Chapter Text
Back then everything used to be easier. He ran after him through the sunflower field, feeling almost weightless. His surroundings seemed so much bigger in proportion than he was used to. The sunflowers towered over him completely, but it was easy for him to push his way through them. Every now and then, leaves tickled his temple, but he never lost sight of the boy ahead. But who was he, really, and why was Jungwon following him?
His head hit the table with a loud thud. "Yang Jungwon! I forbid you from sleeping during such an important lesson. This is relevant for the exam." The insistent voice of his English teacher, Ms. Chang, reminded Jungwon where he was.
"Yes, I'm sorry.“ was all he replied. She then turned back to the blackboard and continued with the lesson, which suited Jungwon just fine. While he was still trying to collect himself and cursing his damned hand, from which his head had slipped and slammed onto the table, Heesung bumped into him from the side and whispered something: "Hey, man. You okay?" It was hard to tell if he was actually worried about Jungwon or just found it amusing. "Yeah, yeah. I'm fine." Now Jake, who was sitting a row in front of them, chimed in: "Dude, that must be the third time already this week. Aren't you sleeping well lately?"
That wasn't even necessarily the reason. As far as he knew, Jungwon was getting his seven to eight hours of sleep. It was just that he'd been dreaming a lot lately. Afterward, though, he could never remember the dreams, no matter how hard he tried. And somehow, these dreams were captivating him. Even during the day now, when he had no choice but to give in to tiredness and close his eyes. Maybe he should see a doctor. Even if the only doctor in this small town didn't exactly have a good reputation. But before Jungwon could explain himself to his friends, all three of them received a disapproving look from Mrs. Chang.
"Uh, Jake? I think you should turn around," Heesung tried to subtly convey. Unfortunately, the implicit message didn't reach Jake. "Huh? Why?" he asked a bit too loudly. "Oh, that's why." He turned back around and pretended to continue copying from the board, even though he couldn't remember which line he'd left off on.
Meanwhile, Jungwon couldn't stop thinking about his dreams. He wanted to remember them so badly. Maybe they meant something?
Suddenly, Heesung tapped him on the side. "Jungwon? What does that say on the board? Sorry, I've misplaced my contact lenses." Heesung reiterated that he should probably concentrate on his lessons. He could deal with his dreams another time. But Heesung's question was somewhat unusual. He was just about the tidiest person Jungwon knew. Apart from his mother. So he'd never misplaced something as important as his glasses.
„주인공은 내면의 갈등을 해소하는 데 시간이 필요합니다.,“ Jungwon repeated for him. Heesung hadn't worn glasses in a long time. Therefore, the whole thing took Jungwon back to the time when he constantly had to read the blackboard notes aloud to Heesung because his parents thought he didn't need contact lenses at such a young age and that they would only cause damage to his eyes. Until they finally gave in.
Jungwon picked up his school reading material to try and participate for the last few minutes. His open Korean textbook lay beneath it. And inside was a picture of a sunflower field. He felt as if the memories were slowly returning to his mind, piece by piece, until he could put everything together. “I remember…” he murmured quietly, and then a little louder, “I remember!”
Jungwon hadn’t even noticed that he’d said it out loud. But the way everyone else turned to him now, staring, left no doubt. Mrs. Chang didn’t look too pleased either. “Class isn’t over yet. So I ask for your full attention, understood?” Jungwon nodded awkwardly, and a deathly silence fell over the classroom. Not even Heesung or Jake dared to ask any further questions. Afraid of forgetting his dream again, Jungwon took a sheet of paper from his notebook and jotted down the most important points:
- Sunflower field
- Felt smaller—maybe as a child?
- Followed a boy
⇒ Who was the boy???
-
The lesson was finally over, and Jungwon tried to leave. However, Mrs. Chang thwarted his plans. He had just hurried past her desk when she called him back. "Jungwon, can I speak to you for a moment?" He paused mid-movement. Eyes closed and just get through it. Heesung placed a hand on his shoulder for encouragement, and Jake wished him good luck before they both disappeared through the doorway. Jungwon watched them go for a brief, longing moment before turning his full attention to his Korean teacher. Just one last exhale. "What is it?"
"You know perfectly well what's going on. Today's lesson was a disaster. Make sure that doesn't happen again, okay?" She sighed and pushed her glasses up onto her head. She might be a dragon sometimes, but what was wrong with her also being a kind-hearted one? You could tell now and then that she really cared about her students. After all, she was still young and didn't have that much experience, which wasn't such a bad thing. Jungwon guessed she was in her mid to late twenties. It was a mystery to him what could possibly make someone want to teach high school students for the rest of their life. “Look, if you have any problems with my methods or if you have any complaints about me, you can tell me, okay? I’m always open to compromise, but you have to approach me yourself.” Jungwon waved her hand dismissively. “Everything’s fine, honestly. And um… it won’t happen again.” With that, she let go of him, and he followed the others into the break.
Suddenly, Jungwon turned around. He stopped in front of the music room. The sounds of an electric guitar could be heard. It didn’t sound half bad. Curious, Jungwon peeked inside by opening the door a crack. He thought he recognized the boy playing from somewhere. But he wasn’t sure. In any case, he let the last note fade away before looking up. Jungwon was mesmerized when he suddenly realized that the guy was staring at him!
Slightly embarrassed, but trying not to show it, he stumbled awkwardly into the room. “Hi.” Jungwon was momentarily speechless before composing himself: "Hi, uhm... I heard you in the hallway. You play really well."
The guy grinned at him, clearly enjoying the whole situation. "Oh, thanks. Do you play?" "Me?" Stupid question. Who else was in the room besides him? "No, not really. But I sing. Sometimes..." What was he even talking about? Only his closest friends knew.
"Cool. By the way, what's your name?"
"Jungwon, and you?" He tapped a spot on his guitar twice, which Jungwon could read. It looked like it had been written by a child. "Jay?"
The other boy nodded. "Yeah, that's right." Just as Jungwon was about to ask another question, someone interrupted him. A girl.
"Oh, Jay, there you are! Are you coming?" Jay seemed to consider it for a moment before packing up his electric guitar and leaving. To Jungwon's surprise, he gave him one last look. "See you later, Jungwon."
After the door closed, only one thing swirled around in his head: the way Jay had said his name.