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As a bartender, sure, Kai has witnessed some unthinkable things, but none came close to this.
On a late Saturday night, Kai was wiping the wine glass as soft jazz music played in the background. His only customer, Minju, was sitting on the stool with her laptop and headphones on, her glasses shining as they reflected the screen. Both were immersed in their own little world.
The bar was surprisingly barren, usually a group of ahjussi loudly arguing or laughing over whatever, heartbroken divorced couples, or even tired and broke college students would be flooding the bar, but it was a rare chill day for Kai as he never gets those nowadays.
He counted that as a win.
Unfortunately, he soon comes to regret thinking that peace was something he could finally achieve in this lifetime.
Kai must’ve been imagining things, as he thought he heard a noise outside from a distance. He paused and faced the entrance. Then, all of a sudden, something flew crashing through the bar in a burst of glass and concrete. Kai gasped and jumped back, swiftly ducking behind the counter. Smoke quickly filled the air.
Thankfully, the entrance was on the opposite side of where they were, and they were not majorly impacted by whatever was violently hurled toward them. Kai peeked and checked the state of the bar. Nearly half of the room seemed to be in ruins, with pieces of broken glass, tables, and chairs scattered around and cracks and dents all over the wall and the floor as smoke and dust overtook the air.
Minju was on her laptop, completely unaware of what the hell was happening behind her. Kai doesn’t know whether he should laugh or cry. She has always been someone who is in the constant state of ‘I Don’t Give A Fuck™,’ to a ‘How Are You Still Breathing™!?’ degree, even if she is one step away from entering the afterlife. Kai wondered how she made it through life with her limbs still intact. The girl’s self-preservation skills were in the negatives.
As the smoke began to clear, Kai swore he heard a cough. It wasn’t him or Minju; it meant another person was in the bar. Kai looked around, and as he glanced down, he felt his heart stop.
Beneath the rubble was a man with brown hair with bangs almost covering his eyes and wearing a cream-colored buttoned-up cardigan. Kai couldn’t see his face very well as the figure was lying down, facing the ground, and kind of struggling. There was a small pool of blood underneath him, and there were cuts and tears in his skin and clothing littered across his body. A series of coughs and heavy breathing followed.
Kai was about to step out of the counter and approach the injured man when he heard a deep, guttural growling noise that made him freeze on the spot.
At what was left of the bar entrance, with broken pieces of concrete and glass still falling to the floor, a large, ragged wolf-like creature, shrouded entirely in shadow, entered. It gazed towards the man trapped in the rubble.
“You poor thing,” the creature cooed tauntingly, eyes squinting a bit, and saying softly, “You better stop moving or you’ll bleed out.”
Even if Kai wasn’t on the receiving end of the creature’s focus, he felt his heart beating rapidly; his breath shuddered and felt his body tremble. He genuinely felt like he was going to get a heart attack and perish, but that would mean Minju would outlive him. Somehow. He doesn’t know whether he should be impressed or offended by that.
“It’s a pity you'll die here, though I had lots of fun playing with you. You were a great source of entertainment.” The creature chuckled, stepping closer.
"Unfortunately, playtime's over," a shadow flowed around it naturally, in a constant state, "don't worry, I won't bully you anymore. Just stay still, and we can make this quick," the creature's shadows furled, almost threateningly.
The man slowly stood up, brushing the debris off of himself. He wiped the blood that seeped through the corner of his mouth as he emerged from the rubble. He looked up at the creature with a gaze so intense that Kai felt his breath hitch.
Finally, the man’s face was visible.
‘Oh. He’s kinda cute,’ the bartender thought. The man had fluffy brown hair that fell haphazardly across his forehead, barely covering his shiny, puppy-like eyes.
Despite blood dripping down his face and cuts and bruises littered across his body, he looked so innocent. He really did resemble a puppy. A puppy that can probably beat the shit out of someone. I mean, he’s literally facing a 20-foot murderous wolf monster.
He’s cute and badass.
“I think we’re not done here,” the puppy-like man said with a sweet, honey-sounding, velvety voice, but his tone was ice, which made Kai’s blood run cold.
“Playtime is over when I say it’s over. Not until you stop rampaging the city and when you’re six feet under.”
Oh, shiver me timbers.
'That Was Fucking Ho-' Ahem. Anyways.
The creature chuckled darkly, amused, “You are something else, Kim Seungmin.”
So his name is Seungmin. Even his name sounds cute, whatever the fuck that means.
Suddenly, a blue energy discharges, circling Seungmin. His eyes glowed bright, and his hair flowed in a repeated motion.
He slowly raised his arm forward when debris started floating around him. He gazed at the creature, not daring to leave it out of its sight, his eyes sharp as flint and lips set in a firm line.
As if a surge of power exploded inside of him, a blast of sonic waves released around him, sending the creature flying out of the bar.
Seungmin brought his arm down and huffed a laugh. Kai just stood shell-shocked, and Minju Was STILL On Her Laptop, Completely Unaware Of What The Hell Just Happened Behind Her.
Seungmin glanced in Kai’s direction. He gave the bartender a tiny wave and an apologetic smile. In return, Kai waved back and gave him a shaky thumbs-up.
The puppy-like hero blepped, and within seconds, he dashed outside and leaped into the air.
There was a pause.
“Holy shit, finally! This essay was killing me!” Minju whined and stretched her arms upward. She turned around,
“Woah, the fuck happened here?? Did a mini tornado crash in here or something?”
As if snapping out of his trance, Kai snatched the bottle of wine and chugged it in one go.
He needed a vacation.
And a 50-year nap.