“This is boring… How long more do I have to sit here…?” Soojung wondered to herself.

She was in school for her freshman orientation but Soojung was no stranger to the school. Aside from her elder sister, Sooyeon, being a sophomore in K-Arts, she had just completed a year in the Preparatory Training Program for Young Artist in Instrumental Music. In the year, Soojung had gained a reputation for being a much anticipated talent in the School of Music but instead, she had chosen acting as her major instead, shocking many who had participated in the program. Nevertheless, her reputation had now preceded her.

She looked around the hall at all the other freshman to see if she could pick out some familiar faces. There were a few whom she could recognize from the PTPYA but she didn’t know them very well. Her eyes were still scanning the room when one particular student caught her attention. The student was slouched over the seat in front, obviously having fallen asleep. Soojung chuckled silently to herself, finding the scene slightly amusing.

“She must be even more bored than I am…”

She was actually slightly perplexed. From where she was sitting, she couldn’t tell if the student was male or female. He was either a pretty boy or she was a handsome girl, either way, Soojung found herself grinning to herself as the student started slipping from his or her seat. The sudden falling sensation caused the student to wake up abruptly, eyes shot open and catching Soojung’s unexpectedly. The student smiled sheepishly back at Soojung causing her to blush a little, having been caught staring. She immediately looked away.

“Oh god! I got caught!”

Just then, her phone started vibrating in her pocket. She pulled it out to find a text from her sister’s best friend, Miyoung.

“Hey Soojung, I’m trying to locate your sister… Do you know where she might be?”

Sooyeon had agreed to follow Soojung to school because she had really missed being on campus.

“Try the practice rooms. She said she’d be there. I think I’m almost done, I’ll head there after,” Soojung replied.

Putting her phone away, she found herself sneaking a peak at the student before again…

“Hmmm… I thought Sooyeon was going to be here today? Didn’t she say she was coming with Soojung?” Miyoung mumbled to herself as she roamed through the grounds of the school in search of her best friend.

She knew that her best bet was to search the practice rooms. It was Sooyeon’s sanctuary, her retreat but also, sometimes, the source of her anxiety. But the school grounds was vast; locating someone within the school was like trying to find a needle in a haystack if you didn’t know where the person would be.

“And this is exactly why I told her to get a cellphone…” Miyoung thought.

She had repeatedly told her best friend to buy one but Sooyeon refused the idea stating that she only had a handful of people whom she had even remotely any reason to need one. Besides, she didn’t really like conversing with people in the first place let alone have a phone conversation. No, if anyone really needed to find her that badly, they could call her home phone or contact Soojung who was always beside her sister. And if she wasn’t with her sister, she was with Miyoung, so there was no need for a cellphone. That was Sooyeon’s logic.

“Hey Soojung, I’m trying to locate your sister… Do you know where she might be?” Miyoung texted Soojung.

“Try the practice rooms. She said she’d be there. I think I’m almost done, I’ll head there after,” Miyoung received a reply from Soojung.

As she had suspected… the practice rooms. Miyoung decided to cut across on of the fields that was separating her from where she needed to be.

It was a beautiful day though. The sun was out despite the cold weather and the sky was clear and brilliant. All of a sudden, the sound of someone striking a key on a piano could be heard from a distance. Then a single note became a lively succession of chords forming the crisp and sprightly melody of a familiar piece; La campanella.

Miyoung grinned. She knew exactly who it was… “Sooyeon…!”

She made her way to the source of the music; each note played was like a trail of breadcrumbs left for Miyoung to follow. She was almost to the building where the practice rooms were when she spotted a curious figure of a girl crouched by the corner of the building. At first, Miyoung didn’t really bother paying attention but as she got closer, she saw the girl getting onto her hands and knees. The odd behavior of the curious girl drew Miyoung’s attention and she decided to investigate, just for a second, to see what the girl was up to or if she was alright.

When she was finally close enough to the girl to see what exactly the girl was doing, she realized that the stranger was actually drawing, with chalk, on the pavement. She peered over the girl’s shoulder to get a better picture of the piece, but it was incomplete and she really could not make out what it was. Then she noticed the sketchbook that was laying close by with the name Kim Taeyeon scribbled on it.

“Kim Taeyeon-ssi… I’m not sure if you’re supposed to be drawing on the ground, even if it’s just with chalk,” Miyoung said to the girl but she was only met with silence as a response.

“Hey! Did you hear me? I don’t think you should be-“ Miyoung started to repeat herself but was suddenly shushed by the girl.

“Shhh!” The girl didn’t even bother lifting her head from what she was doing to look back at Miyoung. Instead she just gestured for Miyoung to leave her alone.

“Excuse me?! How dare you shush me?! I’m-“

“Shhh!” The girl silenced Miyoung yet again.

“Could you stop doing that…?!” Miyoung’s patience was growing thin but it also made her more curious. “Why are you drawing here anyway?” Miyoung asked, finding it peculiar that the girl would choose such a random spot to draw on.

Again, without looking up, the girl pointed towards the next building and then pointed upwards. Miyoung’s gaze followed the girl’s gesture. She turned her head to look at the next building. The girl was actually pointing towards the bridge connecting the two buildings, it overlooked the field and would have a clear view of where she was now standing. Then she looked upwards to find that the area was actually protected from the weather.

“She might be a weirdo but she’s pretty smart…” Miyoung thought, more than slightly impressed by the girl.

Suddenly, the girl turned her head to look at Miyoung. “You still here?” she asked rhetorically.

“I’m just leaving…” Miyoung said to the girl, no longer amused at how she was treated so rudely. She turned and started walking away.

“Hey…” the girl called Miyoung back.

“What is it?” Miyoung asked but she was no longer interested.

“If you’re still around later, come back and see for yourself…” the girl said.

Miyoung headed back to her original mission of finding Sooyeon. When she finally got to the practice rooms, the music had already stopped. Instead she found Soojung leading Sooyeon towards her, walking hand in hand. Sooyeon’s expression was a little… off… as compared to the way she was playing the piano earlier.

“Hey… what’s wrong?” Miyoung asked.

Sooyeon just shook her head.

Miyoung looked to Soojung for an answer.

“I’m not sure… She wouldn’t tell me either.”

Miyoung took Sooyeon’s other hand that was free. “I heard you play… It was beautiful…”

Sooyeon’s expression brightened a little, a little smile creeping back onto her face.

“How was the orientation?” Miyoung asked Soojung.

Soojung shrugged.

Miyoung laughed. It was such a typical response from Soojung. She had known both the Jungs since she was 6 so she knew Soojung just as well as she knew Sooyeon.

“Great! Well, welcome to K-Arts…” Miyoung flashed Soojung one of her eye smiles.

“Thanks, sunbae…” Soojung smiled back.

Sooyeon let go of Soojung’s hand, linked her arm around Soojung’s and leaned on her sister’s shoulder. The two sisters had always been very affectionate. Because Sooyeon was the more withdrawn one, Soojung had taken to being the protective one.

“Unnie, would you like to get a hot chocolate before going home?” Soojung suggested. She knew sweet treats always made her sister feel better. “Miyoung unnie, you’re invited too…”

“Why thanks, Soojung… I would love to come along…” Miyoung giggled, always the cheerful one.

Sooyeon started pulling the two girls along impatiently. “Let’s go…”

“Alright, alright… Calm down, unnie…” Soojung chuckled at her sister’s childish behavior.

“I’m so glad you’ll be attending K-Arts too, Soojungie…” Sooyeon said to her sister.

Soojung smiled but in her mind, she felt really nervous because of all the expectations that were already on her shoulders with classes yet to start for another month.

“Me too… I’m excited…” Soojung replied.

“We’re going to rule the school, girls!” Miyoung exclaimed cheekily.

Sooyeon gave her best friend a frown and a disapproving look.

“What? I was just kidding…” Miyoung nudged her best friend. “Now, let’s get out of here…”

As they walked off, Sooyeon took a look back over her shoulders wondering if she would get another encounter with the legendary sunbae of K-Arts…