03
“···You must be quiet in the teachers' room*. Understood?”
(Faculty Office)*
“Yeah, be quiet.”
That was the end of our conversation. As we walked down the hallway, I hesitated, wondering if I should strike up a conversation. But the transfer student seemed busy exploring the school. It wasn't awkward enough to warrant a conversation. So I just occasionally checked to see if he was following along, and tapped my foot. When we arrived at the teachers' office, I reassured him that we should be quiet, just in case. The transfer student grinned at that. His index finger played a playful touch to my lips. Was this too obvious? I suppressed my awkwardness and pulled the doorknob.
The moment the door to the teachers' office opened, a blast of cool air swept through. The scene inside was no different from usual. The clatter of keyboards, teachers chatting with students, and people busily moving around with printed leaflets. It was our homeroom teacher. He was buried in leaflets that half-hid his face. Yet, as if he noticed us, he slowly approached us. The wrinkles in his mouth softened at the sight of me.
"Summer's here! I was already worried I had too much luggage."
“···Huh? Is it luggage?”
“Yeah. I mean the transfer students’ textbooks and uniforms.”
The homeroom teacher gestured for me to follow. "How did you give me all this at once?" He grumbled, as if he were asking me to take it all away. Textbooks were piled tightly on the teacher's desk. Not only were they stacked like a tower, but there were also envelopes containing school uniforms and gym uniforms. Only then did I understand what the teacher had said a hundred, a thousand times. I turned my head, trying to hide my shock. Then, the transfer student I saw was incredibly calm. Even the most clueless person would know that all of that was mine. It was strange.
“As you can see, there’s quite a bit to take.”
“I see. Can I help you?”
“Thank you, Summer. Come see me later when you feel down.”
"yes!"
My confident answer brought a satisfied smile to my homeroom teacher's face. She then gently pushed our belongings toward us. She took the teacher's textbooks and files from the desk holder and left first. I absentmindedly organized the remaining textbooks. Next, I picked up the envelopes on the floor and placed them on my chair.
“Jay, I’ll take half the textbooks….”
"huh?"
"···uh?"
My body froze, unable to grasp the situation. The textbooks that had been on my desk just moments before were now in the transfer student's hands. What surprised me wasn't simply that the transfer student was holding them. It was the way he carried so many textbooks so nonchalantly. Western kids, with their larger bones, seemed to possess greater strength. That was until the transfer student reached for the envelope I'd placed on the chair. Seeing my dumbfounded face, the transfer student raised a question mark. He himself seemed oblivious to the problem.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
“No... Aren’t you heavy?”
“Yeah, it’s okay.”
“But I’ll lift it too. I have to climb the stairs.”
“It’s really okay...”
The transfer student's lips drooped. I could see his regret before he could even hide it. I couldn't understand why he seemed so lingering. I thought he'd appreciate it if I listened, because it would reduce his workload. Then a thought occurred to me. Could it be something like the American practice of "ladies first"? If that were true, I'd be ignoring the transfer student's kindness. Seeing the transfer student's dejected expression, I felt sorry.
“Well, there is that.”
"···huh?"
“I think I can lift a little. Just a little.”
"little?"
“Uh. I came all this way, so it feels a bit strange for me to leave empty-handed alone...”
He stared off into space, rambling on and on. When there was no response, he glanced at the transfer student. His drooping tail was wagging again. Then he placed the bundle of textbooks back on the desk. He watched intently, anticipating that he'd split it in half. But the transfer student simply continued to struggle, flipping through the textbooks. I couldn't tell what was going on, but he was so absorbed in his work that it was difficult to stop him. Soon, the transfer student handed him the textbooks.
“Thank you, Nung-ah.”
“···Is this all you need?”
”응. Is it heavy?”
(Is it heavy?)
"no···."
The transfer student handed me three textbooks: Technology Home Economics, Physical Education, and Integrated Social Studies. This is driving me crazy. I must have been frantically flipping through them earlier because I was looking for something lighter. I picked up a textbook less than half the thickness of the math and Korean textbooks. As I left the teacher's office, I glanced at the textbooks in the transfer student's arms. The already light textbooks felt even lighter.
It was the first time the classroom felt so far away. I think it was because the amount of textbooks the transfer student was carrying was so different from mine. Plus, the transfer student was carrying an envelope. So, if anyone was in this situation, it was obvious they'd be in the same situation as me. He wouldn't keep looking around like this, but... The transfer student still looked around with a curious expression. When our eyes met, he'd fixate on me. As the hallway dragged on, the more he glanced around, the less time he had to look. It was because, just like now, the transfer student was staring at me.
“Do you have any questions?”
"huh."
“What is it?”
“America, when did you come?”
The transfer student asked, his eyes sparkling. He remembered what his homeroom teacher had said during the assembly. In a place where everything was unfamiliar, it was nice to have someone we had in common. It must have felt like finding an oasis in the desert. He didn't answer, but he just glared at the transfer student. If I were reacting here, it would be natural for him to try to be friendly. But he didn't feel all that happy. It wasn't that he disliked the transfer student, but he didn't like him either. For the moment, I couldn't figure out how I felt.
“···I don’t really know because I was young. But I think I was around 10.”
“10 years old···. Yeah, I understand.”
The transfer student seemed to ponder something, then nodded. Then, his lips pursed tightly. Perhaps because he'd expected a barrage of questions, I was the one who was taken aback by his unexpected reaction. I couldn't fathom what was behind that smiling face.
“Hey, aren’t you curious about school?”
“Yeah, it’s okay.”
“There may be some differences from the US, so wouldn’t it be good to know?”
“Later, do it.”
“Me? ...You want me to tell you later?”
“Yeah, Numi.”
I was beaten. The moment I heard the transfer student's embarrassed voice, I knew I'd lost. They say the well-behaved cat gets to the shack first, and now I see that the transfer student, though embarrassed, had taken his fair share. I don't know why he was taking it from me, though. I sighed inwardly in a helpless situation. Just a kid like Kim Taehyung... No, let's just think of it as another kid, even more innocent and, in some ways, cunning than Kim Taehyung. I'd reached the point of rationalizing myself.
As we were silently strolling down the hallway, the transfer student suddenly shuddered. His eyes widened like go stones, as if he'd just realized something. I asked him silently, wondering why. The transfer student, who obviously couldn't have heard me, reached into his pockets and rummaged through them. He then placed a MyChew on top of his textbook. At first, he tried to hand it to me, perhaps forgetting I was holding it. Then, in a fluster, he ended up placing the MyChew on top of his technology and home economics textbook. I stared at the MyChew. The transfer student followed suit, making excuses.
“In Korea, I was told that I would give it to a friend I met for the first time.”
“···Oh, thank you. I’ll eat well.”
"huh!"
The bell rang, accompanied by the transfer student's lively response. It was the bell that signaled a new beginning.