Second Half Chapter 14

The channel Hansung operated was the one with the most subscribers and the highest public trust regarding football in Korea. If I showed myself chatting amiably with Aaron there, the rumors of a feud would be easily resolved, just as Hansung guaranteed.

…Though I wasn’t sure if I could actually do it. While Jerim swallowed hard, the filming began.

“Hello. Mr. Ban Jerim, Mr. Reyes. It is truly an honor for our channel to host two world-class players at the same time.”

“Hello.”

“Hee-ya, I mean, how did this work out so perfectly with such a big signinghappening right before the Korea tour? For football channels like ours, it’s peak season lately, peak season!”

The moment the camera turned on, Hansung’s vocal tone and speech pattern changed completely. Watching his close younger friend, a natural-born broadcaster, Jerim also steeled his heart. It wouldn’t do to ruin work just because I couldn’t swallow a bit of personal emotion. Even if I had to pretend to be close to the guy I fought with yesterday over who was “trash,” I had to face this calmly.

As he said he would minimize the interview, the Q&A session was indeed very short. Once Aaron’s interview was over, Hansung jerked his chin toward the staff behind him. Immediately, two boxes with unknown contents were placed in front of Jerim and Aaron.

“You got tired of interviews yesterday, right? So, we’ve prepared a slightly new format.”

Ta-da! Along with a cheap sound effect he made with his own mouth, the contents of the boxes were revealed. It was a flimsy-looking round machine. Aaron’s eyebrows lifted slightly as if he had never seen such a thing in his life. However, it was a familiar object to Jerim, who had a habit of keeping Korean variety shows on even at his house in England because he hated feeling lonely.

A lie detector. A toy that judges heart rate, displaying a blue light if you tell the truth and a red light if you lie, delivering a weak electric current or vibration as a penalty. The current was probably similar to the level of static electricity felt when putting on a sweater in winter, but regardless…

‘I’m screwed, aren’t I?’

If it’s like this, I can’t even “pretend” to be close. Is this Kim Hansung guy determined to bury me today? Is it because I didn’t buy him a meal the last time I was in Korea? Jerim glared at the younger friend he thought he was close with, his eyes full of confusion.

But that close friend did his job without paying any mind to the senior whose expression had soured. He followed up with an explanation of the lie detector and a request that, since he would be asking questions that might be a bit troubling, to just make a cutting gesture if they really didn’t want to answer. After hearing the explanation, Aaron nodded as if intrigued and readily placed his finger on the metal part.

When asked whether he preferred vibration or electric current for the shock, Aaron answered “current” before Jerim could even speak. His reasoning was the valid point that it would be more entertaining. Hansung also seemed to secretly hope for the current to provide a better spectacle.

Left with no choice but to agree, Jerim placed his hand on the machine, and the sharp questions began immediately.

“Alright, then, a question for Mr. Ban Jerim first! I like the fact that Mr. Reyes has transferred to the team. You must answer within 5 seconds.”

“…Whew, of course I like it. Isn’t he a lucky charm, a lucky charm!”

It was before he had even finished the answer.

Beep-beep! Along with a loud buzzer, a red light flashed, and an electric current immediately jolted through him. Startled, Jerim threw the machine aside and let out a short scream.

“……”

“……”

“What was that just now? Lucky charm? What’s a lucky charm?”

Perhaps flustered by the unexpected turn of events, a strange silence hung over the room for a while. Only Aaron, who hadn’t heard the translation for the word “lucky charm,” clumsily mimicked the Korean pronunciation and expressed his confusion. However, no one was in the right mind to answer him.

Jerim, too, kept his mouth shut as he picked up the lie detector he had slammed down and placed it back on the table. Contrary to its flimsy appearance, its durability seemed quite good, as it didn’t appear broken.

‘I thought it would be judged as the truth.’

Regardless of his personal dislike for Aaron, he believed the transfer itself was good for the team, so there was no lie in the answer that he was a “lucky charm.” But it seemed the word “like” was the problem. Since he couldn’t say he liked it even if he were beaten to death…

Honestly, he hadn’t expected a mere scrap of a machine to grasp a human’s intimate inner thoughts so well. Jerim looked down at the pointlessly high-performing detector and rubbed his eyes gloomily. He was truly screwed. It was Hansung, performing his duty as the MC, who smoothed over the chilled atmosphere.

“…Haha, I guess it’s not that you just like him, but you like him way too much.”

“……”

Even for a professional, there was a limit to how much he could salvage. Embarrassment bled through his awkward tone. With his lips twitching, he quickly turned the topic to the next question.

“Alright, next question for Mr. Reyes. I think I am the best striker in the world.”

“Wouldn’t that be the case? There seems to be no room for doubt.”

Why does only that bastard get such an easy question? No sooner had Jerim harbored his dissatisfaction than a blue light flashed along with a very obnoxious answer. Hansung waved his hands as if he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“Wow, I love the confidence.”

You should have asked me who I think the best midfielder in the world is too. Is he really determined to mess with me? While he was grumbling internally, his turn came around again.

“Back to Mr. Ban Jerim. Do you agree with Mr. Reyes’s previous answer?”

“…Yes. I don’t think there would be any disagreement no matter who you asked.”

“Oh, it’s a blue light. The camaraderie right after the transfer is quite… fan-fantastic!”

This bastard Kim Hansung just stuttered. However, since he was the one who had just ironically shown “fantastic” camaraderie, Jerim stayed still with a face like he’d swallowed a bug. It was also partly because he had already tasted the surprise of the electric shock once and was somewhat afraid to lie.

The unannounced jolt to the tip of his already sensitive finger couldn’t be called pleasant even as a figure of speech. It didn’t hurt, but it was enough that he wanted to avoid it. Just as he vowed to answer honestly no matter what from then on, an easy question was thrown his way.

“Then Mr. Ban Jerim, one more question. Who is the most handsome player in Sefton?”

“Me. It’s a bit much to say this with my own mouth, but when it comes to my face… Ack!”

“Oh, it seems there is a player you inwardly acknowledge as being more handsome than yourself. Could it be Mr. Reyes?”

“No, what the—, there’s no way… Argh!”

Contrary to his vow, Jerim’s spirit was left in tatters after suffering two consecutive electric shocks. He stared at the machine with eyes full of hostility, but behind him, the sound of constant, sobbing laughter leaked out. One staff member had even escaped to a corner and was crouching there. His back was shaking.

Even Aaron was smirking as if surprised, grating on Jerim’s nerves.

“To think you were evaluating my skills and face so highly, it’s an honor.”

“…I’m not doing this anymore.”

Unable to take it, Jerim pushed the machine away and threw a fit. However, Hansung, a seasoned broadcaster who knew Jerim’s usual personality well, let the grumbling go in one ear and out the other.

“Aey, it’s fun. I’ll ask Mr. Reyes the same question. Who is the most handsome player in Sefton?”

“Jerim.”

As he made that refreshing declaration and the blue light even came on to prove it was the truth, Hansung’s eyes grew as large as lanterns. ‘I’ve secured a great part,’ his eyes, sparkling to an overwhelming degree, seemed to say. Jerim, wondering why on earth this guy was being so compliant with a compliment, also turned his gaze toward Aaron.

Despite receiving two pairs of staring eyes, Aaron continued speaking without being intimidated.

“As long as he keeps his mouth shut, he’s more handsome than anyone. Especially his smiling face, it’s as bright as a sky after the rain. Ah, of course, that only applies when he’s just smiling quietly.”

“……”

“……”

The problem was that he wasn’t intimidated enough. Flustered by the excessively honest answer, Hansung’s lips flickered like a goldfish waiting for feed.

Jerim let out a hot breath, pretending to wipe his face to hide how red it had become. It was partly because he was angry, confused about whether that was a compliment or an insult, but also because the voice murmuring “Cielo” felt pointlessly familiar.

‘Jerim, my sky.’