"Unnie!" The maknae cried out to the eldest. "Joy eonnie walks too slowly, can you scold her?" Yeri crossed her arms, pouting her lips. Joy could only make a face. Is it bad to savour peaceful mornings? She thought to herself.
"Why don't you just wait for us so I could drive us all to school together?" Irene suggested, smiling as she pranced around the kitchen. For some reason, every morning, the two of them leave too early than normal high school students would want to. Irene did wonder why but she never really asked because nothing was really wrong about leaving early for school.
"Right. Why do you two even head to school so early?" And the question is finally asked by Wendy as she frowned at both girls. Wendy was passing around glasses of milk as she was the one who usually helps Irene with kitchen chores.
"Oh right." Seulgi who was munching on toast bread brightened, remembering something. "Isn't Jungkookie in your class too?" Jungkook was an adorable dongsaeng that Seulgi had a good relationship with. They met after the opening ceremony where the clubs would start advertising and recruit the new students. While waiting for the other members to bring their artworks for display in their stall, Seulgi started arranging hers. There weren't many who inquired about the club, mostly just admiring the drawings displayed except for a certain boy.
At that time, Jungkook wasn't sure which Sports Club he'd join since he played different sports during Middle School, while deciding, a stall displayed with drawings and paintings caught his attention. "Are those your works?" Seulgi remembered him asking, and that's how Jungkook joined Arts Club.
She liked having him in the club. The club members were nice since most of them were seniors but their schedules didn't match so they rarely see each other. For some reason, she only had one or two of her classmates from Visual Arts that joined the club, she even wondered once if Jimin ever thought of joining since they were in all three of Visual Arts courses together. And so, with no close seniors present and only with her classmates that she rarely ever conversed with, she was left working on her drawings alone in the corner. But with Jungkook joining the club, she finally had someone to share Pringles with while they drew.
"Maybe I should pass by your class next time." Seulgi who was concentrating on putting butter on her toast didn't notice how the two younger girls went quiet and still at the mention of the guy's name unlike Irene and Wendy who picked up fast.
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Seulgi was in a good mood early in the morning, Wendy noticed while they both headed to their first class. Irene who was happy that she was able to drive the five of them to school passed the good vibe to Seulgi. As Wendy talked about how their practice yesterday went and how she felt she needed to work harder after she got lectured by their Yoongi oppa for not mastering the new piece, they stopped in their tracks hearing an energetic voice resonate in the hallway.
"SEULGI-YANG! WENDY-YANG!"
"Aish. You're so loud, it's too early." complained the tall guy beside their caller.
The two girls smiled at the boys and waved at them. "Hobi~ Namjoonie~" Jung Hoseok, stage name J-Hope but usually called Hobi and Kim Namjoon who was beside him were in the same year as them. They take the same courses in the morning but were in different class. It's usually not hard to see them around but it seems like the two of them have been busy with something these days. Seulgi wondered if Hoseok was working on a new choreography again. Indeed, the competitiveness the Cultural Festival brings. Hoseok is in a Street Dance Club, their crew is called NEURON and last year they participated in the dance competition and won the gold for their year level. They also represented the school against other schools and were considered as pride.
"It's been a while!" Hoseok broke into a small dance to show his excitement which elicited small giggles from the Wendy and Seulgi.
"Hi Hobi. Hi Namjoonie." Seulgi greeted warmly which the two boys returned with adoring smiles. Seulgi doesn't say much during conversations so it makes them happy when she makes the effort to join in because they know how easily her mind wanders.
"You two have been busy? We haven't seen you around lately." Wendy asked. It was too early so there was no rush among students and the hallway was still close to empty. The four of them walked leisurely to their classes while they talked.
"Yeah. Something with our hyung's– Oh right!" Hoseok's face lit up. "Wendz, are you still searching for a part time job?" His smile could embarrass the sunshine of spring, Seulgi thought.
"Oh yeah. You did mention before that you wanted to work part time right?" Namjoon added, snapping his fingers and Wendy could only nod.
"By any chance, do you have a job for me?" She asked in anticipation. It could look like they have it easy since they never have any problems with food while living away from their parents but it was only thanks to Irene and Yeri who were from well off families. The two were cousins; the Son and Kang families were family friends of their parents while Joy who lived with her aunt was a childhood friend of Yeri. The house they lived in was originally a gift from Irene's father when she decided to attend Hana Academy for her first year in high school. When Wendy and Seulgi graduated from Middle School, Irene didn't even think twice from inviting them to live with her.
Even though they were told to not worry about the expenses, Wendy still had to provide for herself. Her family as well as Seulgi's were just in middle class after all and being the mature one that she is, she makes sure not to always bother her parents if she could help it and that is how she is looking for a part time job. As for Seulgi, she receives allowance from her big brother and Wendy makes sure she uses it well.
"You see, Jin hyung hasn't opened his café but I did ask him if he accepts part timers and he said he could. He only needed four regular employees excluding the patisserie. Part timers would be okay." Hoseok started, grabbing Wendy's interest.
"He's officially opening next week. For the first three days, only personally invited costumers will be coming. This week, for the remaining days, he has to train the new employees. If I'm not wrong, you'll probably be trained to be barista, cashier and waitress for flexibility." Namjoon took out a flyer from the cafe and handed it to Wendy.
"Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa. What does it mean?" Seulgi read the café name, looking up at Namjoon with questioning eyes before looking back at the logo in the flyer. "What does it mean?"
Namjoon smiled as if he was glad that the question was asked. "Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa is a four character idiom. Hwa Yang means the shape of flower. Yeon Hwa means a time or moment." He started, his eyes suddenly filled with passion. "It literally means the beautiful moment of a flower. We thought that Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa could mean 'youth'. And that's how we started with Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa in the sense of 'youth'. But we consider it as the Most Beautiful Moment in Life, and we think that's youth. The meaning behind is deeper but you could just say that we want the cafe to be a place where people can spend time together in the most beautiful moment in life."
[Side note: Namjoon really did explain this,
excluding the part about the café of course.
I'm in tears. I need Namjoon as my life mentor.]
Patting Namjoon's shoulder, Hoseok gave him a proud smile. "Good job explaining it." He said before they both let out a short laugh.
Amazed by how Namjoon explained it, Seulgi suddenly stepped forward fixing her eyes to the both of them. "Can I visit every day?" She asked which left not only the two boys speechless but Wendy as well. Seulgi's thoughts would always wander everywhere but after listening to Namjoon's explanation, her mind was fixed at one thing. What's the most beautiful moment in life? It would be nice if I could explore what it is.
Regaining composure, Namjoon let out a chuckle. "Of course you can come anytime you want. Every day would be okay, right? Since Wendy's going to take the part time job?" Namjoon then turned to Wendy who was still wondering what Seulgi's sudden outburst was all about.
"Oh right. Yeah! Anyway, will I be the only part time employee?"
"No. We're making TaeTae take the job too."
"Taehyungie? Why?" Since the conversation went back to the part time job again, Seulgi occupied herself with the topic from earlier. The most beautiful moment in life. Youth. Spring. Suddenly, an excited smile slowly made its way to her lips. She couldn't wait to pick up her sketch pad.
"He tends to spend a lot of things so he runs out of budget even before his next allowance arrives so Jin hyung's making him work and at the same time teach him a lesson." Hoseok shook his head.
"That's good then. He should learn fast that money doesn't just appear in his hands magically." Wendy frowned, her mature side kicking in. If ever Taehyung slacks off, she's already thinking of how to teach him discipline.
"Even Jungkook is better at handling money than him, that rascal."
Upon hearing the familiar name, Seulgi whipped her head towards the boys. "Jungkook? By Jungkook, you mean, Jungkookie?"
Hoseok blinked at her. "You know our maknae, Seulgi-yang?" Their maknae? Seulgi wondered but she only nodded in response.
"Oh! Jungkook! You mean the handsome boy in your club who's also Yeri and Joy's classmate?" Wendy clapped her hands together as realization dawned to her. "Hobi, you did mention that there were seven of you in one house right? Wait- seven? Isn't it tough for seven boys in one roof?"
Both boys could only grin and shrug. "We're used to it. We've been living together ever since Jungkookie was still in first year Middle School. Well, we lived in a dormitory before with separate rooms but technically, yeah- we lived together that long."
"You lived in a dormitory? Together?" Seulgi asked. If Jungkook was first year in Middle School that time, that means Jimin and Taehyungie are second years. "You lived in a dormitory at a young age." Seulgi blurted out.
"Well, yeah. We were from different provinces; coincidentally we went to the same school. Jungkookie and Jimin are from Busan but of course Jimin came to Seoul first. Jungkookie joined the dormitory lastly, it was kinda sad because not even living half a year with us, the dormitory was caught on fire." Saying they were surprised was an understatement. They were stunned. For that to happen was far from their imagination. If they didn't mention anything, they wouldn't have known.
Images of the boys watching their house burn along with their valuables flashed inside Seulgi's mind and she knew that if she were in their shoes, she'd be devastated and heartbroken. To think they were now able to even think about the most beautiful moment in life, you wouldn't have thought that they faced such hardship before.
"You two don't have to worry about us." Hoseok let out a hearty laugh, his cheeks rising from his wide smile. "We felt sorry for Jungkook because he had to go through all that despite being so young and in his first year in middle school at that so we worked hard together. Believe it or not, Yoongi hyung and Jin hyung are very reliable. Namjoon's parents were the closest compared to ours. They helped us a lot too."
Smiling at each other, they continued their conversation with a light-hearted topic as they headed for their classes. When they were nearing their classroom, something caught their eye. There was a crowd of students in front of their classroom. Seulgi tilted her head to the side.
"Are they distributing free candies?" She asked mostly to herself.
Hoseok laughed louder than he intended for it to be, catching the crowd's attention. "Ah. It's not free candies, Seulgi-ah. It's just the four of them together."
"Yoongi hyung looks irritated." Namjoon noted.
It wasn't really a solid crowd. Just girls attempting to make conversation but in reality they looked like they were ready to throw themselves if not only for Yoongi's stern gaze making them freeze in place. Realizing the majority of the crowd, Seulgi's eyes went to Jimin who made sure he had his attention solely on their maknae. He might be feeling uncomfortable already. Seulgi who was assuming that Jimin had a phobia of something female related thought to herself.
Finally nearing them, Yoongi stood up straight from leaning on the wall. "Namjoon-ah. What took you so long?" Turning to Seulgi and Wendy, he waved slightly. "Good morning you two, I'm afraid I'll have to borrow Namjoon for a bit."
"Good morning, oppa." They chorused and after that, the two immersed themselves in a serious conversation.
"Oh? Noona came with the hyungs?" Jungkook asked in mild surprise as he watched Hoseok fill in Taehyung with the details about his part time job with Wendy.
"Hm." Seulgi nodded a small smile on her face. Jungkook was of course taller than her so she had to look up at him when they talk. "We happened to bump to each other and I guess we talked too much on the way." even though she didn't do much talking. "Good morning by the way. Are you going to the club room later?" Seulgi tilted her head.
"I think so. Jieun sunbaenim did give us a new theme as an assignment, right? I don't have training for any other clubs so I can go."
"That's good, then." Noticing someone shift from behind Jungkook, Seulgi peeked to his side to see who it was only to meet Jimin's surprised face. Seulgi unconsciously smiled as she wondered if he was silent the whole time to not disturb any conversation that was happening around him.
Jungkook stepped aside now making Jimin in full view. "Hyung, were you hiding?" The maknae snickered before blocking Jimin's playful hit.
"Shut up." He complained but his face didn't show any sign of anger, instead, he was all smiles from the maknae's teasing.
Ah, what a wonderful sight to see early in the morning.
"Hi." Seulgi gave a small wave, a small smile on her lips.
"... Hi." Jimin tried to look at the other way but all of the 'ways' are no good since his hyungs' eyes were on him. When he saw Yoongi raising a brow at him as if asking 'what are you waiting for?', he then gathered himself making sure he's not dropping any drops of sanity.
"Good morning." Jimin said in a low voice but enough for her to hear.
With a beautiful smile on her face, she greeted back. "Good morning, Jimin." The simple but adorable exchange between the two only made everyone's insides warm and fuzzy.
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"So?" Wendy turned to Krystal's direction. Their teacher just left and because she was late, she only heard bits and pieces about the event from earlier.
"'So' what?" Wendy asked in bewilderment. Seulgi was writing all the cakes she wanted to taste in Jin's café that was soon to be opening. Even though Wendy told her that not everything on her list may be included in the menu, she still insisted in writing so Wendy let her do her thing.
"Is it true?" With sparkling eyes that scared Wendy, Krystal asked.
"What is?"
"That they were here! For the first time! They were gathered here in front of our classroom? Oh my gosh. Yoongi oppa was here?!" Krystal was now shaking her by the shoulder and Wendy couldn't do anything but let her.
"Yeah."
"And you two talked to them?" Krystal gasped and feigned hurt when Wendy nodded in response with a slight roll of her eyes. Krystal was a fan of Yoongi and even though Wendy acts clueless about it, she knows. After all, she's Krystal's target of jealousy whenever they finish practicing together.
"Yoongi oppa was waiting for Namjoonie and we only happened to bump into each other so we walked together." Wendy shrugged, not really interested in Krystal's fangirling at the moment. She was too worried if she'll do well. It was already decided that they go together tomorrow for first day of training, she didn't really know much about the café's owner, all she knew about him is that he's the eldest among the seven of them and he's her sunbaenim.
"But they said Jimin and Seulgi—"
"Wendz!" Taehyung called out from his seat, interrupting Krystal. The two girls turned to the energetic boy while Seulgi's eyes met Jimin. He always wondered why she kept looking at him, it even made him conscious and think that there's something on his face. It took a lot of convincing from Taehyung and his hyungs that there was none. Jimin gave her a ghost of smile before turning his attention to Taehyung but not completely because he just wanted to be distracted.
This seemed to take Seulgi by surprise that her eyes went slightly wide before she started doodling random things on her notebook. I guess it really is a different feeling if he smiles at you willingly. He always looked uncomfortable around me so I thought−
"We should go to the café tomorrow together." Taehyung's suggestion caught everyone's attention, particularly the girls. Wendy did not notice right away but Krystal did. She gave a menacing glare to everyone who dared to eye her friends badly. Noticing her evil look, they all turned away, pissed off but in fear. No one wants to face Krystal's wrath after all.
Jimin too noticed this so he decided to not mind Taehyung's conversation with her so as to not blow the fire stronger. Wendy walked towards Taehyung's seat so they won't have to shout across the classroom.
"That's fine with me but can I bring Seulgi with me?" At the mention of her name, Jimin stopped doodling on his notes. "I wanted to let her see what would be on the menu as well so she won't be disappointed when ordering at the opening."
"Perfectly fine!" Taehyung cheekily gave a thumbs up before pulling Jimin for a headlock. "Then I'll be bringing Jiminie with me to accompany her while we get trained."
Jimin's eyes widened, "WHAT?" Wendy whipped her head to his direction, the three of them fell in silence but Taehyung was secretly holding his laugh. "I– I mean... Why do I have to go with you?"
"What do you mean why?" Taehyung asked, pulling him in a head lock. "It'd be a bore waiting for us to finish. You know Jin hyung nags a lot so I don't think we'll finish as early as we hope."
"You and Namjoon hyung are the only ones who get nagged a lot." Finally escaping his best friend's clutches, he straightened himself.
Ignoring the comment, Taehyung continued. "As I was saying, you'll have to accompany Seulgi-yang because waiting for us would be boring." Although Wendy was 100% sure Seulgi wouldn't have any problems being left alone waiting for them to finish because she has the natural talent to find every little thing interesting and gets lost in her own world a lot, Wendy decided to keep that bit of information to herself. After all, it looks like Taehyung and the other boys know something they don't. She shouldn't meddle in other's business.
Jimin knew he can't win against Taehyung on this one. Plus he's surely gonna use her name against him so Jimin didn't dare to argue anymore. Guess I have no choice. At the back of his mind, he knew he had a choice but he didn't entirely hate the idea of accompanying Seulgi. She was an interesting girl after all. What's the harm?
Meanwhile,
"You know Seul."
"Hmm?"
"For someone who gets talked a lot about by others, especially by the guy you 'like', you sure are impenetrable."
"Do you think they have Peppermint Latte on their menu?"
Krystal let out a tired sigh. "You're impossible."
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Additional Info:
Seulgi & Jimin's afternoon classes;
Grade 11 Visual Arts :
This course enables students to further develop their knowledge and skills in visual arts. Students will use the creative process to explore a wide range of themes through studio work that may include drawing, painting, sculpting, and printmaking, as well as the creation of collage, multimedia works, and works using emerging technologies. Students will use the critical analysis process when evaluating their own work and the work of others.
Grade 11 Visual Arts - Advertising Art and Design :
This course offers students the opportunity to explore topics and complete projects that develop their skills and knowledge in the field of advertising and design. Both traditional and digital graphic design techniques will be developed. Students will be introduced to basic design theory, advertising and promotion as a business, page layout, illustration and the history of design.
Grade 11 Visual Arts - Drawing Cartooning :
This course enables students to further develop their knowledge and skills in cartooning. Students will use the critical analysis process when evaluating their own work and the work of others. Students will practice drawing from popular and historical styles such as comics and caricature. Both traditional drawing tools and computer software will be explored. The studio component will cover fundamentals of drawing, anatomy and perspective through sketchbook assignments and model sheets. Specialized skills in the fields of applied art and design will be further developed and culminate with portfolio by the end of the course.
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Hello! This is now the new version of Chapter iii. "Good Morning." Yes. A lot has changed. I'm sorry for the inconvenience! ;; I hope you understand.
It's been a while since I wrote a story, pov's are so hard. As for the photo of the flyer, I made it myself. HAHA!
I hope you like this chapter! Thank you for the comments and votes! Very much appreciated.
♔Alice