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Sae-byeok is not a party person. She hates parties, actually. Why would she surround herself with a bunch of drunk strangers and subject herself to music she doesn’t even like?
She would do it for a pastry, apparently. Lily offered her a slice of strawberry cake from the bakery across town, which was a powerful bargaining chip. (It was the best cake that Sae-byeok had ever tasted.)
Lily is another international student that’s Korean, and she is someone that Sae-byeok considers a friend. Lily is not Korean-born like Sae-byeok is— she’s from Australia— but the two still found common ground in the delicacy that is kimchi-jjigae and the nagging of judgmental aunties.
They met through Michigan State’s Model United Nations club. One of Sae-byeok’s political science professors, Dr. Davis, suggested that she join them at the first meeting of the year to see if it would be something she’d like. Since Sae-byeok’s coursework was in International Relations, she decided that there was no harm in attending. Her only commitments at the time were school and her on-campus job as a Korean tutor, so she had a pretty flexible schedule. She knows that academic teams are as big of a commitment as sports teams, and can foster similarly competitive environments. In that same vein, Sae-byeok knows that she can be competitive when she wants to be. Winning things is fun, and she can do what she needs to do to win.
“Just come check it out! We’ll have pizza too. You don’t even need to make a decision that same night. If Model UN isn’t for you, then don’t worry.”
Sae-byeok was almost out of swipes for her weekly meal plan at the dining hall, so free food sealed the deal.
Entering the classroom just minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin, Sae-byeok was not surprised to find unfamiliar faces. She does recognize a few classmates, but they’re still strangers to her since she doesn’t know their names. Previous Model UN members obviously knew each other already, so they sat together in clusters around the room. There were some pairs of friends, and few people sat alone. But, even if Sae-byeok was alone, she didn’t exactly feel lonely. Laughter and lively chatter filled the room, and a girl who was in her line of sight after opening the door caught her eye. The girl flashed her a small smile before resuming her conversation, and Sae-byeok could feel her cheeks heat up as she smiled back, clutching a bit tighter onto her backpack straps.
Sae-byeok made her way to a seat in the back row of the room, making herself comfortable as she shrugged off her backpack. Dr. Davis entered the room just as she pulled out her planner, setting it in front of her in case she needed to jot down any dates. The room quieted as the professor greeted everyone and began the meeting.
Syllabi were being handed out when the door slammed open, a girl with soft pink hair entering the room with three boxes of pizza in her hands. To Sae-byeok’s surprise, the pizza girl was one of the only four other Asian students in the room.
“Pizza’s here!” Dr. Davis clapped, walking over to relieve the pink girl of her delivery duties. The professor took the boxes from her hands, placing them on the desk at the front of the classroom. “Thank you for volunteering to grab the food, Lily.”
“No problem, Doc!” Lily saluted with a smile so bright, Sae-byeok thought it could rival the sun’s radiance. Her accent was also not American, and Sae-byeok couldn’t tell if it was something close to British. Regardless, it sounded elegant to her ears.
Scanning the somewhat full classroom, Lily’s eyes landed on Sae-byeok’s curious ones. Her smile didn’t leave her face as she approached Sae-byeok, and Sae-byeok suddenly forgot how to breathe. A pretty, obviously outgoing girl was rapidly approaching, and she didn't know how to make small talk without wanting to die.
“Hi,” Lily softly says, “I haven’t seen you at a meeting before. Is it alright if I sit with you?”
Eyes slightly widening, Sae-byeok silently nods. She reaches down to move her bag over, making sure that Lily has enough leg room. Meeting introductions seem to have paused as students line up for pizza.
“Thanks! I’m Lily by the way. I’m a third-year now, and I’ve been in Model UN for two years now.”
“Sae-byeok,” she replies, too high-pitched for her own liking. She coughs before saying, “I’m Sae-byeok. I’m a freshman, Dr. Davis said I should come.”
“Oh, that makes a lot of sense!” Lily nods, tilting her head after as she scans over Sae-byeok’s face. It makes Sae-byeok feel self conscious, because why is she perceiving her so much? “Hey, can I ask what ethnicity you are?”
Why do Westerners love to ask this question?
“Korean,” answers Sae-byeok, and she doesn’t miss the excited gasp from Lily’s mouth as she continues, “I was born in Korea, and I came here for school. What about you?”
Clapping in delight, Lily says, “Oh my gosh, I knew it! Me too! I’m from Australia, though.”
Lily continued her excited rambling, and continued sharing her thoughts with Sae-byeok even as they stood in line for pizza. Music somehow entered the conversation, and it helped Sae-byeok feel much more at ease as they began to geek out over anime soundtracks. As the meeting resumed, countries that Michigan State were to represent at the annual Model United Nations conference were discussed. Lily and Sae-byeok ended up choosing the same country to represent: Norway.
And like that, Lily became a regular presence in Sae-byeok’s life. They began to hang out outside of Model UN, whether it be getting lunch, studying in the library, or simply shopping on the weekend. By getting to know Lily, Sae-byeok got over her small crush on her after it was revealed that Lily had an on-and-off boyfriend and an on-and-off girlfriend. Sae-byeok decided that she isn’t patient enough for someone like Lily, and she ended up being the one to remind Lily that smart decisions are not always the ones we want to make. In other words, Sae-byeok was never bored with Lily. She became adopted into Lily’s friend group too, and she found herself looking forward to late night study groups in the library and board game dates.
Which brings her to tonight. Lily is a partygoer; Sae-byeok is not. Finals week has just concluded, and students are leaving campus to return home for winter break. Some friends in their crew already left, but Sae-byeok’s flight back to Korea is scheduled for next week. Other international students are in similar situations, so it’s obvious that many want to celebrate the end of the semester with a party.
The girls brought up going to a party hosted at a friend of a friend’s off-campus house, and all of them agreed to go once they found out it was being hosted by Mark Lee. Sae-byeok didn’t understand the hype around him— he was just a cool guy— so she didn’t feel like budging when the girls started pleading with her to go. Even Jenny, who considers staying at a late-night cafe as going out, is planning to go to the party. Sae-byeok feels a bit betrayed by that since they’re usually the ones who sit out such social events together, but she can’t say too much since Sae-byeok considers simply leaving the dorm as going out.
However, Sae-byeok can’t deny that she’s curious if the parties she’s seen in movies are accurate. There aren’t even any finals or homework to worry about since the semester is over. Lily says that every college student in America should experience a house party at least once, and she’s starting to sound more convincing as everyone talks to Sae-byeok.
“If you’re uncomfortable, we could always leave early. You know that InfiniTEA will be open for us,” Jenny suggests, and Sae-byeok hums.
“I didn’t know I could do that,” quietly admits Sae-byeok, and the idea of being able to easily escape makes the idea of a party much more appealing.
“And it won’t be a huge crowd,” Lily adds, “All the athletes and Michigan people already left, so it’s basically just internationals and out of staters. Mark is cool with everyone, but he wouldn’t invite weirdos. Friendly faces, ya know?”
Sae-byeok considers this crew to be a bunch of friendly faces. With a shy smile creeping into her sigh, she concedes. “Fine, I’ll make an appearance.”
“Yay!” Lily claps excitedly, and the rest of their friends cheer. “Maybe you’ll even meet someone nice?”
Sae-byeok rolls her eyes, swatting at Lily’s arm. “You guys are nice enough.”
“Oh, don’t be like that! The sun is still out, so let’s get boba before we have to get ready.”
Sae-byeok wishes she saved her boba for now. She has a red solo cup in her hand, and it’s filled with Dr. Pepper because the sip she had of a Mango Truly didn’t taste like mango at all. Mark was kind about it though, giving her a can of Dr. Pepper and cherry-flavored Pepsi after the Truly didn’t work out. The shy giggles it brought about made Sae-byeok feel more comfortable in the new environment, and it helped that Mark was easygoing. He came off as someone you could trust to watch your stuff if you went to the bathroom, and Sae-byeok found his cheesy jokes funny enough. After the brief exchange, she let most of her crew catch up with Mark, leaving the small circle with Jenny to find a corner they could claim as their own. Jenny was on the couch with her for a bit, and they people-watched as more attendees began to fill the house. However, Jenny went to get another drink, and it’s almost been 10 minutes since she said she’d be right back.
Jenny is Jenny, so she’s probably making her own jungle juice or simply talking to someone in the kitchen. It’s not like her friends are assholes; Lily has been looking over her shoulder, checking on Sae-byeok with a soft smile and mouthing to her “Are you good?”; Sae-byeok simply responded with a nod and thumbs up. Sully even asked her if she wanted to team up for beer pong, saying she’d drink for Sae-byeok if she wanted her to, but Sae-byeok politely declined. She’s never played before, and didn’t want to accidentally make Sully black out.
Sae-byeok is not being antisocial on purpose, she just doesn’t feel like stepping too far out of her comfort zone. It helps that Lily was right about the type of crowd that’d be in attendance tonight; Mark’s place isn’t being overrun by jocks or people who wouldn’t even look Sae-byeok’s way. The music is surprisingly alright too. Sae-byeok is comfortable, and she’s comfortable enough that her mind drifts to what Lily said about meeting someone new.
Lily knows that Sae-byeok is secretly a hopeless romantic. Romantic love isn’t a current priority for her— school and family simply hold more weight for her— but she found (not so) guilty pleasure in cheesy romcoms. She loves the idea of love, loves the idea of holding someone close to her heart, and loves the idea of being held close to someone’s heart. (She watched “10 Things I Hate About You” for the first time ever during a movie night with the girls, and it made a lasting impression on her expectations of love.)
She’s not sure if she’s being too superficial, but nobody at the party has been able to catch her attention and keep it. Some people have caught her eye, yes, but nobody has lured her in. Mark had an attractive friend that he greeted while introducing himself to Sae-byeok— a taller brunette with an intense gaze and a sly smile that was intimately inviting— but the friend seemed too headstrong. A bit ironic coming from Sae-byeok, but knowing how stubborn she could be? Dealing with someone as potentially hotheaded as her sounded like a recipe for disaster.
There was also a girl who walked by her to request a song from the person playing music, and she smelled really good. Sae-byeok couldn’t help but turn her head in the direction of the aroma as warm vanilla and cinnamon tickled her nose, and she was in awe at the source of the sweetness. A tall blonde girl with doe-like eyes stood before the DJ, and her soft lashes only emphasized the gentleness of her gaze. Her lips were a light shade of purple under the party lights, and it stood out against her black low-waisted jeans. Her black tank top was cropped, revealing a tattoo of a cyber-like butterfly on her lower back.
If Sae-byeok could be granted one wish for tonight, it would be to taste the girl who was the embodiment of sweetness. A kiss would be lovely, but even a simple peck would be enough for her.
Her mind was quickly changed when the song that the sweet girl requested began playing. Sae-byeok did not want to become romantically involved with someone who unironically listens to Imagine Dragons; who in their right mind requests “Radioactive” at a party?
So, yeah. Sae-byeok is keeping to herself on the couch, watching Sully get progressively more fucked up as her game of beer pong continues. It’s pretty entertaining to watch her fail every attempt at a “trick shot.”
Sae-byeok watches in silence, taking occasional sips of her soda and laughing along with the players. She’s mesmerized by the trajectory of the ball every time it’s shot, and she even participates by throwing the ball back to a player whenever it gets thrown in her direction. It’s not until somebody takes a seat next to her that she turns her attention away from the game. There’s more than enough space on the opposite side of the couch, so who decided to invade her personal bubble?
Looking at the culprit, Sae-byeok finds a girl she’s noticed in the library before. She doesn’t know her name, but she knows that this girl likes fruit snacks. Not only did Sae-byeok spare her a glance in the library because her bangs framed her face nicely, but she had a neat stack of at least six fruit snack wrappers at the corner of her desk. Just one packet was enough for Sae-byeok— six in one sitting seemed like a meal. She can’t say that she doesn’t respect the dedication, though.
Sae-byeok raises an eyebrow at the girl, who’s shuffling a deck of cards in her lap. At the same time, she smiles at Sae-byeok, and her bangs look as nice as they did in the library. Her party attire is different from her studying outfit: rather than some sweatsuit, she’s donning baggy cargo pants that make her look more cool than cute. Her zip-up jacket hangs off of her shoulders to reveal the straps of her tank top and bra.
“Hi,” the cool girl nods, leaning in closer to Sae-byeok’s face so they can hear each other over the music. Sae-byeok would be lying if she said that the gesture didn’t make her heart beat wildly in her chest. “I haven’t seen you come out before?”
The words “come out” make Sae-byeok’s heart drop to her stomach, but the feeling quickly washes over when she remembers that they are at a party and that “going out” is synonymous with “coming out.” The cool, pretty library girl is not, in fact, asking if Sae-byeok is not straight. That is not happening here.
Sae-byeok hopes any shock isn’t written on her face as she shakes her head, looking between the cards and the girl’s eyes. “No, I don’t usually do parties. My friend, Lily, dragged me here.”
“Model UN Lily?”
Sae-byeok nods, and she feels oddly small when the girl lets out a hearty guffaw. It’s like there’s some inside joke she doesn’t know about.
“She’s a sweetheart, isn’t she? I’m surprised she’s never introduced me to you, especially since we’re all Korean. I’m Ji-yeong, by the way.”
“Too sweet for her own good. I’m Sae-byeok,” she nods, finishing her soda with a quick gulp. “How’d you know I’m Korean, though?”
Ji-yeong shoots Sae-byeok an unamused look. “Do you see anyone else with short hair and bangs like us?”
“…Lily?”
“Exactly.”
To that, Sae-byeok giggles— a bit too much for her liking— and playfully bumps her shoulder against Ji-yeong’s. It makes Ji-yeong giggle too, and even though the music is loud, she can hear how lovely the sound is.
“Your smile is so pretty,” Ji-yeong comments, her voice full of awe. “Do you only save it for special occasions?”
If it were anyone else making such a comment, then Sae-byeok would probably be annoyed. But, Ji-yeong has a playful tone to her words, and the grin on her face as she curiously tilts her head tugs on all the right strings of Sae-byeok’s heart.
“I smile when something makes me smile.”
“Then, I’ll be sure to do that more,” Ji-yeong hums, packing her shuffled cards away into their box and into her jacket pocket. “I was going to ask if you wanted to play cards, but others will probably want to join, and someone will probably turn it into a drinking game.”
Sae-byeok is glad that the house is dark, save for the LED lights illuminating the room, because there’s an undeniable heat rushing to her cheeks at the implications of Ji-yeong’s words. She ignores it, instead focusing on the second part of what Ji-yeong said as she replies, “What do you want to do then?”
A small grin spreads across Ji-yeong’s face. “Wanna dance?”
That is not what Sae-byeok expected.
“Oh, I can’t— I’m not good at dancing.”
Shrugging, Ji-yeong’s grin is still clear in her voice as she says, “Neither can I, but I don’t let it stop me.”
Sae-byeok actually doesn’t mind the idea of dancing— her body naturally grooves to a beat when she likes a song enough— and nobody on the floor is a professional dancer (as far as she knows). There’s nothing to really be scared of. However, she’s still in the beginning phases of acquainting herself with Ji-yeong; they don’t even know each other’s favorite colors, and she doesn’t want Ji-yeong to think of her as a total dork just yet. Although Sae-byeok doesn’t want to embarrass herself in front of Ji-yeong, she also doesn’t want to disappoint her.
So, she settles on saying, “What’s stopping me right now is the music. I won’t dance to Imagine Dragons.”
At that, Ji-yeong throws her head back with a laugh. “Okay, okay, what will you dance to then?”
“It’s getting close to when I usually go to sleep, so maybe something slow?”
“Oh, are you sleepy?” Ji-yeong fishes her phone out of her jacket pocket, checking the time. “It’s a little past midnight. It shouldn’t be too cold if we want to walk back to one of our dorms right now.”
“It’s okay, I’m not sleepy with you here.”
A familiar grin returns to Ji-yeong’s face. “Do you wanna get out of here and throw our own party? With our own music?”
Leaving the party without her friends didn’t even cross Sae-byeok’s mind when they entered the door to Mark’s place. She thinks about what Lily said earlier in the day— about meeting someone nice. The eagerness in Ji-yeong’s eyes shine through the darkness of the living room, and the upward curl of her lips is enough to have butterflies erupting in Sae-byeok’s gut. With Ji-yeong indulging in Sae-byeok‘s thoughts and laughing at her jokes, Sae-byeok decides that, yeah, she did meet someone nice tonight. She’s seen her fair share of faces, but nobody has made her feel like how Ji-yeong has in the past ten minutes.
She knows that her friends won’t mind if she skips out on the rest of this party, which is why she says, “As long as I get to pick the first song.”
The grin doesn’t leave Ji-yeong’s face when she sticks her hand out for Sae-byeok to shake. “Deal.”
Shaking Ji-yeong’s hand, Sae-byeok rises from the couch, and Ji-yeong does the same.
Ji-yeong doesn’t let go of Sae-byeok’s hand after the initial shake, instead using the physical link between them to guide her out of the crowded room. Sae-byeok catches Lily’s eye on the way out and waves goodbye to her, pointing to Ji-yeong’s head so that she knows she’s leaving. Despite the powerful saxophone of “Careless Whisper” now filling the room, Sae-byeok can still hear Lily’s celebratory whooping, and she makes a cut-throat motion to shut her up. She ignores how hot her ears feel, focusing instead on Ji-yeong tugging on her hand to lead her out of the house. She hopes her hand doesn’t become too clammy.
When they finally walk through the door, the heat of the living room is stripped from their bodies as the cool air of the night blankets itself over them. Their hands are still connected, and it’s a comfortable warmth in the cold.
“It’s a bit chillier than I thought it’d be,” Ji-yeong comments, stopping in her tracks to look back at Sae-byeok. “But it’s still nice out. I know somewhere we can go if you’re not tired?”
Nodding, Sae-byeok motions for the other girl to lead the way with her free hand. “How far are we walking though?”
“Not too far. It’s a park I like to study at sometimes, and it’s on the way back to campus. I actually think it’s only a block or two away from here?”
“A park with a playground, or a park with trees?”
“A park with weird workout equipment and unclear instructions.”
An amused huff leaves Sae-byeok’s mouth. “I can work with that.”
With that, the pair resume walking to begin their adventure. Their hands still connect them, and Ji-yeong actually moves to intertwine their fingers for a better grip on Sae-byeok. The gesture makes the butterflies in Sae-byeok’s gut crash into the lining of her organs, and she forces herself to focus on the biting cold so that her palm doesn’t become grossly sweaty. If her hand was clammy before, then she doesn’t know how it is now with their fingers actually interlocked.
Despite this, the walk is comfortable. Sae-byeok isn’t a fan of talking to new people because the air can quickly become stale, but it’s not like that at all with Ji-yeong. The cars driving through downtown provide a distant, but familiar background noise that fills any gap in their conversation, though there are rarely any gaps.
They eventually arrive at the park, and Ji-yeong steers them away from the main sidewalk to a pebble path that takes them further into the park’s greenery. Sae-byeok notices purple flowers that become more vibrant when illuminated by the moonlight as they’re talking about what they’ll do once they go back home for break.
She’s about to bring up her favorite boba shop in Busan when Ji-yeong leads her into a gazebo. Lanterns softly illuminate the space, which allows her to see what it looks like. The space is mostly open: there’s a table just big enough to fit a laptop accompanied by two chairs off to the side. It’s a setting more suited for two people sharing a meal rather than trying to study together; the table seems a bit cramped, but you could probably make things work if needed.
“When I need to get out of my room and I don’t want to go to the library, I come here,” softly says Ji-yeong.
She relaxes her fingers to loosen her grip on Sae-byeok’s hand, and Sae-byeok only allows herself to feel some disappointment as she releases Ji-yeong’s hand. Ji-yeong uses her newfound freedom to walk to a side railing, peeking her head out from under the overhang of the tall ceiling to look up at the sky. Sae-byeok follows her and does the same.
There’s more stars in the sky tonight than usual, it seems.
“Do you come here often then?”
“Are you flirting with me?”
Despite the bitter cold of the air, Sae-byeok’s face is really warm right now. Too warm, in fact, and her mind is scrambling into static as she searches for a response.
Something about her face must’ve been funny, because giggles are erupting from Ji-yeong’s mouth as she lightly punches Sae-byeok’s arm. “I’m kidding. You look cute when you’re all shy.”
“Are you flirting with me?” asks Sae-byeok, her eyebrows furrowing in disbelief as she fully turns to face the other girl.
“Yeah.”
Sae-byeok feels like she was just punched in the face. She really doesn’t know how to react to this since she didn’t think she would get this far with Ji-yeong tonight. Truth be told, she didn’t think she would get anywhere with Ji-yeong at all.
Her brain settles on a simple response because she knows that Ji-yeong is expecting something from her.
“Oh,” she says. “Wow.”
Thanks, brain.
The reaction must be enough for Ji-yeong, because her eyes seem to soften as she smiles at Sae-byeok. “Is that okay with you?”
Sae-byeok doesn’t trust herself to not say something lame or dumb, so she simply nods in response. It makes Ji-yeong smile wider, and she pulls her phone out of her pocket to open the YouTube app as she continues speaking.
“Then… do you still want to dance with me? You get to pick the song.”
“Any song?”
“Any song,” nods Ji-yeong, and she hands her phone to Sae-byeok.
It’s a quiet night, and it feels like the moon is smiling on both of them at this moment. Sae-byeok almost wants to thank the moon for bringing the nightfall and ultimately bringing her to Ji-yeong. It’s this thought that helps her choose a song so quickly.
“Do you know Frank Sinatra?” softly asks Sae-byeok. Ji-yeong’s keyboard is in English, so it makes searching up the musician’s name easier.
"Of course."
“Then, do you want to go to the moon with me?”
Sae-byeok hands the phone back to Ji-yeong, who turns up the volume before setting it down on the table. The soft tapping of the song’s beat begins to fill the air, as does Frank Sinatra’s voice.
Fly me to the moon . Sae-byeok thinks that she would want to travel to the end of the universe with Ji-yeong.
Holding out a hand, Ji-yeong replies, “Of course.”
Their fingers interlace once more, and Ji-yeong tugs Sae-byeok closer to her. Their bodies fall into a slow, melodic rhythm as their footsteps follow one another.
Ji-yeong allows herself to rest her head on Sae-byeok’s shoulder after the first chorus, and Sae-byeok allows herself to rest her cheek on the top of her head. Even after the song ends, they stay in each other’s embrace, and the air doesn’t seem so cold anymore.
Yeah, Sae-byeok can say that she has met someone nice tonight.