She thought she was running away. It turns out she was coming home.
This story will feature:
• Ze zmut
• student!ATEEZ
• student!BlackPink
• student!Stray Kids
• parent!BTS
• parent!GOT7
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My first class turns out to only be a five minute walk from the dorm, so I arrive ten minutes early and look around at the empty room. The classroom is small with rows of desks, and it looks more like a high school setting than a university, but I'm glad for the change.
"Hello!" I hear a girl say from behind me. I turn around to see her standing in the doorway with a bottle of water in her hands and a friendly her face. "Are you here for American Lit?"
"Um yes," I nod and look at her inquisitively. She doesn't have any books or a backpack with her. "Are you in this class?"
"I'm teaching it," she says in an American accent, "or well, I'm student teaching it. I'm a graduate student here, but I loved this class as an undergrad, so I requested to teach this class."
"That makes a lot more sense," I smile back.
"Are you from the States?" She asks me, and I nod.
"Chicago," I tell her, and she smiles more with recognition. I can tell she's a hapa as well from her hazel double-lidded eyes, and I'm slightly relieved to know I'm not the only one at this school.
"My mom is American and my dad is Korean, but I kind of grew up all over the world because my parents traveled a lot for work," she says just as another student walks into the classroom. "I'm EllaJin by the way, but just call me EJ or Unnie. I'm glad I'm not the only American at this school. I was beginning to feel so out of place."
Before I can tell her that I feel the exact same way, one of the guys from the mall yesterday comes barreling through the door laughing. He smiles at me and EJ, but once he makes eye contact with her, his eyes widen in surprise.
"Noona?" The boy widens his already large eyes in shock.
"Wooyoungie, did you take my class just because you missed me that much?" She smiles at the boy and opens her arms towards him. "Are you not going to give your Noona a hug?"
The tips of his ears turn bright pink from embarrassment, but he hugs her nonetheless. "I've gotten taller, Noona."
"Do you think so?" EJ giggles and ruffles his hair, and the boy visibly deflates as she continues to treat him like a little kid, which I can't help but find adorable. She turns back to me and wraps an arm around his shoulders. "Anna, this is my cousin, Park Wooyoung."
"We aren't related," Wooyoung groans.
"We grew up together, didn't we?" She counters, and he huffs.
"Our dads are friends," he corrects her. "You're only my Noona of four years. I'm not a baby anymore."
"I was at your house the day your parents brought you home from the hospital, so you'll always be a baby to me," she teases. "I actually have to run to the copy room to pick up the syllabi, but you guys are free to sit wherever."
