01x01 - Episode 1

[bunniefuu]

(Shinun Kindergarten)

As I child, I had no presence at all.

I think I realized that

at a very young age.

During a kindergarten field trip,

I insisted on wearing

a princess dress instead of my uniform.

I think we went

to the beach that day.

Was it the East Sea?

Or the West Sea?

Or neither.

It might have been the South Sea.

Actually, I don't really remember.

I just recall that when

I came to my senses,

everyone was gone,

leaving only me behind.

Even now, I occasionally wonder

If I had listened to my mom

and worn my uniform,

would I have avoided

becoming a missing child?

At the orphanage,

I still had no presence.

I often missed mealtime

because nobody cared about me

On those hungry days,

I would sneak to the faucet at night

and drink water to fill my stomach.

But strangely enough,

no matter how much water I drank,

it never made me feel full.

It felt like the water was flowing

somewhere else instead.

Our way of commuting

was quite unique.

The orphanage used a van

to pick us up and drop us off.

If the van didn’t have

the orphanage logo,

we could even lie and say we were

idol trainees living in a dorm.

(Seul-gi, you stink, you orphan.)

Of course, no one would believe that.

Having lived my whole life

like an invisible person,

it was ironic that

I got attention because of this.

It was absolutely miserable.

Did you know?

To orphans like us,

because of our unclear identities,

even finding a normal

part-time job is difficult.

Thanks to a kindhearted orphanage senior,

we were introduced to a job.

Turns out, he was illegally

selling prescription drugs.

We had to go to some hospitals

and even had to use fake IDs.

(Kang Joomi Hospital)

(Name: Lee Min-ju)

(Prescription)

(Pharmacy)

(Prescription)

Are you good at studying?

What’s your class rank?

15th place.

That’s pretty impressive.

Lately, there are about 30 students

in a class, so I can't brag about it.

Hey, what do you want to be

when you grow up?

I don’t know,

I’ve never thought about it.

People should have dreams.

Is your dream to exploit

unfortunate kids by selling drugs?

Take it.

This is the stuff rich people

in Gangnam are scrambling to get.

You’d better study hard.

That way, you won’t end up like me.

If a well-educated, proper adult

had said something like this to me,

I probably would’ve ignored it.

But maybe because

it came from a delinquent,

it somehow felt convincing.

So, for the first time in my life,

I tried studying seriously.

And the result was

Before that, I was only ranked

15th in my class.

(Class Ranking)

But now, I ranked 15th

in the entire school.

I never expected that just because

of a number on a report card,

people’s attitudes towards me

would change so much.

It almost felt like

I was full without eating.

And because of that,

I wanted to do even better.

I wanted to be number one.

(Gyeongsangbuk-do Mathematics Competition – Gold Medal – Woo Seul-gi)

You b*tch, why aren’t you answering?

It's not just the adults

who have changed their attitudes towards me.

After I became number one,

even those girls who bullied me for fun

didn't dare to mess with me again.

No matter what happens,

I have to stay at the top.

Because I would rather die

than go back to how things were.

Hey.

Is that all?

What did you say?

Forget it.

Let’s go.

Also, today is my last day here.

Because I’m moving to Seoul.

Seoul? Where in Seoul?

Gangnam?

Did a rich family

adopt you or something?

I found my dad.

The current college entrance exam

for the 2024 academic year

is being called

the most challenging in history.

Although the exam

committee chairman stated

that the difficulty level

is the same as previous years,

students seem to feel otherwise.

Especially, the so-called “boss-level” math problems

were much harder than expected.

For elite students aiming

for medical school

Seul-gi, there’s a call from Seoul.

Okay.

Depending on the selected

test subjects the scoring might vary.

Due to the varying difficulty levels

of different subjects,

the Korean Institute

for Curriculum and Evaluation

will review and respond to

student appeals regarding the questions.

Scores will be announced

on the 8th of next month.

Breaking news.

A committee member for the

2024 college entrance exam has died.

Exclusive report by Kim Jae-wook.

Friendly Rivalry

(Four months later)

Thank you.

(Neighborhood Map)

(Chaehwa Girls' High School)

(Security Check in Progress)

(Chaehwa Girls' High School)

Contact me again

in the afternoon after class.

I’ll come pick you up.

We’ll see.

Hey, Choi Kyung!

Wait for me.

Who was that guy just now?

Geez, Kyung, you always act like

you don’t care about me all day long.

I met him at a concert last week.

So I think you’re about to

break up with him.

Yeah, I just dumped him.

But he still hasn’t accepted it.

Poor guy.

“Namo Amitabha”.

(Translator's note: Buddist chanting)

But can I ask you something?

Why are you walking so fast?

We’re in our final year now.

Instead of getting stuck in traffic

and waiting at lights, it’s faster to walk.

I knew it.

At this pace, I can get from my home

to my seat in class within 20 minutes.

Choi Kyung, wait for me!

Hello.

Who are you?

I transferred here today.

What is your ranking?

(University Rankings in Korea)

A senior-year transfer,

coming alone without her parents

Go to Classroom 2.

Also…

Yes?

At least wear the school uniform tomorrow.

Yes.

Excuse me, where is the

senior-year classroom?

(Chaehwa Girls' High School Entrance Ceremony)

Hey.

Buy some of my flowers.

Sorry.

Would you like to buy a flower?

Attention, the entrance ceremony

is about to begin.

Why aren’t you getting rid

of this street vendor?

Yes.

Grandma, you can’t sell flowers here.

Please leave.

I won’t leave.

Not until I sell everything.

Grandma, please stand up.

You can’t sell flowers here.

- I said I’m not leaving!

- I’ll buy them.

Grandma.

I’ll buy all of them.

How much in total?

10,000 won per flower.

Here you go.

Happy now?

Get up.

Thank you.

Come with me.

Good morning, freshmen.

And welcome to Chaehwa Girls' High School.

I'm Yoo Je-yi, the student party president.

Our school is the most prestigious

private high school in Korea,

boasting 117 years of history and deep tradition.

It is also considered a great honor

to become one of Yoo Je-yi's junior.

Don't you agree?

That was a joke.

Okay.

Freshmen and other guests,

may I have an attention, please?

Before we begin the

entrance ceremony,

we ask everyone to

observe a moment of silence.

Mr. Woo Do-hyeok, who taught at

Chaehwa Girls' High School for four years

and passed on valuable

knowledge to his students,

has sadly passed away

not long ago.

To us, Mr. Woo was

an outstanding and upright educator.

We will always

remember him for that.

His main concern was with the

learning atmosphere on campus

so that we wouldn't be

affected by this kind of situation.

So, according to the wishes of his family,

we will now observe

a brief moment of silence together.

Everyone, please bow your heads.

Now

Let us begin our 2024 orientation

of Chaehwa Girls' High School.

If you are a student from another school,

please leave immediately.

Now, we will begin the orientation.

After exploring our history,

shall we proceed to a campus tour?

One of our campus highlights

is the outdoor amphitheatre.

You can join over 40 diverse student clubs,

including the medical club.

At here

Through academic excellence and a little bit of friendly library

28% of our students are admitted

to medical schools every year.

Furthermore,

we have consecutively swept both national

and international academic competitions.

Every single one of you

should be proud to be here.

I sincerely look forward to your bright future

at our prestigious Chaehwa Girls' High School.

Thank you.

Next, we will present the scholarship certificates.

Name: Han Jung-won.

Why are you so late?

Find a seat quickly.

March 4, 2024, PTA President Yoo Tae-jun.

Congratulations.

Next, Kim Yeon-su.

First-place student

Kim Yeon-su will receive,

in addition to the certificate,

a scholarship of 3 million won.

Congratulations.

(Chaehwa Girls' High School Scholarship – 3 million won)

Please give her a round of applause.

(2024 Chaehwa Girls' High School Academic Calendar)

On 7th – First Interview Strategy Class

Students must fill out their top three university choices in the academic counseling form.

On 10th – Pre-study Evaluation Report Release

On 28th – First Mock Exam

Students must submit

their semester activity plans

and outline their

intended achievements in school.

Let's see how many of you

will get into medical school

Any other questions?

Teacher.

Which class is Yoo Je-yi in?

Why are you curious about that?

We're curious to know!

- We really want to know…

- Teacher, please tell us!

Yoo Je-yi, you know

I have high expectations for you, right?

I’ll do my best.

255 days until the college entrance exam.

That concludes the morning assembly.

Can you give it back to me now?

Je-yi, your seat is here.

I saved it for you.

Hi, my name is…

I know. You’re Yoo Je-yi.

I heard them call your name earlier.

Thanks to Mr. Yoo’s

annual donations,

the medical club has become Chaehwa’s pride.

It reminds me of when

we first started the club.

Mr. Woo was so full of energy back then.

It makes me wonder

if we should put more effort into his memorial.

It’s truly saddening.

He was on the college entrance

exam question committee,

but he couldn’t even talk

about it with his family, right?

Everything was strictly confidential.

Even the faculty weren’t

allowed to attend his funeral.

Don’t dwell on it too much.

Would you like to come to

my office for some tea?

Let's go.

Hey, transfer student,

you need to switch seats with me.

Don’t listen to her.

Switch with me, please!

You guys are shameless.

Trying to get the seat next

to Je-yi for free?

Transfer student, don’t pick them

and switch with me.

If you agree,

I’ll buy you anything you want.

No price limit.

What do you say?

Kim Na-ri is trying to

buy people off again.

That’s not fair to us.

Let’s settle this properly

with rock-paper-scissors!

If you don’t play, you lose!

Wait, no need to give me anything.

Na-ri, where’s your seat?

Me? Second row,

center of the classroom.

Perfect for hearing the teacher clearly.

And it has the best view of the blackboard.

Alright, I’ll switch with you.

Oh yeah, I got it!

What the hell?

Are you a nerd or something?

Damn, that’s disappointing.

Can I go now?

If you want something,

ask for it now.

Don’t complain later.

Wow, if you really are rich

Then can you buy me a house?

What?

Forget it.

Instead of spending money on me,

you should buy yourself more makeup.

I’ve been looking for you.

Come have lunch with me.

Hurry up, I’m starving.