The genius who even insults the gods shouted, her blonde hair fluttering.
– “Hahaha!! I passed on my first try!! How about that!! I’m so talented─!!”
“……”
I opened the window and watched with my chin resting on my hand.
“…You have a nice voice.”
After listening to what the blonde crazy girl said, I could roughly guess her identity. She seemed to be a new student who had just passed. And she was likely one of my classmates (or soon-to-be classmates).
‘Juri said she passed yesterday… So she must have gotten the acceptance call last night, then came here to hang out during the break?
And today just happens to be the dormitory move-out day. There are a lot of people walking around in casual clothes, so she must have slipped in unnoticed.’
Normally, outsiders shouldn’t be allowed in.
But blaming the entrance guards wasn’t fair, given the timing.
Today was one of those days when wet snow was falling.
Because of the cold weather, everyone wore thick coats. Many even wore hats. From a distance, it would be hard to tell who was who. Even the wild blonde hair and blue eyes were likely hidden under the coat and hat.
Still, she was quite an interesting figure.
‘There are some students with other nationalities or exchange students at Hanul, but they’re all of Asian descent. That girl, who clearly looks like a white person, must really stand out. I can’t believe she made it all the way here.’
Regardless of her disguise skills, she had guts and audacity.
In the end, she had crossed into forbidden territory and was now shouting her heart out in fluent Korean. Her pronunciation had a distinctly native feel, so I figured she wasn’t an exchange student after all.
‘Maybe one of her parents is of European descent, or she’s from an immigrant family? Maybe she might even do well if she starts a vlog or travel channel later on.’
After all, it was 2003, the year the ‘Hallyu dramas’ had taken off, and the “national pride TV” had started emerging, enjoying foreigners’ reactions. She might actually fit in well as a character for TV.
As I was evaluating her potential, she suddenly raised both arms and shouted.
– “Hahahaha!! This is where my life begins!!”
“….”
– “Hahaha…”
The blonde crazy girl seemed to be the type who couldn’t control her enthusiasm. I’d been watching her blankly for a while, and she was still jumping around, happily celebrating alone.
– “Haha, ha…?”
“…..”
Well, I could understand her excitement.
If I had passed the exam in my past life, I probably would’ve rushed straight to the university and maybe jumped around like that. Thinking about it like that, she seemed a bit more relatable.
…Although, I didn’t get in, so I couldn’t.
‘Yeah, enjoy it while you can. Celebrate as much as possible.’
Congratulations, blonde girl.
This will be your alma mater, after all.
“…”
Hm?
Suddenly, it became quiet.
I quickly looked up.
The girl and I locked eyes. The clear blue of her eyes was more striking than the hazy winter sky.
“….”
“….”
We stared at each other for a while.
It was awkward…
“….”
“….”
In the end, unable to stand the awkwardness, I waved my hand.
“Ah, hello…?”
“Hicc…?!”
Her face turned bright red, and she quickly turned her body and started stumbling away. It looked like the desperation of a middle school boy who had just failed to confess his first love.
But she wasn’t as fast as I expected.
Still, she was running desperately.
As she ran, she shouted loudly.
“Sorry, sorry!!”
“…?”
She was a strange one.
‘Why is she suddenly running away? She was shouting so shamelessly just a moment ago, like she had been caught stealing or something…’
“Ah.”
Wait, could it be?
Did she think the dorm was empty?
Like she was in an empty school yard shouting ‘Yay!’?
I gave a wry smile.
‘Well, since it’s the dorm move-out day, the main gate clearly says “empty,” so maybe she just wanted to get some things off her chest in a deserted school.’
Correction.
She wasn’t crazy.
She was just an unlucky girl.
Or maybe a pure, passionate young girl.
She was still running.
‘She’s really slow…’
She was so slow that she didn’t get far at all.
And then, one by one, the guards started appearing around her. It seemed like someone else, not me, had reported the noisy girl.
But because she was so slow, they caught up with her almost immediately.
Eventually, she let out a scream.
“Heek?! Sorry!!”
“Hey! Who are you?”
“Which school are you from?”
“Outsiders can’t just come in here!”
“Sorry, sorry…!”
The Hanul security guards were on high alert after the recent broadcast station incident. As a result, what would have been a harmless little happening was met with firm action.
Perhaps she was scared of the adults approaching with stern faces?
Her face turned completely red as she began to ramble. In a panic, she was flailing her arms and legs.
“Well, um… I really like Hanul, and… that… that is! Um… I wanted to brag, so… um, yeah…”
“What are you bragging about…?”
“Uh, uh, uhh… Well, um… coming here…”
“Who to? Did you bring friends with you? You can’t just come in here. If you wanted to visit as a group, you should’ve contacted us first.”
“Well, um…”
It seemed like she didn’t even know what she was saying anymore.
“Uh… what I wanted to brag about… is… God? The Lord? The Almighty? Anyway, I… wanted to brag to myself?”
“What are you even saying…”
“Are you a foreign tourist?”
“Is this going to be a problem?”
“This can’t go on. We’ll have to contact your parents or teachers…”
“Heek―?!”
The mention of contacting her parents only sent her into more of a panic.
She might have been raised in a very strict household.
With all the misunderstandings piling up, the situation kept escalating.
“….”
I felt a little sorry for her.
‘She could’ve just said, “I passed the exam and came to tour because I’ll be entering next year…”’
Come to think of it, it wasn’t even trespassing.
It was something that could have easily been cleared up if she had just explained, but… at her age, isn’t that too hard? Plus, with the adults approaching with such serious expressions, she seemed even more flustered.
I couldn’t just leave my soon-to-be peer in this state.
“Sigh…”
I sighed softly and ran outside.
– Tap, tap!
And, just as she was literally being “kidnapped” by the adults, I locked eyes with her. I spoke loudly toward them.
“Security! I’m so sorry! She’s my friend, and she’s just excited to visit since she’ll be entering next year!”
When they saw my face, they smiled brightly.
“Go Hana student?”
“What? She was your friend?”
“If you have one, you should’ve said something…”
“Ugh…?”
I hid the confused blonde girl behind me and bowed my head. Surprisingly, she quietly followed behind me.
“I’m sorry. My friend, who just got accepted, was really excited to visit the dorm… she’s just really happy because she came from far away…”
She seemed like she wanted to say something.
“Ah, um, that’s… we’re not really friends yet…”
“…..”
‘Wait, are we stating the facts here…?’
Oh?
You’re going to talk back while an adult is speaking?
If I say you’re my friend, you’re my friend.
I firmly cut off her words.
“Now, you apologize too.”
“Sorry, sorry…”
We both bowed our heads to the guards. The guards waved their hands and laughed heartily.
“No, no! Ko Hana student, no need to apologize! We’re the ones who spoke too sternly, we’re sorry.”
“Yeah, we probably overreacted about a little prank between friends. A lot of outsiders have been coming in, and after that big incident last time, we got a little too cautious.”
“Take your time and look around.”
The guards smiled brightly as if nothing had happened and dispersed.
We stood there, letting the wet snow fall on us, staring blankly. The cold snowflakes started to stick to my cheeks, chilling me to the bone.
After standing there for a while, I started to feel the cold biting at me.
“…..”
I turned to the girl standing there blankly and made a suggestion.
“Hey.”
“Uh, yeah?”
“Want to tour the dorm?”
She blinked her blue eyes and asked again.
“Is that okay…?”
“Today’s move-out day, so it should be fine. And if you’re going to be a student here next year, they won’t say much.”
“Ah, I see… I thought it was empty… but… but.”
“Yeah?”
“How did you know?”
“What do you mean?”
“That I’m going to be attending here next year.”
“You said it yourself.”
“Oh….”
“….”
I immediately imitated her voice.
“This is my grand entrance!”
“Ugh…”
“Ha ha ha―!!”
“Ugh…”
“My talent…!!” How is it?
“Stop it!!”
She covered my mouth with her hands, still wearing her mittens. Her face was completely red, and the snowflakes sticking to it made steam rise from her.
“Ugh…”
“Alright, alright. Stop! I thought no one was around!”
“Ugh…”
Back at the dorm, in my room.
But the person who came back was twice as many.
It was like a 1+1 event for elementary school students.
And the second one was a golden elementary student. It’s a national rule to slap the person next to you when you see a Golden Matiz, but how should I react when I see a Golden Elementary student?
I didn’t know.
All I could do was offer a drink to the awkwardly sitting girl on the empty bed. It was one of the drinks I had stashed away in a box at the corner of the dorm.
“Drink this. It’s my favorite drink.”
“Uh? Oh… thank you.”
The girl, still a little down, accepted the drink gratefully. As she did, the bottle glistened in the fluorescent light.
『Vitamin 777』
A premium vitamin drink from HU Pharmaceuticals.
A long-time bestseller loved by many.
Perfect for a quick refreshment.
…By the way, it’s a product from Marie’s company.
‘Although Marie doesn’t really drink it. The fridge in her room is full of them, but I’ve never seen her touch one.’
Why is that?
It’s surprisingly mild and tasty.
Your grandfather would be sad if he saw this.
– Creak
As I twisted the bottle cap and reminisced, I thought I heard something unbelievable from beside me.
“But isn’t ‘Lemon 100’ much better than this? This one tastes too bland; Lemon 100 is way better.”
“….?!”
By the way, Lemon 100 was a product from HU Pharmaceuticals’ competitor.
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, and my eyes widened in shock.
“What, what?! Where did you hear that? Apologize… to me! No, apologize to Marie!”
“Wh-why are you suddenly like this?! Who’s Marie?! Don’t tell me it’s ‘Han Marie’?”
“What?! An art student doesn’t know Marie—?!”
“Why are you—why are you doing this to me―?!”
*
“Mi-ja? Is your name Mi-ja?”
“Uh… yeah. Mi-ja, Yoo Mi-ja.”
“…..”
Really….
What should I say?
“…That’s quite a unique name.”
Her exemplary golden blonde hair and blue eyes made me expect a name like Alice, Betty, Olivia, or Christine, but her name turned out to be ‘You Mi-ja.’ It was a name that instantly felt strangely familiar.
Suddenly, an internet joke popped into my mind.
I pointed my finger at Mi-ja and casually said,
“Is your father from Jeolla Province?”
“Uhm… well, I guess. I am Go Hana, that’s true.”
“Wow, really?”
Mi-ja opened her mouth wide. She slapped her head as if realizing, *‘As expected, this is a place for geniuses…!’* and marveled.
I pointed out one keyword that caught my attention.
“But… art academy? Are you in the art department?”
“Yeah!”
“Wow, you’re in the Conrad (Art Department).”
It seemed like Mi-ja, who was enrolling, was probably a fellow art student at Hanul. With that thought, this meeting was starting to get interesting.
I asked with curiosity.
“What are you planning to major in?”
“Comics!”
Comics here?
Usually, only pure art majors come here…
“Uh, what? Comics?”
“Yeah! I want to major in comics! I want to become a really famous comic artist! People look down on comics, but in Japan, it’s a huge industry! Also, my grandmother is Japanese, so I can speak Japanese too. I want to learn a lot of drawing here, where people recognize me…!”
As soon as the word ‘comics’ came up, Mi-ja started pouring out words like a flood. I was almost dizzy from the overload of information.
I asked back, focusing on the key information I could catch.
“Your grandmother is Japanese…?”
“Yeah! In Japanese, her name is Haruko, ‘美子‘, so that’s why my name is Mi-ja!”
“…”
Korean father.
Japanese grandmother.
But… her ethnicity is Caucasian…?
“Wait, wait, is your grandmother Caucasian?”
“No, that’s my mom. She was in the U.S. military, stationed in Korea.”
“…”
Oh, Allah, oh my god.