Elisa Stiles sighed heavily as she glanced over her US Air Force uniform hanging in her closet. Running her fingers over the patches that were sewn on, her face showed an array of mixed emotions. She had served the past ten years in the military. It was an extremely hard decision, but the demands of being a single mom and her constant need to attend to tasks assigned with her job in the Air Force were becoming too strenuous. How many more birthdays would she miss out on? How many nights would she go not seeing him? That vicious cycle was coming to an abrupt end. Life was too precious and Elisa refused to ignore any more milestones. Her service was nothing to scoff at. She remembered starting off at the bottom of the ranks and working her way up to Tech Sergeant. Pushing her camouflage uniform to the far right of the closet, she grabbed an outfit suitable for a job interview. Once she had finished getting dressed and dabbed on a bit of makeup, she took one last glance in the bathroom mirror before grabbing her keys and heading out the door. It wasn’t long before she was pulling up her car to the parking lot. Glancing at the information scribbled down on her sticky note, she glanced up at the building from her car window and nodded to herself at noticing the information match up. Exiting the car and hitting the alarm on her keychain, she headed towards the entrance of the building with her portfolio in hand.

                “Welcome to NH Media Studios. How may I help you?” The secretary greeted in Korean. Elisa slightly bowed and smiled.

                “Hi, my name is Elisa Stiles. I have an interview at 10am.” Elisa replied in fluent Korean.

                “It’s a pleasure having you here. If you would kindly take a seat, I will let them know of your arrival.” She motioned with her arm the waiting area that was off to the side of the main desk. Elisa nodded and made her way over to a seat. She opened her portfolio gingerly and checked the accuracy of the Hangeul in her resume. Just as she was placing the snap back over the clasp on her folder, she heard footsteps coming towards her.

                “Ms. Stiles, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Right this way.” The assistant manager greeted her. They bowed to each other respectively and he ushered her to his office. “Please make yourself comfortable. How are you doing today?” He asked as he closed the door behind him and made his way over to his chair behind the desk.

                “I’m doing wonderful, thank you. I hope you are as well.” Elisa smiled brightly.

                “I am now that I am talking with you. You bring such a bright atmosphere to the room. Tell me, how did you find out about this position?”

                “I like to keep current with the local news. I saw your ad online and in the newspaper.” Elisa replied as she sat up straight to show off good posture and placed her hands on her lap.

                “Excellent. That does come in handy. May I see your resume?” Elisa opened her portfolio and handed him a copy. He carefully studied each detail and gently placed it in front of him when complete. “I am beyond impressed. It seems like your time in the US Air Force has served you well. So your job dealt with linguistics? I’m sure that was a very important job.” Elisa nodded in response. “Wait…so you speak how many languages?”

                “Five: Spanish, Japanese, Arabic, Korean, and German.” Elisa grinned.

                “So you should have no problems pertaining to this job language wise. I see that you have travelled to many military bases. If this job requires it, would it be a problem?” The assistant manger asked.

                “How often would it be required?” Elisa asked seriously.

                “Not too often. Probably a few times every couple of months. Would that be an issue?”

                “Is the travel local? To other countries?” Elisa was starting to get nervous. She didn’t want to reveal her role as a single mom and have it jeopardize the possibility of her landing the job. However, she didn’t want to be spending more time away from her son; it was the reason she had decided not to reenlist for another four years.

                “Well, it will be to other countries, but ones close by. Japan is frequented a lot, as well as places like Singapore and Indonesia.” He searched her expression to see if there was any apprehension.

                “That should work out just fine. There is advanced notice given before the travel is booked, correct?” Elisa tried not to sound nervous with her reply.

                “At least a month ahead, if not more.”

                “Oh, that should be no problem.” Elisa sighed in relief.

                “I do have one question, though. If you’re from the US, why not move back there since you are finished with your military duties?”

                “I love living in Korea. This is the best place I have been assigned out of the ten years I have served in the Air Force. I want to make it my home. Temporarily for right now.” Elisa blushed.

                “I’m glad to hear that. These are the tasks that are required of this job.” He handed her an outline and let her observe the details. “I think you are the perfect candidate for this job. How soon can you start?”

                “Are you serious? Thank you! Cheong mal kamsamnida! I still have a month left to out-process and leave the military officially. I’ve already completed my last working day. Now I just have to go thru the checklist they provided and follow the steps.” Elisa explained after looking up.

                “Here is my business card. We will contact you next week to expedite the steps to get you signed on to our staff. Before I let you go about the rest of your plans for today, would you like a tour of the facility?”

                “I would love that!” Elisa gathered her belongings and followed the assistant manager out the door as he gave the layout of the floor plan.

                “This is the dance studio where the guys practice. I believe they may be in here right now. Would you like to meet them?”

                “If it’s okay. I wouldn’t want to disturb their activities.” She said as they stood outside the door.

                “Not at all. In fact, I’m sure they would love to have a break from their routine. Shall we?” He gently opened the door wide enough for them to slip inside. Standing up against the wall they observed them in the middle of a dance routine. As soon as the song ended, the music was stopped and the guys turned around.

                “Why don’t you guys take a minute to catch your breath. I have someone I would like you to meet. This is your new language teacher, Elisa Stiles. She will be joining us within the month, so please make her feel welcome.” The seven members smiled warmly at her, making Elisa feel at ease.

                “Annyeong haseyo…we are U-KISS!” They greeted in unison, brushing their hands over their lips and blowing a kiss at the end, making Elisa giggle.

                “Annyeong haseyo, I’m the leader of U-Kiss. My name is Soohyun.”

                “Annyeong haseyo. I’m Eli.”

                “Annyeong haseyo. My name is Kiseop.”

                “Annyeong haseyo. I’m Kevin. Pleased to meet you!”

                “Annyeong haseyo. My name is Hoon.”

                “Annyeong haseyo. I’m AJ.”

                “Annyeong haseyo, I’m the maknae of the group. I’m Dongho.”

                “Annyeong haseyo. Jeonun Elisa ieyo. Mannaseo bangawoyo.” The guys stared at her in awe at her fluent accent. He let them all socialize for a few minutes before he pointed to his watch notifying them that their break was over. Exiting the room, the assistant manager led her to the entrance of the building.

                “Elisa, it has been so wonderful having this meeting with you. Please don’t hesitate to call if you have any questions. My email is on the business card as well. Let us know if there’s any way we can help you with your transition from the military to your employment with us. Momjosimhaseyo (take care of yourself).”

                “Kamsamnida. Annyeong hi gyeseyo (goodbye).” Elisa bowed and made her way to the car. Driving onto Osan Air Force Base, she arrived back to her military housing on post. After slipping off her shoes once she entered her apartment, Elisa made her way into the bedroom where she flopped onto her bed. She couldn’t contain the mega-watt smile that was permanently etched on her face. Things were starting to fall into place for her. Grabbing her laptop on the nightstand beside her bed, she logged onto the internet and decided to do some background research on the clients she would be spending time teaching the English language. The group seemed so wonderful and down-to-earth. For the next few hours, Elisa let her eyes and ears absorb everything about the seven members who called themselves Ubiquitous Korean International (Idol) Super Star.