Chapter 4: Seventh Grade, Winter: A Familiar Face Returns

Chapter 2: Seventh Grade, Winter

We woke before dawn to clear the snow from in front of our house. This third winter in Chicago seemed to outdo the previous ones, each year proving worse than the last. The transparent crystals falling from the sky no longer held any beauty for me.

Yet, despite such heavy snowfall, a school closure was never declared. Strangely, if you ventured onto the main roads, most of the snow would have mysteriously melted overnight, as if someone had diligently cleared it. The locals, meanwhile, drove their cars along the snowy paths with practiced ease.

It was times like these that I recalled my mother’s words, claiming this place was similar to Korea.

‘But where exactly is the similarity?’ I wondered. ‘I’ve never heard of it snowing daily in Korea like this.’

My father’s acquaintance had spoken of pleasant autumn weather, but that brief coolness was long forgotten, overshadowed by Chicago’s brutally cold winters.

Today was one such day. The coldest among the brutally cold days, a kind of weather that defied any other description.

Still, the school interior offered a semblance of heaven. The classrooms, with their heaters blasting, were so well-heated that they felt almost stiflingly warm.

[Good morning, Teacher.]

[Good morning to you too.]

Chicago schools, operating on a subject-teacher system, didn’t have distinct classes like ‘Class 1’ or ‘Class 2’ with a single homeroom teacher, as was common in Korea. Instead, mornings began with a homeroom period in a designated classroom.

During this time, the homeroom teacher typically didn’t interfere with what the students did, unless there was a specific announcement to be made. While other children chatted with friends or caught up on homework, I, having nothing particular to do, idly flipped through my textbook.

Before I knew it, the short homeroom period came to an end.

—♪♫

The bell for class rang, and almost simultaneously, everyone rose from their seats in a rush. Another difference from Korea was that for each class, students, rather than teachers, had to move to a different classroom.

[See you later, kids.]

[Yes, Teacher.]

Up to that point, everything was as usual. There was nothing particularly different from any other day, even as I moved to the classroom diagonally across the hall and became engrossed in social studies.

[John. Could you come here for a moment?]

While I was working on an activity sheet, the teacher, who had been speaking with someone at the door, called my name. I thought it was rather abrupt, but what came next was even more perplexing.

[Please go to the main office.]

[The main office?]

[Yes. Go right now. You can leave your belongings behind.]

‘Why?’

Usually, a summons to the main office meant either I had done something wrong and was about to be punished, or a guardian had unexpectedly arrived to take me home early. However, being told to leave my things behind suggested the latter wasn’t the case.

‘Had I done something without realizing it?’ I pondered intently on the way, but nothing came to mind.

Walking down the empty corridor, I soon reached my destination. Though called the ‘main office,’ it was an entirely open space with a long desk. The administrative staff member sitting there stood up abruptly before I could even state my name, then went into the principal’s office and emerged with the principal.

A needless tension coiled in my stomach, making my fingertips grow cold.

[You must be John. It’s a pleasure to meet you.]

[Hello.]

[The reason I called you is that we need someone who can speak Korean. A new student transferred today, and I was hoping you could help them?]

Realizing it was neither of my initial guesses, a wave of relief washed over me. In my case, I had started school at the beginning of the semester, so such a situation hadn’t arisen. However, it was a hidden rule of our school that if a non-English-speaking student transferred in the middle of a term, one of the students in the same classes would act as a guide.

[They were originally supposed to go to a different team, but since there are many Korean students there, we suddenly changed their placement.]

The principal took a few steps closer to me. An inexplicable sense of pressure made my head nod instinctively.

[Please take good care of them until they adjust.]

[Yes.]

Upon hearing my answer, the principal gestured towards their office.

[You can come out now.]

As soon as the words left their lips, a slender figure sprang out from within the office, as if they had been waiting.

The administrative staff, the principal, and… one incredibly familiar face.

“Oh, you’re doing well?”

A bright, cheerful face I hadn’t thought about in a long time waved at me happily.

“You missed me, didn’t you?”

His spirited voice and audacious manner were exactly as I remembered.

“……”

“……”

“……”

“What? Why aren’t you surprised?”

“I am surprised.”

I truly was. This was what people meant when they said you couldn’t speak when you were too shocked. I needed to greet him somehow, but the words stuck in my throat. ‘I’m doing well. How are you?’ Even such simple phrases wouldn’t come out.

‘See you again.’

‘Was that what he meant back then?’ That seemingly unbelievable farewell had returned exactly half a year later. While our parting hadn’t been dramatic, our reunion was certainly a proper surprise.

Come to think of it, Seo Gi-hyeon, the one I knew, might not have had a talent for disappearing, but he certainly had an uncanny knack for reappearing.

“Hey, friend. Is that really your surprised face?”

The occasional childish tone he used still made him seem younger than his age. Ignoring his jab, I asked,

“When did you arrive?”

“The day before yesterday.”

“Did your whole family come?”

“Just me, for now.”

If he had planned to come all along, he wouldn’t have kept it a secret; he would have told me outright. It seemed this decision was made after he returned to Korea. In that case, the half-year it took made perfect sense.

“Then…”

[Since class is in session, please return to your classroom for now.]

Our conversation halted at the sudden reappearance of the ‘extras’ we had forgotten about.

[Go and sit down, and your homeroom teacher will probably come find you in the middle of this period. If they don’t come this time, just move on to your next class.]

[Yes.]

[Though your homeroom is different, your class schedule has been perfectly matched with John’s, so I hope you two get along well. He can be a good friend to you.]

As I spoke with the principal again, I could feel a constant gaze upon me. The person staring at us, eyes sparkling, was brimming with expectation. If no one else had been around, he looked ready to rush over and embrace me.

[Then, I’ll leave it to you.]

I deliberately stood a little apart and called out to Seo Gi-hyeon.

“Let’s go. Follow me.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, hurried footsteps followed. Seo Gi-hyeon, now close beside me, nudged my elbow. Our eyes met, and he grinned.

Once the watchful eyes behind us disappeared and we were alone, I brought up the conversation we hadn’t finished earlier.

“So, where are you living?”

“My uncle’s house.”

“What?”

My voice inadvertently rose. His sudden appearance was shocking enough, but the fact that he had been so close by for two days was equally astonishing. Of course, this included a touch of disappointment that he hadn’t sought me out immediately.

“I was going to come say hello right away, but Mom told me not to wander around this weekend. She was worried I’d catch a cold with the weather so chilly. Can’t miss school on the first day of transfer, right?”

If I were Seo Gi-hyeon’s parent, I would probably have the same concerns. He loved to explore and showed no fear of new places. Just seeing how many times he used to come looking for me was proof enough.

“But didn’t you say you came alone?”

“Yeah. I’m staying, and Mom will leave in about a month.”

“So that’s why you’re at your uncle’s house.”

“Exactly.”

Seo Gi-hyeon continued to ramble on about things I hadn’t even asked, sharing personal details: how his mom had originally wanted to come too, but his dad objected; how his aunt had stepped forward first and suggested he stay with them. As he recounted these stories, I yawned three times in a row.

“Still, it’s good to see you again. I was genuinely surprised.”

“About what?”

“Well, when they said someone would come to guide me, I naturally assumed it would be my cousin.”

“Ah….”

“I knew you went to school here, so I thought maybe I’d see you, but I never expected to meet like this.”

Hadn’t he just asked me why I wasn’t surprised? In an equally unexpected situation, Seo Gi-hyeon hadn’t seemed surprised in the slightest either. He went on, talking about fate and destiny.

“Wow, but Chicago really is cold. I thought I was going to freeze to death as soon as I left the airport.”

“That’s because you arrived during the coldest time.”

“So, are other days okay?”

“No. Not really.”

Seo Gi-hyeon’s face immediately contorted in disgust. Then he loudly accused me of giving him false hope. Even after months apart, he was still the same.

Watching the unchanging Seo Gi-hyeon, I wondered, ‘Do I have to be stuck with this guy constantly now?’ At least for this semester, it seemed so. All our class schedules were identical.

We’d be together all day at school, and I’d probably see him frequently in the neighborhood too. I’d even see him on leisurely weekends when there was no school. The endless encounters with him stretched out clearly before my eyes.

Suddenly, a laugh escaped me.

I should have disliked it, but for some reason, my mood leaned towards contentment. A little flutter of excitement, a touch of anticipation.

I distinctly remembered preferring to be alone.

“I’m going to be in class with you for a while, right?”

“Yes.”

“Please take care of me, Master.”

“Stop calling me that.”

“Then… take care of me, friend?”

“Just call me Jeong-woo.”

‘Can’t he just call me by my name normally?’ I thought. When it was just the two of us, we rarely used each other’s names. Perhaps that’s why I rarely called him by his name, and he rarely called me by mine. But whenever Seo Gi-hyeon did call me, he always used some strange moniker.

“That’s a bit cringey.”

“Then just call me John.”

Seo Gi-hyeon, who seemed unaccustomed to being called without his family name, furrowed his brow with a serious expression at the suggestion of using my English name. He had even offered a prayer of thanks to the priest for the ‘cool name,’ but now, actually using it, he seemed to dislike it.

I thought it was hardly something to agonize over, but as I remained silent, his lips, closed in deep thought, finally parted.

“Let’s get along, Jeong-woo.”

It was his way of saying he truly disliked my English name.

In that winter, at fifteen, the bond between Seo Gi-hyeon and me truly began. Weekdays, weekends, all year long, always together. But I never imagined that this bond would extend to my twenties, my thirties, and that I would dedicate my entire life to Seo Gi-hyeon.