Second Half Chapter 4

Jerim quickly cut off the nagging that was threatening to drag on. Was it because he had worked with Kang Juhan—his youth coach and current agency CEO—acting as his agent for so long? Even now, with Jerim in his late twenties, those two occasionally lectured him just as they had during his teenage prospect days.

“As the club captain, set aside your personal feelings and respect your teammate, right? I’ll obviously follow that much.”

He spoke aloud the sentence he had repeated in his mind a hundred times since hearing the news of Aaron’s transfer. As much as he disliked Aaron, he had absolutely no intention of acting out a childish growl over something from ten years ago with a guy who was now eating from the same pot.

Football is a team game. No matter how outstanding individual skills are, if the harmony between teammates isn’t right, that team’s limits are set. To put it bluntly, the moment rumors of discord within the team start circulating, every defeat for that team becomes the fault of the players who caused the friction.

The moment a pass is missed, all sorts of backtalk comes out—claiming he didn’t give the ball on purpose or that he’s acting that way because his heart has left the club—and if teammates actually fight, the locker room atmosphere turns into a mess, dragging down the morale of the other players. It was a given that one couldn’t produce good results under such conditions.

Furthermore, Jerim is the captain. A position like a medal, gifted by the club and his teammates before his retirement, which probably isn’t many years away. He didn’t want to do something as unsightly as fighting with a teammate while wearing the captain’s armband. That was why he had been doing image training every day since hearing news of the guy’s transfer.

Imagining himself smiling and shaking hands with the guy under a shower of clicking flashes, wearing an expression that said, ‘We’re really close! That recent hand-brushing incident was a mistake!’ Imagining himself hugging him with a face that said, ‘I’m so happy to see this bastard!’ Even stepping forward personally to tell the manager and teammates, ‘He’s my youth teammate, so I’ll take care of him until he adjusts to the team!’… Fuck, I can’t do that last one at all.

“Blegh.”

“Are you carsick? That’s why I told you to sleep instead of looking at your phone.”

As soon as he mimicked a dry heave at the physiological surge of nausea, Chang-sik tutted. Jerim couldn’t bring himself to explain that it was because the thought of playing with Aaron until retirement made him feel despondent, so he just nodded.

I hate even imagining it; will it actually be possible? Jerim struggled to push away the naturally arising doubt and muttered as if brainwashing himself.

“We’ll… get along. Really, well. Dragging out something from ten years ago only makes me the childish one.”

Back then, he was a teenager, and so was the guy. It was an episode so childish it could only be experienced at such a tender age. Even looking at how the guy reached out his hand during the last final, it seemed he had already completely forgotten the past; it wounded Jerim’s pride to be the only one showing he was upset over such a thing.

Because that guy doesn’t care about the existence of Ban Jerim even this much, he was able to make the choice to transfer to Sefton. Then, I should match that.

Thinking of it as a battle of pride made his competitive spirit flare up and eased his mind. Jerim popped open a bottle of sparkling water and downed it in one shot. It was a product he had received as a sponsorship item for this Korea tour because he had filmed the commercial himself, but the taste was like crap. Nevertheless, as Jerim gulped it down refreshingly, Chang-sik pulled out a tissue and asked.

“Ri… ght. That fits your personality. But why are you making it so obvious that you hate it?”

“Because deciding to do something and hating it are separate issues.”

“Well, you did get a lot of hate because of him. I understand.”

“…I don’t hate him because of that.”

In other people’s eyes, it just looks like I hate him because of what happened during the World Cup match. It’s a valid deduction… but strictly speaking, it wasn’t that. When Jerim replied tepidly, Chang-sik’s eyes went wide.

“Huh? Then for what? You didn’t hate him because he scored that goal in the World Cup?”

“Hyung, I’m really not that childish of a bastard.”

The Spanish counterattack led by his own mistake, and Aaron, who had forced the goal in as if to show off during that process. It was a painful blunder, but would he have been grinding his teeth for ten years for such a measly reason?

The mistake was his own problem for stupidly dazing out and letting the ball slide in his World Cup starting debut, and likewise, scoring in his first debut match was simply something Aaron did well. It would be stranger if a striker didn’t score when a golden opportunity came from an opponent’s mistake. Jerim added nonchalantly.

“Actually, I would’ve been more pissed if he hadn’t scored that goal then. I would’ve broken that bastard’s leg the moment the match ended. So he could never play football again.”

“…Jerim-ah, if you’re going to cause a violent incident, tell me in advance. So I can switch to another player.”

“Switching? Hyung, you can’t survive without me.”

In Korea right now—no, looking at the whole of Asia—where is there an athlete more profitable than me? When he grinned playfully, Chang-sik made wrinkled folds in his chin. It was right after he made a grimace that he let out a weak, hollow laugh.

“…You’re obnoxious, but cool? Hey, say that line in the next commercial.”

“While drinking red ginseng?”

“But I’m really worried. You’re confident you won’t cause any trouble, right?”

Jerim, unable to bear the excessive worry, puffed out his chest proudly and talked big.

“Ah, it was a hypothetical! A hypothetical! Since I didn’t break it, I’m here right now! When have you ever seen me cause an accident openly?”

“You’ve had a few scandals. Well, those aren’t exactly accidents. But you’ve been so quiet these last few years?”

“That’s because it’s been a while since I met anyone. It’s a hassle…”

“That remark is really obnoxious. Are you acting entitled because you’re handsome now? Dating is a hassle? At your age?”

“I have the kind of face that warrants being entitled, don’t I? The problem is the people of the world know it too well.”

A look that asked ‘what kind of trash is this’ poked at his left cheek, but he ignored it. Instead, he crossed his arms, buried himself deep into the backrest, and closed his eyes.

“Anyway, you don’t have to worry. I’ll handle it. I’m going to sleep a bit, so wake me up when we arrive.”

“Okay, I trust you. If something happens to you, the CEO and I are bankrupt. Your mother will also faint again.”

“Aigoo, the burdens on my shoulders are too many. From our Mrs. Hwang to agent Chang-sik-ssi and CEO Kang.”

While he was kneading his shoulders which felt stiff for no reason, a fist lightly touched his forearm.

“Don’t exaggerate. You endure it all just fine anyway.”

“…True. I have to endure it all well.”

Even the modest encouragement from a close hyung was added to the weight on his shoulders.

The sudden transfer of Aaron, the burdensome Korea tour event, and this season where the end of his twenties and the fate of the team were at stake. He had to endure everything well. This time as well. Familiarizing himself with the pressure he had felt like breathing since he was young, Jerim forced himself to try and sleep.

✲✲✲

“Player Ban Jerim! You’ll be playing matches against K-League players during this visit to Korea. With what mindset…”

“By any chance, did you hear anything in advance regarding Reyes’s transfer?”

“Hyung! Hyung! I bought a jersey with your name marked on it! I love you, hyung! Aaaaaack!”

It’s chaotic. Jerim waved mechanically and moved through the crowd. Surrounded by about a dozen giant bodyguards, it was easy to clear a path.

Still, he stopped here and there to sign for people who thrust jerseys and pens through the gaps between the bodyguards. It was because he felt bad ignoring a 150,000-won top with the surname ‘BAN’ clearly marked on it. It must have been hard to get since it’s always sold out.

“Thank you. I’ll play hard this season too, so please keep cheering for me. Reporters, please ask your questions later.”

The individual interviews were finished as soon as he arrived at the airport, and all that remained was the group interview that would briefly follow in the hotel lobby after the players arrived.

Since only a few reporters were called for the individual interview and all questions were set in advance, he didn’t receive any difficult questions. This meant, in other words, that in the group interview following shortly, he might frequently receive difficult questions like the one about Aaron Reyes’s transfer earlier.

The only part he could pin his hopes on was the probability that all attention would be focused on Aaron, leaving few questions for him… Please. How would I have known whether the guy was going to transfer or not? I unfollowed him on social media and lived for 10 years without seeing even a bit of news.

At that moment of desperate praying, the doors to the arrival hall opened and familiar faces began to walk out in a swarm.

“Jeri! How have you been?”