➴ bar。

@go minsi. any onlooker could guess that juyeon was a regular at this bar, yet the young man, still stained by the tiredness of teaching every evening, would still be in denial of such obvious truth. 'no, no, i just like a little gin and tonic after i'm done grading papers,' he would claim. but he would only be professing to unconvinced ears. he did not want to admit it, but his stature always instinctually carried itself to the bar after work. perhaps he just enjoyed how well the ambiance boded for him after a long day. perhaps he just really likes how they make their drinks. nonetheless, he found himself seated at the tail end of the bar counter lonesome. the seclusion was deliberate - he only cares about his drinks and his thoughts. he is one to just casually scroll on his phone during this time, perforating the dimness of the interior of the bar with the less-than-subtle brightness of his phone. two or four drinks at a time was his rule. more than that, and he might as well not teach the next morning. the only time he would split his attention elsewhere was to ask for another drink from the bartender, and the bartender was his only gripe of the establishment. still, even someone who was merciless with him in his adolescence could make a drink as noteworthy as the one cradled between the creases of his palms. the tendrils of his fingers absentmindedly played with the condensation festering around the base of the drink; he liked his drinks extra cold, after all.

rarely do sounds other than the languid chatter of those simply enjoying a drink break free from the monotony, but it seems tonight was a bit different. though not proximate to what seemed to be a growing altercation between the bartend and a rowdy customer, their voices transcended distance. the man's syllables were laced in nothing but ignorance and bigotry. the previously pursed lips of the young man soon falters as he notices the man increasingly become irate, manifesting his anger in putting his hands on the woman behind the bar. the sparing pittance of attention he previously gave to the situation now had his focus be entirely reliant on the altercation, raising his voice towards him in, albeit, growing consternation as he rose from his seat and approached them to intervene, "hey! hey! hey! dude, what do the do you think you're doing to her?"

if only juyeon gave way to intervening sooner - the woman had seemed to have taken multiple beatings, features polka-dotted with unsightly marks. he grabs the man off of her, only for him to look over his shoulder and follow with a right hook to juyeon's face, challenging the sturdiness of his stance as he stumbles back in pain. the bigoted man matched juyeon's height but superseded him in weight, of which became apparent to the young man as the two both wrestled yet he was the one relying on his back foot. one could tell neither him nor the drunken man were fighters, only knowing how to utilize their body weight to overpower the other. the man pushed juyeon against the wall adjacent to the bar, haggard words seeping from his alcohol-laden breath, 'who's this huh? your ing boyfriend? wait, you like men AND women, sweet cheeks? how the hell does that work???' the drunken man said. struggled groans and yells vaulted from juyeon's throat as he pushes the man off of him finally, dragging him against the bar counter before swiftly swinging his leg to knee him in the balls, "i bet you were looking for some action down there tonight, huh? how do you like that?! and that!??!" after a series of knees to the twin cherries, juyeon looks to the bartender still clad in dishevelment and bruises, but still able to keep herself together which is what mattered to him, "call the police now!" they thankfully had ample time as the drunken man appeared incapacitated for the time being.

@natty suputhipong. [TW: mentions club ]
There was nothing Mingyu hated more than losing control. Considering a part of his life was taken from him, it was needless to say that he wasn’t going to surrender any more of it. Whatever he chose to do from this point forward was because //he// chose to. Ironic how this mindset lead him to the dimly lit club. He stood at the entrance, deadpanned, as his coworkers from the construction site snickered beside him. “I want to leave.”

“No, Mingyu. Don’t be such a . We said we were in this together. If you really don’t like it once you step inside, you can go.”

He did agree to be more open. Another thing he hated most was going back on his word. The man sighed as he stared down at the lengthy consent form neatly stacked on a clipboard in front of him. With another hard glance at his surroundings and his fellow mates, he scribbled his signature hastily and turned in his forms.
After a few more processes and the assignment of their roles, they were finally led toward the back, where the room opened up into a larger, creatively decorated space. There were people, but one could hardly tell they were there unless they wanted you to.

“See? This isn’t so bad. I’m going to go check things out over here. Don’t behave,” his coworker gave a teasing smile before disappearing, the others scattering away after him.

“I guess I should grab a drink,” he mumbled to himself after taking one last glance and spun around on his heels to head over towards the bar. But instead of a clear route, his planned pathway was obstructed by something— or someone hard. His hands shot out to catch her by her shoulders, his eyes widening when he saw she was seconds away from slamming her head against the entrance post. “— Heard of a little personal space? Are you alright?”

@lucas wong. Soyeon prayed her false confidence with a mix of liquor can get her through this. She finally takes a sip of her drink then nods her head. "Mhm, that's right. Here I was thinking my hospitality was forgettable." A small chuckle passes her lips, the faint color of pink spreading around her face was enough to give her away. Was it the drink making her warm? She shakes away the thoughts of the memories in her head before turning to face the other. "So Lucas, what brings you around? It certainly has been awhile since you were here."

@jeon soyeon. A gentle smile played on his lips watching you do an amused moment. The book sign lost in his memory due to time, the cafe she spoke of a drunk blur of events but a night with you. Those we pleasant memories more thank happy to be present in the forefront of his mind. It had been year since they last seen one another, months since they spoken and days since he'd a random dream about her. He wondered if she'd thought about him to. There was only one way for him to find out.
"Asteria?Mmmmh...don't tell me Soyeon." He paused wagging a guessing finger. "Am I right?"

@lucas wong. Soyeon quickly tried to turn away but failed miserably as she was caught by the other. The bartender, sliding her requested drink of a tequila sunrise over to seemingly took a step back from the situation unfolding in front of him. She glanced down at her outfit, cursing quietly as she had came in her work uniform as well.
Soyeon cleared before looking the man in the eyes, a pained smile spread across her lips. She remembered him well. Wong Lucas. The famed author who had once set up a book signing at the cafe. One thing led to another and somehow he wounded up in her bed the next morning. How could she have forget?
"Your memory doesn't fail you. Yes we have met before. You did a book signing at my cafe once. Asteria?"

@jeon soyeon. Lucas ashes out the last of his cigarette in the provided ashtray. His eyes were laced with boredom as this was proving to be an anticlimactic evening to a chaotic day. “Thanks,” He says sparing the barkeep a glance and a polite head tilt before reaching for his freshly made tequila mezcal old fashion. The smell of its smokiness tickles his senses as he parts his lips and then pauses at the sound of the female voice. His curious eyes roamed the woman doing a swift fast scan of her features struggling to put a name to the pretty face. “I’m sorry have we met somewhere before?” An edge of cause spiraled in his tone afraid his assumption may backfire. This woman's face looks familiar enough but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

@lee juyeon. [ tw: homophobia, violence ]
"this tastes extra sweet today—or is it because of you?"
"where's your boyfriend? ah wait, don't tell me, you're single right?"
"what's your number?"
"i haven't seen you here before."

"sir, i'm here every day." a slight annoyance seeped through her words and the sickly smile she forced upon her lips. minsi was growing sick and tired of the man's constant questions. that, and the ugly smirk that was etched onto his face. if she could, she'd try to sand it off of him because wiping would do little to get rid of that rage-inducing expression. wiping down a glass, her eyes darted to her side, spotting a familiar face in her peripheral. 

of course, that one guy was here. what was his name? jimin? juwon? it started with j. it didn't really matter, he didn't talk much. or at least, he didn't speak much to her. every attempt at conversation was thwarted, whether by his lack of hearing or by a sudden preoccupation. minsi was starting to suspect it was deliberate. again, not that she cared (she did care).

what a ty day.

"who the hell is this?" the guy (expectedly) spoke up again. steam blows out of her nose, the glass in her hand set down on the bar with a loud clang. "what?" minsi snapped back at him, clearly exasperated. the smirk on his face finally wore off. instead, his thin lips were contorted into a look of disgust. she followed his gaze, and instantly, she connected two and two. he was looking at her phone. a notification from instagram had popped up, exposing her lockscreen, which was a picture of minsi playfully making a kissy face at hyungseo's cheek. "don't tell me you're one of those." he sneered, pushing his drink away as if the mere sight of two girls together lost his appetite.

they were just friends, but that didn't excuse his blatant homophobia. hyungseo was just there not even a couple of minutes ago before she left work early, and he somehow didn't recognize her—not that she'd want him to. regardless, it was clear that he was an idiot. heat surged through her, collecting at her head and her fingertips as blood began to boil with a fiery rage. her hands itched to smack that look off of his face, but he was a customer. she shouldn't. she couldn't.

minsi's eyes locked with the man who had pushed her too far. "what the is that supposed to mean? yeah. i kiss girls. what about it?" her voice rose defiantly, yet it did not cut through the bustling background noise of the bar. the last thing she’d want to do is catch everyone else’s attention. no one likes a mood killer. "that's not natural, why would you waste a pretty face like yours?” his words dripped with venom, and minsi felt her temper flare.

"don't call me that," she warned, her fists clenching at her sides.
"i meant you're ing disgusting." he spat, but before he could utter more, she interrupted him. "and you're an ugly homophobic loser with no life. now get out of this bar. don't come back.”

turning around, she greeted another patron, ready to take their card. the man lunged forward, grabbing a fistful of minsi’s dark hair before yanking her away from the customer. she hissed in pain—mostly in mourning of the bun she had painstakingly taken three times to get right— as he dragged her out of the bartender area. finally, he let go of her. “you !" was what she wanted to yell at him, but it was quickly cut off by his fist, aimed straight for her face. she instinctively raised her arms to defend herself, but the punch landed hard on her shoulder, knocking her back a step. pain flared briefly, but the numbing anger within her chest swelled stronger.

“what the hell? get your out of here." minsi growled, her voice edged with fury. she stepped forward, dodging his next swing and retaliating with a swift kick to his shin. he winced in pain but quickly recovered, pushing her back with a shove. stumbling to the floor, she barely had time to process the escalating situation until the man moved his way on top of her, pinning her down with his legs and landing more blows to her face. she groaned as her head painfully throbbed, a bruise already blooming on her face to match the new lip adorned with an ugly red split. the bartender put out her arms, pushing to try to get him off of her, but to no avail.