Sitting on the edge of the bed, I grabbed my pants off the floor and searched for my pack of cigarettes. It was early in the morning, the sun was just about to rise. Everything outside looked like it was tinted in a grey-blue. It's kind of peaceful, I thought to myself. Then I heard a 'click' behind me, bringing me back to reality, to see a hand reach out with a lighter ready. I leaned forward and gave the girl a demonic grin, lighting my cigarette ablaze. She giggled as she crawled up to me, wrapping her snake-like arms around my bare chest. Her skin pressed against my back, yearning more from last night. Tempted, I thought back to her head banging against the headboard and her moans. She wasn't that great, I shook off the idea of having seconds. 

Her day old perfume started to smell rotten, ruining my morning smoke. She yelped as I shoved aggressively her away from me, "I have to get going."

"Minho-yah," she moaned, clawing back to me with her red talons, "will you be back here tonight?"

"Doubt it," I cocked a crooked grin at her as I buttoned my white-collared shirt. 

"Was I not good last night?" She was beginning to doubt herself, worried I was done with her. I was.

"Go learn how to give good head and get back to me," I knelt down, blowing nicotine in her face. She coughed before she started to throw her things at me, screaming how horrible I was and to get out. It was just a joke, I shrugged as I put on my shoes and walked out with my head held high. I stretched my arms in the air and let out a big yawn. Today was the first day of school. I wonder what Hongdae Uni has to offer this year, I imagined all the new girls coming into the fall semester. Even from the outside, I could hear the girl cry in agony, didn't she know that she was just something to play with? 

"Damn." I let out a hearty laugh as I added a skip to my walk. "How annoying."

—————

The incessant beeping of my alarm rang for several minutes before I blindly stretched my arm to grab ahold of the clock, slamming it against the floor. Instantly, I opened my eyes and got out of bed, walking past many unfinished canvases of work. It was the first day of school, as a third-year college student, there was much that needed to be done today.

I opened the fridge and gulped down an ice cold bottle of Perrier. I took a look out the window that had one of the best views over Hongdae. It was worth every penny – the studio that I live in. Free to do whatever I want, however I want, in the privacy of my own home. I through a rack of records and let the entire room resonate with the melodies of Tchaikovsky. I rummaged through the fridge some more and quickly made a simple omelet for breakfast. The smell of espresso wafted in the air, awakening my senses as I took small sips to ease me into a caffeinated state of mind.

I quickly rinsed off the dishes and utensils before heading to the bathroom. Every second counts, with a quick wash and a fresh pair of clothes on, I grabbed my necessities: paintbrushes, sketchbooks, laptop, wallet, and keys. My hair was in a shaggy disarray, but that’s how my thoughts always were so I left it alone.

I looked down at my watch as I scurried down the flight of stairs, “An hour to spare, perfect.”

—————

I ran out of the house with most of my things in my duffle bag. I wiped off the blood on my lip and pulled down the sleeves of my shirt to hide the scars and bruises. I could hear the drunk bellowing from inside; he was looking for me to beat the crap out of me some more – just before school. What a jerk, I stuck out my tongue at the house before I ran straight to Hongdae Uni. I plastered a smile on my face as I greeted bystanders who were looking at me funny. I guess I need to clean myself up before class.

Rushing to the nearest convenient store, I used their bathroom to wash my hair and face, I scrubbed my teeth roughly with my finger and popped a mint. Rummaging through my duffle bag, I pulled out a fresh, clean sweater and stuffed everything else back in. I stared at myself in the mirror, I could see the bruise around my left eye getting darker. I can say it was an accident, that I’m so clumsy I ran into a pole…or that a ball hit me, that’s plausible.

“New year, new life,” I grinned as I dashed towards the nearest bus stop and got on. I pulled out a piece a paper that held my future, “Let’s see, I’ll be living on the third floor dormitory. I wonder if I’ll get to see any cute girls around there.”

Fixing my sweater, I tried to think of a master plan to get myself noticed, “Now, now. What should I say about myself? Do I try to be the good guy or bad guy? Ahhh, what do girls like nowadays?”

My eyes wandered to the streets as the bus zoomed past stores, boutiques, and cafes. I smiled to myself. I almost felt at peace.

“To want to go to school, of all places,” I chuckled to myself.

—————

“Bye, appa,” I waved at him from the train station. “I’ll call as soon as I settle in Hongdae.”

“Just be safe, Mija. Hongdae’s a bit of a wild area,” my dad gave me his infamous worried smile. “I’ll be sure to send the rest of your things at the dormitory you’re staying at.”

“Thanks, and I’ll be fine! Don’t worry.” I blew him a kiss. I was looking forward to going to college. Hongdae of all cities – where everyone and everything is urban and fresh, there’s nothing boring about it. It’s vibrant with youth and adventure. I breathed in, imagining all the new things I’ll be trying. I’ve been wanting to study dance ever since I was little, after saving so much money I finally got into a school where I can be whoever I want to be.

Aaah, I hope I can make a ton of friends this year, I giggle as I skimmed through the syllabi of all my classes.

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▌07:45PM
Author's Note: I finally managed to write the first chapter. It seems a bit rushed, but I'll fix it once I tweak the storyline along the way. I hope you like it! If you haven't noticed, each section separated by a long dash, represent the POVs for each character: Minho, Taehyun, Seungyoon, and then Mija. It won't always be like this, I might just write a POV per chapter, maybe switch to Mija's POV for clarity and a second perspective. I just wanted to introduce you all to each character and be able to differentiate between all of them since I don't plan on noting who's who in each chapter. I'll probably incorporate a picture per chapter to note who the speaker is. Anyways, enough of all the technicalities. I hope you all enjoyed reading the first chapter! Feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading!