LISA
A nervous thrill runs down my spine as my fingers fly over my keyboard, line after line of code slowly unraveling our security system. It's bullshit that I have to hack into my own family's firmware in the first place, and it's even bigger bullshit that it's taken me weeks to get remotely close to breaching it.
Hundreds of hours went into finding the slightest weakness in our Head of Security's systems, only to come up empty every single time. Until now. My heart begins to race as I write the last few lines that are sure to let me into my grandmother's laptop. I flex my fingers, sucking in a breath before I press enter.
"Thank fuck," I whisper as my monitor flashes for a split-second, before mirroring what must be my grandmother's home screen.
The background photo of my parents with my five siblings and I nearly makes me feel guilty enough to stop what I'm doing, but my need to be in control of my own life drowns the feeling out. Nerves dance across my skin as I search my grandmother's computer in the most methodical way I can think of given my time constraints, and with each second that passes, my frustration grows.
"Where did you hide her, Grams?" I murmur, typing faster, more frantically.
My gaze drops to the heirloom Laurier watch I inherited from my grandfather, its second hand moving smoothly. Our Head of Security, Jackson Wang, will realize what I'm up to and shut me out within a few minutes at most, giving me approximately three more minutes to find the information I'm after.
"Fuck," I groan when my internal monitors begin to flash. I sit up when Rabie, my robot assistant, calls my name, her voice sounding from the speakers in my lab.
"Lisa, Wang Security identified a breach that they're working on. It won't take them long to shut you out," she tells me. "By my estimates, you have two minutes left."
"Damn it, Jackson." I work faster, searching my grandmother's systems for every single mention of my name, of which there are thousands. You could be the best coder, but without a strategy, your skills are useless - and I'm feeling pretty damn useless right about now. "Come on," I whisper, my agitation increasing as the seconds trickle by without result. "Where are you hiding?"
My screen flickers just as I open a promising document, and my heart nearly fucking stops. I only have a few seconds left at most, but as it turns out, that's enough for me to find what I was after.
Jennie Ruby Jane Kim
I grin to myself just as my screen goes black, satisfaction spreading from my chest throughout my entire body.
"Jennie," I whisper. It almost feels sinful to say her name out loud before I'm meant to know it. I lean back in my chair and stare up at the ceiling, my mind whirling. "Who are you, Jennie Kim?"
For as long as I can remember, my family has utilized arranged marriages as a way to grow our existing business and enter new industries. None of us get to choose who we marry, and I won't be any different, but I'm not going into this blind. I won't let my grandmother play me the way she did my brothers, slyly manipulating them into thinking their choices are their own, when she's always held their strings. My phone begins to buzz, snapping me out of my daze, and I smirk when I see the incoming video call. One beat passes, and then another, before I finally pick up.
"Are you fucking kidding me, Lis?" Jackson says, fury written all over his face.
I merely shrug as I position my phone on my desk, ready for the lecture Jackson no doubt prepared for me.
"Merely keeping you on your toes, Jack. How else am I supposed to be sure that you're really doing your job?"
He throws me a withering look that makes it near impossible not to smile smugly, and my amusement only heightens his anger. "How the fuck am I supposed to explain this to your grandmother?"
Every hint of satisfaction melts away, and I straighten in my seat. "You won't," I warn him, unease evident in my voice, despite my firm tone. "The first time I meet the woman I'll be forced to marry can't be on my grandmother's terms. I'll do as is expected of me, but I'll do it on my own terms. I need to know who my future wife is behind the facade she'll no doubt craft the second we're formally introduced to each other."
His expression falls, understanding stealing away his anger, and he sighs. "I'll feign ignorance if this ever comes to light," he says reluctantly, something akin to pity crossing his eyes.
I lower my head, my heart wrenching painfully. He knows better than anyone else why I'm doing this. He's the one who saved me, after all. Jackson found me when no one else could, and my family and I have been in his debt ever since.
"What do you know about Jennie Kim? You shut me out before I could read my grandmother's file on her."
Jackson shakes his head. "You know I can't tell you anything. It's bad enough that you learned her name."
I tap my foot impatiently as I stare him down, knowing he won't budge. The second I get off this call, he's going to bury any and all information about her.
"I just need to know what kind of person I'm going to marry, Jack. I need to know that I'm not about to make the same mistake twice."
Jackson runs a hand through his hair and sighs. "Fuck," he groans, knowing he can't deny me. "She's a robotics major at Kang College," he says hesitantly, like he's certain he'll regret telling me as much as he has, despite it being very little.
"Robotics," I murmur, oddly surprised to find out her major is the same as mine was. Not only that, but she's also attending the same college I attended - the college one of my best friends owns.
"Lis," Jackson says, his tone filled with caution. "You should know that the match isn't confirmed yet. Jennie's father desperately needs the merger your grandmother offered him, but he's refusing to make an arranged marriage part of the deal. As it stands, I'm not sure this engagement will happen."
I stare out the window for a moment, an unfamiliar feeling lodging deep in my chest. "No," I murmur. "I have a feeling she's the one."
•
•
•
JENNIE
My heart pounds wildly as I take one cautious step after the other, careful not to trigger the comprehensive alarm system around the lab. One wrong step, and security will come rushing in to remove me from the premises. I hold my breath as I clutch the badge I stole and hold it up against the reader, praying none of the security protocols have changed in recent weeks.
"Thank God," I breathe as the door unlocks audibly, the soft click making me look around furtively, surprised I managed to get this far at all.
My shoulders relax as I walk in, my gaze settling on the electric car propped up on a platform in the middle of the room. Each time I see it, I'm in awe all over again. It's the first fully solar powered car that'll be commercially available - a technological feat I've dreamed of since my father first brought me to work with him years ago, the plans for this exact car strewn over his desk. The technology for it didn't exist back then, but that didn't stop him from pursuing his dreams of a sustainable car. I sigh as I drop my bag by my feet and reach down to grab the trusty gold colored air ratchet my dad gave me years ago. I tighten my grip and reach for the solar panels on the car's roof with a smug smile on my face, only for that smile to wither the second my fingers brush against the cold surface.
Loud alarms begin to blare, and seconds later, security guards come storming in. I hang my head in defeat and stand frozen, my back to the door, shame keeping me rooted in place. Damn it. How the hell did they tie the security system to the car itself? I should've known breaking in was too easy. Should've known something was wrong when I breezed through the building within minutes.
"Jennie Ruby Jane, would you like to explain what you're doing in my lab?"
I turn around slowly at the sound of my father's voice, my cheeks blazing and my heart hammering in my chest.
"Hi, Dad!" My voice is filled with faux cheer, and the slight tremble gives away my nerves. "Aren't you supposed to be in a meeting?" I added.
Six of my dad's private security guards surround him, three on either side, and they all share the exact same look - exasperation with a tinge of bemusement. They step aside as Dad walks toward me, his brow raised and his eyes twinkling in a way that diminishes the sternness I'm sure he's attempting to portray.
"I thought we agreed that you'd focus on your master's degree, so why do I keep finding you in my lab multiple times a week?" He brushes my hair out of my face gently and shakes his head.
"Dad," I begin to say, my tone defensive. "I learned something in class today that I just had to try. I think I know how to fix the solar panels."
Dad's expression shifts, a hint of hopelessness drowning out his brilliant blue eyes. His gaze tells me that he knows exactly how I feel - countless times, he's stood in my shoes, certain he'd found the solution to the project we've invested so heavily in with nothing to show for it.
Most solar panels only store about 20% of sunlight they're exposed to, and that isn't sufficient for a car. We managed to double that level, but for this car to be viable, we need to get that closer to 80%. Our car just doesn't work the way it's supposed to, and because of that, it can't be sold to the public.
My father and I both firmly believe that sustainable cars are the future, but neither of us had counted on the economic downturn we're facing. Dad has done his best to hide it from me, but I know the company is on the verge of bankruptcy. People simply aren't buying new cars these days. Luxury cars are hardly affected, but mid-range cars? They aren't selling right now, and we don't have the resources or expertise to move into higher end vehicles. Combine that with our heavy investment into a product that isn't viable, and we're left with heavy debts and low revenues that can't shoulder them.
Day by day, I can see my father lose hope while trying his best to remain strong for Mom and me. There isn't much I can do to help, but I can keep experimenting, and I can keep trying. If we could just turn our solar powered car into a commercially viable product, it would change everything. We'd instantly become frontrunners in not just sustainability, but in electric cars altogether. It wouldn't just save the company - it'd bring it to new heights, the kind my father has always dreamed of.
Dad places his hands on my arms, his expression filled with just as much sternness as there is understanding. "Angel," he says, his voice soft. "The company will be there when you graduate in a couple of months. In the meantime, I just want you to enjoy college. Make memories, Ruby Jane. Live your life. I didn't quite understand it when I was your age either, but time truly is precious, and I can see you wasting it away working on our prototype. It's taken enough from us, hasn't it?" He tucks my hair behind my ear and forces a smile. "Besides, isn't it Kai's birthday tonight? That's where you should be tonight, Ruby Jane. Not here, in my lab."
Guilt steals away my words, and I look down. He's right. I'm supposed to be at my best friend's birthday party, yet here I am, in Dad's lab, because I couldn't resist trying out an idea. Kai and I grew apart a little during our undergrad at separate colleges, and I've been trying to remedy that now that we're doing our master's together, but I've done a terrible job of prioritizing my friendships.
"This company is your future, Ruby Jane, but it shouldn't be your present. If I catch you here again on weekdays, I'll bar you from entering the building altogether." I begin to protest, but Dad silences me with a pointed stare. "Your twenties are supposed to be filled with fun and countless regrettable decisions, Angel. I want you to live a fulfilling life. Go explore. Figure out what it is that makes you happy. Find a hobby or two. Kim Motors can't be your whole identity - I need to know that you'll be okay even if somehow... if someday, the company isn't there anymore."
He looks away, his expression cracking. Pure torment and worry beyond anything I've witnessed from him before shines through for a moment, before Dad pulls himself together.
"I'm sorry, Dad," I murmur, not quite sure what I'm apologizing for. I'm not sorry I sneaked in, but I am sorry I still haven't found a way to help him.