Hit by a Pitched Ball Chapter 9

[He’s a pitcher who gets a lot of strikeouts. Ha Taebeom’s average strikeout record since the start of this season is remarkable. He’s the type who gets strikeouts with fastballs…]

From the start, Ha Taebeom threw a fastball over 150 km/h that pierced the center, and the camera zoomed in on him. His face, which had shown ease, was nowhere to be seen—his hardened eyes were fixed straight ahead.

Yeah, with that face, living quietly would be harder. Young and rich on top of that. But why is he doing this to me? Yunjae soothed his burning throat with the beer he was holding and watched Ha Taebeom’s windup motion.

The second pitch also struck the center cleanly. Listening to the roaring cheers, Yunjae clicked his tongue to himself. As expected, unlucky. The commentator’s remark that the batters found it harder because his windup was concise and fast followed. Yunjae naturally switched the screen.

It was because the painful memory of a complete-game shutout loss suddenly came to mind and he didn’t want to see it.

[With two outs, at bat is number 3 hitter Lee Hyeono.]

The Buffaloes were already in the bottom of the first inning. With the appearance of Lee Hyeono, who accounted for 80% of his uniform marking, the cheering song filled the ground. The Buffaloes were also at home. The white uniforms had cute characters printed on them as a promotional event.

I’m definitely not buying that. Making a disgusted face, Yunjae got up, grabbed a new beer, and sat back down.

The first pitch was a strike, the second was a foul. Hoping only that he wouldn’t strike out, Yunjae smiled wryly and was opening the beer can when, with perfect timing, Lee Hyeono swung the bat and recorded a left-field hit, safely reaching first base.

Since there were already two outs, he didn’t have high expectations, but seeing the base fill up in yellow, he picked up his phone.

Naturally, the screen that had been showing the cheering team’s broadcast had been changed to show another game because he’d switched it to check Ha Taebeom’s record earlier. Ha Taebeom, as expected, struck out two of the three batters and got the third out with a grounder, easily finishing the first inning.

lololol I’ll eat well today lololol

This comment has been flagged for inappropriate language.

Taebeom, just do whatever you want lol fuck lol just be good at baseball

lolol what are you doing lol fuck lol???

Tsk. Yunjae clicked his tongue without realizing and switched the app back to the Buffaloes. In that short time, the title had changed to the top of the second inning.

Looks like they’re going to screw up again. The cheering posts that came up also started getting plastered with curses. Everyone was on edge because of the 5-game losing streak.

He wasn’t any different, so he turned his phone face down, sat on the floor, and leaned his back against the sofa. Just watch and clear your mind. If they lose, they lose—it’s not like I’m losing.

∞ ∞ ∞

“…Disband.”

At the result of his team’s clean 6-game losing streak, Yunjae glared at the four crushed beer cans and tore at his hair. Damn bastards. Don’t go under. As he swallowed his frustration, the screen that had gone to commercials soon showed ‘Baseball Tonight (Night),’ which analyzed that day’s game live.

Yunjae picked up the thrown beer can, carefully placed it on top of the overflowing recycling bin, and headed to the bathroom. I should brush my teeth and go to sleep. Why was I sitting there watching that garbage as if I were going to enjoy riches and glory? He shifted the self-loathing that clawed at his entire body onto the culprit, the Buffaloes. Those wasted 3 hours and 30 minutes were a pity.

His sighs didn’t stop. And yet tomorrow, like Pavlov’s dog, he’d be sitting in front of the TV again at 6 o’clock. When would the day come when he wouldn’t watch this damn baseball?

No, why did his parents have to like this team that seemed doomed but never actually died, dragging him into this hellish pit? Yunjae blamed the wrong people. No one had forced him to watch, so it was an absurd act of filial impiety.

After brushing his teeth, Yunjae turned off the TV, finally picked up the phone he’d left face down, and headed to the bedroom. This two-room small apartment wasn’t very big. But it was perfect for his narrow daily life—holed up in one room working, sleeping in the other, and watching baseball as his only hobby. For that reason, he’d been living here for four years already.

When the jeonse contract was about to end, the landlord, who was considering selling, and he had come to an agreement, and he’d bought it—his first property. He’d been broke right after, but he had no regrets about the choice. Even if the house price didn’t go up.

Lying on the bed, Yunjae turned on the mood light on the nightstand and opened his photo album. Sliding his finger to find the documents he’d taken right after the transaction, he spread his thumb and index finger wide to zoom in on the found photo.

It was a meaningless act, but it was subtly effective when he was on the verge of being consumed by gloom. Property, more certain than any consolation. A pointless laugh escaped. At the same time, his phone vibrated.

Ha Taebeom

“Oh shit. You scared me.”

At the top of the phone that suddenly buzzed against his palm, the saved name of a not-so-welcome person appeared. His eyes naturally went to the clock. It was about the time he’d have just left the stadium.

“Hello?”

—I thought you wouldn’t answer. What are you doing?

“About to sleep?”

—Already?

Already? Yunjae took the phone away from his ear and checked the time. Already…?

“Yes. Already.”

—Ah…

But he didn’t want to drag the conversation out. At his firm answer, Taebeom trailed off as if lost for words.

“Um…”

—Can I see you for a bit? If you’re really tired, I’ll come to your place. I will.

At the sudden suggestion, the shocking memory from not long ago came to mind. On the day of the gathering, Yunjae had unexpectedly had a bit to drink. Geonho had good news, so he couldn’t refuse. That day, Taebeom had joined the gathering late after his game ended.

‘Since hyung kept ignoring my messages, I came directly. They said it’s a good place here.’

So they hung out again. Taebeom was stuck to Yunjae so much that the other members made remarks. When his gaze started to change strangely, Yunjae stood up first, and Taebeom naturally followed. He insisted on taking him home, and they’d bickered about it. Unable to trust himself drunk, Yunjae had followed him all the way to the front door, and they ended up scuffling in the hallway. In the end, someone who recognized him showed up. Yunjae had no choice but to cover Taebeom’s face with a hat and hurriedly bring him inside. That day was the beginning—after that, Taebeom would message asking if he could come over whenever he felt like it.

Just like today. Looking at the message, Yunjae’s mouth shut. If they were talking about being really tired, the other party would be far more so. It was a cunning way of speaking. Yunjae bit his lip, swallowing the words he’d almost blurted out. Why was there no option to not see him?

Having passed one crisis, Yunjae calmly dodged the answer.

“Aren’t you tired? You pitched through the 8th inning.”

—Wow… you watched? But I’m fine. If it were when I pitched through the 9th recently, that might be different.

At the mischievously playful tone, Yunjae bit his lip hard. This bastard? Haha, a forced laugh rumbled in his chest. Come to think of it, Ha Taebeom was one of the top innings-eaters as well. 7 innings was the minimum. He’d pitched through the 8th countless times, so he was probably used to it.

Except for his debut season, Taebeom had thrown 170 innings every year up to the present. It would take effort, but his baseline was different from others.

Yeah, who’s worrying about who…

—Hyung? What, you didn’t hang up, did you? Ah, I’m joking.

“I almost did.”

Yunjae parted his heavy lips. Though he wasn’t joking, thinking he’d played along with the joke, laughter like shattering glass came through the speaker.

—Wow, that’s harsh. I’m hurt.

What hurt. It was a well-known fact, not just to him but to anyone who’d watched some baseball or knew Ha Taebeom, that he wasn’t the type to get hurt unless it was really serious.

—I need to be comforted for this.

I can come, right? The voice was firm, as if he wouldn’t accept any other answer. As Yunjae hesitated, having missed the timing to refuse, Taebeom cut in first. I’ll come. With Taebeom answering his own question, the conversation ended, and the call soon disconnected.

Yunjae’s face hardened slightly as he looked at the call log left in numbers. Ruffling his already messy hair roughly, Yunjae clicked his tongue helplessly and got up.

Even though Ha Taebeom didn’t even ask for his home address, which was absurd enough to make him shake his head in disbelief, Yunjae hurriedly started tidying up the house.