Scarred Angel| Dreamcatcher

Ch. 7: Can We Talk?

Sua double-checked if she forgot anything before she headed towards the door. "Siyeon, I'm going!"

"Alright! Good luck! I'll probably be here when you come back."

"Probably?"

"Yeah, I figured I'd do my own little checklist before we finalize everything. It might involve me leaving the place for a bit."

"Oh. Then good luck to you too." Sua said as she left.

***

Sua walked over to Jiu's place. She kept looking from her phone to the street signs to make sure she didn't get lost. After a few moments of backtracking, she was able to find her apartment building. She went to find her number on her phone again to tell her she's there. Jiu also told her about how their door doesn't really have anything to use to access the building. No keypad. No intercom. Only the owners and the residents have the keys, so if guests want to enter, they'd hope the other person was home.  To make sure she was here, Sua gave her a call. "Hey Jiu, I'm at the front."

"Oh! Already? I'll be there in a sec. I got caught up in a few things."

"No worries. I'll still be here."

Soon Jiu got to the door and let Sua in. Jiu started a conversation as they started walking to her apartment. "Sorry about that. I would've waited right at the door, but I was looking into something for a friend and lost track of time."

"Do you mind if I ask what it was?"

"I'm sure it's fine. My friend was telling me how another friend of hers just moved into the city and she needed help finding her a job. She entrusted me because she thought I'd have enough connections to get one that's good for her."

"Makes sense. You seem really outgoing and friendly. I wouldn't be surprised if you got a huge net of people to hang out with"

"I've got a huge number of acquaintances." Jiu politely corrected her. "As far as friends go, I don't have as many as you think. Hell, I'm pretty sure I can name them on just one hand. You being one of the newer ones." Jiu smiled at her statement. "Oh, by the way, you should head to the convenience store not far from the bar. My friend, the same one I'm helping, likes to see new customers come by. Her name's Handong. Tell her Jiu sent you. You might get a deal or two if you need it."

"I'll keep that in mind." Wow, Jiu does know everyone. Sua would probably ask Handong how she knows her later.

"Here we are!" Jiu unlocked the door. "Come on in. Make yourself comfortable."

"Thanks. Um. Don't take this the wrong way, but why your apartment? You barely know me. For all you know, I could've been a creep. "

"Well, for one, a creep wouldn't call themselves out like that. Even if you were, I can handle myself. I dealt with plenty of creeps at my job. Believe me, it's easy to tell who's sketchy. I just wanted to hang out at a calming place and what's calmer than your own home?"

"Oh, I see." Sua sat in awkward silence for a bit before asking another question. "So, what got you to want to work as a bouncer?"

"It wasn't my original plan. I was thinking of opening a place of my own. A cute little cafe with baked goods I'd make from scratch. I found the location, but it was pricey. Then Jun told me about how they needed a bouncer where he works. I've been friends with him since high school, so he knew I took some fighting classes, and he thought the job was right for me. I took him up on the deal and the rest is history."

"Do you like it? I mean, it's way different than your dream."

"I love what I do. I love the idea of keeping people safe. It's like I'm their guardian angel watching out for things they might not be aware of. I still want my dream, but this isn't a bad in-between job."