“Flight 827 to Seoul will be descending. Please return to your seats and fasten your seat belts.”

Seoul, a city that was once familiar to Han Nari, was now as foreign as can be. It had been three long years since she was last home, and she couldn’t wait to leave everything from America behind her and start fresh as she began her first year of college.

The reason she was gone for so long was because she had been in a foreign exchange program which allowed her to not only study in America, but allowed her internship opportunities that would help her college applications. So much for opportunities however, since she ended up going back to Korea anyways once it was time to pick a university. It was a decision that she didn’t expect herself to make but some events her senior year in high school basically forced the decision on her. 

But Nari didn’t want to dwell on what she couldn’t change, and was at least genuinely excited to see her loving, older brother. Han Seungwoo was someone Nari had always looked up to and idolized. Even when her parents were being strict with her and basically made sure she had no social life, he would find ways to bring her with him so she could explore outside of school and home. When he needed to run errands, Seungwoo would say he needed Nari’s help to carry things back. When her parents were attending business dinners, he would bring her to get street food with his friends. At every recital and tennis match she was a part of, he would be there cheering the loudest for her. 

He was the only part Nari missed about Korea while being away, and regretted not being able to be there for him like he was for her because of her rigorous schedule in America. She even missed his high school graduation which she cried over for an entire weekend because she felt so guilty. However, things would change now as she would be entering the same university which Seungwoo was a senior at. This time, she would be able to watch him graduate and would definitely be his loudest, proudest personal cheerleader. 

Nari pushed her window blind up and saw the sparkling city lights of Seoul. Her heart leapt in her chest and she felt the weight from America lift off her shoulders. She was finally free from all the drama, heartache, and loneliness. Unable to control herself, a smile found its way onto Nari’s lips.

The passenger next to her noticed this as she also admired the city lights. “Are you happy to be home?”

“You have no idea.”

—

“Han Nari, you better walk faster before I jump over this barrier!”

Nari didn’t need to be told twice. Without regard for her personal things, she completely abandoned her cart full of luggage and removed her overfilled backpack so she could sprint to the person waiting for her at the end of the arrival terminal. Jumping into Seungwoo’s open arms, Nari was developed into a bone crushing hug that left her almost breathless but she didn’t care. 

Finally, she was reunited with her best friend.

“Who allowed you to grow up?” Seungwoo muffled his words into her hair. “You were suppose to stay my little sister forever, not turn into this beautiful adult. How will I make sure the boys stay away and still have time to study now?”

It was true that Nari had definitely changed physically since she left for America 3 years ago. No longer did she have shoulder length, black hair or exclusively wore sweaters and jeans with her favorite pair of sneakers. She was also no longer the short, slightly awkward girl with braces and bright clips in her hair. Nari had grown several inches in the past 3 years, had long, (dyed) brown hair, and wore very trendy outfits that complimented her carefully chosen accessories. 

Nari laughed as she playfully smacked her brother’s back. “Don’t blame me for you being distracted with your studies. We both know you will be distracted by all the girls that will throw themselves at you.”

“Yah!”

Seungwoo had always been good looking all his life from what Nari could remember. Ever since they were kids, girls have been confessing their feeling to him and guys expressed their jealousy over him. He was tall, good-looking, and had a way of grabbing everyone’s attention when he was in a room. 

“You know its true,” Nari said as she released herself from his embrace and sassily out her hands on her hips. “Don’t even deny it because I see your instagram stories and there is always a new girl next to you!”

He laughed and scratched his head, avoiding having to respond by jogging to where she left behind all her things and gathering them. After returning with all her items, Seungwoo led them towards the parking lot. 

“How about you, Nars?” Seungwoo used her childhood nickname. “Whatever happened to what’s his name. Hangyul? Did he decide to stay in America for university?”

Nari’s stomach dropped once she heard her brother speak. 

Lee Hangyul, the boy that she used to think of as a best friend. The boy that also joined her in the foreign exchange program. The boy she spent the majority of her time with for the last three years. 

And lastly, the boy that made her flee back to Korea without ever looking back. 

“Nari? You’re spacing out. Everything ok?”

Nari didn’t realize that she was looking blankly at her brother as his face started to show signs of concern. “Oh, nothing! Sorry I was thinking about an errand and must have lost track of where I was.”

“Are you sure?” Seungwoo said with a doubtful look. He knew his sister well and could tell she was hiding something. “It’s not something about Hangyul? You kind of spaced as soon as I mentioned him.”

“N-no! Hangyul is Hangyul, as always. He said he wanted to explore America more and wasn’t ready to come back to Seoul so he stayed.”

“And you aren’t sad about that? He was your best friend after all.”

Nari just wanted this conversation to be over so she linked arms with Seungwoo and helped him push the trolley. “No, you are my best friend. Plus, Hangyul can do what he wants! It isn’t up to me.”

If Seungwoo doubted that Nari before, he definitely knew now that she was hiding something. But he didn’t want to pressure her anymore into giving details so he just let the topic go.

Out of the two, Nari had always been the quiet one. Although probably more so when she was younger, Nari was they type to hide her problems and worries and focus on pleasing those around her instead. That is why their parents were able to be so strict with her without much problems, because Nari never dared to do anything wrong. That was why Seungwoo always tried his best to make sure he was there for her, so that she could be more herself and allow herself to have some fun. 

After talking about how her travels went, they arrived to Seungwoo’s brand new car. “Woah, did mom and dad help you buy this?” 

Seungwoo scoffed as he opened the trunk and started to put Nari’s mountain of luggage away. “Yeah, right. With you being in America and me being in college, they would never offer to help me pay for a car. I paid for this baby on my own working part time since high school!” Nari chuckled before helping her brother finish putting away the rest of her things in the trunk and the back seat (she basically packed up her whole life). Then they got in the car to start heading to their next destination—university. 

“So, where are our lovely parents tonight anyways?” Not that Nari cared because she was never close with her mother or father anyways, but she couldn’t ignore the fact that they were missing from the reunion that was three years in the making. 

“There was some business meeting with dad’s company,” Seungwoo rolled his eyes as he buckled his seat belt and looked over to make sure that Nari was all buckled up as well. “So basically, they were too busy kissing to make it, as per usual. Nothing has changed, even after all these years.”

The Hans definitely had a stable life where finances were not an issue, but they weren’t rich which truly upset their dear father. He was a director of finance in some architect firm and dreamed of climbing the ladders to become VP or CFO. That is why he was often gone, because he made sure to go to every meeting possible to network and, to put it into Seungwoo’s words, kiss . Their mother was also obliged to go to these meetings because apparently every business man brought their wife to reflect good family values. 

“But they did tell me to remind you to go straight to your new dorm, unpack, and start preparing for the new school year,” Seungwoo mocked as they started their journey from the airport to the college campus. 

“It is truly a wonder why I opted for early move-in instead of staying home for a week,” Nari said with sarcasm that even surprised Seungwoo.

“Wow, for a second there I forgot you were my baby sister,” he said before proceeding to ruffle his sister’s hair. “What happened to the girl that always followed the rules and never talked back to mom and dad?”

“She’s still here, she’s just not a baby anymore.” Nari looked over to her brother with a look that Seungwoo couldn’t exactly decipher. 

Most people would want to spend time with their family after being gone for several years, but not Nari. She knew that if she was to go directly to her home in Korea, all the rules that she left behind would come back in full force. To be honest, Nari didn’t know how to abide by her parents rules anymore because she had been independent for so long. It might sound bad to others, but she was thankful for not having to fully return home once coming back from America and that she got to keep some of her independence. 

If people understood her situation though, they wouldn’t be so quick to judge. Her father, and mother by default since she always stood by her husband, pushed his dreams onto her and Seungwoo. Be the best, be number one, be the smartest person in the room were just some things that their father would preach to them. Nari was never allowed to go out and had to stay home and study and get perfect grades when she was in Korea. Seungwoo, as ist as it sounded, was treated a bit better since he was a male, albeit they were still strict on him. They allowed him to go out as long as he maintained his grades. Nari had a feeling that because she was a female they were afraid she would go out and get herself pregnant so she was locked up as much as possible. 

“So, where do you live anyways? All I know is that you don’t live on campus anymore,” Nari spoke as she got comfortable in her seat by reclining the chair. It has been a long flight and all she wanted to do was lay on a bed and sleep for a whole day. 

Seungwoo looked over his shoulder to see if there were any drivers in his blind spot before speaking, “Well, that is true but I honestly don’t live too far from campus. I live in an apartment that’s a five minute walk away from the school with Seungyoun. You remember him right? He was my friend since middle school.”

“Oh right, the kid that always did that annoying imitation of a chicken or something,” Nari vaguely remembered his friend that had way too much energy even for a kid. “I didn’t realize you went to the same university all this time.”

“Well actually he transferred from a different university just last year, but that’s a whole different story for another time. It was the year I decided to move off campus and we both needed roommates so it just worked out.”

“Speaking of the university,” Nari said as Seungwoo made another turn. The campus had become visible and Nari’s heart did a small flip in her chest. 

All her hard work was for this moment, the day where she finally could say she was a university student. Nari admired the serene looking campus from afar as her brother drove on the outer bounds of the school, trying to navigate to her freshmen dorm building. It seemed so calm and quiet, but it was understandable since she arrived on a Friday night one week before school even started. 

“What are you planning to do for the rest of the night?” Seungwoo asked as he continued to make turns which just confused Nari because she was unfamiliar with the campus. 

“I’m not sure,” Nari contemplated as she thought about all the unpacking she had to do. “Well, my roommate said she wouldn’t be moving in until next weekend because she is on vacation with her family. I’ll probably end up procrastinating on packing and just watch kdramas or something.”

“Jeez, are you in college or are you about to retire?”

“Hey! That’s not fair, I am tired,” Nari whined and she smacked her brother’s shoulder lightly. 

“Listen, Nari,” Seungwoo said as he pulled over the car. Her brother proceeded to shift his body to look her straight on, “This isn’t like when you were younger. You can do whatever you want because you’ve worked hard and you deserve to have some fun too.”

“I know…”

“Ok look,” Seungwoo suddenly looked very excited, “A couple of my friends and I are supposed to hang out on the top floor of my apartment. We brought up tables and grills to cook some barbecue, have some drinks, and just hang out before the school years starts. Why don’t you join us? My friend has a brother your age that will be starting college too so you can start making friends early.”

Nari squirmed in her seat as she thought about intruding on her brother’s plans. I’m sure they didn’t expect Seungwoo’s little sister to tag along. She wasn’t the baby sister that blindly followed her brother everywhere like before, she knew now that sometimes he wanted to hang out with his friends alone. “It’s ok, I’m not hungr—“ Of course at that moment, her stomach decided to growl. 

Seungwoo smirked as he crossed his arms, “You want to say that again or will your stomach be speaking for you?”

And that was how Nari got dragged into going out her first night back in Korea. 

—

Seungwoo had dropped off Nari at her dorm and helped her with her luggage before leaving. He said he needed to go to the store and buy more drinks for tonight and would pick her up after he went back and got ready. That way, she had time to find her toiletries and clothes so she could freshen up from the flight. 

She didn’t know why, but she was nervous about to