Welcome to Seoul! The signs in the airport enthusiastically greeted me as I wheeled my suitcases down the long hallways of granite floors and past the brightly lit storefronts of the terminal. The bustle and energy of the space was not at all like the relaxed socal vibes I was used to. Even more distinctly, the polished and posh atmosphere of the airport itself reminded me that I was far from the outdated and overused facilities of LAX.

My oversized sweater and leggings were out of place compared to the unique airport fashion that greated me with each passerby. The pale and well made up faces of the women here reminded me of my own laziness when it comes to my image. 

I switched on the phone I had preloaded with a Korean sim card. Immediately the lock screen was bombarded with a string of notifications. 

‘Text me when you land!’ From my mom.

‘Call me when you’re here!’ Messaged my friend, Park Mina, in Korea who was scheduled to pick me up.

‘Nuna send me this list of snacks’ my brother demanded via Kakao Talk.

An email from my landlord for my new Seoul apartment, confirming he had handed the keys over to my friend Mina. Another email from the production team of the drama project I was about to start on, outlining the start time, schedule and location details of the script reading that was taking place tomorrow. 9am. It was already 5pm and I could barely keep my eyes open to read everything on my phone.

I cleared all the notifications and went straight to contacts to dial Mina. 

“WELCOME TO KOREA!” She shouted from the phone after the first ring.

“Hey, girl. I’m walking out of the terminal now.”

“No enthusiasm, huh? Sounds good. I should be pulling up just in time.”

“I’m so jetlagged. I need to sleep. Don’t even care to eat right now.”

“Girl. That won’t do. I already bought some jjangjamyeon take out so just eat that while I drive you to your apartment.”

“You’re the best.” I swooned and hung up as I wrestled with my bags down the escalator toward the exit. 

It was late summer and when I stepped outside for the first time into the early evening breeze of Korea, I could feel the left over heat of the day lingering in the air. I took a deep breath. Even the air smelled different than what I was used to in Los Angeles, a mix of heat and moisture from the humidity. 

A honk blared into my ears from the left. It was Mina, pulling up in a black SUV with her trunk already popping open. I tossed my suitcases into the back and eased myself into the passenger seat.

“Well hello, there!” Mina exclaimed as she pulled me into a tight hug. “You should get showered ASAP - you smell like airplane.”

“Thanks,” I mumbled, pulling away self consciously, “Hopefully I can scrub myself of airplane smells before tomorrow morning’s script reading.”

“Omo, I’m so excited that you’re finally doing something here in Korea! I’m telling you, there’s really no better place for an Asian in entertainment. It took you long enough to consider us.” Mina said as she nudged me in the side.

I swatted her away. “Hollywood is warming up to us, I was fine. This opportunity was just too big of a deal to pass up on. How could I say no to a Shin PD project? My mom would have killed me.”

“So do you know your co-stars yet? It’s literally the day before script reading, they can’t be still keeping it a secret?” 

I shook my head. “They’re running a really tightly sealed ship here. No idea. They’re probably also newbies to the scene? Shin PD has a reputation for that.”

Mina nodded, “that makes sense. Anyway, the food’s by your feet - eat up now so you can go straight to washing up once you get home.”

“I love you, you know that right?” I swooned as I scooped up the take out box from the floor.

“You can repay me by introducing me to any cute actors you meet on set!” She winked.

I smacked her arm but laughed along. 

***

The next morning, I patted down stray strands of hair in the bathroom and examined myself in the mirror for any last minute make up needs. The room just a few steps down the hallway was where I’m due to make my Korean entertainment debut with the first script reading. 

I took a deep breath. I’ve had a few minor roles here and there in Hollywood, but they didn’t quite have the same level of hype as this project I was about to take on. Shin PD was one of the most renown directors in the Korean entertainment scene and there was already so much media coverage on his new mysterious project. Crew members of different news agencies dotted the hallways, cameras ready, as they waited on the cast to arrive. It would be the first time the broader public would hear about the cast of the new project. 

After confirming everything looked good, I took another deep calming breath and headed back out to the hallway. The camera crews exchanged glances between themselves, wondering whether I was part of the cast. I was definitely someone they didn’t recognize. A few of them raised their cameras and snapped some quick pictures. 

I gulped and kept my gaze forward, pretending they didn’t exist.

When I reached the door taped with a “Shin PD Project S” sign, I took one last deep breath and turned the door knob to step inside. As the door closed, I heard the sound of more camera shutter clicks from behind.

My eyes surveyed the room, which was already half filled with people. A set of tables were put together in the center where the actors were to sit. Another circumference of chairs were set up against the wall where the staff members to the actors sat. 

I scanned the people already occupying their seats in the center, curious to know who my co-stars on the mysterious project was going to be.

A beautiful, pale girl with pitch black hair and bright red lips sat looking down at the booklet in front of her. Her lips moved slightly as she read the script to herself. I recognized her as Suzy Bae, considered one of Korea’s most attractive female celebrities. She looked up from studying the script to meet my eyes and offered a polite smile as she stood up and bowed in my direction.

Surprised at having received a bow from one of the industry’s top stars, I quickly reciprocated a bow. Internally, I berated myself - how could I as a newbie be the one to receive the first bow? There was still a lot of Korean mannerisms I needed to become adjusted to. Though I was Korean by heritage and knew some basics from my family, I was still someone more accustomed to American culture.

As Suzy sat back down in her seat my eyes moved on to the figure sitting next to her and I suddenly found myself meeting a familiar set of eyes.

The same set of eyes I looked into three years ago. Park Bogum was staring at me with his mouth slightly ajar forming an ‘o’ shape in shock.

“What are you doing here?!” I asked dumbfoundedly, and immediately realized the stupidity of my statement. Would anyone be surprised by the fact that one of Korea’s top actors was at a script reading? Suzy looked up from her script and gave me a strange look. I realized others around the room were doing the same - I had not sounded very polite. 

Park Bogum was not fazed, however, and broke into a smile after the initial shock wore off. “It’s nice to see you again, Lee Sol-sshi.”

He maintained an air of politeness as he spoke which hit me with a flinch of disappointment that I hadn’t anticipated feeling. For some reason I thought because of our prior encounter, we wouldn’t be addressing each other with such formality. But then again, he didn’t reply to my message afterwards - perhaps I was too eager to be friends.

Before I got a chance to reply, a staff member came to my side to confirm my identity and direct me to my spot labeled with a name tag. I sat opposite of Bogum and Suzy, which made it harder for me to avoid staring at him. Bogum looked up once more after I was seated and when he caught me staring at him, returned my gaze with a small wink and smile. Althought it wasn’t much, his gesture eased my tension. 

The details of the script was finally unveiled to us during this first meeting of the full cast. I was playing the daughter of a rich elite family who just returned to Korea from studying in the United States. I was the second female lead and main antagonist of the story who was vying for the love of Bogum’s character, who was also from a powerful family but preferred to keep a low profile. 

My character was one that was difficult for me to relate to, but I took the role as it was a good way for me to practice getting into a variety of different roles. As I read my lines, I tried to place myself into the shoes of someone who was whole-heartedly dedicated to Bogum. Whenever I heard Bogum’s voice during the script reading session, I couldn’t help but feel my heart skip a beat as I recalle