Kim Jieun

## Personality

When hard at work, Ji-Eun comes off as cold and strict. She is in charge of a lot and doesn’t like to engage in personal affairs when there is work to be attended to. As for friendships, she’s not very good at them. She’s 'always working and rarely has time for friends or relationships.' ..Or at least that’s what she tells others when they ask. To be honest, she’s always been a loner. She has an odd sense of humor and was always more intelligent than her peers, creating a constant state of isolation.

However, if and when she lets people in, she can be one of the most caring people you’ll ever meet. While Ji-Eun says she doesn’t have interests in relationships or marriage, she secretly wishes that someone could take care of her for a change. She's lived her life always moving forward and rarely taking breaks so she often dreams of a partner who can remind her to slow down and enjoy life.

## Biography

From a young age, Ji-Eun had it in her head that she would be a doctor when she grew up. Her father was a lead surgeon at one of the biggest hospitals in Seoul and her mother was skilled pharmacist. Ever since she was a child, she dreamed of helping people. Both her parents did it so there was no reason why she couldn’t, or shouldn’t, follow in their footsteps.

She was a smart, witty child and this attitude stayed with her all her life. While in primary school, unique personalities were overlooked by peers and everyone got along so well. A middle school approaches, kids start to learn what’s ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ based off of societal views. Females in this age range especially are infamous for being judgmental. A young woman’s self esteem and outlook on life can be permanently changed during her pre-teenage years. Hailing from a wealthy family only ostracized Ji-Eun more at her all girls’ private school. It was in these years of her life that the young girl realized how different she really was from her classmates.

Her peers were playful and bubbly. They went shopping and hung out after school together. They told stories and passed notes in class, gossiping about the latest drama on TV. But when it came to interacting with Ji-Eun, the other girls her age treated her like a ghost. She ate alone at lunch and walked home by herself after school. Rumors often spread around school that she hated people and that she was just a spoiled rich kid. Unfortunately, as she grew up and made her way through high school, these hard times only continued.

Always top of her class and ahead of the game, Ji-Eun trudged through her studies like it was all that mattered in life because, truly, it was. When she was younger, being a doctor was a dream, but now it felt more like a necessity. Her parents were in the medical field and she always spoke about how she would be too. It was who she was. Kim Ji-Eun wasn’t a social butterfly, nor did she have connections other than in medicine. The path she spoke about as a child was the only one she had now.

After long years of torment and loneliness in high school, Ji-Eun graduated with top ranking grades in Korea and had no problems getting accepted to medical school. The next years of her life went by relatively easily. She still experienced the loneliness of her younger days, but found it much easier to speak to others and find companionship if needed. Each time she made a friend, however, her parents reminded her of her goal. Friends would only slow her down. She couldn’t forget that being a professional in the medical world was always a competition.

Life went on like this for years and the busy life of a surgeon in Seoul was wearing her thin. Her father spoke of a smaller Wellness Clinic that was looking for a director in Busan. He mentioned that it was relatively new and perhaps working there for a while would ease her soul. Ji-Eun had no objections. Within a month of hearing the suggestion, Kim Ji-Eun had found a room for rent and was on her way to Busan.

While the new setting was not rural, it was definitely a welcoming downgrade to Seoul. She remained in a city, but Busan also had the charm of small town life. It felt like the city was made for her. Walls that she didn’t know she had were broken and slowly but surely the girl was becoming her own person. But only after a year in the city, Jieun decided to make another move to Jeju Island, where her highly-regarded grandfather lived and worked in the medical field. Although she’s a young woman now and capable of taking care of herself, he took her in with open arms and still expects great things from his granddaughter. However, the things her family wants for her isn’t necessarily what she wants for her life. But what they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?