Kiss the Ground Chapter 12

It was much later when Kaya Schwarzkopf approached Chahyun’s table.

“Why are you guys so happy? It’s just an interview talk.”

“It’s about the interview. What about you guys?”

“We’re kind of breaking up, but if you’re staying longer, can you take charge of our table’s drinks? I have something to do, Adrian has already gone home, and this guy doesn’t seem to have any intention of leaving yet. I’ll bring him with me.”

After nodding at Jude’s agreement, Kaya returned to the table with someone’s arm, bringing back the designated drinker. The unsteady drinker, who didn’t seem in good shape, was none other than Misha.

How much did he drink? Chahyun, sitting on the inside of the table, watched with furrowed brows. Leroy asked in surprise.

“Is Misha drunk?”

“He drank surprisingly well today, so I was curious to see how it would turn out. And it’s gotten to this point.”

“It’s not a holiday tomorrow. Did he forget there’s training in the morning? Even if the coach scolds him, we won’t know!”

Aloys’s playful teasing was met with a shrug from Kaya. Misha, taller than Kaya by a head, blinked like a child in a petulant mood.

“Fine, it’s not a big deal. It’s okay…”

It was clear to anyone that he was drunk. Skipping Misha and addressing Kaya, Chahyun said, “Did you give him vodka? He doesn’t take vodka.”

“It was just one glass…”

“Straight, without mixing it with orange juice?”

“Straight.”

Of course. Chahyun sighed. Taking advantage of the brief calm, Kaya carefully placed the wobbly drinker back on his seat. Misha, looking desperate, spoke in a slurred voice.

“I really need a favor. I think things might go well with the girl sitting at the other bar, but it won’t work if Misha is next to me. You get what I’m saying?”

As he pleaded, everyone at the table had a wry smile on their faces. It made sense. Every player had experienced the embarrassment of posing next to Misha for a photo, only to see their faces side by side in a magazine.

Once everyone seemed to agree, Kaya quickly left without a trace of wounded pride. It seemed like a matter of life and death for him.

Chahyun glanced at Misha sitting diagonally across. Despite having a fair amount of alcohol, Misha sat up straight. Was he only slightly tipsy? In the past, he had been weak to vodka to the point that it seemed like an allergy to distilled spirits. But now, it didn’t seem to be the case. Winston, sitting beside Chahyun, looked puzzled.

“Yuan, how do you know Misha can’t drink vodka?”

“Why wouldn’t I know? Around this time last year, I was busy dragging him around everywhere.”

After finishing his sentence, Chahyun took a sip of water from a cup instead of a glass. Misha looked at him. It was a slightly rebellious gaze, as if questioning why.

What’s wrong? So what if you look at it that way?

Meeting Misha’s gaze head-on was Chahyun’s subtle certainty and gamble that Misha wouldn’t drop any bombshells in this situation. Misha must have known from their previous encounter with Ruhl that Chahyun didn’t want their issues exposed to their teammates. Perhaps he thought that acting insincere might earn him some resentment or that Chahyun felt the same way. Considering the close call during the interview, it seemed plausible.

Misha might be eccentric, but he wasn’t the kind of eccentric to jeopardize his relationship with Yoon Chahyun forever just to satisfy his own desires. That was the hypothesis Chahyun had set up.

While the two engaged in their silent battle like swans secretly kicking underwater, the table continued to buzz with trivial chatter. The topic flowed seamlessly from the interview to Blue, from Blue to Blue’s cat, and it went on endlessly.

The shift to a conversation filled with complaints from singles happened in an instant.

“Adrian said he’s getting married early next year. He’s been really happy lately, right? Just by watching him rush home after drinking, you can tell…”

“So, is he performing well lately? Seems very lively. Watching him defend, I’m afraid he might get a penalty.”

Listening to the conversation, Chahyun toyed with the water cup. Alcohol-induced topics were commonplace. Just a month ago, it would have been a relevant conversation, but now it was different. He was dealing with a more unusual problem.

Grabbing an unknown beer mug behind Misha, he finally spoke up. Despite seeming quite intoxicated, Misha spoke surprisingly well.

“…Adrian said he’s inviting all of us as his best man. He said his fiancée has already chosen a suit design.”

At Misha’s nonchalant words, his teammates sighed simultaneously. It felt like the table might collapse.

“He’ll end his life just by being someone else’s best man. Misha is lucky. If he sets his mind to it, marriage should be easy, right?”

“That guy doesn’t fit in with our table.”

Winston’s words carried the bitterness of a solo. Without paying much attention to the sharp comment, Misha, looking somewhat desperate, spoke slowly.

“I’m not getting married.”

Saying so, he took a slow sip of beer. Yoon Chahyun also drank from the water in his hand, feeling an unusual burning sensation.

“But…”

Beyond the glass, Misha suddenly looked at Chahyun.

“Yuan, you have a girlfriend, don’t you?”

The water in Chahyun’s mouth surged back. Silence enveloped the scene.

What?

Look at this guy.

Before Chahyun could say anything, his teammates screamed in shock. Winston and Aloys couldn’t hide their astonishment, and Leroy seemed like he might cry at any moment. Jude’s expression was genuinely one of betrayal and shock.

In the midst of it all, Misha, who had dropped the bomb, stared at Chahyun’s face as if pondering what to do. Well, what are you going to do?

Who packaged this guy as a depressed prince or something? Misha’s face was like that of a mischievous, naughty puppy contemplating whether to chew on the owner’s shoes. Well, the shoes were already halfway chewed, so to speak. The merciless teammates who had lost their senses grabbed onto Chahyun’s collar.

“Is this true? Did you… Did you say you got married with Winchester?”

“Just wait a moment… Let’s put this down first, Jude.”

“You hypocrite!”

While Jude was shaking Chahyun frantically, Misha only glanced at Chahyun with disdainful eyes. What kind of revenge was this? For what purpose? Chahyun wanted to grab him and interrogate him, but the singles of Winchester did not allow it.

“This guy seems unusually quiet today… You, who are not even qualified to be on the field.”

“Retire, you bastard!”

Receiving anger and resentment from head to toe, Chahyun closed his eyes, choosing to ignore it. What did I do wrong to deserve this humiliation? However, no one provided an answer.

***

“Why on earth do I have to take him with me?”

“Weren’t you not drinking to drive? Since our houses are within three blocks, it would be great if you could take him in the car. We didn’t bring cars, we drank, and our houses are in the same direction. By process of elimination, you’re the only option.”

“But still…”

“It’s not like he’s going to wake up now, right? Just take him and let him sleep. There’s no other way.”

Chahyun looked down at In-yeong, sprawled on the sofa in confusion. Since Misha, Asplund, who had been pushing him into a minefield, started observing the situation with his head pressed against the table, drinking. It took less than 30 minutes for him to collapse and lose consciousness on the table. It was a fatal flaw that no one tried to stop his drinking to at least question him about his actions.

Teammates strongly argued that Chahyun should take responsibility for Misha’s whereabouts tonight. It was regrettable that there was no one to stop his excessive drinking when he was being pushed into such an awkward situation. They insisted that Chahyun should have at least had a drink and gotten drunk to pass the time.

In this awkward situation, bringing a stranger to his home seemed even more awkward. Despite contemplating multiple times, his teammates’ determination was unwavering. It made logical sense. Yoon Chahyun’s house was close, and he had a car.

With only an hour of struggle, Aloys, who had hit the bullseye several times, and two others, who easily surpassed 6.2 feet in height, loaded the adult male Misha Asplund into the back seat of Yoon Chahyun’s car like luggage and quickly left the pub. Chahyun sent a wistful look to the remaining Jude, but even he was surprisingly cold. Jude said something like a new stepmother leaving Cinderella behind to do housework and going to a party.

“You might need permission from your ‘girl’ at home.”

Jude did not forget to make a V-shape with his fingers and flick them on both sides of his head while pronouncing ‘girl’. It was that thing foreigners often did. Chahyun felt mentally numb due to his cynical tone. Where should he even begin to resolve this situation?