Chapter 5: The Witch of YoungHwa

                As they pulled up to the University, Kate stared up in awe at the behemoth of a building standing before her. The marble face of the building glistened in the early morning sunlight. They had been driving for about forty minutes to get from Incheon to Bucheon, and they had finally made it. Exhausted and jetlagged, they grabbed their suitcases from the trunk and headed towards the entrance.

                As they climbed the stairs, they were greeted by a young woman, no older than 22 it seemed, her hair was tightly pulled back into a neat bun, hands folded in front of her.

                “Anneyonghaseyo! Chonun Yang Nisa imnida!” she extended her hand, and Kate shook it.

                “Anneyonghaseyo, Chonun Kate imnida.” She moved aside and ushered them into the building.

                “How was your trip here? Was it good?” she asked, her English seemed a bit rough, but understandable.

                “Yes, there was a little turbulence on the plane, but we made it!” Miranda and Veronica followed as Kate led them in following Nisa.

                “Here at YoungHwa University, we specialize in teaching our entire curriculum, in English,” she paused to clear , and then continued. “We have plenty of activities and organizations to make the students feel as if they are a part of YoungHwa, not just a warm body in a seat.” She came upon another building, this was an apartment-like complex made out of red bricks. “Here is the female dorm rooms, this is where you shall be staying during your education here at YoungHwa University.” She turned to them and smiled. “Enjoy your stay here in Korea at YoungHwa University, I will see you later!” she gave a quick bow, and left.

                “Well, that was cool.” Veronica said as she lifted her bags, the others followed suit and went up to the room assigned to them by the university. As they finished unpacking, Kate went over to the bay window and threw the curtains open. The skyline of Bucheon illuminated their living quarters. It was the most beautiful sight they had ever seen.

                “I’m going to leave this open ladies, that way when we wake up, Korea is there to greet us.” They began to change into their pajamas.

                “Goodnight, ladies!” Miranda called out as she turned off the lamp next to her bed.

                “Good night!” Veronica whispered as she snuggled under her covers.

                “ ‘Night everybody.” Kate whispered as she turned over, and fell asleep.

                As the days passed by, Kate, Veronica and Miranda got into the groove of things around campus. They began to find their way around the campus and classes. One day, they were walking around the lake next to the campus when a girl knocked into Kate.

                “Excuse me.” Kate tried to apologize, but the girl whipped her head around and glared at her.

                “Who the hell do you think you are?” she walked right up to Kate and got in her face. “You think you’re the or something? You think you can just shove me around? Do you even know who I am?” Kate backed up and waved her hand in her face.

                “Okay, hold up girl, one, do NOT get in my face.  Two, no I don’t know you, nor do I wish to know a conceited person like you.”  She took her finger and poked the girl in her chest as she spoke. “It was an accident, build a bridge and get over it, honey.” The girl looked extremely offended, turned around, and stomped off.

                “Geeze, she was rude,” Miranda commented as she shifted her backpack onto her other shoulder.

                “Tell me about it, who freaks out like that over an accident?” Veronica rolled her eyes as they headed back to their dorm. They put down their things and stretched out onto their respective beds.

                “Whoo! I’m pooped!” exclaimed Kate, as she kicked off her shoes and turned over.

                “Yeah, who knew English class could be so hard?” asked Miranda as she took out her ponytail and fluffed her hair.

                “When was it ever easy?” Veronica chuckled. Kate looked at her schedule and gasped.

                “Aw nuggets! I forgot some stuff! I’m going to head out, we need some groceries, and I need more socks.”

                “Where to all your socks go, Kate?” asked Miranda, propping herself on her elbows.

               
                “Vengeful dust bunnies, I assume.” Kate answered with a smirk. She grabbed her house key and headed out. On her way out of the building, she met up with the girl again. This time though, she was much more civil. She cocked her head, and grimaced.

                “Hello again.” She said through clenched teeth.

                “Hello.” Kate was about to walk away when she heard her clear .

                “My name is Kim Gaeyon.” She stated. Kate acknowledged this by nodding her head, but Gaeyon wasn’t finished. “I am not to be dealt with lightly, cross me again, and you’ll pay dearly.”

                “I’ll keep that in mind.” Kate walked away and out of the building. “Jeeze, what a .” She whispered to herself as she was waiting for the bus. Once the bus came, she passed her card over the scanner, and sat down in the nearest seat.  As they approached her destination, she gathered her things and got off.

                At the grocery store, she bought eggs, milk and socks. Lots and lots of socks.” As she exited the store, she saw a park nearby. It was quite dark, but there was a little café nearby, and she wanted to have a look see. As she approached the café in the darkness, a stranger in a long coat wearing a fedora bumped into her, causing her to drop her wallet.

                “Oh, goodness!” she cried, as she reached down to pick it up, she dropped her socks.

                “Whoa! What is with all the socks?” the stranger asked as he helped her pick them up.

                “I seem to keep losing mine, so I figured I would buy some more.”

                “How is that going to stop you from losing these ones?” he asked as he handed her the wallet.

                “It’s not, these are just back up.” She said cheerfully as she turned to thank him. “Geumsumnida.”

                “It was no trouble at all. Where are you headed?” he asked.  She pointed to the café.

                “Just over there.” She turned to see a faint smile play across his lips.

                “What a coincidence, that’s just where I was headed.” He signaled for her to follow him.

                ‘You’re really going to be this dumb, aren’t you?’ she asked herself, but something told her she could trust him. ‘He’s wearing a trench coat for goodness sake!’ ‘But,’ she tried to rationalize, ‘there are people in Trench coat club back home?’ ‘…that’s just weird.’ The conversation she was having with herself was getting more complicated by the second, so she just focused on what was happening outsider her head. He led to the door of the café, where he opened the door for her, as they both stepped in.

                It was very cozy inside, there were little square tables nestled throughout the shop, covered in checkered tablecloths. He went over to a table near the eastern wall, and beckoned her over. She followed as he pulled out the chair for her to sit in. he took his seat as a waiter came over.

                “What can I get for you?” he asked, holding his pen at the ready, as if to take their order that very moment.

                “I would like a chai tea please,” answered Kate. The waiter scribbled on his notepad and turned to the young man.

                “And you sir, what will you have?” he asked him. He took off his hat and shook his head, rearranging his hair.

                “I’ll take a cup of green tea, please,” he asked. The waiter bowed and walked away. Kate’s mouth stood agape for a moment before she realized what she was doing. She quickly closed , hoping he hadn’t seen. Kim Jonghyun of SHINee was sitting across the table from her.

                “So, um, what are you doing in a neighborhood like this?” she asked.

                “Oh, you know, just walking around, exploring. I haven’t really been here before, so I wanted to see the sights, and my curiosity led me here.” He smiled at her, and her heart began to melt.

                ‘Damn you woman!’ she thought to herself. ‘I thought you liked Jay Park?’ ‘But he’s not my bias in SHINee!’ she argued with herself. As they were chatting, Kate had the odd feeling that they were being watched, she had no idea how right she was.

END OF CHAPTER 5