Chapter 34

#34 <Unknown Player (3)>

***

The second day of May.

The sky was blue, and the air was refreshing. This must be what the countryside is like, the freshness of undeveloped areas. Even though I’m a country bumpkin myself, I couldn’t help but marvel once again as Jin-hyeok warmed up. He carefully rotated every joint from his neck to his ankles, applying gentle pressure, and relaxed every muscle from his trapezius to his plantar muscles.

[Shortly after 10 a.m., we will begin the finals of each event for the 12th National City-Wide Youth Athletics Competition, which also serves as the selection round for the Chungcheongnam-do representatives. *Deep breath*]

The name of the competition was ridiculously long. So long that the announcer was still catching his breath.

Teacher Kim Young-tae and the kids found seats on any available chairs. But the chairs only held their bags. To cheer on Jin-hyeok, who had made it to the finals, they had thrown their bags aside and were lingering near the finish line. It was a privilege reserved for coaches and athletes, of course. But they couldn’t get too close.

“Shouldn’t you be at the starting point, Teacher?”

“Why…?”

Teacher Kim Young-tae, unable to hold back his thoughts, responded with a somewhat dumbfounded expression to Jo Seol-chan’s question.

“To encourage the athletes, you know, help them relax, say something like, ‘Don’t be nervous,’ or something like that.”

Park Ji-beom, who was listening to Jo Seol-chan, chuckled.

Even though Park Ji-beom was the most mature among his peers, he couldn’t help but blurt out, “Hey, who’s calming who down? Teacher looks like he’s about to cry.”

“You brats!”

Hahaha—.

The teacher and students, who had been together for a long time, laughed and tried to calm their trembling hearts. The finals. It was their first time watching.

‘Right, Ji-beom. Who’s calming who down?’

At the end of Teacher Kim Young-tae’s gaze stood Son Jin-hyeok, firmly at the starting line.

*

Jin-hyeok pressed his front foot firmly into the track.

The solid track sent a sensation up his calves, knees, thighs, and abs, all the way to his heart.

‘I’m a little nervous.’

Just because he had lived one life didn’t mean he wouldn’t get nervous. He hadn’t done everything in that life, and in fact, he had lived a rather limited life.

“Swoooosh—. Hoooo—.”

He deliberately took deep breaths, making sure they were loud.

A surge of energy rose from his lower abdomen, through his chest, and up to the crown of his head.

‘Let’s run just enough.’

The official with the megaphone approached the starting line to begin the finals.

Jin-hyeok glanced at the referee, then at the sky, and finally at his friends and teacher waving their fists near the finish line. He gave a slight smile.

And then, behind them.

‘Mom? Dad? Yu-jin?’

Whoosh—. He took a deep breath.

Family.

He could recognize them even from a distance. They were more precious than anything in the world. He had decided to live for them.

An indescribable emotion surged from Jin-hyeok’s chest.

It hit his throat hard.

Jin-hyeok quickly raised his hand toward the referee and called for time.

“What’s wrong? Is it taking too long?”

He couldn’t answer immediately.

After clearing his throat, he barely managed to explain.

“Ahem—! No, something got into my shoe.”

“Alright.”

Jin-hyeok quickly took off his spikes and shook out his shoe. What could have gotten in? It was a synthetic track with no sand. The spikes fit his feet perfectly, leaving no room for debris. He just needed time to calm his pounding heart.

‘That’s definitely my mom and dad. And my little sister Yu-jin.’

It felt like something had gotten into his eyes, not his shoes. He had to steady his breathing. If his breathing got messed up because of his pounding heart, it could affect his running. But he couldn’t take his eyes off his family.

How could he not be this happy after just two days apart?

His eyes warmed up.

The corners of his mouth curled up on their own.

***

“What do we do? I think he saw us.”

“I know. We should’ve gone to a spot where we couldn’t be seen.”

It just so happened that the spot they found when they entered the stadium was right there. Jin-hyeok’s parents had taken any seat they could find upon hearing the competition was about to start. It seemed their son had recognized them. Did they burden him?

But seeing their son quickly compose himself and get into position eased their worries a bit.

“Isn’t our son the most handsome?”

“Haha! Of course. Whose son is he?”

The blue uniform with the white bib number and black markings—91.

Their precious son stood at the starting line alongside the best track athletes in the province.

“What place do you think Jin-hyeok will get?”

“Does the placement even matter among the best runners?”

Han Yu-young nodded at her husband’s words.

Her gaze was fixed on her son.

[On your marks—.]

The faint command echoed in the wind.

Jin-hyeok’s mother, Han Yu-young, clasped her hands as if in prayer.

She could see her son crouched at the starting line in lane 3.

[Set—.]

Everyone held their breath.

Son Kwang-yeon tightened his arm around his daughter Yu-jin.

‘The result doesn’t matter. Just don’t be disheartened, our son.’

Yu-jin, excited for some reason, clapped at lightning speed.

“Oppa, oppa, oppa, oppa—!”

As Yu-jin’s cheers reached their peak, the gunshot rang out.

[Bang—!]

It was the signal for the start of the 200-meter finals.

It was strange. The athletes seemed to leap out faster than the sound of the gun.

Son Kwang-yeon and Han Yu-young’s son.

The product of their most passionate love.

Son Jin-hyeok shot out of the starting blocks like lightning.

At that moment, the young parents sprang up like springs.

“Wowowowow!”

“Oh my! Oh my!”

It was clearly our son.

But it didn’t feel like our son.

The way he burst out the moment the gunshot was heard.

It felt like someone else’s son.

Son Jin-hyeok’s legs, as if made of steel, pounded the track roughly, and with each step, the track particles flew. The muscles in his shoulders and chest boasted a sculpted beauty reminiscent of summer melons. His posture? It was dynamic, cutting through the air with the same vigor as the athletes seen in the Olympics, leaving the spectators on the edge of their seats.

Wahhh—!

Fortunately, the race ended before anyone could wet their pants.

The winner was decided all too easily.

By the time Jin-hyeok exited the curve, there was no one left around him.

“Kyaaaa—!”

Son Kwang-yeon turned around, startled by the scream from behind.

Wait, our son just won first place. Why are those ladies making such a fuss?

***

Teacher Kim Young-tae and his friends rushed over.

Jin-hyeok, without even looking out of breath, slung his arms around his friends’ shoulders, patting their backs as they shared the joy of victory.

“Hahaha! Jin-hyeok, you’re freaking fast! It felt like you were 20 meters ahead of second place!”

“Hey, Jo Seol-chan! What’s with the ‘freaking’? Watch your language!”

“Ah, Teacher!”

“Huh? Ah, whatever! Jin-hyeok, you did great! You did great!”

Beep—.

[For the smooth operation of the competition and the protection of the athletes, please refrain from coming down to the field, family and friends who have come to cheer—.]

Just then, a group of women who appeared to be the mothers of the Taeyang team athletes were making their way down to the field. It seemed the announcement was made because of them. The fathers, looking embarrassed, scolded their spouses and pulled them back to the stands.

‘What about Mom and Dad?’

Jin-hyeok glanced around and spotted his family. His parents were sitting politely in the stands. They weren’t even clapping like everyone else. Were they not happy?

Upon closer look, that wasn’t the case.

His mother was covering her mouth, tears streaming down her face as she looked at her son.

His father.

‘Oh, Dad….’

He had his head bowed low, shoulders shaking as if sobbing.

Jin-hyeok took off his spikes and went up to the stands.

“Oppa—, Oppa—.”

After tapping his nine-year-younger sister’s cheek, he spread his arms wide and hugged his parents.

“Don’t cry. Why are you crying?”

His mother, with tear-filled eyes, stroked Jin-hyeok’s cheek.

His father, unable to lift his head, rested it against his son’s stomach and patted his back.

“Ughhh—.”

Even though Jin-hyeok could understand the babbling of the drunk Executive Director Hong Soo-jung, he couldn’t make out what his father was saying.

What child can truly understand their parents’ hearts?

What parent can fully understand their child’s heart?

Moreover, Jin-hyeok had no parents in his previous life and had never married. He didn’t know the hearts of parents or children.

But.

‘I’m so happy.’

He knew they were crying because they were happy.

So Jin-hyeok didn’t cry.

He had decided to smile a lot in this life.

*

Leaving his parents and teacher behind, Jin-hyeok returned to the track. Teacher Kim Young-tae, having his own duties, quickly followed after greeting the parents.

25.01 seconds.

Kim Young-tae tilted his head as he looked at the record.

For elementary school students, the 200-meter record for athletes competing in two events tends to be higher than double their 100-meter record. This is because they can’t maintain their initial momentum until the end. It’s a problem stemming from a lack of strength and stamina. This is different from middle school and above athletes.

‘But that’s still too slow.’

Jin-hyeok’s 100-meter record is close to 12 seconds flat. He has a good build and strength. So, his 200-meter record should at least be in the mid-24 seconds.

‘The more I see, the more I don’t understand this kid.’

Did he conserve energy?

Or does he perform better on sandy tracks? No way.

Kim Young-tae thought about asking Jin-hyeok but decided against it.

He watched Jin-hyeok stretching, standing with his legs straight and bending his waist.

He was just a normal elementary school student laughing and chatting with his friends. It was strange that he wasn’t out of breath after running 200 meters.

‘Well…, he’ll figure it out himself.’

*

The high jump finals were briefly paused, and the 100-meter finals began. It was the last track event before lunch.

The gunshot rang out, and the winner was decided in 13 seconds.

“Wow! Jin-hyeok is a triple champion!”

Yeom Byeong-taek raised both arms in the air.

At the end of his gaze was Son Jin-hyeok, receiving the gold medal without looking out of breath. As everyone expected. The parents and athletes from Taeyang could only cheer.

12.50 seconds.

Exactly half of his 200-meter record.

‘It wasn’t intentional. But that’s how it turned out.’

Jin-hyeok noticed that many of the men who had been watching from the top of the stands had disappeared. Either Teacher Kim Young-tae’s ironclad defense or they had seen enough of his skills and decided to wait for another time.

‘Or maybe they think they’ve seen my true potential.’

Jin-hyeok couldn’t read their minds, but he wanted to prevent Teacher Kim Young-tae from being bothered by middle school sports team officials. At the same time, he chose a path to repay his debts.

He didn’t particularly want to catch the eye of sports team coaches either.

He just wanted to live an ordinary life.

Regardless of the records, first place is first place. Two more gold medals hung around Jin-hyeok’s neck.

After a new record was set in the long jump, the record keeper, who had secretly been hoping for more, threw his pen on the desk and leaned back in his chair.

Jo Seol-chan looked around and said, “Those guys aren’t here, huh?”

“Who?”

“The sunglasses guys—, the ones who paid for our meal yesterday.”

The baseball team coaches, who had tried to get in line by paying for meals, were gone.

Kim Young-tae looked at Son Jin-hyeok with suspicion.

Ah, no way. That kid couldn’t have calculated that far ahead.

The soccer team coaches in their tracksuits were still eyeing him eagerly.

But Jin-hyeok’s records and the disappearance of the baseball team coaches must have been a coincidence.

‘Even professional athletes can’t control their records to that extent.’

Playing with hundredths of a second? No way.

***

Lee Hae-dong, sitting in the stands, muttered as he fiddled with his cigarette.

“Hey, Bong-soo. Doesn’t it seem like that kid in number 91 held back?”

“Whether he held back or not, he definitely didn’t give it his all.”

Jeong Bong-soo chewed his gum as he spoke.

No matter how good his physique is, what elementary school student can finish first in both the 200-meter and 100-meter races without even putting his hands on his hips? His chest didn’t even heave. Who’s he trying to fool?

‘He didn’t run.’

It must be because of the relay.

Jeong Bong-soo’s eyes gleamed even more.

Choosing rank over record—what cunning.

***

In truth, the only thing calculated was the appropriate speed.

It was his first competition in good condition, but he didn’t give his all in the 200-meter finals. About halfway through the straight, Jin-hyeok felt his left thigh getting heavy. He had pushed hard at the start to secure first place, and the lack of strong competitors also helped.

‘The cramp in my thigh must be due to nutrition issues.’

The curve is a left turn. When running slowly, it doesn’t make much difference, but when trying to exit the curve quickly, the left thigh muscles can tighten. The closer you are to the inside lane, the more pronounced this tendency is. So, the fatigue accumulated from accelerating to overtake competitors on the curve. He had never run 200 meters like this before, so it was a problem he hadn’t encountered.

He thought he should look into ways to prevent muscle fatigue from building up in a short time and how to improve muscle endurance. In his previous life, he remembered that consuming banana and orange juice together helped reduce muscle fatigue.

‘Track and field is fun.’

And the bright faces of his parents after crossing the finish line made Jin-hyeok incredibly happy. Seeing his little sister, who probably didn’t understand much, clapping and calling out to him made his heart tingle.

‘So thrilling!’

Hehehe—.