Passing through the iron gates of Kirin was like stepping into a different dimension.
I had been here for a week. I thought I knew the layout: Music Wing on the right, Arts on the left, misery in the middle. I thought I'd mapped out all the main places for myself.
I was wrong.
The main lawn, usually a pristine expanse of green, had been transformed into a chaotic, vibrant carnival. Dozens of white tents were set up in neat rows, each one blasting its own music or displaying its own brand of artistic intimidation.
"Join the Contemporary Dance Club! We have flexible schedules and flexible limbs!"
"Traditional Korean Music! Experience the Goreyo period!"
"Stage Combat! Learn how to get hit without dying!"
I wandered down the central aisle, my hands in the pockets of my navy blazer, feeling like a tourist in my own school.
I stopped at a tent that smelled like heaven. The Culinary Arts Club. They weren't selling hot dogs; they were plating miniature French pastries that looked too expensive to eat. A student in a full chef's uniform offered me a macaron with tweezers.
"Rose and lychee," he said seriously. I ate it. It tasted like I was eating a flower garden.
Further down, the Musical Theater Club was performing a flash-mob version of Rent right on the pavement. I watched, mesmerized, as a girl climbed onto a table and belted out a high C that probably shattered windows in the main building.
I drifted away from the noise and found myself wandering into the Visual Arts wing. I'd only been here briefly with Jun-seo during the tour, but today, all the studio doors were propped open.
I peeked into the Fashion Design studio. It looked like a sweatshop run by Vogue. Students were draping fabric over mannequins, their mouths full of pins, arguing about "silhouettes" and "texture."
I walked past the Animation lab. It was dark, illuminated only by the glow of fifty Cintiq tablets. The students inside looked like vampires, furiously drawing frame-by-frame movement.
"Kirin is huge," I whispered to myself.
I had been so focused on the Music Wing and my own survival that I'd forgotten this school was a factory for every kind of artist. There were filmmakers, sculptors, writers, dancers... and I was just one guy with a guitar and a bad habit of getting into trouble.
I found a quiet spot near the Broadcast Club booth (where Min-ah supposedly spent half her time ) and leaned against a pillar to watch the crowd.
My phone buzzed.
Caller: Ha-neul
I slid to answer.
"Yeoboseyo?"
"Where are you?" Ha-neul's voice cut through the noise. "I finished my lesson early. I'm at the gate."
"I'm inside," I said, watching a guy on a unicycle juggle flaming torches (Circus Arts Club?). "I'm near the main building. Ha-neul, did you know we have a Unicycle Club?"
"We have a club for everything, San. Just stay there. Don't move. Knowing you, you'll accidentally join a cult or sign a contract to sell your kidney."
"I'm just standing here! I'm safe!"
Suddenly, a heavy hand clamped down on my shoulder.
I jumped, nearly dropping the phone. Fight or flight?
I spun around.
"San-ssi!"
It was Park Jun-seo. He was wearing a yellow sash that said EVENT STAFF over his uniform, and he was holding a clipboard. He looked stressed but smiled when he saw me.
"Oh! Jun-seo!" I let out a breath of relief. "You scared me."
I put the phone back to my ear.
"Ha-neul? I'm with Jun-seo."
There was a pause on the other end. A long, skeptical silence.
"You're 'with Jun-seo'?" she repeated, her voice dripping with suspicion. "Like you were 'with Jun-seo' when you were actually in Hongdae?"
I moved the phone away from my ear, thus not being able to hear what she said.
"And I'm currently having tea with the Queen of England. Just wait for me. If you run away again, I'm telling Mom..."
"How's Mrs. Lee? Where's Ha-neul?"
Click.
I hung up.
"She's gonna be here soon, let's go meet her at the entrance."
I stared at the phone. "She didn't believe me," I muttered.
"Believe what?" Jun-seo asked, tilting his head.
"Nothing," I shoved the phone in my pocket and smiled at the Student President. "Just... sibling stuff. So, you're working today?"