THE BASICS.

FULL NAME 서애리 seo aeri
NICKNAMES
  RIRI an affectionate way of calling her name,
  usually called by her family and close friends.
  ANNOUNCER-RI usually called by her best
  friend when she's off to work, just for the lols.
DATE OF BIRTH apr 12, 1996 (25)
NATIONALITY south korean
ETHNICITY korean
BIRTHPLACE jeonju, sk
HOMETOWN jeonju, sk
LANGUAGES
  KOR fully fluent, doesn't speak with much of an
  accent after moving to seoul. 
  ENG semi-conversational, knows enough to
  introduce herself and ask where the toilet is, but
  struggles with it. doesn't speak it often and has a
  heavy korean accent.

FACECLAIM red velvet, kang seulgi
BACKUP apink, kim namjoo
UALITY heteroual
STYLE aeri dresses pretty casually—a shirt and denim shorts would usually suffice. she's a single mother afterall, and she sees no need to dress up too extravagantly when her son is going to pull at her sleeves or 'accidentally' color her white shirts yellow. dresses are typically for weekend dates with her friends, but otherwise, she keeps it simple. aeri always dresses formally for work: a white button-down shirt, a pencil skirt (or fitting pants, on some days) and a matching blazer.

SCROLL HORIZONTALLY.

             

PERSONALITY.

POS realistic, fearless, thoughtful, independent, adaptable
NEU competitive, mysterious
NEG cunning, blunt, prideful, hot-tempered, emotional

SEO AERI IS...

・ * 。 not one who is often in her own world. she's always practical and well-grounded. she is a realist, constantly rebutting or refusing impractical ideas or thoughts that just don't make any sense. she grounds the people around herself, allowing them to explore and be creative, but she's someone whom brings it all back together with her rational mind.

・ * 。 also really courageous and brave. she's often not deterred by obstacles. instead of being afraid of the unknown, she would rather confront it head-on and face all her problems immediately. her fearlessness has also been a reason why aeri has dared to take on so many challenges and move to seoul alone.

・ * 。 always thinking of others before herself. aeri has learnt to always think of others first. she's constantly caring for those around her and making sure everyone around her is alright. she would always think of others before she even thinks of herself.

・ * 。 someone who knows where she stands and doesn't falter. it's not so much of that independence was something that was expected of aeri from a young age. her parents doted on her, but they brought her up in a way that she would not be dependent on anyone else.

・ * 。 able to respond well to different circumstances and situations. she can be thrown into a new environment and still be able to adapt to it quickly. she's willing to experiment with something new and always present in the moment.

・ * 。 and always had a competitive bone in her. when it comes to something that she can compete in, her eyes would change and there would be a competitive spark in them. she always wants to be the best. while this means it's tiring for the people around her, it also ensures that she will do her best and give her hundred and one percent in anything that's given to her.

・ * 。 a rather open individual, but there is some sort of mysterious vibe from aeri. she's outspoken, but it doesn't mean she reveals much about herself. to quote her friends, aeri is like an onion— there's so many layers of her personality hidden and waiting to be revealed. it's not that she purposefully shys away from attention, if someone asks her to open up, she might to the person; there's just some sort of mystery surrounding her.

・ * 。 one who knows how to use her intelligence to her advantage. she is smart and she knows exactly how to manipulate people around for her own benefits. she's scheming; her ability to think and deceive others is scary. she is sly, and has a lot of tricks up her sleeve. aeri always finds words spilling out of even before they can finish processing through her head.

・ * 。 straight-forward and talks without much thought, especially in casual conversations, and her inability to mince her words means that she often ends up rubbing people the wrong way.

・ * 。 too prideful to admit to her wrongdoings. this pride prevents her from asking for help when she needs it. however, this pride ensured that she has to go the extra mile to get what she wants. because of her pride, she treasures her friends, but they are no exempt from her prideful self. apologies might come, but you would have to wait a long time. they are typically round-about and its hard to tell.

・ * 。 trying to control it, especially after the birth of her son, but she usually has a very short temper. aeri may not show it outwardly, but she gets annoyed very easily. she is short-tempered; she flares up easily when something, or someone, angers her.

・ * 。 affected by things and changes around herself very easily. she is very in touch with her own emotions and more often than not, she allows these emotions to overwhelm herself even before her mind and actions process.

BACKGROUND.

phase i: growing up,

seo aeri was born as the second child in jeonju, south korea. growing up, her parents loved her and always showered her with endless affection. she had a close relationship with her older brother, who was always overly protective of her. aeri remembers her childhood as a happy one.

until her parents filed for a divorce when she turned eleven. their marriage was crumbling with every passing day and they eventually decided to put an end to things. her father gained custody over the two children and that was it. as her father got busier with his work, trying to make things work in the household with only one source of income now, aeri grew to be more self-sufficient and independent. she still visited her mother often, but things just weren't the same anymore.

phase ii: figuring out who i am,

as aeri entered teenagehood, there was never really a female figure for her to talk to about crushes, periods, , or girl fights. she matured faster than her peers; she struggled through middle school, struggled finding her own identity. it definitely wasn't easy but she made it to high school and entered as a stronger, tougher girl. 

in high school, aeri studied hard, got into relationships, took up a few part-time jobs during her vacation breaks, suffered break-ups, but she grew. 

phase iii: moving into the real world,

come university admissions and she studied her way into yonsei university, majoring in communication. aeri moved to seoul, renting an apartment near campus alone while working part-time as a home mathematics tutor. 

it was also in university where aeri met kim minjun. minjun was charismatic, sweet, and humorous, and aeri couldn't help herself from falling in love. minjun was by far not her first love, but aeri had never recalled feeling so much for someone before. they were head over heels for each other and couldn't help but start to plan a future together. they were going to graduate, get married, have two kids a few years later and grow old together. that was the game plan.

that was, until the couple found themselves cuddled up on aeri's couch, nervously gripping onto the pregnancy test kit while awaiting for the results to appear. aeri's period had been two weeks late, and she had immediately gone down to the nearest pharmacy to purchase two different kits.

it was faint, but they saw them crystal clear. two lines. positive.

phase iv: getting knocked down,

despite the pregnancy, minjun grew more distant from aeri. at first, she thought she was imagining things, overthinking it, perhaps, due to her raging hormones. but soon, he took more than six hours each time to reply to her texts, he ignored her calls, he cancelled dates. 

then came a day: aeri received an urgent phone call from her best friend to hurry down to the cafe next to their university. and there he was, in all his glory, an arm slung around another girl's shoulders, whispering sweet nothings into her ear and pressing a loving kiss on her cheek. aeri saw enough. she left the cafe with tearing eyes and confronted him about it the very next day.

minjun didn't even try to deny his affair. in fact, he argued back at aeri, yelling at her to get out of his life, to not ruin his life with a child he didn't even want. the argument got so, so out of hand and so uncontrollable.

so she ended her relationship with minjun, six months into her pregnancy.

aeri can never forget the sheer amount of pain and anger it brought her. all of a sudden, she had so much to bear; the loss of her lover, a baby ready to pop out any moment, new responsibilities of being a soon-to-be single parent that she never once had to think through. the thought that she was carrying minjun's child was enough to suffocate her. aeri even went through a phase of hating the baby growing inside of her. she didn't need a reminder of her lover, his disgusting deeds, and the product that they created. but she didn't have much of a choice. so come june 16, 2018, and seo jaewoo was born.

phase v: picking myself back up.

the first few months after giving birth to jaewoo was heartbreaking. whenever aeri looked at the newborn in her arms, she couldn't help but think of the betrayal and pure anger she experienced. she was soulless. aeri has no idea how she managed to push herself through so long without creating any harm, but thinking back now, she's thankful that she survived through.

three months into jaewoo's birth, and aeri's mother suggested that she visit a therapist, which she did. over time, she learnt how to better care for herself and her newborn child. the self-loathing and negative thoughts that were once screaming in her head, were silenced. aeri started becoming a better mother, and a better person.

come 2021 and jaewoo is almost turning three. he's a chubby, handsome, sociable and chatty toddler whose eyes turn into crescents whenever he sees his mom. aeri loves him more than anyone else in the world and would do anything to ensure that her baby boy would live the best life.

aeri's best friend introduces the single parents support group to aeri after chancing upon it on her friend's social media account. aeri is hesitant at first, but after some persuasion that it could be "a nice break from her usual life" and she could "meet people that are just like her!", aeri finds herself signing up for the club.

CHARACTER QUOTES
✔ "aeri, are you crying?" "no, it's an allergic reaction." "to what?" "life."
✔ jinah: aeri, it would really help if you show up looking like you enjoy my company. aeri: for how long? jinah: ten minutes tops. aeri: see if you can get it down to five.
✔ jinah: i forgot to sleep because i was on tiktok. aeri: if you ever wonder why i'm your only friend, remember that sentence.
✔ "there are ten kids and seven chairs, what do you do?" chohee: get three more chairs. aeri: kill three of 'em.
✔ jaewoo: eomma, i— aeri: yes, of course, go ahead, baby.

NOW PLAYING

hug by seventeen.
downpour by ioi.
breathe by lee hi.
you are by got7.
through the night by iu.
an encore by shinee.

TRIVIA. 

✔ she only uses apple products; she currently owns a macbook pro and an iphone 12.
✔ she is right-handed.
✔ she enjoys watching korean dramas. her favorite actor is song joongki.
✔ her friends often joke that she will take two working days to reply to texts, unless the text contain the word 'jaewoo'.
✔ her favorite food is tteokbukki and she craved for it the most when she was pregnant.
✔ she dreamt of becoming a veterinarian when she was young. 
✔ her instagram handle is @aeri_s. her account is private and most of her posts are of her son.
✔ she'll drink iced americano even in winter.
✔ she must have kimchi at every meal.
✔ she only learnt how to cook after moving to seoul alone.
✔ jaewoo used to cry a lot when she dropped him off at daycare, but these days, he will always wave goodbye to her with a smile on his face.
✔ she lives alone with jaewoo in a studio apartment near her workplace.
✔ she drops him off and picks him up from daycare every day without fail.
✔ jaewoo eats a lot more than most kids his age, which aeri is happy about.
✔ her family wasn't happy with the fact that she got pregnant at a young age, but they eventually left the decision up to her whether she wanted to keep the baby or not.
✔ she just started sending jaewoo for weekly taekwondo lessons and she swears it's the cutest, period.
✔ she also just started toilet training jaewoo. he wets the bed sometimes, but he's getting the hang of it.
✔ whenever she goes out, she packs an extra set of clothes and a bib for him to use when eating.

hello! please introduce yourself and say a few fun facts about yourself. "hello," aeri smiles before giving a small bow. "my name is seo aeri and i'm turning twenty-five this year. i'm working as an announcer in sbs and i was from jeonju."

how many children do you have? what are their names? is there anything you want to say about them? "i have a son, seo jaewoo!" she beams proudly before fishing her phone out of her purse to show off her lockscreen: a picture of jaewoo posing while riding his tricycle along han river. "isn't he the cutest? he's turning three and he's starting kindergarten soon too. he's my pride and joy."

how old were you when you became a single parent? aeri feels her body tensing up at the question. it's been years but she still feels a small jab of pain every time she thinks about the incident. she's quick to fix her expression, though, and her usual smile is plastered on again. "i was twenty-two that year."

at what point did you really realize you would have to take all the sole responsibility of your child from now on? "to be very honest with you, probably only when jaewoo was three or four months old..." she releases a soft sigh, thoughts about not being a good mother to jaewoo during the first few months of his life flooding her mind. "it was then that it really hit me that, wow, i have a child now. and i really, really, need to get my together and take care of him."

personally, what do you think is the hardest thing about being a single parent? "sometimes, i worry about whether jaewoo feels upset he doesn't have a traditionally 'complete' family per say. i'm afraid of him comparing it with his friends at daycare and school and feeling disappointed, so i always try my best to fill in for that absence in his life."

what is one thing you want to tell people who have single parents or are a single parent themselves? "i know how you feel. trust me, i've been there," aeri releases a chuckle before emitting a warm smile. "but don't doubt yourself. your children need you, just as you need them." 

FULL NAME 최현우 choi hyunwoo
NICKNAMES 
HYUN-IE the only nickname that aeri has for hyunwoo. she usually calls him this when they're alone and she's trying to get his attention.
WOO-CHON what jaewoo usually calls hyunwoo. it's a mix of the 'woo' from his name and the word 'samchon', meaning uncle.
DATE OF BIRTH mar 26, 1994 (27)
NATIONALITY south korean
BIRTHPLACE busan, sk
HOMETOWN busan, sk
LANGUAGES
  KOR ~100%.
  ENG ~80%.

FACECLAIM park jinyoung
UALITY biual
STYLE to be updated.

PERSONALITY 

POS logical, rational, calm, collected, endearing, caring
NEU reserved
NEG sarcastic, guarded, closed off, aloof, cold, indifferent

similar to aeri, he's very practical in his thinking. he cares more than he dares to let on, and handles sudden situations in a cool and collected manner. introverted by nature, hyunwoo keeps to himself a lot. he's aloof, but charismatic. if aeri met hyunwoo in school, she's certain that he would be that one popular kid whom everyone talks about but doesn't dare to get near. 

hyunwoo is more often than not, cold and indifferent to the people around him, possessing an unapproachable aura. he keeps people at one arm's length and doesn't allow many to get close to him. hyunwoo retorts back in a sharp and concise manner, which usually elicits a small flinch from the receiving party. but beneath his cold facade, aeri knows that hyunwoo just needs the right person to break down the many walls he built around himself.

FIRST MEETING 

when aeri first joined the single parents club, she got to know chohee first, who immediately claimed that "oh my god, you're like a female version of hyunwoo". naturally, it piqued aeri's interest, so she kept her eyes out for this certain 'hyunwoo' during the first club meeting.

when he stood up to introduce himself, aeri concluded: there is no way this guy and i are similar. yes, she knew that she was mysterious and had many secrets to hide, but she wasn't half as cold or aloof as he was. in fact, she considered herself to be rather outgoing in a social setting.

and so, aeri told chohee just that, only for the girl to reply with a small chuckle, "just wait and see, aeri."

LOVE STORY  

so aeri waited, and she eventually saw that perhaps, chohee was right: she and hyunwoo were more similar than they thought they were. over a few more meetings, they barely interacted privately, only have conversations in larger groups.

but one day, aeri had been caught up in a meeting at work and was rushing down to pick jaewoo up from the daycare. she was anxiously waiting outside the sbs building, struggling to hail a cab when a familiar car pulled over. it was hyunwoo.

he rolled down a window, asked where she was going, and immediately offered her a ride. the car ride there was a little awkward, with brief conversations made here and there, but aeri couldn't care about those details. at that point in time, all she thought about was jaewoo.

and jaewoo—thank goodness—when aeri rushed out of hyunwoo's car, jaewoo was laughing happily with his teachers who kept him company while waiting for his mom's arrival (which aeri is more than thankful for). he had a slice of pizza in his hands and was eating it messily, getting tomato sauce all over his face, but his little feet were swinging back and forth as he sat on the chair. he had waved at his mom merrily and hopped off the seat, not before greeting his teachers goodbye.

aeri wasn't expecting hyunwoo to still be there outside the daycare, but he was. he sat there, in the driver's seat and was quick to offer them a ride back to their apartment. 

the ride back home was less awkward, thanks to jaewoo's never-ending questions directed at hyunwoo ("what's your name, hyung?", which was followed by a "i think you should be calling me ahjusshi, jaewoo-ah." "what's your favorite dinosaur?" "i want to drive your car!"). 

aeri has to be honest: that was the first time she ever saw hyunwoo smile genuinely. he always appeared so intimidating and cold at the single parents club, aeri was almost shocked to see this warm, kind side of him. he was patient in answering all of jaewoo's questions and never disregarded them, he even chuckled at jaewoo's choice of words at times. aeri felt like she stepped into another dimension, a parallel universe, even.

after aeri thanked him for all his help that day, and jaewoo waved him goodbye with a big smile, the boy turned to his mom, "i like ahjusshi, eomma. i want to play with him!"

and that was how aeri found herself texting hyunwoo. first to thank him again for helping her out when they barely knew each other, and second to relay her son's words to him. eventually, one text led another, daily conversations led to small phone calls, which led to aeri and hyunwoo hanging out on days outside of the club meetings. it was always with jaewoo at first, before they started seeing each other even more.

it was a very natural progression of things and it wasn't long before aeri knew that she might be feeling something a little more for him. texting, calling and talking hyunwoo makes her feel like a teenager all over again. 

it's been so long since she ever felt like this for anybody, that it almost feels foreign. but aeri swears that this time, she's not going to allow herself, or jaewoo, to get hurt.

CURRENT STATUS strangers.
ENDING it's up to you, but i do wish to see them together at some point in time because i think both of them truly deserve it!

TRIVIA 

✔ surprise, surprise! they actually open up to each other quite a fair bit, which everyone is very shocked by.
✔ given both their personalities, their relationship together is very mature and built on a lot of understanding.
✔ it's not like they do a lot of cheesy things together, but they're very sweet in their own subtle ways.  
✔ they barely have any photos together.
✔ aeri's contact on his phone is 'seo aeri'.
✔ hyunwoo's contact on her phone is 'hyunwoo' with a white heart emoji.
✔ are their dates even considered dates when their children are with them half the time? 
✔ both of them agreed that they will prioritize their children over anybody else. 
✔ having kids of his own, and being a preschool teacher himself, hyunwoo is by far the best at interacting with jaewoo. he's very attentive to jaewoo's words and always allows the boy to sit in the driver's seat of his car to drive, when the car is stationary, of course.
✔ hyunwoo often buys toy cars and dinosaurs for jaewoo because he knows he likes them.
✔ hyunwoo is really good at reasoning with jaewoo whenever he's upset. 
✔ in the beginning, aeri always got hyemi and bora mixed up but she has gotten better at it.
✔ aeri makes a lot of girl talk with hyemi and bora, and will bring them shopping for clothes.
✔ aeri likes to think that to the twins, she's almost on par with auntie chohee.

COMMENTS this is really long oh my god but i had a lot of fun doing this so i hope you like her!!!
SCENE SUGGESTIONS
✔ the parents bring their kids to the single parents club for one meeting? that would be so cute.
✔ jaewoo throwing a tantrum because he doesn't want to leave the toy store and aeri is trying her best to keep her voice down.
✔ everyone simping for jaewoo because he's the cutest and chattiest kid sjdkhfksd.
✔ maybe a meeting at the club where they open up about why they became single parents....
PASSWORD pepero.