The Print | bts

01 | Switch-a-roo

"Ugly, ugly, ugly..." Eunbi kept repeating under her breath as she did the assignment for her class. She was sitting on the floor of her best friend's department while agressively imprinting her pattern onto a piece of cloth. The more she stared at the pattern the more she hated it. "Can we afford a crikut?" she looked at the owner of the flat who was just entertained looking at Eunbi's art process as she ate a bowl of cheerios.

"You are literally homeless, don't spend money on dumb shit." SooYoung said as she took another spoonfull. Defeated, Eunbi sighed and stood up. "What time is it?" She asked SooYoung. Both widened their eyes in realization. SooYoung quickly opened her black out curtains to see the bright sun stare right at them.

Eunbi made a weird noise out of shock. "Rise and shine." Said SooYoung smiling, not affected by accidental all-nighters. "It's not even done! What am I gonna do?!" Eunbi hurriedly picked up her art supplies and her assignment. "Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not done." her friend said calmly in contrast to Eunbi's fast paced attitude. "But it's the worst! Look at it!" She held it up to SooYoung's face. "You're right, it kinda looks like my hair on the shower wall"

Eunbi groaned and resumed getting her things ready. After hurriedly getting ready for their morning classes, they stepped out the door and walked to campus.

"You keep moaning because of a piece of cloth, get your priorities straight Bi." SooYoung said as they walked side by side towards the building. Eunbi kept a sour face because of her dissatisfaction, in an attempt to calm her nerves before being harshly judged by her favorite teacher due to her incompetence in the field, she tightly shut her eyes and shook her arms for a minute.

SooYoung stared at her friend as she humilliated herself. She had known Eunbi since their puberty and she knew she wouldn't let this assignment fiasco go for at least a month. SooYoung looked around at the people passing by and at the small coffee shops near. She spotted a cloth, one that resembled her friend's assignment, all alone, and cold, abandoned on a coffee shop table. No one appeared to be the owner of said patterned cloth so she took it. No hesitation what so ever. SooYoung replaced the cloth on Eunbi's bag with the one on the table and left her friend's on the coffee shop. Swindler.

"Are you done?" She asked after she stared at Eunbi move weirdly for a moment. Eunbi took a deep breath and turned to look at SooYoung. "Yup." And they kept going.

SooYoung and Eunbi parted ways as they didn't take the same classes. SooYoung being in performing arts and Eunbi focusing on textiles, illustration and film. And no, Eunbi wasn't some genious gifted in the arts, she was just undecided.

Eunbi nervously bounced her leg as her class was coming to an end which meant it was time to present assignments and have the class mercilessly judge it. "Alright!" The professor clapped his hands together and announced the lesson officialy over. "Please turn in your assignments. Oh! Also I forgot to tell you, I'll choose three of the best textiles and proudly display them in my gallery."

Eunbi's heart dropped to her stomach, she was convinced she'd throw up in front of all the 68 students in the workshop. In case you hadn't noticed, Miss Kang here is a very anxious individual.

It was Eunbi's turn to unveil her pattern infront of the class and she couldn't help but compare her work to the ones previously presented by her fellow students. With a knot on her stomach she hesitantly unfolded the school work she'd worked on for the whole night.

This can't be right... she thought to herself as the previously brown self-proclaimed mess she'd made overnight suddenly turned into a red intricate labyrinth intertwining with itself in a beautiful way.

She reluctantly placed 'her' work on the table as the teacher graded her work. Her heart racing as the work she'd made was now unfamiliar.

I'm gonna be expelled. They're gonna find out I didn't make this. My art career will be over and it hasn't even begun. What am I gonna tell my parents? Do you think he can tell I didn't make this? Who's print is this? Where's my print? Did someone steal my print? Is someone out to get me? Will someone get me?

Her breath unconciously got louder and louder as the professor stared at her work. He took notice of this so he made eye contact with Eunbi, unknowingly making her hold her breath in suspense. "...What do you think?" He asked Eunbi, making everyone in the workshop turn to look at her as the teacher usually never comments on works as they're being graded so everyone thought she was about to get scolded. Eunbi just shook her head in confusion. "You wanna know what I think?" She nodded. He kept quiet.

I'm fucked

"I love it." Said the professor and continued walking around the workshop, judging other students' work. She finally let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding. As soon as the students heard this they all looked at her table to get a look at the work that was praised.

Finally the class ended and the professor exited the workshop, few people stayed behind to clean up their tools and pick up their things. Eunbi couldn't shake off the guilt of the pattern not being the one she made, she was certain somebody was going to find out and rat her out. Out of paranoia she looked around the room to the other students getting their stuff together.

Her impostor syndrome was through the roof, she broke out in a cold sweat and dropped to her knees trying to compose herself.

"Myungho! Are you done with...?" A boy cheerfully walked into the room calling to his friend, but his statement was cut short when he noticed Eunbi looked like she was about to pass out.

"Shit."