After spending almost an entire day on airplanes headed from the only home Tessa Im had ever known - the beautiful city of Los Angeles - here she was in Korea, in the middle of the woods on Jeju Island, resisting the urge to fall to the ground and pray to be swallowed up. There the manor stood, solitary and menacing, with vines creeping up the front pillars and thorny rose bushes lining the drive, and Tessa couldn't fathom how her grandfather could live in there for an upward of 40 years without going absolutely insane. As she stood there staring, wondering just how high the chances were of her being murdered here in the middle of nowhere, her aforementioned grandfather was suddenly right in her face. After screaming bloody murder and taking a minute to calm down her racing heart, he finally spoke. "Hyunjoo? Is that you, granddaughter?" he asked, with the strangest little smile on his face after he bows slightly in her direction. "Ah, I'm so sorry! I didn't see you come out," the girl says as she flushes after hearing her Korean name used, quickly adding "Also, please call me Tessa, grandfather. I'm not quite used to being called 'Hyunjoo' yet." The man laughs at her shocked expression before he replies that he would be more than happy to use whatever name she'd like, and ushers her towards the intimidatingly large front door. With no other choice, Tessa begrudgingly walks inside the mansion, sending a collective prayer to any being that might possibly exist, begging for a chance to escape from this strange fate.



The estate was honestly worse on the inside, although it was still strikingly beautiful. It seemed as if no one had dusted for the better part of 30 years, and it smelled like a sickening combination of mold and dust. This was a sharp contrast to all of the beautiful marble pillars, persian rugs, antique paintings and wall decorations, and Tessa couldn't stop herself from wondering just how this mansion could be so contrasting yet breathtaking all at once. As she was stood still observing everything, her grandfather walked in behind her, gently placing an arm around her shoulders so as not to startle her again. "Dear, I'm so sorry that you lost your parents at such a young age. No one could have seen the car crash coming or been able to prevent it, but that makes things even more tragic, don't you think? As an old man of 81, I know quite a bit about loss, and yet I cannot begin to imagine how you must feel right now. Your grandmother has been gone for 25 years now, and while I still feel her loss as if it were yesterday, an 18 year old should never have to feel pain like you have." At her immediate change of expression, he gently says "Let's not think of that right now though, yeah? Let me show you around." As soon as those words were spoken, Tessa was whisked away on an hour-and-a-half-long tour of the 3-story house and the surrounding grounds, a full description and history of each place included, ending with a brief stop in the sprawling topiary garden to eat a lunch of green tea and ham and cheese sandwiches ("Americans like this, right?") As they finally returned to the main living area, Tessa was even more exhausted than she was when she arrived, almost completely dropping onto the couch closest to her as soon as she walked inside. "Grandfather, could you please tell me which room was mine again? I'd like to go lay down for a little bit," she drawled out, feeling her exhaustion and sudden homesickness hit her in alternating waves. "Of course, Hyunj- Tessa. It is the last door on the left on the third floor, right next to my study. Which reminds me - I have only one rule I'd like for you to follow while you live here. Do not under any circumstances go into my study, understand? Now rest well, and I will see you later on this evening."



With her grandfather's warning still ringing in her ears, Tessa trudged her way up the main staircase, at long last coming to her new room's door and immediately falling onto her bed as soon as she closed her door. The room was very plain, even though her belongings which had been shipping a week prior were already scattered throughout the room, and Tessa made a mental note to ask her grandfather is there was any way they could change the light pink walls, since it had slipped her mind to mention to him before that pink is actually her least favorite color. As she lifelessly laid there on the bed, Tessa stared at the ceiling, letting her mind wander and once again feeling the loss of her parents like a sharp knife straight to her heart. Tears silently trailed down her face as Tessa fell into a restless sleep at last, dreaming of her life as it used to be - with her best friends Joshua and Mark, the crowded yet beautiful streets of Los Angeles, and of her parents whom she loved with all of her being.













I'M SO GLAD I FINALLY GOT THIS TYPED OUT OMFG (even though I just almost had a heart attack because I thought I lost all that I had typed)
BUT YEEEEEEE, WASSUP GUYS?? this story is gonna be so ing fun to write, I can already tell :^)
p.s. sorry for ending this chapter on such an emo note lol
I'm like 99% sure it turned out so emo because I listened to both "Migraine" and "Semi-Automcatic" by Twenty One Pilots as I typed this tbh
AND I PROMISE THAT JIN IS GONNA BE INTRODUCED IN THE NEXT CHAPTER
I just wanted to include Joshua because today (technically tomorrow where I am, but whatever) is thE BABY'S 20TH BIRTHDAY AHHHHHHHHH

~Dara