"Either today is Outside Voice Day, or there's some juicy rumor going around."

Kai leans against the lockers, his hands in his pockets with the thumbs sticking out, looking effortless.  Just the way his admirers love to see him.

There’s gossip amiss, as per usual high school antics, but given that the buzz today is louder - and possibly more excited - than usual, there might be some juicer news than normal amiss.

"Probably a new school scandal," Baekhyun nods in agreement, hands folded behind his head lazily.  He couldn't be bothered about such nonsense.

"Did something happen over the weekend that we don't know about?" Chanyeol asks, looking up from his phone.

"Seeing how much livelier the buzz is, I think it's something more than just a scandal from a party," I reason.  I don’t really care much about gossip, but my curiosity can’t help being piqued by the unusual activity of the student body.

Across the hall, a small crew of three girls parades down the line of students.  All of them have pasted faces of makeup almost in similar ways. They must’ve all gotten surgery too, because they more or less look the same other than the small features that set them apart.

The ringleader, Yang HwaYeon approaches a girl on the opposite wall from us, hands on her hips in annoyance.  “HeeChan, you better not be hiding from me.”

The petite girl in question peers out from behind her locker door.  “N-No.”

“So that means you did my paper, right?”  The much taller girl smirks, flipping her auburn hair.

I roll my eyes at the scene.  Unfortunately, it’s such a regular occurrence, I’ve stopped being disgusted a long time ago.  HwaYeon uses her status to do whatever she wants and no one really tries to stop her because they don’t know what she’ll do.

“Really ty, isn’t it hyung?” Jongin whispers, eyeing the scene as well.

"Sehun-ah!  You're late, again," Kyungsoo suddenly scolds someone behind me.

The youngest boy in our crew runs towards our small crowd around Baekhyun's locker.  His platinum blond hair is tucked under a backwards black cap, which means he didn't have enough time to fix it this morning.  "Noona was hogging the bathroom again," he rolls his eyes.  “Oh, here’s your notes back, Suho hyung.”  The kid digs through his backpack and gives me my language notebook back.  "But you guys won't believe the news."

"What news?" Kai asks, mirroring the obvious curiosity that Sehun has now sparked in the rest of us.

"It wouldn't be why everyone’s fussing this morning, is it?" Chanyeol leans forward in anticipation.

"It is actually," Sehun smirks.  "Rumor has it that a new student just transferred here over the weekend."

A new student? I think to myself nonchalantly.  Maybe I’ll see them in class sometime and introduce myself.

"That's what they're all hyped up about?  A new student?" Baekhyun scoffs, suddenly losing interest and leaning back against the wall of lockers.  The other boys follow suit, their enthusiasm curbed.

I frown to myself.  Such a welcoming student body we have here.

"Not just any old new student," Sehun shakes his head.  "According to the peanut gallery, the student's a foreigner."

That reels all of our attention back.

"You don't say?" Kai smirks.  "Guy or girl?"

"No one knows yet," Sehun shrugs.  "That’s what’s got everyone excited!  Just keep your eyes peeled for any foreigners.  And from what I’ve heard, they’d stick out like a sore thumb."

Suddenly a whisper spell falls over the hallway as the ambient buzz dies out.

“And that would be them,” the youngest boy points out quietly.

Unfortunately for us, we already passed the main office where the student would get their schedule, so we can’t get a good look at the student.

"Damn," Chanyeol pouts.  "I wanted to be one of the first to see who it is."

"Relax, Yeol.  There'll be plenty of opportunities to see later," Baekhyun rolls his eyes at the giant baby.

The bell rings, and we all bid our goodbyes until we join classes or meet at lunch.  I’m the only one of us in the honors class, so I shuffle over to my classroom by myself.  I enter Homeroom and sit down in a seat in the second row from the front. Since Homeroom’s only purpose is to take official attendance, everyone’s chatting with their friends, doing some last minute studying, or some other thing.  I lean back in my seat and blankly stare off at nothing in particular. As the teacher begins taking attendance, there’s a knock at the door.

"Jeogiyo?"

I can definitely see why Sehun said she would stick out like a sore thumb.  And yes, the exchange student is a girl.

Her hair is a deep shade of dark brown that almost seems black, with a few lighter brown highlights scattered through her soft waves.  A black v-neck shirt tucks into a pair of dark green, skinny cargo pants with a black studded belt. A leather, fingerless glove graces her right hand that grips her backpack strap, while the other hand is tucked into her pocket, thumb sticking out.  She wears black lace-up boots with studs on the toe and a solid black choker around her neck, which was strange considering the fact that the recent trend among girls seems to be one with the weird wire design.  Her clothes look so bold, she could play the role of a high school badass in a drama perfectly. I guess she didn’t have time to get the school uniform yet.

As the class turns to stare at the girl casually standing in the doorway, Mr. Lee clears his throat.  "Come in."

The girl strolls in, her face a blank expression.  My eyes slowly follow her figure across the room as she stops at Mr. Lee's desk.  I quickly glance over her face now that she’s closer to me. Her physical appearance is what makes her stand out the most, mostly because she isn't Asian.  Her eyelashes are long and curved upwards, rather than short and growing downward. Her skin tone is just slightly tanner than the rest of us, and her chin has the ideal V-line that everyone in this school would die for.

What’s interesting to me is that, after studying her entire physique, her face does not match her style whatsoever.  Her clothes are bold and in your face, but her expression is calm and innocent. My eyes glance at her choker again. I don't know why, but there’s something strange about it.  It’s solid and as thick as the width of my thumb, covering most of her neck.

With a final nod, her and the teacher face the whispering students.  "Class, this is our new student from America. Her name is Shin Hyerin."

She bows to the class respectfully, no sign of emotion across her features.  “Hello everyone, please take care of me," she mutters quietly.

I raise my eyebrows.  Her voice is a little high pitched and soft, though she’s trying to hide it.  How cute.

"You may take a seat anywhere Hyerin," Mr. Lee nods.

She bows again to him before making her way to the back of the classroom and setting down her bag at a desk.  She leans back in her seat and starts tapping on the wood, staring out the window without a care in the world.

I know I should stop staring, but I have a hard time doing so.  She’s a walking, talking oxymoron, and I find that intriguing about her.  In an attempt to distract myself, I pull out some homework to check over. Whispers bloom amongst the students as new rumors are born from the official introduction of the transfer student.

"Does she even know how to speak Korean well?"

"She looks like a freak!"

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