To say that beautiful girls were Jennie’s weakness would be an understatement, yet there was something different about this particular female- the way she walked- the way she carried herself. It was just different. She wasn’t just any rich girl docked in Gucci and Channel from head to toe. It was as if she was royalty.

Heck, she could wear a trash bag and still look amazing.

The cat-eyed girl naturally gravitated towards her and in those few moments all the high school ruckus around faded into nothing but white noise. The ecstatic trance was ephemeral as a loud engine revved through the campus gates. In a short span of a few seconds, one could safely conclude that the driver of the venom green Mclaren GT could care less about any pedestrians or enforced speed limits within the high school campus.

I guess that is one way to make an entrance.

In any other circumstance, Jennie would have just scoffed at the reckless driving and brushed it off as an immature attempt to flex family wealth (and gloat ego, of course!)  The key, here, is in any other circumstance. Jennie would be lying if she’d say she was surprised when the young suave male who got out of the expensive Mclaren, strutted towards the porcelain brunette, swiftly scooped the girl, twirled her around and kissed her square on the lips. One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six... Seven... Eight long seconds later the girl immediately pulled her partner in for a shy hug as the kiss ended and her feet softly landed on the ground. 

Of course, she is taken and they are together. It is always the royal prince and his princess, not the royal princess and her pauper. Romantic fairy tales of couples from different economic backgrounds only belonged to fictional books and novels. Or at least that’s what Jennie has taught herself over the course of the years witnessing the destruction of her own household due to her parent’s economic differences. 

------------

“Miss Kim! The client proposal is ready!”

“Oh! Sara, thank you” Jennie jolted from her thoughts blinking her eyes several times to suppress the memories. “Do we also have the presentation ready?”

“Yes, ma’am. Here is a printout of the deck. I did some digging and made sure that layout and color theme is just the way Mr. Im likes.” Jennie flipped through the deck and scrutinized it. Clean, minimalistic, full of analytics and statistics. Perfect. Attention to detail and client’s preferences was key in consulting, especially for the big projects she undertook as the Founding Partner of a rising management consulting boutique in New York City. 

Jennie gave a grateful smile to her assistant who had been a true blessing in her life to not only shoulder her workload but also become a trustworthy friend over the course of the years.

“Thank you, Sara. I don’t know-”

“What you’d do without me.” The assistant completed. “I am aware, Miss Kim. You are quite vocal with your appreciation and positive feedback  every time I prepare a proposal.”

“Well, a talent as impeccable as yours must be commended at every opportunity.” 

“And I presume this is one of your strategies to build a loyal fleet of employees? Competitive salary, great healthcare benefits and overload of compliments from the firm owner. Not bad, Miss Kim.” Both ladies smiled at the remark.

“Arrgh! I cannot wait to sign them on as a client. At least once the deal is completed we wouldn’t have to deal with Mr. Im’s over the top requests for the proposal and take a little breather. Bio-pharma expansion project for a nitpicking and impatient client like Mr. Im is every firm's living nightmare.”

Jennie chuckled at her assistant’s antics as she reviewed the last slide of their proposal. “Well, he is one of our biggest clients and the expansion project is worth $1.5 billion so given our comission… we can’t complain much.”

Sara sighed heavily as they both packed their belongings to leave the coffee shop for their meeting. “I know and these are the exact moments where I am thankful that I am not a consultant. Maintaining a poker face as you do in front of the rich executives who more often than not say something… err questionable things… is not for me.”

Both ladies cracked up at the remark. “Nonsense. I think you’d make a great consultant, Sara. You are smarter than all of my Harvard interns combined.”

There was a pregnant pause before Sara broke the silence. Fate had sure given her its own bitter serving. Family debts from the 2008 Financial crisis, dropping out of Yale Law and working two jobs to finish an online degree.

“Fate plays its own game, doesn’t it?”

Jennie couldn’t help but empathize a little. “It sure does.” 

Fate, destiny, luck or whatever the heck people latch on to was only invented for fairytales or for helpless to feel hopeful.

Her undeniable skills and talent had brought her to St. Lawrence but the reality was she couldn’t deny that she felt like the odd one out in this god-forsaken wealthy bubble. After all, when she joined the prestigious school she wasn’t Kim Jennie of Joseon shipping lines anymore. She was just… Jennie.

------------

It’s all in the past now, Jennie. You are here to build your own future. The girl reassured herself. After all, in life, you are your biggest cheerleader. She softly grazed her fingers across the walls of the corridors on her way to the dormitory, building resolve with every step towards her new home for the upcoming two years.

Fancy. A perfect blend of dark grey and walnut wood. The dormitories looked more like the hotels she had stayed as a kid rather than a college dorm. Now more than ever she was glad all her tuition and expenses are covered through the scholarship.

Here ya go, Jennie. Strauss Hall: Room 311- your new home. For a brief moment, as she reached for the doorknob, memories of her cousin Jiyoung’s home in New Zealand came flooding in, the only other place she could ever call home after being banished from her family’s estate. As challenging as it was, she brushed her nostalgia away and softly turned the doorknob to cautiously enter the new space. 

Hmm, that is strange. No one is here. They told me my new roommate would show me around at 4 pm.

Jennie looked at her watch at 4:04 pm. I guess she is running late, why don’t I settle down and freshen up before she comes in.

All tentative steps retreated in a flurry when a toned figure pounced on Jennie, effectively scaring the out of her. Not surprisingly, the cat-eyed girl let out a high-pitched scream that forced the stranger to cover her ears.

“Damn, you sure scream like a Pterodactyl! That inhuman pitch almost ripped my eardrums.” Jennie was still catching her breath, eyeing the stranger yet before questions could leave her lips. The stranger introduced herself. “Kang Seulgi, junior at St. Lawrence, recipient of the Lee scholarship for athletics, center in the school basketball team but most importantly- your tour-guide for the day and roommate for the year” the girl opened with an eye-blinding smile and her arm stretched for a handshake. “Why don’t I help you arrange your luggage before showing you around the campus?”

Just like that, all of a sudden Jennie felt like she might not be the only odd one out.

--

“The school gym probably is my most favorite place on campus” Seulgi exclaims. “The sprawling 110,000 sq ft. facility three storey facility has all indoor sports facilities you can possibly imagine. We have five indoor basketball courts. This is where the team practices every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and sometimes even during the weekends.” Seulgi explained as the roommates made their way to the gym reception. 

“Annyeong Sunmi unnie! How are you?”

“Seulgi-ah! Long time no see! How was summer vacation? Ready for the junior year?” The girl at the gym front desk inquired along with an eye-blinding smile. 

“Unnie, I missed you. Summer break was kinda boring. How was Bora Bora? Did you get to work on your natural tan?” Both girls chuckled at the light joke

“Bora bora was fantastic! I wish I could spend more time enjoying the food, the culture… Waah! It was the summer of my life”

“Waah unnie! I want to hear all about your vacation. We should catch up once the student orientation and other events are wrapped up.”

“We definitely should. I am going to invite myself to your house. I miss your umma’s kimchi jjigae.”

“Unnie you have no manners and boundaries. You always invite yourself to my place.”

“Well, umma said it is my house too so... no comments. Anyways, who do we have here” The slender figured front desk assistant diverted her attention to Jennie.

“Ah, mianhae! Sunmi unnie this is my new roommate Kim Jennie. It is her first day at St. Lawrence so I am giving her a tour of this magnificent place, just like the magnificent person I am.”

“Sure you are!” Sunmi teased and turned to Jennie. “Hi Jennie, I am Sunmi. I am a senior here. How are you liking St. Lawrence so far?” 

“Hi Sunmi-ssi! It is a pleasure to meet you. St. Lawrence is… huge. I am still soaking in all the phenomenal things the students get to experience here.”

“Well. I hope you find a home here, in this incredible place we get to call our home. Are you carrying