Feet were shifting through the corridor as Cayla walks back to their room with glued eyes over the paper personally handed by their school principal.

Is this real? Cayla had been chanting this phrase repetitively after the principal had talked to her.

“GIRLS!!!!” Cayla screeched right after she gets her foot in to their room, not even minding their homeroom teacher, Mr. Bo, who suddenly slipped off on his chair because of the commotion.

“Woah, woah, Cayla what’s wrong?” Tam asked who was skipping through the room towards her friends.

“THIS!!!” Cayla shrieked.

“What’s this?” A brochure of a school in almighty Hangul was displayed on Tam’s face, good thing the name was Romanized.

“Seoul. Arts. Highschool.” Tam reads like is accustomed in saying the Korean School’s name. She went silent for a minute then suddenly snaps her fingers when she realized something. “Oh yes that is where my cousin is studying.”

“YOU HAVE A KOREAN COUSIN???!!!” Jody and Cayla’s voices shrilled in chorus, but is still not enough to disturb Andi who was busy writing something on her planner.

“How come we didn’t know about it?!”

“Well, did you guys ask?” Tam said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Anyway, so why do you have this brochure, Cay?”

“I was called to the office right? The principal informed me that because I had an outstanding mark from our English literary subject I got this.”

“No way!” Andi contested. The three heads moved towards Andi’s direction in unison.

“I know right? Even I myself couldn’t believe it.” Cayla seconded.

“Cayla girl, you’re smart. You just didn’t know it.” Jody affirmed tapping her friend’s shoulder. “This is exciting my nerves. Wait, I’ll get something in my bag.”

“There she goes again.” Andi murmured looking at her friend’s ecstatic sashaying as she gets something in her bag. Tam chuckled, “Her Korean voodoo.”

Jody went back to the girls, grinning from ear to ear as she unfolds a piece of paper, and with her own penmanship it says:

 

 

8 Strict Rules I will follow while I’m in Korea

1. If you’re going to eat in a restaurant for example, never ever leave something on your plate.

2. If you’re visiting someone, it is respectful for Korean’s to bring a small gift. And if it goes the other way around, someone offering you a gift, refuse a few times and but still accept it. Don’t forget that both of your hands should be used when accepting something.

3. Direct contact with your seniors is definitely a no-no.

4. Remove your shoes when entering a Korean home.

5. Red ink to write a Korean person’s name means that the person has died. Be careful!

6. Don’t squeeze hard when shaking someone’s hand.

7. It is very rare to encounter Korean’s fluent in speaking and understanding English so better be extra careful during shopping.

8. Have fun!

 

 

“Thank God I brought this today.” Jody heroically shared. “That will save you in Seoul.”

“Like the way it saved you from your last trip in Korea?”Tam sarcastically asked.

“Right, thanks for reminding me.” Jody replied. Tam let out a peace sign.

“So, when are you going to leave?” Andi asked in almost a murmur while shuffling through her planner, then through her phone calendar then back to scribbling something through her planner, avoiding Cayla’s direction.

“Tomorrow. That’s what the principal said, she already handed me the ticket. Look!” I showed it to them.

“TOMORROW???!!!” Andi, Tam and Jody’s eyes rolled.

Jody snatched the ticket, and checked before she finally say: ‘CONFIRMED.’

                The shrill of excitement vanished together with the breeze of air out of the room. Unbearable silence and dismal faces suddenly surrounded the atmosphere of the four as they hold on to a reality that the quartet will be in lay-low for six long months.

 

---

In the middle of Mr. Bo’s lecture, Tam tore a page from her notebook, scribbled on it before passing the note to Cayla.

        So… are we still in for tonight? It’s Thursday! :|

Cayla scanned the paper, bites her lip and started writing.

        I need to pack my things. :’(

Cayla automatically passed the note to Jody and Andi.

Jody opened the folded paper, scanned it with her eyes under the thick glasses before scribbling on it.

I have a new client. My boss’ son. Can’t decline. T.T Plus, my aunt is sick. Mian~

Then she passed it on to Andi who was still busy with her planner and trying to consume all the sadness at the back of her mind.

        So it’s just me and Tam? Nice! …

Tam opened the now-almost-crumpled-and-ready-to-be-thrown-in-the-thrash note passed it back to Cayla, then to Jody, without writing something just for the sake of them knowing each and everyone’s answers.

Tam looks at Andi who was still in her own world. Andi’s obsessive-compulsive planned world.

---

 

Tam and Andi arrived at the latter’s humble home around 6pm, riding shotgun in Andi’s black SUV. Tam quickly ran to Andi’s room, as Andi followed her lazily.

Really, is this my house? Or Tam’s? Andi had been asking the same question whenever Tam visits invades crash on to her room.

Tam was already lying cozily over Andi’s bed with shoes and bag cluttered all over the neat-freak floor, as the owner of the house constantly following all of the former’s mess.

“Muddle some more and you’re out of my house!!” Andi revolted, but it seems like Tam wasn’t even paying attention as she was pressing on to Andi’s landline phone.

Andi just closed her eyes and retreated with a very deep sigh.

“Cayla!!!!” Tam shrieked causing Andi to jolt back to her room.

“Hm? You’re packing things now? Wait, wait. I’ll just put the phone in loud speaker mode.”

“Ow-kay!! Say Hi Andi!” Tam called.

“Hey Cay!” Andi greeted.

“H-hey,” Cayla said on the other line.

“So are you done? Packing your things?” Andi asked. Tam went out of the room to get a drink.

“Uhm… I think so?”

“What about your meds? Your shoes? And your plushie? I know you can’t sleep without your plushie. What about your mom? Your dad and your older sister? Are they okay with the idea? What about your dog, Tiffy? Who’s going to take care of her while you’re gone?” Andi bombarded Cayla.

“What are those for? You sounded more than her mom.” Tam interrupted Andi who’s in mother goose mode.

Cayla from the other line, laughed.

“Now let’s get this one by one, okay? Have you packed all the necessary stuff? Like the meds, passport, tickets?” Tam continued.

“Yep. It’s in my hand-carry now. But I’ll double check it tomorrow.”

“What time is your flight tomorrow anyway?” Andi calmly asked.

“Nine Thirty.”

Tam and Andi were silent.

“Girls? Are you still there?”

“Does that mean we’re not going to see you tomorrow?” Tam stammered in a monotonous tone as Andi walks away from the bed to face her desktop where here camera lenses are waiting to comfort the tears that are welling up on her eyes.

I knew this is not a good idea… sending her off to a different place, with different culture… and … and Cayla… with her absent-mindedness, drifting thoughts and gentle voice… she could be taken advantage easily… if it’s Jody then I could be rest assured since she’s the Hallyu Queen of the group…

Andi’s been torturing herself with thoughts about the possibilities, over thinking so much that she had been unconsciously wiping the same lens over and over for already 10 minutes, meanwhile Tam is still on the phone blabbing Cayla about her Korean cousin, not to boast but to distract the growing forlorn atmosphere.

 “I guess it will be you and me most of the time huh Andi? Since Jody will be pretty much busy with her new tutee and her aunt? Her sick aunt.”

Andi sighed again before giving Tam a reply, “Yeah, I guess it’s you and me and my camera lens.” Andi had now moved to another lens.