CHAPTER 14- Pub. May 11, 2019
An unfamiliar beep alerted me as I woke. I smiled as I realized it was my new alarm. I sat up swiped the screen on my phone, which was the source of the alarm. I stopped the music, which was a piano version of ‘Hold Me Tight’, one of the songs BTS had released in one of their most recent albums.
Just like the few days before, I awoke with a smile. That is, until this time, since it disappeared quickly, once I realized today was going to be my first day back at school. I groaned and fell back into the bed. Maybe I could just stay in bed for a little, and the members would let me be home one more day.
Then, I heard a knock on the door, followed by a voice, “Sujin?”
“Yes?” I replied.
“Ah, good, you’re awake. Why don’t you get dressed, and then head downstairs for breakfast and we’ll help you get ready?” they asked. I could tell it was Jin.
“Okay,” I agreed. I wasn’t getting out of going to school.
I hopped out of bed and grabbed the mustard yellow uniform Jin had brought me earlier. It was the standard one for the school, with a yellow jacket and navy blue skirt. It had a bow near the collar, and I was required to wear white socks that would show just above the shoes of my choice. (A/N: This is not the actual uniform that Middle Schools in Korea require, you might recognize it as similar to Jungkook’s High School uniform, and I did some research but all Middle Schools are different so I decided it can just be a version on Jungkook’s High School uniform, so I hope that works. ALSO, I’m going to do some describing of Sujin, but please remember, she can look like and be whoever you like, even yourself, this is just how I’d want her, so I’m describing her as this, but you can follow my description or make her your own :) )
After my morning routine was done, along with slight makeup, I headed downstairs. My dark brown hair was down and in slight curls, and my uniform was quite cute, in my opinion.
“Ahhh, there she is,” Jin smiled as I entered the kitchen. “I knew the uniform would fit you perfectly.”
“When Jungkook got his first uniform for High School, his top was two sizes too big, and his pants were two sizes too small” Taehyung told me. I laughed.
“You match Jungkook, now,” Namjoon said.
“Yes, it’s kind of weird how the Middle School uniforms match the High School ones. Back where I used to go to school, the uniforms were different depending on school, but I guess each district is different,” I explained.
“I think it’s cute,” Jin smiled. “The two maknaes wearing matching uniforms.”
“Wait-” Jungkook started with longing eyes. “I’m not the maknae anymore.”
“Ha!” I laughed. “Did you just now realize that?”
“Mm,” he smiled. “I’m still the BTS maknae,” he concluded.
“Yes, but I’m the maknae,” I prodded
He shook his head, “Ehm, no.”
“Is Jungkooki-ie getting jealous that someone is taking his spot?” Taehyung mocked. Jungkook puckered his lips, not wanting to show the secret envy sprouting inside of him.
Jin came to the table with two plates, each filled with eggs and a slice of toast. He placed one in front of me and then Jungkook before going back to prepare the other some for the other members.
“I shouldn’t be asking this, Sujin,” Jin started from behind the bar table inside the kitchen, “But how are you feeling about school today?”
I groaned and sunk into my chair. “Yeah, Jin, you shouldn’t have asked that.”
He smiled. “We can go over your schedule one more time and have Jungkook give you the run down again.”
“No, I’ve got the schedule cemented in my head by now,” I rolled my eyes. “At this point, I’m pretty confident about where to go and how to work things, I just don’t feel like going and having to work.”
“Hah,” Jungkook laughed. “Sounds like Yoongi hyung.”
“That’s a first, then,” I mumbled. I usually didn’t have the, “Let’s be lazy and not do anything that’s work or physical movement!” mood, I was usually one to be outgoing and ready for anything. Not this time, though, I realized, as Yoongi’s attitude wore onto me.
I finished breakfast quickly, and all the members had come down to wish me luck and give me a few encouraging words. As Jungkook and I were grabbing our backpacks and getting ready to walk to school, Yoongi caught my attention. He grabbed my hand and lead me a few steps from Jungkook so we could whisper without him hearing us.
He leaned down and whispered into my ear, “I know this will be scary for you, no matter how much you hide it, I know it’s there. It always is, I mean, not only for you, but for others too. Just remember to call me anytime you want, ask your teachers and they will let you. If anything happens at all, call me first, okay? I want to know first, no matter what. Even if you just need an encouraging word, I’m there. I’ll have my phone by me all day,” he explained.
I nodded, “Thank you, Yoongi.”
He pulled me into a hug before ushering me off to Jungkook, “Keep her safe, Kook, I’m counting on you.” Jungkook nodded, looking to Yoongi as if he already knew, before opening the door as we stepped out into the spring morning air.
We walked side by side for a while. I was still a little shy around Jungkook, and he didn’t seem to want to talk either, so neither of us bothered to start a conversation until after several minutes.
“Have you told the other members that you know about the article?” he finally asked, breaking the silence.
“No, why would I do that? I promised I wouldn’t.”
He shrugged, “You’re young, and I believe you really trust the other members. You tell them everything.”
“Oh. Well, I made a promise.”
“Good that you kept it,” he told me, before smiling.
We continued walking, side by side, as our feet talked to the pavement.
“There’s the school,” he said, pointing to a cluster of giant buildings that looked as if they could all be schools.
“Uh, which one?” I asked, as there were three different main entry ways to each building. Each building was a different size, but all had kids strolling inside.
“The one in the middle. That is the middle school, and the one to the right, the big one, that’s the high school, where I’ll be going. They’re all connected but are sectioned off. To the left is the Elementary School,” he explained.
“Ah,” I nodded.
“The cafeteria is in the middle school but all schools go there for lunch. That way, you can meet me when you eat. During free period at the end of the day, sometimes you can go to one of the other schools if you have permission. I’ll ask my teacher if you can come to my homeroom during free period so we can walk home together.”
“Okay, thanks Jungkook,” I told him as we neared the traffic of the students piling into their school.
“I’ll walk you to the office to pick up your locker code paper, since we haven’t done that yet, I’ll show you to your class, and then you’re on your own,” he explained. He grabbed my hand and we started off towards the doors of the middle school, where we were pushed and our hands were almost forced out of each other’s. We pursued on, Jungkook clinging close to me until we broke off and out of the huge crowd of people and into the quiet school office.
Jungkook walked up to the desk and asked the office assistant nicely, “Hey, I’ve got Sujin here, we’ve registered her earlier so she’s starting her first day. Could we have her locker information?”
“Ah, of course! And, we’ve actually got a student that has most of her classes with Sujin to show her around. Maybe they can become friends, does that sound good?” the lady asked.
“That sounds perfect, right, Sujin?” Jungkook asked me.
“Yes, thank you,” I said shyly. It didn’t sound too much like a bad idea. I wouldn’t be alone, and maybe I’d have a new friend quickly.
The lady picked up one of the school phones sitting on her desk and dialed a number. After a second, she spoke, “Thank you, could you send Meori down to the office to meet the new student?”(The ‘r’ in Meori is a mix of a ‘r’ and a ‘l’ sound in Korean, but you can say it as either Meo-ree or Meo-lee, if you can’t pronounce the mix XD Also.. I just realized this word means ‘head’ in Korean… but umm I like this name so please don’t hate me)
She put down the phone before handing me a piece of paper. It had a welcome message to the school and my locker number and code. As I was looking over the sheet of paper, I saw from the corner of my eye that someone was approaching the office. I looked up to see a girl my age with long, straight, black hair with streaks of light highlight running down. I could tell she had a bit of makeup on- more than I’d ever wear.
As soon as she saw me with Jungkook, she tried to hide what seemed like surprise and terror, but that expression quickly faded and she smiled at me before bowing.
“Annyeonghaseyo, I’m Bang Meori. I hope to be your friend. When is your birth date?” she asked.
“December 2nd,” I responded.
“Ah, I’m older than you, but drop the honorifics. I hope to get to know you really soon,” she insisted.
“Ah, thank you,” I replied.
“Well, if you’re ready, I can bring you to your homeroom,” Meori offered.
“You ready?” Jungkook asked.
I nodded, “Yeah, thanks, see you later, Kook.”
Meori took my hand and my heart thumped loudly as I realized I was leaving Jungkook.
I was alone.
I looked back, behind me, and got one last glimpse of Jungkook’s face, smiling, welcoming, and safe, before he was hidden by the swarm of students and I was being pulled, farther and farther away.
We branched off to a hall lined with lockers and I looked down at the paper in my hand.
“What’s your locker number?” Meori asked.
“134.”
“Oh, haha, I should have known that,” she laughed. “Yours is the empty one next to mine. All the people who have the same classes have lockers near each other,” she explained. She took the paper with my code and opened a fairly large, black locker. “First class is Language Arts, so you’ll need a notebook, your binder- because our teacher loves to give handouts- your pencil pouch, and anything else, like a water bottle or such. The rest, you can leave in your locker. We’ll come back for our next class.”
I didn’t say a word as I obeyed her, grabbing my new supplies and what I needed, while leaving everything else in the new locker. As I was sorting out my stuff, Meori leaned on her locker, next to time, and watched me.
“So,” she started, almost glaring at me. “Do you have a boyfriend?”
“Uhm, no,” I told her, questioningly. “Girls here in the 7th grade don’t usually have boyfriends, do they?”
“You and Jungkook aren’t a thing?” she asked, ignoring my question.
“Oh,” I gasped, surprised at where this was going. “No, no, he’s not my boyfriend,” I laughed.
“Then are you family, his sister, or what?”
“Er, you could say that. It’s kind of complicated.”
“Must be, he’s one of the most popular guys around here, everyone knows he’s in BTS. Not to mention, he’s one of the cutest guys around.”
“Are you a fan?”
“Yea, you could say that. I recognized him right away, but I mean, anyone would.”
“He’s that popular?”
“Girl, have you been living under a rock?”
“I guess,” I shrugged
“Hmph,” Meori huffed. “Forget about it, let’s get to class.”
-----
I stood up, the countless eyes peering at me. I smiled as a familiar rush of feeling swarmed me. I remembered the feels and the smells of when I used to go to school. I was starting to feel more comfortable, and I was happy, even though, school had officially started about fifteen minutes ago.
“I’m -well- I’m Sujin,” I stuttered. I realized I didn’t know what my family name was, since all the members except Taehyung, Jin, and Namjoon had different family names. My two legal guardians were Jin and Yoongi, but all the members were caring for me, so I decided to go with the name on my birth certificate, plus, most of the members were named the same, “Kim Sujin. I am 13, my birthday is December 2nd, and I like music, dancing, and, hmm,” I thought for a second. “I like BTS. I think they’re really cool and I want to maybe be like them one day. I hope I can make new friends and enjoy this school year,” I explained, before sitting down, happy with my introduction.
I looked over to Meori for approval, but she sat, staring a her pencil that was being twiddled by her fingers, loudly smacking the gum in her mouth, as if she didn’t care about my intro to the class. I looked back to the teacher, slightly disappointed. I wished Meori cared more. She didn’t seem to care too much about being friendly to me, or helping me out. I didn’t blame her, who would want to take time out of their day to act like they cared about someone else’s?
“Thank you, Sujin. Hey, don’t a few of you in the class like BTS as well?” the teacher asked. A few students raised their hands. “Well, Sujin, it looks like you’ll get along just well here, as it looks like some of your peers have the same interests!” she exclaimed. I nodded and smiled.
Maybe she was right.
The teacher went on with her lesson, though she didn’t grab the student’s attention very easily. I listened readily, being the good student I was, while making sure to try and pick up what they had been learning earlier in the year so I’d be able to catch up quickly.
The lesson wasn’t too bad for me, and time quickly passed. I was actually enjoying it, but our teacher was interrupted as the door to the classroom opened and a head popped out.
My eyes widened as I realized who it was.
Jin.
“Excuse me, Choi-nim, I have something to deliver to Sujin,” he said, waving a brown paper bag in the air.
“Ah, yes, go ahead, Sujin. You’re excused for a minute,” my teacher agreed, and I ran over to Jin, where he took me into the hall as to not disrupt the class any further.
“Jin, why are you here?” I immediately asked.
“I know we talked about you buying lunch from the school but I later realized that you should get a treat from me for your first day. I packed the leftover kimchi fried rice, lamb skewers, and beans.”
“Really?” I asked, getting excited.
“Yep, and a few other surprises,” he told me, handing me the bag.
“Thank you, Jin!” I squealed.
“Well, how’s my princess doing so far?” he asked.
“It’s going really well. The girl, Meori, who’s supposed to show me around, she’s nice, just a little, well, odd,” I explained.
“Sujin-ie, there’s always going to be those type of people. Find the real people that will be real friends. Go back there and show them who you are,” Jin encouraged.
I nodded, “Yes, Jin.”
“I should let you get back to class. Remember to enjoy school and show them what you’ve got!”
“Mm hm!” I agreed, giving Jin a hug.
“Bye, princess!” he bid, before setting off.
A/N Don’t ask me what I’m doing. I don’t know.
This chapter.. I was looking forward to it since I started the book, and now, I just don’t know what I’m doing, so I hope I can continue the book with more strength and since I already have plans for what’s going to happen, I hope I can write about it. Thank you for your support so far, every comment, every vote, every view gives me more and more strength, so thank you so much. I appreciate you guys more than you can imagine!
Love yourself, take care of yourself, and have a good day/night/evening!
Also, I just celebrated my 1 year anniversary of knowing BTS with my friends today so happy anniversary to me! XD
ALSO THE REAL DRAMA IS COMING IN THE NEXT CHAPTER I PROMISE GET HYPED AND READY FOR IT!