“Thank you for shopping at Mokpo Shopping District! Please find us on Facebook and Instagram for limited time deals and events!”

 

the loudspeaker repeated the message for the fifth time in the last hour, with no one paying it any mind after the second listen

 

The shopping district located in the busiest part of Mokpo is swarming with sleep-deprived parents and overanxious students of all ages trying to find last minute school supplies requested or more so demanded by their school districts. One of those students whined when the bag filled with far too many notebooks than she needed was snatched from her grasp.

 

“Yah, Hyun-woo-oppa!! I can carry my own school supplies” she whined but her assistant simply

brought brought the plastic bag to his side

 

“Park Jieun-nim, I would prefer if I kept my job by accomplishing it.” the assist retorts as Jieun pouts

“But I’m in my last year of high school!” she whines, “I should at least be able to do my own shopping,” she pauses, “not that I don’t want you here oppa”

 

“Then I shall be here, Jieun-nim” he replies as he brings the bag a little higher

 

Jieun sighs in surrender, “Fine. But no complaining about those getting heavy!” she warns, gesturing towards the already stuffed bag.

 

Hyun-woo only chuckles as he hoists the bag a little higher, “Complaining is not part of my job description Jieun-nim.”

 

Jieun could only reply with a huff and turns straightforward, walking a little faster to hopefully convince her assistant to lighten the load on himself

 

“Ugh, stupid, slow public wifi. How am I supposed to read up on these pencil brands,” the girl mutters while scratching her long, dyed purple hair. She grunts and puts her phone away in her pocket seeing the webpage not loading.

 

Looking around she lets out a ‘tsk’ seeing the workers already occupied with other customers.

“Eye test it is.” She decides and starts examining and comparing two similar looking brands of pencils, a few pedestrians questioningly eyeing the high school girl crossing her eyes trying to read the smallest subtext at the bottom of the packaging

 

She shakes each of the three boxes she was debating over comparing their risk and benefits, “this one comes with more lead, but this one leaves less of a streak. but this one's from a reputable brand. Dammit, why is this so hard!?”” she groans

 

She decides that she needs help, and the poor forced volunteer who just exited from the stockroom was her victim.

 

“Excuse me Mr. Worker!” she waves towards him and the teenager dressed in red non-branded clothing with a cap of the same color turned to her with a confused look.

 

The girl points at the shelves with the packs of pencils hung up on hooks

 

“Do you have information on this specific set of pencils? I need to know the origins of its graphite to determine whether it's suitable for my daily work.”

 

The man looks at her like she just grew two heads, “I-I don’t know?”

 

The girl sighs, “Do you at least know if the wood of this set of pencils was manufactured through methods that destroy natural habitats of animals that could lead to the destruction of rainforest ecosystems?”

 

The man’s lips were gawking like a fish, trying to make sense of the words being spoken to him, “I-I-”

 

The girl was quickly getting frustrated, “C’mon,” she squints at his nametag

 

“Jiyoon. Jiyoon-nim, you need to understand that this is vital information!” she expresses dramatically, “Don’t you care about the Amur Leopards?!”

 

“T-the what leopards?” he dares

 

Goeun shakes her head, “Amurs! Them and hundreds of animal and plant species could be wiped off the face of Earth! Do you want that Jiyoon-nim, do you want that on your conscience, huh?!!” she exclaims with wild hand gestures

 

Jiyoon takes a step back, “I would like to help you Miss but it’s just that.”

 

Goeun frowns, “That?”

 

“I…don’t work…here….” he turns around and the on the back of his shirtrevealved big bold white letters

 

DELIVERY

 

The tortuous seconds of silence began until Goeun breaks it

 

“Oh.”

 

Followed by more uncomfortable silence

 

Goeun was half-considering identifying herself as a mental asylum patient but thankfully her phone rang

 

Like lightning she picked up the call with a polite smile on her face at the delivery worker, immediately swiping the green icon

 

“Goeun-ah!” the voice from the other line called

 

Goeun quickly brings the phone up to her ear and avoided any more eye contact with the delivery boy, who just looked like he needed a mental break and decided to walk off, “Hey eomma!” she greets a little too quickly

 

“Woah there tiger, slow down.”

 

“Ah, sorry,” Goeun sighs, “Hey, eomma, what’s up?”

 

“Nothing’s up, just watching dramas at home like you asked, by the way”

 

Goeun snorts, at her mom’s smug tone “Eomma, I told you, I can handle all my school supplies this year,”

 

Her mother makes a skeptical hum, “And how far are you into your list?”

 

Goeun takes her list from her back pocket, and examines it

 

Pens

 

Pencils

 

Markers

 

White-out tape

 

Notebooks

 

Index Cards

 

Organizer

 

Binder

 

Binder tabs

 

Hole puncher

 

Backpack

 

20 more items on the back of this page - Yesterday’s you

 

“It’s…going”

 

She hears her mother sigh, “Na Goeun, you don’t need to overthink things, okay? You won’t need much since this is your last year so just get whatever’s available, my dearest daughter. Oh and try to make some friends there! You'll never know who might be in your class!”

 

Goeun chuckles, “Sure, mom, don’t wait up for me, kay?”

 

“Sure, jagi! Stay safe!” her mother says before she ends the call

 

Goeun sighs in relief that she managed to get out of that situation but she starts concentrating again at her main goal, the pencils.

 

Oh, and friends too, I guess

 

“That’s cliche as hell, Ireh-.” the tall girl frowns at the moon shaped keychain dangling from the store counter.

“Aww,” the girl in question pouts, “so we shouldn’t buy it?”

 

The previous girl grins, “I said it was cliche, but it is freakin’ adorable.” she laughs and takes the moon keychain from the hook.

Ireh huffs in triumph, “I know right?! Chaein-ah I am the cleverest girl you’ve ever known.”

 

Chaein nods, “Not a word but yes, cleverest indeed.”

 

The two end up outside the store after paying for the keychain and cute matching bookmarks Ireh picked out of a chipmunk and bunny

 

“Which one does that count as on the list?” Ireh points to the small gift bag

“That’s the fun part, it’s not on the list.” Chaein points out, and Ireh looks at her confused. “But I think it’d be nice to give her a token of appreciation.”
 

“With the money that she gave us?” Ireh tilts her head, but Chaein simply shrugs,

 

“It’s coming out of our allowance so it’s our money, right? Plus you chose the gift so it means a lot more to her..” she retorts

 

Ireh nods in agreement, “Smart, smart.” and pauses before her brows scrunch up and she frowns

 

“I’m hungry.”

 

“I’m bored.” Chaein adds at the same time and the two stand in place for a few seconds contemplating on finishing their shopping list or embark in finding snacks

 

“How long have we been here for?”

 

Chaein pulls pulls out a Hello Kitty watch from her back pocket

 

“You still have that?” Ireh asks, recalling Chaein having that watch since they were much younger

 

Chaein nods, “and it still works. And let’s see,” she squints, “We left home at ten and…we’ve been out for, yeah, about fifteen minutes.”.

 

“No wonder I’m hungry, “ Ireh whines, “We can’t go supply shopping with an empty stomach, and I know there’s a tteokbokki place in here somewhere.”

 

“Hell yeah, tteokbokki!” Chaein cheers but her hands drop in realization, “but the lines are gonna be soooo long.” she whines

 

Ireh smirks, “Eomma’s friend works there that’ll let us go through the back.” she giggles seeing Chaein break into a smile

 

“Think we can ask for a discount too?”

 

“Let’s not get greedy.” Ireh warns playfully

 

“Fine.” Chaein huffs, “But who's paying?”

 

Ireh looks up to the sky for a brief moment, before shrugging, “Rock, Paper, Scissors?”

 

Chaein grins, “You’re on.”

 

The two draw their hands back as they analyze each other’s stances and rhythm of their breaths. Chaein was much laxer and had a smirk adorning her face while Ireh peered at the younger girl as she made sure to keep her hand hidden.

 

“Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!” They both chant at the same time and bring their hands out.

 

Draw.

 

“Tsk,” Chaein hissed, “again!” she shouts and both repeat the gesture

 

Draw.

 

“Again!” This time Ireh says it.

 

Draw.

 

“Again!” They say in unison

 

Draw.

 

“Again!”

 

Draw.

 

“Again!”

 

By the time the two spent ten minutes to everyone in the vicinity’s surprise, drawing the same hand signs, they dropped to the ground panting in exhaustion.

 

Ireh weakly raises her hand, “Agai-”

 

“How about,” Chaein jumps in,also wiped out from the dozens of rounds of intense rock, paper, scissors, “we just split the bill.”

 

Ireh gives a weak thumbs up before collapsing on the floor, several eyes watching in mixed awe and confusion

““Yuki-ssi” the shop owner groans at the girl who had her hands full of baseball equipment she had no intention of buying today

 

“Yes, shopkeeper-nim?”

The shop owner sighs

“Yuki, you've been here for 4 years and you visit this shop at least once a month.”

 

Yuki chuckles and rubs the back of her neck in embarrassment, “Ah my bad…Jeong-in?” she tries

 

“Gyeong-ja...” she corrects the teenager with a groan

 

“What will you be getting today, then? Or rather what will you be greasing up that I'll have to clean later?" Gyeong-ja asks.

 

Yuki chuckles and points behind her, "Those baseball bats look like a start."

 

"Ah, you athletes and your insatiability to your equipment." Gyeong-ja groans and reaches above her to pick up a set of bats that are leaning against the display shelves.

 

"Ah, I'll promise I'll buy one eventually. I'm trying out for the high school team as soon as they announce it." Yuki replies happily with a hint of excitement to her voice.

 

"Good for you." Gyeong-ja replies, "I'll be your official bat endorser, yeah?"

 

"Of course, Jeong-in." Yuki cackles,

 

"YAH!" Gyeong-ja reaches out to smack the teenager, but Yuki quickly dodges with the a -eating grin on her face.

 

"Haahaha!" Yuki laughs, as she grabs onto one of the bats and gives it a couple test swings. "These can handle some serious Hulk in me!"

 

"Ahem, I think it might be wise to only swing them after you've done some practice." Gyeong-ja suggests.

 

Yuki tilts her head confused, "But I gotta swing em to practice."

 

Gyeong-ja huffs, "I mean do it someplace where you won't destroy my store."

 

"I'm good at what I do!" Yuki retorts.

 

"Hmph, maybe so but please keep it to a minimum," Gyeong-ja sighs, "Anyway, don't you gotta buy your school supplies or something?"

 

"Oh yeah! Actually, I was just stopping by." Yuki beams,

 

Gyeong-ja rolls her eyes, "Clearly."

 

"I don't really need anything since this is my second year." Yuki shrugs, "I'll just browse around and leave with nothing."

 

"Uh-huh." Gyeong-ja groans, "How about a gym bag? You'll probably need one if you're going to be a high school athlete."

 

Yuki nods, "Yeah, I guess I would...but I really don't need one."

"Just get one, look" Gyeonga points outside the shop window, "That local shop over there makes some nice, handcrafted ones."

 

Yuki nods, "I'll check it out later..."

 

Gyeong-ja groans, "Fine but just remember to- HEY, WATCH IT!" she scolds as she watches Yuki continue playing around with the bat.

 

“Teenagers…” the shopkeeper grumbles

---

“Miss you can’t buy that as a pet.”

 

The girl stands in front of the vendor with pleading eyes, hoping to somehow convince the lady running the shop.

 

She pulls out her wallet containing her allowance she saved up, “I’ll pay you extra. I budgeted well to buy whatever’s in this shop.

 

The vendor sighs, “Miss I’m sure you can find somewhere else for your interest. Just not here okay?”

“But…” the girl pauses, “I want that one.” she points again at the tank, a particular scaly one

 

The vendor rubs her head in frustration

 

“Miss, again…that’s a shark.”

 

The girl nods frantically, her eyes sparkling in eagerness

 

“So can I have a student discoun-”

 

The fish vendor walks away before she could say anything else

 

The girl sighs and neatly pockets the money she took out

 

“Good job, Eunseong. You could’ve just said you were gonna eat it.” she mutters to herself before putting on her earphones and putting her playlist on shuffle

 

Somebody knows

Somebody knows, somebody knows

Somebody takes

Somebody takes you away

I wanna hold, I wanna hold, I wanna hold

You say goodbye to me

 

“Yay.” she cheers quietly at one of her favorite songs

 

She bops her head softly as she strolls by the other shops, glancing at what the shops were selling from bluefin tuna to octopus “I still have so much to do today.” she groans as she tries to recall the items on her imaginary list.

---

“Sujin-unnie, we miss you!” eleven-year old Park Ho-sook whines at her big sister

“I haven’t even been gone that long.” she chuckles as she places her phone between her shoulder and chin looking at the school supply prices of notebooks.

 

“But it’s so boring here without you…huh? Yeah it’s unnie.” the voice says slightly away from the mic

 

“Sujin-Noona, can you get us something too?” a distant voice from the phone called out

 

Sujin chuckles, “Hmm? Is there something you want?”

 

“Food!” yet another voice shouts from the speaker

 

“Was that Geum? Any special requests milady?” she inquires with an timely accent

 

“Geumgeum wants Choco-Pie!”

 

“Of course, princess, anything-”

 

“Noona, don’t forget about meeeee” her little brother interrupted

 

“No problem, anything you want Insu-yah?”

 

She hears a brief pause from her phone before it speaks up

 

“How about-” her little brother begins before getting cut off

 

“Excuse me Miss, would you be interested in real estate in the-”

 

“Ah, excuse me,” Sujin interrupts him, covering her phone like it was an old Motorola, “I’m calling my sibling right now.”

 

The salesman keeps politely smiling, "Ah I see, my apologies, but perhaps I could get you interested in opening houses in the area? There's many parks with open fields for your siblings to play-"

 

Sujin dismisses him with a shake of her head, "i'm sorry, sir, but I love my home exactly how it is."

 

He looks puzzled, "I see... Well, if you ever have any questions about houses, or shopping equipment, please feel free to ask!"

 

She smiles softly at him and nods before walking away.

 

"Sorry for making you wait, Insu-yah. Now what was that you wanted again?" she sets the bags on the floor so she can talk clearer to her siblings.

 

"Did that man say we can get a new house in the area, noona?" Insu asks his big sister

 

Sujin sighs internally but keeps her composure bright, "We can always have a look someday, any reason why you want to move, Insu-yah?"

 

"Hmmm...." She chuckles imagining her little brother looking up in thought, a habit he's already developed, "It depends, noona."

 

Sujin was not expecting that answer, "Oh? Depends on what?"

 

"Will you move in with us, noona? I don't want to move if it's not with Sujin-noona" he asks almost tearily and that pulls on Sujin's heartstrings.

 

"Noona will stay with all of you, so never worry about that." she smiles softly

 

Insu lets out a hum, "Okay, Sujin-noona, I don't want to move, okay? I wanna be family forever."

 

Sujin pulls the phone away from her face and sniffs, before bringing it back, "Of course, Insu-yah, now don't cause trouble for ajumma there, okay?"

 

"Okay, noona, love you! Ho-sook-ah, Soomin-ah Geum-ah, say bye to noona!"

 

There was a few seconds of shuffling before three more voices spoke, "Bye, unnie! Love youuuu!" they sing

 

Sujin feels her heart incredibly warm and fulfilled,

 

"Love you too." before the phone hangs up and she sighs, picking up her bags, the weight already getting to her shoulders

 

"Now on to find a backpack," shmumbles reading the list of her school supplies, "Why didn't I get one before buying the rest of these?" she asks herself, gesturing at the bags of school supplies that were barely holding on by flimsy plastic.

 

"Excuse me, Miss!" a shop owner calls out

 

She stops, "Yes?"

 

"Are you a first year student?"

 

Sujin's eyes widened, "How did you know, miss?"

 

"Well, the second and third years don't have that many school supplies." she grins and gestures at the plaza where it was quite obvious who the frantic freshmen and the done with life third years were.

 

"You're really helping me here?" Sujin smiles at her.

 

"Yup." the shop owner agrees, "Now come in, we have a nice assortment of backpacks so you won't strain your arms carrying those things.

 

"Oh please wipe your feet." the shopkeeper jokes and Sujin laughs, finding her day a little more bright.

---

 

“Jieun-nim, there are much nicer stores to purchase a-”

 

“I just want a simple backpack!” whines Jieun, “Everyone always gave me weird looks at school because of my bag last year!”

 

Jieun recalls scurrying in a hurry through the school hallways with her Prada bag clutched tightly to her side and her arm trying to block off as much of the logo as possible.

 

“Ah I see, Jieun-nim, “ Hyun-woo nods, “Would you rather purchase a Hermes?”

 

“No! No Hermes!” Jieun sighs in frustration, and darts her eyes around until she sees a small local store with colorful bags displayed by the windows,

 

“Maybe I need to show you.” She walks away and gestures towards the store.

 

Hyun-woo follows Jieun albeit still confused, “Perhaps she wanted a Burberry.” he murmurs to himself