“I want a refund….”

“Shut up, Sujeong.”

“No, no. She’s right. I want a refund too, Hyejin-ah.”

All three women sat in their booth as they saw Wheein being swarmed. All throughout the night their little game was fun but the moment they stepped into the gay bar it was over. While all three got an equal amount of offers, it was Wheein that took the spotlight. A hidden ace that all had forgotten about.

“Seriously, how did we not take Wheein into account??” Sujeong slurred as she tried to count the people that surrounded Wheein. She only got up to two before all the bodies started to blur into one. Giving up at that point, she elected to slouch against a just as disgruntled Ji Yeon. 

“Cuz she’s the sober one,” Hyejin answered as she took another sip of her drink. Her eyes were focused on Wheein, paying attention to every little detail. How Wheein would politely laugh, how Wheein would shift her water from hand to hand, how Wheein would lean as far was possible from the encroaching crowd, how Wheein looked expectant of something.

“Don’t get up or ya gonna fall,” Sujeong muttered as she stopped Hyejin from tumbling forward with a haphazard grab. 

“But--” Hyejin started as Sujeong pulled her back down onto the faux leather cushion. She tried to squirm out of Sujeong’s grip but Ji Yeon also held her down.

“As much as ya wanna fight em all, ya in no condition to be swingin’ any punches,” Ji Yeon stated as she also glared at the crowd that surrounded their sober beacon of hope. 

“But she’s being swarmed! We gotta do somethin’!” Hyejin exclaimed. If Ji Yeon hadn’t held her arm down then her drink would be flying at the moment. 

“Didn’t you guys used to have a game of this? Like, how many you guys could make fall for you??” Sujeong tilted her head in an attempt to jog her memory, but instead she got her world going akilter.

“Oi, that was when we were younger and sober. This is different,” Hyejin huffed. 

“Uh-huh, well, who’s idea was it to have this contest anyway?” Ji Yeon said.

“Hey! How was I supposed to know that Wheein would singlehandedly leave us in the dust just by going to one bar??” Hyejin defended herself. 

“We should’ve known it was a setup when it was her that suggested this place,” Sujeong muttered as she tugged on Ji Yeon’s sleeve. 

“I--what do you want, Sujeong??” Ji Yeon was going to argue more but the insistent tugging from Sujeong was distracting. 

“Bathroom.”

“Wh--Didn’t you go, like, five minutes ago??” Ji-Yeon griped as she got up anyway. Next to Wheein, she was the sober one. 

“It’s not my fault that my body is excellent at filtering out booze,” Sujeong said as she followed suit. 

The duo soon vanished and Hyejin was left to ponder. Well, ponder as much as an intoxicated person could. 

Despite her stinted senses, all of her focus and attention was on Wheein. She noticed how Wheein has slowly been making her way back and that there are fewer people but it’s still not enough. Wheein was surrounded. Luckily, none dared make any sort of advances and all were tame. 

The music was blaring and her body pulsed with the bass, it was disconcerting. The bar was dark, the main light sources were at the stage and by the bar itself, and all the bodies looked like they belonged to one monstrous blob as they danced on the floor. 

She downed her drink, and plopped it down on the table with a solid thunk. If only she was sober enough to stand without wobbling then she would fetch Wheein herself. Dramatically too. Something to show everyone. 

“Why is someone like you sitting by herself??”

A woman’s voice cut through Hyejin’s haze like a butter knife. It wasn’t sharp enough to catch her attention, but did the job well enough to distract her. Looking at the source, Hyejin saw another bar goer. Beautiful, but not as beautiful as Wheein. 

“Huh?” Hyejin could only say as she blinked at the woman before her.

The woman’s face was flushed and her words slurred together just enough. It was clear that this woman was intoxicated. But what was she doing here? Did she need a spot to anchor herself? Or was she subtly seeking help? 

“I said,” The woman sat herself down next to Hyejin, “Why is someone like you sitting by herself?”

“Someone like me??” Hyejin’s mind was shutting down. She was tired and all that drinking was just expediting the process. She just wanted to be in Wheein’s arms and be at home. 

“Yea,” The woman scooted closer and laid a hand across Hyejin’s, but Hyejin was numb to it all.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Hyejin questioned. Her focus was on maintaining coherent thought and speech that she didn’t notice that the woman was leaning closer and closer and that the woman’s thumb was the top of her hand. 

“Did your friends leave you too?” The woman smiled a blinding smile that Hyejin squinted. 

“No?”

“You here by yourself?” The woman continued as if she didn’t hear anything. Maybe she didn’t. The music was deafening and the only way to hear anyone was to be uncomfortably close or to yell. 

“Wh--” Hyejin started but the woman continued to talk.

“That’s what my friends did. They just left and haven’t returned yet. And you know it’s dangerous to be by yourself,” The woman gave Hyejin a strange look. 

“They just left you?” Hyejin’s more protective instincts started to kick in.

“They said they’ll be back but that was a while ago. I’m hoping that they didn’t get lost in the crowd,” The woman giggled. Another hand placed over Hyejin’s. 

Hyejin blinked and before she could say anything, Sujeong and Ji Yeon returned.

“Hm? Who is this?” Ji Yeon flipped back to her friendly persona. Amazing how she could do that without seeming forced. 

“An abandoned person,” Hyejin blurted. Still oblivious to how close the woman was and to how touchy she was. 

“Hey, you know she has a girlfriend, right?” Sujeong glared at the woman. Despite clutching onto Ji Yeon for dear life, Sujeong somehow managed an intimidating aura. 

“Oh? I don’t see her,” The woman smirked as she switched her focus back to Hyejin. Opening to suggest that they leave this unfriendly atmosphere, another voice interrupted. 

“Look here.”

All four turned to look at a very displeased Wheein.

The woman squeaked in surprise, Ji Yeon raised her brows, Sujeong hummed while looking between the woman and Wheein, and Hyejin could only stare at Wheein with an adoring look.

“Now you see her,” Wheein couldn’t help but smirk. 

The woman could only sputter out pitiful apologies as she shamefully made her way out. 

Once the woman was out of sight, Wheein let out a sigh of relief. She finally understands what Hyejin means when she says that she would fight anyone that was being a nuisance to her. Seeing that woman bothering Hyejin, who was obviously intoxicated, boiled her blood. All she wanted to do was to know how long it would take Hyejin to finally make a move and drag her back. She missed the way Hyejin would let the world know how they were together.

“Huh, that’s the first time I’ve ever seen the pup turn into a wolf,” Sujeong slurred together.

“Oh my god, I knew you guys were bad but I didn’t think you guys were THAT bad,” Wheein said as she heard Sujeong’s words. She kept track of everyone’s drinks and it wasn’t much. Maybe they were all lightweights.

“The pup has bite,” Ji Yeon chuckled as she kept a swaying Sujeong steady.

“Wow…..that was amazing….I wanna see more,” Hyejin gave Wheein a dopey grin as her eyes glistened with love, “I wanna see more wolfie Wheeinie~”

“I--What? No, nope. Those were cursed words,” Wheein shook her head, “It’s tiring being intimidating. I don’t know how you guys do it anytime you want.”

“It’s a power that takes a long time to learn,” Ji Yeon nodded sagely.

“I want more wolfie Wheeinie!” Hyejin exclaimed.

“You’ll get wolfie Wheeinie in bed one of these days,” Sujeong said without a thought.

“Huh, wolfie Wheeinie in bed huh?” Hyejin’s face was blank before a pleased smile made its home on her face, “That doesn’t sound bad.”

“Oh my god, can we not talk about….” Wheein waved her hand between a giggling Sujeong and Hyejin, “Whatever the hell you two are talking about?”

“So this is how we find out your kinks,” Ji Yeon added.

“No!! Nope!! We are going home, right now!” Wheein exclaimed as she grabbed Hyejin’s arm and started to pull her out of the booth. 

“What kinks? They are surprisingly vanilla, remember?” Sujeong continued to giggle. Truly past the point of no return. 

“Oh that’s right, Hyejin-ah is old school like that,” Ji Yeon continued to add on. 

“What do you mean old school?? I ain’t old!” Hyejin blurted as she tried to move towards the terrible duo. But Wheein’s arm stopped her before she could stumble forward.

“Come on, you guys can fight once we get back to the apartment,” Wheein said as she started to drag Hyejin out. 

“Well, considering how Hyejin-ah is out of practice, it won’t be much of a fight,” Sujeong grinned as Ji Yeon dragged her along. The two most sober ones dragging the two most drunk ones.

“I can still pack a mean punch, you !” Hyejin twisted her head around to glare at Sujeong.

“If you can even punch straight,” Sujeong countered.

“The only straight thing about me are my punches!!” Hyejin proudly exclaimed. Earning a few glances from the nearby patrons, and even a few cheers. 

“Can you guys focus, for three minutes, so we can get down the stairs??” Wheein asked as she looked down their only exit. She keeps forgetting that the gay bar is an upstairs bar. 

“Do you think we can survive?” Ji Yeon asked as she also looked down the stairs. 

Hyejin and Sujeong evolved their bickering to growling at each other.

Actual growling.

“I’ll go first so if anything happens and you guys start tumbling down then Hyejin can be the cushion,” Wheein said as she made her way down and gently guided Hyejin down with her.

It took them a total of five minutes to finally get back to the street. Hyejin and Sujeong kept stumbling and made the entire process slow and painful. At times even tripping, but Wheein and Ji Yeon were watchful and careful and ready. Always catching them and holding onto them until they were steady.

“Hey, Wheein??” 

“Hm?” Wheein turned her face to see what Ji Yeon wanted. She finally got Hyejin to remain still just enough to make walking easier. 

“Uh, what are we gonna do about baths??” Ji Yeon looked between the still stumbling Sujeong and the clinging Hyejin.

“.....Well….I didn’t think about that…” Wheein admitted. She planned for Ji Yeon and Sujeong staying over, and even prepared where they would be sleeping. So how could she forget the most basic of hygiene? 

“I can take bath with woflie Wheeinie!” Hyejin exclaimed with a giggle as she wrapped herself as much as she could around Wheein.

“Eeeeew, then I’m stuck with Ji-Yeon,” Sujeong grumbled.

“Well duh! Wheenie is mine and only I’m allowed to see her lucious, plump, sublime --” Hyejin was cut off by Wheein’s hand covering in a hurry. But that didn’t stop her. She kept on talking even if she was muffled. 

“Wow, I knew drunk Hyejin was a mess, but I never thought she would be that much of a mess,” Ji-Yeon observed as she saw how red Wheein’s face went, “And what makes you think you’re stuck with me, huh?”

Ji-Yeon jostled a cheshire grining Sujeong.

“Uh, safety??” Sujeong drawled, “Do you trust an intoxicated person, such as myself, who can’t even walk without help, to take a shower??”

“If you can string a coherent enough sentence like that then you’re sober enough to bathe yourself!” Ji-Yeon huffed as she guided Sujeong over an uneven patch of sidewalk.

“It can just be a quick rinse, just enough to wash away the bar stench,” Wheein suggested. Sujeong was right. She didn’t feel comfortable leaving an intoxicated person in the shower. 

“Awww, so no bubble bath?” Hyejin pouted.

“We can have a bubble bath tomorrow,” Wheein answered as she gave a kiss on Hyejin’s forehead. Earning a bright smile, and a cheerful giggle from the intoxicated lion.

Ji-Yeon and Sujeong could only roll their eyes at the couple.