Hyukjae parked his car in his usual parking space beside the bar. He got off of the car and observed the thousands of stars in the dark sky. He sighed as he remembers the confrontation that had happened a few nights ago with his two brothers. He unconsciously touched the side of his bruised lips. He flinched as the bruise is not healed yet.

He walked towards the entrance door of the bar and stepped inside. The bar is still the same, it gives a lively vives. He strode towards the bartender table and he noticed a woman who is seating alone in there. She was wearing a white polka dots long sleeve dress, a black coat, and black boots. He took a seat beside the girl whose face he can’t see because of her hair. She was looking down at a paper in front of her.

“Kyungsoo, the usual please,” He said to Kyungsoo, who looked at him warily.

“Not again Hyung!” Kyungsoo said. “I have enough dealing with a drunk Hyukjae.”

“Yah! I’m not going to drink too much. I brought a car, just one glass is enough.” Hyukjae retorted.

Kyungsoo sighing in defeat, poured vodka on an empty glass and gives it to him. Hyukjae mumbled his thanks and took a sip.

“What about you Miss? Anything for you?” Kyungsoo said to the girl who is seating beside him.

The girl leveled her gaze at Kyungsoo when she realized the bartender is talking to her. She smiled at him and spoke. “Just a glass of water, please.”

Kyungsoo became dumbfounded for a second, it was the first time that a customer had ordered a glass of water at this bartender table. But he still serves her what she had ordered.

“Your water Miss”

“Thanks.” The girl said and she looked down again at the paper in front of her.

Hyukjae knitted his eyebrows to the girl who had ordered a glass of water. He can tell that it was her first time going in here and her face is unfamiliar. Being a patron of this bar, he knew a lot of faces and he can tell who’s a first-timer or not. His curiosity kicked in and he decided to talk to the girl.

“Excuse me, Miss,” He  said

The girl then glanced at him and give him a questioning look.

“Pardon me for disturbing you, but it’s my first time seeing you here. Are you first timer here?” he asked cautiously so that he won’t scare the girl.

“Yes, it’s my first time.” The girl answered while smiling sweetly.

Taking her smile as a sign of being friendly. He thought that it was okay to talk to her. So he continued.

“Really? Do you want me to recommend an alcoholic drink for you?” He asked offering to help her.

“Thank you, but I don’t drink alcohol.” The girl said.

Hyukjae eyebrows became more knitted. He was confused about what is the girl doing here when she didn’t drink alcohol. And it looks like she’s alone.

“Sorry I didn’t mean to pry. But why are you here?” He said.

“Because of this.” The girl said while lifting the white paper and giving it to Hyukjae

Hyukjae looked down and saw a list is written in the paper:

Dara’s Bucketlist

1. Go to a bar
2. Go to Namsam Tower and lock a love padlock
3. Meet a stranger and became his/her friend
4. Listen to other people stories of their struggles and give them comfort
5. Make someone happy
6. Go to an amusement park and eat ice cream
7. Go to the beach and have a first kiss
8. Live my life without regrets

“Dara’s bucket list?” He said and he looked at the girl. “Your name is Dara?”

“Yes, my name is Dara. Nice to meet you.” Dara offered her hands for a handshake.

He hesitantly took it and he introduces himself. “I’m Hyukjae. You can call me Hyuk.”  

“So you’re my friend now right?” Dara said and she smiled at him. She carefully took back the paper and took out a pen from her coat. She crossed out the number 1 and 3 on her list.

“Yes! 2 completed on my list.” She said while a hand in the air. She folded the paper and put it inside her coat’s pocket together with the pen. She then lifted the glass of water in front of her and drink some of it.

Hyukjae was caught off guard by what had happened. In a blink of an eye, he had made a friend, which seldom happens whenever he was at the bar. Because of the reason he was focused on drowning himself in alcohol than socializing.

He let a small laugh in disbelief at how crazy it was to made a friend with just small talk and one handshake. And of top of that, he feels that Dara is a nice, and bubbly person. It was only their first meeting but he felt like he knew Dara for a very long time.

“Do you still believe in doing a bucket list? That’s old school.”  He asked while giving her an amused look.

Dara looked at her new friend and put down the glass. “Of course. Having a bucket list is important you know? This will help me to live a meaningful and memorable life.” She suddenly pulled him into a hug. “And it’s memorable to have you as my new friend Hyuk.”

For the second time, Hyukjae was caught off guard. He was hugged by a stranger. He was hugged by a girl who he just met. He was surprised by the sudden gesture but somehow, he finds it comforting.

Dara felt that Hyukjae’s body became stiff. She immediately let go. She just smiled, trying to hide her embarrassment.

“I am sorry,” Dara said. “I got carried away. I am just happy.”

Hyukjae snapped back in reality. And he just smiled at her.  “Don’t worry it’s nothing big deal.”

Dara nodded and she averted her gaze to the dance floor. She is watching the people there, who are dancing to the beats the DJ had been making. She slightly moves her head, trying to harmonize with the beat. She glanced back at Hyukjae when she heard his question.

 “So why going to a bar is on your bucket list when in fact you don’t drink alcohol?”

“Because I want to have fun,” Dara said and grinned.

“You think this kind of place is fun?” Hyukjae asked while sipping some vodka on his glass.

Dara hummed. “Yes, it’s fun. Did you see those people dancing? It looks like they were having fun. And the music is so lively.”  

Hyukjae averted his gaze on the dance floor. At first look, the people in there were indeed having fun. They were laughing, swaying their bodies, and their arms were up. But he knew better, even if they look like having fun, inside they are not.

He looked again at Dara and spoke. “Just because you see them like that, it doesn’t mean they are having fun. And it doesn’t mean that this place is fun to be at.”

“Why?” Dara said with a frown. “I thought that some people are coming to this kind of place to have fun.”

Hyukjae sneered. “You’re so naïve Dara.”

Dara scowled and pouted. She finds Hyuk’s remarks a bit rude.  “Hey. Don’t be rude.”

Hyukjae shook his head and give her a small smile. “I am not rude. I am just saying the truth.”

“Tch!” Dara said and she gulped down the water in her glass. “If this place is not fun to be at, then why are you here? To have fun right?”

Hyukjae chuckled. And a sorrowful feeling had clouded his heart when he remembered the real reason why he is here. Why he needed to go to this filthy place every night for two years. Just to drowned himself into oblivion. Just to intoxicate his mind, to the point that everything didn’t make sense to him. Just to numb his heart from the pain, guilt, and regret. Because when he was sober, the knife of pain is constantly stabbing his already shattered heart.

“I am not here to have fun, Dara.” He looked straight into Dara's eyes. “I am here to forget.”

Dara was silenced. She was drowned in Hyukjae eyes, which are full of sorrow and pain. She doesn’t know why but seeing his tranquil eyes, she felt that both of them have shared the same pain. She felt that both of them needed each other’s presence tonight. She felt that he is the one she needs to spend her night with.

Hyukjae smiled at Dara and looked away. He gulped down all the vodka on the glass he was holding. He put it down after draining the contents. He took out his wallet from the back pocket of his pants and he took out some bills, giving them to Kyungsoo. He looked again at Dara and spoke.

“I will be going now, Dara. It’s nice meeting you. Have fun.”

He stood up from his seat. He bid goodbye to Kyungsoo and left Dara seating in there while looking at him with an unfathomable emotion. He stepped out of the bar and strode towards the parking lot. He felt an unfamiliar feeling while exiting the bar because it’s the first time in two years that he exited in a sober state. He felt an unfamiliar feeling when he realized that he was aware of his surroundings, and no two big bodyguards are carrying him side by side.

He originally planned to be drowned again into oblivion like what he usually does for two years, not caring if he brought a car.  He can just call a substitute driver to pick him up. But something inside him is nudging him not to do it, that he urgently needed to be sober tonight.

He reached his car, and he’s about to open it when suddenly a pair of hands had clung to his arm. He flinched in surprise and he looked at the person who clung at him.

“Dara?” He said. His brows are furrowed.

Dara was looking down, not able to look at him for she is regretting what she had said to him. And his answer brought a slight pain in her heart. She gathered enough courage and looked up to him with serene eyes.

“Have fun with me, Hyuk”