Part 7

First day at Sungkyunkwan - meeting Yeorim

Sunjoon sits on the porch of the dorm and calls one of the children ("jaejiks"). He runs towards Sunjoon, looks at him, and runs right back to the group of jaejiks.

"I saw him. I saw his face. He's very handsome, even more so when you look at him up close. I've never seen anyone like him. I thought my heart my stop."

"Really? Really?

It looks like the jaejiks are all talking about Sunjoon's appearance. He smiles but is embarrassed. Yoonhee comes out to the porch, laughing because she understands the jaejiks' reaction.

"It's understandable that they'd be surprised by your good looks. I was surprised too at first."

Sunjoon feels that "he" is making fun of him. Another jaejik runs to see Sunjoon's face, and falls to the ground. When the jaejik gets up and runs to tell his companions, Yoonhee tries to suppress her laughter, but another jaejik who approaches her, suddenly blushes and runs off.

"He's so pretty! He's even prettier than my neighbor's sister. Much prettier. He has a small face too.

This time it's Sunjoon who makes fun of Yoonhee.

"It's true that you are pretty. It's normal to compare you with a woman."

Sunjoon puts on his shoes and walks towards the jaejiks. They all come towards Sunjoon and Yoonhee. He squats down to their height and asks them:

"Do you know who else lives here at the Joong-ee-bang? (the name of the dorm where they are staying).

"Crazy Horse". Immediately upon blurting this out, the jaejik who said it bit his lip, realizing what he had said

"What did you say?" Sunjoon asks politely, but the jaejik who spoke continues to keep his mouth closed, just shaking his head. Calling a nobleman "Crazy Horse" is an insult, and the jaejik fears the consequences. Sunjoon, kindly allows the jaejiks to leave, but one brave child tells him what he knows:

"I think he's a good person."

"What? Who?" asks Sunjoon.

"The person who lives in this dorm. They call him "Crazy Horse" but I don't think he's bad. I haven't seen him up close, because I've been afraid."

"Really? Well if you say so, then I'm sure he must be a good person."

Sunjoon smiles at the jaejik, but Yoonhee can't smile. Crazy Horse? She's afraid of sharing a dorm room with someone who is called by that name.

Some of the students begin to arrive at their dorms, and one of them looks at Sunjoon and Yoonhee.

"Ah, you two are the new students that the whole school is talking about?"

They both look at the student who has spoken. He walks towards them with very expensive clothes. He's dressed in the finest silk, and his shoes are leather sewn with golden silk thread. In his hand he holds carries a very fancy fan.

"Are you the one who lives in this dorm room?"

"Didn't you hear the jaejik say "Crazy Horse"? Do I look like a crazy horse?" Sunjoon and Yoonhee look at each other apprehensively, but the young man smiles.

"Ha ha ha, I'm just joking. I'm in the neighboring dorm, the Joong-il-bang. I'm Saengwon, although some call me Yeorim. My real name is Goo Yongha. I'm 23, so I'll address you informally. You don't need to introduce yourselves, I've already heard all about you."

Heard what? thinks Yoonhee. It's true people must have heard of Sunjoon, but her? Yoonhee worries what others may think of her. Her hope is to stay invisible to others, and she's not happy to hear what Yongha has said. Yoonhee greets Yongha. "Pleased to meet you."

Yongha looks at Yoonhee from head to toe. "Are you the Nok-bin-hong-un (Pretty Face) everyone is talking about? I usually don't believe in rumors, but in fact, everyone is saying that you are a pretty face. Yoonhee is uncomfortable with Yongha's scrutiny of her, but fortunately, Yongha turns towards Sunjoon.

"Why did you decide to room here in the dongjae, when your father is the head Noron of all the Norons? Don't you realize that the tension between the political factions extends here too?"

Sunjoon just smiles and changes the subject.

"Where is the person who resides in this dorm?"

"How should I know? I haven't seen Geol-roh in several days."

"Geol-roh?"

"Yes, the Crazy Horse. That's what everyone calls him. If you two want to remain in this dorm room, don't get him angry. No one has been able to share a room with him for more than two months, tops. Well, I have to leave now."

Yongha walks away, but as he leaves, he looks back and scrutinizes Yoonhee one more time. She doesn't notice this; she's much too worried about her roommate, who is such a rebel. The name Geol-roh is used to describe someone impatient and uncontrollable. Sunjoon speaks to her softly, to allay her fears: "There's nothing else to be done here, so let's go look up some nicknames for us."

"Where?"

"There's a bunch of books over there (in the library). I'm sure you will like it there. (speaking formally)"

"Yes, let's go. Why are you speaking to me in such a formal manner?"

"Oh, sorry, I'll try not to do that from now on."

They both smile. Yongha watches them and murmurs to himself: "A woman's blood smells much different than a man's blood. After looking at him from the front and the back, "he" is a woman for sure. All the other students don't notice because they've grown up with their heads buried in books, so she'll fool them, but she won't be able to fool me. This is going to be fun."

Yongha walks away and enters theHyangkwanchung, where many students gather.

"Hey, Yeorim, what are you doing here? We thought you'd be out in the arms of one of the gisaengs.

"What do you take me for? Classes haven't started yet!"

"Oh, so classes are more important to you than women now?" Yongha laughs and sits down.

"Ha ha ha. In the bet you are all making, I want to take part."

"You said it was boring. Why did you change your mind?"

"Yes, I want to bet that Kim Yoonshik will leave the dorm in four days, and Lee Sunjoon in five days.

"That will be difficult, but understandable. Geol-roh won't tolerate in his room the son of a Noron, when he considers them the murderers of his brother. And it's no secret how much Daesahun (Jaeshin's father) and the Minister are basically enemies." Everyone laughs and they make note of Yongha's bet.

"I've heard that you're planning something very amusing."

"Well, we were discussing the shin-bang-centeno (initiation) but we don't have good ideas. Especially because we don't want to do anything unpleasant since Lee Sunjoon is here.

"That isn't right. We'll never have the opportunity to play a prank on a student like Lee Sunjoon. We can't miss this chance. I hope you're not planning something lame like broken dishes or crawling between people's legs, are you?" The students nod because Yongha is correct. He sighs and says: "I have some suggestions, would you like to hear them?"

"Sure. You're good at these types of things."

They all huddle together and plan.

Sunjoon, after getting directions from sooboks, found his way to Jongyunggak with Yoonhee. The building is behind he Myunryundang, separated by a tall wall. Yoonhee reads the name of the building, and asks Sunjoon "What is this place?".

"It's the Sungkyunkwan students' library."

Yoonhee smiles broadly. He had told her they wanted to find nicknames for themselves, but it was evident, he just wanted to find the books here. After climbing the stairs in the Jongyunggak, they find a small desk of a Seo-ri (a school employer, librarian) at the entrance. Further away from the desk, there is a room full of shelves. Yoonhee looks at Sunjoon enthusiastically, but unlike her, Sunjoon looks disappointed.

"They said there was a bunch of them."

It seems like the library is not to his expectations. They both approach the shelves and flip through a few of the books. They grab some stories and sit down at the table next to the window.

Yonhee opens a book to subtly cover her face so that she can look at Sunjoon who is absorbed in his book. She smiles thinking of the jaejiks who were admiring his beauty. She observes him, and he is in fact, very handsome. His eyes...no, his pupils...his pupils shine brightly without commotion. No, it's his nose...his nose is straight. No, it must be his mouth. His lips seem sweet with hot blood flowing through them. When she's observing his lips, they move, and she hears him say:

"Are you able to decide on a nickname just by looking at my face?" 

Embarrassed, Yoonhee blushes and hides behind the book.

"I...only...I just had the same thought about you as the jaejiks did.

Sunjoon puts his book down, and takes her chin. He looks firmly at her face and smiles. She asks:

"Why are you looking at me?"

"I was thinking the same thing as the jaejiks."

Yoonhee's face blushes even more, and she hides behind the book. He does the same, but her face again distracts him. A ray of sn filters through the window and lights up Yoonhee's face, making her skin shine. Sunjoon continues to observe her while thinking that it's perfectly understandable that the jaejiks had compared him to a woman. Aren't her eyes big like a baby's, and isn't her nose softly shaped? Aren't her lips rosy? He's surprised at his thoughts and tries to block them. He gets up saying:

"A-ah, where's the book I was looking for?

He gets up and goes to a shelf, and looks at Yoonhee through the slots of the shelves. Sunjoon frowned and pounded on his chest with his fist.

"I must be crazy. How can my heart beat so rapidly in the presence of another man? It doesn't matter how beautiful he is, a man is still a man."

After calming down, he takes a book and sits down again across from Yoonhee, pretending that her proximity didn't affect him.