FIVE YEARS AGO---

Ahn Jin-yi was mesmerized by the constant motion of the wipers going swish, swish, swish, as she peered through the rain washed windshield at the seemingly endless stretch of highway in front of the small rental car. The dark gloomy sky overhead echoed her mood.

She absently ran her hands over the soft, silky fur of her cat, Vincent, who had settled in her lap. This was his first long car ride, and so far he was handling it well. She winced as she wondered how he would be after the long plane ride.

Jin-yi sighed heavily as she contemplated the journey ahead.

“Are you all right?” Jin-yi’s samchon, Joo Jin-mo, looked away from the road for a split second to study her face.

She bit her bottom lip and glanced over at him. “No, but life goes on.”

He reached over and patted her hand reassuringly.

Jin-yi smiled weakly. “Jin-mo samchon , thank you for flying over from South Korea to help me move.”

“You don’t have to thank me. I wanted to come.”

“Well, I still want you to know how much I appreciate it.”

“Your Appa was a great Hyung to me, and you have no family left here in the United States, so it’s the least I could do. I must say that I’m glad you decided to move over to be closer to the family, Jin-yi.”

An involuntary chuckle escaped her at Jin-mo’s pronunciation of her proper Korean name. “I'm so used to being called Jenny now,” she said. “Appa was the only one that ever called me by my Korean name.” She could not help the tears that started to flow again.

“Oh, Jin-yi, I’m sorry. I didn’t think,” Jin-mo’s face was a mask of pain and regret.

Jin-yi shook her head and wiped the tears with the back of her hand. “Don’t be sorry. I loved Appa very much, and I will always cherish the memory of him. But now he’s gone and we have to endure it as best as we can.”

“You are a brave girl, Jin-yi, I’m sure your Appa would be very proud of you,” Jin-mo said softly. “I think you’ll find it much easier once you’re surrounded by friends and family.”

“I don’t know, but I did promise I would give it a go,” Jin-yi frowned thoughtfully.

“Just remember, I brought my laptop to keep up with my work, so I can stay with you as long as you need,” he reminded her.

“Thank you again, Jin-mo samchon.”

“Not a problem,” he said. “Now, why don’t you have a kip? The airport is still an hour away.”

Jin-yi nodded and smiled at him. “I’ll try.”

She leaned her head against the seat and the sleeping cat in her lap, taking a measure of comfort from his soft purr.

It had only been a month since her father had passed away, so most everything in her life still seemed harsh and unforgiving. She had graduated from high school only six months ago, and had been working as a waitress in a local coffee house until her father got sick.

Her mother had passed away two years ago, and since then her father had often talked of moving back to South Korea to be near his family, but had promised Jin-yi he would wait until after she graduated.

And now her father was gone, and she was moving to South Korea alone.

Jin-yi had visited her father's family in South Korea a number of times in the course of her life, but actually living there would be a strange experience, something completely new to her. Part of her was terrified out of her wits. But to her surprise, she found that another part of her was actually excited about the change of culture.

Jin-mo had already set up an apartment for her in South Korea with her inheritance money. Her father had put complete faith in Jin-mo, his younger brother, by making him the executor of his estate. Her father had really seen to it that she would be well taken care of after his death, both mentally and financially.

Jin-mo’s presence here was one of the few things comforting and familiar to her.

Jin-yi sighed again and returned her gaze to the horizon.