The Worst Day (1)
It was late, nearing midnight.
Kim Sihyun hurried back and forth through the club in his waiter's uniform. This was nothing like an ordinary nightclub. It was a secretive place, closed to the public, where only the children of the upper class could set foot.
Even to Sihyun, who knew next to nothing about luxury brands, the clothes on every guest looked unmistakably expensive. The bottles on the tables weren't soju or beer either — they were costly-looking whiskeys and wines.
If I spill or knock anything over, I'm completely fucked. Careful.
Born without so much as a spoon, let alone a golden one, Sihyun worked with extreme caution, haunted by the fear that a single mistake wouldn't just cost him his pay — it could bury him in debt.
Damn, maybe I shouldn't have taken this job.
He had stumbled into it on a whim through a connection from another part-time gig, lured solely by the high hourly rate. The longer the night went on, though, the more he regretted it.
Is it because they're rich? They're even more of a pain in the ass.
Most of the guests were arrogant and difficult by default.
"Hey, fuck! Where the hell's my drink?!"
"You deaf or what? Do your job properly!!"
That much he could endure — he'd dealt with the same at other jobs. What truly got under his skin was something else entirely.
"Oh my! I haven't seen your face before. You're so pretty!"
"Are you sure you're a guy? Come over here and pour big sis a drink!"
The female guests who said the things he hated hearing most, and who wouldn't stop hitting on him.
Barely twenty, Sihyun stood under 170 centimeters, with the kind of delicate, refined features that had gotten him mistaken for a girl since childhood. Because of that, people constantly teased him about his looks or showed unwanted interest — and outright harassment was far from rare.
He loathed that kind of attention. But what choice did he have? He was here to make money, so he had to put up with it.
"Haha… I still have tables to serve."
"Aww, don't be like that. Come here."
The woman looked at least ten years older than him; watching her put on an act of cute charm made his stomach turn.
"This noona will tip you really well~"
Then he saw the bills in her hand. He clenched his jaw and forced a smile.
"Yes. I'll pour you a glass however you like."
That was when it happened.
"Hey. You. Hold on."
A sharp voice cut straight into his ear. Sihyun turned.
Long black hair, blue eyes, and a perfectly tailored black suit. Completely out of place in a club, and radiating an overwhelming presence, a woman was calling him over.
"You… are you really a man?"
She looked him up and down with open suspicion and, on first meeting, casually tossed out the words he hated most.
Oh, for fuck's sake. Why does everyone keep going on about me being a girl…
But the woman who had just been asking him to pour her drinks shrank the moment she saw this one. Whoever she was, she was clearly someone important.
Fine. Just put up with it… I got a good tip just now, after all.
Sihyun barely managed to swallow his irritation and answered with another forced smile.
"Yes… I am a man."
"Hmm~"
Yuri regarded him with open interest after hearing his answer.
Ah. This one's going to be a massive pain…
Just as Sihyun was thinking he had drawn the short straw—
"What? Han Yuri's interested in a guy?"
"Really? Who, who? Whoa! Holy shit! He's ridiculously cute!"
With Han Yuri as the catalyst, every woman in the club started paying him even more attention. The men, by contrast, frowned in open displeasure.
"The hell. What's so great about that pretty-boy gigolo lookalike…"
"Right? This isn't even a host club. Why'd they let a guy like that in?"
Kang Jinwoo, who had been persistently pursuing Yuri and getting rejected every time, made no effort to hide his irritation.
"Hey, Han Yuri. Don't tell me your type is some girly little guy like that?"
He sat a short distance away at another table, sneering as he spoke.
"Kang Jinwoo?"
Yuri only laughed, needling him right back.
"Pfft. At the very least, this part-timer is more my type than you are."
And with that, she casually slipped her arm through Sihyun's.
"H-hey, let go of me!"
Startled by her sudden move, Sihyun tried to pry her arm free. But—
What the hell? How is a woman this strong…!
Her grip was far stronger than he expected; he couldn't easily shake her off. He could have forced it if he wanted to, but the thought of accidentally spilling liquor on her clothes and the disaster that would follow kept him frozen in place.
Watching them, Jinwoo's face twisted into something ugly.
"What? Fuck. You're comparing me to some beggar brat?"
Furious, he shoved his chair back and stood. He strode toward her without hesitation, ready to tear into her on the spot.
But—
"What, you got a problem with that?"
"Th-that's…"
The moment he met Yuri's cutting gaze, Jinwoo flinched and his words died in his throat. Instead, he turned the full force of his rage on Sihyun.
"Hey, you. Who the hell do you think you are, getting handsy with Yuri?"
"Excuse me? Me…?"
Sihyun answered the enraged Jinwoo with pure disbelief.
What kind of bullshit is this?
First a crazy woman, now a crazy man. He felt like he was losing his mind. But Jinwoo, already worked up, paid no attention to how wronged Sihyun looked.
"Shut it! Who do you think you are, talking back!"
He raised his hand to strike him.
Ha. Fuck…
Sihyun seriously considered just smashing Jinwoo's face and walking out of this whole shitshow. In that same instant—
"Aaaagh!!!"
Yuri was faster. She seized Jinwoo's wrist and twisted it hard. He screamed and stumbled backward.
"Aaaagh! Hey, Han Yuri, what the hell are you doing?!"
"Be quiet. Stop being so pathetic. And quit following me around like a nuisance."
Han Yuri casually dusted off her hands and looked down at him with pure contempt. Because Jinwoo's family was so powerful, the onlookers carefully controlled their expressions or turned away rather than react openly. But the snickers and shaking shoulders among them only grated on his nerves further.
These… fuckers. How dare they…
Jinwoo clenched his jaw and his fists, but he knew that losing his temper any further would only make him look like the fool. So he swallowed his rage.
You bastards just wait.
Without another word, he turned on his heel and hurried out of the place.
Once the incident had settled, Sihyun made up his mind on the spot: he was quitting this part-time job.
I really am sorry to the noona who went out of her way to introduce me… but no matter how I look at it, this isn't worth it.
The look in Jinwoo's eyes as he left kept replaying in his head.
If I keep working here, he's definitely going to keep making my life hell.
Having dealt with plenty of difficult customers before, Sihyun's instincts told him everything he needed to know. People like Jinwoo held vicious grudges; if he stayed, the harassment would never stop.
Just think of it as a one-day gig…
Between the high pay and the tips the guests had thrown around, quitting after a single day felt a little wasteful. But the whole night had been so unpleasant it almost felt like selling himself, so he decided to walk away without regrets.
It's not just the crazy guy. Getting tangled up with that crazy woman would be a disaster too. This is the right call…
He had just finished settling his thoughts and stepped out of the club when—
"Hey."
That crazy woman. Yuri was waiting for him outside. The moment he saw her, irritation flooded through him. He frowned and let out a sigh.
"What is it?"
His reaction only made Han Yuri snicker.
"Don't tell me you're quitting after one day?"
Sihyun didn't even feel her question deserved an answer. He ignored her and kept walking. Yuri, looking even more amused, chased after him and asked again.
"Come on, just tell me~"
Sihyun sighed, thoroughly annoyed, and gave a short reply.
"So what if I am?"
The blunt way he tossed the words out only made the corner of Han Yuri's mouth lift higher with interest.
"Just curious. Why are you doing this kind of work in the first place?"
"To make money."
Sihyun shot her a look that clearly said what kind of stupid question is that and answered flatly. That attitude of his only stoked her interest further.
Like a cat with its claws out, all bristling wariness — it was almost cute. The thought of picking him up and taming him crossed her mind, and she smiled with open mischief.
"Hey. I've got a proposal for you…"
But right then—
"Han Yuri, you fucking bitch!"
A rough voice cut through the darkness. Kang Jinwoo, followed by several men, blocked the alley.
"You keep calling me pretty this, pretty that — you think I'm a total pushover?!"
"Hmm~ Kang Jinwoo. You sure you can handle the consequences of this little stunt?"
"Handle it? Fuck you. Worry about your own life first, you whore! And you next to her — get ready to die with her!"
"Wait, why me…?"
Sihyun looked utterly wronged, but Kang Jinwoo had no interest in listening. He barked orders at the men trailing him.
"Beat the shit out of both of them!"
Watching the men close in, Sihyun thought, How the hell do I get out of this?
In that moment, his eyes met Yuri's. She grinned, then suddenly linked arms with him again and put on an exaggerated, cutesy voice.
"Kyaa! I'm so scared~ Save me!"
Sihyun recoiled in horror and tried to pull away.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
But the more he resisted, the tighter Yuri clung to his arm.
"Kyaa~"
"Hey, fucking let go of me already!"
Seeing that, Kang Jinwoo's face flushed scarlet with rage. He screamed himself hoarse as he ordered his men forward.
"Fuck! What are you standing around for! Beat those bastards down already!!"
As the men closed in on Jinwoo's command, Sihyun thought once more:
Ah, fuck…
Today really was turning out to be the worst day of his life. All because he had taken some godawful part-time job and gotten tangled up with a crazy woman and a crazy man.