Spring Flower/봄꽃이

Intro

        With hesitant footsteps and clammy hands Ha-neul walked through the doors of her high school, her new american high school. Chu, Ha-neul was a foreign exchange student from South Korea, her province of Korea was Daegu. In Daegu she lived a simple life at her family's farm but she wanted more out of life, she wanted to see the world outside of the Daegu countryside. Jimin didn't know why going into the exchange program was so appealing but she know deep down that going to America would forever change her, she just didn't know how.
        After walking through the office Ha-neul, who wasn't fluent in english yet, was paired with another student who could fluently speak both korean and english. She was so shy and nervous that she didn't notice that the student was in front of her, for her hair was covering her view.
   "Hello, are you Chu Ha-neul?" a boy with light brown hair and chocolate eyes asked her. As she continued to stare down at the floor.
    "Yes, and who m-m-ight you be?" Ha-neul asked with a strutter due to her lack of fluency.
        "I'm Christian but my korean name is Park Jimin and I'll be your tour guide/friend of sorts while you are here in America, I'm also part of your host family." Jimin told Ha-neul with confidence that one would expect from a charismatic boy. Ha-neul stared awkwardly at Jimin until she sensed a look of question on his face which made Ha-neul nervous.
        "If you don't mind me asking Ha-neul when is your birthday? Because if you don't mind I was going to use titles for us seeing as it will make you more comfortable and help me with my honorifics." Ha-neul almost let a breathe of relief after she realized he only wanted her age and wasn't going to ask her anything personal yet.
        "My birthday is December 30th, 2000. Are you my 동생 or오빠?" Ha-neul asked with comfortability that came with the talking of korean culture.
        "Well it appears that you will be my little 막내 and I would prefer if you call me 오빠 and not Jimin. But don't worry I'll make up a nickname for you soon, but until then I'll refer to you as 막내." Jimin said with a swagger that could only be from that of a boy from Busan.
        After the introductions and a brief speech and tour of the school, Ha-neul and Jimin were making their way to Pre-calculus. Jimin walked in first to which Ha-Neil followed after with her head held down so that her hair covered her face. The teacher must to her distress made her stand in front and introduce herself to the class. She was so nervous seeing all the eyes of her fellow classmates staring at her with judgement and curiosity that she spoke not in English but in Korean.
        "안녕하세요. 저는 추하늘입니다. 나는 한국 학생이다." Ha-neul stated but mortified when it struck her that she spoke in Korean quickly bowed and sat down near Jimin. But as she headed to the back of the class she heard her classmates whispers, which made her cave into her shell even more so.
        "What language was that?"
        "Why did she come to America if she can't speak English?"
        "We're in America speak English."
        "What a spazz." The comments kept coming and she soon felt like the room was shouting and caving in on her. She felt her walls closing and felt the room shake from the comments and muttering, that before she could sit down she felt herself crash. But before she crashed she made eye contact with Jimin, and the only thing she saw in his eyes was pity and look that said he knew the pain. Jimin made eye contact with Ha-Neil as she fell down and what he saw in her eyes reminded him of his own. He remembered going to school and not being able to communicate with anyone because he was raised in Korean. What he saw in her eyes made him want to protect her and made him want to better herself. He rushed out of his seat as he saw her, he saw anxiety written on her face and from personal knew a anxiety attack was on the horizon. As he reached her she was already shaking, but she just remained in the same spot like she was glued to the ground. He made eye contact with the teacher and pleaded with his eyes that they may be excused, thankfully the teacher gave them a subtle nod.
        Outside of the classroom that was filled with eyes all silently judging Ha-neul. Jimin took Ha-neul to the dance room, this place was where Jimin went when he needed an escape from high school, he felt that she needed to escape from the peers of their classroom that decided to mock a scared lamb. Ha-neul who had kept her eyes closed the second she felt Jimin wrap his arms around dragging her out of the class, finally opened her eyes. What Ha-Neil saw was a room that was obviously forgotten by the students, the mirrors were dusty, the floor looked like it hadn't been polished in years, there was a leak in the ceiling, but oddly she felt safe in this room. Ha-neul felt a calming presence wash of her, she felt her anxiety wash away. She turned to Jimin to thank him but what she saw, the look in his eyes, left her speechless. She saw him offering his hand to her and heard music in the background.
        "내 봄꽃이(My Spring Flower) don't worry or listen to those kids in class, I know how it feels to be in a foreign place. But better with time. Forget about what happened back their."
He took her hand and start dancing with Ha-neul all around the room and singing her a song, the music helped wipe Ha-neul's worries away and got her to calm down. After dancing around the room for two songs, they stopped. Jimin looked into her eyes and saw that they had calmed down some. He felt relieved that the dance and music helped her calm down. He looked deeper into her eyes and felt compelled to tell her why they had just danced.
        "Before you ask why we just danced, I just want to you to know that I have been in your very shoes before. I know what it feels like to be the outcast but when it hit me I didn't have anyone to turn to. I found music and dance as an escape from, and I hope that it would work as well for you." Jimin's speech made Ha-neul thankful for him, but also made her wonder how he could have gone through what she just had gone through and come out the other side as a boy with swagger and . Ha-neul felt the utmost respect Jimin and felt that only one word could express her thanks for him.
        "감사합니다 오빠." Ha-neul said with a 90 degree bow, but her words held a power to them that showed Jimin how grateful she truly was. Jimin didn't know those much he would come to help her in the long run, but he now felt a responsibility to protect his little 봄꽃이. Jimin and Ha-neul were in the dance room for the rest of the class period. The rest of the day was uneventful due to the fact that the teachers had heard what happened to Ha-neul in her first class and knew better than to call on her in class. Students, however, were constantly looking at her, wondering if the rumors of her freezing in class were true. Ha-neul was never one to be bold or confident even back home in Daegu, but here, here she has never felt more alone and shy in her life. Even with Jimin hanging out with her and showing her a place of comfort she still felt out of place.