Chapter Text
"Dance Club.. alright.."
"Theater Club.. Cooking Club."
The student council meeting room was a complete mess. Scraps of paper were piled up in the middle of the large table, right next to a cardboard suggestion box. It was a busy afternoon, and everyone was stuck doing the most boring task of the council: sorting out club suggestions from the student body.
Sitting at the head of the table, Wonyoung didn't even look up. She was too busy typing away on her laptop and writing notes on her clipboard.
"Club fair booths will probably be around the first week of September.. so we have plenty of time to organize," Wonyoung said monotonously, her eyes locked on her screen.
"Hey, music club gets suggested a lot," Seoyeon pointed out from the front of the room. She was holding a marker, tallying up the popular choices on the giant whiteboard.
"Tally down dance club again," Dohyun said, looking up at Seoyeon before tossing another paper aside.
Haeun sighed loudly from her seat, leaning back and playing with a piece of paper. "Can we do a make-up club? It'll be superrr fun!" she said excitedly, finally reading the slip in her hand. Her smile instantly dropped. "Ugh, Chess club. Yikes, someone still plays chess in the big 2026?"
Seoyeon rolled her eyes, capping her marker. "At least that's getting suggested more than a 'make-up club'."
"Oh come on, whatever!" Haeun pouted, crossing her arms like a kid who just got told no at the mall.
Across the table, Minji was quietly sorting through her own stack of papers when she suddenly burst out chuckling. It wasn't a small giggle either, she was practically losing her mind over whatever was written on the tiny slip of paper she just opened.
The entire student council stopped what they were doing and looked over at her.
"Oh my god, take a look at this, Wonyoung!" Minji said between laughs, sliding the piece of paper across the smooth table.
"Hmmm? What is it?" Wonyoung mumbled. She didn't even bother looking at it, her fingers still clicking away at her laptop keys. She was too busy balancing the school's budget to care about another basic suggestion.
"Seriously, read it. This person's suggestion is too funny!" Minji insisted, tapping the desk.
Wonyoung stopped organizing the schedules. She pulled her hands away from her keyboard and finally picked up the crumpled piece of paper Minji pushed toward her.
She stared at the messy handwriting on the line for 'Proposed Club Name'.
"Turtle Club..?" Wonyoung uttered confusingly.
She blinked, reading it again just to make sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her. What the hell is this? she thought.
Everyone in the room instantly cracked up laughing.
"What a stupid suggestion!" Dohyun said, shaking his head.
Wonyoung just stared at the paper, totally baffled. Turtle Club? What the hell are they even supposed to do in that type of club? Are they going to dress up as turtles? Sit in a circle and chew on lettuce leaves? But why turtles specifically? Does this person love turtles so much that they want to make a whole official school club out of it?
"Wow, I know we get a lot of weird club suggestions, but that one is just too funny," Seoyeon said, wiping a tear from her eye as she leaned against the whiteboard.
Haeun leaned over the table, her curiosity peaking. "Who even suggested that?" she asked.
Wonyoung slowly flipped the piece of paper over to check the back, looking at the line where the student was supposed to write their name. Her eyes scanned the messy writing.
"An Yujin," she said flatly.
An Yujin?
"Does anyone know this person?" Wonyoung asked, holding the small slip of paper up for the rest of the table to see.
The room went quiet for a second as the council members looked at each other. Everyone just shrugged and said they had no idea.
Haeun, thinking hard, "Wait, I know a Yujin! But her last name is Park. She’s over at Class E. You know, the one with the weird bangs?"
Wonyoung pulled the paper back and looked at the name again intently. An Yujin. She also had absolutely no idea who this person was. She's usually familiar with some students, or at least recognized their faces, but this name was totally foreign to her. They might be really fond of turtles, but then again, why turtles though? What the hell is so special about a turtle?
"I mean, I'll get it if it's an Animal Club or something, but turtles specifically?" Minji chuckled, shaking her head. She went back to picking some papers from the suggestion box. "Sounds like someone is just trolling us."
"It's ridiculous.." Wonyoung murmured. A small, genuine smile crept onto her lips. What a weird, weird person. This might be the first time she ever encountered someone who loved turtles to the point of writing a formal club request for them. That is, if they weren't just joking around.
"Oh, by the way, Wonyoung!" Seoyeon suddenly piped up, changing the subject completely. "I just heard earlier when I passed by the teachers' room, that you got the highest score in the Science quiz in our whole batch!"
Dohyun looking genuinely amazed. "Wait, seriously? Aren't Professor Kim's quizzes like, crazy hard?"
Everybody in the room gasped and looked at Wonyoung in pure amazement. Seriously, who was doing it like her?
"Ugh, so unfair," Haeun whined dramatically, though she was smiling. "Wonyoung is already so, so pretty, and she comes with brains too! It sucks I only got one of those things, and it's just beauty."
Wonyoung just chuckled softly, delicately tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Oh, come on guys, I just got lucky I guess..?" Wonyoung said humbly, though she had stayed up until 3 AM studying for that exact quiz.
But it wasn't just luck. Yes, it's true, Jang Wonyoung had such a great reputation in the school. She was the student council president, an absolute genius, and even really pretty and famous? She was really so perfect. It was no wonder that everybody liked her. Some people literally called her THAT girl.
She was also super kind and always spread positivity around the school, which was why almost everyone was fond of her. Some students even gossiped that seeing her pass by the lockers was like seeing a literal angel pass by. She had a flawless, untouchable image.
Well, there was just.. maybe some "flaw" with her, though..
And it was her intense curiosity and absolute hyperfixation on things that caught her interest.
"You're still reading about UFOs?!"
Yuna's loud voice popped up from right behind the bench, scaring the living daylights out of Wonyoung.
Wonyoung gasped and fumbled, almost dropping her phone. "Hey! You scared the crap out of me!" she complained, pressing a hand to her chest as she looked up at Yuna. She checked the time on her Apple Watch. "You're out of class earlier than I thought."
Yuna was Wonyoung's childhood best friend. They had been in the same schools ever since they were literal toddlers, so they were basically sisters at this point. She knew all of Wonyoung's quirks inside and out.
"You should've seen your face, girl!" Yuna cackled, walking around to sit right beside Wonyoung on the bench just outside the hallways. She leaned over to peek at the bright screen. "Are UFOs seriously still your hyperfixation this month?"
Wonyoung looked back down at her phone, where she had an entire Reddit thread about alien sightings pulled up. She had been reading it so seriously just a few minutes ago.
"Well, I just discovered something crazy and it's honestly mind-blowing, you know?" Wonyoung said excitedly, her eyes shining. "Did you know that in 2004, the military actually—"
"Nuh-uh, girl," Yuna cut her off quickly, holding a hand up. "I've heard about UFOs a million times already. Spare me."
"I swear they're real! And I'm pretty sure I've seen one before!" Wonyoung argued, pouting a little.
"Oh my god, I liked you way better when you were obsessed with that viral Dubai pistachio chocolate than whatever this is," Yuna teased, rolling her eyes.
"I'm still obsessed with that, though?" Wonyoung fired back.
They both burst out laughing. It was true, once Wonyoung found something she liked, she fell down a total rabbit hole.
"Alright, come on! I'll show you something that could actually pique your interest!" Yuna said excitedly, grabbing Wonyoung's hand and pulling her up from the bench.
"Wait, where are we going? I thought we were going shopping?" Wonyoung asked, letting herself get dragged down the hallway.
"Well, this is way more interesting!" Yuna promised, practically speed-walking.
As they walked, they passed by groups of students who were getting ready to go home. A lot of them turned to wave or say hi to Wonyoung, and she flashed them her signature, perfect smile. She was used to the attention.
Soon enough, they stepped outside, and it became super clear to Wonyoung where Yuna was taking her.
"The soccer fields?" Wonyoung asked, totally confused.
The field was packed. A lot of students in jerseys were running drills and practicing, while even more students were hanging out on the bleachers, cheering and watching the players. It wasn't really a surprise, since the varsity tryouts were coming up fast.
Yuna dragged Wonyoung in the bleachers at the very front. They passed by some familiar faces, exchanging quick greetings before finally settling down on an empty spot. Because of their popularity, it didn't take long for people to notice them sitting there.
Even a few of the soccer players on the field stopped to look their way.
"So, what exactly are we doing here?" Wonyoung asked, her curiosity finally winning over.
"Okay, listen. Look at that guy over there! The tall, handsome one! Lee Taeyoon! He's literally looking at you right now," Yuna whispered excitedly, pointing subtly at one of the players practicing near the center of the field.
Wonyoung squinted slightly. "Hmm, alright? What about him?"
Wonyoung was somewhat familiar with the guy. She had heard plenty of gossip in the girls' bathroom about how insanely handsome Lee Taeyoon was. He was definitely one of the most talked-about guys on campus.
Around them, a few girls on the bleachers started whispering. Wonyoung could clearly hear them saying things like, "Wait, are Taeyoon and Wonyoung a thing?" and "Oh my god, they would look so good together!"
"Well, he's in my classmate, and he just asked me a ton of questions about you today! He seems super interested," Yuna spilled, nudging Wonyoung's shoulder.
"Really?" Wonyoung replied, keeping her tone flat.
Honestly, it was no big deal to Wonyoung. Guys had been asking her out since middle school. It wasn't a surprise, who wouldn't want to date someone like her, anyway? She was pretty used to the hype.
"Yes! Oh my god, look!" Yuna squealed quietly.
Wonyoung looked at Taeyoon again and caught him staring right at her with a cocky grin on his face.
Taeyoon must have taken her eye contact as a green light to show off, because suddenly he looked way more energized. He started doing a bunch of fancy footwork, juggling the soccer ball on his knees and showing off some advanced tricks.
"Wow!" a bunch of students on the bleachers cheered, visibly impressed.
He kept showing off, glancing back to make sure Wonyoung was watching. He sent a quick wink in her direction. But right after he winked, he went for a massive, powerful kick and completely miscalculated.
He kicked the ball way too hard, in the exact wrong direction. Straight toward the bleachers.
Straight toward Wonyoung.
Oh, no.
The heavy soccer ball was speeding through the air, heading right for her face. The audience gasped loudly. Wonyoung squeezed her eyes shut and immediately threw her hands up over her face to brace for the painful impact.
Smack!
Huh?
The students screamed, but Wonyoung didn't feel anything hit her at all.
Her heart racing, Wonyoung slowly opened her eyes. The soccer ball wasn't there. It had completely changed direction and was now rolling harmlessly on the grass. What?
"Holy shit!" Yuna cursed loudly right beside her.
Wonyoung lowered her hands and finally saw what happened. A girl in a loose soccer jersey was already walking away from them, having just casually kicked the speeding ball away before it could hit Wonyoung. She had literally managed to dodge the ball and save Wonyoung's face.
Wonyoung could only see the back of the girl as she walked off. She squinted her eyes, reading the bold white text printed across the back of the dark jersey.
*01 AN*
Huh?
Wonyoung stared at the girl intently as she walked further away. Just as she was trying to get a better look, her line of sight was completely blocked.
"Hey, are you okay?! I am so sorry about that!" Taeyoon jogged up to the bleachers at front, looking genuinely panicked as he checked on Wonyoung.
Wonyoung barely paid attention to him. She quickly craned her head, trying to look past his broad shoulders to spot the girl again.
"Hey, Yujin...!" A faint shout from a distance coming from another soccer player waving at the girl in the '01 AN' jersey.
Before Wonyoung could even process it, a whole crowd of people started approaching her, asking if she was hurt or if she was alright. It got so loud and chaotic that Wonyoung completely lost track of the girl in the crowd. She was far too distracted by everyone swarming her.
But her mind was stuck on what she just heard.
An.. Yujin?
That's An Yujin?
Yuna was right.. There was something more interesting at the fields after all.