➶➶➶➶➶ ☆ ➷➷➷➷➷
The sky at dawn was an explosion of burnt sienna and peach and indigo. Like lava, the sun's rays slowly seeped out across the glistening ocean misting the empty beach in a spectral, yellow glow. Mingled with the near-silence – besides the lazy tide and distant bird calls – it might've been a beautiful sight. But the youth under the jetty's glassy stare was caught in forever now. Lost to the present.
A young woman on her morning jog slowed on the wooden planks and looked over the rail. Something had caught her eye. Shocked and horrified swearing escaped her mouth as she jumped back and scrambled for her phone. She called an ambulance, though it was too late; the teen lying under the jetty in the shallows was dead.
The paramedics arrived. Then the police. Then the metropolis's residents who expected to start their day like any other instead showed up to flashing lights and police tape sectioning off a portion of the beach. It was still early, though the crowds were growing, all wanting to see what tragedy had marred their affluent seaside town.
Whether this was an accident, or something more sinister, detectives could not yet tell. What was evident, however, was the clothes indicated that this teen was a student from a local, elite school.
MNH High.
☆★☆
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
☆★☆
Six months Earlier:
I tried not to balk at the heat. South Korea's coastal weather was nothing like that of the small Central European town I'd spent the last several years. I couldn't even remember the last time I had been near a beach. Now I lived about a twenty-minute jog from one, and would be starting my first day at a school where its name was plated over a gold and bronze statue of its founder.
If "Tell me you're rich without telling me you're rich" was a place, MNH High School would be it. All I could hope for was that I didn't pass out on my first day from heat stroke. I'd rather be known as the unassuming student than the eighteen-year-old who gives ladies having hot flushes at church a run for their money.
A girl with an accent who'd just moved abroad from another continent was sure to bring enough attention at first. I wanted to leave it at that.
"Y/N!" called my mum from downstairs. "Come and take a look at what the school sent over. You don't want to leave this till the last minute!"
Probably looking like a limbed pancake on my new bed, I craned my neck to look at the ajar door behind me. It was Friday morning. I'd be starting at MNH on Monday. A week later than the rest of the school. I had meant to start four days ago, though transfer delays with my dad's practice, and our flight was put off until yesterday. I was jetlagged to say the least. Maybe I could just roll off the bed and out the door?
I was a pretty decent athlete.
Eventually, and with a groan, I decided to resemble a human being and walk downstairs. We weren't old-money wealthy, but we were pretty well off financially. My mum owned an online business that allowed her plenty of flexibility in terms of travel, and my dad had owned a private medical practice back home, until he was offered a research grant here in South Korea—hence our sudden move at the start of my senior year.
Honestly, I wasn't that broken up about the move. I'd had friends and things weren't that bad, though my school was a pretty rough place, and only a few suburbs up from an even rougher, isolated area. Correction, it had been my old school. It was what inspired me to take up track. I'd have to find out if MNH had a track team. Was it called track here? I'd learned the language, but there were so many other things I needed to familiarise myself with.
"Have you spoken to Kyungmin today?" asked mum, making herself smashed avo on toast.
I rounded the island benchtop to my folder of missed orientation papers, school work and the lists of clubs and available electives.
"Mum," I almost snorted. "It's not even seven yet. You know he'll basically be a corpse until the alarm goes off a dozen times and he has ten minutes to get out the door."
Kyungmin was another reason I wasn't absolutely terrified of starting at this new school. Two years ago Kyungmin took part in a six-month international exchange program and ended up staying at our house. He was actually around nine months younger than me – due to a childhood illness I'd started school a year later than everyone else and so would be turning nineteen later in the year – though the lanky giant had only gotten taller and was often mistaken for older than eighteen.
We hadn't seen each other in person for eighteen months, though had kept in constant contact.
"He's still like that?" sighed mum. "I hope he doesn't carry that habit into his senior year. And you, Y/N, don't start picking up that boy's habits."
I nodded; the comment wasn't worth an eye roll. Mum liked Kyungmin, though she liked nagging even more. Dad was at work already, though if he was here, he was the type to hide, lest the matriarch of this house expect him to agree with her in all matters.
Once I finished looking through everything I took a shower, surprised that my phone buzzed when I returned to my room. I went over to my bedside table and grabbed it.
And smiled. It was tall and lanky himself.
Clumsy🐹:
Ya, shorty, wanna meet up after school?
Me:
Oh my god is this really Minnie?
It's not even 8 and ur up?
I was not really short, though when you're a guy on the basketball team, I guess everyone was short to you.
Clumsy🐹:
My dongsaeng barged into my
room & threw the cat on me 😩😭
I had to get up 😭😭😭
Cheer me up by getting 🍦
with me
I adored Kyungmin's younger brother. Even though we had only ever chatted on FaceTime, Yungyu was the cutest. It was a shame he'd be two years below us. I couldn't help but smile at the text.
Me:
Fine. text me the
address. 4:15?
Kyungmin did, and seeing as I had several hours to kill, I thought I may as well explore my new locality. Since I had won several first-place trophies for sprinting and cross-country, my parents weren't too fussed about me going off by myself, though I imagined that being a new country, their rules might change temporarily.
"That's fine Dear," said mum when I went to her study/workspace to ask. "It's Friday anyway. But text me if you plan on staying out past six and I don't want you leaving Kyungmin's side."
With an "okay" and "love ya mum", I threw on something casual, braided my hair, put on some knock-off designer sunglasses and a face mask, and walked out. I had a map of the district on my phone and a good sense of direction. Mum had asked me to buy a few things on my way back, and I already knew where the corner store was.
The day went, and like the pathetic sap that I was, I'd spent a good portion of it hidden in the library. It's not that I was shy being by myself. But I'd realised how different Korean culture was in just a few hours, and didn't want to risk any misunderstandings that I was being rude.
But after waiting a little while in front of the candy store, a familiar face – easy enough to spot when it was at least a head taller than most of the crowds – lit up when it spotted me and waved. We had only met up a couple of days ago, but it still felt new, as before then, it had been over a year.
Kyungmin picked me up in a hug and spun me around, the two of us garnering a few odd or intrigued glances. Whether it was his height, my foreign appearance, or our dorky display, I didn't care.
"So, our uniform blazer kinda looks like mustard," I noted, glancing at him as we walked into the store through automatic doors.
"Yep," he agreed. "But very boujie mustard."
I snorted before taking in the store. I could see why this was Kyungmin's apparent favourite store.
"So," I said after we'd bought our ice-cream. "Be a good stereotypical best friend and give the new girl the rundown on her new school."
➶➶➶➶➶ ☆ ➷➷➷➷➷
Hello there folks, this is your author speaking.
I hope that was an okay first chapter. Sorry if it was boring, but I did want to give a bit of an intro before jumping into the "Action". But things will start to happen next chapter.
Are you liking Kyungmin's character so far?
(also, this is sort of how I imagined the uniform)
~ Daci