The music pulsed in the bar where Jin-Hee had been working for six months, every vibration resonating deep in her chest. The neon flashes cast hypnotic, almost suffocating shadows, adding a layer of chaos to the already electric atmosphere—a typical Seoul bar ambiance. She squeezed between crowded tables with a tray full of glasses, juggling customer orders and the insistent gazes of certain patrons.
"Waitress!" a man shouted from the back of the room. It was him, the client who couldn't stop making inappropriate remarks, the same sneer plastered on his lips. Jin-Hee looked away, hoping a colleague would step in. But no one moved. Resigned, she walked toward him.
"What can I get you?" she asked, her voice barely audible in the din.
The man, already drunk, leaned dangerously close. "That forced smile—if you're doing it for the money, it's not going to work. Come on, beautiful, give me a pretty smile and maybe I'll be generous tonight!" He burst out laughing, and his friends imitated him.
"You know, you're totally my type. Well, if we ignore that bread tray you're dragging." He pointed his glass at her hips, the same sneer glued to his face.
Jin-Hee felt her cheeks burn, but fully aware of her fiery temper, she took a cold breath to quell her annoyance.
"Unfortunately, we are out of whiskey. May I suggest another drink, sir? This one is the most requested right now." She placed a glass of beer on their table and turned away without reacting to his taunts.
The sound of laughter behind her brought a terrible premonition. Then came the chilling sensation: a viscous liquid was dripping from the top of her head, soaking into her uniform. She froze, time stretching under the shock and anger. An uncontrollable surge of rage rose within her. She hesitated for a fraction of a second, but the humiliation was too great. The empty tray slammed with a crash against the man's head, her own heart pounding in her ears.
The sound of the tray, which echoed like thunder, drew the attention of the other customers. The unfortunate man who had tasted the tray writhed on the floor, holding his head. The bar manager emerged before the man's two friends could pounce on Jin-Hee like furies.
"Jin-Hee, are you crazy?! Attacking a customer in the bar?!..." He then turned to the three customers, "Gentlemen, please excuse this inconvenience. She's a new employee; she still lacks experience. How about this? We offer you the drinks and exclusive VIP service!" The assaulted client thundered, "You think that's the end of it just because you offer me the drinks?!... She has to pay for this!!!" The embarrassed manager repeatedly bowed towards the client, begging him to accept a satisfying arrangement. He forced Jin-Hee to kneel and apologize to the client, which she did with great reluctance and a deep sense of being wronged. The client calmed down but promised that next time, he wouldn't let it slide.
Mr. Kang, the bar manager, reassured the other customers and instructed Jin-Hee to follow him to his office.
"This is the third time this month you've caused trouble!" Jin-Hee was offended. "He wouldn't stop being insulting to me!!!"
"It's a bar, Jin-Hee. We don't serve monks here, we serve paying customers, and you need to know how to manage their... excesses!!!"
"So I have to take it and smile when a customer is out of line?"
"We pay you to serve and smile at customers, not to give them moral lessons!" He spat the sentence in a dry tone, then loosened his tie and added, "This loss and the previous ones will be deducted from your salary, and if we do the math, you won't get paid this month. You should thank me for my generosity."
Silently, Jin-Hee untied her apron and placed it on the manager's desk, then announced, "I quit..."
"You quit?! Do you have any idea how hard it is for someone like you to find a job that pays this well?!" Jin-Hee didn't flinch and slammed the door as she left the office.
She left the bar, her steps echoing on the deserted sidewalk, like a betrayal in the icy night. Every face rushing around her seemed to accentuate this abyss of bitterness and loneliness. She grabbed her phone and called the only person who completed her and made her feel indispensable, her best friend Ally. On the phone, without even exchanging a word, Ally understood how her friend felt, "Meet me at our usual spot, I'll be waiting for you there."
Jin-Hee walked to a small, all-night cafe nestled in the corner of a quiet alley, their usual refuge. The bell tinkled softly, a simple but hopeful note. She scanned the room and found Ally, her roommate and best friend, a presence that seemed to chase away the shadows accumulating in her mind. For an instant, she felt less alone. Her friend was waiting at their favorite table, engrossed in her laptop, a steaming coffee in front of her. This image of someone waiting for her swept away the loneliness she felt and gave her comfort. Ally looked up, saw her friend, and waved, a warm smile on her lips. Jin-Hee went to join her.
"I ordered your favorite coffee!" Ally said, pushing the steaming cup toward her.
Jin-Hee dropped into the chair opposite her and took the cup. "Thanks!" She took a sip, savoring it under her friend's tender gaze. "I really needed that!" she exclaimed, putting the half-empty cup down.
"Are you sure you're Korean? Usually, beer or soju should put you in this state, not a cup of coffee!" Ally teased playfully. "Another incident at the bar?" Jin-Hee didn't reply and simply nodded, staring at her cup.
"What happened?"
She told her friend the whole story. "What? You never told me a customer was harassing you!!! And this has been going on since you started working at that bar?! Why didn't you tell me, Jin-Hee?!!!"
"I know you, Ally, you would have ended up wanting to fight!"
"So what! Do you know any friends who would stand idly by in a situation like that?!" The indignation began to rise in her. "No, this won't do, I have to go tell that b****rd exactly what I think!" She stood up, determined to go find the manager of the bar where Jin-Hee worked.
Jin-Hee held her friend back. "I already quit, so there's no need to make a scene. Come on, sit down!"
Ally slumped back into her chair, her fingers nervously drumming on the table. Her gaze alternated between anger and sincere worry for her friend. She looked at her, cursing her damned kindness, "You should have at least defended yourself!!!"
"I did! I threw my tray at his face..."
"Six months of harassment, and all he gets is a little hit from a tray! You should have given him a good kick between the nuts and broken a glass over his head! Since you were going to lose your job anyway, you should have caused two or three more losses for that bald, bloated guy (The Bar Manager)!!!"
"Don't you think that's a bit extreme?"
Ally gave a sarcastic laugh. "Haha ha! You're too soft, my rabbit. This world is full of thick-skinned jerks who won't think twice about crushing you if you don't show your fangs."
"Okay, okay, let's talk about something else now. You finished early today!" Jin-Hee noted, looking at the time on her watch. Ally tensed slightly before announcing to her friend that she had been fired. In turn, she told her friend about the bad day she had.
Ally clenched her fists, her eyes flashing. "She fired me for, and I quote, 'Lack of Professional Ethics.' Her niece took credit for my hard work, and she expected me to shut up and stay quietly in my corner?!"
"So you made a whole scene at the office? Wow! You truly are one of a kind."
"If her niece had just insulted me, I could have let it slide, but she slapped me. I saw red and jumped on her!"
Jin-Hee then raised her coffee cup as if to make a toast, "No doubt about it, we really are two peas in a pod." Ally also took her cup and clinked it, "We couldn't find a better friendship anywhere else."
They smiled at each other and stayed for a long time, sharing their frustrations while sipping their coffee. Ally spoke of her projects, and Jin-Hee, for her part, brought up her desire to launch into show business. The night wore on, but their laughter drowned out the weight of the day. In this little cafe, they wove plans for the future, ready to face the world on their own terms.
The streets were deserted when they decided to return to their apartment. Luckily for them, the cafe wasn't too far away. They walked back, savoring the air refreshed by the shower from a few hours earlier. They passed a Convenience Store, and Ally stopped in front of it.
"I just remembered the fridge is almost empty. Wait for me here; I'll get us something to eat. How about some Japchae?" Jin-Hee nodded, and Ally entered the convenience store.
As she waited outside the store, she saw a man in his forties across the street, wearing a long black coat, standing motionless like a frozen shadow. He was staring at her, and a shiver ran down her spine. He then addressed her:
"Young woman, you carry a singular energy within you, a potential that doubt and the chains of daily life prevent from flourishing."
She turned to look behind her, as if to confirm that the man was indeed addressing her.
"I am addressing you. Do you want to change your life? No longer endure the tyranny of a boss whose ego is as bloated as his belly, and a baldness he hides behind cheap wigs?" he asked.
The traits described by the man echoed the physical description of her now ex-boss, Kang Gwan-Sik (The Bar Manager). Jin-Hee frowned. "Who are you?"
The man stepped forward slightly, handing her a slip of paper. "Take this. And connect to your new Life."
Before she could answer, he walked away, disappearing into a dark alley. Jin-Hee stood motionless, as if time had stopped. Fear gripped her, but a stubborn curiosity whispered to her to accept this invitation.
Back at their place, they enjoyed their meal. Jin-Hee tried to push away the strangeness of the encounter, but she couldn't help but talk about it.
"I ran into a man earlier, in front of the convenience store," she declared, placing the slip of paper on the table with a mixture of hesitation and excitement.
"It's a scam. Phishing attempts are more elaborate these days," Ally retorted.
"But this guy piqued my curiosity; he gave precise details about what I was going through. A bit like a psychic."
"That makes it even more dangerous; he probably knows who you are and where you live. Be careful."
"He talked about changing my life with this. Who knows, maybe it's a super-secret, 100% winning lottery site. It's worth a try, right?"
Ally sighed, disappointed by her recklessness, "You are too naive for this world."
Jin-Hee begged her with puppy dog eyes, "Come on!..."
Ally sighed and gave in. After all, no argument could outweigh her friend's cuteness overload.
They turned on the computer. Jin-Hee nervously typed the address, her heart beating louder with every letter. The screen darkened, revealing a black page with a single "Play" button. She crossed her fingers before pressing it. Then, a text in flashing red letters appeared: "Cheoson Era: There is always an alternative." It filled the screen like a silent threat. And suddenly, the page disappeared, leaving the computer blank.
They turned off the computer, Jin-Hee feeling ashamed under Ally's look of "I told you so."
Jin-Hee smiled to save face, "Well, if that was an ad for a video game, they really nailed it!" She stood up, stretching exaggeratedly while feigning a yawn. "Oh dear, what a day! I think I'll head to bed before my eyes close on their own."
Her friend's disapproving look did not leave her; she knew she would get a lecture about the dangers of her recklessness. Jin-Hee dashed towards her room, but Ally didn't give up so easily. "You know, that could have very well been a cyberattack!" she called out, chasing her friend, her voice tinted with a mixture of reproach and mockery.
They finally fell asleep, a smile on their lips, lulled by their laughter and good spirits.
The next morning, they were woken by strange noises. Jin-Hee opened her eyes and froze. The room was no longer the same: a dim light danced on austere walls, and modern furniture had been replaced by rustic wooden objects, both fascinating and unsettling.
"Where are we?" she murmured, visibly shaken. Ally, sleeping beside her, was still far away in her dreams.
Vast green fields stretched to the horizon, dotted with traditional thatched-roof houses. She stepped down from the rustic mat they were lying on and walked through the room. An odor of smoked fish hung in the air, permeating every corner of this timeless place... Jin-Hee let out a cry of fear as she realized the obvious: they were no longer in Seoul.