WHO ARE YOU?

“Who am I? The coldest bad bitch you’ll ever meet” he laughs at his own joke with glee, “But seriously I’m just a normal guy who maybe grew up with 5 silver spoons in his mouth or maybe that’s all a lie.” He pauses for a moment, “Some people might remember me from online but that’s all i’ll say about that. Right now I work as a barista and before you ask, yes I do want to run my own cafe.”

HOW DID YOU GET HERE?

TW INJURIES, BLOOD

《 WHO ARE YOU? 》

“Hey, hey, stop struggling,” Hyunwoo yelled as he scrambled towards the prone cyclist, pushing past the gaggle of onlookers with their phones set to record and dropping to his knees next to the injured man.

“I said stop fucking struggling!,” he snapped, finally catching the man’s attention as Hyunwoo placed his hand on the cyclist’s chest and forced him to look at him and not his bloodied tibia exposed for the world to see.

Who are you?

“I’m a doctor, okay? A doctor,” he repeated, searching the man’s panicked gaze for some measure of understanding as he clasped his outstretched hand and gave it a squeeze - noting with some measure of relief that the cyclist could still wiggle his fingers.

“I’m gonna look after you but I need you to breathe for me, okay?,” he urged, giving the man’s hand another squeeze as he took a deep breath himself, encouraging the other to follow suit.

“Deep breaths… that’s it… nice and slow,” he murmured in encouragement, frowning slightly to himself as the younger man winced with each breath - adding a possible fractured rib to the cyclist’s growing list of injuries.

《 HOW DID YOU GET HERE? 》

How did you get here?

“The ambulance is already on it’s way,” he reassured the other, eyes sweeping the length of the cyclist’s body for any more discernible injuries; already far too aware of the cyclist’s cold, clammy hand and his bloodless lips - the shock already settling in.

“But you’re in luck,” he informed him, forcing the man to stay awake as the blare of the sirens grew louder and louder all around them.

“I just recently reopened my clinic and it’s not too far from here,” he continued even as he waved down the paramedics with his free hand, quickly updating the two EMT’s on the man’s status as they lifted him off the ground and onto the ambulance.

《 WHO ARE YOU? 》

there’s a prolonged pause, fingers intertwining and falling across his lap. “ i am professional. trained, calculated. everything i’ve done and will do is because I worked hard for it, not because it was handed to me, despite what some people think. my image is everything, without it, what am i ? boring, insignificant. i refuse to be shuffled to the side or stand in anyone’s shadow. including my father. he may have started this legacy, but i will be sure to finish it, and NOTHING is going to get in my way or tarnish that future. nothing. ” a tight lipped smile. “ that’s all. ”

《 HOW DID YOU GET HERE? 》

《 WHO ARE YOU? 》

         simple. direct. basic. that’s how the question feels and it’s how she views it each time she’s shuffled into one office after the other, whether it’s the dean’s office, a psychiatrist’s office, or anyone else’s her father sends her to. she goes where needed, where asked, and she becomes whoever she needs to be. a name is nothing, it’s how she guides the moment that matters and it ends all the same in most cases. a new secret, a fake diagnosis, or an ally she cares nothing for.

         her life is a series of pleasantries transformed into weapons, connections that provide everything she could ever ask for, but none of it is actually her. the question is not only basic but it’s pointless. shim eunmi is essentially a social construct, perfectly manipulated by her father to the point that she manipulates everyone else. she is also a weapon, a tool her father utilizes when he sees fit, and she treats herself as so just the same. the most expensive clothes, lavish jewels, a need for perfection to avoid rejection because all she’s known is to seek acceptance. so the answer is never quite the same, a practiced skill to suit whoever she faces, a calculated move on the board until she can say check mate but for now   —   “ eunmi. what do you think? is it as pretty as me? ”

《 HOW DID YOU GET HERE? 》

         to say by car is too obvious, too par for the course, but so is the question and she could sigh if she thought it anything other than foolish. a shim doesn’t show emotion so recklessly, not any emotion that could be mistaken for disrespectful or a lack of interest anyway   —   or any emotion that could place her at an disadvantage. hold your head high, eunmi, some of the only direct advice she’d received from her father that served her only. but she knew better. the greatest disadvantage would be to believe her father sees her as more than anything but a means to an end. if only it would end.

WHO ARE YOU?

there’s a pause as she stares at the interviewers — the question has long since gone unanswered. even now, she wasn’t sure who she was or who she wanted to be. there were so many things that filtered through her mind, but none seemed appropriate. perhaps someone who helped others in times of need. maybe someone that others could find dependable. but those things were questionable. there’s a handful of people who would find her capable while several more would consider her a handicap. the clock continues to tick before she finds herself smiling a little sheepishly, neatly scribbling her response on a piece of torn paper — sun daqiao.  

HOW DID YOU GET HERE?

WHO ARE YOU?

“well now, that all depends on who is asking and who is answering.” her smile is cat like, and she flicks her hair behind her ear. her outfit is expensive, but then so is everything she owns. “see if you ask my friends, they’d say i’m a spoiled, rich, alpha bitch. but then if you ask my followers, they’d say i’m an it girl. if you ask my dad, he wouldn’t have any idea. you wanna know what I think?” she sits up straighter, shrugging one shoulder lazily. “i think i’m just a girl whose out here for a good time.

HOW DID YOU GET HERE?

WHO ARE YOU?

“i am han byeol, darling of chaos and mistress of trouble, the very princess of this place,” she points out proudly, keeping a cheeky grin upon her lips. “i’m almost disappointed you don’t know who i am. to be frank, this feels close to an actual insult, so then tell me, what have i done to earn such cruelness? i’m everyone’s favorite girl, i’m certain that there isn’t a soul out here that hasn’t heard about me. i am, to put it simply, beloved and given everything that i want.” but that’s a lie, she knows it, she’s become painfully aware of her own foolishness. she’s given so much, but it’s all to keep her on a pretty leash, enough to make her believe that she isn’t just a silly pawn in her father’s grand scheme. “so next time, make sure to remember my name. trust me, it’s important.”  

HOW DID YOU GET HERE?

WHO ARE YOU?

Just the question is enough to cause hyunmi to stutter. She never really liked interviews like this, they were never wrecking and even worse when they were one on one like this one. Yet, she takes a deep breath and smiles ever so slightly “park hyunmi, twenty years old.” and she never wants to speak again, but she knows she can’t get out of this that easily. Her fingers twist in the sleeves of her shirt as she continues “I sing for a living,” she laugh because its stupid. She’s no idol material, she just goes to piano bars or restaurants that want someone to play the piano or sign, she’s no artist “and I play the piano on occasions. Just you know, regular freelance job.”

HOW DID YOU GET HERE?