We push through the door into the bustling kitchen and immediately smell the delicious waft of sweet-and-spicy fried chicken. But it doesn’t last long. As we continue over to the walk-in fridge and step into its chilly belly, we are transported to the lobby of a grand building with high ceilings and marble floors.

I come here every week, but the temple never ceases to take my breath away. At first glance, it looks like a super-fancy hotel. The Miru guards protecting the lobby could pass as doormen, and there’s always soothing music playing in the background. A sandalwood fragrance lingers in the air, like those signature perfumes some hotels have.

But it’s so much more than that. Once you jump into the elevators, you get a sense of the temple’s true scale. There are eighty-eight levels, and so many rooms on each floor that no one can keep track of what’s behind each door. Most of the rooms aren’t accessible without the right keys, but Auntie Okja says some doors are portals to the various gifted temples around the world, while others house mythical creatures visiting from the Godrealm. They say there’s even a door that takes you to the Spiritrealm (the place we go when we die), which, frankly, blows my mind.

“Hurry, girls,” Eomma urges, pushing us out of the elevator at level 88 and toward the big bronze doors. “Mr. Pyo is going to make us pay for being late.”

And she’s right. As soon as we enter the sanctuary through the heavy wooden doors carved with animal heads, Mr. Pyo’s booming voice calls out.

“Well, well, well. Good of you to join us, Oh family of the Gom clan. You’ve interrupted the service, but I’m sure you have a very important reason for being tardy. Please, why don’t you find a seat while the punctual members of the congregation sit and wait.”

We lower our heads and quickly sit in the Gom pews while hundreds of eyes follow our every move.

“Absolutely mortifying,” Eomma mumbles under her breath.

“Ugh, he’s the worst,” I whisper.

“Agreed,” Hattie and Appa echo.

Mr. Pyo turns his attention back to the service, and I eventually get the nerve to raise my eyes from my lap and look around.