Keys to Happiness

2. Key

2006

It was early morning when I felt the first stirrings of life in our tiny apartment, the soft grunts of my grandmother's cursing bringing me into wakefulness like it had always done since I'd been old enough to remember. Her moans about the weather becoming colder were all too familiar and I felt at peace as I lay in my bed, content to just listen to her rant.

Life in Suseong, South Korea was unremarkable at best and mostly dead boring, not at all like it was in Seoul.
I had always dreamed about going to the big city and pursuing my dreams. One day I would be a word-wide K-pop star or a fashion designer, whichever one I could make happen first. And today was the first day of the rest of my life. SM Entertainment was holding their annual auditions in our small town and I was determined to be there. Although my singing voice wasn't as great as I wanted it to be, my rapping skills and dance moves were sure to set me apart from the rest.

I had practiced for months, perfecting my routine to different types of music so that I would be prepared for anything they would play. I'd also been studying different styles of rap, in case they tried to have me do that as part of the audition as well. More than anything, I believed that today would be the start to my future.

Lured in by the smell of frying fish and cooking rice, I made my way into the kitchen and kissed my grandmother good morning, the slight wrinkling of her eyes as she smiled at me a welcome sight.

"Halmoni, Annyeong! What are you doing?" I asked curiously as she stirred a pot of kimchi chiggae, the stew looking delicious as it bubbled gently.

"KiBum-ah, come help me take out the rice. Set the table for me please?"

"Ne. But Halmoni, you do remember that the auditions are today right?" I asked her eagerly, hoping she hadn't forgotten. She was my ride after all.

"Of course! How could I forget when you've been reminding me every day for the past two months?," Halmoni exclaimed bad temperedly. I only laughed at her sour expression, feeling too blissful to take her words to heart.

"Ah, mianhe, Halmoni. I'm just so excited!" I bustled around behind her as she continued to cook, setting out two plates and bowls for the both of us. Even though our cupboards held sets of four for everything, my parents were hardly ever here to use the remaining dishes and I fell silent at the thought that they would miss my big day.

"Well, eat first and then get ready. We don't want to be too late and then have to wait hours for our place in line." My halmoni ruffled my hair as we sat down to eat and I felt myself perk up again at her loving touch.

"Arrasseo, I'll hurry! Ah, what should I wear!?" I moaned as I began to agonize over the auditions yet again.

I had definitely become more interested in fashion since I'd spent some time studying abroad, but now my skills would be put to the test. Not only was I hoping my talents would set me apart, I wanted to be sure that my fashion would as well. And with my grandma by my side, I had more confidence than ever. She was my good luck charm and I knew that as long as I had her I could make it. Today I was Kim Kibum. I hoped one day to be called a star!

2015

I let out a pent-up sigh as I finally finished my last schedule of the day and realized that I still had a lot of work left to do once I got home. It had been a moderately stressful day since I was finishing up filing for Key's Knowhow mini-series. I had been so happy when they'd chosen me out of all the members to have my own separate schedule and TV time and I could only attribute my small success to my current work. I felt that I was finally beginning to make a name for myself apart from the group. Along with the musicals Catch Me If You Can, The Three Musketeers and Bonnie and Clyde, I was hoping to become a household name in stage dramas.