Seventeen Scenarios

Adjustments - The8

The reader bonds wih Minghao over the struggles of being in a foreign country.
[This story may make dated references, it was written in January 2016]
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It'd been six months since you landed an office job at Pledis Entertainment, basically keeping track of sales and assisting in advertising and things like that. With the holidays coming to an end, the higher-ups organized a company party that you had planned to skip, but decided to go to after all to get yourself out of your isolated little apartment.

The move to Korea was scary; learning the language, adjusting to social customs, new food, and just being so far away from home had taken a toll on you. As a result, you were tired and nervous, having a hard time talking to anybody or making friends. This company party would hopefully bring you out of your shell a bit, or at least you hoped.

You arrived at the Pledis building and made your way to the lobby to see a bunch of trainees and your coworkers all gathered around. The members of After School were spread out, socializing with everyone, something you always loved about the humble girls. Nu'est had come back from Japan to celebrate, and they were mixed into the gigantic black hole of boys that made up Seventeen.

You approached the crowd, standing quietly by a table and folding your hands nervously. Why was it so hard to just go up and say hi to someone? Everyone was nice to you when they interacted with you, so what was there to worry about?

Scanning the lobby, you saw a very unique looking person staring at you from the distance. His multicolored hair made him stand out, and it became clear that this was Xu Minghao, a dancer in Seventeen. He was awkwardly standing behind his group, unsure of what to do since the conversation was tricky to jump into.

Minghao noticed you looking back at him, and he glanced back to his group. You smiled sympathetically to yourself; you knew the struggle of not being able to fully comprehend a group's conversation. He looked back to you and began walking over, driving you to stand up and greet him.

"Hello, it's nice to see you here," he said with all sincerity.
"It's nice to see you too," you responded politely.

The two of you stood in silence for a moment before taking a seat at the table. He seemed unsure of what to say, or how to say whatever he wanted to say. Relief from being distanced from the oversized crowd appeared to make him more relaxed though, which was the first step in your mind.

"Have you done anything special for the holidays?" he asked.
"I watched a few movies and went to bed if we're being honest," you replied, "you?"
"Other than our concerts, we all just went back to the dorm. Some got to see their families."

His face fell subtly and there was a strange connection in that moment. Neither of you could just go home and visit your families for the holidays being so far from home. He had his members, but you felt that it was more upsetting to see others go home and not be able to yourself. At least you got to deal with yourself only.

"Sorry, did I make things dull?" he asked, snapping you out of your thought process.
"Oh! No, not at all, I was just... thinking," you said quickly.
"Ah, I see."

Nearby, a coworker was telling a joke to a group of people. You and Minghao turned your heads to look at the man, and he kept going. Eventually, that group of people burst out laughing; unfortunately for you, you didn't know enough Korean to understand it, and it was apparent that Minghao didn't either.

You turned back to each other and he mumbled, "I hate not understanding things..."
"I know exactly how you feel," you say dejectedly, "I wish real life had subtitles."
"Yeah, or at least a Korean-Chinese translator with me at all times!"
A laugh escaped your usually quiet person and Minghao was smiling himself.

You leaned your head on your hand and sighed.

"So was it hard for you too?" Minghao asked.
"Huh?" you said.
"Moving here; it wasn't easy, yeah?"
"Oh... no, it wasn't the easiest thing ever. I sort of feel like I'm totally isolated even though we're in the heart of Korea."
"I know what you mean. I'm surrounded by people I consider my brothers but sometimes I just can't stop thinking about my 'foreigner' status."
"And not being able to easily talk to people without the language barrier in the way doesn't help anything."

He smiled in almost a relieved way, his shoulders noticeably less tense. You yourself felt a warmth that you hadn't felt since you moved. Being able to connect with someone again felt so refreshing.

"Junnie hyung feels like this sometimes too. It's nice to know he and I aren't alone," he said.
"It is. I haven't held a conversation this long in a while," you replied with a smile.

The evening went on, and you and Minghao were endlessly exchanging stories about your homes. Every statement between you was relatable and topical. Eventually, the lobby began to dissipate and the rest of Seventeen walked over, greeting you politely before turning to Minghao.

"Minghao-ya, are you ready to go? Manager hyung gave us the rest of the night off," Seungcheol said.
"Ah, yes, I'll be there in a minute," he responded.

The flock of boys made their way outside and piled into the vans. Minghao quickly slid a piece of paper with his number on it in your direction before standing up.

"It was nice talking to you," he said, bowing slightly.
"You too, I'll see you around!" you replied, standing up as well and turning to walk away.
"Oh, and Y/N?"
"Huh"
"I think we'll make it just fine."