ON THURSDAY, AT LUNCH, it's Hanbin's first meeting with his student mentor - Song Yunhyeong.
They haven't really spoken since the first day that Hanbin touched down in New York and Yunhyeong picked him up at the airport. Hanbin added him on Kakaotalk one night because Donghyuk had been pestering him, desperate to know who his student mentor was. There had been a few brief messages with Yunhyeong explaining where to meet in English, and then another few messages where he grudgingly had to translate the whole thing into Korean. ("You need to practise your English, Hanbin," is quickly turning into Yunhyeong's most-used phrase.)
"So, how's your week been so far?" Yunhyeong asks. They're in an empty office room, sitting either side of a table whilst the midday sun peeks through the gaps between the high-rise buildings all around them.
Hanbin sighs, taking a moment to try and translate his answer into English. He eventually gives up on this and shrugs. (English is hard, okay?)
"How have classes been?" Yunhyeong presses on, desperate to pry a word or two out from between Hanbin's firmly sealed lips. "Made any friends yet?"
Hanbin ignores him and gazes out at the glimpses of skyscrapers he can catch between the blinds. New York isn't anything like he expected it to be. The city is crowded and claustrophobic, and the people are busy and brash, always in a hurry to be somewhere else. Of course he's excited to be studying photography in the city of lights, but the lecturer speaks too quickly, and the other students don't make an effort to help him because they don't realise he can't understand. The only friend he's made so far is Donghyuk, and that's only because they are forced to live together.
Hanbin doesn't tell Yunhyeong any of this however, because he doesn't know Yunhyeong. And if he doesn't know Yunhyeong, then why should he trust him? (Logic.)
"Come on, Hanbin, help me out here, won't you?" Yunhyeong pleads, switching to Korean for the freshman's convenience (and also out of his own exasperation). "You can talk to me. I'm just here to help."
Hanbin looks back at the older student, taking in Yunhyeong's curly black hair (which must be permed, it must) and collared shirt. Not bad, Hanbin observes. If Yunhyeong was a little less nerdy and studious, and less persistent in invading Hanbin's privacy, he would almost be attractive.
"Okay, okay," Yunhyeong continues, and the rest of the conversation continues in Korean, "I get it. You barely know me, right?" He holds his hands up in surrender and drops his biro on the desk. "How about we do it like this? I'll tell you a bit about myself to make you feel more comfortable."
Hanbin is starting to feel significantly less comfortable by the minute.
"So, I was born in Korea, but I moved out to the US as an exchange student in my final year of high school and I decided to stay in New York for college too," Yunhyeong tells him, as if Hanbin could care less. "I'm majoring in Economics, and in my spare time I like to go running."
Suddenly plagued with the mental image of Yunhyeong in fluorescent lycra, Hanbin scoffs. What is this - a job interview? He's counting the minutes until he can leave.
"Well?" Yunhyeong asks expectantly, "Any questions about me?"
Hanbin pauses, rocks back in his chair, and asks, "Are you single?"
The look on Yunhyeong's face is priceless. He goes from surprised to flustered to embarrassed all in the space of about three seconds, and Hanbin fights the urge to smile. That's what he felt like navigating his way around the airport when he first arrived, alone and practically illiterate.
"Uh..." Yunhyeong clears his throat and loosens the collar of his blue striped shirt. "Not that I think it's particularly relevant, but yes. I am single." He picks up his pen again and scans the paper in front of him. "Aren't you going to tell me about yourself?"
