Ryujin... RYUJIN!
I woke up thanks to my mother, who was shaking me by the shoulder. I could see that it was dark outside and the digital clock on my desk read exactly 10:00 pm.
"What do you want, mom?" I asked into my pillow, turning the other way so I could shield myself from the light coming from the hallway.
She turned on the light and I grunted, covering myself completely with the blanket.
"Get up! Soobin is here, you're leaving for New York in four hours, remember?"
"Shit, yeah! Fuck!"
"Watch your language and go take a quick shower!"
I sighed as I got out of bed, grabbing the clothes I had packed for the trip. I felt excitement bubbling in my stomach and was anxious to finally get going, even if it meant leaving Soobin behind.
"What date is today?" I asked as I went to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready.
"It's September 9th. Your deadline is the 11th, so you're good. Now go, princess, you don't want to be late! I'll keep Soobin company in the meantime in the living room."
Of course you will.
And with that, she turned away leaving me alone in the room.
I managed to take a shower and put on my makeup in 26 minutes, before stuffing my Minnie Mouse that Yeji won for me two years ago into my backpack.
I stared at the wall, wondering what Yeji would be doing at this exact moment. I had gotten over her a while ago, before I was with Soobin.
Despite the state of my relationship, I sometimes found myself thinking about what Yeji would be doing now. I still had her red jacket that she gave me the last time we met and the piercing in my belly button always reminded me of her.
I threw on a black New York sweatshirt over my plain sweatshirt and grabbed my backpack from my desk, ready to go. As I walked out the stairs, I could hear my mother using her seductive voice, probably trying to entice my boyfriend with her breast implants.
"Mom, I'm here please go to bed with my father, you know, your husband of about twenty years."
She turned to me embarrassed, fastening the top three buttons of her revealing camisole.
Thank God she never met Yeji.
"Good luck princess and call me as soon as you get there. Remember that credit card we talked about? We will send you a monthly amount, but you should find a job okay? Your dad may also go to work in the States sometimes, so maybe you will find him. But be a good girl and don't drop your classes, okay?"
I nodded and she smiled.
I decided to enroll in literature and dance as a side option, just like Yuna, who went into psychology.
"Bye mom, come on baby?" I asked turning to Soobin, who was leaning against the door with the car keys in his hand.
He nodded and waved to my mother, before we both walked out the door and he offered to carry my luggage.
The car ride was full of chatter, mostly from his side, he kept talking and talking about how he was going to miss me and it lasted about an hour, before he finally stopped in front of the airport.
"Bye, baby." Soobin said and leaned over the console.
"Wait, aren't you going to wait inside with me?" I asked.
"I'm sleepy. I'm not going to wait three hours for a plane." He smiled. "But I love you, so if you need anything, just call me."
"We're gonna break up now?"
"We can try long distance if you want. Besides, you can visit me during the vacations, right?"
"Okay." I said looking anywhere but his face.
He pressed a kiss to my lips and I slid my tongue into his mouth. We made out for a couple of minutes, until the seatbelt dug painfully into my bladder.
"Facetime when you set up in your bedroom?" He asked me smiling.
"Sure."
"See ya, babe."
"See ya." I said and out of the car, before going to get my luggage from the trunk. I got one of those carts where I put all my boxes and suitcases so I could easily push them around.
After doing what I had to do, I went to find a Starbucks before calling Yuna.
"Hey bitch!" She greeted, a little too cheerful for my liking.
"Hey, Yuna... Ummm, are you still going to pick me up at the airport?"
"Yeah baby, Ningning and I were just about to leave, but we'll be there around four, right?"
"Yeah, time zones and all that."
"Do you want me to bring you something? You like coffee or something?"
"No worries."
"Weird. But it's okay, I'm so excited!"
Then I heard to Ningning make a strange noise and the call cut off.
I sighed and plopped down on one of the seats near the door. I was extremely happy to finally start a good life and a possible future on a completely different continent.
It was going to be amazing.
A few hours later, I was sitting between a wrinkled old lady and a guy who smelled like tacos, on my way to New York.
Even the accents of the people were exciting.
"Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seat belts, we are about to land at JFK, New York."
Everyone cheered once we landed and I could practically smell the American air.
"I stepped off the plane at JFK with my dreams and my cardigan, welcome in the land of fame and excess, who am I to fit in? I jumped on the ca-" I began to sing as I made my way out.
I'm an idiot, but who the fuck cares.
"Shut the fuck up!" Someone yelled as the doors opened.
My smile spread across my face as I walked toward the airport, looking for two familiar faces holding a sign with my name on it.
I immediately spotted Yuna and Ningning, though it wasn't that hard to distinguish them from the normal people who weren't jumping up and down and shouting my name.
I smiled and waved, walking towards them. I also saw someone strangely familiar with warm hazel eyes and brown hair pulled back. Yuna squealed and hugged me, before Ningning followed her actions.
"Oh my god, you grew like... A foot!" She said pushing me back by the shoulders so she could look at me.
"Actually only two inches, but whatever."
"Oh, oh... This is James!" She said looking at the boy. "James, this is my cousin Ryujin. He's Ningning's roommate and he's there to be a musician, he plays the drums."
Yuna looked at me arching her eyebrows and I wanted to slap her in the face because that was so embarrassing.
"I'm sorry, but you look very familiar." I said turning to James, trying to ease the tension.
"That's what I was going to say, actually." He spoke up and oh yeah, I definitely knew him from somewhere. "Wait... Weren't you on that exchange with my sister two years ago? You know, when you had to stay at our house for a week and vice versa?"
"Oh yeah, the Thorne's! Now I remember!"
How could I forget his kind face and also when I found him naked in the bathroom once?
He must have noticed my red cheeks because he smiled and Yuna gave us a suspicious look. Then he changed the subject, saying there was a cab waiting and all he really wanted to do was go back to bed.
Then I realized that it was actually 4 a.m. in New York and I had to call my mother. I tried not to stare at James' bulging muscles through his thin long-sleeved shirt as he managed to carry half my bags while Ningning carried the other half.
I called my mother who was excited and used the cab as an excuse to hang up on her. Yuna then put an arm around my shoulder and smiled broadly at me.
"What?" I asked her.
"So... You like James?" She asked and I grimaced.
"What? Are you crazy? I have a boyfriend."
"What? How? Who? When?" she stammered genuinely surprised and confused.
"Soobin? Tattoos, brown eyes?"
"Ohhh... Was that the guy I threw up on at your 18th birthday?"
"Yeah." I replied and she bit her lip.
"Oh I remember him, your mom is all over him."
"I know."
"And how long have you two been dating?"
"Two years this December."
"Two fucking years?!" She yelled, opening her eyes wider. "Whoa!"
"What about you and Ningning?" I asked as they loaded the luggage into the trunk of the cab.
"Um... Two years and a week ago."
"Wow, I never would have expected that."
"Neither did we." She said and shot a mischievous look at the blonde.
We finally piled into the booth, James in the front and the rest of us in the back.
"So what career are you in college?" I asked Ningning.
"At the New York Academy of Arts."
"You're a dancer?"
She nodded.
"But that's a sideline, I'm studying to become an actress."
"So when do you dance?"
"At a dance club with Hussey."
"And you'll join us too, right? I already told heejin a lot about you." Yuna entered from the other side of the car.
"Yeah, sure."
"What classes did you sign up for?"
"Um... Literature, French, Music and Drama. But I'll be studying for a degree in dance as well."
Yuna then informed me that she also wanted to get a degree in dance and would also study literature.
The university was huge, I had nervous butterflies in my stomach. There were barely a few people on campus as it was very early in the morning. The building was gigantic, made of red bricks. It had a huge campus from what I could see and many buildings behind it, which I could only assume were the dorms.
"So, this has fraternity too?"
"Fraternity houses? Yes, Alpha Beta Pi, Omega Xi, Sigma Delta Zeta and the best, Theta Delta Chi. In fact, I'm in a Sigma Kappa sorority."
I nodded with a smile as we walked to the entrance of the building to check in.
"Actually TDC has the hottest guys on campus." She told me and hooked her arm around mine.
"Yeah?" I asked without interest.
In short order, the secretary gave me my room key and room number, before giving me a schedule for all my classes and the map of the university.
"Peak week will also be next week, in case you are interested and feel free to join any club." She added.
Ningning and James then excused themselves, saying they really wanted to go back to their dorm and sleep. Yuna gave Ningning a kiss and she smiled.
"I'll show you your room!" Yuna said and wrestled with my suitcases while I wrestled with my boxes.
They finally made it out of the building and walked towards the dorms. We took the elevator to the fifth floor, where my room was.
"This is it. 521."
I tapped my foot and after a couple of tries, a red-haired girl in pajamas opened the door.
"Can I help you?" She asked and Yuna and I shared a look.
"Yes, um... I'm your roommate. Ryujin, I would have used the key and shaken your hand, but my arms are a bit busy."
"Let me help you then!" She offered and took a couple of boxes from my arms, inviting us in.
The room was definitely smaller than my room at home and didn't have a personal bathroom.
It had a large window, with two identical desks against it. The one on the right was occupied, while the one on the left was empty. There were also two bunk beds and two closets.
"I am Chaeryeong. Lee Chaeryeong."
"I'm Ryu... I mean, Shin Ryujin, but everyone calls me Ryu."
"Cool." She said smiling and I knew we would get along.
"Well, I'm going to go now, I'm really tired. By the way I'm Yuna, Ryu's cousin."
"I know, you're Sophie's roommate at SK."
"Yes, yes, you know her!?"
"She's Ryan's cousin."
"Fuck, I forgot. Anyway, I really have to get going. See you later, we can go find Starbucks and I can show you around if you want. James can come with us." Yuna said winking at me before leaving, probably forgetting that I had a boyfriend and was NOT interested in James.
"So... You're a freshman too?"
"I'm a sophomore. I'm studying to become a psychologist."
"Ah, cool."
"And you?"
"Dance."
"I'd love to chat, but my eyes will close any second."
"Um... Sure, but where's the bathroom? I need to wash my hands before I lay down on the bed."
"Just down the hall, last one on the right."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." Was all she said before climbing back up on the bed.
I left the room and quickly peed and washed my hands in the bathroom before heading back.
I didn't even bother to undress, just took off my vans and cap, before climbing into bed and planting my face on the pillow.
***
Three days and the jetlag finally wore off, then I was ready to go explore the 'activity fair' that has been going on for a week on campus.
Chaeryeong and Yuna offered to accompany me, but it turned out that Ningning and James also joined us and the guy Ryan, who was from England also accompanied us.
"Where's your roommate?" Yuna asked, slipping an arm around Ryan's shoulder, after I introduced myself.
"The usual. Y became immortal last night because today is THE birthday, she won't get up until noon so we can get the house ready. I think she slept with your roommate last night, but she didn't say so. I was drunk too."
"Wait. Today is her birthday?" Yuna asked looking at Ningning. "Oh shit yeah... It's the 13th! Shit, I should text her or something."
Ningning shrugged her shoulders and Yuna pushed her arm away. I saw Chaeryeong looking at Ryan in a weird way so I had to ask.
"What's wrong?"
"What do you mean?" Chaeryeong asked as she picked up a flyer from the science club, pretending to keep an eye on it.
"I mean, you're looking at Ryan with an expression on your face."
"Oh yeah. I like him." The redhead said casually, glancing at the flyer before tossing it away.
"Then why don't you do something about it?"
"I don't think he'll really accept it."
"Why not?"
"Because he would never like me."
"Why not?" I asked again.
"Because I'm fat... And he and his roommate always call me a whale. Well, actually just his roommate, but Ryan is guilty by association."
I frowned, feeling nothing but pity for her. I knew what it was like to be teased about your weight.
"You're beautiful and funny. And Ryan and his stupid roommate can go fuck themselves, okay?"
She smiled and then made a joke about cows to get everything back to normal.
"Oh, here's our dance club! Sign up Ryu!" Yuna said as we passed by a booth that wasn't occupied by anyone.
"But there's no one here."
"That's because I'm supposed to take care of that, shit!"
I rolled my eyes and wrote my name on that sheet, I noticed it was quite popular, as there was barely a space left to sign up.
"A lot of people want to take dance classes. They think it's just some free exercise. We have serious gigs all over New York and we even get paid, so..." Yuna shrugged and leaned back in the sticky chair.
"Want to grab a coffee? There's a Starbucks around the corner." James suggested, turning to Chaeryeong, Ryan and me. Ningning decided to join Yuna in the search for new dancers, and by joining they meant sucking each other's faces off.
"Sure." I shrugged and James smiled, his eyes almost closed which I thought was really cute.
"So, what are you doing James?" I asked as we walked down the crowded hallway.
Chaeryeong and Ryan were walking behind us and I could actually hear them having a conversation about a party apparently one to be held tonight.
"I'm in a band, I'm the drummer."
"A band? What's it called?"
"One-way."
"One-way?"
He nodded.
"Yes, with three other people."
"Who?"
"Um. Zayn, his brother Jake, and Y—shit!"
"What?"
"We already went by the store."
He said seriously and I burst out laughing, even though it wasn't that funny.
Helloaaaaaa
I made you guys suffer, didn't I? Lmao.
I'm sorry and I hope you guys can enjoy part two of this book.
Thank you 🖤