Woohyun smiled as his coworker joked around about the squid Woohyun was making. In their kitchen, it was always jokes and fun. As long as they got everything done, and correctly, it didn’t matter if they joked around. Woohyun’s brother, their boss, wasn’t strict at all. He loved to have fun and made sure his employees had fun as well.

“Hey, hyung! Pass the squid over here!” another chef cried, rushing over to where Woohyun was cooking. “Let me season it!”

“But that’s my job!” Woohyun cried, pouting at his coworker.

“But I wanna do it!” the chef stated, also pouting.

“Aren’t you supposed to be working on a different dish, Kibum-ah?” their boss asked, walking into the kitchen.

“I finished it, boss-nim!” the chef named Kibum cried. “There’s nothing else left to do! This is the last dish of the night! Woohyun hyung isn’t letting me help him finish it!”

“Boohyun hyung, this is my dish!” Woohyun whined to his brother. “Can’t I do my own dish? You know my specialty is squid!”

“Kibum, go do the dishes,” Boohyun said with a small smile on his lips.

“Boss-nim! You’re picking favorites now!” Kibum whined. “This isn’t fair! I don’t like doing dishes! Why are you letting your stinkin brother do what he wants and not me!”

“You know, this is why I like working here,” the first coworker who was joking around, Jonghyun, said. “I love watching Kibum and Woohyun bicker. Especially when you two are around the boss. It’s too funny! No wonder you two are best friends. I’m jealous. I want a best friend.”

“Hyung, you know I’m your best friend,” Kibum said, turning on Jonghyun. “I just can’t get rid of Woohyun hyung, even though I’ve been around him for twenty years.”

“Yah, you’re the one who came to work at MY brother’s restaurant! You’re the one following ME around!” Woohyun cried, frowning at his friend.

They all stood there for a while, before breaking out in laughter. No one in this restaurant can keep a straight face. Everything just turns into a laughing stock for all of them. It’s no wonder all these guys became close friends. They’re all so close. However, in that instant, a letter came, which, without his knowing, was about to change Woohyun’s whole life.

“Woohyun-sshi,” Onew, their waiter, said, walking over to them with the letter in hands. “A letter came for you. I don’t know who it’s from, but some guy in a suit told me to give it to you. He says it’s pretty important and that you have to do everything the letter says. They also said it’s top secret, so none of us can know about it.”

“That’s weird,” Woohyun said, taking off his cooking gloves and taking the letter from Onew. “I wonder what this is about. Thank you for bringing it to me, Onew hyung.”

Everyone stared at the letter as Woohyun opened it up. He slowly read over it, his mouth dropping open in surprise after reading it. He especially didn’t expect that.

∞∞∞∞∞∞

Kim Sunggyu sighed as yet another person walked into the bank. The day has been busy, and he was just ready to go home. They kept working him non stop, and he hasn’t had a break yet. The people had so many complaints and demands, and the New York City traffic outside wasn’t helping his growing headache. What he needed most was a great big bowl of ice cream to calm his pounding head.

“I’ll help the next person here!” he said in as bright of a voice as he could muster.

He smiled the best he could as a girl with long blonde hair came bouncing up to him, giving him flirty faces. He groaned inwardly, knowing it was another one of THOSE people. The girl had to be at least sixteen, if not seventeen. Sure he looked like he was only eighteen, since all Asians look young for their age, but he was really twenty five. He was much too old for all these teenage girls who kept trying to flirt with him. Besides, what eighteen year old would be a bank teller anyway?

“I would like to take some money out of my savings account, because I want to take a certain someone out to dinner tonight,” the girl stated, winking at Sunggyu and making him gag inwardly.

“How much would you like out?” Sunggyu asked, trying very hard to keep his cool.

“Depends, where would you like to go tonight?” she asked him boldly. “You know, I’m highly attracted to Koreans, and I’ve found you just so appealing.”

“Look ma’am,” Sunggyu said, sternly. “I’m way too old for you and I’m already taken. Now please either do actual business here or leave. We’re too busy for you to be playing around here.”

“Fine, you... you PIG!” the girl screamed, before stomping out of the bank.

Sunggyu groaned and ruffled his hair. He had to lie just to get her off his back, but he had to do what he had to do. Maybe he went a little too far with what he said, but that wasn’t too much of a concern for him. He was just concerned about doing his job and doing it well. He definitely did not want to get fired. This is the best job he’s had in a while.

“Sunggyu Kim,” a voice said through the intercom. His boss’s voice. “Please come to my office.

“Did he hear my explosion with the last customer?” Sunggyu asked, looking at the teller standing next to him. “Does he have super hearing or something?”

“I have no idea,” the teller said, shaking her head. “But that was pretty funny! Nice one!”

“Yeah yeah,” Sunggyu said, waving her off. “Anyway, I better go see what the big man upstairs wants.”

He walked away and made his way over to his boss’s office. The boss never called him, so he was scared what he might say. However, everyone was scared when the boss called them up. The guy is pretty intimidating. With that in mind, Sunggyu hesitantly knocked on the boss’s office door.

“Come in,” he heard the boss say from inside.

“You called, sir?” Sunggyu asked, stepping inside.

“Yes,” the boss said, pulling a letter out and handing it over to him. “This letter came in today and it was addressed to you. It says it’s classified, so I figured it must be important.”

“Thank you sir,” Sunggyu said, taking the later with an inward sigh of relief. He slowly opened the letter and read it, not expecting what it said at all.

∞∞∞∞∞∞

“Pastor Jang, may I talk to you?” a small voice asked as a boy popped his head into Jang Dongwoo’s office. “Am I interrupting anything?”

“Not at all,” Dongwoo said with a bright smile. “Come on in, Jacob. What is it you wanted to talk about?”

“Well, I heard you guys were looking for youth leaders,” the boy named Jacob said, closing the door and walking into the office.

“Yes, we very much are,” Dongwoo replied, gesturing towards the chair on the other side of his desk. “Please take a seat. Tell me, why are you bringing this up?”

“Well, I saw how you became one of our pastors, and also how you used to lead the youth group when I was in the youth, and it really inspired me,” Jacob told him, pulling back his long black hair. Jacob had just graduated high school and was now a freshman in college. He was always one of Dongwoo’s favorites, and he was only five years younger than him. “I’ve made a choice that I want to take your place as the previous youth leader. I’ve been really talking to God, and I feel like this is my calling. You always told us to follow what God calls us to do.”

“Thank you for your interest, Jacob,” Dongwoo said with a bigger smile. “That makes it a little less harder for us. We’ve been trying like crazy to fill the youth leader spot, since there’s no youth activities going on right now. We need to hurry and reestablish our youth leader position. Tell me, why do you think this is God’s calling for you?”

“Well, I feel really set on this decision and I really love the youth. I’ve always been passionate to serve in the church. I just feel that it’s right,” Jacob told him.

“Okay, thank you once again, Jacob,” Dongwoo replied. “I’ll have to talk with our other two pastors, since I’m not really in any position to be in charge of this situation. However, I’ll definitely put in a good word for you, Jacob. I’ll tell them how interested you are in being a youth leader.”

“Thank you so much, Pastor Jang!” Jacob cried, standing up and bowing slightly to him.

“Just call me Dongwoo,” Dongwoo said, laughing lightly. “It’s weird being called Pastor Jang. Also, I’d suggest you cut your hair. It took them a while for them to allow me to dye my hair. So cut your hair and let them know that you really want to be the youth leader, then I’m sure your wish will be granted and you’ll be able to follow God’s will.”

“Okay, I will! Thank you, Dongwoo!” Jacob cried, before running out of the room with a huge grin on his face. Just as he left, the church secretary walked in.

“Pastor? Someone stopped by my office just now and told me to bring this to you,” the secretary said, handing him a letter. “They said it’s classified information and that you have to do everything the letter says. I have a feeling it might be blackmail or something, but I thought I should give it to you.”

“Thank you, Jesse,” Dongwoo said, smiling at the secretary and taking the letter from her. However, his smile dropped as soon as he finished reading the letter. How was he supposed to make everything right, now?

∞∞∞∞∞∞

“Doojoon! You can’t hog the ball! Pass it on to Jackson!” Lee Howon cried from the sidelines, watching his team play soccer. “Yoseob! You need to cover more of the net! Stand in the middle! Yah! Im Jae Bum, what are you doing?! Stop talking to Jinyoung and pay attention! Gikwang, do a lap around the field! You’re not even supposed to be sitting!”

“Coach! It’s hard doing six on six!” Jackson whined, turning on their coach. “Can we get Bam Bam to substitute one of us soon?”

“Bam Bam is doing a favor for me. And he’s training to be a goally right now. He doesn’t need to substitute with you, Jackson. You’re fine.”

“But then why isn’t he in the goally area?” Dongwoon, who was blocking the opposite goal, asked. “I’m not even supposed to be in the goal! I’m not a goally, coach!”

“That’s why we’re training him! Because we don’t have a goally,” Howon stated. “We need to show him how to be a goally before we put him in the goal. Now stop complaining, all of you.”

“But coach, can’t I be a goally now?” Junhyung, one of the forwards asked. “I don’t want to be in the forward position anymore.”

“Everyone, join Gikwang on running a lap around the field, right now!” Howon cried, having enough of all their complaints. “Mark, can you go grab the water bottles for everyone?”

“Yes, coach!” the boy known as Mark cried, running away from the field over to the van where the water was.

“Guys, we need to be perfect! We’re playing our biggest rival first this season, and we need to beat them. Sure I don’t have Bam Bam out there yet, but he will be soon,” Howon told them. “We need a goally, especially after Eric left the team. I want Bam Bam to be the best goally ever. Please have patience.”

“Yes coach!” everyone cried while they ran.

“Alright, when you come back, I’m changing up the teams,” Howon said. “When you finish your lap, grab some water and sit around me. Mark, since you got the water, you don’t have to run.”

Once everyone was in front of him, Howon took out a clipboard and wrote some notes on it. Howon was very competitive and wanted to top in their league, like they have been for the past four years he has been coach. He worked his boys hard and tried to give them the best position. He had complete faith in each of his boys and he knew they would do well. They definitely showed it through practice.

“Okay, Team A,” Howon started as soon as everyone sat down, “Will be Jackson, Mark, Jinyoung, Jae Bum, Youngjae and Yugyeom. Team B will be Doojoon, Dongwoon, Yoseob, Junhyung, Gikwang and Hyunseung.Youngjae will be the goally for Team A and Yoseob will be the goally for Team B. Yugyeom and Dongwoon will be our midfielders. Jae Bum, Jinyoung, DooJoon and Junhyung, you guys will be our defense, while Jackson, Mark, Gikwang and Hyunseung are our forwards. Team A will kick first! Alright, break!”

Everyone jumped up and ran to their positions. Howon blew his whistle and they all started playing. Just then, Bam Bam came running over to Howon with a large bag in his hands. He also was holding an envelope and he was waving it around excitedly. Howon laughed at his little, adopted, brother as he ran right up to his hyung.

“Hyung... I mean coach Hoya,” Bam Bam said, holding the envelope out to his brother. “I stopped at home to get the jerseys like you told me to, and mom said this letter came for you. She said the person said it’s to be read only by you.”

“Thank you,” Hoya said, smiling at his little brother before opening the letter. The letter that would change his life.

∞∞∞∞∞∞

“Class, please open up to page five hundred and thirty. We will be learning about the history of our beautiful city, Beijing, today,” Lee Sungyeol said as he wrote down the page number on his wipe board.

“Teacher Lee, it’s not your city,” a kid from the back said, sneering at the teacher. “How can it be YOUR city when you didn’t even grow up in China! You’re not even Chinese!”

“Yeah, you’re KOREAN,” the kid’s friend said, causing the both of them to laugh.

“Yeah, we’re you from Seoul or something?” the other asked, still laughing with the other.

“Tao, Yi Xing, leave him alone,” one of the girls in the front of the class by the name of Victoria said with a sigh. “Mr. Lee is one of the best teachers we could ask for. Who cares if he’s Korean. He still a citizen here, isn’t he? It’s as much of his city as it is your’s! So leave the poor guy alone! I don’t know why you so much! Besides, your BEST FRIENDS, Chen and Xiu Min, are Korean. So how come you’re fine with THEM being Korean and not our teacher?”

“Thank you Victoria,” Sungyeol said with a sigh. “Now anyway, boys, if I get another outburst from you, then I’ll be sending you out to the principal’s office. So now, can we please turn to page five hundred and thirty?”

“Mr. Lee, you’re speaking in Korean!” another kid shouted. “I have no idea what you’re saying! Can you please speak Chinese or not speak at all.”

Sungyeol could feel his eyes water up, but he wiped his eyes quickly before turning to face the class. The kids were harsh, but he did what he could because this was his job. There were some kids he really loved, who were kind to him. He did whatever he could to stand up to the bullies who liked to torture him during class. It’s the least he could do.

“He is too speaking Chinese!” Victoria’s friend cried. “Leave him alone! Why do you guys have to bully him so much? He’s a great guy!”

“Thank you, Qing,” Sungyeol said, giving her a small smile. “Now anyway guys, please just turn the page on the board and can I have Victoria read the first page for me?”

“Yes, Mr. Lee,” Victoria said with a bright smile.

“Hey, Lee Sungyeol?” another voice said as one of the school’s teachers popped his head into the classroom. “I got a letter that was addressed to you, but it was sent to my classroom.”

“Oh, really?” Sungyeol asked with wide eyes as the other teacher walked into the room.

“Yeah, I have no idea who it is from. There’s something written in Korean on it, so I don’t know what it says. I’m guessing it’s pretty important.

“Oh, thank you,” Sungyeol said, reading the Korean word that said classified on the outside of the envelope. He opened it and read the letter slowly. After finishing reading it, he couldn’t be any happier.

∞∞∞∞∞∞

Lee Sungjong groaned loudly as he scratched out yet another sketch. For some reason, nothing was working for him that day. Whatever he put down just looked stupid and it just wasn’t his style. He didn’t know where it was coming from. It was really frustrated him.

He didn’t become an intern in Paris for nothing. He wanted to become one of the best stylists in the world, but it seemed like that wasn’t happening for him. His dream was to become a designer where all the famous Korean companies would go to for their artists. He always loved KPOP idol fashion. If only he could be the one designing the clothes.

“Goddammit! That’s not what I want!” Sungjong cried, throwing the sketch pad off his desk and yanking at his hair. “Why isn’t this working for me?!”

“Are you alright in there, Jong?” a voice asked as Sungjong’s boss, Jessica, came into the room.

“It’s not coming out how I wanted it to!” Sungjong cried, shaking his head.

“What did I tell you about getting frustrated?” Jessica said with a laugh before picking up the sketch pad and placing it back on the table. “Just calm down and try again. Why don’t you take a little break or something?”

“But I need to finish this,” Sungjong said, stubbornly. “I only have three hours left to do this! If I take a break, it will take up all my time! I need all three hours I have!”

“How about I give you the rest of today off,” Jessica said with a small smile. “Then tomorrow you can just do it. I was the one who assigned this project to you, wasn’t I? Go home and get some rest then come back tomorrow and do whatever you can. I’ve been working you too hard.”

“But I can’t-”

“That’s an order, Sungjong,” Jessica said sternly, pushing him out of the room. “Go home and rest.”

“N-neh,” Sungjong replied hesitantly, before walking out of the office.

It took him about forty minutes to walk home, and it gave him quite enough time to cool down and think. If he could figure out what he was doing wrong, then he would know how to fix his design. He was very grateful towards his boss and he never wanted to let her down. LIke him, she was a Korean who moved to Paris for her dream. She now owned her own business. But unlike her, Sungjong wanted to move back to Korea once his internship was done.

“Ah, Sungjong,” the owner to the house Sungjong was staying in said as soon as he walked up. “A letter came for you today all the way from Korea. I don’t read Korean, so I have no idea what it says. I don’t know if it’s a friend of your’s or something.”

“Really?” Sungjong asked with surprise. He never got any letters. Especially to this address.

“Yeah, so I guess I should give it to you,” the owner said, handing Sungjong an official looking envelope.

“This doesn’t look like a letter a friend would send,” Sungjong said, looking up at his owner. “It looks official. And it says confidential on it.”

“Oh, well I wouldn’t know,” the owner said with a small smile before stepping aside so Sungjong could come inside.

Sungjong set down his bag before walking into the living room. He plopped down on the couch and just stared at the envelope. After a while, he finally opened it, curious on what it was about. But what it said was the complete opposite he thought it would. How could his life change so sudden like this?

∞∞∞∞∞∞