Annyeongz One-shots

53. Case

The night air was cold enough to sting the lungs.

Yujin liked it that way.

Less people outside. Less noise. Just the quiet click of Azzo’s claws against the pavement and the faint jingle of his collar breaking the silence of the empty street. One hand tucked in his hoodie pocket, the other loosely holding the leash, Yujin walked like he owned the darkness itself — calm, unreadable, distant.

“Azzo. Heel.”

The big dog obeyed, but his ears suddenly twitched.

A sharp bark cut through the quiet.

Azzo’s head snapped forward — then he barked back, deep and loud, the sound echoing between the buildings.

Yujin’s eyes lifted.

Across the street, under the yellow glow of a flickering streetlamp, stood a girl.

Long hair moving slightly in the wind. Oversized sweater. One hand gripping a leash.

Her dog — smaller, fluffy, but loud — barked right back at Azzo like it had something to prove.

And then—

snap.

Both leashes slipped.

“Azzo—!”
“Choco, no!”

Too late.

The dogs bolted — not at each other.

But toward the narrow alley beside an old convenience store.

Yujin cursed under his breath and ran.

So did the girl.

Their footsteps echoed as they reached the alley entrance at the same time, shoulders almost colliding. They didn’t look at each other — both too focused on their dogs, who had stopped barking.

That was the first thing that felt wrong.

Azzo wasn’t aggressive anymore.

He was… alert.

Still.

Standing a few steps ahead, staring.

Choco whimpered softly and backed toward the girl’s legs.

Yujin moved first, stepping deeper into the alley.

It smelled like damp concrete… and something metallic.

His jaw tightened.

The girl followed, slower, nervous. “What are they looking at…?”

Then she saw it.

A man.

Lying on the ground between two trash bins.

Not moving.

Her breath hitched. “Is he… sleeping?”

Yujin already knew.

The way the body was positioned. The stillness. The unnatural silence around him.

He stepped in front of her without thinking.

Blocking her view.

“Don’t look,” he said quietly.

She froze behind him. “W-What is it…?”

His voice stayed steady, but his eyes had gone cold. Calculating. “Call the police.”

She didn’t move.

So he turned slightly, just enough to see her face for the first time.

Big eyes. Pale. Shaken.