After her new friend, Dahyun, had eagerly introduced her to the rest of the class, Chaeyoung felt the rest of the morning flash by. Everyone had been welcoming and friendly, politely asking questions about her old school and her own interests. They certainly weren't the stuck-up brats she had been expecting. It was a pleasant surprise.

As soon as the lunch bell rang, Dahyun approached Chaeyoung. "Come on, I'll show you to the cafeteria! We have to hurry though! I heard there's a sale on choco pies today!"

Chaeyoung wasn't an avid fan of choco pies, but Dahyun clearly was; they quickly set off for the cafeteria at a brisk walking pace. The route wasn't a straightforward one. Dahyun led her through so many corridors and stairwells that Chaeyoung realized she needed a map to get around this school by herself.

Eventually, they reached the cafeteria. It was a large, spacious room, filled with long, white tables. While a tidy line of students waited in front of the food display for lunch, a small crowd had formed in one corner. Dahyun pointed it out, "That's the snack corner. Every Monday, they sell different snacks at super discounted prices. And today, it's choco pies! I'm going to wade in. Do you want anything?"

Chaeyoung shook her head and replied, "Go ahead. I'll check out what's available for lunch." She studied at the menu board and decided to order some japchae. By the time she paid for her food and received it from the lunch lady, Dahyun returned with an armful of choco pies. The amount was so comically large that Chaeyoung couldn't help laughing aloud.

They sat down at one of the long tables. Chaeyoung was glad to discover that the cafeteria food at JYP Academy was delicious, and she devoured the whole plate of japchae with gusto. Meanwhile, Dahyun seemed bent on eating choco pies for lunch. Between unwrapping the snacks and stuffing her face, she told Chaeyoung more about the school.

"By the end of the week, we'll be given the afternoon off to check out the high school clubs. I'm thinking of joining either the light music club or the drama club. What about you?"

Chaeyoung paused in mid-chew, and considered the question. After some thought, she answered, "I like drawing, so I guess I'd like to join the art club. There must be one at this school, right?"

Dahyun nodded enthusiastically, mouth too full of choco pie for her to reply. It took her a while to swallow it down with a chug of water, then she eagerly said, "The art club here is really good! They actually have an exhibit set up near the club rooms. We can stop by there before we head back to class!"

Chaeyoung smiled with full of japchae noodles. Her new friend was getting more and more adorable with every conversation they had.

After they had finished their lunch (well, if choco pies could be considered as "lunch"), Dahyun led Chaeyoung to the art club's exhibit. They walked out of the cafeteria at a leisurely pace, since they still had about half an hour before afternoon classes began.

The route to the club rooms passed through the main brick path in front of the school building. Once they reached the fountain where Chaeyoung had last seen Jeongyeon earlier that morning, Dahyun stopped abruptly to wiggle a rock out of her shoe. While she was busy, Chaeyoung studied the water fountain. It was a large marble structure, about five meters in diameter with a central piece that stood at least one meter above the water's surface. It seemed to be an abstract sculpture of metal, designed to look like nine birds about to take flight. Fascinated, Chaeyoung circled the fountain to see how the sculpture looked from the other side.

As she reached the opposite end of the fountain, she heard a soft voice saying, "Excuse me."

Chaeyoung spun around to face the speaker, but she wasn't the one being addressed. The girl who had spoken was a few meters away, standing in front of a bench and gently shaking a student who seemed to be fast asleep. Curious, Chaeyoung approached the odd pair. Standing right behind the girl, Chaeyoung realized that the speaker was quite tall, because she towered over her by more than a head.

"Excuse me. I don't think you're allowed to sleep here. Especially not like this."

The tall girl continued to shake and prod the sleeping student, who had lain down and stretched out over the bench in a generally unladylike way. The student continued to snore loudly, with her body turned towards the back support of the bench and her hair messily draped over her face.

"Do you need help?" asked Chaeyoung. The tall girl stiffened with a jolt and turned quickly. It stung Chaeyoung's pride a bit when she noticed that the girl had to actively turn her face downwards to make eye contact. But her mind went completely blank when she realized that the tall girl standing in front of her was stunningly gorgeous.

The girl was basically a living doll. In addition to her height, she was slender with long limbs. Her long, black hair was tied in a tight pony tail that highlighted her small face and sharp features. She stood straight with perfect posture, as if an invisible string was attached to the top of her head and held taut by a vertical force.

"Er... She isn't waking up," said the girl hesitantly. Her Korean had an accent, enough to let Chaeyoung guess that she may have been a foreigner. "If I'm not mistaken, the bell might ring soon. I've been trying to wake her up for the past five minutes, but she just keeps sleeping." She sighed with resignation.

"Let me try," said Chaeyoung. She walked behind the bench and reached over the back to shake the sleeping student's shoulder with more vigor. She also raised her voice as she said, "Excuse me! Excuse me! It's time to wake up!"

Reacting to sounds for the first time, the student grumbled, "Ehhh... Five more minutes, Jeongyeonnie."

Jeongyeonnie? thought Chaeyoung in surprise. Does this person know Jeongyeon-unnie? Enough to call her unnie like I do?

As if on cue, that person's voice cut through the brief silence. "Momo! Momo! Where are you? When I find you, you are so dead. You missed the meeting!"

Chaeyoung looked up and saw Jeongyeon walking towards the fountain from the main building. She looked pissed. Walking right behind her were two other students, who looked more amused than irritated. Chaeyoung glanced down at the sleeping student and wondered if this was the Momo that Jeongyeon seemed to be looking for.

"There you are, Chaeyoung!" called Dahyun, jogging over with a relieved smile. "I was worried that I'd lost you. Oh, hello!" She smiled at the tall girl, who had moved to stand awkwardly by the opposite side of the bench.

Chaeyoung was about to ask Dahyun to check if she recognized the student sleeping on the bench, when Jeongyeon called out, "Midget! How's your first day so far?" Her mood seemed to have lightened instantly, as she quickened her pace and walked straight towards Chaeyoung. Her two companions walked faster to keep up with the sudden change in stride.

"Heads up," whispered Dahyun excitedly. "You're about to meet the Roses."