Warning

One-Shot

This doesn't have any fun. There's just boredom.

: If you're not satisfied, why did you write it?

That's it, I didn't know why I wrote it until the end.

If anyone has read this. Like it or hate it?

If you don't understand or don't understand, please tell me.

The young man's figure staggered slightly into the bar door, a white shirt tucked into neat black slacks. His brand-name leather shoes were so shiny that they reflected the light from the light bulbs and the glasses hung on the bar where jazz music he didn't even care which artist was playing. His feet moved so fast he almost ran to a stop in front of the bar counter, then he quickly sat down, face down, like a person who was exhausted and panting. His eyes were red and bruised, not from sadness, but from The influence of alcohol that had lasted for two days and one night was almost the second night.

Lee Dae Hwi was freed from the cruel 'older brothers' party. He stumbled out of the party hoping to get help but was only greeted by loud screams that he was a drunken teenager. Along the road I came across this shop. He opened the door without hesitation, not even noticing that this was a different bar from where he came from, only more luxurious.

However, there were no mean elders here who would bully him and feed him alcohol with all kinds of threats. Daehwi was glad that his hands weren't covered in blood like those guys and equally pleased that he hadn't ingested any colorless scales yet.

He never wanted to work with his older brothers but had done so since he was a child and was raised by them. It was only because God was more merciful to him than anyone else that he was able to remain a human being and not turn into a beast. Today's matter was similar to many times in the past. Big Brother, who was the leader of the group, wanted to party.

The maknae like him was bullied. He escaped and then had to return when everyone was sober. Daehwi doesn't want to be punished.

Actually, he wanted to die more...

“I want to die.”

Said like a hopeless person, face still slumped on the counter, no signs of lifting up.

“In our shop we have drinks that you should try before you die. I don't know if the customers are interested or not?” the person behind the counter said as he twirled a white cloth around the mouth of his glass. Daehwi looked up and saw a young man of medium build, probably a little more mature than him, with a more serious-looking but more polite expression. What he had in mind was smiling at the young man. He wasn't sure if the bartender meant to annoy him or not. He didn't have time to think too much about it, so he answered honestly.

“I know it sounds strange, but I'd rather have coffee, sir... ”

“Sangkyun, Kim Sangkyun,” he said before turning and doing as the customer requested. Daehwi was never an expert in this kind of thing. He didn't know what the hyungs drank every day. He was only skilled at dodging it, but in front of those people, refusing to drink was often as serious as refusing to be loyal.

“This is yours.” The bartender brought the coffee over a few seconds later.

“Wow, why are you so fast?” Daehwi looked at the person behind the counter and the coffee cup in turn.

“I always have everything ready. You'd be shocked to know how often people come to where you sit and order something strange,” Sangkyun joked and turned to hand out drinks for the next customer.

Daehwi took a sip of the coffee, it tasted as bad as the food his brothers made. But he didn't really think it was because of the coffee, it was more because his tongue had been taking in the bitter taste of the liquor for so many hours, along with cheeks that couldn't find any delicious dishes, he couldn't help but have to do whatever it took. To keep yourself from getting drunk Having survived until now, all that was left was to sober up and go somewhere far away before returning to the gates of hell.

“Where do you want to go?”

A soft, hoarse voice spoke from behind the person who was busy thinking while sipping his coffee as he turned to follow the sound.

A thick young man of medium height smiled as he sat next to him. Daehwi looked back in surprise for a moment, not sure if he knew this person, but finally smiled in kind. This man acted like he was reading his mind. Daehwi wanted to know if this person could read his mind. What will you read?

"Where do you want to go? Do you want me to take you?"

“I don't understand,” Daehwi replied.

“Believe it or not, I heard you thinking,” he said to Daehwi before turning to look at the bartender, as if ordering a drink with an even more frightening look, a few minutes later, the person behind the counter. Bring something to serve to new people.

“He hasn't…” Daehwi said in a tired voice.

“This guy doesn't have to order,” Kim Sangkyun, the bartender, said before smiling before he moved himself to the other side to receive the customer, causing Daehwi to stop. There is no doubt that this is a luxurious shop. There's a big counter bar, why is there only one bartender serving? But whatever, it's none of his business to pay attention to any system of service in this bar, all he sees are the customers. Everyone was looking at him kindly. All he had to pay attention to was the person sitting next to him.

“Did you hear anything?” said the owner of the coffee cup. He lifted his right arm up to his chin.

"yes?"

“Just now you said you heard my thoughts, if you really did. What do you know about me?”

“Ah..” The thick young man smiled and took a sip of the amber colored water contained in his glass, inhaling the fruit-flavored candy-like scent and continued speaking. “I heard your name is Lee Dae Hwi is twenty-one years old. Born on the twenty-ninth of January,” he chanted.

"Eh? How do you know all this? We've known each other before?” Daehwi asked and sat there with his mouth open in disbelief, considering whether he had actually heard his name, age, and birth date correctly. and yes There isn't a single word wrong anywhere.

“I told you before, I can hear your thoughts, I can read your mind, I can see your name, I can see your birthday, but you're too young for me to see an expiration date.” He kept his voice low, trying to sound cold. Until it was eerily similar to the sound in the movie for the role of the evil father. He glanced at the other person and when he saw how unconscious Dae Hee's expression was, he burst out laughing.

Or is there a more plausible explanation? Your wallet fell in front of the door. So I opened it in order to return it to the right owner,” he said before handing the wallet he found back to the owner.

“Ah.. Haha.” Daehwi laughed softly and took the wallet back. “If you don't answer quickly, I'll really think you're all dads or something like that.” After saying that, he checked. Make sure nothing is lost in your bag.

“Everything is perfect.”

“Yes, nothing is lost except that you are a criminal. Stealing credit card information, that's all."

“What do you have to fear? If I really am a thief, you can see my face clearly. Here in South Korea Even if you sneeze, the security camera can see it. I probably didn't escape four blocks when I was caught by the police.” He trailed off and took a sip of water from the glass in front of him. “My name is Kang Dongho.”

“I haven't asked yet,” Daehwi annoyed.

“But you want to know,” the other person retorted almost immediately. and speak the truth

“My name is Lee Daehwi.”

“I already know,” Dongho replied.

"I'm just saying it out of politeness," he said, frowning. He put the wallet in his hand into his pocket. Strangely enough, he was sure when he walked in the door that the wallet hadn't gone anywhere. He checked it until he was sure he had actually taken it out and walked into the bar door. Well, Daehwi thought, maybe he remembered confusing a wallet with a cell phone.

“You still haven't told me where you want to go,” Dongho said.

“Then tell me first, how do you know where I want to go or where I don't want to go?”

“I don't know, just guessing. You smell like you've been drinking for two whole days. But you don't look drunk. Your clothes are neat, which means you're careful about drinking. You're probably not a drunk. I'm guessing you slipped into a party somewhere and couldn't get away until you had the chance, so you ran away and came here. It's here.”

“Wow..” Kang Dong Ho stunned him again.

“Also, I smell some food. It's one of the menu items sold in a bar not far away. If you escape from that shop and come to this shop, I just think You still haven't escaped far enough. So I asked where do you want to go...I mean where do you want to go? I'll take you there myself.”

Daehwi didn't realize how long he had been silent until he heard another person call his name and he regained consciousness. This person was definitely not a wizard. He didn't even have to have magical powers. It was like he had something special in himself. Kang Dong Ho's talent or whatever made this man guess Daehwi's story correctly. There was not even a slight glitch in the owner of the coffee cup's instincts that this person was harmless unless he meant any harm. Daehwi, on the other hand, felt a gentle personality. The kindness of another person as well

“Yes, indeed, you are right. I want to go somewhere far away. But I don't know. Sometimes I wander around aimlessly in a taxi. Turning off the device so no one can contact it is like that.”

“You talk like you always run away from parties.”

“Yes..just like that.”

"okay! Then let's go.”

Dongho said and stood up suddenly, grabbing Daehwi's hand to follow him. After a few seconds, the two of them stopped in front of the shop's door. Daehwi looked back in the door and was surprised that no one was following them, even though neither of them had paid for their drinks.

“We haven't paid yet,” Daehwi asked. His voice brightened slightly, probably because the effects of the alcohol had subsided.

“Pay, why don't you pay? I pay for everything in the store. Both water and electricity bills My employees' salaries are paid by me.” Dongho walked forward slowly. But he still hasn't let go of Daehwi's hand. He pulled the smaller man close to him so that they were walking side by side and finally released the other man.

“You own a store? You look too young to be in business.” “You surprised me again. Probably not the owner of the land in this area.”

“No, I'm just a bar owner. And he's not a businessman. I am the subordinate of 'The owner of this area,' my boss is kind enough to rent me a place that's a bit cheaper than other places." The other party turned and smiled at him.

Before Daehwi could say anything else, he noticed someone walking towards him with a thug-like appearance that made Daehwi's heart almost fall to the ground. It was none other than his subordinate 'Second Brother'. The close friend of the group's leader, Big Brother, who raised Daehwi since he was little, his name is Kim Sang Bin.

Daehwi doesn't get to see his eldest hyung very often and doesn't want to meet face to face. There are rumors that even though this Sangbin hyung is the kindest among all the hyungs, if anyone makes him or his elder hyung dissatisfied, what if? That person will be discarded like worthless garbage. He will die before he even knows what wrongdoing he committed.

Today it might be the turn of the maknae Lee Dae Hwi...

“Where is your car?” the little man asked. Look left and right, looking for a way to escape. It definitely isn't a good thing to meet Brother Rong here. And if there was anyone around here who was disloyal to the group, it was only him.

“What happened over there?” Dongho asked in confusion.

“I beg you, please help me escape.”

After saying that, he ran towards the big black car that was parked. Dongho ran after him. They both got into the car and Daehwi urged them to get out quickly. 'As fast as you can go,' he rattled off like a computer.

Dongho did as the other person asked as the car took off. He looked in the rearview mirror and saw a man standing where they had stood, a hostile look in his eyes and a harsh curse on his mouth. That person Daehwi was so afraid of.

"midnight"

In the driver's seat, Dongho spoke up, breaking the silence in the car. It was too dark to see the other person's expressions, but he could feel some discomfort. Daehwi was trembling. Maybe because of fear Dongho hadn't felt 'scared' in a long time, he couldn't remember that feeling. But he knows how to behave when someone is afraid nearby. To be honest, he is better at comforting than running a liquor store.

“Yes?” The voice that answered, the more I listened, the more clearly I knew what emotional state the other party was in right now.

“Now..it's midnight. Have you ever heard the legend of the Midnight Guardian?”

“There is no legend like that.”

“Yes, it was my grandmother who told me this when I was a child. It snowed on a snowy night..” Daehwi interrupted and said that there was no snow tonight. “Well, on a cold night, all the lost children will meet their guardians in various forms. Sigh... Damn, that legend is all nonsense. No lost child will ever find their guardian, but I know what is true tonight.”

Dongho tried to sound normal. The word normal was the tone of a kind young man. The kind of man he naturally is.

“What is it?” Daehwi looked interested.

“Tonight, you have me.” He smiled warmly even though it was too dark in the car for the other person to see. “You know, I'm not that stupid. A person who walks towards us will do something bad to you. And you're afraid of that, right? Don't care about those people. If you think you have no one Now you have me.”

Daehwi was silent and no one spoke again for nearly an hour. The road outside grew dark as Dongho drove along, calculating where his destination would be or what route he would have to take tonight.

“Mr. Dongho..” Daehwi suddenly spoke in the silence.

"yes?"

“Do you think it was God's will that made me live the way I do?” The man behind the wheel was silent for a moment before answering.

"No, but not really," he said, then trailed off. The other party also responded with interest. “Who above wanted you to be born? It is you who thinks about what you will or will not do. Sometimes they'll test you just to ask you, 'Are you sure? If you're sure, they'll do what you want.'

“Speak like you are close to God.”

“I'm not completely sure, I just think it's like that. Honestly, I think sometimes humans are too spoiled. Looking for reasons to blame this or that, they blame someone above every time they are disappointed. Calling a murderer a beast—a devil even if there really isn't a devil involved in whatever they decide to do.”

“I want to die,” Daehwi said. Suddenly, the large car slowed down until it finally stopped.

There were red lights on the small road, but they were about a hundred meters away from each other. The light from outside shone in, allowing Daehwi to see the driver's face more clearly. He was as still as a statue. His eyes didn't convey any emotion to the point of looking frightening. There must have been something in Daehwi's words that made him feel dissatisfied, but who dared to ask?

The red light was unusually long, while the car was silent. There was a sound on the road. An old man was so skinny he looked like a wooden puppet. Trying to walk across the road slowly, he took one painful step at a time. There were pitiful moans emanating every time.

Dae-hwi was about to open the car door to help this grandfather cross the road, but Dong-ho didn't unlock the door and told him to stay inside and watch.

“Why are you so callous?” Daehwi started to yell. The other party's expression did not change at all.

“I know him, he is a former soldier. The war hero was almost a hundred years old. He helped our country to fight for this land. He is a good father, a grandfather who is loved by his grandchildren but he has been around for too long and all he wants now is to 'die'. I think he deserves it. to get it

He performed all his duties excellently. He will walk away proudly and be a good role model for future generations. You don't have to help him, Mr. Lee Dae Hwi. A hero like him would do his duty bravely even if it was just crossing the street.” After speaking, Dongho turned into a statue again.

This story has no evidence to prove it to be true, but the other person probably doesn't want Daehwi to pay attention to that point because his words of wanting to die are the ones that make the other person dissatisfied. and began to tell the history of the old man who 'I've done everything well' so I want to die. As I've said before. The more Kang Dong Ho talked, the more surprised he became. He was only a young man of twenty-one years old.

In this life, the most he achieved was in high school. He worked illegally because it was the only way to make a living, despite having the ability to do many other things. But he said without shame that he wanted to die.

...What is going on with these people?

"I understand...I don't.. I don't want..”

The voice spoke softly, his eyelids became heavy, and finally there was nothing more to see but darkness.

“I don't understand why you keep saying you want to die when you really don't.”

“Ah.. my throat hurts.”

Daehwi opened his eyes to the sunlight hitting his vision and he had to blink quickly to adjust to the light. He was still sitting in the same car that had taken him away last night, only now it was morning. And the scenery in front of us was not a city, but a fishing port somewhere in the sea.

Yes, yes.

The sound of knocking on the glass caught his attention and like a bolt of lightning struck his body, Kim Sang Bin held a black nine-millimeter gun pointed at the glass. Coincidentally, behind the glass was Daehwi's head. The other person spoke in a loud voice. Coldly told him to get out of the car. The little figure slowly opened the door. He shivered like a baby bird that had just emerged from an egg and was exposed to the cold.

“Second hyung, calm down. I'm sorry. I was wrong.” Daehwi couldn't figure out what his hyungs knew about him or any wrongdoing he'd done, so he just spewed out apologies for no reason. Which one is clear?

“Shut up and walk away.”

Daehwi, now with a gun at his back, walked along the pier leading to the sea until he came to a stop near the edge. Sangbin ordered him to kneel down.

“You know, kid, even though we're not close, I love you like a real younger sibling. It's a pity that you made Big Brother uncomfortable. Big Brother's order was an ultimatum and he told me to kill you. How did he say it? You know, he said that a person like you can become one of two things: the most loyal clan leader or the most dangerous rebel. He wouldn't wait for the day to prove what you would become to any big brother. The risk must be to cut that person off.”

Sangbin said before clearing his throat, “Do you have something to say? Is there anything you want to order before you die?”

His brother's sentence reminded him of the grandfather he met last night, a nearly 100 year old man crossing the street. According to Kang Dong Ho, the man could be either a war veteran or a homeless person and the driver of the car. He escaped and has now mysteriously disappeared. He could be either a protector or a black-hearted person if what Dong-ho said is true.

It was very courageous to serve the country like that, it was the pride of the family. As for Daehwi, right now he's probably just a worthless piece of shit. Some people said not to compare our first chapter with other people's chapter 20, but no matter what you think, it's sad that Daehwi is dying before even writing any 'good chapters'. time

Tears slowly flowed from his eyes without any sobs. He regretted that if he hadn't done anything yet he would have died and in truth. ...He never wanted to die.

“I don't...I don't want to die yet. I want to live to do something. I don't know. I want to study at university. I want to have a loving family. I want to work honestly, and if I'm not going to be of much use to other people, I want to be someone who makes someone feel loved. and proud”

He spoke very slowly and the tears continued to flow and wouldn't stop until the last moment. A soft click sounded, and Daehwi thought it was the sound of a gun trigger, but for minutes, nothing happened to him, only a loud, proud laugh from behind him.

“Stand up, little brother...you are set free.”

This...what the hell happened?

“Stand up Mr. Daehwi, no one will shoot you.”

Another person's voice cut in. Daehwi stood up and turned around to see Kim Sangbin and Kim Sangkyun, the bartenders in the bar, standing with their hips next to each other, smiling at him. give it to him

“What happened here?” the little man asked. His strength had almost vanished when a gun was pointed at his head, but now the story was different, like a different movie. The nine-millimeter gun that had been aimed at him was neatly kept in the holster next to Brother Rong's waist. That's when he knew. that the clicking sound that was heard was not the sound of the trigger being fired, but rather the sound of the aluminum buttons in the gun holster clicking together. “Then why do you..”

“Me?” Sangkyun said. "Where do we start? Let's start with the manager, me, and Brother Sangbin receiving orders from the boss to take care of the area where your gang makes a living, shall we?" He placed his hand on his waist with his left hand. His right hand held a sandwich and he chewed it without stopping before he nodded to Sangbin to continue speaking.

“Enough of your gang..no. Actually, it's my gang too. Starting to gain more influence, our boss sent the three of us into the area to look after the safety of the community. The manager, meaning Kang Dong Ho, came in as the owner of the bar. In fact, he got land there to run a shop for extra wages, and that's when Sangkyun became the manager's assistant.

As for me, I hid in a gang and coordinated with the police and my boss. That's how I saw you," Sangbin explained.

“Sangbin doesn't think you're a bad person, just a child who grew up in a bad environment. The manager agreed but I think he saw more than that... He finds you cute.” Sangkyun finished speaking and turned to laugh at the person next to him.

“Gossip about me. You don't want to get a salary, right?” Someone's voice cut in again. Sangkyun hurriedly took a large bite of the sandwich in his mouth to show that he would not say anything more.

Kang Dong Ho walked up to Dae Hwi and stood in front of Dae Hwi. He looked bigger than he had seen last night. He took off his suit and was only left with a white shirt underneath. Both Dong Ho and Dae Hwi were now They dress alike like twins, just their bodies are not the same size.

Sangbin and Sangkyun walked away. There were only two people left standing in front of each other. Daehwi waited for an explanation. He thought Dongho didn't know where to start either.

“Yours,” the larger one said. He handed over a piece of brown paper containing breakfast and water. “They probably told you something.”

“I still don't understand, and I don't think there's more to it than that.” Daehwi received the food. He opened the bag, grabbed a sandwich, and took a hungry bite.

“You know what, Mr. Lee Daehwi, there's no coincidence at all. All of your older brothers are now arrested except for Sangbin, who is a police informant. It wasn't a coincidence that they were caught drunk asleep at the bar when you escaped, that is. Sir, I calculated it. It wasn't a coincidence that you dropped your wallet and met me.

It wasn't a coincidence that Sangbin walked up to you like he was going to hurt you. It wasn't a coincidence that you had me take you away. Not even that grandpa who walked across the road.”

“Okay... That means it's all a lie... Why must you deceive me?”

“I won't make excuses. We fooled you, yes that's true. But what's more true is We did it because you asked.”

“May I?”

“Remember how I said that sometimes the people above test you, asking to make sure you are confident in your request? You, right? You pray every day that you want to have a good life and don't want to work with gangs. I want to do something useful. I don't know if anyone above can hear you...but my boss can. It was difficult to explain and sounded crazy, but my master heard all of it: people's suffering, their requests, their prayers.

It's a contradiction when you pray you want to live but say you want to die.”

“Please, don't make up stories, okay? How can I believe what's real after all you've done? Maybe Big Brother might send you to trick me again.”

“Ah...that's it,” Dongho said and a smile twitched at the corner of his mouth as he took out the cell phone in his pants. Open to watch TV news reports about a group of thugs named '

BROTHERS’

Sangbin and Daehwi were arrested and the police wiped out their black business until there were no remnants left that could not be reestablished. The reporter then started listing the ringleaders one by one, but Sangbin and Daehwi were not included. In it, it was said only that it was a person who had not yet been found, had no name and did not have a photo to confirm it.

“They were arrested…”

“They were actually arrested. Before I realized that I had been betrayed, I was locked up for twenty years. Don't worry about yours. There is not a shred of evidence left that you are a gang member now. You have me and then you have me.”

“Sir??”

Dongho motioned for Daehwi to turn behind him, his heart almost stopping when he found a thin old man standing behind him from who knows where. He was the same man who had walked across the street last night. His face was frighteningly thin and he was smiling. He extended his right hand as a signal for Daehwi to shake hands in greeting.

Just as the young man was about to reach out, the weather suddenly changed. The once bright sky turned dark. The clouds blocked the sunlight and it was as if there were no living things moving. Everything was slow. The waves of the sea no longer crashed. It was as if the world stopped turning in that second. The only sounds loud enough to be heard were the young man's breathing and the sound of his heart pounding in his chest.

The second he shook hands with the old man, the skin covering Grandpa's gaunt bones gradually became firmer, some skin peeled off, his short hair slowly grew longer and changed from white to black from the old man's bent back. His height increased slightly, his gray skin began to turn white and pink, his face became dry and his cheeks grew. In the blink of an eye, the old man who was said to be a former soldier became A girl who looked only a few years older than him.

Pitch black but shiny wings spread out from the woman's back. Daehwi was speechless at what was happening in front of him. Or has he gone crazy? Perhaps he was hallucinated by drugs. People—ghosts—demons—gods, he wasn't sure what this beautiful woman-like creature in front of him really was.

Daehwi pulls away. His legs gave out and he fell backwards even though he was standing. Before he fainted, he smelled the smell of old cement, a small pier's concrete floor, and sea water. Everything slowly faded and it was completely dark again.

The young man in a white shirt that was now dirty and crumpled from lying on the ground for nearly a minute slowly opened his eyes. Looking at the sky, which had become bright again, the voices of a few people whispered indistinctly, but they were able to understand some of the meaning in each sentence. 'He's recovered—a bit shocked—you're back—manager, let's talk.'

Daehwi felt that he was lying on something. Too hard to be a pillow but too soft to be a rock until he finally realized he was nestling against Kang Dong Ho's broad shoulders.

“I wasn't dreaming, right?” Daehwi said. He might be afraid of what happened, but he couldn't accept it if what he just saw was a dream because if it was a dream, The story of the brothers being captured would also never come true. “Is it true that I have 'lived' my life? Is it true that I am free?”

“True, you are now free and will live your life. My boss likes you very much. If you don't mind, you can come work with us. I want you to do it.”

“Actually, I'm more afraid of your boss,” he said and buried his face in the other man's shoulder, closing his eyes like a sick boy who didn't want to get out of bed.

“Only in the beginning did I see Sangkyun as such a man. He screamed louder than a woman when he met his boss for the first time and almost had to be hospitalized. You're stronger than that guy. Come work with us, I want you to stay with us,” Dongho said, sounding like a plea.

“Why? There are so many other people, why me?”

“There are definitely people who are qualified, good people, and geniuses. But I don't like them. I like you.”

“Did you really think I would be soft-hearted after you almost gave me a heart attack over working with your boss? But the story about you and me is just a dream.”

“I haven't told you everything yet…” Daehwi became interested when he heard this sentence. “You are just like me when I was a kid. I mean, being in an orphanage just means I'm luckier. The person who took care of me was a good person. She is an angel who helps poor children. But you're unlucky. Having to meet bad people is fate, but Mr. Daehwi

It's also fate that when you find a diamond in a pond of mud, it's still a diamond. That's why I chose you No matter how I feel about you (in this case I like you), you will be us in the end. That is fate.” Dongho paused for a moment, “I don't want you to die. You yourself don't want to die. Let's spend the rest of our lives together.”

“Haha, please. You sound like you're asking to marry me. I just met you last night. Stop dreaming, Mr. Kang. I'm not that gullible."

“I'm not asking you to marry me, I just want you to consider me. Never mind! If you agree to come work with your boss, which you will because you have nowhere else to go. You'll have to see me every day and finally accept my love,” Dongho said and laughed out loud.

“How long?” Daehwi asked.

“It has been a year since Sangbin began to suspect that you might not be loyal to the older brothers.”

“You are so talented, I wouldn't be able to keep up with anyone for that long.”

“Some people are worth waiting for.” With that, he gently raised his hand to the smaller man's head.

“Thank you, Mr. Dongho. Thank you for not wanting me to die. And thank you for knowing that I don't want to die.”