When Hoya came to, he found himself in a booth with his three best friends. A sigh of relief came from his mouth when he realized that his friends weren’t heartless enough to drag him to Busan. But Hoya couldn’t shake this unsettled, almost moving, feeling from beneath him. This booth was different… The chairs were too comfortable for any kind of bar or restaurant. A glass on the table moved unsteadily. The water it contained moved in waves in its container. If you weren't concentrating, it would seem that it stood it place. 

Hoya glanced at the quiet faces of his friends and the window beside the booth that was fully covered by curtains. Another sigh escaped his mouth, this time of disbelief. Hoya pulled the curtain back. Behind the thin red cloth, the landscape of Korea’s countryside rolled past. Cows, mountains, fields, and farms rolled by the window as if it were seen on television. The faint sound of a train whistle flew through the air. They were on their way to Busan. 

“I hate all of you,” Hoya mumbled as he covered the window.

Woohyun leaned back in his chair and pulled a magazine out from his backpack, “This is for your own good.”

“Think of it as vacation,” suggested Hyomin, “We all could use one right now.”

Hoya ran his hands through his hair and sank into his seat. How did his friends manage to do this? They managed to knock him out and drag him onto a train. Didn't it appear strange to anyone that he was being carried, almost lifeless through the city of Seoul? Hoya laughed at the mental image of his three friends carrying his drunken self onto a train.

A pain rushed to his head. It must have been from the alcohol Dongwoo managed to coax into his body. Hoya always believed that his friendship with Dongwoo would benefit him in all areas: male appeal, fun, and free drinks.  He just didn’t think about the negative effects of their friendship, like Dongwoo’s bartender ability to knock him out with only one glass of mixed alcohol.

“What the heck did you give me?” Hoya asked as he loosened his tie.

Dongwoo laughed and continued to play with his phone, “Just the same thing that I gave you when we first met.”

Time: 11:40PM

Location: Puzzle’s Bar, Seoul

Date: 12/23/2008

“Last call!” called Dongwoo.

It was the night before Christmas, and Dongwoo had to close down the bar early. The owner didn’t want to deal with overnight drunk customers on Christmas morning, so he made sure that Dongwoo made ‘last call’ before midnight.

“Can I have two bottles for the road?” moaned a voice at the end of the bar counter.

The owner of the voice was a boy in his early-to-mid twenties. He wore a gray suit, and his tie was so loose that it threatened to fall of his neck. He was incredibly wasted, but it looked like there was a reason for it. If it wasn’t for his constant sniffles, Dongwoo would have barely noticed the tears that were hidden by the tequila induced droplets of sweat.

“No problem,” replied Dongwoo. He reached under the counter and pulled two bottles of water. The moral bone in Dongwoo’s body couldn’t send this boy home with two bottles of beer.

The boy smiled and pushed the bottles away, “Never mind, and give me a glass of your strongest drink.”

Dongwoo immediately refused, but the boy insisted that he wouldn’t leave without it. The clock on his watch warned him that he’d have to have the bar closed in fifteen minutes. He was sure that if he didn’t close up soon, several wanders would be walking through the bar’s doors.

“Hey, I got to go home. What’s it gonna take for you to go home?” Dongwoo asked with several taps on the bar’s counter.

The boy looked up at Dongwoo with watery eyes. His hair was sticking up in random places. “Mr. Bartender sir, I just got my heartbroken,” he spat, “Can’t you just leave me here to drink to death? I promise I won’t steal anything besides a few gallons of alcohol.”

“How about I give you a bottle of water and throw you into a taxi?” Dongwoo suggested, “That way, we can both go home!”

“Man, can’t I just get a beer instead?” the boy pleaded with a hiccup.

“No,” Dongwoo muttered. He knew there was no way to get this kid out. So, Dongwoo ignored him and began shooing everyone else out of the bar. Once the bar was cleared, he fixed the tables and closed up the restaurant. After half an hour, all that was left to be cleared was Dongwoo and the boy.

There was still no sign of the boy getting up and leaving. Dongwoo pulled up a chair next to the half-asleep boy and nudged him awake. “Hey, talk to me,” Dongwoo proposed.

The boy sat up and oddly looked at Dongwoo before asking, “About what?”

Dongwoo shrugged his shoulders and handed the boy a glass of water, “About whatever’s bothering you.”

The boy’s eyes began to water and suddenly, his story came out. His name was Lee Howon, or Hoya. He came from Busan and moved here after following his first love. He was only twenty-four years old, a year younger than Dongwoo. “She was the girl I thought would be my wife,” he cried. Sometime during the night he lost his best friend at a different bar.

Dongwoo felt so bad for him. A brotherly pity deep inside of Dongwoo wanted to take Hoya out of his misery. So he did. Dongwoo hopped behind the counter and began to mix some of the heaviest drinks together. He made sure that just one glass would be enough to knock this kid out.

“Here, this is on the house,” stated Dongwoo as he pushed the drink down the bar counter.

Hoya lifted his head to glance at the oddly concocted drink, “What is it?”

“A free drink.”

Time: 7:00am

Location: Gyeongbu Train/Busan/Korea

Date: 4/17/2012

“I remember that. Or rather, I remember you telling me what happened when I woke up on your couch the next morning,” reminisced Hoya.

“It was the most toxic drink I have ever created. It was on the featured menu the week after,” Dongwoo bragged.

The other three friends shook their heads at Dongwoo. They still couldn’t believe that Dongwoo began a bartender, especially with his distaste of drinking and total passiveness. A quiet passed through the four friends as they watched the peaceful country view pass by. Slowly the countryside turned into a city and ocean view. They were arriving into Busan. 

Hoya's eyes glimmered at the view of the ocean; It's been years since he last saw the waves wash upon the shore like they do in his hometown. But a bitter grimace formed on his face. "What do you guys expect me to do once we get to Busan?" 

None of his friends replied. They had a plan, and were ready to put it into action. Hoya rolled his eyes at his friend's silence and continued to admire the beauty of his hometown.