//Plan B// Exo//

Chapter 1// Intro

The faded blue paint was peeling off the damp looking walls and onto the old orange carpet with various burn marks and stains, which I assumed must have been from the previous owner. There was a lone shelf above the bed and it was seemingly the most stable thing in the room. It was liveable. I'd just envisioned so much more from the room I was going to be spending the next, and my first, year at university. I put my sheets and covers on my bed in an attempt to make it more homely and then littered the walls with pictures to cover the cracks and discolouration.

I decided against going to meet the rest of the people that I would be sharing a kitchen and bathroom with because I didn't want to spend any longer festering in this place. The more time I spent here, the more I noticed its undeniable flaws. I grabbed my navy blue raincoat from the, very precariously placed, hook on the back of the door and left.

The streets of Seoul were empty because the current downpour had pushed everybody into every visible café. I popped into a starbucks and ordered a tea to take out because sitting in the miserable rain was somehow preferable than negotiating the busy coffee shop and inevitably not finding anywhere to sit.

The rain pooled in the lid of my cup and smudged the black marker in which my name had been written making it indecipherable. Water dripped into the tea, slowly watering it down and forcing me to drink it faster, but I was almost thankful as the warmth it gave me made me feel slightly better. An odd sense of loneliness and fear had been playing on my mind since I set foot in my accommodation. My sister had given me the number of a friend she knew who was also attending Seoul National University and even though I felt so isolated I still couldn't bring myself to contact them. It was too soon to call out to a stranger for help when I hadn't even had a chance to acclimatise to my new surroundings. Once I had settled a little more then maybe things would be different and if they weren't then I would allow myself to perhaps text her friend. The last thing I wanted to do was scare myself out of university when I had worked so tirelessly to be here, as embarrassing as it may feel my decisions need to be based on what it takes for me to do my utmost best and ultimately see my three years here through.

I threw away my cup and zipped my coat up tighter as I walked through the many tall buildings feeling indescribably insignificant. I ducked into a home deco store called 'timeout' and bought a subtle pale blue paint and a large rug that would almost cover the whole of my bedroom floor and cover the disgusting carpet. I picked up a few other things that would decidedly improve the feel of the place. Once I left the rain began to rip the brown paper bag, threatening one of the handles to snap and spill everything across the floor. I bundled everything into my arms and rushed to what I now called home.