Nae Chingu
Chapter Seven
Thursday came without word from Chan Min Wednesday night and I could feel myself start to become panicky. I could barely focus during school and often caught myself looking out the window at the tall buildings of Seoul. God, what if I didn't get in? I really needed to figure out my options, Mae Ri's parents hadn't come to a decision yet which surprised me and if I was being honest, I was a little hurt. For three years I'd been Mae Ri's best friend, had spent countless nights at Mae Ri's parents and they'd never given me any indication that they didn't like me but then again, I'd never asked for them to let me move in. I guess that was slightly different than a weekend sleepover... Regardless, if they chose not to let me stay I wouldn't allow myself to be eternally hurt by it; they were good people and I would trust they had their reasons. I just needed to make sure Mae Ri understood that so she didn't do anything stupid, like actually run away. I sighed and didn't notice that our chemistry teacher was calling my name until Mae Ri turned around in her seat and knocked on my desk.
"Huh," I looked up at Mr. Gu, who looked at me with his shrewd eyes and told me to answer the question. The only problem was, I hadn't actually heard it. "Joesonghamnida*," I apologized. "Could you repeat the question?"
"Maybe you'd find your time better spent elsewhere, perhaps the hallway until class is over," he pointed to the door. It took me a second to realize he was serious. I gave him a hesitant bow before making my way to the door. It was no secret that Mr. Gu didn't like me, he hadn't since the day I transitioned to the regular classes. He'd never told me why but I suspected it was because I was a foreigner but since I couldn't do anything about that, I chose to stay out of his way.
Being out in the hallways wasn't all that bad, besides the embarrassment that came along with everyone knowing you got kicked out of class, it gave me time to reflect more on my options. Despite my many efforts last night to think of a plan B, nothing was forthcoming so I had to start thinking of the possibility of me not being able to stay at SFLHS. If that was the case, I could drop down to a regular public school and work part time jobs to pay for the hostel, that wouldn't be too bad expect the amount of hours I would have to work to pay for a hostel room would be a lot and wouldn't leave much time to study. But then again, if I dropped down to a public school, the chances of me needing a lot of study time also dropped considerably. So there was that; the only problem with that solution was I would be without my friends...but it was better than the alternative which was moving back to the States. The word "but" kept traveling around in my head and I eventually shook it to get it out. There would be no 'buts', I needed to find a solution and commit myself to it. If dropping down to a public school and working a part time job to cover hostel costs was better than the alternative then I guess I would bite the bullet and transfer. There, I nodded in self assurance. I had a solid plan B.
"You look like you just came to a conclusion," a voice said from behind me. Ji Soo was standing there with his hands in his pockets looking at me. He looked somewhat conservative today and hadn't added much to the standard SFLHS ensemble except for the two asymmetrical earrings that dangled petite-looking skulls from his ears. One was longer than the other which made it look slightly odd but still completely Ji Soo.
"I did," I smiled at him. His class must have been released early if he was showing up outside our classroom. After chemistry was lunch and luckily we had the same lunch hour as Ji Soo.
"And what was it?" He asked as he scrubbed at the floor with the tip of his black tennis shoes.
"If I tell you, you'll only tell Jong Hwa who won't like it so I think I'll keep this one to myself," I teased halfheartedly. It was true however and we both knew it, there wasn't anything that Jong Hwa and Ji Soo didn't tell each other so if I was going to keep this plan B to myself, I wouldn't be able to tell anyone, except maybe Mae Ri.
"Now I want to know even more!" Ji Soo whined just as the doors to my classroom burst open indicating the class had ended. "What're you doing out here anyway?"
"I got kicked out," I said sheepishly.
"Jinjja? You never get kicked out," he looked genuinely surprised. "What happened?"
"Exactly what I'd like to know myself," Mae Ri burst in as soon as she found us standing in the hallway.
"Daydreaming," I covered quickly.
"Daydreaming," Ji Soo scoffed. "You daydream in the middle of class, now I've seen it all?"
"What, am I not allowed to daydream?" I pretended to sound hurt.
"I've never seen you do it before," Mae Ri said. It was about then that I noticed Jong Hwa had never come out of the room.
"Jong Hwa eodiya*?" I started back for the classroom, I needed my wallet anyway if I was going to buy anything for lunch. I almost ran into Mr. Gu as he came out of the classroom but I sidestepped quickly while he only sniffed at me snootily. God, what crawled up your butt today, I wanted to ask.
By the time I turned to head through the door Jong Hwa was already heading out and we collided head first into each other with enough force to knock me on my butt. I didn't have time to stand back up and straighten my skirt before Mae Ri was in Jong Hwa's face and yelling at him about his terrible manners.
"Mae Ri," I tried to pull her back. "Mae Ri-ya!" That finally got her attention. "We just bumped into each other, I'm fine. No need to go all Edward Elric on Jong Hwa, it was an accident." I patted down my skirt while Mae Ri pulled herself together. Yeah, I thought, sometimes she was a handful but she always had my back.
"Here," Jong Hwa passed my purse off to me. "For lunch," he muttered before heading towards the cafeteria and suddenly I felt bad for Jong Hwa. I hadn't done anything wrong but sometimes Mae Ri was over protective and ever since she found out about the possible move, her protectiveness had gone into overdrive. Also, it couldn't have been easy to like Mae Ri, the girl was a landmine just waiting to be stepped on. That thought brought up another one from a few days ago of Jong Hwa insisting that Mae Ri and Ji Soo start dating. Why would he say that if he wanted to date Mae Ri himself? That thought process left me feeling slightly queasy and I rubbed my stomach to help ease the feeling.
"Well if you stopped daydreaming, we could head to lunch," Mae Ri pointed at my hand which was currently rubbing my abdomen. "Kaja," she turned around and headed for the lunch room.
After waiting in line and getting our food we all sat down and started to eat. This was the most quiet we ever got, mostly because Mae Ri's mouth was usually full of food instead of talking but today it seemed extra quiet. Before I knew it, my thoughts were back on the tests I had taken for the ESE exams and going over my answers again. This process had been on an endless loop in my head since Monday and the longer and longer it took for Chan Min to call me, the more and more I worried.
It went by like this for a few minutes before Mae Ri gasped in shock suddenly. I turned my head just in time to see Cho Geun Ma spill her milk down Mae Ri's back. If it had been any other student, it would have been considered an accident but since it was Geun Ma, we knew it was purposeful. One look at Mae Ri's face and I knew she was about to explode. Geun Ma and Mae Ri had been rivals since middle school when Mae Ri starting dating Geun Ma's crush. It was before my time, but from what I'd heard Mae Ri was quite the playgirl back then and often flitted from guy to guy. Since I'd known her, she'd only had one boyfriend and it hadn't lasted very long at that.
"Mae Ri--" I tried to get her attention but it was too late.
"You little--" was all Mae Ri got out before she was up from her seat and pushing at Geun Ma who was all too happy to fight with Mae Ri. The problem was, fighting was absolutely prohibited and if Mae Ri threw the first punch, she'd more than likely be expelled or at the very least suspended which would probably cost her the scholarship she needed to keep going to this school.
"Ji Soo, grab her!" I shouted and we all left our food abandoned at the table in an attempt to get Mae Ri away from Geun Ma. Ji Soo got a hold of Mae Ri around the waist and began hauling her towards the door but that didn't stop Mae Ri from attempting to get a kick in. Having no other option, I jumped between Mae Ri's foot and Geun Ma and took the kickin Geun Ma's place.
Because I wasn't fully prepared for it, Mae Ri's kick knocked me to the side and the sharp corner of the lunch table found a nice little home behind my right shoulder and the pain knocked the air out of me. I mean, I could breath but I tried not to hoping the pain wouldn't be as bad. There were a group of people around me, all staring down at me but no one offered to help me up. At least not until Jong Hwa pushed his way through the pulled me to my feet. He must not have actually seen me fall because he pulled me up by my right arm and I nearly passed out from the excruciatingly sharp pain that shot down my arm.
"Ah!" I yelped and he instantly let go of my arm.
"Where are you hurt?" He asked almost frantically while looking for signs of bleeding.
"My shoulder, I'm ok," I gasped out and cradled my arm to my chest. "Where's Mae Ri?" I could no longer hear her.
"Ji Soo has her, lets go to the nurses office," He started pushing people out of the way, the cafeteria was abuzz with chatter and I was actually starting to feel a little woozy, like I was too warm all of a sudden.
"No, lets find Mae Ri first, she's going to be too much for Ji Soo to handle," I pushed my hair out of my face and took several deep breaths to try and pull myself together.
"But you're hurt," Jong Hwa said but I ignored him and headed for the cafeteria doors. I didn't know where they had gone but based off the stares and quiet tittering of gossipers, I just followed the trail until I could hear their voices.
"You know you can't get into fights, she's only provoking you to get you expelled!" Ji Soo was saying loudly to a crying Mae Ri--or at least I assumed it was her crying, I couldn't confirm it until I turned the corner.
"My uniform," she gasped between sobs. "It's ruined, Ji Soo!"
"I know, Ma Cherie*," Ji Soo said quietly right as I turned the corner. 'Ma Cherie', I didn't know French but I knew enough that it made me wonder why Ji Soo used that term for Mae Ri. I shook my head and decided it wasn't important right now and focused on what had happened.
Mae Ri was huddled on the ground with her SFLHS jacket lying in her lap. Even from ten feet away I could see the huge milk stain on the back of it and I cringed silently to myself. These uniforms weren't cheap and neither was a good dry cleaner. Chances were that stain wasn't going to come out fully. Ji Soo was sitting on the balls of his feet in front of her trying to console her but not doing a very good job of it based off his last statement.
"Hey, Mae Ri, it's ok," I pulled out a tissue from my pocket. "You know, a stain like that I can get out without a problem." I attempted to cheer her up, no idea if I actually could get the stain out or not. "Here, just wear my jacket and I'll take yours home to wash," I started to ease my jacket off but as soon as I moved my right arm, the shooting pain started again and I sucked in air.
"Oh Lily, I kicked you," Mae Ri forgot all about the jacket was busy looking over me in an attempt to find a wound. Little did she know it was my shoulder that was wounded. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean--I mean I did, but it wasn't meant for you!"
I forced out a laughter as I finally got the jacket off my left arm but it didn't get much further before both Ji Soo and Jong Hwa reacted to something behind me. "What, what is it?" I tried to turn but Jong Hwa just pulled down my jacket more until it was hanging off my right elbow.
"That's it, we're going to the nurse's office," Jong Hwa didn't even wait for an answer before he hauled me up by my left arm and the sudden altitude change made me gag.
"Wait," I choked out while I breathed through my mouth.
"Oh Lily," fresh sobs erupted from Mae Ri and I had the feeling something terrible had happened and everyone knew it but me.
"What--" I felt weak and was extremely warm by now. "I don't feel--" and that's the last thing I remembered before waking up in the nurses office nearly fifteen minutes later.
***
When I woke up I noticed a few things first: 1) I was lying on my stomach in the infirmary with my uniform shirt pulled halfway down my arms and; 2) my friends were all whispering behind the pulled curtain. I tried to listen but couldn't hear what they were saying because it was too low and definitely too fast.
Instead of trying to figure out what they were discussing, I decided to do a self check. It was my first experience fainting and I assumed I'd feel even worse after waking up but I actually felt better. I wonder if fainting is a lot like restarting a computer? I reached for my right shoulder and felt a gauze pad over where I'd gotten hit. I moved my arm and although it still hurt it was no where near as excruciating as before.
They must have heard me move because my friends quickly shushed up and three human sized shadows appeared just beyond the curtain.
"Lily, are you ok?" Mae Ri asked tentatively. "Can I open the curtain?"
"Just a sec," I called before sitting up and pulling my shirt all the way up. It took another moment to button the shirt back into place but when I felt like I had been put back to rights, I said "Ok."
Mae Ri pulled the sheet back and the first thing I thought was that she looked awful. Her eyes were puffy and her face was blotched like she'd been doing some serious crying, her face hadn't even looked this bad when we found her in the hallway after the Geun Ma incident. "Oh my god, Mae Ri, what happened?"
Fearing the worst, that perhaps she was going to be suspended or expelled, I grabbed her hand and pulled her onto the bed to sit next to me. "What happened?" I asked again and was shocked to see Mae Ri burst into tears. This was absolutely not what she needed. "Ya, ulji maseyo*," I said and pulled her into a hug. I looked over at the other two and Ji Soo was leaning against the opposite wall with his hands in his pockets and Jong Hwa was looking out the infirmary window. What he was looking at, I didn't know. It was clear I wasn't going to get an answer out of them.
"Ok, ok," I pulled back from Mae Ri and wiped her face clear of tears but because I didn't have a tissue, I had to wipe my hands on my skirt. "Ok, Mae Ri-ya, nae chingu Mae Ri, what happened? Did you get suspended?"
She sniffled a few more times before shaking her head. Uh-oh, "Di-did you get expelled?"
She shook her head again and I felt relieved and I laughed excitedly. "Then why are you crying? This is good!"
"I hurt you," she mumbled while still trying to compose herself.
"Oh I'm fine," I emphasized the word "fine" because I was. I was a little achy but it wasn't like permanent damage had been done. "Really, I'm fine."
Jong Hwa took an audible breath at the window and Ji Soo pushed off the wall and walked towards the desk and picked up what looked to be like four passes. "Why don't we head back to class, we're already late."
What the heck? All of my friends were acting very weird and it instantly raised my shackles. What had I missed while I was out? "Is something going on I should be aware of?" They all said no at the exact same time which only proved that I had truly missed something. "What is it?"
"It's nothing," Ji Soo said before handing out the passes to each of us and putting a half-assed fake smile on his face. "We're late, we should go." He nodded at Mae Ri who silently nodded back.
"I'm going to run by the bathroom first," Mae Ri said and pushed off the bed.
"I'll go with you," I said and stood up but she shook her head.
"No, it's ok. I just have to wash my face, I'll see you in class," she said and was out the door.
"Kaja, Jong Hwa," Ji Soo said and Jong Hwa finally turned around. He didn't look alright either, I couldn't tell what was going on by his face. He just seemed different than earlier. I was about to ask him what was wrong when he swept past me and headed out the door. Ji Soo gave me another forced smile and headed out the door as well. With no choice, I followed after them but I lagged behind intent on figuring out what happened. Since we were walking behind Jong Hwa he didn't notice when I pulled on Ji Soo's sleeve to keep him from going into class.
"I'm not an idiot, Ji Soo, something is wrong," I looked at him pointedly.
"Look, it's just better if we all act like nothing happened and go back to normal," he said.
"Ji Soo--"
"We're all upset about what happened in the lunch room but we'll get over it," he said which sounded mostly true. He still looked like he was keeping something back though. You didn't get to be best friends with someone without knowing the person well. And I knew my friends well...
"Did Jong Hwa say something to Mae Ri," I asked and Ji Soo sighed so I must have been right.
"Why do I even try," Ji Soo muttered to himself and then said something in French. "Jong Hwa may or may not have been upset enough to say some things to Mae Ri."
"Like what," I asked.
"Like saying that Mae Ri could have killed you if it'd been your head rather than your shoulder that was hit," Ji Soo sighed.
He what--! Why would he say that, I asked myself.
"Listen, he was upset after you fainted in the hallway, he'd thought you might have hit your head," Ji Soo continued. "The nurse said you fainted due the pain and the sudden adrenaline drop but that you were otherwise fine. It just shook us all up, that's all."
"And that's the whole truth," I asked him.
"The whole truth," he nodded. "Can I go to class now, some of us has a rank to maintain," he joked. I nodded and he left to go back to class.
After he was gone, I headed back to my own class but I waited for Mae Ri before I went back in. When she finally made it back to class, she looked much better than she had in the infirmary. It was amazing what cold water did to the face. I smiled at her and she smiled tentatively back.
"Look, don't listen to Jong Hwa," I hugged her again and pulled back, afraid I'd make her cry again. "I'm fine, we're fine, we're all going to be fine, so lets just put it all behind us."
"Ok," she nodded.
"Just one more thing," I said and took off my jacket. I started to push Mae Ri's off her shoulders before she protested.
"No, Lily, it's--"
"It's not ok, I can't have my best friend going back into a class with a milk stain on the back of her jacket," I said before saying, "it doesn't go well with those green nylons of yours." That earned me a laugh and the jacket.
Honestly, I didn't mind wearing a milk stained jacket, even after all the stares I got when we went back into the classroom. I'd been an outsider for so long that people staring at me no longer had an effect on me. Besides, the glare we got from Geun Ma more than made up for it. As we sat down, I shot a thumbs up to Jong Hwa who gave me a small smile before turning back to the front to listen to the teacher. He too, had a rank to consider.
***
Despite the excitement of the day, the rest of school passed by incredibly uneventful for which, I'm sure, we were all grateful. We were all walking out of the school together, somewhat subdued than we usually were but still, we were all together despite the mess that happened during lunch. We all headed for the city bus that would take us to the convenient store. It was like secondhand nature to us so although we were all a little awkward around each other, it was comforting to know that we were all still on the same page.
What would it feel like if we all stopped being in sync? I shuddered to think about it. TVXQ's Mirotic started playing and I quickly removed my gloves so I could answer my phone.
"Yeoboseyo?" I didn't recognize the number.
"Ms. Ril-Li?" a deep voice asked.
"Ne," I answered. Who was this?
"Ah, Hello. This is Soo Gae Sik," He said which meant nothing to me.
"I'm sorry, I don't know who--"
"I am the Director of the Educational Student Exchange," he provided with a small chuckle.
I stood up so quickly that I hadn't realized I'd done it until I was already on my feet. "Oh! Ah-Annyeonghaseyo, Soo Gae Sik-ss!" I bowed even though I knew he couldn't see it.
"Annyeong," he laughed again. "You just got out of school, no?"
"Yes," I chirped excitedly.
"Do you have time to come down so we talk about the program," he asked.
"Yes, I can head there right now," I checked my watch and looked at my friends who were all staring at me curiously.
"Good, good," he said. "I'll see you soon." And he hung up. I had long since gotten used to the Korean version of saying goodbye on the phone which consisted of just hanging up when there was nothing else to be said. I put my phone away and turned to my friends.
"I'm sorry, I have to go," I told them. "That was the Director from the ESE, he wants to see me right now."
"Really?" Mae Ri said.
"What're you talking to us for, go," Ji Soo commanded.
"Call me," Jong Hwa said as I rushed across the street to catch the bus that would take me to the ESE. I got there just in time to get on the bus, all the while waving at my friends who were cheering me on from across the street.
That's when it hit me, we were truly going to be ok.
***
When I got to the ESE, I was pushed through to Chan Min almost immediately who greeted me with a big smile. I rushed to him and gave him a hug, which I'm sure surprised the heck out of him. I pulled back quickly so I didn't make him more uncomfortable than he probably already was.
"I'm sorry, I just had to do that," I apologized quickly.
"It's ok," he gave me a small laugh.
"The Director called me, that's a good thing right?" I asked him.
"It's a good thing," he nodded and ushered me through the door that lead to his office. We made our way back to his desk and we sat down. "Your scores on the tests were incredibly," he said first.
"That's good news, my education wasn't a waste, then, huh?" I was giddy and I told myself to calm down.
"No, quite the opposite," he sat back and crossed his legs. "The Director was also very impressed by your essay but I don't want you to get too confident."
"Oh, I'm not. I'm just glad I've come this far," and that was all I needed to hear to close down all sense of excitement. Now I was just nervous.
"The Director is a fair man and I think the interview is just so he can meet you in person but he's been known to turn away potential students despite their exam scores so just remember that," Chan Min nodded to make sure I understood and I nodded back. "Smile and be honest, you ready?"
Suddenly I felt like I didn't want to meet the Director. My palms had become sweaty and I rubbed them on my jacket to try and get rid of the moisture. "Yeah, I think I am."
Chan Min showed me the way to the Director's office and gave me one last piece of advice, "Just breath," he said. I had to suppress a laugh because his advice reminded me of my favorite movie, "Ever After" where the leading lady tells her self to just breath before revealing herself to the prince and it was enough to calm me down again. Chan Min knocked on the door and waited for the Director to tell us to come in.
The office wasn't fairly big which surprised me. In fact, it was downright humble! There was a small, wooden desk that the Director sat at which had piles of papers on it with a computer and a lamp. Although it was standard to have higher ranking executives to have plaques on their desk to indicate their name, it was usually something stylish but not this time. This time it was just a piece of wood with his name etched into it in fancy lettering. There were two chairs sitting in front of the desk that were spindly looking by comparison to the plush chairs that were sitting in the lobby. The most impressive thing in the office were the letters of certificates and awards that were hung on the wall behind the Director and the Director himself, not at all what I expected.
I expected a man in an expensive suit of about forty years old, based off his voice, but what I got was a man of about sixty in a knitted sweater and black dress pants. His face had clear lines of old age, and he looks quite homely. His thinning hair was swept off to the side in a borderline messy fashion and he had a pen behind his ear. His appearance shocked me but it must not have been surprising because Chan Min entered the office and didn't hesitate in introducing me. Going with the flow, I gave a respectful bow and introduced myself.
"It's nice to meet you, Ril-Li," he said and gestured to a chair in front of him. I nodded to Chan Min who nodded back and walked back out of the office and shut the door. "How are you doing?"
Listening to Chan Min's advice, I was honest. "I'm nervous, Sir," I told him and took a sit in front of the Director.
He laughed and sat back in his swivel chair and looked at me and I felt like I was being inspected. I was just glad I didn't have to take my jacket off because then he would see the milk stain. "Why are you nervous," he asked me.
"For several reasons," I admitted. "I-I really need," I back tracked. "Want. I really want into the program." I tried not to stutter but whenever I got nervous, I stuttered.
"Any other reasons, I should know about," he asked inquisitively. It wasn't in a mean way, but like he was honestly curious as to why I was nervous.
"Honestly, because what I decide next depends on the outcome of this interview," I told him.
"How so," he replied.
"If you decide to decline my application then I'll have to start working on my plan B because either way," I took a deep breath. "Either way, I'm staying in Korea."
"Hmm," he said noncommittally. He took a few moments before he pulled some papers off his desk and began reading them.
I squeezed my eyes shut, I just messed up. I shouldn't have been honest, why couldn't I have just said I was fine! My chest tightened but I beat it back, if I was going to freak out, I'd freak out when I was out of this office. When I opened my eyes, he was still reading from the papers and I waited to be dismissed.
"In your essay, you wrote you deserved to be accepted into the program because you "found a home in Korea"," he quoted. It must have been my essay he was reading from.
"Yes," I concurred because I did, in fact, say that. Maybe I wasn't finished after all...
"Why?"
Why? Why what? Why did I write that? I was confused, "Why, Sir?"
"Why is Korea your home?" He clarified and dropped my essay onto his desk.
Why? That was a good question, one I had an answer for. "When my father moved me from Germany, I was upset. I was leaving my friends, I was leaving my school, but it wasn't until I started living in Korea that I realized I was never upset because I was actually leaving Germany." I said and looked down at my fingers. I'd never spoken about it because once I accepted Korea, there was never any need too. "When my father said we were leaving Korea, of course, I was upset because I would be leaving my friends again and my school but I was mostly upset because I was leaving the district I lived in, I was leaving the view outside my bedroom window, I was leaving the people at my local market. I was leaving the streets of Seoul and the buses, the taxis, "I stopped talking because I could have honestly kept going. "My point is, I was leaving a country I loved, a country that was as much a part of me as my own soul and what more could be considered home than that?"
When I was finished, he gave a nod of acknowledgement and pursed his lips. "Well, that's it then."
That's it? Did that mean the interview was done, or that I was accepted? Why did this man keep using such cryptic sentences? "Sir?"
"Chan Min will help you with the paperwork," he said dismissively and waved towards the door.
"Th-the paperwork?" I asked, confused.
"Oh, Ms. Ril-Li," he chuckled which only added to my confusion. "You were accepted before you even walked through that door."
***
When I left the Director's office, I was in a daze. So dazed that I couldn't even feel excited. It had happened, I had been accepted. I was staying, I was--
I had to brace myself on the wall while I waited for the feeling in my legs to come back.
"Ril-Li?" Chan Min came around the corner with a concerned look on his face. "Gwaenchana?"
"How did you know I was here," I didn't even bother answering his question. I felt hot and I was wondering if I was going to faint for the second time that day.
"My father called me and said you looked unwell," he said and checked my forehead.
"Yo-your father?" I asked him.
He looked kind of sheepish, "the Director is my father," he told me.
Following that little revelation, Chan Min helped me back to his desk and by the time I sat down I was feeling better and in fact, borderline ecstatic. I had gotten into the program! I had actually done it. I felt like I could give Chan Min another hug by I refrained. I'd hug Mae Ri later.
"As far as paperwork goes, it's just a temporary contract and school placement documents," Chan Min told me and he pulled out two forms. "I'll just explain the contact briefly; It's an agreement between the Educational Student Services and yourself that state that as long as you keep your grades at a minimum GPA of 3.8 and agree to stay out of any trouble while attending school, we will cover all room and board costs and educational costs as well as providing a small amount for allowance that will be given monthly."
I nodded as he continued.
"You will be required to move into the dorm, as soon as next week. Since the semester has already started, we have already paired you with a roommate from America, her name is Emily. I'll provide you with a list of items you'll need but not much is allowed in the dorms beyond that. If you have any questions on items you'd wish to bring, you can always ask me." He flipped a few pages. "The contract also pertains to your post-secondary education obligations. Assuming you've read about the elite high school program, you know you have to major in education, right?
"Yes," I said.
"Good, then, that should be all the key points. Stay out of trouble and keep your grades up and everything should be fine," he smiled and gave me the contract along with a pen. I signed my name and dated it. He took the contact from me and placed it in a blue file that had my name on it. "Ok, next on the agenda is picking a school."
"Picking a school, like a college," I asked. It seemed a little early to be picking a college but then again, maybe it was all part of the program.
"No, a high school," he said and looked up at me. "You'll be needing a pick a high school to attend from here on out," he told me.
My stomach bottomed out as I realized I wouldn't be able to continue to attend school with my friends...it seemed I would be transferring anyway. How was I going to tell the others?
To Be Continued...
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*Eodiya: Where or Where is*Ma Cherie: French for "My Dear"
*Ulji maseyo: "Do not cry"
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