Chapter 136

<The Messy Coach Son>

Since he didn’t expect any interest, there was no reason to show sincerity in counseling. Because the other person didn’t show manners, Jin-hyuk also felt no need to bend his posture. This place wasn’t for counseling but for a verbal battle of mutual persuasion.

Jin-hyuk spoke indifferently.

“Doing well on tests isn’t a talent. What’s the point of studying well? You have to become a human being. You can live well even without goals like success.”

In the past, he aimed to escape reality, but now Jin-hyuk wasn’t a soul dreaming of escape after being worn out by hunger.

“Hey, you need a goal—”

“If you have a goal, you’ll study to achieve it. Then, if you don’t get the grades you want, you’ll get scolded and feel frustrated. If you wander even for a bit, instead of waiting, people will curse and point fingers. If you come back, it’s because the adults taught you well, and if you go astray, you’ll be treated like you don’t exist. It’s fine if others treat me like I don’t exist. I’ll go where my heart leads.”

Maintaining a relaxed expression and tone throughout, Jin-hyuk said everything he wanted to say. Whether others walk beside or behind him, he won’t interfere. As long as his family believes in him and waits, he doesn’t need anything more.

The teacher let out a long sigh and leaned back in his chair.

Somehow, it felt like he was being lectured by a student. But if he backed down now, he wouldn’t be a Korean teacher. Just as he was about to take a breath and deliver a golden piece of advice—

“I won’t be separated from my family.”

Jin-hyuk left no room for negotiation.

He swallowed the words “I just want to live an ordinary life,” knowing they wouldn’t work anymore.

‘I’m not confident either.’

Though not a science high school, in his past life, he attended a prestigious private high school and never missed being first. But science high schools are for real geniuses. Jin-hyuk drew a strict line for himself.

In the past, he might have considered such schools, but his current brain doesn’t think only about studying like before. He wasn’t pure enough to focus solely on academics, nor desperate enough to cling to one thing.

Taeyang High School is a small local school, but its admission cutoff is quite high. He has friends from elementary through middle school, and he wanted to attend high school with Lee Seung-hoon and Shin Woo-sung to positively influence their lives.

‘And my siblings.’

If Jin-hyuk does too well, his siblings might live feeling inferior and compared. In his past life, he was scolded for being smart, for studying better than his own children. He endured countless sharp glances from his stepsisters.

He could understand the glares. They were just that kind of people. But the resentment hidden behind those sharp eyes weighed heavily on Jin-hyuk’s heart. Why did he have to study so well and make others feel compared? So, he often felt sorry without realizing it.

Apart from being a rich older brother or a good sibling, he wanted his siblings to live happily without being compared to anyone.

Perhaps the silent defiance radiating from Jin-hyuk made the teacher give up, as he rolled a pen on the desk. The teacher, with a sour face, reluctantly asked a question.

“Hmm… Still, there must be something you like or are exceptionally good at, right?”

So flustered, the teacher from Seoul even used a dialect that didn’t suit him.

Well, except for dating, I’m good at everything.

“There’s something I like.”

I like my mom and dad, and Yoo-jin too.

Jin-hyuk, who rarely smiles, broke into a slight grin.

Hehehe.

***

“Ouch!”

Son Yoo-jin fell again.

Despite having longer and stronger limbs than other kids, she falls often. Her mom says it’s because she’s too eager to run fast. Somehow, she doesn’t fall when walking, only when running.

“Oh no, our friend fell. Are you okay?”

Lee Dong-ho, who was running toward the jungle gym with her, helped Yoo-jin up.

Lee Dong-ho is a friend who acts as his kindergarten teacher taught. Helping a fallen friend and speaking like the teacher read from a book. Is it because he’s from Seoul?

Brushing herself off, Yoo-jin looked at the jungle gym.

Chirp chirp chirp.

The sight of kindergarteners and elementary kids tangled together looked like sparrows hanging from a persimmon tree.

“I’m going to run.”

Sparrows are pretty, but they fly away when you get close.

For the peace of the sparrows on the jungle gym, Yoo-jin decided not to get too close. If she can’t play today, she can play tomorrow. Yoo-jin is a smart kindergarten kid who knows how to wait.

Yoo-jin ran across the playground, moving her limbs as her brother taught her.

Tighten your stomach and lift your legs high to push the ground strongly.

Think of it as pushing the ground, not stepping on it, and put strength in your ankles.

‘Running is hard, huh?’

Lee Dong-ho, running behind Yoo-jin, let out a breathless sound.

Kim Ho-jin, who joined at some point, clutched his knees.

Ugh.

Kim Ho-jin, who dry-heaved, asked.

“Why are you running, Son Yoo-jin?”

Yoo-jin stopped. When someone asks, you should answer kindly.

Putting her hands on her waist, she answered as her brother taught her.

“People who run well can run longer.”

What…?

Can that be a reason?

It’s a strange answer, but Kim Ho-jin and Lee Dong-ho haven’t built up the intelligence to point it out yet. They just think she’s a peculiar friend.

Ding dong dang dong. As break time ended, Yoo-jin looked at her friends.

“Let’s go.”

Brushing off her dusty sneakers, Yoo-jin walked toward the kindergarten classroom.

Taking deep breaths.

She likes running, but she’s still far from beating Jang Gun-i.

‘I have to beat Jang Gun-i to beat my brother.’

It’s not that she wants to compete with her brother.

It’s just that she feels sorry for making her brother walk slowly instead of running freely.

Yoo-jin realized after spending a lot of time with her brother. To walk with someone, you need to be similar or faster so you don’t become a burden.

Hong Soo-jung, who lives in Seoul, also said she exercises for that reason. To become someone who can run alongside Son Jin-hyuk without being carried, she needs to get healthy.

Mom said that one day Jeong Won-i will run around too, and when he grows as tall as his brother, he’ll be faster than his sister. Then, Yoo-jin will become a burden to her younger sibling too.

Her brother loves her so much that he adjusts his pace, but Jeong Won-i might not do the same because he’s the younger sibling. Downward love? It’s a difficult term, but Yoo-jin understood.

So, she needs to get faster.

To run fast and long like her brother.

So she can walk in sync with her sibling.

It’s a very simple story.

‘Today, I’ll exercise with Jin-nam Ajji at home too.’

She’s learning to swim, but exercising is so much fun.

Her brother said he hopes she grows slowly, but Yoo-jin wants to grow fast. So she won’t be a burden.

***

Shin Woo-sung hung onto Lee Seung-hoon and spun around again today.

Because of the height difference, once he’s lifted, there’s no way out.

“Waist! Waist!”

Son Jin-hyuk, who was watching, shouted.

He said to tighten your waist and pull your legs, but how do you even do that?

“Don’t bend your knees!”

It’s been over two years since he started training as Son Jin-hyuk instructed.

The training mainly focused on strengthening thigh and calf muscles, and thanks to that, Woo-sung had grown to a level where no one in his weight class could match him. The reason he gets tossed around by Seung-hoon is purely due to weight and strength differences.

Woo-sung once asked Jin-hyuk.

Why do you help so much?

– “I feel indebted.”

What a weird guy.

I’ve never even lent him a single won, so what debt is he talking about?

Anyway, Woo-sung trained with Seung-hoon again today. Under Jin-hyuk’s watch.

At first, he did as he was told out of innocence, but later he realized Jin-hyuk’s training methods were helpful and became more proactive.

He said he’d only help until middle school.

That he wouldn’t be able to help once they got to high school.

Woo-sung realized the reason early on.

It was because of his grades. To continue wrestling, he needed to get into Taeyang High School, but being a special talent didn’t guarantee admission. He needed to score the required points on the entrance exam.

Just thinking about it made him regretful. Not being able to wrestle, having to part with friends like that.

Coaches and seniors didn’t explain things logically or demonstrate properly, but Jin-hyuk and Seung-hoon were different. It must be because they’re friends.

They said if he got into Taeyang High School, they could stay together through high school. It was a simple truth.

So, after training, Woo-sung clung to his studies, chasing away sleep.

Even during training camps, Woo-sung never let go of his books, which seniors found amusing, but he found studying fun too.

Seung-hoon also helped.

– “You gotta understand what the problem-maker is saying before you find the answer. You’re trying to guess the answer first. You need to think more systematically, man. Rushing in makes you look stupid. Wrestling and studying are the same.”

Seung-hoon, who spent more time with Jin-hyuk, started talking like a coach. But listening to him, you’d nod along, realizing he was always smart.

Like that.

Thanks to his friends, Woo-sung became a top student, aiming to get into a good high school even without being a sports recruit.

He plans to keep wrestling.

He’s done it since he was young and never thought of a future without being a wrestler.

Thud!

Seung-hoon landed beautifully.

Jin-hyuk gets tougher when teaching Seung-hoon.

Is it because he’s a body that can take a beating?

To Woo-sung, Seung-hoon seems sturdy.

Probably the second toughest after Jin-hyuk.

Most middleweight wrestlers look more like pigs than athletes, but Seung-hoon has a well-sculpted body. Seeing Seung-hoon reminds Woo-sung of Choi Tae-yang, who graduated two years ago. At a young age, he became a national champion, famous beyond the region.

“National Champion Shin Woo-sung.”

Jin-hyuk called out to Woo-sung, who was blankly watching his friends.

The friend who looks good in blue shorts and a loincloth. He’s also Woo-sung’s personal coach.

“Training, focus, review.”

Woo-sung repeated the three words Jin-hyuk drilled into him since freshman year as he headed to the sandpit.

Though Jin-hyuk calls himself a messy coach and says to learn properly from the coach, Woo-sung knows. The one who greatly influenced his improvement is none other than that friend.

‘I’ll become a national champion like Tae-yang hyung.’

Ah, but if I become a national champion later, Seung-hoon won’t be able to.

***

After three rounds with Woo-sung, Jin-hyuk nodded inwardly.

‘He’s grown a lot.’

His center of gravity is lower.

Woo-sung, whose long legs used to be a weakness, now maintains his balance even with bent knees.

Thanks to long-term training, his core has strengthened.

Now Woo-sung can continue wrestling in high school.

But he still can’t let his guard down.

“Woo-sung, you have to take care of your knees to wrestle long. Just remember that.”

“Yeah. I have the best jumping power in the wrestling team. I jump higher than the high school seniors.”

It was a confidence the Woo-sung of his past life couldn’t have shown.

He would’ve already quit due to knee injuries.

“How many competitions are left this year?”

“Three.”

Woo-sung held up three chubby fingers.

Jin-hyuk nodded and pointed at Woo-sung with his index finger, smiling.

Woo-sung shouted energetically.

“Knees!”

For three years, it’s been Woo-sung’s cheer at the end of every training session.

As today’s training ended, Seung-hoon rubbed his stomach.

“President, let’s go eat some dog stew at Woo-sung’s place.”

Jin-hyuk hesitated for a moment.

He usually went straight home after training to see Yoo-jin and Jeong Won-i, but the offer to go to Woo-sung’s parents’ restaurant was conflicting.

Woo-sung’s parents opened a restaurant after their butcher shop did well, and the food was amazing. Especially the stews with lots of ingredients. The wrestling team, which often had gatherings, became regulars, selling pork belly almost daily, so business was good.

“Alright. President, let’s go. Mom said you and Seung-hoon are always welcome.”

As Woo-sung pulled his arm, Jin-hyuk pretended to resist but followed.

Hehehe, Woo-sung’s gotten strong. Scratching the back of his head.

Persuading the great Son Jin-hyuk, it felt like his once-innocent friends had improved their negotiation skills through life experience.

“Woo-sung, I’ll have the ox head soup…”

It’s good to get free food, but dog stew is expensive after all.