It was a quiet night, exactly the way Taeyeon liked it. With a glass of red wine on the bar in front of her, she could thoroughly lean back in her stool and tune in with the soft melody flowing through the air of the lounge. It allowed her to lose focus and mentally travel elsewhere. She liked to let her mind wander along with the music. 

But, it became more than a bit difficult to execute when a sound out of the ordinary interfered with the atmosphere and ruined her state of mind. 

Opening her eyes in time for the noise to stop, Taeyeon found the seat next to her occupied. She blinked in surprise. A man in glasses and a grey suit with spiky bangs leaned his forearms against the bar. With braided fingers, he moved his gaze from the bar to her, ending it with a smile. 

Creepy as hell. 

While she waited for him to speak, already aware of his intentions, she raised a brow that reflected her unimpressed thoughts of his actions. Taeyeon could foresee what he planned to do, especially given his smile and appreciative looks roaming her body. Perhaps her sleeveless gown in shimmering silver with a long split that revealed her crossed legs wasn't the best choice for a woman who didn't intend to interact with anyone else except for the bartender. 

Yet, Taeyeon refused to apologize or feel ashamed for her attire. She looked and felt fantastic, which was the reason that she had bought the dress. 

"Good evening," the stranger began. His tone irked her to the core and nearly caused Taeyeon to shiver. A man on the hunt, it couldn't be any clearer. "Do you happen to be here alone, or am I interrupting?" 

Although she wasn't impressed by him, she didn't see any need to be rude towards him. Gently smiling towards him without sincere feelings behind it, she nodded her head. 

"In answer to both of your questions, yes," Taeyeon said before turning her gaze to the glass of wine in front of her. Slightly, her fingers played with the foot of the glass, slowly twisting it around, as she waited for the man to understand the hint and leave. 

"Maybe you wouldn't mind the company of a lonely man, then."

Hearing the man's words caused her fingers to stop and her gaze rose from the glass to the bar in annoyance. Gosh, the man chose to ignore the fact that she had clearly stated that his presence disturbed her. Otherwise, she wouldn't have claimed that he did interrupt her. 

Feeling that her mood and night had been ruined, she made the decision to leave and head home. Evidently, he couldn't take a hint and refused to leave her alone. 

"Do worry, then," Taeyeon mumbled before lifting her glass wine to her lips. After swallowing the remaining content, she put it down and turned to him. "I was about to leave anyway."

She turned to the other side and slid off her chair. Ready after grabbing her clutch and slipping between the chairs, she began to walk towards the exit. But, she was about to pass the man when a hand darted out and grabbed onto her forearm. 

"Lady, don't leave yet. I'm a gentleman, let me keep you company," the man said and hopped off his stool as well. 

The turn of events began to worry Taeyeon. She had many persistent men who could be slightly too obstinate. In the end, though, most of them respected her wishes and eventually left her alone. The stranger in front of her didn't and it caused a sour taste in . Did she have to resolve to violence in order to be freed of him? 

When the man spun towards the door with a tight grip still around her arm, Taeyeon felt more than ready to act upon force. 

But, they didn't get particularly far. Suddenly, the man had stopped. He was quiet and remained frozen. Only to turn aggressive a moment later. "Move," he hissed. 

His demand was directed towards a man dressed in black in front of him, at least half a head taller than him. Despite her slightly hidden view, she could see that the intruder glared the man straight into his eyes, which she felt affected him when his grasp around her arm loosened slightly. 

"Can you get out of the way, please?" her tormenter hissed again. When the other stranger didn't react, his shoulders tensed and he tried to physically make himself appear bigger and stronger. 

"I said move, idiot. What do you want?" he demanded to know. 

Again, not a word in response. The lack of any type of feedback severely trampled over the resolution of her tormenter and his body clearly sacked. It was her moment and Taeyeon ripped her arm from the man's hold. As though his touch had physically hurt her, she held her limb against her chest and nervously watched the scene in front of her unfold.

Due to the tension in the air between the men, she felt prepared to run if necessary. Maybe call the police, even. Hopefully, it didn't need to come to it. For the sake of all, she hoped that the man who harassed her chose to quietly leave soon enough. 

Finally, his opponent in black spoke for the first time. 

"You're ruining the evening for more than one person," he said with a smooth voice that dripped with gravely dark undertones. "It's time for you to leave."

The man opened his mouth to protest, indicated by his tense body language. Only to never utter a word and silently close his lips. Having taken a look, Taeyeon understood that it was because of the man in front of him and his incredibly dark eyes. They bore into her harasser with an intensity that made her shiver and reminded her of a beast ready for the kill. 

Not long after, the man directly in front of her decided to leave. With long strides and tense shoulders, Taeyeon could see that he was angry. But, she didn't care and only felt relief that he was gone. As he had been the one to start everything, he didn't deserve her sympathy whatsoever. 

On the other hand, someone who did was the stranger who remained in front of her. 

With a gentle smile and kind eyes, Taeyeon looked to him. "Thank you very much for helping me. I'm very grateful. Who knows what I would have done to him hadn't you interfered?"

He laughed. "Maybe I helped him more than you, then."

In return, Taeyeon chuckled. Only for her reaction to end when she froze on the spot. Without the slightest forewarning, the stranger had begun to let his eyes travel from the bottom of her feet upwards her legs. His gaze burned as it traveled along her limbs and continued to her stomach and chest before ending when he met her stare. 

Despite the small gesture, it had caused her heart to beat faster and Taeyeon felt herself unable to keep his gaze. It was too intense. As if he looked beyond her dressing and saw her body underneath, ravaging her without hesitation. She had to look away, feeling slightly embarrassed and afraid that she would melt under his gaze. 

To bring herself back to reality, she cleared and proceeded to say, "Again, thank you. I believe it's time for me to head home, though."

With her final statement, Taeyeon smiled at him and prepared herself to leav