The fuss Minsu, a close older friend, was making wasn't anything new. For two whole weeks, he'd been praising Club TIPSY as 'the hottest place lately' until my ears were practically bleeding.

To be honest, I didn't expect anything at all. Clubs are all the same anyway. Loud music, flashing lights, and air mixed with the smell of alcohol and perfume. A repetition of boring nights where you couldn't find a single new stimulus even if you looked for one.

I was only dragged out here because I couldn't win against his nagging. From the moment I felt the damp heat rising from the stairs leading down to the basement, I frowned, thinking only of killing some time before heading back.

"Do you know why Tipsy is so hot right now?"

When Minsu asked with a meaningful smile, I just shrugged and answered with an action instead of words.

"Maybe it's because it just opened, but the quality of the crowd is insane. I saw one total knockout on my way up just now."

I let out a smirk at the cheapness of his phrasing. The 'knockouts' he talked about were always the same type. They might pique interest for a moment, but it would just be another boring process of having to engage in meaningless conversation.

Without much thought, I tapped him on the shoulder and stepped inside, but all my expectations were proven wrong.

As I pushed through the crowd and my vision cleared, what caught my eye wasn't the stage, the flashy lights, or the dancing people. It was a single person leaning against the wall, smoking a cigarette, making everything else a mere background as if they were under a solo spotlight.

Ha.

What escaped my lips wasn't admiration or surprise, but a dry laugh closer to a sneer. I instinctively realized that the 'knockout' he was talking about was you.

Fuck.

A curse word slipped out unconsciously. Passing by Minsu, who was still babbling about something, I headed toward the bar. Even as I ordered a whiskey and listened to the sound of ice clinking, my eyes were fixed on you.

So this is you 'sleeping.'

Watching that expression as you bit down on a cigarette and furrowed your brows at the smoke, I set my glass down without taking my eyes off you.