The time had come for the new school year to start but Younghee had to miss the welcome back lecture because her brother had sent her a message.
The garage door opened as she checked her phone again but he hadn't sent anything else, other than the first text telling her that there was something waiting for her.
As the shutters fully opened, she paused for a moment as a surprised expression flashed on her face. What sat alone in-front of her was a sleek black motorcycle. She grabbed the key that was left inside the helmet and stared at it for a moment.
Can I even use it?
-
Who the hell schedules an exam the first day back...
Nari yawned as she closed the revision tab on her phone, turning her attention to the front of the lecture hall as everyone began to settle down. After the god forsaken 9am welcome talk was her mandarin final. Sure, the talk was optional but after cramming as much vocabulary as she could the night before, the anxiety kept her from falling asleep so she thought she may as well just attend it. Besides, it would probably help her take her mind off a few things because of how boring it was going to be.
She was somewhat right as she left the lecture hall feeling slightly more relaxed than before. Restraining herself from looking at the flashcards again, Nari accidentally bumped into someone.
"Oh, sorry." She gave a small apologetic smile before realising and quickly straightened her face, picking up the phone that had fallen on the ground.
Ari blinked, slightly confused before flashing her a smile, one that seemed a lot more sincere and confident than Nari's. "It's okay, thank you. We have the exam today, right?"
"Uh.. Yeah, it's in an hour's time." Surprised as to how Ari seemed to completely forget what happened over the break, Nari felt slightly relieved yet on-edge at the same time, like her friendliness wasn't genuine.
After agreeing to some last minute studying, they made their way to the class, hoping to get there before other people as it would definitely be emptier than the libraries which were already being hogged by the final year students.
Passing by the front gate, Ari stopped as Nari suddenly looked back. The motorcycle they had heard in the distance earlier stopped at a halt in-front of the university grounds and after talking with the security guard, was parked by the side.
The impressed smile on her face as Younghee took her helmet off was not shared by the girl next to her who followed behind as they walked over.
There was already a small crowd forming but Ari had managed to slip past everyone.
"When did you learn how to drive that?"
"Probably around a year ago," Younghee said, slightly unsure.
Having been swallowed by the swarm of people, Nari who somehow still heard her answer, parted her mouth then pressed it shut again as she walked off.
Judging from the model alone, Younghee received a few compliments from strangers, some who lingered for a bit longer hoping to ask how long she'd had the bike for. She finally manage to escape as Ari pulled her away.
"I didn't know there were so many motorcycle enthusiasts." Ari said, checking her phone. "Oh, I have to go, they've change the location for my exam.."
"Alright, I'll see you later."
"Mhm! Bye!" As she waved, Younghee caught a glimpse of Ari's phone screen before it turned dark. It wasn't very clear but there seemed to have been a message that read 'I'll come see you'.
The exam that was originally held in their normal lecture hall had been moved to a small seminar room in the engineering building due to some scheduling issues. This being the first time Ari had been to the engineering part of the campus meant she got lost around three times before finally finding the right classroom, just about 10 minutes before the start of the exam.
"When did you get here?" Ari panted as she set her bag down next to Nari who had her face in her hands at this point, trying to recall everything she had learnt.
"..A few minutes ago, sorry, I should've told you they changed rooms."
"No, it's okay. At least I got here on time."
Nari peeked at her then turned to the laptop opened in-front of her, shutting down all the tabs as the professor walked in.
Why isn't she annoyed? I would be if someone just ditched me like that.
After two hours of the half written and listening exam, the students began to pack their things away, a mix of emotions on their faces.
She had finished early so Nari was sat still for the last fifteen minutes thinking about how busy her schedule was going to become. After signing up to a few clubs as a way to force herself to build a more productive routine, she may have overdone it because there was not a single day where she had nothing planned for the next month.
All the introductory events were held over the next few days so at least she might be able to drop out of any she didn't like by the end of the week.
"How was it?"
Ari's question pulled her back into reality as she packed her bag mindlessly.
"It was fine—"
"Ready to go?" A guy interrupted.
Despite being in the same class for a semester, Nari had no idea who he was - the only reason she knew he was even in the class was because she had seen Ari speak to him a few times.
"Oh yeah. Sorry, I gotta go, we have a project together for another class." Although her tone was apologetic, her face that was struggling to hold back a smile gave Ari away.
Nari watched as they left, snapping a picture of Ari laughing at something he had said without even realising.
Oh oops... I should delete this
Her fingers hovered over the red button for a few seconds before eventually cancelling the option. She didn't know why but she felt as if keeping it would be more handy.
Minju had left as soon as the exam was over, seeing as she was in a rush, Nari assumed it had something to do with the student council.
Should I join a committee?
That thought left her head just as soon as it entered as she realised how much more time that would take out of her already seemingly impossible schedules. Besides, being a second year law student meant the reading was going to be double the amount as first year, so maybe now wasn't the time for her to look at extracurricular activities.
Though, there was one later today she was planning to attend. Checking her email as to where the introductory event for the winter sports society was being held, Nari stopped as she heard the sound of an engine revving.
She looked up and rolled her eyes, "so loud. You're going to disturb the people studying"
"..."
After a brief pause, they both chuckled. Every single library on campus was far enough you would never hear the sound of traffic so it made no sense for her to say that.
"Hop on, I'll take you home."
Nari stared at the bike for a moment then hesitantly took the helmet from Younghee's hands.
"Are you scared? Is this your first time?" Younghee teased.
"No, I've been on one before."
"Oh really? Well, I bet I'm more skilled than whoever was driving it."
Nari laughed a little, "sure, sure. Let's see if your skills match your confidence."
After being dropped off, Nari felt herself wishing she had gotten a place a bit further away as she waved Younghee goodbye - if she didn't have an event to get ready for, she may have just started house hunting then.
Nari had about two hours before she needed to head back to campus since the club chose to host the event at a bar nearby. Having just returned to her apartment a few days ago, she had put off cleaning. Although she did organise everything before the vacation, leaving everything untouched for a few months meant there was dust practically everywhere.
After a quick round of cleaning, the alarm to remind her of the event went off, giving her just enough time to get ready.
Since it was the first week back and a new school year, the streets were the busiest they were going to be, especially close to the university. After being stuck in traffic for what felt like an hour, she finally got to the bar, just in time.
Unfortunately, the location was pretty popular so all the societies there were crammed together and Nari, not knowing anyone in her's, was starting to get lost looking around, trying to find the right group.
Just as she was about to give up, she heard her name being shouted behind her. At first she thought she was mistaken but someone emerged from an overwhelmingly large gathering of people and Nari couldn't tell whether she was pleased or not to see him.
"Hey, are you here for the winter sports society?" Doyoung asked.
Why is it always you...
Nari gave a defeated nod, "are you?"
"Yeah, I thought I'd try it out. See how it is you know? I have a lot more free time this semester."
"Must be nice.."
"Ah, right... the law department doesn't."
All of a sudden, a hand reached out and grabbed Doyoung's shoulder. "Do Doyoung, did you run away because you didn't want to drink? What a scaredy-cat."
"I'm not scared, I wasn't planning to drink whatever you guys were mixing anyway."
The smug on the guy's face quickly turned into an embarrassed smile as he noticed Nari staring at them with a confused look.
"Oh sorry, let me introduce you guys. Hajoon, this is Nari, don't think about hitting on her, she is not interested. Nari, this is Jeon Hajoon, stay as far away from him as possible and don't talk to him." After what seemed like the most serious thing to ever come out of Doyoung's mouth, he gave his little introductory speech another thought, "actually, it's impossible for you to not interact with him I guess since he's running for the committee... Well whatever, just.. try not to, he's a weird guy."
"I am not, do not listen to him," Hajoon quickly waved his hands defensively before giving Doyoung a smack, "and I told you about me and Noona, why would I hit on someone?"
"Oh that was real? I thought you were talking about your delusions again," Doyoung smirked.
It was obvious Hajoon was on the verge of spewing insults back at him but held back and forced a smile instead. "Anyway, come join us."
Nari knew if the two of them sucked the energy out of her already, it was going to be a long night.
She wasn't wrong, but somewhere between the fifth drink and probably the thirtieth person she had met, Nari was having more fun than she thought she would. Although repeating her name and major every few minutes was starting to get too boring for her to bare.
Stepping out for some fresh air, she decided to scroll on her phone. The device that was used to exchange numbers luckily still had some battery left. Stumbling to a bench by the entrance, Nari held the phone close to her eyes then pulled it away, confused as to why her eyes wouldn't focus.
What the hell, am Iblind?
Of course it was just the alcohol but drunken Nari seemed to have came to the conclusion she couldn't see properly as she dropped her arms in disappointment. Leaning her head back, the view of the night sky was just of city lights and clouds of smoke from those who were trying to sober up with cigarettes.
After a while, she started to come to her senses and decided to head back inside to say goodbye to everyone before leaving.
Though still not being able to walk in a straight line, she wasn't stumbling like she was before yet somehow still managed to bump into someone.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry.." Nari mumbled. She felt something fall into her palms and it took her a while to realise they were tears. At first, Nari thought she was crying but in that instance when she saw the face of who the tears really belonged to, it was as if she completely sobered up.