Chapter Text
An Yujin had known Jang Wonyoung since she was 14. She remembered their first meeting like it was yesterday.
“Alright, class. We have a new friend joining us today,” her homeroom teacher had announced once everyone had settled into their seats.
She then looked at the open door and nodded, signaling for the new student to come in.
She was tall for their age. Until now, Yujin had never met a girl who could match her height. Her face was really small, and something about her reminded her of a bunny rabbit.
“Hi, everyone! My name is Jang Wonyoung. Please treat me well,” the new girl greeted with a bow.
As the class president, Yujin stood up to lead the class’ reply. Their eyes met each other perfectly, as if a connection was made.
“Welcome, Wonyoung!” she greeted back with a bright smile, the other students following her example.
“Okay, everyone, you can have time to get to know Wonyoung better after class. For now, dear, just pick an empty seat then we can start class,” the teacher said.
Yujin watched as Wonyoung scanned the room. Sadly, there were no free seats in her vicinity. Wonyoung walked past her, accidentally bumping into a misaligned desk.
“Sorry!” she said in an embarrassed tone, picking up the books that had fallen on the floor before moving on.
Yujin chuckled.
She’s clumsier than I thought.
Her eyes then caught on to something shiny that was still on the ground. She bent down to pick it up.
It was a keychain of a rabbit.
Figures. Yujin thought as she put it in her pocket, hoping to return it later
~~~~
When recess came, Yujin stood up to hand the keychain back.
Unfortunately, Wonyoung had already been swarmed by all their classmates.
“You are so pretty!” one of them complimented.
“Where are you from?” another asked.
When Yujin looked closer though, she could see Wonyoung shrink a bit. She probably wasn’t used to all the attention yet.
“Okay, everyone! Let’s give her some space!” Yujin said aloud to get everyone to focus on her instead. “We have a whole semester to get to know her. Chill out for a second.”
The crowd that had gathered around Wonyoung muttered words of disapproval but ultimately dispersed, giving Yujin a chance to walk closer.
“Thanks…”
“Yujin. An Yujin. And I believe this is yours?” Yujin greeted, showing the keychain.
“Oh, sorry about that!” Wonyoung said quickly, taking it back and reattaching it back to her backpack.
“It’s fine. A bunny rabbit though. Just like you?” Yujin joked.
“Y-yah, are you making fun of me?”
“Huh? I’m just kidding! I was only trying to give you a warm welcome.”
“Ah, thank you then, unnie,” Wonyoung replied quietly.
“Unnie? Aren’t we the same age?” Yujin asked confusedly.
Wonyoung shook her head and whispered. “I’m actually a year ahead. My parents said it’d be better for me to skip a grade level.”
Yujin’s eyes widened. “Woah, so that makes you a genius, right?”
Wonyoung giggled. “I wouldn’t say that.”
“Well, in any case, you don’t have to call me ‘unnie’. It’ll give away your secret.”
“Alright… Yujin-ah.”
“That’s more like it. Well, Wonyoung, I hope we get along!” Yujin said, tilting her head and flashing a lopsided grin.
****
Jang Wonyoung had known An Yujin since she was 13. Every once in a while, she’d return to the memory of their first encounter.
“You’ll love it here, Wonyoung-ah. I heard the kids at this school are really smart and active,” her father had said as they drove up to Gwanak Middle School.
“But I miss my old friends at my old school!” Wonyoung whined. She had been against the move, but her parents said they had to because of work. It would be more convenient for her to go to a school near her father’s newly assigned office than it would be to commute for an hour every day.
“I know it’s tough, sweetheart, but just think. You’ll probably make some new friends here. It’d also be good for you to accelerate your studies,” her mother chimed in.
Wonyoung still didn’t like it, but she didn’t have a choice. She trudged her way over to where her assigned classroom was and waited for the homeroom teacher to call her in.
The first thing she noticed during greetings was the class president, or at least, she assumed she was. She was around the same height as her, which meant tall, and had a smile that was very bright and welcoming. She was like a puppy in human form.
Wanting to know her name, Wonyoung squinted as she walked by to check the girl’s name tag only to accidentally bump into someone else’s table. She hurried over to the empty seat at the back and took out her notebook to hide her embarrassment.
She did manage to get a glimpse of the girl’s name though.
An Yujin.
****
During recess, Wonyoung wanted to go over to Yujin and get to know her better, but her shyness got the best of her. It didn’t help that once the teacher left the room, a bunch of other students began to crowd her asking questions.
She had no issues getting closer with everyone as time went on, but this was all too sudden. There were too many people.
That’s when Yujin’s voice cut through the noise, telling everyone to take a step back. Soon after, the group of students surrounding her had left. It was only the two of them now.
Wonyoung thanked Yujin quietly as she introduced herself, dangling her favorite keychain in front of her.
It must’ve fallen off when I bumped into that table. She thought.
Wonyoung took it back quickly while Yujin playfully teased her.
The two chatted for a bit before Yujin showed her giant grin again.
“That’s more like it. Well, Wonyoung, I hope we get along!” she said.
I hope so too…