4 Dojo Limitless (1/2)
”Su Min! Su Min!”
A man in his late 50s shouted out as he stood in front of a grocer's shop. An embellished coat of paint seemed to have just been put on earlier as the sign hanged with the title - 'Yu's Grocers'.He went to every dark alley he could see but still found nothing. The concern in his voice grew and grew every time he found no one.
”Su Min you punk!”
The man didn't seem to care for the neighbours around him as dusk approached, and it was only until a few people who lived next door shoved him back into the shop did he stop shouting. Frowning, the man slumped into the staff room and glugged himself some alcohol.
”What does he expect to happen when he's that weak...”
As the man mumbled at himself with a pout, the door leading upstairs moved open until a gentle girl revealed herself with a timid gaze. Her eyes dwindled in the background for a while until she shyly asked.
”Uh, dad?”
”Wa-”
The man's back shivered and he nearly dropped the glass in his hand when he heard a voice that didn't announce itself. He turned around and looked at the small girl in a haste before sighing a breath of fresh air.
”Ah! You are going to give this poor man a heart attack if you keep scaring me like that, sweety.”
The girl let out a mischievous smile as she hopped to him and asked him.
”Dad is that weird boy here?”
She continued to look around with a curious gaze, causing the man to frown even more. Guzzling another cup of alcohol, he spoke.
”He somehow got himself in trouble, ah...”
The man's voice became grave a she looked outside of the window, revelling in memory not too long ago. In fact, it was only a few days ago...
...
...
*COUGH* *COUGH*
A malnourished boy, under the relentless rain, coughed with a hoarse grunt as he sat in the corner of an alley. His eyes seemed to light up as he watched a muscular man pick up crates of food opposite him; standing on the side of a cracked pathway.
A shop stood behind the man, glistening with a new coat of paint, displaying the proud title 'Yu's Grocers'. The man was soaking wet as he grunted with annoyance. A girl, with a similar age to Su Min, opened the door as she laughed at the drenched man.
”Hehe! Dad, you look funny!”
The boy's eyes seemed to quiver at the sight, where melancholy seethed. Turning his head, he watched the pitter patter of rain sink into the drain near him...
His eyes seemed to be muddy; like death was looming above them. He was more like a man in his twilights then a young boy...
”Huh? Dad, someones over there!”
The girl's eyes glistened as she spotted an inconspicuous boy in an alley not too far away from them. It unknown whether it was fate or not, but, by such a sentence, Su Min's life changed...
*step Step STEP*
Su Min continued to sit on the rough concrete as looming steps approached him, revealing a girl and a man. The man had a rough appearance, with a stubbled chin and wrinkled lips.
”Dad, he looks weird...”
The girl's eyes widened as she stared at the inhuman figure in front of her, causing her to step back. The man in turn leaned down and took a closer look.
What he saw made him gasp...
”W-what? Quick! Bring him in!”
Like he saw someone dying, the man went and grabbed the boy with his rough hands. The boy gasped at the sudden movement, yet he was too weak to do anything...
Before he knew it, he was being dropped onto a table...
*SLAM*
”Quick, get me some water!”
The man had a worried look as he grabbed a cup of water, tilting into the boy's dried lips.The boy's face was white and his body didn't seem to contain muscle, outlined by the protruding bone.
*CO-COUGH*
Responding, the boy gagged as his seared throat got an undulation of water, making him cough. The man breathed a sigh of relief, but looking at the malnourished figure, he frowned.
”Dad, is he ill?”
A girl, tiptoeing to the table, glanced at the coughing boy who laid like a patient.It was like she was examining an Alien.
”Ah... Nevermind that, it's your bedtime, so go!”
”Aw...”
The man, even as he spoke, was rummaging around the storefront as he grabbed some fruits and vegetables. He even grabbed a blender.
Not giving the girl a chance to refute, the man gave her an angry stare, making her humph before marching into the staff only area.
”Nobody should ever experience stuff like this...”
*PSHEWWW*