“Seul Bi! Hurry, that’s the last one!” A woman hollered from inside the bungalow and a teenage girl, who was carrying a big paper box in her arms hollered back. “I’m coming! I’m coming!”
Kang Seul Bi and her family had moved into their new house that Thursday afternoon. They had moved from Ulsan city a month after the death of her father and were now residents of Centum city, Busan. It was a house her late father had bought for the family, intending for them to move to Busan. But unfortunately, he couldn’t be a part of it.
“Aigo…now that that’s done, let’s quickly eat up before we start opening those boxes” Kang Aera, the head of the Kang family after the passing of her husband, spoke to her children who sighed with relief and all settled lazily around the floor table.
“I’m taking the room at the end of the hallway” Kang Seul Jung spoke, rolling up the sleeves of his brown jumper and earning a frown of disapproval from his immediate younger sister, Kang Seul Hee.
“I picked that room already oppa, it’s mine” She protested and he cackled at her, “But I want that room too, so why don’t we settle it with rock, paper and scissors?” The two siblings were always like that, often competing over the things they wanted which were always for a strange reason, the same things.
The youngest among the Kang siblings was Kang Seul Bi. She was the reticent member of the noisy family and often spoke very little when they were together like that. While mom and the eldest of the siblings, Kang Seul Hyun were busy conversing how they would arrange the things around the house, the other bickering two were dragging their game with a tie.
Done with her bowl of ramen, Seul Bi quietly snuck out of the gathering and traced her way upstairs. It was a beautiful house, spacious and homely. A pain tugged in her chest and her eyes were getting glassy with tears.
“Appa…” If only he was there with them, she wanted to hug him and tell him how happy she was to be there that day. She had promised him that she would love their new house and cherish it for his sake and hers.
Wiping the single tear that trailed down her right cheek, she wrapped her fingers around the knob of the first door to the left and pushed inward. Some boxes were placed in disarray and she smiled as she went it.
That was her room and it was much bigger than her previous one back at her home town. The walls were in her favorite color which was light plum and had low pink sherbet trimmings. It was a typical teenager’s room, with the bed to the wall, a reading table right next and in front of the large wide glass windows, a tall light-pink wardrobe with four doors next to the opposite wall and there was also a little sitting space with a round wooden table and two plum single-sitter couches.
It was beautiful and just in the image she had described to her father when the reconstruction had begun. Excitedly, she started offloading her things and putting them where she wanted them to be. It took a couple of hours and she was done, pleased with how the room looked that evening.
“Seul Bi are you done arranging your stuff? It’s soon going to be dinner, you should come out” That was Seul Hyun and his room was next to hers.
“I’m done” She opened her bedroom door and stepped out to meet him.
Joining the rest of the family at the sitting room, Kang Aera turned to Seul Bi and smiled widely. “Seul Bi, I couldn’t tell you this earlier but you know you’ll be writing the entrance exam to your new school on Monday and I’ve already gone there to speak with management. Aigo! My baby’s gonna be a highschooler!”
The overjoyed woman hugged the stunned girl tightly while her siblings were just as happy. “You…already spoke…to the management? When did you do that eomma?” The girl was still in shock and the woman only smiled superiorly.
“Of course I did. I went there last week, I wanted to surprise you. Not to mention its a very prestigious school in Centum, you’ll also love it” The woman was clearly the happiest person that evening as she went on spilling more information about ‘Plum Rose High School’.
Seul Hee was in her first year of an Arts college while Seul Jung was a third year student at a science university and Seul Hyun was at his final year in the same university as his younger brother.
And while her brother’s would be going back to Ulsan for their school, she would be with her sister and her mother, being the only ones to live in the house together.
“I’ll head up first” Seul Bi was the first to finish dinner and she quickly went to her room and shut the door. Heaving a sigh, she pushed away from the door and went over to her laid bed.
‘I will be attending a high school huh’ The thought made her anxious as she sat on her bed, picking up her smartphone. She was conducting a research on the school and true to her mother’s words, it was a big school, quite famous and with endless praises to its name.
The girl sighed, she could only hope it wouldn’t be much different from her previous school. Seul Bi wasn’t a socialite, she was reserved and often on her own. And she loved it that those around her left her alone and never troubled her.
But what was the guarantee her new school would be the same? She was anxious because of this and almost wished Monday wouldn’t come so fast.
***
Over the few days left till Monday, Kang Seul Bi had spent it trying to adjust into her new environment but it wasn’t as well as she had planned. It felt like she was even more shy to communicate with people and it was hard to step out of her new home.
Monday wasn’t any merciful either. And there she was, standing in the middle of a large, long, busy hallway with students going about their business. Her form had shrunken into nothingness as she stood there, motionless.
“Kang Seul Bi, please come this way” It was the kind voice of a teacher that pulled her out of her momentary misery and into a large hall.
There were other teenagers like her, all seated in single sits and it looked like they were all waiting for the commencement of the entrance exam. She gulped, settling into a table she was shown to.
“Alright everyone, we’ll hand out the question papers and you can start once you all have a copy. Alright?” A man who stood on a podium spoke to the teenagers and they all replied in chorus.
The exam would last for two hours and Seul Bi sucked in calming breaths to ease her nervousness. She was a very smart girl and was soon relaxed when she saw the questions. Right there, she knew what her score would be.
***
The entrance exams were over and Seul Bi left the hall with a proud air. That was the only thing she was confident about herself; Her smartness. She was outstanding in her studies and was termed a bookworm. Of course she had a series of awards and prices to boot for that.
“Annyeonghaseyo” The girl froze, it appeared someone was speaking to her and it came as a shock to the loner. Stiffly turning around, she was met with a smiling face that smiled more when she looked at her.
“Oh hi, I’m Seo Yeon Whan. You also wrote the entrance exam right?” The cheerful looking girl with a mushroom-like hairstyle spoke nicely to her, placing Seul Bi in a tight spot. She wasn’t used to such meetings and was lost for a moment, having the other girl wondering over her strange attitude.
“Um…I…I’m Kang…Seul Bi” Her voice was a mess and the other girl only smiled more, “You’re nervous aren’t you? I’m also the same. The questions almost got me scared. Do you think we’ll pass the exams? I would beat myself up if that happens”.
This was new to Kang Seul BI. Someone was not just talking to her like this, the person also seemed like she wanted to know her as well and maybe, just possibly…be a friend.
She panicked instinctively, “Um I have to go now”. And she spun around but, she bumped into someone in her attempt to flee. “Ouch- are you okay?”
The sudden bump had her falling to the floor and landing on her butt. Her face flushed up with embarrassment and a hand appeared before her face. A boy was apologetically reaching a helpful hand. “I’m sorry. Are you hurt?”
‘Why…why are they being nice to me?’ Her tightened lips wobbled and she shakily grabbed his hand and was pulled up. “Are you okay Kang Seul Bi?” The other girl was also fussing and it irked the anti-social Seul Bi who stiffly nodded.
“You’re that girl right? The one who left the hall first” The boy spoke with recognition and Seul Bi froze yet again. “Really? I knew there was something familiar about her. You must be so smart to have finished first”
Who were these two people conversing so casually in front of her like they had been friends all their lives? Seul Bi had no idea how much longer she could remain in that state of bewilder as she watched them.
“You must be hungry right? Let’s head to the canteen and get something. Those questions have drained my poor brain already…I need to refill” Seo Yeon Whan whined as she led the way and the boy who she then knew to be Chang Jimin chuckled after her.
And the puzzled Kang Seul Bi followed after these people. Before she knew it, she was already roped in with the duo and that was a sign that her quiet solitary life was going to come to an abrupt end.
