i.

My strange relationship with Kim Nari started when I accidentally caught her dancing alone in the gym. I knew her as a classmate and a neighbor, but nothing else beyond that.

Her sneakers squeaked against the polished floor. Her white shirt was drenched in sweat, and her black hair clung to her face. Her gray joggers were uneven, with one of the pantlegs pushed up to her calf.

I wasn't a dancer, but even then, I knew she moved with knife-like precision, and yet it was simultaneously fluid. It was mesmerizing, to say the least. Even from a distance, I could tell she was having fun.

When the song finally ended, she turned around, her shoulders rising and falling with every breath she took. That was also when she saw me on the far end of the court. She wasn't fazed. Instead, she sat on the floor and took a huge swig from her bottled water, which was beside her Bluetooth speaker.

Even from where I stood, I could see her sweat glistening in the yellowish tint of the sun. She pushed her sticky hair back, which further exposed her features and flushed cheeks. Nari was petite, and she was one of the shortest girls in our class. She had a small face, with a rounded forehead, doe eyes, and straight eyebrows. Her full lips complemented the shape of her nose. She looked delicate, like those ball-jointed dolls.

"Park Jihoon," she called out. That was the first time I heard her say my name. Her voice was deep, and a bit husky. A complete contrast to what she looked like. "How was it?"

"You're seriously asking me?" I asked back.

She nodded. "I need feedback."

"Are you going to be a K-Pop star or something?"

"Is there something wrong with that?" she retorted, without missing a beat.

"Not at all," I said. "I ended up staying until the end. Doesn't that tell you something?"

She scoffed.

"You..." she began. "Really suck at talking."

///

As if it was the most natural thing in the world, we ended up walking home together after she took a shower. The air around me subtly smelled of soap and peaches because of Nari.

"Should we get some tteokbokki?" she said. "I'm actually hungry."

"Sure," I said. "I'm hungry, too."

She grinned. "Thanks. How'd you end up in the gym anyway?"

"I was putting away the cleaning supplies in the storage when I heard music playing in there."

"It was that loud, huh?"

"The campus was just quiet."

Nari snickered. "You're actually quite approachable. I'm sorry for thinking otherwise."

I asked her what made me look unapproachable.

"It's a misconception on my end," she admitted. "You're from Seoul, and you somehow ended up moving to this backwater."

I scratched the back of my head. "I really won't describe this town as that. I think it's charming."

She looked at me with disbelief. "Ulhwa is charming?"

I nodded. "It's a short walk to the sea, and all amenities are close by. Seoul is a noisy place. There's no peace there."

"Is that why you and your mom moved here?"

I paused. "More or less."

"I see," Nari said. "I won't push any further. I think I struck something there."

I scoffed. "You really think so?"

Nari nodded. "I'm not blind, but I'm not someone to pry, either."

It wasn't long before we reached the eatery. Some students from our school were already there, and their chatter, mixed with laughter, filled the entire room.

"Auntie," Nari called out. "May we have two bowls of tteokbokki, please?"

"And pickled radish, if that's okay," I added. "Thank you."

There was a vacant table at the end of the eatery, and so we settled there and sat across each other.

"Are you really going to audition?" I asked her.

Nari nodded.

"So..." I paused to search for the right words. "Being an idol...has that always been your dream?"

"Not really," she said. "But I think my face is profitable. I just have to learn how to sing and dance, and to also be amicable."

"Is that all there is to it?"

She chuckled. "Maybe I'm downplaying it. But it's the easiest way out."

"I see."

"You're not going to ask further?" she pressed on.

I shook my head. "People should say things about themselves in their own terms."

"How mature," she teased. "But I think you can make it, too."

I looked at Nari, and my ears slightly burned. She was looking back at me, and there was just something about her gaze. It made me feel bare, in a sense. Perhaps it was the angle of her head, and the smile on her lips.

"What do you mean?"

She pointed at my face. "You're handsome. Especially your eyes. There's something about your eyes. Has anyone told you that?"

Our food came shortly afterwards.

"Beats me."

///

Nari and I lived in the same apartment complex. Our units were on the same floor, and it was merely by coincidence that I knew she was my neighbor. I was getting out to throw out the trash, and she was just about to enter her house. She was wearing Serin High's uniform. I didn't know her name, then, but everything fell into place when I entered my classroom for the first time and saw her at the back of the room, staring out the window blankly with her white headphones on.

A family from Seoul moving to Ulhwa spread like wildfire. I wasn't surprised when the people at school already knew me even before I could open my mouth. Even on the day we moved, gifts started pouring in. We received kimchi and rice cakes, toiletries and what have you. My mom and I were simultaneously overwhelmed and grateful. What caught me off-guard was how open they were in accepting a single-parent household occupying a space of theirs. Perhaps it was the environment in Seoul. Perhaps, my mom and I were simply unlucky in that regard.

Ulhwa was a new start.

In here, I didn't have to explain where her ex-husband was, and what he did that my mom ended up raising me on her own. I didn't have to encounter such questions. I can begin again.

"Jihoon-ah, is that you?" Mom called out from the kitchen, the moment I entered opened the door.

"Yes." I removed my shoes and pulled on my house slippers. "You're out early today."

"A colleague swapped her shift with mine," she said. "So I'll be doing the night shift, instead. I prepared some food for you. Just reheat it when you get hungry."

"Thank you. Is that you leaving now?"

Mom was already in her light blue scrubs.

"Yes," she answered. "Don't wait up, okay?"

I nodded. "I'll walk you to the bus station."

"I'll be okay, Jihoon-ah," she said. "Go freshen up. I'll be home soon."

Mom gave me a tender pat on head before leaving the house. That was when I realized I didn't get Nari's number.