Through Her Eyes (2Yeon)

xxxiv. Live with Raison D'etre (EPILOGUE)

Bustling corridors, cluttered classrooms, noisy chatter, bright displays, obscure tannoy announcements, friends arrive, smiles, grins, teacher enters, hush descends, register called, day begins, math, literature, geography, science, homework forgotten, homework lost, homework crumpled in bottom of bag, dog ate homework, baby puked on homework, just kidding, homework in right on time, home time, goodbyes, hurried trot to bus, slide into middle row, not cool enough for back row, daydream, watch world go by.

Did any of that sound familiar? Perhaps, a particular moment during high school?

High school. The place for experience, to find yourself and tweak who you thought you were to be something that people forced you to become.

Eventually, they had to come back. Sooner or later. It was like an old existential force that drew them back in, to return and reminisce with people that went through similar things as you. What other option was there?

Millions of people attend high school reunions every year. Some have big expectations, while others just hope they'll have someone to talk to. Everyone has different experiences during high school. It just came to show how you made of your four years there.

Nayeon's time in high school wasn't the best, as you could already tell. Although she had a comfortable life back home, she couldn't say the same for school.  For Nayeon, those four torturous years were an endless cycle of head down, dodging bullies, taunts, jabs, jibes, avoid any sort of contact, move in hurried scurry, shoulders hunched, stomach lurches, geek, no eyes, desperate to be inconspicuous, perch at table, wait, another day, another ordeal, seven hours dragging by, tick tock, tick tock.

Knowing herself, although she was bullied badly by others due to their fear of Tzuyu being stronger than their inner conscience, Nayeon made sure to be kind to people. Not to be ignorant of their mistreatment but to remain optimistic even though she was in so much pain. And then a soothing thought to mind; she was no longer that little blind girl that they mistreated. Things were different. Much different.  Also, she was on greater terms with Tzuyu. They could actually classify each other as friends.

Now, she had to go back to that place and meet people that she could barely recognize and had not interest in talking to. She wanted to prove them wrong in a gracious manner but then she didn't really want to face them in the first place.

She thought to herself how she was free from that abominable area of indoctrination but when two invitations for their 10-year high school reunion, Nayeon's blood ran cold. For several days, she tried to put the thought of reuniting with fifty seven people, give or take a few faves who would be attending, but there was a huge interference in her choice.

It took a lot of poking and prodding — mostly on the part of her wife – to convince Nayeon. After weeks of indecisiveness and lots of time spent browsing through her old yearbooks, she finally made the decision. Moreover, Jeongyeon did not give her peace of mind, ranting about how it would be amusing on who turned out surprisingly hot or who still hadn't changed a bit.

In addition, Jeongyeon was expected to go since she was catering the event, given that the one planning the reunion had called her and they personally met up. Technically, Nayeon had no choice.

Seeming like there was no way out of this, Nayeon would be attending their class' upcoming reunion. Jeongyeon couldn't be anymore excited.

"It's the 10th, after all!" Jeongyeon had said to try and persuade Nayeon into changing her mind. "That's a pretty big deal, babe. And you're curious to see how people have turned out. I just know you are."