↷  it's time

personality :

Churim is introverted only in the sense that she’s thought-oriented and intuitive - she is otherwise very much a social extrovert, thriving on frequent interaction with friends and other members of their little community. She’s a people-person, genuinely interested in others and their well-being, and can and will be vocal about her concerns if she notices something off about someone. As attentive as she is regarding others, it’s rather ridiculous how forgetful Churim can be when it comes to her own matters, but that’s why post-it notes were invented and she makes thorough use of their existence. She takes her responsibilities and duties very seriously, be they actual tasks to accomplish or metaphysical promises she makes, and places great value on trust and dependability. As such, it hurts her deeply when someone goes back on their word, and makes sure she never agrees to anything she cannot carry out.

Churim believes in the eventual payoff of good, honest hard work. It all falls in a similar line as karma, as far as she is concerned, that doing good will result in good, and treating others well will result in others returning the courtesy. Perhaps it’s a bit naïve, but taking advantage of others to get ahead just does not make sense to her - unfortunately, it does not mean that no one would take advantage of her kindness and generosity. She has trouble saying “no,” and will more often than not go with whatever is asked or expected of her. It’s not only because she wants to avoid confrontation however, though the idea of sparing unnecessary conflict certainly appeals to her. Churim honestly wants to help most of the time, and will feel guilty if she turned someone down for a request that is well in her power to fulfill. There are, of course, always exceptions to the rule, and such exceptions crop up when friends and family are concerned. Extremely approachable and friendly though Churim generally is, threaten someone she holds dear and you’ll begin to notice something different about her smile. Sure, it’s still as bright as usual, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes and that should tip you off that that smile is as fake as can be.

She may come off as gentle and passive, and that does ring true the majority of the time, but most neglect to notice that Churim is in fact passive-aggressive. The fiery determination that fuels her diligent nature and careful work ethic? It doesn’t just spring out of nowhere. Her pent up energy and feelings are merely channeled elsewhere, rather than at the object of her resentment, so that it’s more productive than destructive. Churim is not impulsive or brash enough to allow her feelings to overcome her judgment, thus would never resort to lashing out when troubled. The type to stew in her feelings until they either simmer into nothing or she can decide on the best course of action, Churim is ultimately a slow and methodical thinker. She is, however, also human behind her sweet demeanor and no human manages to stay happy and eager all hours of the day, no matter how patient they are with sorting out their thoughts and emotions. Churim has her off days too, when she’s sad or angry or frustrated or some other upset, and it’ll show in the thinly-veiled sarcasm adding an edge to her ordinarily cheerful and sincere words.

likes : 

→ asparagus
simply steamed - barely cooked to maintain color, texture, and that fresh sweet taste
→ soft jazz
wonderfully low and seductive - of course there’s nothing wrong with piano ballads or classical music, and they’d even fit the bed-and-breakfast’s image better, but the sultry music gives a hint of spice Churim can’t resist
→ pastel colors
soft, warm, and soothing, they play things safe, like her add subtle notes of color to everything, without being overbearing
→ the smell of freshly brewed coffee
rich and fragrant, can you think of a better way to start the day than with a nice cup of coffee?
→ luxurious bubble baths
everyone needs some time to themselves to wind down and relax after a good day’s work - she’s partial to apple orchard-scented bath products, by the way
→ newly laundered sheets / blankets
the fresh clean smell and extra softness make them even more inviting than usual
→ chocolate-dipped ice cream bars
she likes the crunch of the chocolate shell paired with the smoothness of ice cream more than she likes the sticky mess of chocolate fudge - not that she’ll say no to the latter (who says no to chocolate and ice cream?)
→ horror movies
it’s a love-hate relationship - she likes watching them at night in her pjs, wrapped up in a blanket and surrounded by a pillow fort, because she can scream and panic and no one’ll be around to scold her…but then there’s the issue of living in a huge house all by herself and did you hear that just now?

dislikes : 

→ being formal to people / being treated formally by people
she prefers everyone being able to act naturally - better for all to be friendly and at ease, than uptight and self-conscious
→ dishonesty
she doesn’t like being lied to, especially by someone she cares about - it means you don’t respect her enough to tell her the truth or don’t think she deserves it, which hurts all the more if you’re close to her
→ canned fruits or vegetables
inferior in both nutrition and taste, why go canned when there is perfectly fresh local produce?
→ sudden loud noises
she doesn’t mind if it builds up and persists, but they startle her if they come out of nowhere, especially considering how peaceful home and Eden Creek in general usually is, and leave her rather jumpy (“Whose fault is it for watching too many scary movies?” “Oh hush, they’re strengthening my heart - I might actually survive a heart attack at this rate.”)
→ spider webs
it’s not even the spiders themselves okay fine, she’s not exactly fond of them either, but they’re nature’s extermination system - they’re difficult to clean because they’re always in awkward to reach corners, and they can’t simply be swept away because they practically cling to the head of her broom
→ heavy perfume / cologne
she may like to stop and smell the flowers as much as the next person, but artificial scents, floral or otherwise, are much different
→ being wasteful
why throw money away at something you don’t need, or buy too much if you’ll be throwing stuff away? (at least put the remains to some use!)
→ cramps
enough said - she can’t even fake a smile when she’s moody, much less while in pain (“Go away and just let me die in peace.”) she usually feels a little better if someone babies her for a bit though

habits :

→ always leaves at least one window open around the house, wide when it’s warm and just a sliver when it’s cold - she likes the breeze and fresh air
→ sticks cutely shaped post-it notes on random visible surfaces to remind herself of her to-do list (eg - a sky blue tear drop for “water the plants” wouldn’t appear on a watering can, or even the backdoor frame…it’d be on the toilet seat)
→ there’s always a pen and a packet of post-its on her person somewhere (pocket, purse, tucked inside her bra just kidding), so she can scribble things down as they come to mind - handy for leaving reminders anywhere and everywhere around the house, but also for figuring out her budget while shopping
→ Sunday afternoons are sacred - after a hearty brunch, Churim spends the rest of the afternoon in the hospital
→ can’t sleep when she’s stressed or something’s on her mind - she’ll bake instead, the teeth-achingly sweeter the better and leave not so anonymous packets of goodies in friends’ mailboxes in the middle of the night (“You wandered out again last night, didn’t you.” “Me? Pft, no.” “So some thief just left these brownies on my doorstep?” “Santa came early this year?” “You’re going to get in trouble for breaking curfew one of these days.”)

hobbies :

→ cooking / baking / eating - you may not think she’s the adventurous type, but tinkering with recipes (and daring to consume the experiments) take a degree of creativity and an iron stomach curiosity
→ reading, especially fantasy fiction and crime thrillers - she’s got wall-to-wall bookcases lining two of the common room’s walls, filled with whatever she could get her hands on and building on the collection of novels visitors in the past left behind after their stay (she likes leaving flowers between their pages as bookmarks, letting them press and dry to surprise whoever next opens the book usually her)
→ making washi eggs and leaving them around the house making centerpieces or decorations with them - she only needs the eggs to cook and bake with, so why waste the shells when they can be made into something pretty?

special talents : 

→ can gut and scale a fish in ten minutes (or less)
→ can shatter glass with her singing no, not really, she is just incredibly off-pitch (how is this a talent?)
→ can fold towel animals - housekeeping made fun
→ writes like a typewriter - this is not a metaphor (she has neat, precise handwriting but writes in some blocky typeface with serifs)
→ can inhale finish eating a dozen donuts in a half hour (again, how is this a talent?)

fears / phobias : 

→ liticaphobia (fear of lawsuits / lawyers)
perhaps “phobia” takes it a bit far, but Churim dreads the idea of a lawyer showing up on her doorstep with a passion - having witnessed the distress a persistent lawyer caused her father, she developed a vicarious anxiety and hatred towards them
→ atychiphobia (fear of failure)
with the legacy of such a long-standing bed-and-breakfast resting in her hands, Churim has the chance to either redeem or completely ruin her bloodline’s pride and joy - she’d hate to be the reason for the latter
→ spheksophobia (fear of wasps)
ever been stung by one? you would be terrified too (“You’re several thousand times their size.” “Size has nothing to do with it - they’re vicious.”)

trivia : 

→ either walks or bikes around town in a banged up old blue bicycle - she can’t drive
→ writes with her left hand in pen, her right hand in pencil - she can’t switch for some reason
→ keeps an herb garden and grows a few fruits and veggies out back (easy things like apples, berries, tomatoes, zucchinis, green beans…), but she still has to buy many of her groceries
→ allergic to pineapple - yeah, she doesn’t understand it either but her lips swell and bleed, so she stays away
→ her first kiss was stolen when she was in the first grade by a friend’s pet retriever
→ believes in psychics and the supernatural - she’ll even keep the paper slips in fortune cookies
→ cannot swim to save her life - she never learned how to
→ give her so much as a spiked milkshake and she’ll be knocked out for the rest of the week (read as - her alcohol tolerance is abysmal)
→ instead of the usual light fixtures, her bedroom’s lit by chains of electric paper lanterns
→ sleeps with a family photo under her pillow she may be a baby in it, but still!

↷  everything has changed

 

* history :

After her mother passed from childbirth, Churim was raised by her father in his childhood home (and the childhood home of his father, and the father before him). Home hadn’t always been this quiet, he’d explained to her, home used to be filled not just with immediate family, but friends from far and wide too. Churim grew up imagining a bed-and-breakfast b with the chatter of guests, and spent many an afternoon waiting to see if a stranger would walk through the front door, looking for a place to stay - not once did it happen, however, and Churim vaguely remembered the disappointed pout her father had had to work hard to erase when bedtime rolled around.

 

Churim was ten when the lawyer first appeared. She hadn’t entirely given up on the idea of visitors coming to their sleepy town, but no longer was she as hopeful that the family business would miraculously revitalize overnight either. Her father had, as courteously as he could, offered the lawyer a seat and a cup of tea, before they began talking and passing a stack of papers back and forth - Churim hadn’t understood most of what was going on, though she hadn’t really cared to either, to be perfectly honest. The lawyer eventually left and her father told her everything was fine. And so, as far as Churim was concerned, everything was. The lawyer would continue to drop by periodically over the years, and each time, her father would pretend to listen before sending him away again. Churim watched the weariness in her father grow, having learned the intent behind every visit from the lawyer by the time she was fourteen. Where he was once youthful and energetic, he was now gaunt and lethargic, worn down by age and tension. Although her longing for guests at the inn have somewhat diminished since she was a little girl, Churim understood why her father refused to sell the bed-and-breakfast, refused to allow anyone to turn it into something else. This was her family’s legacy, and she’d protect it as fiercely as her father did, no matter how hard they’d fallen into hard times - more importantly, this was their home, and no one was allowed to take it from them.

 

She was seventeen when she came home from school and found him collapsed on the ground, droopy eyed and unresponsive. His accumulated stress had escalated the negative effects of his high blood pressure - coupled with unchecked diet and his dubious medication regimen (“I’m not nearly old enough to have to count pills every day, sweetheart.”), and he’d suffered a in spite of his relatively young age. With her father a rather permanent resident of the local hospital due to the resulting brain damage, Churim had no choice but to adjust to living all by herself in their house. The family inheritance helped with medical expenses, while she saved and scraped what she could around the home to make her available funds last…did she mention how utterly grateful she was the bed-and-breakfast was successful once upon a time? Yet despite the initial grief and hardship, she managed to finish the high school education her father would have expected of her before she took over his post as inn owner, never once heeding the legal “advice” that came her way the moment news spread.

 

initial impression of eden/the newcomers : 

Excitement of course! Sure, they’re a bit loud, and…strange, but that’s why they’re called strangers, right? Seriously though, they are city kids. Not that I have anything against that! They’re just different, but variety’s the spice of life! People used to drop in from all over in the past, and it’s honestly nice to have some fresh faces. They’ll be my first customers, ever, what’s not to be excited about? Maybe Eden’s finally getting back on the maps again - I really hope I can make their stay a good one!

 

* family :

→ father | Tang Chulsoo | 48 | (ex) bed-and-breakfast owner | Optimistic and enthusiastic about all he does, he doesn’t fear hardship and tackles everything with gusto. While he’s not exactly irresponsible, he can be flippant and “follow his heart” instead of doing the rational and logical thing. | Suffice to say, her father is her world. They were unbearably close - Churim’s his only child and he couldn’t help but be protective and spoil her with attention. She was devastated when the hit, and nothing would erase the pain from knowing the resulting brain damage addled his speech and memories. He could still speak but it wasn’t without difficulty, and he could no longer recognize her, though there are occasional days when he’d smile and call her her mother’s name. It’d taken time to get over that shock, but Churim has since reconciled with reality and visits him faithfully every Sunday afternoon.
→ mother | Tang Nami | (would be) 45 | (was) receptionist for bed-and-breakfast | Her father tells her often that she must have inherited her personality from her mother, everything from the sweet mild manners to the innocuously barbed speech eagerness to please. Though Churim has no way of confirming his words, she likes to think it’s true. | Churim grew up without her mother, but that is a world away from growing up without knowing her. Her father supplemented her traditional childhood bedtime stories with stories about him, his wife, and their escapades together - it was clear to Churim he was still very much in love with her, and though she never had the chance to meet her, she would always be her mother regardless.

 

* pets :

→ n/a, it’s against health and safety regulations to keep pets in an inn, even if she owns it - she does, however, make a point to leave a bowl of water and leftovers at the backdoor for any strays that may wander in the area (“Aren’t you afraid of attracting raccoons or coyotes or something?” “What? We have those around here? Should I leave bigger bowls?”)

 

friends :

→ The Fragile Daydreamer

→ The Little Adult

→ Jang Dongwoo

 

* other friends :

→ Lee Jonghyun (CN Blue) | 23 | grocery store clerk | Gentle and down to earth, he is easygoing and much more subdued than the rest of his group of friends. He’s the typical boy next door - sweet, sincere, and the ideal guy to bring home to the parents. Some may call him average or boring, but it’s more a matter of finding out the things he’s passionately dedicated to and adapting to his subtle sense of humor. | childhood friend - Churim’s strong and silent pillar of support, she knows she can always count on him to side with her. He is the only one of her friends she is comfortable with seeing her cry, because he would not fly into any rash decisions on her account and Churim appreciates that.
→ Im “Nana” Jinah (After School) | 22 | jewelry designer apprentice | A secret goof with a quirky sense of humor behind her blank face polite smiles, she is honestly a sweet and loving girl. While she is generally mellow, she’s rather frank and will usually say whatever she likes according to her mood. That’s not to say she isn’t considerate - she is also a good listener who is sensitive to the emotional cues of others, even if people seem to think she’s a bit of a space cadet. | best friend - they know each other about as well as they know themselves, and tell each other almost everything. It’s like having an ever trustworthy sister, minus the burden of sibling rivalry or the problems that tend to come with cohabiting (though she had asked Churim to move out and live with her and her family on more than one occasion)
→ Bang “Mir” Cheolyong (MBLAQ) | 22 | farmhand | Although he behaves like a wild monkey, what with the random shenanigans and general recklessness, he can be incredibly mature because of how observant of human nature he is in addition to his awareness of the politics that lurk beneath peoples’ behaviors. A filial son, he’s very family-oriented and altogether hard worker, despite his louder tendencies. | childhood friend - the closest in age to Churim, they literally grew up alongside each other. They joke and tease each other constantly, and share enough skinship to have some of the older residents raise scandalized brows it was kind of cute when they were kids toddling after each other, but they have yet to outgrow their touchy-feely tendencies.

 

* enemies :

→ The Local Femme Fatale | according to applicant | mayor’s daughter/according to applicant | free-spirited, bold, charismatic, manipulative/according to applicant | familial threat - it’s not so much her but her entire family. The mayor has had his eye on Churim’s family property ever since it failed to turn a profit since 1994, seeking to buy and redevelop it. With each denial to his proposals, the civility between their families became ever strained, and neither his daughter nor Churim were oblivious to the fact. When the occasional prank targets the bed-and-breakfast, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out which local’s behind it. The rest of Eden Creek’s population may give her the benefit of the doubt or even turn a blind eye, but Churim holds it against her nonetheless, even if she can do nothing about it aside from continuing to protect her family’s inn.
→ backup - Wang “Fei” Feifei (miss A) | 26 | entrepreneur | Strong, independent, and self-confident, she is a natural leader - better yet, farsighted and driven enough to initiate her own business ventures. She has very high standards, her perfectionist tendency bordering compulsive behavior, and is unfortunately hard on herself due to her expectations for herself and her accomplishments. | familial threat - Churim understands that it took a great deal of reluctance on the other’s part when the lawyer badgering them on her behalf switched tactics, explaining that his client sympathized with Churim’s predicament and has now revised her offer. Rather than insist on Churim selling the bed-and-breakfast, she was willing to compromise and settle for a partnership. Churim still refused, not only because of her vow to maintain her family’s property, but out of sheer spite for the people that contributed to her father’s illness.

 

 

↷  anything could happen

 

love interest : Jang Dongwoo (Infinite)

back-up love interest : Lee Sungyeol (Infinite)

personality :

Dongwoo always seems to be happy, and endearingly tries to raise everyone’s spirit too, with his infectious laughter and quirky sense of humor. He is rather gullible because he’s so honest, but it also shows how sincerely thoughtful he is when he says or does something. Though playful and fun-loving, Dongwoo’s authoritative and serious when he needs to be - despite his goofy laid-back image, he’s a quick and insightful thinker. He’s the kind of guy who wants to take care of those younger than him and is especially considerate of girls, not necessarily because he thinks they’re delicate or incapable, but rather out of genuine care and concern. It’s impossible to please everyone, however, and Dongwoo would rather give up his opinion than be the reason someone is hurt. Sure, he has his childish days too - he’ll whine or do something ridiculously unpredictable because there’s something he wants and he’s being denied. He’ll give up some times, but even he has limits to what he thinks is worth fighting for.

* first impression : 

I, uh, heard him before I even saw him? Does that make sense? He has a distinctive laugh, and it bleeds into his voice - I could hear him grinning while he spoke, you know? But I think his voice matches his face and him well, once I did meet him. He seems really friendly, I really hope he’ll enjoy himself here!