一层一层剥掉你的衣服

Chapter 143: Chapter 143: Gunfight in Downtown Seoul (Part 1)

Crash!

That was the sound of me sending Kihoon’s arm into the desk.

“What the?”

Well, well, well. That was just too easy. I gave an annoyed shrug as well as a smirk as Kihoon gingerly picked his arm up and stared at it.

“Kihoon, did you go easy on her?” Si-dong asked.

“Not at all. What happened?” Kihoon asked, still looking confused.

“Then, how could you lose so quickly?”

“That’s what I’m asking.”

Kihoon looked at his arm, then at me, and shook his head in wonder. Geunsoo spoke up again.

“See? See? I told you I’m not lying. You agree that I’m right now, right?”

“Uh…well…”

Once again, Kihoon looked at his arm, then at me, and another shake of his head in wonder. So, I added.

“Then, how about we do it properly this time?”

“Properly?” Kihoon hesitated. If I still win, it’s embarrassing for him. If I lose, it would make him look like a bully.

“Come on.”

“Uh…”

“Hurry up.”

I got into position again, leaving Kihoon with no choice but to do so himself. Si-dong clasped his hand over ours.

“Kihoon, do it right this time, okay? Don’t go easy on her.”

“Exactly. Give it all you got,” Geunsoo said, massaging Kihoon on the shoulders.

Soon, Si-dong was shouting, “Start!”

Wham!

Another crash.

It was Kihoon’s arm hitting the table once again. And once again, he choked in shock.

“What the…”

Nonetheless, the other men weren’t buying it.

“Hey, Kihoon! What the heck? I told you not to go easy on her!”

“But I didn’t…”

“Jesus, what’s wrong with you? It’s because she’s pretty isn’t it? Come on. Out.”

“But I really….”

In the end, Kihoon was dragged about by Si-dong, who took his place.

“Now it’s my turn. Got it, Sian?”

With an air of confidence, Si-dong got into position and went against me. And again, I won. Si-dong loudly protested before the rest of the men went, one after another. Unsurprisingly, I beat every single one of them.

“Weak.”

***

After the arm wrestling match, we did other things here and there. Before we knew it, it was time to wrap it up. It was more fun than I had expected, mainly because the men were very accommodating. It was finally time for our team dinner, which was what I’ve been waiting for. I was really looking forward to it.

We headed towards a BBQ restaurant close by. All the lovely, beautiful Lovely Girlz sitting amongst the serious, sad-looking men made the place seem a little livelier.

“Sian, do you drink?” Si-dong asked.

“No,” I answered. I never really did like alcohol. And now that I was in a girl group, it was even more important that I maintained my image. Guys don’t like girls who like to drink that much.

“What fun is that?”

“Good question.”

Seriously, it’s not just the alcohol. I can’t date women. What’s the point when I can’t do anything with them? I mean, right now it’s still fine, but then, what’s going to happen to me once all the members grow up and get married? I’ll just live alone and die alone. God, it was sad. I started to seethe and curse out the Grim Reaper again.

“Should I introduce you to someone?” Si-dong asked. That idiot.

“No.”

“Why not? I know a guy. He’s great.”

“I don’t like men.”

“Really? Did someone hurt you in the past?”

“No,” I said with a smile. How could I get hurt if I never dated anyone? Though there were a lot of men who were hurt by me.

“Then, just one date. It won’t hurt,” Si-dong said, trying to convince me.

“I’m a lesbian,” I said in a casual tone.

Si-dong’s jaw dropped in response.

“What? A lesbian?!”

He shouted so loud that everyone heard it as the restaurant became silent.

I quickly smiled and said, “I’m joking.”

“Oh. Phew. You got me there for a second. I thought you were serious. I mean, I’ve met gay men before, but never have I met a lesbian. That’s why I was so shocked.”

Si-dong kept a hand over his heart, trying to calm it down.

Gay men? Yeah, right. I’m sure it was just one man: Ji-chun.

“Anyways, that’s how much I hate men, so don’t bring it up.”

“Okay, fine,” Si-dong promised with a nod. Just then, Geunsoo came to sit next to me. Well, ain’t I popular today? It wasn’t just Si-dong and Geunsoo. The other men were all clamoring for the chair next to me as well. Oh, even the female staff?

“Hey, Sian, you’re really strong. You surprised me today,” Geunsoo said, pouring me a shot of soju.

“I don’t drink soju.”

“Oh.”

Geunsoo quickly grabbed the shot and downed it himself before pouring me a cup of soda.

Glug glug glug.

He kept pouring as he spoke.

“You’re not an alien, right?”

“How could I be?” I responded, laughing.

Him too, huh? Then again, the theory of me being an alien was gaining quite a following, especially with all the evidence piling up. There were some freaks out there who definitely took it way too seriously. They kept talking about getting a hold of me and dissecting me to find out the truth. Not that it would ever happen. Anyways, Jinwoo seems to think that it’s possible and is taking security very seriously as a result. He’s even considering filing a lawsuit.

“If I were an alien, I should be able to fly.”

“There’s a photo of you doing that.”

“....”

What?

“There’s a photo of you scaling that building in Japan during the earthquake. You haven’t seen it?”

“No, I haven’t.”

This is the first time I’m hearing about a photo. I definitely remember walking on air to head back into the building we fell out of, but the only people who were around to see that were the girls with me.

“Here. Look.”

Geunsoo took out his phone to show me the photo. I was tiny in the photo, but it was definitely me. With Nayoung and Ako-san in front and behind me respectively.

“Oh.”

“It’s you, right? But people keep saying it’s fake,” Geunsoo laughed.

I laughed along with him. “Of course it’s fake. That’s not possible.”

Who took that photo? Well, I’m sure he felt very frustrated at this moment with everyone calling his photo a fake.

“But it’s not just this photo though. There’s a lot of photos with you in it. You should do something about it.”

“Well, I’m sure Mr. Park knows what to do.”

He better. I’m the whole reason his agency is still standing. He’s probably doing whatever he can to protect me.

“Hey, Sian,” Si-dong said.

“Yes?”

“I’m making a show with Geunsoo where we meet with North Korean defectors.”

“Oh, really?” I asked.

And that’s when we heard it. A gunshot.

Bang!

The window broke soon after.

Crash!

“Kyaah!”

Everyone screamed and ducked for cover…except for me. I was already outside to see what was happening. The gunshot didn’t sound like it was far from here. I gathered my powers to heighten my senses and took another look around. I could hear footsteps. One person was chasing a group of people. They were all shooting each other.

Bang! Bang!

“Kyaah!”

“Argh!”

Every gunshot was followed by the sound of people crying out in shock and running for the nearest building for cover. A gunshot in downtown Seoul? How is this possible? I ran towards the sound of shots firing.

***

When I arrived, I saw a man going up against three police officers. The man and the police were looking at each other, holding their guns. I saw a few other people hiding behind some cars.

“Oh, no.” I didn’t see any bulletproof vests. This could get deadly, but how is this possible? This isn’t America. I looked around, thinking maybe they were filming and it was just an act. Unfortunately, there was no camera or anyone who looked like film staff anywhere. This was actually happening.

“I’ll have to get him from behind.”

I ran around a building until I was behind the gunman. I watched him. He took a shot that resulted in another gunfight. Luckily, everyone had bad aim, so no one got hurt.

“Well then.”

I picked up an empty can that was lying on the street. But wait a second…why was there even trash on the street? Well, whatever. I took the can and took my aim. But just then, one of the bystanders started to weave in and out of the cars, trying to get out. The gunman saw and aimed to fire…but couldn’t. Because all of a sudden, his hand was hit hard by a metal can.

Wham!

“Argh!”

The man dropped his gun, but then, he picked it up with his other hand. This time, he aimed the gun in my direction. As a response, I ran into the building. I’ve never been hit by a bullet before, but I knew that if I was hit, it was going to hurt. Not that he’d be able to get me anyway. Not with all the powers I can summon to protect me.

But then, all of a sudden, the guy started to run into the building himself. The building was only five stories tall, and all the lights were off. Maybe he needs to hide something? He certainly could, but he could also get trapped. So why was he coming here? Did he see me? Is he here to catch me? Well then. In that case, I’m glad. I poked my head out to look at him. The moment he saw me, he picked up his speed.

“Don’t move!”

“Ha.”

I planted myself against the wall and waited. Soon enough, the guy was in the building and pointing his gun everywhere.

“Where are you? Huh? I’ll blast a bullet through your head!”

He seemed rather frantic. Couldn’t blame him since it looked like there were more police cars. It seemed like they called a SWAT team. Well, moving on.

“Here I am.”

I stepped out as the man immediately pointed his gun at me. But then, all of a sudden, he couldn’t see me again.

“H-huh? What the- where did you go?”

“Right here.”

I showed up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He immediately spun around and aimed. Again, I immediately disappeared and showed up on the other side.

“Hey.”

“W-what the hell? A-are you a ghost?” the man demanded. He began to shoot soon after.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

“That’s dangerous.”

I showed up in front of him as he quickly stumbled backwards. I stuck out my foot and kicked the gun out of his hand. After that, I gave him a kick in the chest.

Wham!

“Ergh!”

Thud.

He fell on his butt as he tried to push himself backwards, trying to get away.

“Y-you crazy bitch! You’re a ghost!”

“You need to learn how to shut up.”

With a smile, I picked up my foot and gave him a good kick in the face.

Pow!

Crack.

The guy passed out with a hefty nosebleed. His nose was pretty flat, now that I mention it. Just then, I heard a window break on one of the upper floors as I heard a bunch of people running down the stairs. It was the SWAT team. I ran for the window next to me and climbed out. Thank goodness no one saw me…except for maybe that rat over there.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t the only one.