We pounded the sidewalks; the night-air caressing our faces like a woman's touch. I wondered to myself as we took a left turn to nowhere in particular; how long has it been since I've felt a woman's touch? Before I could answer, my friend interrupted that train of thought with an impromptu phone call. He fished out the mobile phone from his pocket and pressed down on the receive button. The ensuring one-sided conversation in rapid-fire Korean was within earshot but I paid no serious heed and attempted to return to the question I had posed to myself earlier. My mental efforts were in vain as all I could think of was seven miles of endless sandy beach and the amount of beers I had consumed in the past half hour. I had drunk enough to stagger in a straight line and that was good enough for the moment. Any more and I'd be starting a journey to that blackness from which I'd never recall the morning after.

Warm, sunny beaches with miles of sand to lay about in. I was never one for crowded, communal beaches. Having a drink, a smoke, a good book or a couple of friends with nothing else save for palm trees, sand and waves of salt water. That was more to my liking.

I was interrupted once again by my friend who had just finished his call. Apparently there were two other friends on the way and we were supposed to meet them somewhere. It's funny how the word "apparently" gets thrown around a lot through varying extents of inebriation. It didn't matter; not like I had anything else to do on a Friday night anyway. Work was merely a distant afterthought despite having only clocked off an hour ago. Academia was something to procrastinate for a few more hours and probably a few more after that. I had set aside this time to be completely aimless with fermented barley and hops belting through my system. It was Miller Time to say the least.

So my friend took the lead and I followed; traversing pedestrian crossings, more sidewalks, neon-fluorescent lit establishments and a kaleidoscope of nightlife I was too tipsy to note down in detail. It didn't matter anyhow; sandy beaches or not.

Finally we came to a stop in front of yet another nighttime establishment lit by yet another fluorescent sign. The Korean characters on the sign were gibberish to me but the English words underneath made sense.

"Karaoke"

If anything was lost in translation, it certainly didn't matter. This was perfect clarity; sober, inebriated or otherwise.

I turned to my friend and ask, "Have we been here before?"

The question immediately evaporated as his phone rang again. He answered it and spoke in Korean that was unintelligible to me. It could've been beautiful poetry or the harshest of insults aimed towards me but I didn't care. Not like it mattered even if I did care. All that mattered was that we were going someplace and that was good enough for me.

We stepped into the foyer and proceeded into an open elevator. My Korean friend pressed on the button to close the doors and they slid shut just as a group of people were rushing towards it. I was in no condition to protest; tough luck. For the next minute I leaned against the metallic wall and stared at the ascending numbers. Soon the elevator grinded to a halt and the doors slid open. We walked out or at least my feet attempted to mimic the act of walking. The young lady behind the counter greeted us politely with a bow and I bowed back almost immediately, even when I was under no obligation to do so. It just seemed like the right thing to do, or at least my alcohol-influenced judgment deemed it was.

I found myself following my friend's lead again; through corridors lined with numbered doors. The numbers passed us by as we walked and looked; not like I would have known if it bit me in the ass. It didn't take too long before I was stepping through a door; I took note of the number and forgot it as soon as my eyes shifted elsewhere.

Two young ladies stood up to greet us. Their faces seemed familiar but I couldn't pin names or anything else onto them. Before I could figure out anything; a microphone was shoved into my hand and I looked up to find a smiling face. It was a pretty smile that had me transfixed for what seemed like the longest 5 seconds of my life. The lips moved and I could barely make out the words that escaped it.

"Sing"

I nodded, took her up on her offer and turned to face the screen with a microphone in hand. The words flashed across the screen on cue to the music. I did what most people with nine beers and two vodka tonics would do in such a predicament.

I sang.