Another Day, Another Shot

At the Bar

as usual, I hope you enjoy 💖 and I hope you have a wonderful week ahead ✨ 

PROMPT: Cha Mi-jo and Gu Seo-jin met at the bar.

AT THE BAR

"CHEERS!"

The Gu brothers were out drinking at the bar with some of their friends to celebrate a few things. Gu Seo-jin just closed a pretty expensive business deal with a company they were eyeing for a while. On top of that, Robin just finished the last comic book of his popular comic series, and it was set to be published and sold in all bookstores around the country.

"To a more profitable year for Wonder Group!"

"To more comic series to be published!"

Seo-jin and Robin, along with their friends and colleagues, cheered for each other's future successes.

"I'm going to order us more drinks at the bar," Seo-jin leaned closer to tell Robin over the loud noises. Robin nodded, and went to talk to their other friends.

~

"I'm still grieving, and it's been MONTHS. Why am I still hurting, huh? I want to stop crying over every single thing she reminds me of. But I don't know how to stop." Cha Mi-jo took another tequila shot.

Shot after shot.

"I don't know how to move on. I miss Chan-young so much."

Seo-jin looked over to where that broken voice came from. The bartender looked at him as he looked at the owner of the voice, Mi-jo. The bartender just shrugged.

"Can I get a few more beers for our party over there," Seo-jin told the bartender and pointed to where the beers will be served, before he looked back at Mi-jo.

"She's been drinking for hours already and I think she's spilled half of her life story. It's mostly a sob story. It's pretty sad actually," the bartender said.

As the bartender grabbed the buckets of beer from the fridge, Seo-jin sat closer to Mi-jo, without invading her personal space. He didn't want her to think he was a creep hanging out at the bar looking for trouble.

"Do you want me to call someone for you so you can go home?" Seo-jin asked Mi-jo.

Mi-jo looked at Seo-jin, with her red blotchy face. Her nose was red and her eyes were puffy from all the crying she's done for the past hours. But even with all of these, he still thought she was beautiful.

"None. I don't want to trouble them anymore than I already have," Mi-jo said. "My parents are wonderful. My sister is hilarious. Joo-hee has a young handsome boyfriend. Chan-young left me to drink alone and grieve over her. How do I move on from that?" She looked at Seo-jin, her eyes tearing up again.

'Well that was a complete turnaround,' Seo-jin thought. "The bartender was right. It was pretty sad," he muttered to himself.

"I don't have much experience with grieving, but I do know what it feels like to have someone so close to you that you don't want to lose them. Because if you do, you'll be lost," Seo-jin glanced over to where his brother was.

"Much like you, I gather. You're lost without Chan Young-ssi."

"I am. I'm absolutely lost without Chan-young," Mi-jo drank another tequila shot. She didn't even make a face with the taste because she was already numb from drunkenness.

"Chan-young was my best friend since high school, along with Joo-hee. We were always doing all sorts of shit that got us into trouble. We love drinking, too!" Mi-jo smiled fondly as she recalled their memories.

"Chan-young was like a sister to me. A friend soulmate you can say," Mi-jo said. "I know she'd want me to continue on with my life. I still have wonderful people around me after all. But I can't seem to figure out the first step to moving on. Do you know?"

"I wouldn't even think twice about telling you if I knew how," Seo-jin replied.

Mi-jo just smiled at their predicament. "Well, cheers to the unknown I guess?"

"Cheers to the unknown."

Together, the two took another shot.

Seo-jin can't help but make a face with how awful the tequila shot tasted. Mi-jo laughed at him.

"You want to join my brother and I? We have a table over there. We're celebrating," Seo-jin looked over to where their tables were. "Only if you're up for it. No pressure here. Just want to help lift up your spirits a bit."

Mi-jo looked over to where Seo-jin and the others were celebrating, before she looked at him again. She was contemplating this nice stranger's offer.

"Don't worry. We're not creeps or anything, if that's what you're thinking about. I can guarantee you that," Seo-jin reassured Mi-jo, answering her unspoken question about her safety.

Mi-jo gathered her things, took one last shot, and was ready to go. "As long as you're buying the drinks. I think Chan-young would want to make more new friends now that I lost one, don't you think?"

"Absolutely," Seo-jin said. He offered his arm for Mi-jo to grab. They both knew she needed support going to the other table because she's already wobbly with all the alcohol she drank.

"Lead the way...," Mi-jo trailed off, not knowing Seo-jin's name.

"Seo-jin. Gu Seo-jin."

"Mi-jo. Cha Mi-jo."

Maybe Chan-young conspired for these two wonderful souls to meet at this very bar. Maybe Seo-jin was Mi-jo's first step to moving on.

With that, Seo-jin and Mi-jo took their first steps together.

To a new beginning of friendship. Or something more.