The Star-Crossed Moon

Prologue

Things used to be quite different a few years back in the Youngkwang Boarding school. When she wasn't the school's president. Back then, it was a normal school, for most. The students were nothing to worry about, but the teachers were often lacking. Lazy and inappropriate teachers lead to ill-mannered students in the coming years. Often students would mess around with the teachers, but who's authority to care? Even I used to be a little on the wacky side as well. Obvious enough, the owner of the school is a little too old to keep track. Might I say, too old. 

Opened by Jo Donghae in 1995, he named it after his great grand children, his precious twin "stars." Hence the name - Youngkwang, meaning "Honor". Jo Donghae is ninety now, his memory and activeness seem to be lacking, leaving the school to fall into oblivion. 

Then 14-year-old Moon Ah Ri came. She was so cute and good-looking that she was often "checked out" by the older male students. It just happened that almost every girl in the school was a slut. But, she wasn't. Ah Ri was different from the other girls. She got better-than-average grades despite the poor teaching system. Ah Ri was fluent in English and could speak it without any accent either.  She was kind, even when the students were rude and uncaring.

Then the time came and Ah Ri ran for student body president. 

"... I, Moon Ah Ri, solemnly swear to make the school a better place for you and me. Change will come, but remember, 'Rome wasn't built in a day'. Vote for me, and I will filter out the impurities and work until this school is restored to its former glory..."

That's just an excerpt from her 4-minute-long speech. It was the phrase that won the hearts of many - Delinquents and proper students alike. The latter however, voted mostly because she looked pretty, but the students who desired change did not hesitate to cast their vote for Ah Ri. 

She told me that she wanted to change the school for the better. She wanted to "whip it into shape", just like what she did with me. I laughed at her idea. How could a sweet girl possibly change the school that became a "den of thieves?" She kept at it, with incremental developments each month. But, month after month wasn't going to change everything; Ah Ri wanted change now.  After all, "Rome wasn't built in a day." 

When she couldn't kick the inappropriate teachers and slackers out, she threw a fit. Let me tell you, it was not pretty. She scream and "round-housed" their asses out of the building -- Literally. I didn't even know that she was well-trained in wushu since the age of five. Then, she confiscated all the porn magazines stuffed messily into desks and gave all delinquents a two week suspension with a six-inch packet containing a variety of math questions and obedience checks with most of them written in English. If they failed to complete it within their two-weeks' suspension, they will be expelled from the school.

Well, that's more than half of the school's population expelled. 

Change was finally taking place when all the young malefactors left Youngkwang. Change was finally taking place in Ah Ri. It had been six months in her freshman year, but she was a whole 'nother person. The sweet, kind Ah Ri was gone - She disappeared from her appearance and personality. Her "sugary" self was replaced by a refined, but somewhat harsh being who watched people with an eagle's eye. Her glare could pierce the hearts of students with fear. Yes, they were afraid of her - Well, most of them were. 

There were still little groups of guys or girls who hated her. Who just loathed the new school - The new her - The new rule. They disliked every inch of the rooms which were newly painted. They disliked the wooden-topped clean desks which replaced their dirty, written-all-over "throw-outs." They disliked the new cafeteria, wait, they liked the new cafeteria because the food was better than the crap they used to eat. They disliked the new teachers who were stricter and "orthodox."

But, what they hated the most was the way she looked so perfect, but they knew, oh how they knew, that she was the one who scrapped their "world" clean. She took away their freedom - Their fun. 

Yet, old students were replaced with freshmans who respected Ah Ri and liked the school. Transfer students hadn't come in years, because their parents feared the worse; Yet, to their surprise and relief - They loved the school. After the school rating exams, Youngkwang went from one of the lowest rated boarding schools to the top 100. 

And that was all because of Moon Ah Ri the bold girl who was never swayed by anything "less" than her goal. But what exactly changed her? Was it really just to get the school into order..? Or was it more than that? When will my Ah Ri fall in love? Just who will crack her cold exterior and have her affection? I have yet to find out.