Ji-yeon craned her neck up at the towering mass of windows. Her parents lived there? This was as absurd as it got. Her head pulsed with faint throbs after landing in Incheon Airport, and it scared her how she had to take the same flight back as they rendezvous somewhere in Mongolia. She couldn't handle the shaking vessel even though she was used to wind blasting through her eardrums at higher altitudes.

She should have knocked Markel flat on his face when he decided to send them on this deathly cruise to find their families. It might be his current fixation, and she would rather stay in New York rather than kill herself trying to find strangers in high-rises. But she came all the way here, and Jaq's gift was way too generous for her to refuse. And...well, the money was attractive.

So, Ji-yeon resolved to pop in there as quickly as she could. Just to get it over with.

That was what brought her to this corner of Seoul, looking up at the complex the map in her phone pointed her to. She looked up the mess of numbers and letters into the address line, but it didn't show her anything more. Whatever this code was, she has to figure it out.

She sauntered to the single booth surrounded by glass and yellow stickers. A guardhouse, from the looks of it. "Excuse me," she said, showing her phone to a uniformed man sitting inside with his feet propped on the table. "Do you know how to read this code?"

"Mwo? That's no code, miss," the man said after peeling off his office chair and peeking down on what she showed him. "It's a unit number. Are you a guest?"

Ji-yeon bobbed her head. She was technically one, right? Technically. "I just came to check on my parents," she said. "My sister called me to say they're feeling lonely."

"Aigoo, what a diligent young lady." The man waved a hand in front of her face, a touched smile on his face. Then, he made a series of gestures with his hand, ducking his head out of the booth's walls. "Head on that stairs where you'll find the elevator. Go to the ninth floor. You can find the unit number from there. There will be plaques."

"Kamsahamnida, ahjussi," Ji-yeon said, giving him a quick bow. "I'll head on up."

She followed his instructions and came up to the elevator. Her finger dug into the button with a symbol resembling the one in her phone. It lit up red. Must be the ninth floor. When the elevator doors parted with a ding, she stepped out into a dimly lit corridor resembling a hospital more than a condominium. Was she in the right place?

Her steps echoed in the hollow hallway as she continued on, her head tilted up at the metal plates nailed on the doors. She reached the one with the same symbols as the address in her phone. This must be it.

She rapped her knuckles against the wooden surface. Something shuffled inside, followed by the sounds of slippers scratching. The door swung inward, and a small head poked through. A mop of graying hair was the first thing Ji-yeon noticed. Did they have her when they were old? No judgment, though.

"Who is it?" the woman by the door asked.

"My name is Ji-yeon, and I have a few questions about my parents," she said. "Is this the home of Mun Seo-ga and Jang Na-eun?"

A flicker of surprise passed across the older woman's face. Then, it morphed into sadness. The door swung fuller inwards. "Come in," the woman said, stepping to the side to give Ji-yeon enough leeway. She removed her boots and padded further the foyer in her socks. "Have a seat."

Ji-yeon sank into a modestly cushioned chair on the mini-dining table slotted inside a compact kitchen. The whole room couldn't be bigger than her room in the grounds, but for some reason, everything just fit. A plate of steaming buns settled in front of her.

"I just heated this for a snack. You've come at the right time," the woman said, taking the chair opposite Ji-yeon's. Was this woman alone in her house?

The question must be written in her face because the older woman hummed. "Ri-yeon won't be back until late this evening," she said. "It's just the two of us here."

Ji-yeon frowned. " 'Ri-yeon'?" she said. "You re-married?"

The woman's eyes widened. "Oh. That wasn't the case. Um...how to go about this." She tapped her chin and stared down at the table. When she found her answer—perhaps on the tablecloth or the pile of fruits at the end of the table—she faced Ji-yeon again. "I'm your paternal aunt. Ri-yeon's my husband who is Seo-ga's brother. He's your uncle. How did you find our address?"

"I searched for it," Ji-yeon said, avoiding a shrug to further sell the story. "I had to find out what happened to my family after all these years."

The woman folded her hands on the table and pursed her lips. "Looking back, we should have done all we can to raise you here," she said. "But unnie's parents didn't want us to. They refused to take you into their custody either, fleeing to Jeju instead. Ri-yeon's parents didn't want to shoulder the responsibility borne from a marriage they didn't approve of, so we stepped in for a bit. And then..."

"Something happened?" Ji-yeon supplied. It was a tale as old as time. Shaw got a hold of the future test subjects this way. He'd find the most desperate family and force them to give up said children with the family's consent. It was underhanded and pathetic, but whatever kept the Primeva boat afloat.

"Ri-yeon lost his job, and I had a miscarriage," the woman replied. "Prices were skyrocketing, and we didn't have enough savings. So, when opportunity arose..."

"You gave me up," Ji-yeon finished the uncomfortable truth nobody in their right minds would dare say aloud. "And now, I'm here."

The woman met her eyes. "You're not angry?"

Ji-yeon shrugged for real. "It's in the past," she said. "I'd prefer to keep moving and not dwell on things I can't change. Isn't that how you're supposed to live life?"

The woman chuckled. "You've grown into a wise lady," she said. "Do you still want to live with us? We can make room for you in the apartment..."

"No need to uproot your lives for me." Ji-yeon slipped off her chair and trotted to the door. "I just came for some answers, and now, I have them."

The woman stalked towards the door with her. "What are you doing with your life now?"

Ji-yeon gave her aunt a small smile before yanking the door open and stepping out. "I'm living it," she said before letting it close on both of them.