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Youth dramas are made for the sole purpose of giving viewers nostalgia.
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At least that's what I think.
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Back then, I don't really get why people would miss these times.
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Studying and being at school never gave me any sort of positive feelings.
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But I think I get it now.
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There is a certain lightness that being back in school brings. It brings back memories to times where you have less worries and thoughts.
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And actually being back to school brings it to a different level compared to simply watching a drama.
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It feels odd. In a good way.
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The more time I spent in this place, the more that I could almost fool myself into thinking that the time I spent in my past life was just a distant dream of ridiculous teenager.
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Maybe it is a dream?
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But would that make sense?
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Would having a dream of 10 years make sense?
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Nothing is making any sense and it's driving me to insanity.
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Even this uniform is driving me insane.
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It was peculiarly itchy to my skin, but what felt even weirder was the whole feeling.
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Being back in a uniform is a weird feeling.
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I try to look for words to describe it, but I can't really find any.
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Maybe it's the feeling of not belonging and the sense of distance between my mentality and appearance.
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Maybe it's the feeling of being a completely different person without anyone noticing.
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Akin to a protagonist of a youth drama, I'm being fashionably late to school.
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Fortunately my middle school is quite close to my house and I still have a faint memory of the location.
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Otherwise....I might as well take a peaceful stroll around town while I look for it.
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Exploring the school is a fun experience.
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Despite the dull appearance of my school, it became another shade of beautiful through the lens of nostalgia.
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As if I'm seeing an old friend again.
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I managed to get through the gates before it was closed, however I am now presented with another problem.
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I can't remember which class I belonged to.
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How am I even supposed to remember? It's been 10 years and I spent so much time outside school as well.
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I could barely even remember my classmates.
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There is only a few people whose faces and names made a sync in my mind.
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And the only person I still keep in touch with was this girl called Bae Soo-hyeon.
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We ended up in the same high school and we just grew closer during this period.
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Even then, I haven't talked to her in a long time.
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I walked around the school, trying to invoke some familiarity so that somehow I could remember which class I belonged to.
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I flipped through my books in an attempt to find any sort of class name.
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There! Found it!
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I asked a wandering student about the class' location.
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After getting my directions, I went on a speedwalking spree.
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I finally found my class and I was nearly late.
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The teacher has already arrived.
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I knocked, bowed, and prepared to scurry off to my seat.
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"Kim Ha-na, you're late."
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This teacher did not just have the standard blank look with a tinge of disapproval of someone seeing a student be almost late.
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The way he acted was so fiery that it would have been convincing to someone else that I had committed a huge sin.
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He looked like he just caught a mouse on his trap, looking overtly pleased at my mistake.
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He looks familiar...
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Ahh...
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I recognized that sleazy face, wearing an expression he thought was intimidating.
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He is D Middle School's resident embezzler and sexual assaulter, 'Teacher' Han.
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"I arrived at school before the gates are closed, I arrived here 2 minutes before the class is supposed to start."
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"I am not late."
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I don't like that man's gaze. I've seen it too often .
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I guess it made sense, he is a predator after all.
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"You arrived after your teacher. That's still late!"
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"You also have no respect for your elders! Who taught you to talk back to your teachers!"
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"I was just stating things, you are the only one getting worked up here."
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He slammed his hand on the table.
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"You! I was trying to tell you off nicely, but now you are getting more daring!"
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"A person without respect like you have a sh*t future don't you know that?"
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"You want to become an actress? Your only hope is the unspoken rules!"
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Wow...
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I've heard many insults that are both more creative and deadly than whatever he tried to pull here.
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I walked to my seat, not bothering to give that guy any more attention.
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"Kim! Ha! Na!!!"
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I pulled my book from my bag and replied to him without even bothering to dirty my eyes with his visage.
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"Look at the clock ticking Teacher Han, you have wasted 15 minutes and for what?"
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"Hey! Kim-"
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"You could have talked to me after class, but I guess having this argument is more important than the class."
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"What a model teacher with respect for everyone's time."
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It was interesting to see him huffing and puffing like he was about to blow off a roof.
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"I think you're the only teacher in this school who would rather be wasting time trying to humiliate students instead of focusing on your job."
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"You-"
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"No one has the time to waste on being childish like you do. All of us need to work our best to get into good high schools so that we don't end up like you, and here you are wasting time."
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"I suggest you start the lesson before this issue involves the whole school."
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He was about to retort when my class started to whine in disapproval.
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He begrudgingly started the class.
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It was the most boring and unclear class I have attended in my two lives.
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"Ha-na! You scared me over there!"
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Soo-hyeon, my current seatmate, whispered to me after Teacher Han left the room in a huff.
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"Since when are you so brave? And so eloquent too!"
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" 'All of us need to work our best to get into good high schools so that we don't end up like you'...Woah."
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Soo-hyeon made an exaggerated shocked expression.
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Before I could reply to her, our class leader approached me.
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"Ha-na, the principal called you for a meeting with Teacher Han."
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Oh, isn't this fun?
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There is nothing to fear when you play around with a ticking time bomb that will never explode on your face.
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I thanked the class leader and asked Soo-hyeon to lead me to the principal's office.
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She obliged like it's natural for me to not remember locations.
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Unbeknowst to Ha-na, some people decide to trigger the bomb much faster than she could have even imagined.