As night descended over the mountain resort, the central stone courtyard transformed into a glowing, crackling amphitheater. A massive, towering bonfire roared in the central pit, throwing showers of golden sparks toward the starlit sky and washing the surrounding ring of wooden log benches in a deep, amber light.
Sixty-plus students, guests, and teachers huddled together in heavy puffer coats, some in blankets, clutching paper cups of steaming hot chocolate while the cold mountain wind whistled through the surrounding pine trees.
Standing right at the edge of the firelight, holding a wireless microphone connected to a pair of heavy-duty portable speakers, was Kang Min-ah.
She was an absolute force of nature. Wearing a fluffy earmuff set and a bright red winter parka, Min-ah was practically an entire variety show host bundled into one person. She commanded the floor with terrifying professionalism, effortlessly slinging sharp, hilarious roasts at faculty members, hyping up nervous performers, and keeping the crowd roaring with laughter between acts.
"Welcome, Kirin boarders and distinguished guests, to the Unofficial 2015 Winter Retreat Showcase!" Min-ah announced, her voice booming through the speakers. "We have a packed roster tonight, ranging from pure artistic genius to outright madness!"
The show kicked off with a brilliant, hilarious shocker. A troupe of parents and faculty members—led by father of Kim Min-jun, a couple of board members, and, to everyone's utter disbelief, our terrifying math teacher Mrs. Smith—stepped into the ring. They were all wearing ridiculous, neon-sequined visors they had somehow purchased from the village general store.
When the iconic accordion intro of Hong Jin-young's trot hit "Battery of Love" blasted from the speakers, the entire student body went wild.
Watching Mrs. Smith execute precise, passionate trot shoulder-shakes while Mr. Kim belted out dramatic, vibrating high notes was a sight that burned itself into my retinas forever. Students were literally falling off their log benches, clutching their stomachs and crying with laughter.
The momentum never slowed down. Next came a brilliant stand-up comedy set by a second-year vocal major who did uncanny, pitch-perfect impressions of Ms. Choi's strict hallway lectures and jokes about Kirin's teachers. Then two guys from Class 2-A performed a comical vocal duel, attempting to sing a dead-serious, dramatic opera aria while taking turns eating ultra-sour lemon candy, their voices cracking into absurd, squeaking register shifts that had everyone clapping in rhythm.
Then things took a turn for the absurdly heroic.
A trio of broad-shouldered guys who helped press me to the ground during hide-and-seek stepped into the center, declaring they would demonstrate "pinnacle mental and physical endurance" by walking barefoot over a bed of hot charcoal embers raked from the main fire.
The entire crowd held its breath as the boys carefully removed his sneakers, took a deep breath, and stepped onto the steaming red coals. They lasted precisely half a second before letting out a high-pitched screech like an injured seagull, sprinting across the ring, and diving headfirst into a nearby snowbank. The entire courtyard erupted into deafening cheers and applause for his noble, foolish attempt.
Spontaneous acts broke out right after.
Four boys from Chae-rin's Class 2-A suddenly hijacked the mic to perform an unhinged, completely un-choreographed K-pop cover dance of SNSD's "Gee". Seeing boys attempt delicate, cute girl-group hip-swings under the firelight had even the teachers wiping tears of laughter from their eyes.
Then came the turn of the girls from 2-B, who perfromed SISTAR "Touch my body" and had boys rolling and clapping.
As the laughter and applause from the dance cover faded into crackling sparks and soft murmurs, Kang Min-ah stepped back into the central ring, her expression shifting into something charged with electric anticipation.
She tapped the microphone twice, a wide, triumphant grin breaking across her face under the ambient firelight.
"And now, everyone..." Min-ah's voice lowered into a dramatic, stadium-level resonance. "...the final, highly anticipated closing act of our retreat! For the very first time, presenting their brand-new, unreleased original piece prepared for the upcoming Seollal Showcase..."
She pointed her arm toward the shadowy edge of the courtyard.
"...give it up for H-Wnot!"
A deafening wave of applause, whistles, and cheers echoed through the trees.
Jin-hyun was the first to step into the warm ring of firelight. Instead of a massive, metallic stadium drum setup, he was carrying a sleek, compact wooden travel drum kit—a portable cajon-style kick unit equipped with a small snare, a single crash cymbal, and a brush set. He placed it squarely in the center of the ring, settling onto the wooden box with his usual chaotic, silver-haired grace.
Leo followed, unzipping his hard-shell case to draw out his polished wooden violin, his face lit with a quiet, glowing focus. Myung-dae slouched into the ring carrying a rare, hollow-body acoustic bass guitar, his headphones resting around his neck, while Jun-seo took his place on the wooden bench beside Jin-hyun, holding a smooth wooden shaker and an acoustic rhythm guitar.
I stepped into the center last, slinging my heavy acoustic guitar over my shoulder and adjusting the single microphone mounted on a portable stand.
Aside from that single vocal microphone wired to the battery speaker, there were zero amps, zero digital synths, and zero electronic filters.
It was pure, raw wood, taut steel strings, horsehair, and human lungs.
I looked around the circle—at the bright, expectant faces of my classmates, at Ha-neul watching intently from the front row, at my bandmates locking eyes in total synchronization, and at the red embers dancing up into the dark winter night.
I raised my right hand, settled my pick against the heavy gauge acoustic strings, and let out a long, steady breath.