Hector Hech found the leprechaun in the alleyway behind the $5 Laundromat (cleverly named Lana$ Laundromat5) and the sex shop that opened at bizarre hours (11pm-1am). Despite where the leprechaun was, he wasn’t doing anything lude or brazen. He was just. Standing there with his back against the wall, wearing a pair of sunglasses that not only covered his eyes entirely but the sides of his face. He told Hector that his name was Wink.

“Wink the Leprechaun,” Hector said, in a tone that didn’t quite imply a question.

Wink nodded. “Yes, sir, Hector, sir. That’s my name.”

Hector stumbled backwards, almost slipping on an aged banana peel, a flurry of questions surging through his skull. Back and forth between his ears.

“How do you know my name?”

“Name badge, fella. I also know you’re a cashier at Great Electronics.”

Hector’s head dropped to his name badge, and the feeling that followed was utter foolishness. He stood there with a dumbfounded expression that he felt on his face and asked his second question. It came out slower than he had anticipated, and for some reason, his own words sounded unfamiliar.

“Well, of course, I can see Hector. Do these sunglasses say otherwise?”

In Hector’s mind, they did. They reminded him of the shades that a blind person would wear. Hector did a quick scan for a cane and didn’t see anything. What was this leprechaun doing in this gross alleyway? Was he a leprechaun? If so…did he grant wishes?

Wink answered each of his questions as though he’d read Hector’s mind.

“Where in the rule book does it state that we have to be at the end of a rainbow? Yes, I am a leprechaun. Where else can you find a Green Velvet hat, suit, and trousers that are this green? The fit fits a bit too perfectly, do t you think? And what wish do you want?”

Hector’s brain was starting to hurt. He’d come down this alley to find Mitch. Mitch had good drugs, but he was nowhere to be seen, despite saying that he’d be there at 2 p.m. (it was now 2:15). Mitch did a last-minute glance for Mitch, and Wink said this.

“Your pal ain’t here, buddy. Just little ol’ Wink. If I were you, I’d consider yourself lucky. Very lucky.”

“And why’s that?”

“Well. Papa Wink here, can make you very rich. Very rich indeed.”

“How’s that?” The skepticism rolled off Hector’s tongue like bad breath.

“Organs, good fella. Organs and body parts. You can get me what I need.”

Hector didn’t need a description; he knew what a Wink meant.

“Your Old Man. The town coroner. You get me the stuff I need, and you’ll be set for life, good buddy. Set for life indeed.”

And Hector agreed. What did he have to lose? Dad was getting senile in his old age, and Hector knew he wouldn’t miss any organs. That’s how Hector Hech got rich. $1000 for a kidney, another for a heart. $2000 for Mic Donovan’s wife’s feet (she overdosed. Poor thing). Hector was able to afford anything. A PS5 Pro, a completely upgraded computer, a Steam Deck, a Premium Subscription to all of the girls he liked on OnlyFans.

His coworkers had questions; of course they did, they were nosy. But Hector never said a thing about Wink the Leprechaun who always met him between 2 and 2:30 in the alley between the laundromat and the porn store. His business deal with Wink made Hector a happy man. And Wink was looking good too. Healthier, and happier, which made Hector happy. Hector never asked what Wink did with the organs and body parts; he thought it best not to.

Then one day, Wink asked for a set of eyes. Hector agreed. A smile from ear to ear as he stashed another wad of $100’s into his backpack.

“Sure thing, Wink,” Hector said. “There’s a really pretty girl, the one who just moved into town and died in that car wreck. Will she do?”

“Naw, fella,” Wink said. And Hector didn’t like his tone one bit. “I’m afraid. Yours will do, fella. Yours will do just fine.”

That’s when Hector realized that he’d never seen Wink’s eyes. That it was so weird for a leprechaun to be named Wink, one who always hid his eyes. Hector felt the sting along his ankles, one that came from a cane that seemed to come out of nowhere. Hector fell to the ground, and then he felt a new pain. That same cane as it came down on his shoulders, crippling his arms. He could barely see Wink’s smile through the tears. He did, however, see the spoon in Wink’s spare hand.

And that’s what Wink used to remove Hector’s eyes. Hector screamed and screamed, but everyone ignored him in that weird, creepy alley that was usually littered with degenerates. Wink scooped out Hector’s eyes and popped them into his eye sockets. Hector saw none of this, how could he? But he heard everything. The pops of both eyes as they left his sockets. He felt everything too, the warmth of gore as it washed down the sides of his face. He could hear Wink as he left him there in the dirty alley. And perhaps he was losing its mind, but he could almost picture Wink as he winked at him with what used to be his peepers.