She Was Happy - NCT Dream's Jisung

Week 3 - Happy's Mission

When I walked into class the next Saturday morning, Happy's desk was right where she left it—scooted up next to mine. However, her seat was empty when I arrived.

It was expected since I came early as usual. I was a pretty punctual person and I hated being late, along with the unwanted attention that came with it. If I had to be somewhere at 8:00, I'd try to wake up at 6:30 so I had an hour to get ready and 30 minutes to compensate for the traffic and the walking distance to my destination. Call it excessive, but life without organization is like living without a goal.

I tucked my backpack in my lap and pulled out my laptop to pass some time before class started. Silly cat videos popped up on my twitter feed as I scrolled and I couldn't help but open threads of more. I always liked cats and thought they were adorable, but I was never allowed to have one as a kid.

"Morning!"

I jumped in my seat, startled by the sudden sound and the slap on my shoulder. I was too immersed in the twitter kittens that I didn't notice Happy come in.

"Good morning," I whispered shyly, as she plopped down into her seat and dropped her backpack on the desk. She was dressed similarly to last week's getup—summer shorts and a large knit sweater, made up of beige and brown lilies. It reminded me of an old dress my mom used to wear in the spring back when I was only a child. She'd bring me to the park, just me and her, and we'd spend the day eating snacks on a picnic blanket and picking flowers. Those were the rare moments in my childhood where her and I could get away from the miseries that waited for us at home.

"Sooo, how was your week?" she piped. I could feel a thin breeze near my right leg, which seemed like it was coming from her swinging her feet back and forth. She was awfully cheery for someone having to begin her Saturday morning in a classroom with someone as boring as me.

"Mmm, it was fine. Lots of studying I guess," I shrugged, leaning my ear on my palm to face her. "What about you?"

"Same, same," she sighed, mirroring me. Happy didn't say anything, just looked at me with curious eyes. I could only hold her gaze for a few seconds before I shrunk back uncomfortably. Happy made me so nervous inside, but there was something pleasant and dangerous about it.

Professor K entered the class at 8:00 on the dot and took attendance right away as if he wasn't almost late. He didn't waste anymore time and began class. "Okay kids, let's get started! We have a lot to cover today, so let's hold tight for the next three hours."

The class collectively groaned in dread as we pulled out our laptops or paper to take notes for lecture. It was pitiful enough knowing that we'd have to listen to him lecture for three hours, but it was a worser crime to verbalize it to the whole class. Happy and I exchanged looks of anguish.

I prepared my space carefully, setting up my laptop, phone, and notebook and pencils down in an orderly presentation, with proportionate space in between each item. I could focus and learn better if my study area was clean and organized. These were moments where I felt like defending myself to my imaginary audience for being so anal about organization and tidiness. It was just so natural to me as a neat person that I liked to avoid chaos in my life and welcome order.

Happy was the exact contradiction to these beliefs I held.

I looked over and her desk was completely opposite to mine. Her pencils were angled in an ugly fashion and the space between every object on her desk lacked parallelism and thoughtful arrangement. I tried not to stare at this monstrosity and focused on comforting myself with the fact that it was her space and not mine.

But in a way, although the chaos of her study space was unsettling, I found it somewhat adorable. The way we completely failed to complement each other in our organizational habits was amusing.