"Oh my god! Montana! Hurry!" I yelled into our apartment.

"I'm coming!" She yelled back.

"We are going to be late!" I growled.

She came running out of the apartment, dragging along her bag and suitcase.

"Is the Taxi here?" She asked, locking up our apartment.

"Yep, been here for 15 minutes." I hissed as I grabbed her suitcase and hurried down the stairs.

"I'm sorry!" She whined.

"Well you should've packed last night like me!" I yelled.

"I'm sorry! Someone was hogging all the space in the house with picking out her outfits!" She growled back.

"I want to look good when we get there, I might see some cute guys." I laughed.

"I know what you mean, that's why it took me so long this morning." She laughed back.

I slid her bag into the back of the Taxi and we both climbed in, happily humming to ourselves. Montana and I had been saving up for this trip since we were Juniors in High School, which was only four years ago. We got a break from college so we could take this trip. The Taxi pulled up to the airport and we hurried in with all of our things. I signed us in and got everything prepared for our seats. They took our suitcases and threw them around into the area for our plane. They directed us to baggage check and body scan. I hurried and got through clear, Montana on the other hand had so much jewelry on that they made her go off to the side and take it all off while people went through. I sighed and grabbed my things, taking a seat in the waiting area, watching her go through and get air puffed.  She came over to me and was holding all of her jewelry.

"I'm ready." She huffed.

"Here, let me hold some of that while we walk." I smiled and offered to take some of her jewelry.

"Thanks!" She smiled and gave me a handful.

We walked all the way to our sitting area and the plane was going to be a couple minutes late, so Montana and I grabbed a drink from the nearby Starbucks and took a bathroom break. We came back and the plane was ready for boarding. We grabbed our things and handed in our tickets. The ladies smiled and let us through. I giggled and laughed with Montana as we walked through the long metal tunnel that let us onto the plane. A group of little girls around the age of 12 and 15 got on in front of us and we just looked at each other.

This could get bad...

We sighed and said hello to the pilot before taking our seats. We sat there and excitedly talked about what we were going to do first.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, please buckle up your seat belts and get ready for takeoff." A kind and nervous looking lady came into the aisle.

"Are you excited?" I asked Montana.

"Yeah, but I'm scared of this plane ride..." She mumbled as she quickly buckled herself in.

"Why?" I asked, buckling myself in.

"You know I don't do well in cars, how will this be any better?" She hissed as she tried to calm down.

"I can hum to you if you want to focus on something." I suggested.

Whenever Montana became scared or worried we had gotten in the habit of me humming to her.

"Please, when I ask you to." She nodded her head harshly as she tightly closed her eyes.

The plane began to move and she grabbed my hand.

"It's alright, you're fine, we are still on the ground." I told her.

"Okay..." She took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled, trying to calm her shaking figure.

"I'm going to start humming now, okay?" I asked, knowing that would help her.

"Okay." She replied sharply.

I took in a deep breath and began humming soft notes, something calming and soothing. My hum became an 'Ooh' that echoed from our seats and I became one with the music. I began swaying and imagining a soft breeze carrying off a leaf. My voice was the wind on which the leaf rode. I felt the plane pick up speed to take off and I kept singing, trying to keep Montana calm. As the plane began shaking I got louder and kept imaging a small orange leaf floating in the autumn breeze. It would occasionally sway near the water but then a heavier and stronger breeze would force it higher and pull it far too high. The small leaf eventually landed in a small puddle along with other leaves as a soft rain began to patter onto the pavement. The plane was in the air and steady, so my singing had come to a halt. I opened my eyes and felt Montana sigh and relax by my side.

"Thank you Rachel." She sighed.

"No problem." I smiled to her and then noticed the other people on the plane around us staring at me.

"I think other people heard you." Montana whispered.

"I am so sorry!" I bowed my head to the several people around the small space.

"That was beautiful." An elderly woman smiled from across the aisle.

"You have a pretty voice lady." A little girl around the age of 5 said from next to the woman.

"Thank you." I smiled kindly to her.

"That was sweet!" One of the teenagers that sat in front of me turned in her seat to say that.

"You're good!" Another said.

Many agreeing voices echoed from around the plane.

"Thank you..." I mumbled, feeling embarrassed.

"Are you a professional?" Someone asked.

"No, but it has always been my dream to be one." I smiled.

Several people smiled and encouraged me. The plane ride was several hours long and I sang a couple tunes to myself and read a book. Montana fell asleep and laid against me, her head resting on my shoulder, it's weight making my body feel sleepy as well. I closed my book and laid my head against hers. I fell asleep in only moments.

I woke and the crew were telling everyone to sit and buckle up as we were going in for landing. I looked at Montana's side to see her things scattered. I sat upright quickly and nudged her slightly.

"Montana!" I whispered.

She moaned a little and snuggled closer against me.

"Dude, get off me!" I growled and slapped her leg.

She bolted upright and hissed, "Owww!"

"Stop whining and clean up, we are landing soon." I told her as I cleaned my own area.

"Oh..." She hurried to clean her area and was rushing to pick everything up.

I chuckled as she began panicking. Our area was clean within several minutes, and we were once again buckled into the slightly uncomfortable seats. The plane shook slightly and Montana grabbed my hand tightly.

"Do you need me to hum again?" I asked.

"Yes please." She breathed through her teeth.

I took in a deep breath and hummed a song called "My Lady" by my favorite band EXO. Montana hummed along a little and made me smile. The plane landed as soon as the song was over and I laughed a little.

"You okay now?" I smiled to her.

"Yep, I should be good now." She smiled and released her tight grip from my hand.

We sat on the plane for several minutes as it pulled into the airport. Once we were allowed to leave several people stood and left. Montana and I stayed behind, waiting for it to be less of a rush. We exited the plane and giggled as we headed to leave. We flagged down a taxi and had the kind driver take us to a hotel. We entered the nice place and reserved our room. We went and put our things down and they headed back out. We flagged down another taxi and had him take us to Korea town. The minute we got out of the taxi I smiled and gave a girly squeal.

"It's so beautiful!" I smiled.

"Wow... this is nice." Montana looked around in awe.

We smiled to each other and hurried off to a coffee shop as if we were children in a toy land. We both ordered Bubble Tea and enjoyed it as we headed over to the mall. My jaw dropped when I saw all the clothes I normally ordered from Korea.

"I'm going to definitely buy that!" I pointed to a white tank top with strings hanging from it.

"Don't waste all your money!" Montana mumbled as she went in behind me.

I bought a couple outfits and so did Montana. We laughed and walked around the mall. Several people complimented me on my hair. It was boy short and the front was dyed like a rainbow.

(My hair looks like this in real life too, but just the bangs, so that's what I'm portraying the characters hair as well)

Many attractive Korean boys walked by us and stared at us with smiles.

I feel so pretty.

"I'm liking this place." Montana giggled as a boy winked at her.

She giggled like a little girl and it made me laugh.

"I do too!" I smiled back and began singing a Korean song.

Montana joined in with me and I noticed a somewhat attractive guy widen his eyes and walk over to us. I stopped singing and nudged Montana to do the same.

"What? I was getting into it!" She pouted.

I nodded toward the guy and I stopped walking. We both stood there frozen as the man came up to us.

"Hello ladies." He smiled and bowed slightly.

"Hello." I smiled back.

"I couldn't help but hear you singing." He addressed me.

"Sorry, I'll quiet down." I bowed slightly and apologized.

"No, it's alright. I just wanted to give you my card." He smiled and handed me his card.

"What for?" Montana asked, looking down at the small business card in my fingers.

"I'm from SM Entertainment and I would like to scout you for being a kpop artist." He smiled.

"B-But I'm not Asian." I mumbled.

"It's alright, you look like you have a long line of Asian culture in you." He smiled.

"A-A-Alright..." I mumbled, getting embarrassed.

"Great, now can you go to the 'Aegyo Coffee Shop' tomorrow at noon?" He smiled.

"I think so..." I nodded before he bowed and walked away.

"That was weird..." Montana mumbled.

"Heck yeah..." I mumbled, I checked the time and felt my heart race, "We're going to be late!" I hissed and grabbed her, pulling her out of the mall in a rush.

We hailed a taxi and headed over to a restaurant that my brother had picked out. We met up with him and his girlfriend Kirsten. The four of us laughed and had a good time. I told them about the scouting guy from earlier and they smiled.

"That's great Rachie." My brother smiled.

"That means they recognize your talent and they might want to train you and make you into a star." Kirsten smiled.

"So... you think I should go to the meeting?" I asked.

"Definitely." Kirsten smiled.

"I think it would be great for you to go." My brother smiled.

Montana nodded along and smiled to me thoughtfully.

"Okay, I'll go there with confidence tomorrow." I smiled and gave a toast, my coke clanging with everyone else's.

     *  *  *   

"Why did I say I'd have confidence going to this...?" I asked Montana and we entered the coffee shop at 11:45.

We got some drinks and we took a small high table in the corner of the room. Montana started falling asleep at the table, still not being used to the time change. A professional looking women came in, looking around.

"Montana... that lady looks lost." I nudged her.

She turned around and looked at the kind looking woman, "She looks like she's looking for someone."

I nodded and kept looking at her. She made eye contact with me and then smiled before hurrying over.

"Hello!" She smiled and held out a hand to shake.

"Hi." I smiled and shook her small hand.

"I'm sorry if you waited long." She apologized.

"Oh not at all." I smiled.

"I'm assuming Kune didn't tell you who you were meeting today, did he?" She smiled and asked.

"No, not at all." I chuckled nervously.

"Well my name is Moa and I'm going to be your manager from now on." She smiled.

"M-My M-M-Manager...."I stuttered, still not being able to grasp the concept.

"Yes, and before I officially make you sign everything I would like to hear you sing so I know what I'm working with." She smiled and pulled out several papers and a pen.

"A-Alright..." I mumbled and took in a deep breath.

I sang out quietly "Baby Don't Cry" from EXO.

I sang the entire song, not being stopped once. I finished and looked at her hopefully.

"Wow... Your voice is gorgeous, I won't have to do much." She smiled.

"Thank you." I bowed slightly.

"Well then here are your papers and the spots you need to sign." She pointed to the highlighted parts.

"Thank you." I smiled and picked up the several pieces of paper.

"You should read them." Montana yawned.

"I am." I smiled and patted her shoulder having her lay her head back down.

I read over the paragraphs describing what they expect of me and what I should expect from them. The basic understanding of the paper was, I went through several years of training and then made my debut. I was not to see anyone, family, friends, or relationship wise until after my training was complete. I had one yearly trip to see my family, no matter where in the world they were, and that was at Christmas. The company would pay for everything I wanted or needed. They would also pay for my trips to my family. I would meet other idol's from that company and train with them several times. I was under contract not to talk with them outside of work. My manager would me from work to house and I was to not speak with anyone, but my family, but only for an hour. The rest of the time I had to myself, TV, Video Games, Writing, Singing. That was the entire contract, simplified. I took in a deep breath and signed my name. I smiled and handed her back the papers.

"Great! I'm so excited now!" My manager laughed.

"I am as well." I smiled back.

"Now that you have signed I will need approval from your parents, over the phone is fine. But we must have their consent before letting you go." She smiled kindly.

"Okay..." I hadn't even thought of my parents until now, "Let me call them real quick." I smiled and walked away from the table, pulling out my phone.

Will they be mad?

"Hello?" My mother's honey like tone answered.

"Hey momma!" I laughed nervously.

"Hey sweetheart! How is California? Was your brother nice to you last night? Anything fun happen yet?" My mother bombarded me with questions and it made me laugh.

"California is amazing! And yes Mikey is being nice, he paid for dinner last night and I think Kirsten and Montana got along well." I laughed.

"That's great! So what's up?" She asked, realizing I didn't call to talk about California.

"I need to get your permission on something and I was really nervous to do this, but Mikey told me it would be a good idea to try it first, and if I didn't like it, to quit." I explained quickly.

"Alright..." She dragged it out, "What is it you need my permission on exactly?"

"I have been requited by SM Entertainment to be an Idol..." I tried to say it in a calm manner, even though my voice was bouncing with excitement.

"Really?!" My mother sounded even happier than I was.

"Yep!" I giggled.

"Oh honey! That's wonderful! You will follow your dream!" My mother spoke enthusiastically.

"So then... you will give my future manager your permission?" I asked hopefully.

"Of course! Put your manager on the line." My mother asked happily.

I handed the phone to Moa and she listened to my mother and nodded along, speaking some things from the contract and within several minutes the call had ended.

"What did my mother say?" I asked.

"She agreed with everything and is allowing you to go." Moa smiled.

"Thank you so much!" I bowed.

"No, thank you, you are providing the world with another great artist to adore." She smiled.

My stomach became filled with butterflies and I smiled happily to her compliment.

"I'm happy for you buddy." Montana patted my shoulder tiredly.

"Thank you." I smiled to her.

"Okay, now we must schedule your plane ride." Moa nodded to me with a straight face.

"Plan ride?" I asked.

"Yes, you will be accompanying me to South Korea to begin your training." She smiled.

"W-Wow..." I mumbled.

"Your mother told me you're are currently in college. I will contact the college and have them continue your classes internationally." She informed me.

"Oh... okay." I nodded.

"Okay, the plane tickets we have ready for you are in two days." She nodded.

"T-Two days?!" I practically shouted.

"Yes, and that is the only time, so I would get your goodbye's in before then." She nodded to me.

"My goodbye's..." I mumbled.

"I will meet you back here on Thursday to leave, be here by noon and that will be your last time in America." She smiled to me and handed me her card, "Call or text me if you need a lift."

With those last words she left and Montana and I were left alone in the coffee shop.

I'm leaving in two days?

I called my mom and dad.

"Hello?" My mom answered.

"Mommy, can you come out to California tomorrow to say goodbye?" I asked as tears filled my eyes.

"Say goodbye?" My mother sounded confused.

"I have to leave Thursday at noon for South Korea." I whimpered as I felt myself start to cry.

"DALE! Get two tickets for California ready for tomorrow!" My mother screamed to my dad and made my ear ring.

"Thanks momma." I laughed a little sadly.

"We'll be there, just hang in tight and have fun with Montana." My mother's smile was clear in her tone.

"Alright..." I sniffled.

"I'll call your sister and have her meet us in California on Wednesday." My mother informed me.

"Alright." I mumbled.

"I'll call you later, alright?" She said in a soothing voice.

"Okay Momma." I took in a deep breath to calm my racing heart.

"Bye." She hung up.

I slid my phone into my pocket and stared at the small tapioca spheres at the bottom of my tea. Suddenly the world seemed so bright and colorful now that I knew I wasn't going to see this are of it for a while. I sighed and brought a small smile to my face.

"Let's go chill out at the pool today." I nudged Montana.

"Sure." Montana sat up and smiled happily.

I smiled to her and watched her face for a moment before standing and starting to walk out. We laughed as we neared the street. We flagged down a taxi and discussed my future.

"You're going to have hot men watching you!" Montana squealed.

"I'm going to be working with attractive men, EXO is from SM." I smiled and high fived her in the cramped backseat of the taxi.

"Are you excited to become Korea's next Idol?" Montana said as if she was interviewing me.

I smiled down at her invisible mic she held in front of me, "Yes ma'am, I am thrilled to be chosen." I laughed.

"That's wonderful." She pretended her finger was a mustache and she spoke in a deep voice.

"Very." I giggled.

We stared at each other and began laughing hysterically. We paid the driver as he dropped us off at our hotel.

"Good luck with becoming an idol." He smiled to me as I backed up.

"Thank you!" I bowed to him as he drove off.

"That was nice of him." Montana smiled.

"Very," I stood there a moment, then suddenly a thought occurred to me, "Montana..." I mumbled sadly.

"Yeah?" she looked at me, distracted.

"I'm leaving for Korea in two days, right?" I asked her to make sure she was paying attention earlier.

"Yeah, what about it?" She cocked her head sideways in confusion.

"That means you will have to go home by yourself..." I mumbled sadly.

Her eyes widened and she got a terrified look on her face, "Oh god no!" She whined.

"I'm so sorry!" I bowed to her formally.

She took in a deep and shaky breath, "It's alright, it's all in the sake for your future." She gave a strained smile.

"I'm sorry." I looked down sadly.

"Let's just hang out until you have to leave."

"Alright." I smiled.

We continued to have fun for the next two days, even when my parents arrived. My small group of family and Montana continued to have fun until it was the morning to leave. Then everyone became depressed and sorrowful.

     *  *  *    

"Nice to see you again." Moa greeted me at the cafe with my family.

"Hello Moa." I smiled weakly.

"Say your last goodbye's, then we can go." She smiled sadly.

"Alright." I nodded to her.

She backed off and waited for me. I turned around with glossy eyes and looked at everyone. Their faces were ones of despair, their eyes wet with tears and their stances about to collapse with sadness.

"Be safe sweetheart." My mother brought me into a constricting hug that was filled with shaky breaths.

"I will momma." I hugged her back just as hard.

We pulled back and my dad was next, pulling me into a tight hug, "I love you sweetie, I'll miss you." He said in a cracking voice.

"Thank you daddy, for everything." I laughed a little.

I looked to see who was next to see my sister Courtney, "Hey baby." She pulled me into a soft hug that became tighter as time went on.

"I'm going to miss you Courtney." I officially began crying when I was in her arms.

"It's alright sweetie, we'll see you again." She cried into my short hair.

After a long moment together we pulled back and I gathered my brother into a tight hug. His height toward over me and my face was placed against his chest and I cried into it.

"I'll miss you too Mikey." I cried.

"Don't worry darling, I'll text you every day." He gave a shaky laugh as he my head.

I laughed a little and pulled back, my heart wrenching as I looked to Kirsten next. She pulled me into a tight hug.

"I know I haven't known you for long, but I already consider you my big sister, I'll definitely miss you." I held her against me even tighter.

"You're are the best little sister anyone could ask for, and I'm glad I can call you that." She cried a little.

Every time I hugged someone I felt my mind telling me to stay. My whole being was telling me to stay, but a small voice in the back of my head told me to go. I heaved a big sigh and turned to Montana last.

"I'm sorry." I cried and just looked at her.

"I'm going to be so lonely at home." She cried and didn't stop her fast tears.

"I'll call you every day." I cried and pulled her into a hug.

"I'll take care of Kyung and Kai." She cried.

"Please do." I cried.

"I'll be waiting for your return." She whined.

"I'll come back as soon as possible."

"Ms. Robinson, we need to go." Moa said sadly from behind me.

"Alright." I sniffled and pulled away.

I walked to the car she had prepared and to them before getting in.

"Be safe!" My mom yelled.

"I'll make you proud!" I yelled before entering the car.

Moa was already in and she smiled to me, "Welcome to SM Entertainment."

At that moment I felt like a new person and like I had to change how I acted in order for me to be able to do my job right. I straightened and took in a deep breath.

"Thank you." I smiled to Moa.

"You may either call me Manager or Moa, but most Koreans call their manager's 'Manager'." She told me.

"Alright," I thought on it for a moment, "But I don't want to be like other Korean's, I want to be different." I smiled to her.

She sat there wide eyed for a moment, "I'm glad I'm your manager!" She smiled and grabbed my hands.

I felt the warmth of her happiness seeping into my hands. I smiled and felt my heart lift from the pit it was sulking in. As the car moved I couldn't help but think about where this new life would lead me. Who I would meet, where I would go, what I would do, was all a mystery to me, but all I knew was that I would be fine wherever I went. We made it to the airport and went through the usual security procedures. Moa escorted me to the plane waiting area and she saw someone she knew and waved them over.

"Hello." The young man smiled to me.

"Hi." I bowed nervously.

"Rachel, this is my assistant, Suto. He will be with us all the time, please get along." She smiled and walked away, leaving the two of us alone.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." He bowed, his English on the shaky side.

"The pleasure is all mine." I bowed as well.

"Are you excited?" He asked as we watched the plane come in.

"Yes, but I'm also scared."

"Why would you be scared?"

"I don't know what's in Korea and I don't know how people will react to me." I spoke truthfully.

"Korea is a nice place, everyone is nice, which means everyone will love you." He smiled happily.

"I see." I mumbled.

"Especially the other groups you train with." He said the sentence nonchalantly.

"Other groups?" I asked.

"Yeah, once a month we try to have all the groups together and train so they can learn from one another." He smiled.

"That's cool." I smiled.

"The next meeting is in three days, that's probably why Moa wanted to bring you in so early." He gave me a peace sign.

"That's nice of her." I looked over at Moa to see her discussing something on the phone.

"She's probably talking to the director." He informed me.

"The director?" I asked.

"You won't see many of the official people of SM Entertainment, you will see the managers and the other groups." He explained.

"I see." I nodded, slowly understanding what he was saying.

"The plane for South Korea is now boarding, I repeat, the plane for South Korea is now boarding." An attendant spoke over a loud speaker.

Moa hung up her phone and headed over to us with a smile, "Ready to go?" She asked.

"Yep." I smiled and held my purse in front of my legs, swinging it around.

I felt childish, being escorted around and being helped and for the moment I welcomed the feeling, but I knew I would grow to hate it. The three of us entered the plane after handing over our tickets. We went straight to our seats and I was seated in the window seat, my favorite spot. I excitedly took a seat and opened the window screen. All I could see was the airport and other planes either coming in or slowly leaving. I sighed happily and relaxed in the extra comfy seats.

"You seem happy." Suto smiled to me.

"It's so comfy and I love looking out windows, I'm happy I got this seat." I smiled to him in a grateful way.

He yawned and rubbed his eyes. I had only just noticed the increasing dark circles under his eyes. He was exhausted.

"You should go to sleep." Moa told him as she handed each of us a bottle of water.

"Yes ma'am." He smiled weakly.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just not used to the time difference." He smiled.

"Time difference?" I asked.

"Yeah, in Seoul, South Korea, it's about 4am right now and it is 2pm here. We are 14 hours ahead of you guys." He informed me.

"Wow... You should go to sleep right away!" I said in a hurry trying to make him more comfortable.

He chuckled, "Thank you, you are very caring."

"Am I overdoing it?" I asked in a hurry, "I don't know sometimes, you know, people are telling me to stop or that I went too overboard and I don't realize it until I have already done my damage." I said quickly, "...Sorry." I mumbled and shifted so I didn't look at him.

I felt embarrassment creep up my neck and I couldn't help but feel his eyes on my back.

"You should go to sleep too." He whispered to me.

"W-Why?" I mumbled, still embarrassed.

"The plane ride is approximately 12 hours long, you might want to sleep through most of it." He patted my back, making me jump.

"He's right. Try to relax as soon as we are in the air, you will want to sleep through this trip." Moa informed me.

"Alright." I snuggled against my seat.

"We will be arriving at 4am your time and 6pm our time." She told me sternly.

"Wow..." I mumbled.

"We are now going to back out to take off." The pilot spoke over the intercom.

Everyone went silent when his voice spoke like a god over the plane. I felt the plane begin to move backwards and then forward again toward the runway. After several minutes we were racing down the runway and gradually lifting off the ground. Once we were in the air I felt my stomach flip and get uncomfortable. I pinched my arm to keep myself distracted from the pain.

"Are you alright?" Moa whispered to me.

"Hmm?" I turned to look at her.

"Your stomach in making noises and you look in pain, are you alright?" She asked with a sad look.

She noticed...

"Oh... I'm just nervous." I mumbled.

"Don't worry, no one will be mean to you." She smiled.

"I'm not worried about that, I'm worried about being somewhere I don't know." I looked down.

"We will do our best to make you feel at home." She smiled.

"Thank you Moa." I bowed slightly.

I turned back in my seat and snuggled as close as possible, trying to get comfy. As I laid there the one thing I thought about for around an hour was my cat, Kyung. He was a baby Siamese cat that had an unusual shade of green eyes. He was the size of a kitten, even though he was full grown, and he was gentle. Whenever I was in pain or feeling sad he would always come lay on my lap and my hands. If I didn't respond to him then he would stand against me and my face. I wished I could've brought him with me. I wanted to hold him against my stomach and feel his warmth. I wanted to hear his soft meow and his cute purring. I felt tears sting at my eyes as I missed him.

I didn't know when I had fallen asleep, but it was sometime in the beginning, when I woke I was fully awake and hungry. I looked over at Suto and Moa to see them awake and discussing something involving several amounts of paperwork. Moa looked up and jumped a little when she saw me looking at her.

"You scared me, are you alright?" She asked.

"I'm fine, I feel well rested."

"That's good..." She paused and looked down, as if she wanted to say more.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"I was just wondering... Did you have a nightmare?" She asked.

I thought back on my dream, it was only about Kyung, "No, why do you ask?"

"You were crying in your sleep." She looked at me sadly.

Is that even possible?

I touched the area under my eye and found it moist and dried at the same time. My throat became dry and I felt myself turn inward.

"I'm fine." I mumbled.

"What did you dream about?" Suto asked.

I stayed silent after that, not wanting to back out of our deal because of my cat.

"Moa, is there any rules about animals?" I asked.

"Animals?" She looked confused to my sudden question.

"Yes, animals. Is there any rules against them?" I asked seriously.

"No, why?" She asked skeptically.

"If I went back to Michigan at Christmas... can I bring home my cats?" I asked.

"Your cats?" She seemed interested.

"Yeah, they're like my children, their name are Kyung and Kai." I pulled a picture out of my wallet.

"They are very cute." She smiled at the picture.

"So... Is that a yes?" I asked hopefully.

"You would have to approve it with the landlord, but I think she'll be fine with it. The other groups have animals." She smiled.

"Thank you." I smiled and looked down at the picture.

"Is that why you were crying?" Suto asked as he pointed to my cat.

"Would you make fun of me if it was?" I asked shyly.

"No, I think it's good for owner and pet to have that close of a relationship." He smiled.

"Thank you." I mumbled and put my picture away.

"You woke up just in time." Moa smiled.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"We are 15 minutes away so you need to buckle up and get ready for landing." She smiled.

"Oh, alright." I hurried to buckle myself in.

Did I seriously sleep through 12 hours?

I looked out the window and saw a foreign land that resembled a more invented city then New York, but the same city structure, but this one had  mountains. The streets were busy with cars and people. The day just started to lose its light and the city was already lit with an orange and yellowish glow. Suto began pointing out buildings to me and he eventually pointed out the SM Entertainment building. It was too far to see any detail, but its blue glass was slightly visible from the cramped window.

"Be prepared to land." The pilot announced.

I felt the plane descending and my stomach flipped again. I clutched my shirt and waited a minute or two with my eyes closed. The plane landed softly and I felt all my breath release the moment I felt the earth beneath me.

"Welcome to South Korea." The pilot informed everyone.

I'm really here...