Shoulders back, chin up, and one foot in front of the other was how Rona was taught to carry herself at all times. It was easy to tell who was of kin by simple mannerisms and by the looks of it, Rona was the odd one out. She stood out like a sore thumb in the best way possible, somehow she walked through a crowd like it was a runway and she was the main character.  Long black hair as dark as night flowing back and forth with every step while her eyes stayed straight ahead, not sparing anyone a glimpse as if they didn’t even deserve a millisecond of her time. 

She was used to the stares, both good and bad. People assumed the worst just from how she carried herself, but this time they looked at her like she was insane. A crazy person walking down the street, the crowd parted seemingly for her like she had some kind of contagious disease. 

“What is she wearing?” She heard someone near her say, shooting her gaze their way for the first time giving them a sharp side eye. However, they weren’t looking at her, they were looking behind her, somehow both in disgust and infatuation at the same time. Everyone was actually looking at whatever was behind her. 

Curiosity got the best of Rona causing her to glance back and see a girl walking not too far behind her. She was like a vampire that decided to show themselves for the first time during broad daylight. She was wearing all black, a laced long sleeve dress with a corset around her waist, the bottom of the dress was asymmetrical ending just above her knees. Her legs were semi-covered in fishnet tights followed by chunky platform boots that reached halfway up her shin. Her long black hair was contrasted by red highlights that matched her lips painted deep red. The way she nonchalantly chewed her gum matched her attitude. She glared at the viewers who had their gazes fixed on her like she was an idol at the airport. The attention didn’t bother her one bit, just another day in the life of being Yoo Dana, though she did enjoy seeing people shaking in their boots when their eyes met. 

Rona too got caught up in her alluring aura before catching herself and looking away, quickening her steps to get away from the other student like she was a monster. Though to Rona she didn’t look far off. The last thing she wanted was to be close enough to her for people to think they were together. There was no way she’d be caught with someone so abnormal. 

Her head was held high as she fast walked into Chungsam Hall, even though at the moment she was feeling quite inferior to the student behind her. She was the only one to enter the elevator, letting out a sigh in relief that she escaped the vampiress. She pressed her floor and clicked close a few times. 

As the elevator contemplated whether to obey the request or not a thick platform shoe appeared between the elevator doors making it open once again. The monster stepped into the contraption and Rona scooted closer to the corner as if she was trying to sink into the walls. Dana glanced at the already pressed floor and let the elevator doors close in front of her. 

she’s on my floor. Rona thought, glaring at the back of the head of the monster diagonally in front of her. 

Scopaesthesia — the sense of being stared at — was tingling on the back of Dana’s neck. She looked back at Rona, her red contacts making the girl in question gasp and look away in fear. A smirk appeared on Dana‘s matching red lips, adding the other on her mental list of idiots that feared anything unfamiliar or different. She blew a bubble with her gum and popped it with a loud sound that made the already tense Rona jump too. 

When the elevator reached their floor and dinged, Dana walked out first. Making her way down the hall to her room.

Please don’t be my roommate. 
Please don’t be my roommate. 
Please don’t be my roommate. 

Rona pleaded in her head as she followed behind Dana, wondering when the girl would make a turn or stop in front of a different door but instead she stopped right at Rona’s room door.

“Aish,” she mumbled to herself, stopping in her tracks in disbelief. Dana looked her way again causing her to immediately look elsewhere.

“Is this your room too? I guess we’re roommate then,” Dana said before going in. Rona squeezed her eyes shut like that would help her wake up from the dream. But when she opened her eyes again she was still standing in the same place. She sighed, accepting her fate and entered the room where her roommate was putting what appeared to be rocks on her desk.

Rona couldn’t help but stare, trying to peak at what Dana was doing just incase. “They’re my crystals. I use it to cast spells and keep evil spirits away.” Scopaesthesia hit once again, she didn’t need to look to know she was being watched as she set up her crystal collection. 

“Do you have any dead relatives you want to contact?” Dana asked. 

She pulled out a candle, lit it up with the lighter from her pocket and turned to face Rona who was gripping into her bed for dear life. Her eyebrows furrowed and she gulped as Dana slowly stepped closer to her. 

H-how did she-

“Oh my god you !” Someone screamed from outside, both girls looked towards the doorway and Dana screamed back. Rona watched in confusion as the two girls embraced each other like they haven’t seen each other in years after clearly cursing each other out. 

“Nana what are you doing here? I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me when I saw you downstairs, why didn’t you tell me you were coming??” the shorter blonde girl said, smacking Dana on the arm for keeping something from her own best friend. 

“I told you I had a surprise for you.”

“Yeah but I thought it was a new tarot deck or something not you! Ugh I’m so happy!!” Haerim hugged her friend again.

Rona just stood there awkwardly watching the whole reunion unfold. She made eye contact with Haerim who broke the hug after doing so. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you there. You must be Dana’s roommate, I’m Ha Haerim, your RA.”

Didn’t see me? Rona already hated how she diminished under the presence of Dana. 

“Kim Rona,” she introduced herself softly, bowing slightly at the short blonde that was in charge of the floor. 

“Oh so that’s your name. I was just telling her about about my ability to get rid of evil spirits,” Dana gave Haerim a familiar look that made her chuckle. 

“Ahhh yes, the infamous ghostbuster Dana. She’s the girl to go to for all your exorcism needs. I just do the fortune telling stuff, if you need a reading or some guidance don’t be afraid to knock on my door. Come Nana, let me show you my room,” Haerim said, forgetting her duties as an RA and instead basking in the happiness from her friends’ arrival, dragging Dana out the door. 

Rona stood there more confused than ever. Just her luck to be stuck with a weirdo for a roommate and a psycho for an RA. She thought about complaining, telling whoever was in charge that her roommate talked to demons on her spare time and her RA was too insane for the job. But instead she took a deep breath, reminding herself that this was her chance to start anew. Anything was better than being at home, even if it meant living with a witch. 

Katrina was hit with a reality check as soon as she stepped foot into Jeju. Of course she knew Korea was a homogeneous country before she came here but it doesn't quite dawn on you that you stick out like a sore thumb until you arrive and are constantly getting stared at. 

She knocked before unlocking her door to make sure no one was already inside. She sighed in relief that she was the first one to arrive, it gave her a chance to call back home. She plopped her bags on the floor and took out her phone, it was currently 10pm back home but the time difference didn’t stop her from clicking FaceTime. She looked out the window as it ringed, taking in the beautiful scenery that she would now call home for the next 4 years. 

“Kat sweetie! We were waiting for your call!” Her mom said as soon as she answered the phone. Katrina smiled seeing her parents looking back at her, their usual happy go lucky daughter was clearly not so happy right now. “What’s wrong pumpkin?” Her father asked. 

“Nothing, just a bit tired from the flight I guess. Look at my room!” Katrina didn’t want to worry her parents too much, they were already unsure about the move in the first place and the last thing she needed was an I told you so.  It wasn't that she was sad though, it was the realization that she was really there, away from everything she knew hitting her square in the face. But instead of going into detail she just showed her parents her room. The triple featured a bunk bed  across from a loft bed. There was a desk against the window between the two beds, another under the loft bed, and one on the other end of the bunk bed. Their drawers were towards the front of the room near their closets. Overall the room was quite roomy, though she wasn’t sure if the feeling would remain once all three of them were present. 

“Oooh get the loft!” Her dad cheered excitedly making her laugh. “Okay okay,” she grabbed her backpack and threw it on top of the loft bed as to claim it. 

“Awww I’m so happy for you Kat. I know you’ll do great there,” her mom gushed. 

“One step closer to meeting your TBS boys, that’s for sure,” her dad interjected with his usual comedic take. 

“It’s BTS honey, she likes that Sugar fellow,” her mom corrected. 

“Yeah yeah, just be careful. I know we can’t physically be there but we’re only one call away. No matter the time, okay?”

“Okay, thanks you guys. I’ll let you know if I meet Suga,” Katrina laughed, feeling a sense of relief and comfort at her fathers words. “I should unpack a bit before anyone gets here, I’ll call you later. Love you.”

Her parents said they loved her back in unison, waving as Katrina ended the call. She felt a bit better now after speaking to her parents, it reminded her just how much she wanted to be here in the first place. She left her family and friends behind just to unlock this dream of hers. She talked about it for months before and the only thing she should be feeling now was ecstatic. 

“One step closer to be BTS,” the Army said out loud to herself as if to pump herself up as she started unpacking. 

The door opened in front of her and in came a black haired girl admiring the spacious room before her. 

“Hi,” Katrina stood up and bowed a bit, leaving her suitcase opened in the center of the room. 

“Oh hi!” The girl was cheerful to much of Katrina’s delight. “I’m Kim Minjeong, it’s nice to meet you,” she continued in English. 

“Katrina, it’s nice to meet you too.”

As someone that aced english in highschool and dreamed of studying in the states one day, Minjeong was happy to see the foreigner in front of her. It was the perfect time to flex her English and see if she sounded fluent enough to survive abroad. But instead she fell silent, the pressure of the situation making her question her grammar despite getting the highest grade in her school.

“Tadaaaah! This is my room!” The door busted open showing a tan girl with short dark brown hair and pink peekaboo highlights holding her phone like she was vlogging.

"Oop it seems that i've arrived last." She shuffled over to her roommates and shoved her phone in their faces getting a close up. "Who are you and what's your major?" She asked in Korean, shoving the camera in Katrina's face first.

"I'm Katrina and my major is computer science."

"Oooh we got a smart one," June commented in Thai before switching languages again. "And you?"

"My name is Kim Minjeong and my major is journalism and public relations."

"Are you from Korea?"

"Yes, I was born and raised in Busan."

June gasped and turned the camera to herself, "did you hear that? I have a Korean roommate!" She squealed in excitement speaking Thai once again. June had a fantasy she wanted to live out in Korea and that all started with a Korean roommate. Not only would she be a free tour guide but also help her dive deeper into the culture and society. 

“My name is June and I’m a fashion major, I made this outfit myself actually. Oh! I forgot to do a fit check, here hold this,” June gave Katrina her phone and moved back so she could film her whole body, twirling and lifting her leg at the end. 

She wore an upcycled denim skirt with the bottom half being composed of pieces of pastel flannel shirts while her halter top was made completely out of ties. It was a lot of colors but somehow came together nicely.

June took the phone back and hugged the two girls close filming all three of them together. “Rooomieeeessss!!” 

Once her phone was put away, June seemingly calmed down. "Thanks for being in my vlog, I'll do a room tour after we spice it up a bit if thats okay with you guys." Before the others could respond she pointed at the bunk bed and screamed, “I CALL TOP BUNK!” then threw her phone up there and climbed the ladder. With only an older brother June never lived the bunk bed life and she wasn’t about to lose the opportunity, even if it meant racing up a ladder like a crazy woman while her roommates watched her in awe. Katrina often saw videos about the beagle line in Kpop groups or golden retriever energy but never experienced someone like that in person before, at least not to this extent.   

"Hey Katrina, why did you choose to study here?" June asked as she leaned against the railing of the top bunk. Katrina didn't think she'd be asked so early but it wasn't something she was ashamed of either way. 

"Because I love the culture. Actually I'm pretty sure I'm the oldest one here, I was born in 2001."

"Really? You look so young," Minjeong said as if there was a ten year between the two.

"Thanks?" 

"But why? Did you get left back?" June gasped, "did you go to jail?" 

Katrina couldn't help but laugh at the outlandish assumptions, "no, I got my associates in science first and saved up to come here. It’s always been my dream to study in South Korea so I decided to make it come true."

"Aww that's so wholesome~ WAIT GUYS I HAVE AN IMPORTANT QUESTION!” June yelled the last part, her third outburst in under 10 minutes. At some point in the conversation June climbed down the later but Katrina totally missed it. “Do you guys like Kpop?” 

“Of course! I’m an Army,” Katrina said first causing June to gasp dramatically and step closer to Minjeong. “I have entered enemy territory-” She squinted and playfully put her hands up in a fighting stance. “I’m an EXO-L.”

Minjeong looked back and forth between the both of them, totally oblivious to the drama that was unfolding. “What happened between Army’s and EXO-L’s?” Despite being the only Korean in the room, she was also the only one who didn’t keep up with fandom drama.

“BTS stole EXO’s daesang and claimed to pave the way for kpop when EXO are the true kings of Kpop.” June remained in her fighting stance and squint, though nothing was intimidating about the girl. 

Katrina chuckled, “I mean BTS are the ones who got invited to speak at the United Nations and nominated for multiple Grammy’s. Thanks to them other groups are big in the states now too.” Though Katrina was a big fan of BTS, having at least one version of each of their albums back home and even bringing some merch to decorate her side of the room, she didn’t participate in the petty drama. Instead just tried to support the boys and enjoy whatever crumbs she could get. But June on the other hand, was fully immersed in it. 

“Yeah but that was supposed to be EXO if SM didn’t and BTS didn’t steal their awards. EXO was a million seller first anyways, they paved the way.” June crossed her arms with a frown that only made her look cuter than before. To her, no one could surpass EXO and facts didn’t matter. 

Minjeong could no longer hold back her laughter, “if they’re both famous does any of that stuff really matter?” 

“Yes! It matters when Army’s are constantly hating on EXO for no reason!” June whined like a child tattling on their sibling. 

“Don’t EXO-L’s do the same thing though?” Katrina responded calmly, she found the whole thing amusing actually. She never met someone so passionate about something they had no control over. 

“I have a solution,” Minjeong piped up. “How about we stop talking about this fanwar stuff, shake hands, have a good year and listen to Lim Young Woong instead.”

“Hey isn’t that the guy that came out of nowhere and keeps getting 1st?” 

“Yeah his fans are insane, I usually don’t vote but even I heard about the struggle Army’s faced going against his fans.”

"Right?! those ahjummas are crazy. Well ahjummas and Minjeong apparently," June joked making Katrina laugh as well. Though they were apart of rival fandoms, talking about the struggles of Lim Young Woong’s reign was something that brought them together. But little did June know that one of her future best friends would be an... Army.

DUN DUN DUNNNN!

The sound of the key unlocking the door was like music to Jisoo’s ears. Driving two hours from Seogwipo was already tiring in itself, but pairing it with barely any sleep the night before and a move-in time of 9am, Jisoo was exhausted to say the least. The first thing she did was plop on her bed, and close her eyes, a ten minute power nap was all that she asked. Her aching calves were begging for rest as well but right before she could enter dreamland she got kicked right back onto earth by the ringing of her phone. 

“Hello?” She answered, without even needing to look at the caller ID she knew who it was. “Did you arrive yet?” Her grandma asked.

“Yes, I just did,” Jisoo’s eyes were still closed as she talked. Her grandmother said she’d call her at 9 and with how she was more excited than Jisoo for her to start college, she only assumed that it was 9 on the dot.

“Did you eat?” 

“Not yet.”

“Is your roommate there yet? Can you show me your room? How do I do this again… aish… Jiwoon-ah!” Jisoo couldn’t help but chuckle at her grandma struggling to figure out how to videochat. All she heard was the bickering between her and her little brother and she could imagine the scene playing out in front of her. 

“Oh absolutely not,” an anonymous voice said. 

She looked towards the door and saw a girl standing in the doorway. Her skirt was long enough to just cover her and her hot pink Versace platform pumps made her look like she was an expensive Barbie doll that Jisoo could never afford, not that she wanted to anyways.

“Grandma I’ll call you back, my roommate is here. I love you,” she said as she stood up to greet the girl.

“Umm I think you have the wrong room. My father made sure I got a single,” the girl said, still standing in the doorway as if coming inside and placing her shoes next to Jisoo’s used Converse would contaminate them. 

“Well my key worked so I’m pretty sure this is my room.” 

Just my ing luck. Jisoo thought. The last thing Jisoo wanted to deal with was an entitled brat, she was already exhausted and her people tolerance was down to zero to none as shown in the slight glare at the stranger. 

“Excuse me? I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to have a single but this woman hijacked my room before I got here.” 

Jisoo couldn’t see who she was talking to until a short blonde haired girl poked her head inside. “Oh this is definitely a double sweetie. There’s only one single on every floor, you can go ask the girl who got it if she’d be down to switch or talk to Ms. Kim downstairs. But other than that there’s nothing I can do. By the way, since I’m here.” Haerim stepped into view, Jisoo would’ve thought she was a freshman if she didn’t have the RA name tag on. She was cute and fun sized, though the tattoos definitely showed that there was a more wild side to her. 

“My name is Ha Haerim, I’ll be your RA for the year. There’s some room document thing that you have the sign in the lounge. Other than that this place is pretty much free reign. We’ll have an ice breaker slash mixer to get to know each other later if you’re interested. What are your names by the way?” 

“Jisoo.”

The other standing besides Haerim was busy texting on her phone as the two girls stared at her, her long nails making a clicking sound that was slowly but surely getting on Jisoo’s nerves. “I’m Reikio,” she said after a while still not looking up from her phone, instead typed faster making Jisoo and Haerim glance at each other. 

“Okaaaay well I hope you guys have an amazing year, if you ever need me for anything just knock on my door.” Haerim gave Jisoo a sympathetic glance before leaving. 

“Nice to meet you too,” Jisoo mumbled to herself as she sat down on her bed. 

“Excuse me?” Reikio finally looked up from her phone, still refusing to enter the room. Maybe if she didn’t step in her fate would change, Haerim would come running back to tell her that there was a room mixup and she was actually assigned the single. 

“If it makes you feel better I’ll probably barely be here and I plan on going home on the weekends anyways. As long as you keep this place clean and don’t touch my things we should be good.” Jisoo’s voice was monotonous. Her patience clearly ran out and now it was her who didn’t look up from her phone. 

“Are you implying that I look messy?” Reikio placed her hands on her hips, offense taken regardless if it was given or not. 

Jisoo shrugged making Reikio’s jaw drop as if she’d just received the worst curse of all. In only a few seconds her phone was to her ear and she was pacing back and forth as she waited for an answer. It wasn’t long before Reikio was speaking in Japanese. 

“Can you call the school and sort this out? They gave me a double instead of a single. I want a single!” The raising of her voice even startled Jisoo though she still refused to look up and give her any sort of attention.

On the other end of the phone was her brother Yuta who sighed. “Calm down Rei, this could be good for you. It’s hard to get a single there. Just try to get to know your roommate, you might learn a thing or two from them-“ 

Click. 

Reikio hung up the phone and glared at Jisoo who was now laying on her bed like before with her headphones in her ears. 

Reikio let out a aggravated grunt, pushing the dolly and anyone who dared to get too close to her out the way as she stomped her way to the only single room on the floor. Before she could reach to open the door of the room that should’ve been hers, it opened on its own to show another well put together individual standing across from her. Taken aback by the stranger that was about to burst into her room Hinako squealed stepping back in the process.  

All the anger in Reikio subsided, not just because she found someone just as fashionable as herself but she looked familiar. “Wait.. do I know you?”

Hinako stretched as soon as she stepped out of the taxi, the long flight making her bones crack a few times. The scene in front of her was chaotic, every volunteer to preoccupied helping another student or talking to a parent.  She removed the cherry lollipop from her lips as she scanned the crowd, clicking her red tinted tongue once she found a target. She pointed her finger at a male walking her way, “you.” 

“Me?” The guy pointed at himself then looked back to make sure he was correct. He didn’t have the volunteer shirt on but Hinako didn’t care, she needed someone to carry her bag and it sure as hell wouldn’t be her. 

“Yeah you, can you carry my stuff? You see, I injured my wrist recently so it’s too hard for me to carry everything and everyone else looks so busy,” Hinako lied. Her wrist was perfectly fine, she was more curious to see if Korean guys were as chivalrous as they seemed in the dramas. She mentally praised her acting skills because he helped her with no hesitation, though now she wondered if he was either chivalrous, naive or just stupid. But was there really a difference? 

She glanced up at the taller male as they walked, him carrying all her bags as she remained empty handed beside him.

“Are you a freshman too?” 

“Yeah, I just got here actually, I didn’t know I had to get my key first though so I was headed to the student center too.” 

“Did you expect your roommate to be there already?”

“No, I got a single. I just wasn’t thinking I guess.” 

Good to know. Hinako thought. “Me too, it seems like we both got lucky,” she smiled up at him. 

“Yeah! I was surprised when I learned I got it, I thought they’d definitely give it to a Korean person.”

Hinako blinked. “Are you not Korean?” 

“No I’m actually Chinese,” he confessed. 

Well there goes my experiment. She thought. To say that she liked what she was seeing was an understatement. He was tall and seemingly good looking, his dark brown hair was short and swept to the side while his fashion style was simple yet well put together. The only thing she couldn’t see was his eyes due to his sunglasses. 

“I like your glasses, Dita is truly a work of art,” she complimented, taking note of the rare brand he was wearing. 

Expensive. She thought. Not bad. 

“Thank you, I’m surprised you know Dita, most people have no idea what that is,” he chuckled.

“I guess you’ve been hanging around the wrong people then. Can I try them on?” 

He nodded in response and stopped to stoop down and let her take the glasses off his face to place them on her own. She wasn’t lying when she said she liked the glasses, she did love the brand. But it was his face that she was interested in seeing. Everything was good so far, she just needed to see his eyes to know if he was up to par or not. She gently removed his glasses and was surprised to see a monolid baby face looking back at her. It wasn’t what she expected but he was cute. 

She put the glasses on herself and looked at him, “what do you think?” 

“It looks cute on you.” She smiled knowing that the feeling was mutual. 

When they got to the Student Center they separated for a bit, both filling out the necessary paperwork and getting their room keys. Once they finished they reconnected and made their way to Chungsam Hall. They chatted the whole way, talked about almost everything from their majors to their hometowns. Hinako took on more of a listening role than him. He was easy to talk to, had a way of making you feel comfortable which she liked. But it was clear as day who was more of an open book. She didn’t mind that out of a sea of Koreans she somehow picked a foreigner, though she did have to try her experiment another time on someone else. 

When they reached her room she went in first sitting on her bed like a princess while she watched the male bring in her bags for her. She wasn’t even on campus for an hour and she already had a guy in her room. This had to be some kind of record. Her bed was on the right nestled in the corner end of the room next to the window. Across from it was her desk and near the door was her drawer and closet. It was smaller than she thought but she already had an idea of how she wanted to spice it up.

“There you go,” he grunted once he put the last bag down. 

“Wait, what’s that?” Hinako pointed making him looked behind him. She chuckled and made her way to the other, grabbing his wrist and caressing the triangle tattoo on it with her thumb. 

“Oh this old thing, my friends dared me to get one. I think it came out pretty good.” He didn’t look at her this time, his eyes were locked on his tattoo, but she could see a faint rosey tint appear on his cheeks. Hinako acted blind to the reaction though. 

“Just because your friends dared you, you actually did it?” 

“Of course! I never refuse a dare.” 

“Liar,” Hinako teased and sat back on her bed, lifting the sunglasses to rest on the top of her head instead. 

“I’m not lying! You can dare me anything right now and I’ll do it.”

Hinako shrugged, “maybe later, but when I dare you, you better do it or I’ll tell everyone that you’re a liar.”

“Alright bet,” he smirked a bit, probably excited that he’d see her again for sure. Hinako’s redecorating included moving furniture around and she could use the free extra labor. But she didn’t want to keep him lingering there and feed into the delusion that he was actually important to her. 

“Now go, I have to unpack and so do you,” Hinako stood up and placed the glasses back on his eyes. “Thank you for the help.”

“You’re welcome,” he smiled greasily and Hinako rolled her eyes. She turned him around and guided him out the door closing it once he was out of the way, practically kicking the boy out. She leaned her back against the door and grinned a bit. Oh how she loved to tease a man then leave him completely empty handed. She barely knew him yet that only made her more excited to see him again. 

But what was his name? She cursed under her breath at the realization and opened her door to see if he was still out there. Instead standing in her way was another girl who almost scared her half to death. She tilted her head at Hinako who was unsure if she was a threat or just high on something. 

“Wait.. do I know you?” She suddenly asked. Hinako’s breath hitched, her stomach turned upside down but on the outside she only gave an innocent look of confusion. “I don’t think so, but I love your outfit though where did you get it?” 

She changed the subject hoping the girl would forget what she was currently thinking and it helped, they enthused about fashion together to much of Hinako’s relief. Both girls were probably the best dressed in the building, each Barbie dolls in their own right. While the other was talking she managed to look down the hallway but she no longer saw the tall boy. She didn’t mind though, she knew she’d see him again, and she knew she’d have to keep this girl close just incase.