Seori wasn't at all what the other students were expecting.
The usual ' I'm a perfect student' embodiment, usually just means the smart kid is a show off and ensures she gets all the teachers attention. By answering questions flawlessly, shamelessly pointing out the teacher's mistakes and even standing up to explain something he/she felt the teacher could have done better at laying out.
Well, that's not Seori.
It's not like she's planning to stand out anyway, she has bigger objectives than trying to build her popularity on the very first day. She planned to ask the guide who'll take her on a tour of the school building, to also show her the middle school section. She couldn't wait to meet Trina, oddly she was excited to see for herself how Wush Wong's daughter was faring. But in order to brace herself for the long-run, she needed to find out exactly what she was up against.
She didn't answer any questions unless the teacher called her name specifically from the register to do so. She ignored the glances in her direction whenever no one could answer the question that the teacher threw at everyone. I mean, she's not the only student in the class, right? Just because she knows the answer doesn't mean she should get up to answer it every single time.
***
The lunch bell rang through the halls, dismissing the teacher from their fifth period.
"Seori, do you mind joining us at the cafeteria for lunch? Or you have other plans?"
Krystelle asked with so much anticipation in her eyes that Seori might have felt guilty if she decided to turn down the offer.
"No, I don't really have plans so let's go!"
Seori noticed Qinyi blush again after her statement, the girl must really like her.
"Check your page, I've followed you".
Nate had still followed them to their lunch table, despite all the dirty glares Qinyi and Krystelle had given him when he'd ridiculously asked to join them for lunch.
Seori sipped her raspberry smoothie, she would have originally ignored him, but she resolved to make things clear to him before he starts to expect anything.
"The fact is I don't want to follow you, following me first is not going to change my mind".
Krystelle was the last among them to return from getting herself a tray of food. She was surprised to see Qinyi chortling so much by the time she'd taken a seat at her table.
"What's so funny?"
"Seori put Nate in his place for the second time today".
Nate watched in embarrassment as Krystelle joined her Asian friend to noisily make fun of him.
"Are you Seori?"
Seori's head inclined around the table to a meet some black haired chick looking condescendingly at her.
"What! You're not even that pretty, then why can't people seem shut up about you?"
Note that Sophia wasn't asking a question, she was drawing a conclusion. Krystelle quickly with held Qinyi from launching herself at Sophia's sorry excuse for a skirt. It was extremely short.
"Um, first of all, who are you?"
"I'm Sophia, head cheerleader, the most popular girl in this school and I just dropped by to say you shouldn't even think of getting in my way because I'm the queen around here. Tsk, you're not even as pretty everyone says you are".
Seori furrowed her eyebrows, looking at her from head to toe. Krystelle practically using whatever strength she has left to keep Nana from ripping Sophia's hair out. She huffed, man... she really needed to workout more.
Sophia flinched when Qinyi's nail managed to scrap her arm, with a nervous movement she took a step away from the growling Asian girl. She moved her attention back to the diva, she actually considered as a threat to her social standing.
"Oh and could you not be Nate's seatmate, I already called dibs on him first, don't ogle him and get any funny ideas".
Sophia spoke throwing Nate a wink but he paid no heed to her. What made her blood boil was the fact that he tapped Seori's shoulder and whispered that she should just act like it's air talking or something.
"Anyway, the fact is that I'm prettier than you so don't even bother getting all full of yourself".
"Yeah, cuz you're made entirely of plastic!"
Krystelle had failed miserably at preventing Qinyi from delivering her pithy insults to Sophia's inflated complaints. She twisted herself to give Qinyi a piece of her mind but whatever words she orchestrated to say back seemed to disappear at the sight of the pale skinned girl holding out a table knife to her, the steel object considerably drenched in ketchup.
For a second it looked like blood, accompanied with Qinyi's eyes growing smaller in a glower. Her eyes were already the smallest in their grade, with a sexy cat shape and florescent irises. Sophia swallowed hard, once again taking a step farther away from the girl out to get her blood.
"What? Cat got your tongue?"
Krystelle laughed as she asked Sophia such an obvious question. Qinyi sometimes comes in handy when dealing with butches.
"It's because she knows it's true, the truth is never sweet to hear".
Seori, watched Qinyi flip Sophia off after her statement. She folded her legs back under the table to dig into her food. Seori solidly drew one conclusion, she should not even think of trying to get on Qinyi's bad side by using her as a pawn in her revenge strategies.
"So, Seori-jeez your name's not even in English. The attention you're getting now is only because you're still a new face around here. In a week or two, no one's even gonna notice you".
Well, that was exactly what Seori wanted anyway.
"You've got nothing to say to me?"
Seori actually wanted to ignore her till she decides to crawl back to wherever she came from like Nate had advised but...
"Well, Sophia I've discovered just how vain of a person you are and I don't really care about half of the things you just said. Funny, you want me to stop being Nate's seatmate but you're not even smart enough to get into class A. Is all that hair the only thing your head can carry?"
"Why you little..."
"Little what?"
Nate's interjection cut off Sophia's statement, he'd finally looked up at her with a tart glare.
"Just leave our table please. We were enjoying the first few minutes of not having to breath in the same air as you".
Nate tore his gaze from Sophia after verbalizing his thoughts. Sometimes she just goes way to far and he has to step in and shut her up. She scrunched up her face in anger and trotted back to her table.
"Yeesh, what a Dramaqueen".
And everyone turned to face Qinyi. They thought she was already done dissing Sophia. She swallowed the spoonful of salad, lifting her gaze to meet the three pairs of eyes watching her.
"What?"
***
Seori thought the talking would die down after lunch but she found out the ugly way, how the biggest gossip girl just had to be at the table adjacent to hers.
"I know right, and she only has a hundred and ninety thousand followers and she thinks she can stand up to Seori. She should think again".
Qinyi's voice was quite audible from three seats in front of them. Seori made herself smaller in her seat, some people were throwing approving glances her way, the others, not so much.
She didn't plan on making a scene on the first day, she just wanted to find Trina and get the plan started.
"Wait, What?"
Nate was blown away by the figures.
"A hundred and...wait then how many do you have?"
He turned to face Seori, so she could answer his question.
"Um, it was four hundred and ninety five the last time I checked".
Seori avoided his profile entirely, why were they still talking about her? The teacher was going to be there soon anyway.
"Four hundred!!!"
Nate eyes went wide, so she's typically a d list celebrity or something.
"What? No, it's five hundred and one thousand".
Of course Qinyi knew the exact number.
"Are you sure?"
It's not like she doubted her, but she didn't want the class to spread rumors about her intentionally increasing the numbers just because of her little splat with the head cheerleader.
But Qinyi took out her phone and showed her the new figures. She should be happy, but this news will only grow the amount of envious stares in her direction. She sank in deeper into her seat in frustration, she would just have to post something to say thank you for five hundred plus follows. Of course, that would be much later in the day.
***
"Hi, you're Seori, right?"
"And you're Eachen? The one that's giving me a tour?"
"Yes that's me".
She couldn't shake off the thought that this towering guy, with half-dome cheekbones and scythe shaped eyebrows was overly familiar. Had she seen him somewhere before and if she had, where?
She and Qinyi had moved to their lockers to drop off some heavy textbooks at the end of her first school day here.
"Yes so I..."
"Eachen!"
Seori pressed her eyes shut in disgust as a familiar black haired girl, looped her arm through Eachen's. Seriously, didn't she take any of Qinyi's hints in the cafeteria.
"You promised to teach me that biology topic today!"
Seori blinked. The Sophia here was completely different from before. She was actually acting like a good student? now? Another reason for Seori to dislike her, she just absolutely despised multifaceted people.
"Oh, that's today? I'm sorry but I have to take Seori..."
"Don't worry, I'll do it".
Qinyi rolled her eyes at Sophia's terrible acting. She wasn't going to waste her energy on her this time.
"I'll show Seori around".
He nodded thankfully at them before leaving with her.
***
After showing her around the major buildings, the library and labs, Seori asked her to show her the middle school section.
In class B of the seventh grade was Trina White.
"Hi, Trina".
The students weren't really used to seniors walking in. Most of them just stared at the beautiful girl who stopped at the fourth seat in the third row.
"Oh...um...hi. Do I know you?"
Trina adjusted her glasses. The brunette speaking to her was absolutely stunning but she couldn't recall ever meeting her, much less telling her, her name.
"No, you don't but I know we are going to be VERY good friends in the future".
She stretched her right hand out to her for a handshake.
"I'm Seori, I'm new here".
"Er, nice to meet you Seori".
She nervously put her hand forward to shake Seori's. Aloof Qinyi stood at the door of the classroom, waiting for her.
Step one of master plan, complete. Keep your friends close but your enemies closer. Seori's lips pinched upwards when Trina asked how exactly she knew her name.
***
The car drove off from the school driveway. Mr Smith had been Seori's driver since she joined the Bam family. The surname she was born with, Lim, seemed to be some distant part of her past now.
"Miss Bam, the new perfume line your Dad produced for you is ready. Did you come up with any names yet?"
The other front seat was occupied by Seori's manager. Mrs Wendy Primrose.
Seori flinched. She'd completely forgotten about the little assignment Mrs Primrose had given her when she was dropped off at the school gates that morning.
"Oh um..."
"You forgot again, didn't you? What's on your mind these days, you're not usually so forgetful".
Well, her revenge was on her mind. Plotting up a good payback had even been getting in the way of her study sessions.
"No I didn't...uh I mean... How's um... Opalescent sky?"
The middle aged lady bobbed her head in the seventeen year old's direction.
"Is the name weird?"
Seori had just placed out whatever came to mind at the moment, maybe Wendy won't notice.
"Well, I must say, it is a grandiose yet befitting name but the next time you throw guesses at me it will reach your father's ears".
She noticed alright.
"Noted. Mrs Primrose".