(an excerpt from The Lunch Box)

I

If the girl had been more careful she would probably be standing without injuries right now, unharmed, as she walked home. But given the circumstance that she had tripped herself on her way to her house, or maybe not trip, really—she happened to have stepped on a stone that was along the road and hurt herself. Presently she walked while fighting down the urge to cuss, while trying her best not to seem so injured while she marched. She did good in looking in the best shape but still, the pain could not be concealed within her.

The first thing she remembered as soon as her hand landed on the knob of her house’s door was what had taken place during school. The principal had this preposterous idea. On the whole it was not how and what an adult would think of, but reexamining how she felt toward it, it was just plain stupid. Exciting, but stupid. Intriguing, but still stupid. Haply if the principal had been far wiser than he is now she would not have to stick her neck out stressing on what to do about this.

And the fact that someone had come today did not exactly make her feel much better. The girl was puzzled why she had to brood over the issue when in fact she should pay it with the attention given to a white crayon. Pondering about this issue, she came to the resolution to ask her very close friend, Sungjae, about this on the morrow.

“Bo Mi-ya,” every syllable sounded calm but just as cheerful as the face it was announced with, as the girl named Bo Mi turned her head to one direction to see an emerging form of her brother from the kitchen.

“Oppa,” she said, a little more happily more than what was actually premeditated, given the degree of her mood right now, but the girl just felt a little sizzle of energy run across the room as she went to hug her brother. “You’re home early!”

“Well I am. I really didn’t have a reason to stay at school,” her brother, Minhyuk, did a chuckle, with a spatula in one hand and an apron around his torso.

The girl named Bo Mi looked at him askance. Finally she reached the conclusion, “Hmph, I translate that as, ‘my girlfriend and I had a fight’.”

“What? No!” the oppa exclaimed, though a certain vestige of guilt could actually be traced in his voice. He harrumphed and walked back to the kitchen, making his dongsaeng follow him. “Come on and taste what I cooked,” he invited, and the girl obediently did as he said.

“This tastes amazing!” the girl exclaimed, tasting her tongue a little more. “By the way oppa, when is Changsub-oppa coming?”

The other shrugged. “Dinner-time, maybe. Oh we know him,”

And as indeed stated, Lee Bo Mi’s other brother, the second eldest among the three, arrived home at a late hour. Meanwhile while waiting, the two plainly played games and had fun, as they usually did at these hours. Once Minhyuk asked Bo Mi how was school, and the dongsaeng answered it was fine and told him about the principal’s weird idea that involved lunch boxes and emotional support, but sans the arrival of someone today. Minhyuk was somehow charmed by the first idea that he actually motivated his sister to take part in it. He merely got a grimace for a reply, but Bo Mi couldn’t deny that even if she disliked the principal’s idea she had no choice but to join in anyway; it was compulsory.

The next day, something she hadn’t really expected happened. It was a free hour while she was walking across the school grounds, looking for her closest friend that went by the name of Yook Sungjae. It took her an awful hour to look for him, but in the midst of  her search she met someone that rather charmed her.

Lee Bo Mi was in the library. One would say she was pretty desperate—she was literally searching all corners of the campus just to look for her best friend. But then getting distracted as she walked across the shelves and shelves of books, she happened to see the book she had been looking for half of her life and, enchanted immediately, she forgot her goal of a search. Picking up the book she headed straight to the table with least people, and there. Voila. There’s a table with only one guy seated. As she approached, though, she felt a little uneasy, seeing who that person was. Maybe sharing a table with him would be awkward. No, she told herself, focusing her attention on the book. You’re going to read this.

Upon reaching the table she placed the book on its surface with quite a dramatic slap, emitting only very minimal decibels of sound. However, the person who also happened to be sharing the table noticed this, and looked up. With surprised eyes, he eyed her.

Lee Bo Mi was never the socially awkward penguin. Though this time, she really wanted to be one. But her natural instinct to be friendly took over, and, placing both hands on the surface of the table she stooped down a little and greeted, with her eyes smiling along with , “Hello.”

“Hello.” The guy answered, managing a smile.

The girl seated herself and, drawing the chair in to press herself against the table, she held out her hand to properly introduce, “My name’s Lee Bo Mi.”

The guy looked at her hand as if it were some foreign object. But being offered the formality he decided to go along with it. He took her hand and shook it, along with the line, “Peniel Shin.”

***

성재: Maybe if Se Na hadn’t been chosen for the lead female role it could either be she’s teaching me in a Spartan manner on how to deliver my lines well, or she’s terrorizing me by criticizing how terribly I do acting when in my sight I do it pretty well. On my scale, at least. Both of those options are just equally dire, and now that she’s a fellow co-star, I don’t know whether I should be happy or feel awful.

Nah, of course I’m happy. Wherever Se Na is I am happy at the same time.

It had blasted off, finally. Our very first drama series, even if it’s just a mini one, has finally started its filming and now is on the roll. Everyone is doing such a great job I get so motivated to do my best also. Especially from what I had seen just a week ago…

It was my first time seeing Se Na with clearer eyes in that light. During the finals of the audition I secretly watched her (but she discovered me at the end of it nonetheless) and on that moment, I think a part of me stirred, though I don’t know which and how it was exactly, but Se Na—that day, she was the most imperfect and in contrary also the most perfect person I have ever laid my eyes on. That acting, that face. Like there was something about her that rather intrigued me. Kind of ironic since I know right about 98 percent of her being. That feeling rather disturbed me at first, but…I can say I much have killed whatever that discomfort was. But maybe. Just maybe.

“Your pretty friend’s here,” Eunkwang-hyung remarks with a nudge as he passes by, which wakes me up from my little reverie. I blink, and I don’t know what I should say.

Se Na walks to me and frowns. Like usually. “I didn’t picture Lee Bo Mi like this,” she remarks, pressing the glasses closer to her eyes with a hand.

“What’s happened to you…?” I blurt out, dumbstruck at her sudden make-over.

She lightly kicks me in the shin. “Ya, don’t look at me like that! It’s not my fault this is how they wanted Lee Bo Mi to look like!” she yells, and even with the slight motion of her head the curls at the end of her locks bob furiously. She looks like a doll. A doll with red hair. Or reddish-brown. Whatever.

“Alright, alright!” I hold my palms out, and motion her to sit, tapping the space beside me. When she’s seated I get a tress and remark, “Suits you well, Lee Bo Mi,”

She flattens her eyes. “Thank you. But Pyo Se Na doesn’t seem to like this,” then I find her looking at the ground suddenly looking pale, and, as if automatically, her hand lands on her chest as she pants furiously.

“W-what’s wrong?”

She just shakes her head, but she’s gritting her teeth. “I’m okay. I’m okay, really.”

“Se Na!” I exclaim. “Sit up straight!” I place my hand on her back and correct her slouching pose.

Her chest heaves up and down several times and after an agonizing moment, she ends her sort of suffer with a sigh. Her eyes are still a little narrowed but she assures me she’s alright.

“What was that?”

Se Na shakes her head. “My chest hurt a bit…I…I woke up on a wrong position on bed this morning,” her eye closes and opens.

“Are you okay now?”

“Yes, yes. Thanks,” she answers, decided to end the topic already. “By the way have you memorized your lines yet?”

I nod twice.

“Alright, break time’s over! Everyone! Gather here please!” A PD announces, loudly, and from where we are we could see her motioning all the production crew to come to her and really quickly, the cameras assemble. She calls on the following actors needed for the scene which includes Se Na and my hyung.

“Let’s go,” my best friend says, standing up first and go to the part of the library (this is our current scene-location now) where the scene is going to be filmed. Since I’m not part of the scene I just resolve to sit down along with my other hyungs, going to watch.

When the lights and camera are all fixed the actress is ready to do her scene. Se Na places herself in between the shelves.

“Scene 6, take three. Lights, camera, action!” there’s a very loud click heard across the area and we all fall silent as Se Na does her scene. Looking at her, it makes me wonder if she even knows nervousness. She does it oh so naturally, like, being Lee Bo Mi doesn’t burden her that much. Come to think of it, I’ve read the story myself, and Lee Bo Mi resembles precisely Se Na. Maybe Lee Bo Mi’s character design may be a tad livelier by a decimal percent compared to Se Na, but Bo Mi and Se Na just seem so…alike in character.

I continue to observe with this thought in mind. Se Na acts to look around the bookshelf as if searching for something, and those graceful movements of hers, like the movement of her body, the tilting of her head makes her do the role so much more effective. After quite some search she draws out a book from the shelf with a  surprised, yet happy expression, and looks for a table to sit on. Seeing a table with only one occupant, she walks towards it but fairly halts after a few feet.

The look on her face is so convincing, I’m starting to think the awkwardness that manifests itself on her face really does have a foundation, judging who the person at the table is. Se Na does this little shake of the head and strides confidently to the table.

The book lands on the table’s surface with a convincing slap, and we all watch in thrill as we want to see how this would go. How Se Na would do this. How Peniel-hyung would do this. The cameras slowly move around them to get a perfect angle.

“Hello,” Se Na, or Bo Mi as of the moment, leans down a little on to hyung with that greeting, both her hands on the table.

“Hello.” Hyung replies.

Bo Mi makes herself comfortable by sitting and holds out her hand to hyung. “My name’s Lee Bo Mi.”

Just as how it was described in the story, the two comply accurately. Everything that the author wrote is now coming to life. I wish I could tell whoever the author is right now that everyone is doing such a great job. “Peniel Shin.” Hyung replies to her, shaking her hand after a moment of hesitation.

 “Aaand cut!” there’s another click across the air and the director remarks, “Good job!”

The two main characters of the scene heave a relieved sigh. They congratulate each other for a job well done, almost to the point of flattery. By the way they speak to each other; I smile at the idea that the two are closer than they were before. They really are friends now, that it makes me quite sure that this chemistry is going to bloom into another form someday. Maybe that someday wouldn’t be that so far, either.

It becomes an altogether tiring day after all the filming. Before we all go home we drive to the company first to unwind even just a little. While the others are busy playing, we plainly observe.

Hyunsik-hyung and Changsub-hyung are so focused on what they’re playing it’s like it’s tournament for them and while we watch, with Se Na sitting between me and Donggeun-hyung, my best friend whispers something to her other seatmate.

“Are you guys really even busy?” she queries.

Hyung answers. “We do get busy, of course. Especially when there are promotions and all…”

Se Na bobs her head thrice. “It’s just that you guys seem to be so…­laid-back,”

“We do?”

“Hm-mm,”

After that brief conversation she taps me on the knee. “Jae, I’ll be going,”

“You want me to go with you?”

She shakes her head. “It’s alright; maybe next time. I’ll be subjected to more chitchatting if you take me home,” she laughs, and stands up.

“Can I go with you?” Donggeun-hyung throws the question, and I would not have been surprised if Se Na said yes, and that would have made me a little jealous but come on—he's her crush so that’s all forgivable.

Surprisingly, she declines. “I’ll be alright, really.” And then I catch her mumbling something which is fairly audible. “Tomorrow’s the chapter deadline…” she leans down a little to kiss me on the cheek and bids, “I’ll be going; annyeong,” and what Donggeun-hyung gets is a mere hand-wave.

“You’re leaving, Se Na-ssi?” Leader-hyung asks, in a high pitch.

“Yeah, bye,”

“Sweetie, say goodbye to us before you leave!” Minhyuk-hyung. Really. He’s really fond of her. He motions her to come to him and, when his dongsaeng is within an arm’s reach he engulfs her in a hug. “Bye, bye, take care, alright,” and practically squeezes the breath out of my friend.

“Bye, Se Na-ssi!”

“Bye!!!”

Hyunsik-hyung and Changsub-hyung say, not letting their eyes off the monitor while steering the controller in different directions.

“And you,” Se Na laughs when she almost forgets Ilhoon-hyung. “Bye-bye, Hoonie-oppa,” and they do a bro fist. We all prevent the urge to squeal while watching this. Ilhoon-hyung has a crush on her, remember?

“Bye-bye. Take care on your way home,”

“Sure,” Se Na opens the door and gives us a final wave, and as the glass door closes I find myself looking at Donggeun-hyung.

He has this dreamy expression on his face while his hand’s slightly raised up as if the remnant of a wave is there, and his smile is so tender, so friendly—cute, even, that my eyes widen in a certain discovery. I could be wrong, but I’m already too sure.

“Sungjae, your mouth’s open,” my seatmate says, and I blink, and close my mouth. He continues to observe the other hyungs playing.

I really want to squeal like a girl right now or should I tell Se Na? Which one should I do first? Because the idea makes me really giddy, really excited and I don’t even know why. Maybe because I’m seeing my best friend’s love story unfold before my very eyes.

Peniel-hyung has a crush on her, too.