A Stroke of Luck in the Dark
They say that a life of unexpected fortune can turn on a dime, even from the smallest choices made in the mundane flow of daily life. I used to think that was just the kind of trite, hopeful message only successful people could afford to spout, but I’ve come to believe it—entirely because of what happened next.
“Haa… couldn’t a meteor just fall on the office already?” I grumbled to myself, venting my frustrations as I walked down a dark, poorly lit street. It was a bleak commute home after a long day of overtime—the kind of soul-crushing trek every office worker knows, dragging a body that feels like it’s made of lead. At times like this, my mind is a blank slate. I’m only thinking about the cold beer waiting in the fridge, the soft embrace of my duvet, and maybe the final score of today’s baseball game. In the repetitive, suffocating routine of a salaryman’s life, those were my only joys. I’d flush every other thought away like water down a toilet, heading home with my heart set solely on that brief, sweet respite. But then—thud.
“Huh? ……Whoa!”
I felt something catch under my foot and reflexively looked down. It was a person. The streetlamp was far off, leaving us in a blind spot, so I could only make out a silhouette.
“A-a-a corpse?!”
“Ugh… kck, keughhh…!”
Ah… just a drunk. Even in the dark, one whiff of the heavy alcohol scent made that clear. “Hey, are you okay? You’ll wake up with a stiff neck if you sleep here.”
“Ugh, ugh, ugh…!”
My face stiffened. The longer I looked, the more I realized this wasn’t just a case of a nasty hangover—he looked like he was in serious trouble. No matter how much I leaned over and shook his shoulders, he couldn’t give a coherent response. A dark premonition washed over me, and I pulled out my smartphone to get a better look. And damn it, it was worse than I thought.
“H-help… m-my breath… keugh, kck! Save me, please save me…!”
The drunk was wheezing, his voice strained with agony. He was thrashing about, clawing at the ground as if he couldn’t hold on any longer. It looked like he had internal injuries or was suffering from a seizure. His clothes were torn, likely from rolling around on the pavement, and his energy was fading fast. It was critical. A sudden, chilling intuition struck me: if I left him here, his life would end tonight.
‘Damn it… what is this? Why is this happening to me right now?!’
I was confused, terrified by the sudden reality of the situation. But a person could die right in front of me. That thought snapped my brain into hyper-focus. When the stakes are high, a superhuman strength seems to well up from within.
“Damn it, damn it…!”
My phone light wasn’t enough, so I hooked my arms under the man’s armpits and dragged him toward the nearest streetlamp. I checked his complexion, noticed his flushed neck and the scratch marks where he’d been clawing at himself, and pulled him into a tighter embrace from behind. *Whoosh!* I pressed into his abdomen in that position. His face was turning blue, and his movements made it clear he couldn’t breathe. I clumsily mimicked a technique I’d seen somewhere back in my reserve forces training. *Whoosh!* A harder abdominal thrust. I pressed with all my might, and when there was no reaction, I repeated it without hesitation. *Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!*
“Keugh, kck…!”
It wasn’t in vain. The man, who had been going limp like a corpse, started thrashing again. He began to retch, making choking sounds. Feeling the strain, I braced myself to the point of risking his ribs and pressed even harder. Suddenly—
“Puh-ha!”
*Splat!* Something flew out. A black silhouette arced through the air toward the darkness outside the streetlamp’s glow. It landed quite far away, so I couldn’t tell what it was, but it looked to be about the size of two knuckles. Whatever it was, it was now clear that something substantial had been blocking his airway.
“Haa, haa, haa… I’m alive. I’m alive…”
The immediate crisis had passed, but the man was wheezing, completely drained of energy. *Wee-woo, wee-woo!* Since he was out cold, I called an ambulance as a follow-up. GPS must be getting better every day; within ten minutes, the ambulance pulled into the narrow alley with its sirens wailing. The paramedics quickly secured the man and loaded him onto a stretcher.
‘Haa… I’m exhausted.’
Those fifteen minutes had passed faster than a lightning bolt. It was a heart-pounding, chaotic experience, but deep down, a sense of pride bloomed—a feeling of humanity. I was ready to walk away like a cool, selfless Dark Knight—
“Excuse me, are you the patient’s guardian?”
“Huh? …Ah! No, I’m just—I’m just a witness who happened to find him.”
“Oh… I see.” The paramedic scratched his head, looking disappointed. He didn’t seem ready to give up, even after hearing I wasn’t family. “I’m sorry, but even if you aren’t his guardian, could you provide a basic statement about the situation on the way?”
“Excuse me…?”
“You performed the follow-up care very well, and the patient’s condition seems to have improved, but there could be unexpected complications. Please…”
“Ah, aaah…”
He was effectively forcing me, a mere bystander, to tag along. ‘Wait, even if we head to the nearest hospital, taking the ambulance means I’m just heading back toward the office area…?’ Honestly, until a moment ago, the pride of saving a life had been my priority. *Thump!* But as the ambulance doors closed on me, forced into the ride, that was the only thought in my head. I roared internally like a lion trapped in a zoo cage: ‘Give me back my golden beer time, you bastards!’
***
By the time we reached the emergency room, the patient showed no other abnormal symptoms, and we confirmed there were no major issues beyond exhaustion. However, they planned to monitor him closely to see if his brain or airway had suffered damage from the prolonged oxygen deprivation. The man was fast asleep, hooked up to an oxygen mask. Frankly, that was useless information to me.
“Haa… what am I even doing with my life…”
I’d become an accidental temporary guardian, and here I was, faithfully keeping watch by the drunk’s side. When I complained that I had work tomorrow, the hospital staff said they’d checked his wallet, identified him, and called his real family. They asked me to please stay until the family arrived, just in case. It was 11:47 PM. If I went home now, I’d collapse instantly, and when I woke up, I’d have to face the workday.
“Haaaaaa…”
It was a day where I’d achieved the heroic feat of saving a life, but as the meaningless time ticked by, my sighs only grew heavier. I’d done something meaningful in the midst of a repetitive life, yet here I was, being treated like a pushover, losing even more time. A truly tragic life. Just as I was wallowing in self-pity, I heard it.
“Seriously… Dad!”
The shout of “Dad” came from the back—a sharp, piercing cry like an angry cat. The thin, high-pitched voice struck my eardrums. Startled by the sudden sound, I lifted my head, which had been drooping low, and saw someone standing at the foot of the emergency room bed. And her outfit was absolutely insane, her breathing coming in sharp, ragged gasps.
Tight gray tights that reached her waist. A white tank top that filled out her chest and emphasized an incredible body line. Over that, a black athletic jacket—perhaps for modesty, or perhaps just a style choice. It was the kind of outfit women often wore for gym training. Or the kind of outfit celebrities wore to show off their figures or bait views on videos.
‘Whoa, whoa…’
I suppose it’s common enough these days, but honestly, this was the first time I’d ever seen a woman actually walking around in clothes like that. No, this was the first time I’d ever witnessed a voluptuous body line that pulled off such an outfit so perfectly.
“Phew… you almost died because food got stuck in your throat? How much are you going to drink before you cause an accident like this?!”
‘Her chest is… bouncing everywhere?’
Sway, sway… Every time she shook the patient, her breasts moved in a way that made my head spin. It was a body line so stunning it made my own breath hitch. The woman, shaking the patient as if venting her anger, even smelled faintly of sweat. Whether she’d rushed over or had been in the middle of a workout, a few beads of sweat were trickling down her jawline—and that was the kicker. My energy was being drained away on its own. There was a magic in that woman that a man’s gaze simply couldn’t pull away from.
“Dad, Dad! Don’t pretend to be asleep. That won’t work this time, absolutely not!”
The beauty who had appeared out of nowhere kept calling the drunk “Dad” and shaking him. I stared blankly at the scene before finally coming to my senses.
“E-excuse me!”
“Yes?”
She turned to face me immediately. I swallowed my breath again. Her small face had perfectly placed features. I even noticed a mole under her lip that added a point of interest—something I hadn’t seen from the side angle.
‘Damn, she is insanely beautiful…’
It was an inappropriate thought for an emergency room, but it was just one exclamation after another. I felt like I’d finally understand how it felt to meet a celebrity I’d never had a connection with in my life; my brain’s circuits were failing to process the signal. Even when I tried to speak, the pressure radiating from her appearance caused a few puffs of air to escape my lips.
“T-that is… ahem!”
I forced a cough to clear my throat. “I think he’s really just passed out. He… he’s been unconscious ever since he spat something out in the alley.”
“Ah! So you’re the one who rescued my father!”
The woman grabbed my hands without hesitation. She clasped both of my hands together and stepped right in front of me. “Haa… thank you so, so much for saving my father.”
“Y-yes, yes!”
“Ever since my father quit his job, he’s only been drinking, and I was worried something would happen. I’m so glad someone was by his side. Are you a former colleague from his company?”
“No, I… I just happened to find him while walking by. Hahaha.”
“Ah, I see. Well, coincidence or not, I’m so relieved.”
Whoo. She even breathed her sweet scent right into my face, as if it were a family honor. “Honestly, this is what happens when you have impossible parents. To think I’m already running around at this age, cleaning up after a parent who keeps causing trouble.”
“Ah, ahahaha… is that so.”
“Phew… you see my outfit, right? I was in the middle of working out and rushed over, so I’m really in a bind.”
“Ah, ahahahaha… you came straight from working out…”
“……”
“……”
I just played along. The conversation between us quickly ran dry. No matter how much I racked my small brain, there was nothing left to say. As the awkward silence stretched, I felt uncomfortable and slowly stood up.
“Well… now that his real guardian is here, I’ll be going.”
“Oh? You’re leaving already?”
“I just stayed to keep watch in case anything else happened… anyway, I’m glad your father is safe.”
Even if I’d saved a life, I was just an outsider who’d met them by chance. There was nothing left to say, and I couldn’t get the words out properly anyway, so I left without regret. No, more than that, my heart was pounding, and I wanted to escape this place as fast as possible.
‘Aaaah… I’m drained…’
Dealing with a beauty of that caliber was far more exhausting than I’d imagined. Just exchanging glances made my throat go dry and felt like my energy was being sucked away. Plus, if I stayed any later, it would be hard to even catch a taxi with the late-night surcharge. I pushed through the automatic doors of the emergency room and stepped into the sparsely populated parking lot when—
“Excuse me!”
Someone called out from afar. I turned around, recalling that voice, and sure enough, it was that beauty in the yoga pants. She must have been in a hurry; she’d tossed her jersey jacket inside and was cupping her hands, shouting toward me.
“Thank you so much! Thank you so much for saving my father!”
She bowed deeply, folding her waist like an old-fashioned cell phone, just as politely as before. A beauty with a great face and body, and a sweet personality to boot. Honestly, from my perspective, today’s events were a perfect, accidental stroke of luck. It was an act of kindness done by chance, but seeing the heart of a daughter who genuinely worried for her father made my chest burn with heat.
‘…Wow, look at that cleavage. Damn, that’s insane.’
My blood felt like it was boiling, heated up. Moreover, it felt like that boiling blood was rushing toward that very spot. It was a touching moment, but my eyes were just following the beauty’s cleavage. I focused on that violent, deep valley—that heavenly place that any man born on this earth couldn’t help but admire. It couldn’t be helped. The best thank-you in my life was right there.
“Uh… excuse me?”
“Ah! Yes, that is…”
As she straightened her waist, I belatedly pretended not to have been looking and scratched the back of my head. I thought about what to say last, but all that came out was a bland, unrefined greeting that showed just how little experience I had with women.
“I… it was just a coincidence, and it wasn’t anything that big.”
After that, I added a pathetic, “Ahaha… well then,” and backed away. I walked backward over the gravel of the parking lot, then turned to walk properly toward the gate.
‘…Well, at least I got a boost of energy for the day.’
At first, I thought it was a total loss, but in the end, I felt like I’d been paid in full. I’d treat the time I lost and the beer money as covered by the eye candy I’d just enjoyed. I checked my watch: 12:00. Exactly the moment the day changed. It was a more heart-pounding end to the day than I’d expected. I headed home, thinking about how such experiences can happen in everyday life. I felt like I’d have good dreams tonight.
… … …
“…………What a strange person.”
Was it because of my personality, always trying to be easily satisfied?
“You’re just going to leave after I set the table for you like that?”
I had no idea at the time. The identity of the whisper I heard faintly from behind.
“You dare leave without even asking for my number?!”
That a person like that would become my future wife. Could I have even imagined it right then?