Reality Quest: Lookism

Damn, what a good sleep i had, today is holiday, so no work, wohooo

----

Jin jogged leisurely through the empty streets the next morning, the faint chill of dawn brushing against his skin. His breath was steady, his movements smooth and rhythmic as he enjoyed the simplicity of the exercise. The city around him began to stir, small shops opening, and the faint hum of life picking up.

As he rounded a corner near an alleyway, he heard muffled grunts and the sharp, unmistakable sound of someone getting hit. Jin slowed to a stop, his gaze narrowing as he turned his head to investigate. His eyes caught a group of five thugs surrounding a lone, skinny figure near a wall.

The boy was around Jin's age, perhaps a year younger, with jet-black hair hanging loosely around his face. His coal-black eyes stared at the thugs, unfazed, his face completely blank, as though the situation was a mild inconvenience.

What struck Jin immediately was the boy's stillness, not the fearful kind, but the detached sort, as if he couldn't be bothered. One of the thugs swung a punch, and Jin's sharp eyes noticed something intriguing: the boy's pupils flicked ever so slightly, perfectly tracking the incoming attack, but his body made no effort to dodge.

The punch connected with the boy's stomach, sending him stumbling back against the wall. He neither winced nor showed pain, only mild disinterest.

"What the hell…" Jin muttered, scratching his head in confusion. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall at the edge of the alley, curious about what he was witnessing. The boy's uncanny composure reminded him of a predator observing its surroundings, yet he made no effort to fight back.

The thugs seemed to notice Jin then, their casual confidence morphing into unease as one of them pointed at him.

"Hey… that's him." one whispered urgently. "The guy from the council's target list!"

Another thug immediately fumbled for his phone, confirming Jin's identity as though his appearance wasn't intimidating enough.

Jin smirked, pulling one hand out of his pocket as he casually strolled into the alley. "Hey, you talking about me?" His voice was calm, but his grin carried a weight of danger that froze the thugs in their tracks.

One of them, emboldened by the others' presence, barked, "Y-yeah! The council's put a bounty on your head! You're done for!"

Jin raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Oh? Then I guess you boys are about to cash in?"

The thug growled, gesturing for the group to attack. Two charged at Jin first, fists raised. Jin stood still, his grin never wavering.

Before the first thug's fist could connect, Jin's arm blurred, moving faster than their eyes could follow. His clenched fist connected with the thug's chest, a shockwave rippling outward as the man's body arched backward unnaturally. The thug's feet lifted off the ground, and for a brief, comedic moment, he hovered mid-air before collapsing with a loud thud, completely unconscious.

The alley fell silent. The other four stared, wide-eyed, at their fallen comrade, their jaws slack. Two of them turned on their heels and bolted, their footsteps echoing in their haste to escape.

The remaining two, trembling, dropped to their knees and raised their hands in surrender. One of them even fished through his pockets, pulling out a crumpled wad of cash, which he began counting with shaky hands.

"S-sir!" he stammered, offering the cash to Jin. "Here! T-this is all we have! Please don't kill us!"

Jin blinked, momentarily speechless, before chuckling and pocketing the cash. "Well, at least you're polite."

He turned his attention to the black-haired boy, who had remained motionless during the entire scuffle. Even with his emotionless expression, Jin noticed a faint flicker of surprise in his coal-black eyes.

Jin crouched down in front of him, studying him carefully. "You could see my attack earlier, couldn't you?"

The boy nodded without hesitation.

"Then why didn't you dodge those idiots' punches?" Jin asked, genuinely curious.

The boy's response was so blunt it nearly made Jin laugh out loud. "I was too lazy."

Jin's grin widened until it nearly split his face. He grabbed the boy's arm and pulled him up with surprising ease. "You're coming with me."

The boy's monotone voice carried a hint of defiance. "I don't follow kidnappers."

"Who said anything about being a kidnapper?" Jin replied, his grin never faltering. "I'm a businessman."

The boy's coal-black eyes stared into Jin's with a stillness that felt unnerving. After a long moment, he nodded. "Alright."

Jin barked out a laugh, clapping the boy on the shoulder. "Great! What's your name?"

"Yu." the boy said simply.

"Yu, huh? I'm Jin. Guess we're a squad now." Jin declared with mock seriousness, leading Yu out of the alley.

....

When Jin reached the central park, he spotted Dowan waiting near the benches, stretching. Dowan's face lit up when he saw Jin, but his expression quickly turned to confusion when he noticed Yu trailing behind him.

"Uh… who's that?" Dowan asked, pointing at Yu, who remained as still as a statue.

"This?" Jin replied, gesturing at Yu with a dramatic flourish. "This is Yu. He's my new business partner."

Yu didn't respond, his face as blank as ever, but Dowan gawked at him. "Why does he look so dead inside?"

"Don't be rude." Jin said, smacking the back of Dowan's head lightly. "He's just got a… minimalist personality."

Dowan squinted at Yu, who stared back emotionlessly. "...Alright, but what's he doing here?"

"He's training with us." Jin announced.

"Wait, he agreed to that?" Dowan asked, skeptical.

Yu's voice cut in, soft and devoid of any inflection. "He said we're a squad."

Dowan groaned, burying his face in his hands. "Why does everyone weird gravitate toward you, Jin?"

"It's called charisma, Dowan. You should try it sometime." Jin shot back, rolling his shoulders and cracking his knuckles. "Alright, let's get started. Yu, don't just stand there. Stretch or something."

Yu tilted his head slightly, but after a moment, he began mimicking Jin's stretches with flawless precision. Dowan watched, shaking his head as he muttered, "This is gonna be a long day…"

....

The three of us were stretching under the morning sun, with Dowan flailing around trying to follow my routine, while Yu copied my movements with unnerving precision, his face blank as always. I couldn't help but chuckle at the stark difference between the two of them.

As we stretched, I decided to break the silence. "So, Yu, let me teach you a bit about life."

Yu blinked slowly, his tone as monotone as ever. "Why?"

"Why not?" I shot back, grinning. "Life's short, man. You might as well learn how to live it properly. You can't just keep sitting there letting people punch you because you're too lazy to dodge."

Yu raised a brow. "Doesn't seem important."

"Everything is important, Yu." I replied dramatically, gesturing like I was delivering a speech to the world. "Like stretching, for instance. Do you think I'd be this fast if I didn't stretch my legs every day?"

Yu tilted his head slightly, considering my words. "...I see."

Dowan, already drenched in sweat, suddenly froze mid-stretch. His phone vibrated loudly in his pocket. He fumbled to pick it up, glancing at the screen. "It's Siyeon." he muttered before answering.

["Dowan, it's me."]

"Oh, hey, Siyeon! What's up?" Dowan replied, his voice perking up.

["Where are you? Are you with Jin?"]

Dowan glanced at me, then at Yu, who looked like he couldn't care less about the conversation. "Yeah, we're training."

["Good. I need to talk to Jin. Put him on."]

Dowan looked at me nervously. "Uh, she wants to talk to you, Jin."

I smirked and reached for the phone. Before taking it, I pressed the loudspeaker button and placed it on the ground. "You're on loudspeaker." I said, still stretching.

["Jin."] Siyeon's voice came through, calm but with a hint of exasperation, ["I hope you know what kind of mess you're causing."]

"Oh? Do tell." I said, amused.

["Because of you beating up Bully Council members left and right, the headquarters has officially issued a bounty on your head."]

----

1,350 words.

We're near to the character development...