soarded with joy at the words on the very top after Seulgi’s name.

    Written proudly was, “Congratulations! You have made it into Korea’s finest training academy for aspiring idols at SM Entertainment.” Wendy didn’t read any further before her eyes were torn off it and forced onto Seulgi. “I-” She started, but exhaled trying to rearrange the scrambled and mismatched thoughts that had been torn apart and rearranged in her head in a mess of conflicting emotions. “When?” She meekly said, her voice becoming small.

    Seulgi had a smile playing at her lips no matter how hard she was trying to conceal it. “I’m leaving early, I’m not coming back for next semester.”

    “...What?”

    “I’m sorry but. I have to pursue this, every ounce of me knows this is the path for me and this opportunity… I can’t pass it up I can’t Wendy. I’m sorry.”

    Wendy nodded, smiling as brightly as she could despite the tears that pushed against her eyelids and caused her eyes to shine in the midday’s light. “I’m so proud of you.” She mustered out, her voice shattering. Wendy reached out to embrace Seulgi and pressed her head into the crook of their neck, burying her tears into the previously-pristine uniform and staining it with her memory of a friendship that would last the distance.

    They met at the airport a week later. Wendy walked with her as far as she could before they were before security.

    Seulgi turned back and forth between the two, before giving a final wave and nodding to the security officer and disappearing into a monotonous line filled with strangers. Wendy stayed, hoping that Seulgi would turn and burst through security. Collapsing into Wendy’s arms and saying that they will postpone it for her.

    But that dream never came true.

    Instead reality embraced Wendy and Wendy could only mumble out into hostile and unfamiliar air.

    “Don’t forget about me.”

Seulgi was Wendy’s philia.