Name: Min-ah Choi
Age: 18
Species: Initia
Elements: Earth
Family: N/A
Faceclaim: Jung Yerin

The story of Min-ah begins in the same place as everyone, her birth. She was born into the Joo family at 12:01 PM on August 19, 1998. Her mother, Hye-mi Joo, was a well-known businesswoman in Korea; while her father, Su-Cheol Joo, was a highly respected teacher in the Incheon National University. When she was born, her father quit his job at the university so that he could take care of her while she was growing up, and her mother continued her career so that she could provide for her family. Growing up in the care of her father was fun, and he was very gentle with everything he done as if the slightest thing could break the young Min-ah. When she was 7 months old, her father let his teacher side take over and began early childhood learning. Although she wasn’t talking at that point, he was patient with her and took things slow. In 3 months, her father had taught her the entire alphabet and began teaching her simple words. Her first word was spoken when she was ten and a half months old, and that word was papa. Her father was very happy when she said her first word. He continued to teach the young Min-ah as she grew, increasing the difficulty of what he taught her slowly so that it would be easier for her to handle. By the time she reached the age of 5, she was reading and writing at a third grade level.

When she reached the age of 5, her father told her that it was time for her to start school. She didn’t like the thought of someone else teaching her, so she asked her father if he would homeschool her. However he declined saying that there was more to school than just learning things. On her first day of school, her intelligence was noticed by her teachers as well as the other students. Some of the students didn’t like that she was ‘too smart’ and they began to bully her. When she got home, she told her father that she didn’t want to go to school anymore because the other kids were mean, and made fun of her intelligence. Her father told her that they were being bullies because they were jealous, and that if she stopped going to school, then the bullies would win. They talked for a while about the bullies and she agreed to go back to school and try to make it through. The next day she made her first friend. When the bullies were picking on her, a boy from her class stepped in and told them all to leave Min-ah alone. The bullies told the boy to go away, but instead of leaving the boy hit them. Min-ah wanted to thank him for helping her, but the teacher came and took the boy to the principal’s office. At the end of the day, I thanked the boy for his help and asked him what his name was. The boy told her that his name was Seung-Jun, and he was glad he could help.

Seung-Jun and Min-ah grew closer and closer as friends with each year that passed. When one of them were feeling down, the other was always there to help pick them up. Min-ah helped him with his homework when he asked for it, and he helped her learn how to defend herself against bullies. The more time she spent with Seung-Jun, the more she got into trouble and her father was beginning to worry about her. He told her that Seung-Jun was a bad influence on her and that she should stop spending so much time with him. Min-ah told her father that Seung-Jun was her best friend and that she couldn’t just stop spending time with him. He didn’t like her response of course, so he grounded her for a week, but that wasn’t going to stop her from spending time with Seung-Jun.

When she was 10 years old, Seung-Jun showed up outside her house while she was grounded and threw little pebbles at her window to catch her attention. He told me to sneak out of the house cause he had something to show her. After making sure that her father never heard Seung-Jun’s less than subtle approach, she climbed out of the window and left the house to be with her best friend. They ran through the streets of Incheon happily until they reached a house that was recently marked for demolition. Seung-Jun told her that they were making a mall or something there in place of the building, and took her to the back of the building where he busted the lock to the door. Min-ah told Seung-Jun that she didn’t think they should be doing this, but he took her by the hand and led her inside. He told her that everything was going to be okay and that they wouldn’t be there long; he just wanted to see if there was anything of value in the building. After rummaging through the various things in the house, Seung-Jun heard somebody coming and pulled Min-ah by the hand into a nearby closet and clamped his hand over her mouth telling her to stay quiet. Ten minutes later the person left and it was safe to leave. She then told Seung-Jun that they should get out of there and he agreed.

When she got home, Min-ah found her father waiting for her in her bedroom. He wasn’t too happy that she had left the house while she was grounded and told her that she was grounded for an extra three weeks and that she was forbidden to see Seung-Jun after school anymore. She told him that wasn’t fair, but he wasn’t going to budge on that rule. When she went to school the next day, Min-ah told her friend about what her father had said, and he looked at her with a smile. Seung-Jun told her that it was probably for the best because his parents told him that they were moving away in a week. Min-ah told him that they should spend as much time together as they could before he left and that she’d talk to her father about it. She also told him that she expected him to stay in contact with her when he got wherever he was going. When she got home from school that day, Min-ah told her father about Seung-Jun and how he was leaving Incheon in a week. She begged him to lift his rule about not seeing him outside of school, and since he was leaving in a week, her father lifted his rule so that she could spend time with him before he left. The day that Seung-Jun was leaving, he waited for his parents to go inside the house for more boxes and he told her he had something special for her before leaving. With that he leaned forward and kissed her lips. Min-ah was shocked by his present and he told me to never forget him.

From that day forward, school wasn’t the same. Min-ah continued to get straight A’s through the years, but everything else was boring. With all the trouble her friend caused in school, the days used to be filled with excitement, but now everything was quiet. So she decided to change that by causing some trouble of her own. She began kissing the cheeks of other girls and guys in her school, and she often pinched the bums of everyone she passed in the hallways. It wasn’t as much as what her friend had caused, but it was enough to cause a commotion in the school. Min-ah was called into the principal’s office multiple times in a week and sometimes multiple times in a day. Whenever someone told the teacher that she touched their bums, she would always decline it. Sometimes she got away with it, and other times she ended up getting detention. Everyone in the school began calling her ‘Bad Hands’ because of her actions, but she didn’t care because the days were filled with excitement once again. Her father didn’t like the impact that her best friend had left on her, and he told Min-ah that if she didn’t change, then they would be moving to a place where those kind of actions would get her into the kind of trouble that she didn’t want. Min-ah wasn’t exactly worried, but she was curious as to what he meant. The only thing she truly worried about, was that Seung-Jun wouldn’t know where she was anymore if he ever returned home for a visit. With that worry in her head, she decided to change her attitude in school, even if it meant that everything would become boring.

Thanks to her father’s teachings, Min-ah got pushed ahead a grade in school and she ended up graduating early. She graduated in the year 2015 when she was 16 years old turning 17. Her father was very happy with her for graduating early, and her mother, who she barely saw since she was born, bought her a car as a graduation present. She also apologized for not being a bigger part of her life. Of course she accepted her apology and told her that it was fine, Min-ah understood that her work was important and that she provided for her even if she wasn’t there. On her 17th birthday, she got the greatest present of all. Her best friend Seung-Jun had come back home, and he also told Min-ah that he had something to tell her. After her birthday celebrations were over, she met up with Seung-Jun and he told her that he was actually older than her. He had been kept back two years in school until he met her, and that it was thanks to her that he was able to advance and graduate as well. They were both graduates now, but Seung-Jun had a plan to travel the world, and he wanted me to go with him.

Min-ah was more than happy to travel the world with her friend, but the only issue was that she didn’t know any language other than Korean. She told him that she tried to learn English, but she found it too difficult to learn. Seung-Jun smiled and told her that it was fine. After he had left, he had learned multiple languages, and he said that he would be her personal interpreter. With him as her interpreter, Min-ah was more than happy to visit the world with him. She also wanted to visit the world, but due to her only being able to speak Korean, that hope was quickly fleeting. She returned home to pack up her things and also tell her parents that she would be travelling the world. Her father immediately told her that it wasn’t a good idea since she didn’t know any other language, and that was when she told him about Seung-Jun. Her father feared the day when he would return, but he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to stop her from doing this. He told her that if she was going, she was to call home each day to let them know how she was doing. Since this was the only exception he had for her to travel with Seung-Jun, she immediately agreed and said her goodbyes to both of her parents.

Her mother gave her a bank card that she had been putting money into since Min-ah was born. She was saving it until her 18th birthday, but since she was leaving to travel the world, her mother decided to give it to her early. After saying her goodbyes, Seung-Jun and Min-ah climbed into her car and they drove away with her parents in the doorway watching. When they were out of sight, her mother remembered something important she was supposed to talk with Min-ah about before she left. She told my father that she forgot to tell her that she wasn’t a normal human being. Min-ah was part of a supernatural species known as the Initia, who were elementalists. Her father assured her that it would be fine and that he told her to call every day so she could tell her over the phone. However, with Seung-Jun back in my life, she disobeyed her father’s wishes and she didn’t call home at all. Days and weeks went by and her parents were getting worried, they hadn’t received a call from her and her mother knew it was only a matter of time before she got tapped by her element.

Seung-Jun and Min-ah travelled to many places around the world. They visited other Korean cities, travelled to China, Europe, and Russia, and they even went to France. France was particularly special though. It was in Paris, France that Seung-Jun told her that he loved her and wanted to become her boyfriend. Min-ah told him that she had dreamt about him ever since that kiss and she wanted to be with him as well. They spent a few weeks in Paris and then decided to continue their travels. They visited Africa, and Japan, and they even went to America. While in America, Seung-Jun asked her if she wanted to live in America and not return to Korea. Min-ah did miss her parents, but at that moment she just wanted to be with Seung-Jun forever and she told him that she wanted to be wherever he was. They went to the American embassy and asked them about the process that they had to go through to become permanent residents of the United States of America. After filling out all the required paperwork, all they could do now was wait for everything to be processed. They asked them if it was okay for them to continue their travels and check back at a later date, and they told them that they would call when they got a response.

Seung-Jun and Min-ah continued their travels to see the world. They moved from place to place, checking out the major sights before moving onto the next place. On August 19, 2016 during Min-ah’s 18th birthday celebration; they received a phone call from the American Embassy stating that they have been approved for residency in the United States, and that they had to go there to pick up their papers and everything they needed. They were overjoyed by this news and packed everything up to begin their journey back to the U.S. Embassy to get everything that will let them live in America. It took them three weeks to get back to the Embassy by car, but when they arrived, they got everything they needed and signed a few more papers; after that they exited the embassy. Now that they were permanent residents of the United States, they began travelling around the different cities within the United States to find where they wanted to live.

The date was now March 5th, 2017 and they were still sleeping in hotels as they continued to search for a place to live. Thanks to the help of Seung-Jun, Min-ah had managed to learn a little English, and she knew that with time, she could learn the English language with Seung-Jun’s help. Looking at the map they had of the places they’ve already visited, they decided that in the morning they would go through Colorado and California to look for the perfect place to live. What they didn’t know is that it would be the worst thing that they could’ve done. They took a few days travelling to the cities throughout Colorado and on March 9th, 2017, the next city on the list was Evermore City. With everything packed into the car, they got ready to begin their journey they hoped would change everything, and change everything it would.

As they drove towards the city, Seung-Jun and Min-ah were singing along to the korean music in the car and just messing around, until they saw a large sign saying ‘Now Entering Evermore, Colorado’. Once they drove past the sign, a small stinging pain began in Min-ah’s lower back. She winced a little and rubbed her back but the pain only grew in intensity the closer they got to the city. Eventually she was screaming in pain, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly and swerving from side to side. Seung-Jun tried to stop the car but the hand brake wasn’t working. With no other choice, he removed his seatbelt to try and get her foot off the gas pedal and onto the brake, but just after he removed his seatbelt, Min-ah’s eyes lit up green and the road ahead sprouted upward into a wall about 4 feet in height. Without being able to stop, the car slammed into the wall. Seung-Jun flew through the windshield of the car and his head hit the wall snapping his neck instantly, while Min-ah bounced forward and hit the steering wheel of the car with her head. As her head hit the steering wheel, she blacked out and everything calmed down around her. The wall of earth sank back into the ground as though it was never there, and she was unconscious and unable to move.

Min-ah wasn’t aware of what happened after that, but a female had seen the accident and called the paramedics of Evermore. She stayed at the scene and tried to get the young girl to wake up but Min-ah couldn’t hear her. She didn’t want to move her, because she might cause more injuries, so she just remained at the side of the car until the paramedics showed up and asked her what happened. The female told them that she didn’t actually see the accident so she couldn’t say what happened. She only heard the sound of the crash and when she arrived this was the how she found them. The paramedics did their job and got the young girl out of the wreckage and rushed her to the hospital. The passenger Seung-Jun was declared dead on-site but was still brought to the hospital as well. The cops appeared on the scene to do their job before towing the wreckage away, but they couldn’t understand what caused the collision since there was no evidence of another vehicle.

While Min-ah was in the hospital, the female who had got her help visited her multiple times. She remained unconscious but alive for six full days, and on March 15, 2017, Min-ah woke up. She didn’t know where she was, what she was doing there and more importantly she didn’t know who she was. She tried talking to the doctors, but they didn’t understand her where she was speaking Korean. She was in an American hospital and she didn’t know how to speak English. Her words became frantic and she tried to leave but they wouldn’t let me. With all the commotion that was happening, the female that had gotten her help, came into the room. She heard Min-ah’s words and came to her side telling her it’ll be okay in Korean. Min-ah’s frantic movements calmed down and a tear fell down her cheeks, she told the female she didn’t know who she am, or what she was doing there. She translated the young girl’s words to the doctors and then told her that her name was Annabelle Choi and she would help her through this.

Annabelle spoke with the doctor and learned the girl’s name from her driver’s license. Going back to the room where she was waiting, Annabelle sat beside the bed and began to tell her what she knew. Annabelle told her that according to her driver’s license, her name was Joo Min-ah and she was from Incheon, South Korea. She told her that according to her birthdate on her driver’s license she is 18 years old turning 19 in August. Then she told her why she was in the hospital. Annabelle told her that while she was driving, an accident happened and she wrecked her car. She immediately asked if anyone was hurt, and Annabelle looked a little shocked. She told her that the person she was with died in the accident but Min-ah had no idea who she was talking about. The doctor told Annabelle that it seemed as though the young girl had memory loss and they didn’t know how extensive or how long it would last. Annabelle then proceeded to tell her what the doctors had said, and tears filled her eyes once again. She didn’t know anything or anyone in this place so she had no idea how she would survive.

As if she could sense the fear in her, Annabelle grabbed her hand and told her not to worry. She told her that she would take care of her until she was able to remember who she was. Even though she didn’t know the woman, Min-ah felt a great feeling of safety around her. Probably it was because Annabelle was able to understand her, but Min-ah thanked her for her kindness. Now that she had lost her memory, she had nothing to return home to. She couldn’t remember her friends and family, she couldn’t remember what her personality was, and she couldn’t even remember what she liked and disliked. The only thing she had now was her name, birthdate, and her birthplace. Surely her parents had to be searching for her though, or maybe she didn’t live at home anymore, answers that she may never know. Annabelle asked her if she would mind letting her adopt her. Min-ah truly didn’t know how she felt about being adopted at the age of 18, but she had nowhere to go, no family to care for her, and nobody who understood Korean except this female. She told her that although she felt strange about being adopted at the age of 18, she agreed because s didn’t know what else she could do. Once she was allowed to leave the hospital, Annabelle and Min-ah went to the adoption agency to get herself adopted by Annabelle providing it was possible. Although it was an odd request, Annabelle was granted the adoption, and Min-ah Joo became Min-ah Choi. Now, with a new name, all that was left to do was start over.