Now, sitting here in class, Dad’s words bounce back and forth in my head like a sparring match. There’s no way Dad is going to let me leave the country. I see that now.
Komo’s suggestion to convince Dad to let me get married or run away seems ridiculous, but what other choice do I have? Outside the classroom, winter howls, and the barren cherry tree branches shift and bend to its force. I wonder how much more of my family’s insanity I can handle.
My eyes wander from my vocabulary list and scan the room for possible husbands to keep me from focusing on reality. It’s comical to think about it. Me. Sixteen. Married.
I mean, there’s Jared; he’s kind of cute, but his breath always stinks. Tyler’s a definite possibility, but he’s too tall. I’m not an expert on kissing, but I think it would be awkward to kiss someone so high up. He’d have to have a bendable giraffe’s neck to make it work. I snort at the thought.
“What are you snickering about?” Michelle whispers as she slides in beside me when Mrs. Song isn’t looking. We usually share the same table so it’s easy to squeeze close and gossip, but I’ve been sitting by myself lately.
“I’m choosing my husband.” I smile deviously.
Her eyes bug out. “You’re not going all Korean on me.”
I choke to keep from laughing. In Korea, there are still some parents who arrange marriages for their kids. I can’t imagine being set up to marry someone I’ve only met a couple times at a dinner date.
“Well, after you two deserted me Saturday night, I decided I needed some type of companionship. So I’m on the hunt,” I say. “Where did you two go after you left the Coffee Bean? I looked everywhere for you.”
Her face brightens. “You did? We thought you decided not to come. And you didn’t answer any of my texts.”
“That’s weird.”
“Okay, truth time. Are you ditching us as friends or what?”
“No!” I practically yell, which draws the attention of everyone in the class and a frown from Mrs. Song. “It’s family stuff. I’m hoping things will smooth out soon.”
“So does that mean you’ll still be roommates with Lily and me on the ski trip this weekend?”
Guilt swirls through me. I feel as if I’ve totally been neglecting Michelle and Lily. Every time they ask me to do something, I’m always saying no these days.
Then I think about my aunt. She’s totally against the ski trip, especially since it’s outside of Seoul in the mountains. I thumb through the edges of my notebook. What should I do?
“Marc will be there,” Michelle says slyly. “Plenty of chances for alone time.”
I roll my eyes, but I can’t stop the smile curling up. What would it be like for his hand to touch my face and our bodies to press against each other?
What would it be like to kiss him?
“Fine,” I say. “I’ll go.”
“Now that’s more like it.” Michelle grins and heads back to her seat.
After class, as I weave my way through the crowded hallway to my locker, everything bad that happened last Saturday night seems to have melted away. Just the thought of leaving the city lifts a weight off me. For the last three days I’ve done exactly what Komo told me to do: stayed out of the sunlight and not wandered places alone. I trained with her for the last two out of three nights, even when Michelle and Lily invited me over to study for the IB bio exam. I didn’t mind so much because she taught me a couple of her special moves.
Besides, if this Haemosu guy really was interested in me, he’d have come after me by now. I’m sure of it.
CHAPTER 12
The air smells like pine, and it’s so fresh and clean as I step off the school bus at Yongpyong Ski Resort that my blood starts pumping. I’ve only been living in Seoul for six weeks, but already I’ve gotten used to the smog and belch of city buses. Here in the mountains it’s rugged, with silver snow that sparkles like mounds of sugar.
There are ninety of us juniors pouring out of the buses and into the parking lot, so Michelle and I have to push and shove our way to the luggage pile to pick up our bags. I let my eyes stray, looking for Marc, but I don’t see him. He rode in a different bus with Kumar and Lily, and I haven’t seen him since. I imagine him sitting with Min and feel slightly ill.
Once we collect everything, we follow the mass down the brick walkway lined with waist-high stone walls into the hostel where our group is staying.
The hostel is a three-story European-styled building with alternating white and brick walls and peaked gables, reminding me of a Swiss chalet. With the jagged, white-peaked mountains and forested hills, it is like stepping into a European fairy tale.
Inside, the lobby is sparse, with white-tiled floors, white walls, and a wooden ceiling. I notice Mr. Carlson at the long reception desk checking us all in, so Michelle and I find a place to sit until Lily and Kumar discover us.
It doesn’t take long for Lily, her long blond hair streaming behind her, to spot us. She literally runs into my arms. “I’m so glad you decided to come. This is going to be the best trip ever,” she announces, practically bouncing up and down. “I just know it.”
I stand there stiffly and clear my throat. My family doesn’t hug (unless someone’s secret cave goes up in flames), so I’m not sure how to handle this.
Kumar waves his hands in a hug-like motion while mouthing something that looks like Hug her. I manage to pat her back, and as she pulls away, I give her my brightest smile.
Mr. Carlson comes around and hands us the key to our room, where we deposit our bags before heading to the slopes. I’ve yet to spy Marc, which makes me wonder if he actually came at all. Outside, my boots crunch and sink into the snow as Michelle, Lily, and I take the shoveled path to the Dragon Plaza to rent our skis.
Michelle’s eyes flick over to our left. “So when are you going to make your move?”
I follow her gaze to the Dragon Plaza. It’s a mammoth ski house, designed similarly to our hostel but with a whole lot more stone, glass, and peaks.
Michelle nudges me. “Not the lodge. Him.”
The “him” she is talking about is Marc, leaning against one of the lodge’s massive white pillars and hanging out with the high school guys.
He came. But what unnerves me is that he isn’t laughing and joking with his buddies. He’s looking at me, hands jammed in his pockets, and his black ski jacket flaps open to reveal a gray sweater underneath.
A thrill shoots through me.
“Are you just going to stand there?” Michelle asks.
I’ve somehow gotten myself into such a wreck that I know if I talk to him I’ll make a complete fool of myself. I scuttle ahead of the girls, now giggling at my back, doing my best not to look at Marc as I pass by. Silently I remind myself over and over that I don’t have time for a relationship. Somehow I’m going to get back to L.A. and leave all this behind. No hard good-byes. No heartaches.
When I enter the ski rental shop the bell dings, signaling my arrival. It’s warm in here from the kerosene heating lamps scattered around the room. The smell of it, mixed with leather and worn boots, makes me a little dizzy. I head to the counter and order my ski boots as Michelle sidles up next to me.
“Where’s Lily?” I ask.
“Talking with Kumar,” Michelle narrows her eyes. “You’re in denial. You like him.”