Chapter 38

#38 <New Future (3)>

“11.35”

In the stands, Dad and Teacher Kim Young-tae were seen cheering and comforting each other. Jin-hyuk smirked at their cheerful display.

‘Heh. They must be really happy.’

Even when left alone, even after saving his parents. He had enjoyed the feeling of being alive, running day and night. That obsession had now borne fruit, and he felt proud.

‘So this is the thrill of sprinting.’

The exhilaration of pouring all his energy into a short moment had warmed his core.

Lee Joo-keun, sitting in his chair, finally frowned. Seeing his mouth twitch, it seemed like he was cursing. The kids who had come with him from Gongju briefly checked the coach’s mood before running over to Jin-hyuk to congratulate him.

“Wow! You’re really good at running.”

“Congratulations!”

Jin-hyuk exchanged greetings with the kids by hugging them once.

Fatigue gathered in his waist, and his chest heaved uncontrollably.

“Whew- That was tough.”

He placed his hand on his waist and took a deep breath. Had there ever been a moment when running 100 meters felt this exhausting? It meant he had given it his all. His broad upper body also faced significant resistance from the headwind.

The award ceremony followed immediately after the race.

After a short rest, he moved to the podium set up on one side of the stadium.

The ceremony involved checking the athlete’s name and record before awarding the medal.

“Hey-, you set another record-?”

The staff member smiled brightly as he hung the gold medal around Jin-hyuk’s neck.

Jin-hyuk recalled that he had also set a record in the long jump yesterday. He hadn’t been in the mood to celebrate, so he had let it slide.

“Let’s shake hands.”

“Thank you.”

“Hah-, this kid’s got a bright future.”

His expressionless face seemed full of determination to the staff member.

*

Son Kwang-yeon kept clicking the shutter, capturing his son’s moments with his camera.

‘Well done, my son.’

He blinked hard, shedding tears.

He didn’t forget to strike up conversations with the strangers sitting around him.

“Hahaha! That’s my son.”

“Wow- He’s really fast.”

A man with a strong accent, from who knows where, gave a thumbs up. Son Kwang-yeon received more congratulations than Jin-hyuk.

Today’s race was over.

Jin-hyuk gathered his clothes and bag and headed to the stands where his dad was.

‘Teacher Kim Young-tae has left.’

He had said staying for more than two days would be too much. It was a pity since he had just started enjoying meeting people. But the thought of having a delicious dinner with his dad made him smile. He remembered how tasty the pork soup he had with his dad was.

‘Today, I’ll go eat grilled intestines with Dad.’

It was a decision made because no one was looking for Jin-hyuk to mingle with the team. For Jin-hyuk, it was a bold deviation from the norm.

‘Thank you, belly!’

The setting sun cast a long shadow over Jin-hyuk’s back.

***

Day 4.

Today, the straight track was again met with strong headwinds.

But for Jin-hyuk, who ran even in typhoons, it was just a breeze.

He also set a new record in the 200 meters.

“23.17”

A man in a suit and a white baseball cap took the microphone. He was the staff member in charge of announcing the event and hosting.

[······Attention, distinguished guests in the stadium. Following yesterday’s events, another Korean record has been set in the track events today. The previous record has been significantly shortened······.]

Clap clap clap- Applause broke through the sound of the wind.

It was the first time a record in the 23-second range had been set since official records began.

The second-place finisher was more than a second behind.

“Wow, this record might stand for 30 years.”

Record keeper Jang Yeon-bae clicked his tongue.

He thought it was strange that a school not known for athletics, like Eodong Elementary, had produced such a talent. There were no representatives from that school either. It was natural that no staff knew where the school was located, given the circumstances. He was selected as a representative of Chungnam and came with students from a region with no ties.

“It’s strange. It seemed like he was conserving energy at the end.”

“That can’t be. Elementary students usually run 200 meters in more than double the time of their 100 meters. It’s a matter of stamina.”

Jang Yeon-bae’s colleague nodded half-heartedly at his explanation.

“What about records from other countries?”

“I’ll have to check in Seoul. Director Park Heung-sik from the records department might know. He’s obsessed with athletics. By the way, isn’t our country producing a Carl Lewis?”

“Nah, our country’s not there yet.”

Like in any sport, there’s a prevailing perception that basic athletics is tough and not lucrative. Athletes who are slightly faster or taller tend to move to more profitable sports like baseball or soccer.

No wonder winning a gold medal in sprinting at the Asian Games is considered a once-in-a-century achievement. In such a country, a Carl Lewis is unimaginable.

“Anyway, it’s an impressive record.”

Jang Yeon-bae emphasized once more while reviewing past records.

It was the first time a record in the 23-second range had been set since systematic record-keeping began in 1985, and it was 0.71 seconds faster than the previous best of 24.09. What sport will this kid go into? He’d do well in soccer or baseball.

“But don’t you think the reporters are missing?”

“They said they’d just ask for a press release after the event.”

“That’s odd? They could’ve taken a few photos and called it a day.”

“Who knows. Maybe they went to other events. The main reporter hinted that some big shot pressured them to ignore this event.”

“Big shot? Who?”

“Who knows. For reporters, big shots are either politicians or advertisers, right?”

Jang Yeon-bae scratched the back of his head. He didn’t understand the reporters’ ways, so he could only guess.

His colleague made a nonchalant gesture.

“There are only two places where filming happened.”

A player was seen giving a calm interview in front of the broadcast camera. He seemed experienced, standing confidently in front of the camera.

Jang Yeon-bae turned his attention back to the new record.

“Wow-. This record is amazing. Who’s going to break it?”

There was also an unrecorded factor. In an era when wind speed wasn’t recorded, Jin-hyuk’s run against the wind remained undocumented.

Flags fluttered wildly everywhere.

***

“Can my son ride with me?”

“Sure.”

Lee Joo-keun remained stiff.

Of course, he would. His own students had been eliminated in the preliminaries. It must have been frustrating for him, with Son Jin-hyuk, who had set Korean records in the two sprint events and the long jump, remaining so calm.

“Get in the car, kids!”

Lee Joo-keun scolded the innocent students.

Throughout the event, Lee Joo-keun had strictly blocked approaches from middle school athletic department officials. He had even firmly rejected offers to buy him his favorite alcohol. Thus, middle school sports officials couldn’t even get close to the promising athletes. Among them were Lee Hae-dong and Jeong Bong-soo.

Unintentionally, Lee Joo-keun had protected Son Jin-hyuk.

The kids in the car waved timidly at Jin-hyuk.

Seeing this, a bittersweet smile appeared on Jin-hyuk’s face.

‘Grow up well.’

He might not see those friends again.

Jin-hyuk waved back at the kids and got into the car with his dad.

The three gold medals were already hanging around his dad’s neck.

“Can we skip the closing ceremony?”

“Yes. I don’t know anyone there anyway.”

With dozens to hundreds of athletes from each region participating on different days, there was no sense of team unity. All Jin-hyuk had left were three gold medals and a uniform printed with “Chungnam.”

Memories? The time spent sitting in the car talking with his dad was far more precious. He had been told by the event officials to stay for the closing ceremony as he was likely to be selected as the best athlete, but he left early because he missed his mom and younger sibling.

As they entered the highway, Son Kwang-yeon asked,

“Jin-hyuk, do you like athletics?”

“I like running, but I don’t like training like those kids.”

Though he thought it was a problem with some coaches, the coaches he had seen left a bad impression. The disappointment he felt towards coaches who lacked consideration for sensitive-aged students was hard to express. Even if he liked athletics, if he had to join a team and be treated like that, he’d pass.

The reason he gave the interview was because he wanted to say something.

Stop hitting them. Do you know how it feels to be hit? To block with your hands, fearing you might die, and end up with broken fingers and a split head. Have you ever tried to understand the feelings of such a child?

Ahem-. Jin-hyuk forced a cough to suppress the lump in his throat.

“Dad, do you like me doing athletics?”

“Dad will support you in whatever you want to do. That’s why I’ve worked so hard. I couldn’t play with you much when you were young, so I want to help you as much as I can now.”

Heh, why is this guy dodging the point?

Smart and emotional people have this problem. They prefer to express things indirectly rather than straightforwardly. Jin-hyuk, looking at his multi-talented dad, asked again,

“You like cheering for me, right?”

“······Hehehe. Yes. I really enjoyed it.”

Son Kwang-yeon finally burst out laughing at his son’s persistence. It was the laugh of a good-hearted fool once again. He laughed so hard that the three gold medals jingled. But he didn’t forget to add, to avoid misunderstanding,

“Jin-hyuk. If you want to do it, do it. If you don’t, you don’t have to. Whatever you do, Dad has the ability to support you. But seeing you sprint past all the other athletes was so cool. Dad was also good at running when he was young and got notebooks at sports day. But your grandma stopped me. She said I’d get hurt······.”

Perhaps because he mentioned his grandma, whom he rarely talked about, Son Kwang-yeon quickly trailed off.

Jin-hyuk nodded slightly, as if understanding.

‘Dad must have had things he wanted to do too.’

How many people have things they’re good at and want to do but can’t easily pursue? Just look at Jin-hyuk before, who spent his growing years just hoping not to go hungry, let alone do what he wanted.

‘Who was it······?’

Jin-hyuk tried to recall some sports stars who had left a strong impression in his past life. Athletes who were more individual than team-oriented, making names in individual sports. Was it swimming and figure skating? There might be others, but those were the ones that came to mind.

“Dad, if I don’t have to transfer to another school, I’d like to keep competing in athletics.”

I enjoy running, and my parents are so happy watching me.

“Is that possible?”

“It might be.”

Would any school stop an outstanding athlete from competing under their name?

“Dad will look into it. Mr. Ki-jun knows people in that area.”

Chairman Hong Ki-jun? That was unexpected. If it were Director Yoo Se-ra, it would make more sense.

Director Yoo Se-ra had established a foundation to nurture basic athletics with Saingroup’s capital, personally serving as the chairman to support financially struggling sports talents. Jin-hyuk had also been involved in supporting the foundation’s operations at the strategic headquarters level under Chairman Hong Ki-jun’s direction.

Ah, was there support from her husband in the past?

‘By the way, how’s the Great Magician doing?’

***

“How was school today, Soo-jung?”

“I don’t know! It’s boring. The kids are childish.”

Pfft-.

Yoo Se-ra found her eight-year-old daughter’s complaints adorable.

She had gone through the trouble of enrolling her in a school popular among wealthy families. But she faced opposition from her husband, who wanted to send her to a regular school near their home. He was worried that if she went to a school for the rich, she wouldn’t make many friends and would grow up lonely. The school they eventually chose was near a wealthy neighborhood, so it wasn’t exactly a regular school either.

She followed her husband’s opinion that it would be good for their only daughter to have many friends.

Anyway, her daughter Hong Soo-jung often complained that her friends were too immature.

“Ah-, I wish vacation would come soon.”

“Why? Do you miss Jin-hyuk oppa?”

“Yes! Jin-hyuk oppa is tall and handsome! He also teaches me well.”

Is she already judging men’s looks at this age? Studying is just an excuse. What studying can a first-grader do?

Perhaps sensing her mom’s gaze, little Hong Soo-jung added,

“Jin-hyuk oppa is, um, um. You know. He talks like an adult.”

That’s true. Yoo Se-ra was also surprised when she first met Son Jin-hyuk, who seemed more mature than a ten-year-old.

‘More like an uncle than an adult.’

His demeanor wasn’t childlike but cautious. And his manners were impeccable.

“And he’s handsome.”

You already said that.

“He does everything I ask.”

Yeah, I’ve never seen him refuse.

‘There’s no one like Jin-hyuk.’

Even though Hong Soo-jung was a handful during vacations, he never showed any sign of dislike and treated her like a real brother. What’s a real brother? Yoo Se-ra’s own brothers were so arrogant and rude that they felt more like enemies than brothers.

“And he’s really handsome.”

Wow. She’s going for three verses. If I let her keep going, she’ll turn “Jin-hyuk oppa is handsome” into the national anthem. She’s ready to pour all her affection into this.

“Soo-jung, you have to attend school diligently, go to piano, violin, art, English, and ballet classes regularly, so Jin-hyuk oppa will play with you during vacation.”

“Ugh-, okay. I’m going. Mom, your daughter Hong Soo-jung is going to academies!”

With a spirited shout, little Hong Soo-jung grabbed her academy bag and left the house.

Mr. Kim, the driver, who had been waiting anxiously at the gate, took the bag and bowed to Yoo Se-ra.

‘Who does she take after to be so feisty?’

I was gentle. No basis, though.

Yoo Se-ra sighed as she looked in the mirror to prepare for her outing.

In the mirror, a woman in her 30s, looking just like Hong Soo-jung, was comparing two earrings.

‘I also liked handsome Kwang-yeon oppa when I was young.’

Tsk-.

If I had known he liked gentle women like Jin-hyuk’s mom, I would’ve acted more demure. Maybe then I would’ve had a son like Jin-hyuk. Yoo Se-ra chuckled at her random thoughts.

‘When you’re young, it’s just a phase.’

Tastes change, and nothing lasts forever.

Yoo Se-ra is living proof.

As she pouted her lower lip and picked an earring, the housekeeper brought a cordless phone. It was Saingroup’s hit product, featured in TV ads more than six times a day, surpassing Maxon and Bartel.

“Madam, there’s a call for you. It’s the chairman.”

The chairman’s chairman, an explanation only understood in this household.

Yoo Se-ra rounded her mouth and mimicked the snobby madam’s voice.

“Oh, Director Hong? When are you coming?”

– Hehehe-. I have a video to review-.

“What is it, what is it? If it’s good, let’s watch it together-.”

Yoo Se-ra got excited without even hearing the whole thing.

The Yoo Se-ra couple, who indulged in foreign erotic movies every weekend night.

– Hehehe-. It’s not that. Our Jin-hyuk was on TV, but it’s a local broadcast, so it was hard to get-.

“Ugh, got it.”

Click.

Yoo Se-ra didn’t give her husband a chance to hang up first.

What’s the big deal if I hang up first when he’s running late?

This man is confusing, whether he’s a Saingroup employee or Son Kwang-yeon’s butler.