Bright sunlight poured through the window and fell directly on Jeigan's face.
He groaned and turned away from the light.
"Why is there so much light…?" he murmured sleepily. "Mom… please close the curtain."
Instead of closing it, his mother's voice came from the doorway.
"Jeigan! Wake up already," she called out. "Isn't today your first day at university? Do you want to be late on the very first day?"
Still half-asleep, Jeigan rubbed his eyes.
"What time is it…?" he asked lazily.
"Check it yourself."
Jeigan grabbed his phone from the table beside his bed and looked at the screen.
His eyes widened.
"WHAT?! It's almost eleven?!"
He jumped out of bed in panic.
"I'm going to be late!"
From the hallway his mother shouted again.
"At least brush your teeth and get dressed first!"
A few rushed minutes later, Jeigan ran out of his room, fixing his hair while wearing his jacket.
"I'm ready! I'm leaving now! Bye Mom! Bye Dad!"
His mother stared at him in disbelief.
"You got ready that fast? At least eat breakfast before leaving."
"I'll eat something outside!" Jeigan shouted while already opening the door.
The door slammed shut behind him.
His mother sighed and turned toward her husband.
"Your son is exactly like you. He never listens."
His father laughed proudly.
"That's because he takes after me. Smart and genius, just like his father."
She rolled her eyes.
"Genius? He's just as stubborn as you are. And his looks clearly come from me. My son is handsome because of me."
"Your beauty can argue later," the father replied while grabbing his bag. "I'm already late for the office. Bye!"
He hurried out of the house.
From behind him his wife shouted angrily.
"Oh really? Just wait until you come back home today!"
Meanwhile, Jeigan was already running down the street as fast as he could.
"I need to run faster…" he muttered while breathing heavily.
"The university isn't that far, but I'm definitely going to be late today!"
After several minutes of running, he finally stopped in front of a large campus gate.
"Huff… huff… I finally made it."
Jeigan looked up at the massive university building.
"From the outside… this place looks really amazing."
He took a deep breath.
"Alright… let's go inside and see."
A strange nervous feeling appeared in his chest.
It's my first day at university… what if something goes wrong?
He shook his head.
No. Stop overthinking. Just go inside.
He walked through the gate.
The moment he entered the campus, his eyes widened.
The inside of the university was even more beautiful than the outside. Tall buildings, wide paths, and students walking everywhere filled the campus with energy.
"Wow…" Jeigan whispered.
"This place is even better from the inside."
Then suddenly another thought hit him.
"Wait… which classroom am I supposed to go to?"
He looked around anxiously.
"Why can't I find my class…? I'm already running out of time!"
Jeigan began running through the hallway again.
At that exact moment, someone else was also running from the opposite direction.
"Ah! I'm going to be late!" the girl muttered while rushing forward.
The two collided.
Thud.
"Ah!"
Both of them stumbled slightly.
Jeigan quickly stepped forward with concern.
"I'm so sorry!" he said. "Are you hurt? Do you need help?"
The girl shook her head.
"No, no, I'm fine. Are you okay?"
"Yes… I'm okay too," Jeigan replied.
She studied his face for a moment.
"Wait… are you new here? I've never seen you at this university before."
Jeigan nodded.
"Yes, you're right. I'm new. I'm a first-year student."
"Oh, I see." She smiled warmly.
"I'm in my second year. And you don't need to call me 'miss' or speak so formally. Just think of me as your friend."
She extended her hand slightly.
"My name is Jinha. What's yours?"
Jeigan smiled back.
"My name is Jeigan. Nice to meet you, Jinha."
"Nice to meet you too, Jeigan."
She tilted her head slightly.
"But why were you running like that?"
Jeigan scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"I was trying to find my classroom… but I'm already late, so I was running everywhere."
He looked at her curiously.
"But why were you running?"
Jinha suddenly widened her eyes.
"Oh! I almost forgot!"
She spoke quickly.
"Today there's a special welcome celebration for the first-year students in the university hall. It starts at eleven o'clock."
Her expression became worried.
"And I'm already late!"
She grabbed Jeigan's wrist lightly.
"Come on! We're both late. Follow me. I'll take you to the hall."
Jeigan nodded quickly.
"Yeah, let's hurry! It's almost eleven!"
The two of them rushed through the campus together.
After a short run, they finally stopped in front of a large hall.
Jinha took a deep breath.
"Huff… we made it."
Then she looked at Jeigan with a small smile.
"We're here."