Bangtan Memories

Chapter Five

Yang Hui wasn't aware of it, but she had been staring at her timetable for a full minute.

Who could blame her? Their next lesson was Home Economics. And she had just seen Kim Seokjin at the teachers' table earlier. Her heart raced at the speed of light. If her hunch was right...

"Hey – Yang Hui, was it?"

Taehyung's voice jerked Yang Hui back to her surroundings. She clutched her chest; this was the worst place for her to be.

"Yes?" she whispered. It took all of her willpower to look Taehyung in the eye.

They were in the Home Econs room, and for some reason Taehyung had chosen to pair up with her. Now he regarded her with a slight frown.

"Are you perhaps suffering from nerves? You know, since it's your first day as a transfer student."

He had unintentionally provided her with the perfect excuse.

"Oh yeah," said Yang Hui, trying to look as serious as possible. "That's right. I'm having adjustment issues."

No wonder he had offered to be her partner. He must be worried for her. Yang Hui could swear her heart was melting – Taehyung was such a considerate angel!

After hearing her answer, Taehyung nodded as if he finally understood something.

"That's what I thought. Tell you what – I'm in class until five everyday. Wanna hang back and talk for a bit? You know, get to know more about the school."

Yang Hui thought she had misheard.

It couldn't be. Had the three of them had died and gone to heaven?

"YES!" she squealed, leaping to her feet. "I would like that! Thank you, V!"

He looked surprised.

"V?"

"Uh... I mean, Taehyung. Ha ha ha."

Just then, a man entered through the doorway.

"Afternoon, everyone," he declared briskly.

Yang Hui forgot to breathe again. Seokjin was in front of the board, and he looked absolutely drop dead gorgeous.

I knew it! Jin is totally the Home Econs teacher!

She could barely refrain from jumping on the spot. The day was getting better and better. Now she got to learn cooking under Seokjin's guidance, and with Taehyung as her partner.

What more could she ask for?

***

Tricia awaited her English lesson with glowing anticipation.

"You seem pretty happy," said Jungkook.

"Do I?" said Tricia. She was still a little bashful around her bias, but she was starting to get used to him – as long as he didn't suddenly whip out his adorable bunny smile.

Jungkook chuckled. "I didn't know you liked school this much."

It's not school per se, thought Tricia. It was the Bangtan crew. Not that she could tell him that.

Finally, Namjoon walked into class. The chatter died down. Tricia was so excited to see him that she had to cover her mouth again.

"Good afternoon, class," said Namjoon pleasantly, dropping his books on the desk.

"Good afternoon, Mr Kim," chirped Tricia along with her classmates.

It was a surreal experience being taught by Namjoon. His English was way more proficient than she had thought. She half expected him to start rapping during the lesson.

At one point, Jungkook was called out. He wrote an exemplary answer on the board before taking his seat, and Tricia gazed at him with proud eyes.

"Your English has really improved, Jungkook!" she commended him.

He looked at her in surprise.

"Oh. Thank you."

From that point on, he kept staring at her. It did nothing to help Tricia's focus. She wanted to turn and ask him what he was doing, but somehow, her body couldn't obey her mind. It made her wonder if she had said something offensive.

Jungkook was intrigued by the new girl. He was constantly working hard on his English since it was one of his weaker subjects, but only someone who had been friends with him for a while would know that. Unless someone had told her his grades, how could she possibly know about his progress? And the way she'd reacted when they first met – it was a little odd.

"Hey," whispered Jungkook, when Namjoon's back was turned.

Tricia finally got her neck to move. She turned toward Jungkook and whispered back, "Yeah?"

"You said I look like someone, right? Who is it? And why does he have the same name as me?"

Tricia was stunned. How on earth was she supposed to answer that?

"I – I saw your picture in the year book and I thought you were a guy from a band I saw perform some time back," she said, thinking quickly. "That's when I looked up your name. I didn't know what his name was, so..." She gave a helpless shrug.

Comprehension dawned on Jungkook's face. "Oh, so that's what it was. What band was it again? BTS?"

"It was a really long time ago. They've already disbanded."

"Oh, I see. That's a shame."

Jungkook turned back to the front, nodding thoughtfully. Tricia didn't know if he actually bought her explanation, but he didn't ask anymore questions. She breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

After some time, she snuck a look at him. He must have noticed, because he turned to look at her and flashed a friendly smile.

Flowers bloomed in Tricia's vision. Even if the circumstances were different, he was still the Jungkook she knew. And it was important that nothing about that ever changed.