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Tonight, Yoon Do was not on duty yet he was still in his office, reviewing his schedule for tomorrow and the record of every patient he had an appointment with. The analog clock mounted on the wall read 11:27 and it was only when his phone lit up with a message from his uncle that he remembered he was supposed to meet the man at his favorite bar. Yoon Do removed his glasses, tossing it onto the desk, and called it quits. Today had been a rather long and strange day for him, but he wouldn’t necessarily call it a bad thing. Although he couldn’t hold his liquor well like Pa Ran could, he needed a nice, chilled bottle of beer to help him wind down.

The place was a little dark, but Yoon Do found his uncle propped up on a stool, an empty cup already rested in his grasp. He looked out of it, like he wasn’t entirely there, and Yoon Do pursed his lips out as he sauntered over and occupied the seat next to him. Once he realized he was no longer alone, Pa Ran snapped out of it and turned to his nephew. His lips spread wide, revealing his pearly whites, and he grinned crookedly. “When were you going to tell your uncle you were no longer a single man? I thought we were closer than this. I’m hurt, Yoon Do.”

“It’s a misunderstanding.” Yoon Do waved the bartender over and requested for a bottle of beer. “That woman didn’t come to see me,” he confessed, setting his gaze back on his uncle. “She was looking for you.” Pa Ran’s smile didn’t falter or waver. And instead of defending himself or asking useless questions, he allowed Yoon Do to continue. “Uncle, seriously. It’s time for you to settle down and stop going around, breaking hearts. It doesn’t fit a man your age. Take this as me begging you, okay?” The bartender returned with his drink and Yoon Do took a huge gulp, the bitter aftertaste dancing on his tongue as he placed the bottle onto the countertop.

“Because of your lifestyle, I had to suffer. Me, you’re only nephew. Don’t you pity me? Because of you I was harassed and scolded like there was no tomorrow by a woman I didn’t even know existed until she showed up at my office. Even my own father never laid a finger on me.” He shuddered and a hand instinctively moved up over the sore spot she had repeatedly jabbed. Yeah, he was definitely going to wake up with a discolored contusion in the morning. He could feel it. “I honestly thought she was going to fracture my collarbone.”

“Why are you lecturing me?” Pa Ran questioned, a confounded expression plastered on his face. “You should be thanking me instead,” he pointed out as he nudged Yoon Do in the ribs, that beaming smile of his returning. “For someone who was being harassed by a total stranger, you sure were looking cozy together. You even grabbed onto her like this.” He coiled his fingers around Yoon Do’s wrists to show him what he had done to Ha Yun. “If you asked me, it didn’t seem like you were all that bothered with getting harassed by such a pretty woman. You secretly enjoyed it, didn’t you?”

He winked cheekily at him and a thin layer of blush blanketed Yoon Do’s skin as he shook his uncle off. “What kind of nonsense is that?” Yoon Do exclaimed loudly, taking another swig of his beer. “I only grabbed her so she would stop hitting me. I was protecting myself,” he reasoned. Thinking on his toes, he shifted the attention onto the older man. “What happened between you and her sister anyway?” After everything Yoon Do had been through, it was only fair his uncle disclosed the information. It must have been a nasty breakup for her sister to get personally involved.

Pa Ran’s eyes fell onto the empty cup. “The question you should be asking is what didn’t happen between us.” His smile dimmed and the action did not slip from Yoon Do’s notice. “You know how the men in our family are,” Pa Ran muttered. “We can’t stay with one woman for the rest of our lives. That’s something that’s never going to change. So before it could get serious, I broke it off with her. It would have been crueler if I continued on with the relationship, don’t you agree?”

Yoon Do softened. He could tell how much this woman had meant to Pa Ran. It was written all over his face. She was not like the others. Whenever they discussed his ex-girlfriends, his uncle would normally shrug it off like it was no big deal, but this time it was different. He was different. He actually looked upset, even heartbroken. Although he should drop the matter, Yoon Do couldn’t. “Uncle, did you love her?”

Pa Ran in a huge breath and forced his lips to twist into a strained smile. It’s the third time he’s been asked that question. “It doesn’t matter anymore.” He chuckled. “I think I need another glass.” Yoon Do couldn’t stop him and all he could do was sit there in silence as he watched his uncle drink his sorrows away. He thought about how complicated love was and wondered how an abstract idea could drive even the most rational of people to the brink of insanity. If only there was a love that included no pain. But, alas, that kind of love did not exist. It was not real. Because heartache always came with love. It was impossible to have one without the other. It was inevitable. At least, for Yoon Do it was.

By midnight, Pa Ran was completely hammered. He couldn’t even manage to stand properly without Yoon Do supporting him. It looked like the person who was unable to hold his liquor tonight was his uncle. What a twist. After he lugged him to his car, putting him into the backseat, Yoon Do realized he had forgotten his jacket inside. He reentered the establishment and found it still sitting on the chair. While he was leaving, he bumped into the busboy on his way out. The boy apologized and then went about with his own business. What Yoon Do failed to realize, however, were the two men who had been observing him since his arrival. Once they saw him head toward the exit, they dropped the cash onto the table and trailed him outside, wicked intentions clouding their minds.

“Hyun Woo, can you take the trash out? It’s filled again!” one of the chefs hollered through the open window that linked the bar to the cooking area.

The busboy tossed the washcloth into the bucket and nodded. “Yes, sir,” he replied as he scurried into the kitchen. He grabbed the bag and used the backdoor, which led to an alleyway. Holding his breath, Hyun Woo propped the dumpster open and quickly swung the garbage over. He had a very sensitive nose. He was about to head inside, but froze at the sight of two men cornering someone a couple of meters away. He didn’t have to be a genius to figure out what was going on. It didn’t look good and an internal debate ignited within Hyun Woo’s brain. What should he do? Should he intervene? But this wasn’t his problem. He wasn’t getting paid to defend every unfortunate person he encountered. No, he was getting paid to wipe down tables, take out the garbage, mop the floor and unclog toilets.

Besides, if he got caught, he’d have to listen to Jae Min lecture him again. If he wanted to be put to sleep, he’d play some classical music. It didn’t look like the man was at much of a disadvantage either considering his tall stature. He should be able to handle himself just fine.

Oh how wrong he was.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Yoon Do stuttered as he staggered back. He shouldn’t have followed them here. They said they needed help and like a naïve child Yoon Do believed them. Now look at what he’s gotten himself entangled in.

“Give us your wallet,” the shorter man with a black caterpillar hovering over his lips ordered.

Yoon Do frowned at them. “And why would I do that?”

“Do you want to end up in the emergency room?” the second man spat, his patience wearing thin.

“Are you threatening me right now?” Yoon Do scoffed.

They smirked. “What does it sound like?”

“Come on. Don’t be stingy,” the shorter man prodded as he dusted Yoon Do’s shoulder. “We can tell you’re rich. Hurry up and hand it over already.”

Yoon Do swatted his hand away, eyebrows bunched together at the center of his forehead. He didn’t like being touched. “No,” he rejected. Their expressions darkened and he swallowed. Regret consumed his entire body. What was he doing? He didn’t know how to fight! He should have listened to Hye Jung when she suggested he took self-defense classes and learned the basics in order to pro