The sun had set over the bustling streets of Seoul, casting a warm orange glow over the city. Yoon-ah Kim sat in her room, staring at her phone, her mind preoccupied with the strange looks Jae-hyun had been giving her lately. She couldn't shake off the feeling that something was off between them.
As she pondered their relationship, her mother, Kim Ji-hyun, knocked on the door, her voice stern. "Yoon-ah, your grades are slipping. You need to focus on your studies."
Yoon-ah felt suffocated by her mother's expectations. "I'm trying, Mother. But I have other things on my mind."
Her mother's expression turned cold. "Other things? Like Jae-hyun? He's from a good family, but you need to prioritize your education."
Yoon-ah's father, Kim Tae-oh, walked into the room, his eyes fixed on his phone. "Ji-hyun, don't pressure her too much. She's a smart girl. She'll figure it out."
But Yoon-ah's mother wouldn't let up. "Tae-oh, you're always so lenient with her. She needs discipline."
As the argument escalated, Yoon-ah's younger brother, Kim Ha-neul, poked his head into the room. "Mom, Dad, stop fighting. It's okay, oppa will study harder."
Yoon-ah smiled weakly, feeling trapped between her family's expectations and her own desires. Little did she know, Jae-hyun's family was dealing with their own issues, ones that would soon affect their relationship in ways she never imagined.
Meanwhile, Jae-hyun was having a heated discussion with his mother, Lee Ji-won. "Jae-hyun, you need to focus on your future. Your father's business dealings are crucial to our family's reputation."
Jae-hyun felt stifled by his mother's ambitions. "Mother, I understand, but I need some space to make my own decisions."
His mother's expression turned icy. "You're not thinking about Yoon-ah, are you? She's not from the right background, Jae-hyun."
Jae-hyun's anger simmered just below the surface. "Mother, Yoon-ah is important to me. You need to understand that."
As the tension between Jae-hyun and his mother grew, Yoon-ah's phone buzzed with a message from Park Ji-hyun. "Hey, girl, what's going on? You seem distant lately."
Yoon-ah hesitated, unsure of how to respond. She didn't want to burden her best friend with her problems, but she needed someone to talk to.