10 years ago…

“Yuri!”

Yuri turned behind. “Who are you this little brat?” She smiled widely as she pat her head.

Sooyoung grinned widely. “Yoona and Seohyun want to bring us out today!”

“Those two little brats? Where?” Yuri was puzzled. “I don’t know, but something tells me they’re up to no good.” Sooyoung replied.

They started walking to the place the four had arranged to meet. “So unnie, how’s your father’s business recently? I heard things are going smoothly.” Sooyoung questioned out of curiosity. “Yes, things are going very smoothly. And I…”

They reached their usual meeting place --- Yoona’s father’s restaurant. “YURI! We’re here!” Sooyoung interrupted Yuri, not knowing what she was trying to say was important. She did not even think she was sassing Yuri at all.

Yuri smirked, and Sooyoung sensed the change of atmosphere nearly immediately. “Aw Yuri, don’t be angry…” Sooyoung pleaded her older friend with an obvious change of pitch in her voice. Yuri’s eyes narrow into slits. “Aww, don’t frown anymore!”

They entered the restaurant and sensed the weird atmosphere. “Where are all the customers?” Yuri asked the two young girls sitting by a table near the window. Yoona chuckled, “My parents are out, so I sent the customers away.” She nudged Yuri gently and she gave her an angelic smile. It was a rare act of her to do so, showing her doll-like features of her face. This captivated the heart of Yuri, and she titters, “You!”

“Please let us play together here today!” The 3 young girls’ voices echoed in unison, desperation lacing their words. “It would be a pity if we don’t have enough fun today!” Yuri was pushed to a corner but she acquiesced their request. The four friends ran into the kitchen hand in hand, each grinning like a Cheshire cat.

Right in front of their eyes was a packet of flour. Seohyun innocently looked at her older friends, expressing her wish to bake cookies. Her friends picked up the hint quickly and they started to work.

Flour, eggs, milk, nuts. They read off the list of what was written on the cookery book. Not caring anymore, they threw the ingredients into a mixing bowl they found lying around. And mixed. And mixed again. Then they made the product into small, flat circles like those of any other cookies. They put the mixed product into the oven, while they went out of the kitchen.

“So what will we do now?” Seohyun asked, she was indeed very eager to play. “How about we play twenty questions?” Yoona suggested. All the other girls nodded their heads earnestly.

“First, Yoona.”

Yuri grabbed the opportunity and asked, “Why did your parents go out without you?”

“I told them to go so that I could play with you all.” Yuri sneered, as she uttered to her. “Don’t joke!”

“I aren’t!” Yoona cried. “I AREN’T! I AREN’T ! I AREN’T” She reiterated that line so many times just to explain her situation. She had to, because she knew Yuri would tell her parents about her sending away customers. “Okay regain your calm,” Yuri paused her.

Just then, a sound was let out from the kitchen. “BEEP!” The cookies were ready. The girls went in to take a look as they carefully took out the tray and placed it on the kitchen table. “Wow! The aroma wafted up into my nostrils nearly instantly!” They exclaimed. Seohyun took a piece of cookie and slipped it into . Her face turned black. “What’s wrong?” She started coughing loudly. “There’s this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach like kangaroos kicking me ferociously!” She screamed. “What a description…” The girls tittered, and without thinking, they helped her by performing the Heimlich maneuver on her.  Miraculously though, she coughed out the cookie. “Wasn’t Heimlich maneuver for people choking? How come it still worked?” The girls awed in wonder. Seohyun screamed in an unnatural high pitched tone which diverted the girls’ concentration.

“OH GOSH! THIS COOKIE IS POISON!” The girls were astonished by Seohyun’s words. She was always a very gentle girl who never repined. Who knew she would blurt such words from . “No pun or connotation intended. I mean. In your first bite, it tastes so awful. And after that while it is digesting, it makes your stomach upset.” She explained the reason of her complain as she let out a sigh of relief. “So, it works for food poisoning as well…?” The girls let out a laugh. “Weird scenario, glad you’re okay.” They patted Seohyun’s back.

“Back to the game shall we?”

“Now,Yuri’s turn!”

Sooyoung finally enunciated. “Curiosity kills the cat, what was it you were trying to say earlier unnie?”

“Didn’t I say it already?” Yuri sighed, she thought her chance would be wasted.

“No you said and I; then I interrupted you. Remember?”

Yuri recalled it. Tears b down her cheeks. “I… am leaving this town tomorrow…” She dries her tears, and continued. “My father bought a new bungalow in another town… I’ll be transferring to a school there…” She couldn’t bring herself to continue any more, with more tears slowly wetting her beautiful face. Her younger friends were also beginning to tear up as they embraced each other tightly. “We’ll miss you sister.” They gave her a bracelet which they had made over the weekends secretly behind Yuri’s back. “We wanted to give you this on your birthday.” Their words barely audible due to the suffocating from crying. Yuri took the bracelet from them. “I will treasure this dearly.” She smiled to the other 3 younger girls as she went off alone in the sudden downpour towards her home. She waved her last goodbye with her hand breezily in the air to the skinny frames of the 3 other girls.

The next day…

Sooyoung, Yoona and Seohyun went to Yuri’s house hoping to be able to send her off. However, she was nowhere in their line of sight. They found a piece of paper near the entrance of her old apartment which was written for them.

“Dear Sooyoung, Yoona and Seohyun,

You girls are the sweetest lovelies I’ve met in my life. I am really sorry for not telling you first before leaving. Take care of yourself and eat more. Don’t be a midget when you grow up. I hope to meet you guys in the top college school in Korea. Study hard, girls.

Love,

Yuri”

Seohyun and Yoona embraced each other as they poured their hearts out. Their sobs were muffled against their shirts. Only Sooyoung was indifferent. She was not even bawling her eyes out for their best friend. She hated her. How could she leave us without a word? She does not regard her as a friend at all. In a pique of anger, she tore the letter. Seohyun and Yoona tried to stop her but they were too late. It was torn into thousands of pieces shattered all over the floor.

(Now)

It was the freshman year for Seohyun in this college. Sooyoung and Yoona were already in year 2. In most colleges, year 2 is graduation year. But for the college they were in, it was during year 4. The three girls often met up at their usual meeting place for gatherings. Their college was at the skirt of the town just near their usual meeting place. Today was one of their gathering dates.

“Sooyoung’s late again…” Seohyun sighed as she munched down at her spaghetti she ordered from the restaurant. Yoona gobbled down her piece of bread and told her, “Next time, we’ll stop waiting for her.”

“Who is that badmouthing me behind my backs?” She gave Yoona a clout on her back. Yoona instinctively yelps, as she bites her lip to repress the bunch of profanities that threaten to rumble out of her. “Hey! Don’t curse!” Sooyoung barked raucously. Yoona rolled her eyes and she emits a coarse, bitter laugh. “Seohyun will judge.”

Seohyun ingeniously replied, “I shan’t answer such a puerile question.” The girls chuckled, though the older girls felt ashamed of themselves in front of their younger friend who gained maturity and wisdom earlier than they had.

“How’s school for you?” Yoona questioned, as she reminisced the time during year 1 of college. “Provides a holistic education that allows me to be in touch with the dynamics and challenges of the real world.” Seohyun couldn’t care less, as she read out from student testimonials. “ ‘Profound’ indeed, lazy bum! Answer the question!” Sooyoung warns her as she wiggles her finger. It was the 12345678^th time that Sooyoung ever reprimanded Seohyun was lazy despite Seohyun being the most hardworking kid among the three. The whole idea of ‘the pot calling the kettle black’ made Yoona sneered at the two.

Beep! The clock read 4pm, and the girls began to take out their work and hit the books. 4pm was always the time when the girls studied and consulted each other of quiries during their gatherings. Only Seohyun took out her laptop and began punching random buttons. Her attention was fixed on the screen. Her two older friends stared at her wistfully, hoping she would just ignore the work to do and procrastinate with them. After all, that was what the two girls always did during their study sessions of the gatherings. In fact, the whole study session was Seohyun’s idea. “Sooyoung, you’re motto was ‘Let’s not procrastinate’!” Seohyun’s words rang in her eyes as if she heard it for the billionth time and finally decided to ‘give in’. “Oh well,” she muttered to herself. Yoona also began to take out her lecture notes on Waves. “Physics!” She repined as she cogitated what the notes had meant.

Sooyoung was pretty much blasé about studying during their gatherings. She hate the fact how studying in school was tiring enough. Yoona looked at her at last, being all frustrated from all the reading of her notes. “Sooyoung, would you lend me your notes?” pleading Sooyoung with desperation lacing her words. Sooyoung shook her head, reminding her of how she doesn’t listen in lectures. Sooyoung’s actions had dashed Yoona’s hopes of finally understanding her notes for once. “Oh come on, you’re a fast learner, help me!” Yoona grabbed Sooyoung’s hands tightly, not wanting to let it go.

Seohyun finally responded. She peered over Yoona’s shoulder as she quickly scanned through the sea of words on Yoona’s paper. Unlike Yoona who was like a lost puppy wandering aimlessly, Seohyun comprehended the concepts nearly in a blink of an eye. “A wave is a disturbance or oscillation that travels through spacetime, accompanied by a transfer of energy. Wave motion transfers energy from one point to another, often with no permanent displacement of the particles of the medium—that is, with little or no associated mass transport. They consist, instead, of oscillations or vibrations around almost fixed locations. Waves are described by a wave equation which sets out how the disturbance proceeds over time. The mathematical form of this equation varies depending on the type of wave.” Seohyun provided Yoona with a brief summary of her notes.

“Bravo!” The two older friends cheered out loudly upon hearing her explanation. Seohyun was tremendously good in all the subjects, giving them shudders just by knowing of her intelligence. Yoona was abashed by Seohyun’s answer and she kept glancing about as if looking for a route for her to escape from the utter embarrassment. As their conversation continued, it was often punctuated with awkward pauses as if they just knew each other.

Sooyoung needed to do something to the situation. She began to order some snacks for them to eat during the conversation. After a while, the food was ready. Pizza, fries, burgers and soft drinks were placed on their table right in front of them. Yoona came out of her shell and began to take her share of food. She went ahead and took some fries, a piece of pizza and a burger. She polished her plate in no time.

Seohyun sat still, unwilling to eat the fast food. “It’s unhealthy.” She explained, in a tone that sounded like it would have taken her life even if she were to give it a try. She shook her head, frustrated at how her two older friends refused to listen to her constant pleas. Sooyoung who was eating her pizza half-way, offered Seohyun a piece but she pretended not to hear.

“It’s already 6pm! My mum’s waiting for me to go home now. I shall leave first, see you tomorrow!” Seohyun packed her stuff in haste and vamoosed home lest her mum would begin with her constant nagging.