by Zeng Xinyu 1002577349, Shang Jinhan 1002577528
Cheng Jingyuan 1002476928, Chen Nuo 1002577425
Yang Yunjian 1002267642

Kuala Lumpur——”I don’t want interviews to feel like stiff questionnaires; I want them to feel like real conversations.” For Interviewer Zeng, breaking the ice with a simple thank you was the first step to building a genuine
connection. For Yuki, a 21-year-old local from Kuala Lumpur (KL), sharing her story began with a casual self-introduction.

the beginning of the interview.

The conversation then turned to the core of her journey: “After you graduated from school and started working, did your working life differ significantly from what you had imagined compared to your school life?” This question marked the starting point of exploring the gap between academic expectations and
the realities of the professional world.

Yuki introducing herself during the interview

When Cammpus Dreas Meet Reality: The Unspoken Rules Society Doesn’t Teach You

Fresh out of school, Yuki stepped into the workforce carrying dreams of freedom and self-expression — only to find reality far more complex than imagined. When Zeng asked, “Did your working life differ significantly from what you had imagined compared to your school life?” her answer wasn’t one of complaint, but calm observation: “There are still quite a few unwritten rules in society that you need to understand and be aware of.”

Yuki begins to share the “unwritten rules” she encountered as a newcomer.

She recalled how colleagues would “usually do this” when she first started — not out of malice, but as a kind of “newcomer protocol” or “trial-period ritual.” “They usually do this when I first started working here, because I was still a newcomer (an intern) at that time.” Behind those words lies the quiet anxiety and adaptation every young person faces — and how many of these “unspoken rules” can never be learned from textbooks?

Yuki recalls how she was “treated differently” as a new intern.

Between Roles and Routine: The Dual Life of a Cosplayer

When Shang asked, “So, apart from your work, do you have any hobbies in your life?” Yuki’s reply was direct and unapologetic: “(Because) I myself am a Cosplayer.” That sentence unlocked another door in her life — one lit by stage lights, filled with fabric and glue, where she transforms into someone else… and finds herself again.

Yuki doesn’t hide her identity — “(Because) I myself am a Cosplayer.”

To her, balance isn’t about equal division — it’s about rhythmic identity
switching: weekday = reliable colleague; weekend = free Cosplayer. This
“segmented life” may not be poetic, but it’s real, resilient. It’s not sustained
by bursts of passion, but by habit and commitment — the quiet, repeated
choice to show up, rain or shine, for the things that make her feel alive.