"oppa, I was just over for Christmas. I am busy right now," I said with a pouting voice.My brother called me over skype to  convince me to come home again.

"Hye Yeon- ah, please. It's dad's 60th birthday. Can you sacrifice a 2 days of your work?" my brother begged.

"I'll think about it," I sighed. "I have to go oppa,"

"take care of yourself and eat properly," he said and turned off the connection.

I was caught up with the project I am handling that I forgot about my father's upcoming birthday.

"damn!" I swore. It's sunday and it's my only day off. Whoever is in the door better have an acceptable reason to be ringing this early. I opened the door and was greeted by my smiling brother. "Oppa, what are you...Come in" I invited him in. "I just got up. Can I have your famous pancakes?"

"young lady," he glared at me. Gone were the smile.

Oh my! My brother use that word if he meant what he wants to say. It suddenly scared me.

"Kim Hye Yeon, you never called back," he walked towards the kitchen and started opening my pantry. That's my brother. He can't take me getting hungry.

"I got caught up with work. I haven't had off last week and I have to finish something this week. Oppa, I can't come to dad's..." he was glaring at me like he's going to kill me. 'Darn!' I cursed in my head. My brother  dotes on me but things like this, like showing up in my doorstep unannounced is something I can't ignore.

My name is Kim Hye Yeon. The reason I left home was because I can't stand the attention I am getting from people and media. I don't have a life. It's suffocating.

My father is a veteran actor. He's still active on dramas and movies at his age. I heard from my brother that he produces dramas or shows now a days. Yeah, I never followed my dad's life nor my brother's  or anything about  entertainment in Korea.

The day I started school, I never had a peaceful day. Media here and there.  I got tired. That's why when I finished middle school, I begged my parents to send me overseas to study in a university. My parents chose Canada.  I live like ordinary international student. I met korean students too but they never had an idea who am I.

Without anything in mind I enrolled Environmental sciences. I like outdoors. It was exciting. I had the chance to explore other countries. Travelling to a lot of places to conduct researches, I gained interest in photography. I enrolled to some subject in photography.  Environmental research and photography is a perfect combination. Canada alone is an interesting subject for photography. From the peaceful spring to the rigid winter storm. I then moved to England. Why England? Because I was fascinated by the old English ways. And that's where I am based at the moment. Oh, I kinda ditched my Environmetal science degree.

I am a freelance photographer. My first pay for my photo is $2.5. I was so excited. Then the same bidder started buying my photographs. This encouraged me more to keep pursuing photography. I tell you, a photography degree is not some glorified camera club, you have to learn to compete. I do mine as a hobby.

When a position opened up in a research department in England, I applied and was lucky to be a part of the team. yeah, call it lucky. A korean in an english country? who are you kidding? But seriously my academic grades and recommendations from my professor helped a lot. The research was in Galapagos. It was an unforgettable experience. There,I honed my photography skills during my 4 month stay in. I finished my contract and went back to freelancing.

Adventurous as I am, I did something I would never ever do again. I flew to Syria when the war broke. I don't know what I was thinking back then. But that trip earned me a medal and I was proud of it.

My camera was slung on my neck as I crept into the border. I saw a kid running for his life. Thanks to burst mode. I was able to make a good shot of the kid running with fear on his face. But my being human came first and I ran to scoop the little boy and landed to a safer place. I was shaking very hard. I took the kid in the camp and he reunited with his family. I left the country with a vow that I'll never ever do war photography again. I posted my photo online and few weeks later I was called to discuss my photograph. I was asked to submit my photograph for the Sony world Photography awards. I haven't thought about those. I was just happy and contented selling my photos with minimal prices.

To my surprise it won the first prize. The world photography organization submitted my works in behalf of me for the Pulitzer award. Damn! How lucky could be an amateur photographer be. I won the Pulitzer award for Photography. I was the youngest who won the prestigious award in years.

And that's how I stepped back to limelight. Being the youngest Korean who received such award, I get a lot of interview request from my home country. I even got a request to speak at the Seoul University.

I kept going back and forth to Korea that I got tired of it. At some point I want to regret it. It's too much fuss. I ran away from my country because I hate the media attention but here I am, in the limelight. I guess I can't ran away from it. I guess it's in my blood and my destiny to be part of the limelight.

The ministry of tourism suggested I should set up an exhibit of my work. I thought about that and my close friend in  Canada persuaded me to publish a photobook to go with the exhibit. We worked on it and published it in Korea. My  friend became my PR as we promote my book. My brother was a big help. He suggested he will appear on my opening day of the exhibit. My dad spread it to his friends. There it goes, celebrity helped. I was thankful but I kinda didn't like how my family used their connections.

Boy!  I didn't know my brother was that popular. We got fangirls all over. And we sold thousand of books that day which wasn't bad for a young photographer and a neophyte PR person. Gigi and I crashed to my brother's apartment. He let us use the extra room in it. We squealed like  fangirls on the success of the first day. I brought Gigi to meet my parents. She was struck-shocked when she found out about my family. After the exhibit, I went back to England and Gigi to Canada where she works as an assistant to her father's business. Back to our quiet life.

And it wasn't even a month that I was back in England from my Christmas vacation when my brother popped into my apartment.

A month after my brother showed up in my apartment,  I was on my way back home. I guess I can't tolerate it when it comes to my family.

It's been a while since I started living in Korea, and I meant living alone. I can't live with my parents and my brother has his own apartment.  I have my own studio at my house. I chose to live at the old family house. My mom maintained it even though my brother bought them a new house. She said it held a lot of memories. I turned the basement as my studio. I filled the house with my photographs.

 Everything were running ok. I am getting a lot of project.  But I can't do fashion. No way I can do photography related to entertainment especially fashion. Ask me why? It's only for the rich people. Their branded clothes, accessories and everything. They are full bunch of hypocrites. How can people flaunt a shirt that cost a thousand when the reality in the world is screaming at their face. Wars. Poverty. assassination. natural disaster. Damn, being in many places really changes your principle and I can attest to that.

A famous clothesline  offered me to do a summer photoshoot with one of Korea's top idol but I decline. Even when Vogue Korea, asked me to do Gdragon's photoshoot, I flatly rejected it. They probably thought I became arrogant, conceited, egocentric since I received the award but no, I can't do it. I just can't.

I do freelance for now. I really don't have to work. Few schools had contacted me to do seminars and lectures on photography. Others I accepted. Others I declined. Somehow I wanted to practice the degree I finished. Just when I decided to accept a position when my dad called me.

"what? Dad! I can't" I protested. My father just dropped a bomb.  Guess what? He wants me to go to Brazil with my brother. "He's too old to need a sitter," I slu