10 – I Live Alone

Unfortunately, the league’s unbeaten record was broken in the match played just before the November A Match break.

When Je-rim showed slight symptoms of a cold the day before the match, Coach Verdi ruthlessly dropped him to the bench. Naturally, Je-rim argued that he could play as a starting player, but given the coach’s tendency to pay exceptional attention to the players’ health, that argument was not accepted.

Because of that, Je-rim had no choice but to watch the team lose while coughing from the bench. Coach Verdi eventually decided it was necessary and put Je-rim in around the 70th minute, after sternly warning him to send a substitution signal immediately if he felt even slightly ill, but it was difficult to overturn the already tilted outcome.

Losing one match didn’t create a huge problem. In fact, it would have been stranger to keep winning indefinitely. Among the fans, the prevailing opinion was that it was about time they lost, and that it couldn’t be helped since Ban Je-rim wasn’t in the starting lineup. However, the feelings of the players who played the match weren’t as comfortable as those words suggested.

Thus, the players, excluding Je-rim, returned home for the A Matches while carrying a lingering sense of dissatisfaction. As previously agreed, Je-rim was the only starting player from Sefton who was not called up for the National Team and remained in England.

Ah, I should have just asked to be sent too.

Training with the players who weren’t called up, Je-rim secretly regretted it. When he first heard about the agreement, he was happy that he could rest, but now that he was left alone after losing a match, it left a bad taste in his mouth.

In times like this, it would have been better to return to his home country, have heart-to-heart chats with friends, loosen up by playing friendly matches with relatively less pressure, and shake off distracting thoughts by being around people. Since he couldn’t do that, the time he spent at the center only grew longer. Je-rim waved off the last remaining coach.

“Jack, you don’t have to help me, so go home first.”

“Jerry, you’re staying longer? From the day after tomorrow, even the players who weren’t called up are on break, so why not take it easy?”

“I know. I’m just going to warm up and leave immediately.”

Since all the starting players were absent, training was incredibly relaxed. Moreover, he would be forced to idle for several days starting the day after tomorrow.

Even though the regular training time had ended, he didn’t feel like he had used his body enough, so Je-rim stayed behind to continue stretching. Because he had no one to casually call out for dinner, he was feeling very bored and gloomy.

The only saving grace was that this state of boredom wouldn’t last long. Tomorrow was the day the variety show filming team, whom he had agreed to film with Chang-sik, was scheduled to visit. He figured he’d feel a bit better once he saw Chang-sik. Thinking this, he unconsciously picked up his phone.

The life of a modern person who checks social media whenever they have nothing to do applied to football players like Je-rim as well. No, it was even worse. While Je-rim didn’t post often, there were many among his teammates who could be called SNS addicts. For example, Edson.

He’s spammed his feed again.

Je-rim pressed back after watching a video of Edson dancing in the locker room with his National Team teammates. As he exited the stories window, a few new posts appeared in his feed. Among them, he saw the ID of a guy who posted even more infrequently than he did, and Je-rim’s eyes widened.

It was Aaron. Feeling unexpectedly glad, he flicked through the photos. From a group shot of the Spanish National Team, who had finished their official call-up the day before yesterday, to individual interview cuts and photos of them training, they appeared in order. Je-rim scrolled to Aaron’s individual interview cut.

…He must have really fucking liked it.

The cufflinks and tie pin he had given as a birthday present were neatly attached to the Spanish National Team’s suit Danbok. Even if a tie was included in the Danbok, most players tended not to wear it, claiming it was uncomfortable, yet in the group photo, Aaron alone was wearing his tie neatly.

Was this guy always the type to diligently wear a tie? Since the club’s Danbok didn’t have a tie, he would have to know how Aaron wore the National Team Danbok in the past to guess, but Je-rim, who had unconditionally avoided articles featuring Aaron, had no way of knowing. For one, it seemed he rarely wore his school uniform properly.

If he had intentionally worn it just to attach the tie pin…

…Doing something cute that doesn’t match his size…

While thinking that far, he accidentally let go of the stretching band he had looped around his foot. To be precise, instead of gripping it with both hands and pulling, he had been holding it with one hand while grinning at his phone, and his strength had simply given out.

“Ack!”

The elastic, thick rubber band snapped back and slapped his forehead. As punishment for losing himself in Aaron’s photos instead of focusing on stretching, Je-rim gained a red, rectangular, ham-shaped mark on his forehead.

“What’s with your forehead! What happened!”

Thanks to that, the moment Chang-sik saw him, he made a huge fuss, pointing at his forehead. Even after a day had passed, the mark, which had only turned a pale pink, still adorned his forehead.

His skin was the type where marks didn’t disappear easily once they formed. That’s why he had repeatedly warned Aaron not to leave strange marks during their relations, and Aaron, knowing this well, had been careful about leaving marks even while pushing him relentlessly.

And now, while that guy wasn’t even here, he’d ended up… while looking at that guy’s photo… I’m seriously going crazy. Je-rim brushed his bangs with an awkward hand.

“Is it that noticeable? It’s faded a lot already. It’ll probably be gone by the day of filming, right?”

“You have to film the scenes of you training today and eating in the cafeteria right now!”

“What? I thought the filming team finished the site survey, I’d get the script, and filming would start two days later?”

Then, the PD stepped in at the right time to explain the schedule instead of Chang-sik.

“I don’t think we’ll have enough footage if we only film for one day. First, we’ll capture some training scenes and a bit of your daily life today, then conduct the preliminary interview tomorrow while placing a fixed camera at your house, and then film just the parts of your daily life at home the day after tomorrow and finish immediately. Given your schedule, this seems to be the best way to proceed…”

It seemed to be a method devised to capture as much as possible of a football player’s incredibly monotonous daily life. Since the concept of the variety show itself was to show the daily life of a celebrity living alone. Beside the PD, who was listing the schedule day by day, Chang-sik acted smug.

“Yeah, yeah. I thought it would be a bit much to take up all your vacation time, so I adjusted it like that. I’ve already finished talking with the club.”

“Then why didn’t my reliable agent Hyung Chang-sik, who cares for me so much, tell me in advance?”

“I was going to tell you when I got here. How was I supposed to know you’d be wearing a piece of Spam on your forehead?”

Suppressing the urge to make Chang-sik’s forehead look exactly like his own as he brazenly held his head high, Je-rim pleaded humbly.

“Um… then, first, some makeup…”

Fortunately, the scar on his forehead was covered with simple makeup. With his forehead looking perfectly fine again, he filmed the personal training session, which was heavily staged for broadcast, and the scene of him eating.

In the afternoon, a belated meeting began. They discussed revising the preliminary interview script, limiting the range of the house to be filmed, and decided to place the fixed camera only in the bedroom to capture the scene of him waking up in the morning. Although Chang-sik usually slacked off, he was sharp in these areas, so the agreement proceeded smoothly.

Once the secret conversations that couldn’t be aired were over, the cameras started rolling again. It was somewhat burdensome to have a camera the size of an adult man’s head following him around, filming every action and statement, but he grew accustomed to it by evening. Chang-sik, excited at the prospect of appearing on the broadcast himself, led Je-rim and the filming team with an enthusiastic voice.

“Isn’t there a Korean restaurant nearby? How about we all go there for dinner? How about Japchae, Japchae?”

While everyone else nodded, Je-rim alone shook his head with a look of disgust. Why on earth was the menu selection again…

“I’m against it. I’ve eaten it so much lately I’m sick of it.”

“You go around eating Japchae alone? Don’t you follow a diet?”

“…Of course I do. There was a reason to eat it then. I didn’t eat it alone.”

“Then who do you eat Japchae with? Is there a Korean food enthusiast among your teammates?”

“…”

No matter how much Chang-sik was like an older cousin to him, Je-rim could never tell him that he had sex with Aaron until he lost all sensation in his waist, and that he had eaten japchae with the man because Aaron had bought it as a token of apology.

As Je-rim lost his words and avoided eye contact, Chang-sik sent him a probing look before suddenly and mischievously raising both hands to cover his mouth.

“Gasp, no way… are you dating… again?”

He whispered it quietly so others wouldn’t hear, but that only added fuel to Je-rim’s irritation. Je-rim frowned deeply at the sly posture Chang-sik had taken.

“No! Absolutely not. I’m not doing any of that! And put your arms down. You’re creeping me out.”

“Geez, if it’s a no, it’s a no. Why the temper?”

“…I know a good restaurant, so let’s all go there for dinner. My treat, of course.”

They were just about to head toward the restaurant Je-rim occasionally visited with close colleagues when a sudden message notification made him stop in his tracks.

Since he usually set most notifications—including group chats—to silent or vibrate, a sound meant the message was from someone Je-rim had personally set as an exception. For example, staff from the club’s media team, the team doctor, the manager, or the coaching staff.

In other words, people who were likely to deliver urgent and generally unpleasant news….

Sure enough, the text from the media team staff carried an ominous vibe.

[Jerry, are you busy? I heard you have other schedules today, so I’m texting first. I think you should check this article.]

His finger hesitated endlessly over the attached link. Whenever this happened, his ominous premonition was never wrong. Je-rim grabbed Chang-sik’s arm, took a deep breath, and clicked the link.

“…Huh?”

As soon as he saw the headline of the article that popped up, a dumb exclamation escaped his lips.

<‘How dare they launch a murderous tackle on our captain?’ Spain and Portugal National Teams, bench-clearing erupts during friendly match… Reyes' injury currently being confirmed>

The content of the article was as follows:

In a friendly match against the Portugal National Team held at 5 PM local time, a Portuguese player launched a reckless tackle on Aaron and was immediately sent off with a red card. Unfortunately, the tackle hit the exact spot where Aaron had been injured previously, so Aaron was substituted immediately. It seemed he had also injured his wrist in the process of falling.

The Spanish players, grinding their teeth and insisting those bastards must have targeted that specific area on purpose, took the opportunity to exquisitely smack the Portugal captain across the face. The hit player’s nose bled, and the Spanish player who struck him was also sent off directly. In the process of protesting without captains on either side, yellow cards rained down….

In this context, the start of a mass brawl was, in a way, a predestined future. Like a scene from a movie, the article concluded with a photo of two players screaming at each other and flipping each other off.

“Hah… who does that in a friendly?”

Since Sefton FC’s popularity was unrivaled in Korea and Aaron himself was a globally popular star, the news of Aaron’s injury quickly became a hot topic. As Chang-sik spoke while aggressively cutting his steak, the staff member sitting opposite him also used somewhat rough language, saying the bastard who tackled him should be hunted down and killed. An Aaron-numbered muffler was wrapped around his neck.

Je-rim couldn’t join in with the people chatting excitedly and just clattered his cutlery with one hand. This was quite rare for him. Honestly, he didn’t even know what menu he had ordered. He had been in this state ever since he saw the article. As he crushed the asparagus he had no intention of eating, Chang-sik nudged him with an elbow.

“Je-rim-ah, are you that worried? Still, eat your food.”

“Huh? Ah, yeah….”

“Put your phone down too. Can you even take a call right now anyway? He’s probably getting examined. He’ll contact you on his own once things are wrapped up.”

Since Aaron wasn’t answering no matter how many times he called, Je-rim had sent a message telling him to contact him immediately upon confirmation. Still unable to put his mind at ease, he had been searching for every single article available until he was called out, and Je-rim quietly complied.

Still, it was impossible to drive away the anxiety etched on his face. Chang-sik grinned at Je-rim as if he found it endearing. Soon, a small voice, barely audible to others, reached Je-rim.

“Wow, you’ve really changed. It feels like only yesterday you were making a miserable face saying you didn’t want to play on the same team.”

“…Without him, our team’s Champions….”

“Your team made it to the finals even without him.”

“That’s true…. …But Hyung, aren’t you worried? How can you just swallow your food like that?”

“Do I have to skip meals just because I’m worried about Reyes…?”

Seeing Chang-sik point to himself modestly with an expression of genuine incomprehension, Je-rim suddenly snapped back to his senses.

Right, it’s not like Chang-sik is close with Aaron…. Asking him to starve along with him was a bit much.

“…I guess so. But still, humanly speaking….”

“Seeing as he walked out on his own, the ankle probably isn’t in a serious state, and it doesn’t look like his arm is broken. To end up with just this after that reckless tackle is a total win. Why is the guy who knows him better than anyone making such a fuss?”

Chang-sik provided an objective analysis as if to reassure Je-rim. However, that valid consolation reminded Je-rim of another incident.

“…Didn’t he get sidelined for the season due to an ankle injury a few years ago?”

It was probably because of a tackle back then too. At the time, Aaron’s injury was such a scandal that even Je-rim, who intentionally avoided news of him, couldn’t ignore it. And Sefton, hoping to win the Champions League while Aaron was gone, kept eyeing the prize only to slip up in the quarterfinals. The club that won back then was that damn Molden….

Chang-sik, who remembered the events more clearly than Je-rim, supplemented the information.

“He got injured during the first leg of the Champions round of 16 and was out for three months. Then he returned for the World Cup right after the season ended and won. Isn’t that the kind of injury you’ve experienced too?”

“…….”

“I’m a person who’s busy enough just worrying about you. Hurry up and eat.”

He was grateful for the kindness of having the sliced steak pushed toward him, but in the end, Je-rim didn’t consume any meaningful amount of food that day.

The half-absent state continued the next day. After receiving a message from Aaron saying, ‘It’s a bit difficult to call right now, and the injury test results aren’t out yet. It’s nothing serious, so I’ll contact you as soon as they come out,’ he regained some of his senses, but even this wasn’t a great state.

Je-rim followed the staff member installing a stationary camera in the bedroom with his eyes, but his consciousness was focused on the phone in his pants pocket. Even though he had turned on all notifications because he didn’t know when or from whom news about Aaron’s injury would come, he was afraid he might miss it. Meanwhile, the staff member who finished the installation approached and called Je-rim.

“I’ve finished the installation in the spot you mentioned. I’ll show you the simple operation method, and then we’ll go right into filming the interview and self-introduction scenes.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

Get it together. As the filming officially began, he finally realized that this was strictly work, and he geared up. Sitting in the first-floor room, which he had cleaned more thoroughly than usual, Je-rim recited his greetings with his phone placed in a spot where it wasn’t caught by the camera but was clearly visible to his eyes.

“Hello, Merry Christmas! I’m Ban Je-rim, a midfielder for Sefton FC. It’s been a while since I’ve appeared on a variety show.”

It was a greeting specifically requested because although it was being filmed in mid-November, the broadcast date was around Christmas.

After rambling a bit more about what he usually does and how he decorated his house, the interview began. Originally, he was supposed to go to a studio and react while watching the edited broadcast, but since that was impossible due to the schedule, it was replaced with an interview.

The interview focused more on private life questions rather than match-related content. Since it was a variety show showing daily life, it was natural in a way. Since the questions had already been revised, Je-rim answered comfortably.

“The teammate I personally think I’m closest to… for the National Team, it’s Yeo-bin. For the Club, well. As you all know, it used to be Will, but he’s growing his beard too hideously these days.”

As he rubbed his chin and shook his head, laughter erupted from several places.

“I’m joking. Hmm, it’s hard to pick just one. I’m close with everyone, but if I had to choose, Will, Craig, and Marshall? I also find Reman very cute. Oh, and with Aaron….”

Glancing at his phone, the name slipped out unconsciously. Je-rim quickly regained his composure and wore an awkward smile.

“…He hasn’t been transferred for long! Anyway, we’re quite close. We’re youth teammates, so it’s comfortable.”

After that, Aaron’s name continued to pop up unintentionally.

“A partner who fits well football-wise… I think it would be Aaron. We played together when we were young, and since our positions are what they are.”

“Hmm, I’m not the type to contact people often. Maybe Will and Yeo-bin? Ah, no. I contact Aaron the most….”

“A friend I meet often on holidays… also Aaron. When we meet, we… do this and that, play this and that…. Since we’re youth teammates….”

Fuck…. When he had only seen the script yesterday, he thought the private life questions were unremarkable, but now that he started answering, why were they all so troublesome? Originally, he planned to pick Aaron only for the ‘partner who fits well’ category and rotate the names of other teammates and National Team peers for the rest.

Life never goes according to plan. No matter how hard he tried to focus on the filming, his head was so full of worry for Aaron that the man’s name just kept popping out subconsciously. To be precise, because the mental capacity to fabricate moderate lies had vanished, he had become brutally honest.

“The person I’d take to a deserted island, definitely Aaron. I’d die—no, I’d be so pissed if I were the only one suffering.”

“Craig and Reman are the kindest. The ones who mess around the most are Edson and… Aaron.”

“Yes, I play that game often. Who do I play with? …Aaron…. Of course, I play with other guys a lot too!”

By this point, the PD, who had been quietly laughing, slid in.

“You must be very worried because of the article that came out yesterday. Player Reyes’ name just doesn’t stop coming up.”

It was hard to interpret whether the smile on the PD’s face was out of awkwardness, stemming from fan love for him, or simply because it was funny. Je-rim rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“No, it’s just… I’m sorry. I’ll do it again. I’ll make it more interesting….”

“No! On the contrary, it’s great. I think the viewership ratings will be high!”

Viewership ratings…? Just as he was sending a look asking what that meant toward the PD who was waving him off, the phone he had leaned diagonally between the table and the wall to keep it in sight began to light up and ring. Je-rim immediately jumped up and grabbed the phone.

“Excuse me! I’ll be right back after a quick call.”

Seeing Aaron’s name on the screen, his voice grew loud without him realizing it. Je-rim gave a quick bow to the surprised PD and hurriedly left the room. He went up to the second floor, where the production crew was forbidden from entering, locked the bedroom door, and for good measure, entered the bathroom and let out an impatient shout.

“Hey! Are you okay?”

-Were you worrying about me a lot?

Unlike Je-rim, who was so anxious he was breaking into a cold sweat, the answer came in a completely relaxed tone. Aaron’s voice was so nonchalant that it made all the time Je-rim had spent absent-mindedly worrying feel like a waste. While he was relieved that it didn’t seem to be a severe injury, he felt irritated for some reason, so Je-rim’s volume didn’t decrease.

“Bullshit. Why didn’t you contact me promptly? You should report everything as soon as it comes out to your club too!”

-As soon as the match ended yesterday, I went in for a detailed exam… and I was slammed being called to the disciplinary committee and whatnot. I called you first as soon as the results came out, so give me a break.

Strangely enough, at a single request to give him a break, the irritation that had accumulated while waiting for contact vanished like melting snow. Turning on the faucet of the sink, Je-rim wet his fingers in the trickling water for no reason.

“…So, the extent of the injury? Are you getting disciplined too?”

-The ankle narrowly escaped, so it’s just a mild sprain. But I slipped while avoiding it and fell on my arm, so they say there’s a crack. They expect three weeks for recovery….

“Three weeks? Then you’ll have to miss a few games even after this break.”

-It’s okay. It’s just my arm, and since it’s me, I’ll probably heal faster. The discipline is only for the ones who directly used violence.

What the hell does ‘since it’s me, I’ll heal faster’ mean? Is he saying he’s under the protection of the god of football? A hollow laugh escaped him for a moment, but as Chang-sik said, seeing that he ended up with only this much injury after such a brutal tackle, he wondered if such protection really existed. Looking at the video, the guy had intentionally planted his foot and launched a back-tackle….

Until now, his focus had been solely on Aaron’s injury, so he couldn’t get properly angry, but now that he knew he was okay, the rage slowly began to boil. If you don’t have the confidence to win with skill, at least have a good heart. How dare that lowlife try to end another player’s career.

“Is that piece of shit who tackled you not getting disciplined? Looking at his record, he’s a psycho. That loser mentality of only targeting expensive players…. If he’s that jealous, he should just retire, the fucking rude bastard, acting out in a friendly. No manners, no etiquette, no skill—that’s why he’s called washed up even before retiring.”

Je-rim spat out the words as they came, not realizing that his language had become extremely coarse. If Aaron hadn’t suddenly burst out laughing, Je-rim probably would have mixed in swear words in every sentence until the call ended. As a cheerful laugh, inappropriate for the situation, echoed, the rambling Je-rim paused.

“Why are you laughing?”

-Because I realized the swearing you do to me is actually an expression of affection.

It was then that he looked back at himself, having been excessively angry—more so than the person who actually got tackled—and felt embarrassed. The expression on Je-rim’s face, which had been radiating a menacing aura from swearing with all his heart, went blank at the unexpected words.

-Anyway, thanks to that piece of shit, I’ve been released from the national team call-up early. See you later.

“Huh?”

Since he wouldn’t be able to play the remaining match with a sprained ankle and a cast on his arm, the early release was expected. The unexpected part was what followed. The words ‘See you later.’

-By the time I go to Sefton, get another medical, and have a meeting with the manager, it’ll be night. I’ll go to your house after everything is finished. I have to catch a plane right now, so bye.

“Hey! Aaron!”

Even if it wasn’t a severe injury, both his arms and legs would be uncomfortable… and he’s coming to see him in that state? For what?

He tried to stop him and tell him not to come, but the call had already ended. Je-rim had no choice but to leave the words he wanted to say as a message. Along with warm concern that a sprained ankle must be rested to heal quickly, so he shouldn’t wander around and should just watch Netflix at home.

And true to the man who proudly put his name as the ‘one who messes around the most’ in Je-rim’s interview, Aaron lightly ignored the text sent by the captain and appeared before his eyes. Moreover, at 9 PM, after the filming team had completely withdrawn.

“Je-rim, did you miss me?”

Aaron, with a half-cast on his right wrist and a compression band wrapped around his right ankle, waved his functioning arm. Seeing him looking literally half-crippled, Je-rim was so speechless that no answer came out. Since he couldn’t keep a guy with an injured leg standing, he quickly sat him on the sofa and brought an ice pack.

Since he had come of his own accord, Je-rim decided to check the state of the ankle, so he unwrapped the band and examined it. Seeing that he wasn’t limping and the swelling wasn’t severe, it seemed he just needed to recover his forearm well. Je-rim placed the ice pack on the outer side of Aaron’s ankle, where some heat was felt, and finally spoke.

“Why the hell did you come? Didn’t you see the text telling you not to?”

“You told me to report. And….”

He had already finished reporting over the phone. Knowing himself that it was a nonsensical reason, the man lightly shrugged his shoulders and gazed steadily at Je-rim’s face.

“You’re not coughing anymore.”

“What? Hey, it was just a very mild cold. Of course I’m all better.”

“I guess.”

Perhaps having run out of excuses prepared as reasons for his defiance, Aaron blinked slowly. However, immediately after his prominent Adam’s apple bobbed slightly, his slender eyes curved softly as if he had never hesitated.

With the boyish face that Je-rim had once liked so much, Aaron smiled gently.

“Yeah, all that is just an excuse… I just came. You hate being alone.”

“…….”

Loneliness had been an extremely familiar emotion for Je-rim since the time he had left for Spain with only his mother. A strange land, a strange culture, a strange language… and with a different race on top of that, no matter how hard he tried to blend in, he could never shake the feeling of being an outsider.

Now that he had lived abroad for a long time, he had become so accustomed to loneliness that it had become a given, allowing him to live while ignoring it to some extent. However, this feeling—akin to a profound sense of bleakness that always lingered in a corner of his heart—would suddenly rear its head whenever his surroundings were quiet or people were few.

Yet, Je-rim had never revealed his loneliness to others. When he was young, he hid it on purpose because he believed that showing weakness meant losing; now, he hid it because he believed there was nothing more pathetic than whining about being lonely at his age.

And yet, Aaron, then and now…

“You must be feeling uneasy since you lost the last match. You feel a bit better now that I’ve come, right?”

Why does this guy know me so well? Simply because we used to date?

Logically, if that were the case, he should know Aaron just as well, but Aaron was constantly flustering Je-rim with unpredictable actions and remarks. Just like now.

“…I was just a bit bored; I wasn’t depressed or wallowing in self-pity.”

“I know. I can’t even imagine you being depressed.”

From trivial tastes like favorite music, movies, weather, and palate, to intimate topics like family history and values—Je-rim naturally knew as much about Aaron as Aaron knew about him. However, as ten years passed, many of those things had changed in his memory. To be precise, everything had become something he could only describe in the past tense.

Therefore, Je-rim could not hastily jump to conclusions about Aaron’s current state of mind. He was such an unpredictable bastard that he was hard to read. But occasionally… just like now, when Aaron acted as if those ten years didn’t exist, Je-rim would fall into a ridiculous delusion.

A feeling that perhaps he and Aaron had never actually broken up, and that the series of events that happened around that time were all just a dream.

It was a truly absurd delusion. In the room right next to the living room, a Newham jersey with his name marked on it was still hanging, and the jersey he wore during his unforgettable, humiliating World Cup debut still remained in the corner of his closet. To begin with, Je-rim’s imagination was lacking, so it was impossible for him to imagine something that never happened in such detail.

And even if he could imagine, he would never have dreamed up an anecdote like Aaron getting injured. Even immediately after his World Cup debut, when his feelings toward Aaron had hit rock bottom, he might have wanted to kill him, but he never dared to wish for him to be injured and forced into retirement.

This was because he knew that Aaron’s love for football was the one thing that would never change, no matter how much time passed. Je-rim agreed that his own personality wasn’t particularly great, but he had never harbored the malice to want to end someone’s life in the worst possible way.

…Well, if Aaron had intentionally let his mistakes slide just to be lenient toward him, his pride would have been so wounded that he might have actually broken the guy’s legs. Regardless, that didn’t happen, so it was irrelevant.

‘…But some random bastard did.’

At the end of his long reverie, as he touched Aaron’s swollen ankle, the emotion that resurfaced was a rage that faintly melted away such malice.

I never even thought about breaking those expensive ankles, so how dare some guy who’s barely spoken to Aaron… If I meet the team that bastard belongs to in the Champions knockout stage, I’m definitely paying him back.

Clever and subtle fouls were Je-rim’s specialty. Just as he was grinding his teeth, resolving to make the guy absolutely miserable, he was snapped out of his thoughts by a cold sensation flowing through his fingers. The ice pack he had been holding against Aaron’s ankle had melted, dripping water.

As soon as Je-rim cupped his palm to stop the water from dripping, Aaron took off the coat he was wearing, wrapped it around the ice pack, and grabbed Je-rim’s wet hand. He let out a low laugh, flicking a droplet of water on Je-rim’s finger.

“Seeing as you didn’t kick me out immediately and are even giving me an ice pack yourself, you must have been pretty bored.”

“Want me to kick you out? I won’t have time to be bored starting tomorrow since I’m filming a variety show.”

Je-rim tried to pull his hand away, but the warmth transmitted through his chilled skin was so cozy that he ended up just fidgeting. Aaron continued to play with Je-rim’s fingers as if tickling them, glancing around the room.

“Ah, that. Didn’t you say you had to install cameras in the house? I don’t see any.”

“They said they absolutely had to film the waking-up scenes, so there are a few in the bedroom. The rest will be filmed by the production team coming to the house tomorrow morning. There’s no benefit to having cameras installed all over the house.”

It was a secret from the production crew, but after they finished the interviews and left, Chang-sik had even used a camera detector to search the house thoroughly. It was to ensure no cameras had been secretly installed in non-agreed locations. They didn’t seem like the type of people to do that, but it didn’t hurt to be cautious.

Fortunately, no other cameras were found. When Je-rim explained this to Aaron and told him he could relax, Aaron tilted his head.

“That format is way too invasive of privacy… Do you really have to appear on it while enduring those worries?”

“It’s just a type of fan service. It’s not like I’m filming every day; this will be the first and last time. Anyway, that means you can’t sleep over tonight. And you can’t just drop by unexpectedly tomorrow like you did today.”

Je-rim spoke with emphasis, gripping the hand that was holding his, as if disciplining a dog that wouldn’t listen. Since cameras were installed in the bedroom of all places, anything strange was essentially forbidden today. Aaron nodded, as if he were well aware of that point.

“I know that much without you telling me. I didn’t come here today to do anything else.”

“…Really?”

“What? Were you expecting me to do something else? If that’s the case, I should probably meet those expectations…”

“Get lost! Just because I’m being lenient because you’re hurt!”

Je-rim shuddered at the way Aaron, unable to resist for even a moment, acted slyly and pulled the held hand toward his lips. Aaron then fiddled with his casted right arm with his rejected left hand, making a stiff expression.

Knowing it was pure exaggeration, yet wondering if he had been in pain because his body shook, Je-rim realized he was quite worried. Je-rim sighed, looking back and forth between Aaron’s right arm and ankle.

“What did the Sefton medical team say? Is three weeks really enough?”

“They actually estimated it would be shorter. And I’m really okay.”

Trying to lean his right side against the sofa back, the guy frowned as if his casted arm was being pressed, and muttered while leaning only his head.

“You know instinctively when it’s a major injury, right? In the past, I knew before I even hit the ground. ‘Ah, my season is over. Maybe even next season… maybe just like this forever.'”

It was the first time he’d ever heard him say something so weak. Je-rim, also sitting sideways on the sofa with his head lightly leaning back, bit his lip while meeting Aaron’s eyes. Aaron was speaking calmly because it was in the past, but for the listener, it felt more uncomfortable.

Because it was an anxiety entirely understandable as a fellow player, it seemed to resonate more deeply. It was a thought he himself harbored every time he suffered a major or minor injury.

If I can’t recover completely, or even if I do, if the Gam I lost while resting doesn’t return, and if another younger, better player replaces my spot during that time so there’s nowhere left to return to…

‘So he has those kinds of anxieties too.’

Since he had discussed aging in a nonchalant tone, Je-rim thought he was naturally composed. Then again, unlike aging, an injury is like an accident that arrives suddenly and unpredictably, so it would be difficult to accept it with composure. Especially for a guy whose dream was to play for a long, long time because he loved football so much.

Je-rim spoke calmly as he re-wrapped the compression band around Aaron’s ankle, which had lost its chill and become lukewarm.

“Why were you so anxious? You recovered perfectly in three months and were flying all over the place.”

“I didn’t know back then. And the expected recovery period was originally over five months.”

“You returned two months early? That recovery speed isn’t human.”

“That’s why I said I’d heal quickly this time too.”

Je-rim chuckled at Aaron, who muttered jokingly that he wasn’t bragging.

“Then it’s fine. You’ll be mindful since it’s an area you’ve injured before… but nothing will happen this time either. It’s a relief it’s only this much compared to what happened. After watching your videos, I really thought you had some kind of divine protection.”

“Divine protection… Ah, is it that?”

Aaron, who had been following the fingertips of Je-rim as he skillfully wrapped the band tightly, tilted his chin.

“The gift you gave me. I wore it on my Danbok right before that match. I even wore a tie on purpose.”

“…Don’t try to make it sound like that.”

Je-rim’s expression, which had been fine while offering the unfamiliar comfort, gradually became strange.

As expected, he really did wear the tie on purpose. He had suspected it, but hearing it directly from his mouth made him feel… that hitting his forehead with a sturdy rubber band had been worth it… and he felt proud that he had given a gift Aaron liked enough to call ‘divine protection’… and it was kind of cute how he cherished a trivial gift so much…

‘Crazy.’

He was now horrified at himself for occasionally thinking that a guy with that face and that build was cute. Unable to lift his face, which had become indescribable for various complex reasons, he only sped up the wrapping of the band. This was because he still had the awareness that if he showed this expression, Aaron would excitedly tease him again.

But Aaron never missed an opportunity to tease others. As Je-rim hesitated for a long while, pretending to check the ankle that was now perfectly wrapped in the compression band, a request mixed with laughter flew in.

“Je-rim, you’re done with the band. Look up at me.”

“No—ugh!”

Je-rim flinched as a hand suddenly brushed his ear. The hand that touched him without permission passed the outer ear, fiddled with the thin earlobe, and slid the tip of a finger into the hole to tickle him. In that state, Aaron leaned his upper body in and whispered into Je-rim’s ear.

“I guess… I was really worried.”

“A teammate got injured right before the busiest time; if the captain doesn’t worry…”

“To be honest, I felt it was a waste every time you made a face, but it’s nice at times like this.”

The hand that had been crawling like a snake over the sensitive skin near his erogenous zone was now covering his cheek. As Aaron applied pressure to his wrist, Je-rim’s face was naturally lifted. It was the moment Je-rim’s eyes widened, as their lips were so close they were almost touching, even though he had only tilted his neck back slightly.

“Because everything shows so honestly.”

Aaron completely closed that remaining gap. Soft lips brushed and toyed with Je-rim’s lips as if stroking them. At that pleading kiss, Je-rim instinctively tried to open his mouth, but then he remembered the overall situation surrounding him and Aaron and pushed him away. Experience told him that kissing led straight to sex.

Aaron is injured, and I have filming tomorrow. In this house, no less.

As he recalled that this space would be swarming with guests starting tomorrow morning, his head cooled down. Moreover, with both an arm and a leg out of commission, how were they even going to have sex? An urgent protest came from Je-rim’s mouth.

“Hey, wait, wait… what do you think you’re doing with that body…! And I told you I have filming tomorrow!”

“I know. I really didn’t come here today to do this…”

Noticing that Aaron’s breathing had become somewhat labored, Je-rim looked down. And as soon as he saw the outline of the cock clearly revealing its shape beneath the fabric, he slapped his thigh.

“Are you a child? Getting hard just from a brief kiss?”

“…What am I supposed to do if my body reacts? I’m annoyed too.”

“Despite this, the rumor that you’re impotent actually spread. Wow, it’s almost a full erection… looks fucking painful.”

“……”

Finding it fascinating and wanting to vent the sorrow of being teased all this time, Je-rim was in the middle of teasing him back excitedly. Aaron, who had been wearing a rare shy expression, suddenly twisted the corner of his mouth and leaned his face in. His large hand also gripped Je-rim’s thigh strongly, specifically near where his cock was.

“You get hard just by looking at my face, too.”

“You cowardly…!”

Aaron’s face and direct stimulation. Since he attacked the two things that could be called Je-rim’s weaknesses simultaneously, there was no way to resist. As the organ that had been teasingly on the verge of rising suddenly stood erect, he ended up in the same state as the Aaron he had been teasing. Aaron tapped on top of Je-rim’s bulging pants.

“Did you put a tumbler in your pocket or something?”

“Take your hand off while I’m still being nice, you crazy bastard.”

“Should I take my hand off and just leave like this? Really?”

If he hadn’t been erect, he would have issued an eviction notice without hesitation, but having fallen into a position of regret, the words ‘get lost’ didn’t come out easily.

But the situation… and hooking up with an injured guy who couldn’t even control his sexual desire was a bit… No, but am I really a beast? Even if I was a bit sexually frustrated, is the aftermath of not having sex for two years this great? I wasn’t usually this horny…

The endless agony ended in one blow by Aaron’s act of pretending to be obedient.

“You might be okay, but I’m not. How can I leave in this state? Please comfort your poor teammate.”

Aaron rubbed his cheek against Je-rim’s palm and looked down pitifully. Seeing him even slightly lift his casted arm, Je-rim was defeated instantly.

Since there are no cameras in the living room anyway, as long as they clean up well, how would the people coming tomorrow know what he did with Aaron here, and since that guy has his right arm in a cast and would find it hard to jerk off alone, he’ll just consider it helping out as the captain…

Still, the last remnants of reason and responsibility screamed that he couldn’t go all the way. Accordingly, Je-rim proposed a compromise.

“…The bedroom is out. And going all the way is out too.”

“Then?”

“Just here… let’s do it roughly. Like before.”

“Before? …Aha.”

As Je-rim mentioned the ambiguous past while glancing at the sofa, Aaron smiled broadly as if he understood immediately. He then pulled Je-rim toward him with one arm, sat him on his thigh, and pressed their lower bodies tightly together.

“Like this?”

“Yeah, like this.”

Since it had been a long time since he’d had the experience of directly stroking someone else’s cock, he didn’t know if he could do it well… Je-rim frowned and put his hand inside Aaron’s pants. Since Aaron was wearing loose training pants and his cock was already hard, it was easy to take it out.

Once he pulled out Aaron’s cock, Je-rim’s expression became even more grim. Even though half of the shaft was buried in the pants, the length was… On top of that, the girth was hard to grip with one hand, even though his own hands were quite large. Moreover, the sensation of the veins, the scorching temperature, and the slight twitching movements were transmitted clearly through his palm, which was honestly a bit overwhelming.

“…Your cock is disgusting every time I see it… Were you born into the wrong species?”

“If you put it that way, what does that make you, Je-rim, who screams in pleasure every time I fuck you with this disgusting cock?”

Unable to find a rebuttal, Je-rim quietly took out his own cock. Meanwhile, Aaron, perhaps feeling uncomfortable with the shaft caught in his waistband, pulled down his pants and underwear further to fully expose his scrotum. The shape of the already disgusting cock was revealed even more explicitly, and combined with the point Aaron had just made, Je-rim’s face turned bright red.

Aaron chuckled and planted kisses all over Je-rim’s face. With his left hand, he brought his cock close to Je-rim’s and stroked them both with his palm spread wide. Then, as if something caught his eye, he stared intently at Je-rim’s forehead.

“Now that your face is red, your forehead is especially… what’s that?”

It seemed that a mark he thought had completely disappeared a few days ago had reappeared faintly as blood rushed to his face. Je-rim quickly ruffled his bangs to cover his forehead and answered awkwardly.

“…I got hit by a stretching band. I let go while pulling it…”

“You should be more careful. Your face is your biggest asset.”

“Whatever. You’re a guy who’s a corpse if you take away your face.”

As they bumped foreheads, their lips naturally grew closer. After staring silently into each other’s eyes for a while, without anyone starting first, they devoured each other’s lips and resumed the movement of their hands that had momentarily stopped.

In place of Aaron, who couldn’t use both hands freely, Je-rim used both of his to grip and shake their cocks together. He had no choice, as one hand was far too small to hold both. Every time the shafts rubbed against each other and the glistening glans bumped, suppressed moans escaped their lips.

Eventually, unable to hold his breath any longer, Je-rim pulled back and broke the kiss. The tongue that had been ravaging the inside of Je-rim’s mouth slid out, leaving a transparent thread of saliva connecting them. Je-rim licked his lips to break the thread and caught his breath, forehead pressed against Aaron’s.

Sex was great, but perhaps because it had been a while since they’d done this, it wasn’t as bad as he had initially feared. In fact, it was quite good. He was gradually getting used again to the sensation of Aaron’s cock, sticky with cowper’s fluid, clinging to his palm; it wouldn’t put too much strain on his body for tomorrow, and cleanup would be easy…

‘…So that’s why they do this often…’

Thinking that he should make use of this again in the future, Je-rim tightened his grip on Aaron’s cock and shook it, causing a hot breath to burst from Aaron’s lips. Watching the deeply furrowed brow and eyes dripping with lust right in front of him, Je-rim felt a tingling ache in his own lower abdomen.

…As expected, on days when the situation and condition allow, sex might be better. Je-rim immediately changed his mind and shifted his body, which had been perched on Aaron’s thighs, to close the distance further. Their cocks, pressed tightly against each other, became a messy blur of fluids, impossible to tell whose glans they had come from.

Aaron lifted his right arm as if to wrap it around Je-rim’s waist, but then, seemingly realizing belatedly that he was in a cast, he clicked his tongue in annoyance. Instead, he covered Je-rim’s glans with his left hand, teasing it gently while meeting his gaze head-on.

“Haa… doing this makes it feel like we’ve really gone back to the old days. Except that we’ve both grown a bit more.”

“Just… shut up and do it… You didn’t say perverted things like that back then.”

“I was talking about height? You’re the pervert… Ah, don’t run away. Actually, I was talking about dicks.”

As Je-rim scowled and tried to bolt upright, Aaron hurriedly apologized and buried his cheek in Je-rim’s shoulder. He whispered apologies while gently nibbling on the earlobe, and every time Aaron’s breath and voice scattered against his ear, Je-rim’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. He felt a chill as if he were shivering on a snowy mountain peak, while simultaneously feeling his throat go bone-dry as if he had been thrown into the middle of a desert.

Je-rim closed his eyes tight, feeling appalled by Aaron’s habit of acting weak and cute only when he wanted something, yet feeling pathetic for falling for it every single time. Despite having fallen for it again, he didn’t want to admit it, so his meager pride issued a threat.

“It hurts, kgh, there’s a limit to how much I can go easy on you… Stop pushing your luck.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. But in terms of position, you’re the one pushing up on me…”

“Seriously!”

“Alright, alright. I really won’t mess around anymore.”

Aaron burst into laughter but promised solemnly in his tone. Je-rim glared straight at him and warned him sternly.

“If you want to be loved, behave yourself.”

“Honestly… that’s the field I’m most confident in.”

The moment he saw the fox-like curve of Aaron’s eyes, Je-rim pressed his lips over Aaron’s half-open ones.

✲✲✲

The experience of waking up in bed and immediately locking eyes with a camera lens flashing a red light was quite a rare one. Je-rim tidied his hair for no reason and desperately suppressed a yawn.

From downstairs, he could tell the atmosphere was hectic, with the production crew, including Chang-sik, already arrived. Je-rim headed straight for the bathroom to join them quickly. There was a camera attached to the sink as well, which made him feel somewhat self-conscious throughout his washing, but since it was an agreed-upon matter, he couldn’t express his dissatisfaction.

When he went downstairs, as expected, the place was swarming with people holding cameras and microphones. Fortunately, no one was sitting on the sofa where all that chaos had happened yesterday. Of course, it had been cleaned thoroughly, but for the sake of his mood… Naturally, the feelings of those people—who would sit down and dirty their butts without knowing what had happened on that sofa yesterday—were the primary consideration.

After a brief nod of greeting to Chang-sik, Je-rim entered the kitchen with natural steps, as if no one else were in the house. Since he had been instructed to act as normally as possible, he quietly took out breakfast ingredients just as he did every morning, at which point the PD scribbled something on a sketchbook and showed it to him.

[Please be mindful of the audio!]

Ah… this means I should talk to myself, right? I wondered why the people on this program talked to themselves so much; it turns out they were told to. Clearing his raspy throat, Je-rim placed the ingredients on the cutting board and his lips trembled slightly.

“For breakfast, I always just use protein and whatever vegetables are left in the fridge like this…”

The voice he forced out sounded more like a narrator for a cooking show than someone talking to themselves. Chang-sik made an ‘X’ with his arms to indicate that wasn’t it, but Je-rim didn’t know what else to do, so he continued blabbing cooking commentary.

Suddenly, the intercom rang, and everyone’s gaze, including the homeowner Je-rim, shifted toward it. This was not in the script, nor had it been discussed beforehand. After seeking permission from the PD, Chang-sik hurriedly asked Je-rim.

“Is someone supposed to come over?”

Je-rim was just as bewildered. He shook his head and gave the PD an apologetic look.

“No, no one is expected… May I go check for a moment?”

“Please, go ahead. Oh, is it alright if we keep the cameras rolling?”

“Of course. I trust you’ll edit it well.”

And the moment he saw the man standing outside the gate through the intercom screen, the awkward smile Je-rim had been wearing for the sake of social grace and the broadcast vanished completely. Chang-sik, who had followed along out of curiosity, looked at Je-rim’s frozen profile with a puzzled expression.

“Who is it that makes you look so serious… Uh-oh!”

However, the moment Chang-sik also recognized the man on the intercom screen, he let out a scream, even pointing his finger. He could feel the other staff members following behind him stirring in commotion.

In a situation where the cameras were filming everything, if he just ignored him… it would become a bigger problem. A controversy over his personality or the rumors of discord that he had barely managed to suppress might resurface…

After calculating a few scenarios, Je-rim’s mind reached the conclusion that it was unavoidable. With trembling fingers, he pressed the intercom connect button. Then, a voice that was both familiar and strange echoed. The voice itself belonged to a guy he knew very well, but it was strangely timid, as if he anticipated being scolded.

…Je-rim, don’t be angry, just listen.

“……”

I really didn’t want to come today, but my phone… is gone. I think… I dropped it on that sofa yesterday.

“Shi—”

Foot. Just before a word unsuitable for broadcast escaped his lips, Chang-sik hurriedly covered Je-rim’s mouth, narrowly avoiding a disaster.

No, wait. A bigger disaster had already happened; was a “fuck” the main issue?

I shouldn’t have done that yesterday. Even if I did, I shouldn’t have done it on the sofa. I should have watched with hawk eyes to see if the phone dropped when I pulled his pants down. I should have checked if he had all his belongings before sending him home. He regretted it belatedly, but the milk was already spilled.

I’m screwed.

Je-rim stood there like a stone statue, forgetting even to turn off the intercom screen. It was Chang-sik’s whisper that brought him back to his senses.

“Did Reyes come to your house yesterday? Why? Wasn’t he just discharged from the call-up due to injury yesterday?”

Right, everyone here would have the same question. And Je-rim had to resolve this question smoothly.

Honestly, if he hadn’t done something he felt guilty about, he wouldn’t have felt this pressure. Isn’t it a perfectly normal occurrence for a friend who visited to leave their phone behind and come back to find it?

Unfortunately, however, last night—no, until this morning—he had done something very guilt-inducing with that friend, and since this situation was the result of that, his heart felt like it was about to explode.

“…Bo-bo-bored! He said he was bored… because he couldn’t play in the A Match…”

“I felt this before, but that guy is a total nutjob too… Why on earth did he drop his phone?”

That’s because we were doing this and that on the sofa, and I sent him away in a hurry because I thought we’d end up staying up all night…

Je-rim didn’t know if the phone had dropped during the process of undressing, while they were fooling around on the sofa, or while he was hurriedly getting dressed to leave. Aaron probably didn’t know either.

“What are you doing? Open the door so he can find his phone and leave quickly. We can’t delay the filming.”

Chang-sik urged Je-rim, who hadn’t answered the question and showed no sign of opening the door. Because the reason was so valid, Je-rim didn’t dare dawdle any longer and opened the door.

Before long, Aaron, having finished parking, entered the foyer. Although he was a guy who usually entered as confidently as if it were his own home, he seemed to have some shame for interrupting an official schedule, as his steps were unusually cautious today. Je-rim cornered Aaron against the wall and whispered in incredibly fast Spanish to prevent others from understanding.

“If you knew it was gone, you should have come back immediately! No, at least you should have contacted me before coming!”

“Don’t be angry. How could I contact you without a phone? And in the early morning, I just thought I’d left it in the car. I didn’t want to go back to the garage and open the door again, so I just went to sleep.”

“Then why didn’t you just live without it for a day?”

“I would have if I didn’t have other plans, but I have to talk to the coach and the federation this afternoon. The Spanish side.”

“Ugh, I’m going crazy! Just come in and find it.”

When Je-rim cleared the way, Aaron modestly took off his shoes and lined them up neatly. Seeing the manners that were completely ingrained in him, Je-rim felt a secret sense of pride, thinking that his thorough teaching from the past had paid off.

The problem was that the moment the foreign superstar player, whom they had only seen on TV, appeared in person, the production crew began to visibly agitate.

“Re-Re-Re-Reyes-seonsu…”

They were so shocked they were stuttering. Unlike Chang-sik, they didn’t even seem to have the mental capacity to wonder, ‘Why did Aaron Reyes visit Ban Je-rim’s house yesterday while injured?’ It was a blessing in disguise.

Chang-sik didn’t seem like he would dig further… it’s roughly settled. Je-rim put back on the broadcast smile he had briefly set aside.

“Ah, this friend said he left his phone… Just a moment. I’m sorry.”

“Hello. Excuse me for a moment.”

“Haha, he says he’ll be excused too.”

There was no way they didn’t understand the simple greeting in English, but for the sake of the confused production crew, Je-rim intentionally volunteered to translate.

Seeing them look even more excited than when they first met him made him feel somewhat bitter… He tried to rationalize it by thinking that opportunities to see a foreign player in person are extremely rare.

“It’s not an excuse at all!”

“Eh?”

Because the PD suddenly shrieked, Je-rim instinctively stepped back. Along with a voice that had gone so high it cracked, the expression was somehow strange, and an inexplicable sense of anxiety washed over him.

This wasn’t the expression of someone excited to meet a favorite player. Rather, it was more like… someone who had a winning lottery ticket right in front of them… Anyway, he had a strong conviction that getting involved would not be a good thing. However, the PD tightly grabbed Je-rim’s arm with both hands as he tried to sneak away.

“U-Um, if it’s not too much trouble, could you ask him if we could film the scene of his visit? No, no, if it’s alright, maybe a bit longer… and if possible, even attach a microphone…”

“That’s a bit…”

Just as Je-rim was about to express his reluctance, even Chang-sik chimed in to egg him on.

“Why? Just ask. Even to me, it seems better to do something with Reyes than for you to film alone. You really talk to yourself in a boring way! Who told you to film a cooking show?”

“What am I supposed to do if I don’t usually talk to myself! Was I that much of a problem?”

Even from Chang-sik, who usually reacted with ‘Aigoo, he’s arrogant but he’s my proud boy!’ no matter what he did, Je-rim received an outright critique, and his confidence plummeted.

He had never been told he was boring regardless of what he filmed, but perhaps it was because this was his first time doing a close-up lifestyle variety show. To the question he asked to seek professional opinion, a response with a subtle nuance returned.

“The player is so popular nationwide, and honestly, just breathing is like a photoshoot, so even if it’s boring, the basic viewership is guaranteed, so it’s fine.”

It was full of praise, but in the end, it meant he was boring. Toward the discouraged Je-rim, the PD murmured blankly as if demonstrating how to talk to oneself.

“But if Reyes-seonsu appears with him… we might hit record-breaking viewership… If there’s a synergy effect with the interview… Ah, it would be a total hit… I have my promotion review coming up this time…”

Something about a bonus if viewership records were broken, something about his parents’ 60th birthday party. It was disguised as talking to oneself, but it was clearly targeting someone. With Chang-sik continuing to nudge him in the ribs, Je-rim finally succumbed.

“…It’ll be completely different from the script, so it might—”

“It doesn’t matter! Just make it natural! Just as you two usually hang out! Pretend the cameras aren’t there! We’ll all hide in the corners!”

At the behavior that felt almost manic, Je-rim began to find the PD, who was a head shorter than him, scary.

Whether it was the club’s media team staff or others, he couldn’t understand why it was such a big deal for him and Aaron to appear together. The public was probably just expecting the taste of fabrication, like Han-seong’s lie detector variety show. What was so interesting about simply being together…

‘…Anyway, it should be fine for a short while.’

Only Chang-sik, who was in the same industry, would find it strange that a guy who returned early due to injury visited a colleague’s house that very day without resting; the viewers would likely just accept it. Even the production crew didn’t seem particularly puzzled by Aaron’s activities last night.

Of course, it was largely because they were blinded by a bigger goal and had no room to think about anything else. To put it bluntly, how would the viewers, who would see this situation in an edited broadcast a month later, know the secret inner workings? They’d just think he came to visit because he was bored while resting from an injury and dropped his phone.

And he judged that filming with Aaron would definitely be better in terms of entertainment than doing a one-man show while staring into space. Also for the sake of the PD’s future and well-being. Having made his decision, Je-rim explained the general situation to Aaron, who was watching with a blank face. To his surprise, the guy readily accepted the proposal.

“No reason not to. Instead, in the afternoon, because of the schedule I mentioned…”

“It’s fine. You probably won’t be filmed for that long. More importantly, what about portrait rights or things like that?”

“Tell them not to worry, as my agent will handle it once I contact them. Anyway, it’s mostly my fault for visiting during filming.”

For once, he’s showing a conscience. While grumbling inwardly, Je-rim translated Aaron’s words without missing a single syllable.

“…He says so. He says you can film as much as you want.”

Immediately, a staff member who had been waiting attached a microphone to Aaron. It was a swift movement, as if they had been waiting for this day. The PD looked up at Je-rim with teary eyes, admiring him like a god.

“Thank you… Thank you so much… You’ll really, really be blessed. Both of you really…”

“No, is this really something to be this about…”

While he was struggling to soothe the overly humble PD, Aaron, who had borrowed Je-rim’s phone to call his own number, approached the sofa, focusing on the faintly leaking vibration sound. Then, he reached his hand into the gap of the folding leather backrest, rummaged for a while, and suddenly shouted.

“Found it.”

At that, Je-rim also approached to look at the object that had caused this situation.

“It was in deep. I didn’t know because it was stuck in there.”

“Now that it’s found, it’s fine. Were you preparing breakfast?”

After returning the borrowed phone to Je-rim, Aaron walked toward the kitchen. One camera was already following closely behind Aaron, and the PD, Chang-sik, and other staff members had truly huddled in the corner. At the filming that had resumed without warning, Je-rim glanced at the camera attached to him and returned to the kitchen.

“Yeah. Why, did you not eat?”

“Yeah. But for breakfast… your menu is always the same.”

It seemed he had figured out what Je-rim was trying to make just by looking at the ingredients laid out on the counter and cutting board. To Aaron, who touched the oatmeal pack with a dissatisfied air and nagged him, Je-rim grumbled back without backing down.

“Do you think everyone can cook as well as you? If you’re dissatisfied, you make it.”

“What’s in the fridge? More vegetables on the verge of death?”

“I’ve already killed them all here. And with that arm, what cooking? Just come and sit down.”

He could afford to show a bit of consideration by preparing breakfast for a sick teammate. Even if the menu was the same oatmeal egg porridge and grilled chicken breast he had served last time. Still, this time he planned to add finely chopped onions and carrots to the porridge, so there was a slight difference from before.

He jerked his chin toward the dining table, signaling Aaron to sit and wait, but Aaron strolled leisurely toward the refrigerator.

“It’s possible if you help me with the simple stuff.”

“Really…? Then can you make Gambas too?”

Remembering the incredible taste of the Gambas al Ajillo he had made for him once after sex, Je-rim asked tentatively. Aaron flung the refrigerator door open and clicked his tongue loud enough to be heard.

“Buy some shrimp first before you ask. Look at the state of this fridge…”

“Why are you opening someone else’s fridge however you please? What’s with the fuss? You think this is your house?”

“I don’t think I can do it right now, but I’ll make it for you later after I go grocery shopping.”

“Oh, then as a reward, that red ginseng extract I had last time—”

“Forget it. Never bring that up again. Just pour me some milk.”

Aaron took out the milk bottle and handed it over as if asking him to open the cap. Normally, he would have ignored him, asking where he got the idea to act weak, but Je-rim glanced at Aaron’s right arm and let out a sigh.

“Look at you, acting like royalty.”

I guess I have to do it until his arm is fully healed. Besides, he said he’d make Gambas with that arm later. But wait, if I do all the washing and prepping of the ingredients, isn’t that just me making it…? Aaron will do the sautéing and seasoning, so is he actually the one cooking?

While pondering the most useless problem in the world, Je-rim poured milk into a clean glass.

The regret that he should have reconsidered appearing on the show with Aaron instead of worrying about such trivial matters came only after the broadcast aired.

✲✲✲

5 minutes until the ‘I Live Alone’ Jerry episode

My dad turned on the TV faster than I did lol

⤷ Same at my houseㅋㅋㅋ My parents are more hyped

⤷ Fuck, it’s not even a match day but chicken orders are backed up;;

⤷⤷ You idiot, you should’ve picked it up in advance

I love that this is airing after the Champions League round of 16 qualification was confirmed ㅎㅎ

Blocks out all the nonsense

⤷ fr frㅜ Timing is great

⤷ Imagine if this aired after they got knocked out in the group stage, just thinking about it is horrific. The ‘World Cup Obsessives’ would’ve swarmed the variety show and beaten Je-rim-ssi up again, right?

⤷ With that squad, if they’d been knocked out in the groups, I’d be the first one running there with a bat

⤷ Beat him up or whatever, Sefton is 1st in Group C~ ꉂꉂ(ᵔᗜᵔ✲)ꉂꉂ(ᵔᗜᵔ✲)

When are the commercials over??

Ah, please show me Jerry’s face ㅠㅠㅠ The teaser looked like Aaron was making a surprise appearance

⤷ I hope Aaron appears a lot

⤷ But how did they recruit Aaron? Is it just a special appearance?

⤷ He’s probably just showing his face out of loyalty since he’s idling due to injury… 100% he won’t be in it much

⤷ The broadcasting station hit the jackpot even for a short appearance lol

Commercials over!! Change the channel quick

Start

⤷ thx

⤷ Our lucky charm! Jerry, I’m expecting big laughs today

.

.

.

???? They filmed it as a newlywed daily life concept because it’s a Christmas special??

Wait, what am I watching right now??

⤷ All 50 million citizens are in the same state as you right now

⤷ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ah, this is absurd…

⤷ Is the motto of the show ‘A Greater Republic of Korea’ or something…

⤷ Fuck, this isn’t ‘I Live Alone,’ it’s ‘We Got Married’

I want to ban the mention of Aaron’s name to Ban Je-rim

The interview would end instantly

⤷ ?? “That’s Al—, our team’s Spanish starting striker and my youth teammate…”

⤷ Holy shit, why do they have so much in common;; I don’t even have that many memories with my boyfriend of 5 years

⤷ The names of other teammates inserted here and there were just used as filler

⤷ He keeps using the ‘youth teammate’ excuse, but weren’t they in a fight and not speaking for 10 years?

⤷ They followed each other again and forgot the past

Just how often did he visit the house

To have that kind of vibe

⤷ At least semi-cohabitating

⤷ It’s more natural than when I go to my parents’ house, I’m bewildered;;

On the sofa… what did you do…

Why won’t they tell us the most important part… it makes me think weird things…

⤷ Thank god I’m not the only rotten one

⤷ They probably played football, they’re Football Saints

Even giving them the benefit of the doubt, okay, he dropped his phone at a teammate’s house during vacation (honestly, I’m already at a ?? state here) and went to retrieve it.

But is it possible to naturally eat breakfast together, organize the fridge with a cast on your arm, nag, and say “I’ll buy groceries and make Gambas later~~” “Okay okay!”? Between coworkers??

⤷ Stop joking, why would you see a coworker during vacation?

⤷ Honestly, even the lunch I’m forced to eat with coworkers every day feels like shit, I want to eat alone ㅠ

⤷ Even the grass laid at Sefton Stadium probably knows what’s going on between those two

He fed a Spaniard red ginseng extract??

Je-rim is more sincere about promoting domestic products than anyone else

⤷ He’s the one who filmed the Sseut for that, isn’t he? ㅋㅋㅋ

⤷ Then was he aiming for a contract extension?

⤷ As expected, Ban Je-rim is i- intelligent

I think my husband brought in a new foreign husband abroad behind my back…

Can I sue…

⤷ Aaron will probably sue youㅜㅜ

⤷ There are at least tens of thousands of women who have been forcibly divorced right now…

⤷ The guys are freaking out too ㅋㅋㅋ The ones who said “I could be the bottom for Jerry-hyung” are seeing hope now lol

⤷ They weren’t just ‘able to be the bottom,’ they were basically open 24/7, these guys are such pretenders..ㅎㅎ

⤷ You twisted male fans, look at your visuals and then look at Aaron’s. Hope my ass, you should be in despair more than anyone right now

My mom is seriously asking me if those two are ‘doing it’

What… should I… answer…

⤷ Your mother has a good eye…

⤷ Looks like they’ve touched the ‘it’ part

⤷ Report the comment above please

I don’t know about other things, but Ban Je-rim’s gaming skills are a disgrace to Koreans

First time seeing a Football Saint be that bad at a football game. How do you lose to a guy with a cast on his arm?

⤷ I guess that insane football intelligence doesn’t translate to the game ㅠㅠㅠ

⤷ Calling it intelligence, he’s just a bad controller. He doesn’t even know how to use the skills; I thought he played often;;

Summary of Ban Je-rim’s FIFA playstyle:

Football… is murder…

⤷ You just broke Edson’s ankle ㅋㅋㅋ Aaron teasing him from the side is perfect

⤷ Thank god Jerry-hyung isn’t the type to go around tackling people in real life lol He would’ve buried someone

⤷ He can’t even time a tackle or a foul properly. Is this his first time playing football?

⤷ Kim Chun-bae (Ssangmun-dong Early Morning Football Club Benchwarmer): Ah~ Ban Je-rim~ That’s not how you play football~

Sneaking in a goal while Aaron is away is the epitome of cowardice ㄷㄷㄷ

As expected of Ban Jerry, the class of a rat

⤷ My grandpa used to do that during betting Go games and got into a fight with another grandpa in the neighborhood

Aaron started the prank first, stop the hate 🙂 Fuck you

⤷ You’re probably pissed because you’ve lived a loser’s life and never even pranked a friend like that huh

⤷ Oh my, Grandpa!! I told you to stay in the cabinet, why do you keep coming out?

They’re mixing English and Spanish, right?

Their couple antics are so damn multinational, fuck

⤷ yeah ㅋㅋㅋ The person adding subtitles must have been so annoyed

⤷ Looks like Je-rim curses in Korean, judging by the bleeps… Je-rim-ah… ㅠㅠㅠ

⤷ Bleep- bleep- bleep- bleep- lol

Is Aaron always like that??

No, is he naturally aegyo-filled?? Or is he being a fox?? I was genuinely shocked when he rubbed his face on Je-rim’s shoulder and whined that he was hungry. Is he sane??

⤷ Fuck lol Being a fox? ㅋㅋㅋ

⤷ You’re not sane either, calling a guy who’s 195cm, covered in tattoos, and looks like a mafia boss ‘a fox’…

⤷ He’s a total jerk, but I guess he has a lot of aegyo in front of his lover… I only found out thanks to Jerry. I’ve stanned Aaron for over 5 years

“Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?”

“Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?” “Piggy, are you hungry already?”

⤷ You’re noisy, calm down

⤷ OP, fuck, is Ban Je-rim’s gaze and voice insane?? I’m going to sue

⤷ Ah, the moment the lover’s nickname became ‘piggy,’ it was over, ah

He calls him piggy with his mouth

But why is honey dripping from his eyes… why is he stroking his hair as if he finds him unbearably cute…

⤷ Ban Je-rim is guilty, fuck!!

⤷ The ‘piggy’ Je-rim sees: 195cm 88kg

⤷ What kind of piggy gets tattoos that menacing, Je-rim-ah ㅠㅠㅠ

The guy who thinks he’ll look cute acting aegyo with that visual

And the guy who actually finds that aegyo cute

…What is this…?

⤷ They’ve just gone crazy and can’t see anything else

The sight of them grocery shopping and cooking together is so ‘weekend afternoon of a newlywed couple living in a new city’ that it’s just…

Is it… okay to show this much…? Jerry’s remaining life…

⤷ Just enjoy it… Je-rim seems to be enjoying it too

⤷ Jerry’s marriage prospects are being destroyed in real-time, but it’s fun for us to watch

My daughter (2nd grade) used to sing every day about marrying Ban Je-rim

But maybe she instinctively sensed something was wrong because she suddenly started crying

⤷ Ah haha, crying, crying, crying. Tell her it’s all a script, please comfort her, crying.

⤷ The problem is that it doesn’t look like a script;

You said Aaron would only appear briefly, you fake experts

The captain’s ‘housewife’ support has been going on for 30 minutes now, what are we going to do about this

⤷ Did we know they were married;;

⤷ They’re stuck together from morning until evening

⤷ In the middle, I thought Aaron finally left, but then I saw him come back down after finishing a call on the 2nd floor, and I gave up on thinking

But they really bicker without a single break

Wow, that’s almost impossible unless they’re a perfect match

⤷ fr, there’s no gap; when Ban Je-rim was alone at the start, the audio was f- empty ㅋㅋㅋ

⤷ The production team must have been so grateful Aaron suddenly showed up

⤷ Doesn’t that mean Sefton players see this shit every day?? They must be sick of it too

Enough of that!! You’re going to naturalize, right??

We’re in a position where every single player counts, so we can’t let Je-rim go over there, so you come to Korea

⤷ Agree

⤷ Agree 3

⤷ Confucianly, of course Reyes should naturalize. To have a Korean great man, you should show the sincerity of changing your nationality.

⤷ Aaron is a great man in Spain too, plus he’s the captain of the Spanish national team

⤷ Who cares about the situation of a country on the other side of the globe? Anyway, Reyes is now a citizen of the Republic of Korea.

Who overlaps in position with Aaron on the national team?

Is it Song Yeo-bin? Hmm, it’s a bit of a waste to kick him out

⤷ yeah, but if you move Song Yeo-bin to right wing and put Aaron at top, they can coexist

⤷ OP good

Je-rim really does a lot for Korea

First he fills our national pride by raising the country’s prestige, and now he personally imports a top-tier striker, a rare find

⤷ Isn’t this also part of Ban Je-rim’s big picture? He wants to win the World Cup & Champions, and be the first Asian to win the Ballon d’Or, so he used a honey trap…

⤷ The honey trap theory makes sense

⤷ I wondered why a Football Saint was unnecessarily handsome, and this is how it goes

Quickly include Aaron in ‘Do You Know Club,’ from now on he’s Korean

We must feed him Choco Pie and Cham-ssal until his soul is addicted

⤷ He even ate red ginseng extract, so of course he’s Korean;;

But he can’t be Korean and have the surname Reyes

What surname should we give him?

⤷ Go with Gimhae Kim clan for safety

⤷ Kim Aron good

⤷ Kim Aron is my dog’s name

⤷ Just like that, a great man of Spain lost his surname, first name, and nationality…

⤷⤷ In exchange, he gets Ban Je-rim

Benefits of Aaron Reyes naturalizing to Korea:

Ban Je-rim

Guaranteed national team jersey number 9

One free Han River view mixed-use penthouse as a newlywed home (maintenance fee separate)

Direct delivery of the freshest seafood of the day from Noryangjin Fisheries Market (once a week, King Crab/Snow Crab once a month)

Free admission to Lotte World (including 1 companion, once a month)

Lifetime free Ttareungyi (city bike) costs

⤷ Hmm, isn’t free Ttareungyi giving too much??

⤷ Wow, he gets Je-rim too? If it were me, I’d never miss this chance, Aron-ah

This makes Ban Je-rim’s taste very clear

He 100% likes the fit and sexy style

⤷ ㅎㅎㅎ True…

⤷ What is this, I feel like I’ve been dumped before even confessing

The person he ate Japchae with also seems to be Aaron

Our team’s Spanish player suddenly said he was recommended Japchae by his national teammate, so I was like ‘what’.. I guess he heard it from Aaron when he went to Spain

⤷ Holy shit, really??? hahaha

⤷ How delicious was it that he’s promoting it even in Spain ㅋㅋㅋ

⤷ Include unlimited Japchae in the naturalization benefits

⤷ Je-rim says he’s sick of Japchae thoughㅜ

⤷ What can you do, newlyweds are supposed to adjust to each other even if they dislike something

⤷ Aaron is even naturalizing, so Je-rim should just endure and eat that bit of Japchae…

I tried DMing them to ask if they’re dating

I thought Je-rim and Aaron would ghost me, so I asked Edson. He sees everything as long as he’s tagged

I’ll share if I get a reply

⤷ Edson: HUH?? WTF??

But they were like that even in youth ㅎㅎ

I’ve stanned Je-rim since youth, you know? Back then, they were actually even more suspicious. They made their Insta accounts on the same day, went on trips just the two of them during vacations, and in every video that popped up, only those two were in a different world…

⤷ What??

⤷ True, honestly, there were people who suspected it back then

⤷ OP, it got to the point where people were speculating in Spain that they broke up and unfollowed each other… Aaron even had a severe slump for a while after Je-rim transferred ㅎ

⤷ Watch Je-rim’s youth documentary, honey is literally dripping from their eyes

⤷ Stop spreading weird rumors and delete this;; you’re talking nonsense

Seriously

Something is between them vs they’re just playing, you idiot ㅋ

⤷ Former

⤷ 111 If we congratulate them, it’ll become true

⤷ 2 Mr. Ban is my mom’s son-in-law

⤷ 1 Aaron was my mom’s son-in-law… but if it’s Jerry, I’ll give up ㅜ

⤷ I hope it’s the former. Je-rim needs to settle down now. He looks like the type to do even better once he starts a family.

We have no prejudice, Je-rim. As long as your football skills are maintained, we’re okay with anything

Given how much national pride you’ve given us, can’t you at least get same-sex marriage legalized? So please, let’s just win the Champions once, please just once

⤷ It really is time to lift the Big Ear ㅠㅠ please

⤷ He says he’ll lift the Big Ear and then kiss Aaron…

The variety show aired about a week before Christmas became a huge topic. Yeo-bin had sent an internet link urgently, insisting that he had to see the reaction.

Since Je-rim hadn’t been able to watch the program airing late at night in Korea due to yesterday’s league match, he clicked the link with a grateful heart. And then he trembled in shock upon encountering the raw reactions.

He hadn’t had a spare moment to check his phone from yesterday afternoon until this morning, and of all things, this was the first message he saw right after waking up and showering. Feeling disillusioned with his failed attempt at making friends, he checked other messages that had come overnight. But every other message was in the same state.

Yeo-bin:

Am I losing my jersey number and main striker spot to your husband??

Hee-jun:

Hyung-nim! It’s a small amount, but we’ve collected some wedding money among ourselves. We’ll hand it over when you come to greet Reyes~! ㅎㅎ

Han-seong:

You said you’d tell me the wedding news first ㅠ How could you do this to me

Chang-sik Hyung:

The viewership ratings were a total hit. But Je-rim, it looks like your marriage prospects are blocked. The CEO looks completely distressed right now

Younger Brother 2:

Hyung… what should I call Reyes? Hyung-su-nim? Mae-hyung? Also, Dad wants to talk to you

Just how did they edit it to make even my father…? He had no idea how to handle this. As Je-rim stood in the middle of the hallway with his hand on his forehead, Aaron, who was bustling in the kitchen, glanced at him.

“Are you still not over it? I told you I’m sorry for doing that against your thigh while you were sleeping.”

“Shut up. I need to call PD Shin.”

Je-rim huffed and searched through his messenger friend list, but then he realized with despair that since Chang-sik had handled all the communications, he didn’t even have the production team’s contact information on his phone. Aaron narrowed his eyes, as if searching his memory for a name he hadn’t heard in a while.

“PD Shin? …Ah, the producer of that show. Come to think of it, was yesterday the air date?”

Je-rim approached with an angry stride and perched on a chair in front of the island table.

“I didn’t think he was like that, but he’s a total Kim Han-seong. Wow…”

“Is the reaction bad?”

“…….”

Strictly speaking, the reaction wasn’t bad. Rather, it was too explosive, which was the problem. He didn’t even need to see Chang-sik’s text to know. He knew that his marriage prospects were now completely and utterly blocked….

‘I mean, don’t friends all play like this?’

Je-rim, who had gone home with Aaron immediately after yesterday’s match under the pretext of watching the Champions League round of 16 draw together at noon today, and played games that he couldn’t tell others about, fell into deep thought.

What did they do during filming? They just ate breakfast together, organized the fridge, played games, went for a drive because the weather was nice on the way to grocery shopping, and watched a movie while eating Gambas… Aren’t those all things you’d normally do with a friend? He didn’t do anything that strange, so why?

While he was racking his brain for an answer, a dainty coffee cup was placed in front of him. Fingers followed, rubbing his furrowed brow.

“So what if it’s bad? Broadcasting isn’t your main job. Here, coffee.”

Saying so, Aaron sat beside him with his own cup and a laptop. As the savory aroma of coffee wafted up, Je-rim’s heart, which had been boiling with anger, gradually calmed down.

Right, let’s worry about the main job. The broadcast will only be a hot topic for a week at most, and what’s important right now is the Round of 16 bracket. Getting worked up over nothing will only drive away my luck. Je-rim sipped his coffee and fiddled with the coaster. He had kept telling himself he had to ask, but he’d often forgotten; only now did it come back to him.

“Give me some coffee beans before I go home.”

“I can give them to you, but it won’t taste the same if you brew it yourself. If you just want to drink it, come over to my place.”

Aaron replied without taking his eyes off the laptop screen. His expression looked serious, so Je-rim stole a glance at the screen Aaron was watching.

“Is that so? I guess. But what are you looking at? The weather forecast?”

“Yeah. Our match on the 23rd… they say it’s going to snow in Newum.”

“We’re screwed. That area is already freezing.”

As if it weren’t enough that the distance was far and the away trip was grueling, it was now scheduled to snow. Thinking about the long-distance trip, shivering in the cold, and the double drain on stamina from having to be careful not to slip, Je-rim’s face crumpled. Aaron pushed the laptop back and let out a small sigh.

“Is it similar to a rainy match? I haven’t played much on snowy days.”

“Pretty similar. But once the fallen snow freezes, it’s slippier than rain.”

“Hmm, it’s unlikely to be canceled… I’ll have to be careful.”

Unless there was an extreme downpour or blizzard, matches were rarely canceled. And it was even more troublesome to play after the fallen snow had frozen. All they could do was pray that the snow would fall moderately, just enough not to block their vision during the game. Je-rim gave Aaron’s right arm—which had long since been freed from the cast—a light nudge as a warning.

“Yeah, especially you. Don’t slip and break your arm again.”

“What about you? Are you okay? Your opponent is your former team.”

“Is there even a reason to be ‘okay’ or not? Most of the guys who were my teammates when I played there have either retired or transferred; only Glenn is left.”

Usually, facing a former team brings back a flood of emotions, but it had been too long since he left Newum. He had played only three Seasons at Newum before transferring to Sefton, and this was already his eighth Season. Not only was his attachment to Sefton incomparably greater, but it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Newum had practically reborn as a new team over the years.

Of course, out of respect for the fans who had cheered for him since his Newum days and for the captain, Glenn, who still remained, he tended to keep his goal Ceremonies to a minimum. That was limited to goals he scored himself. This was enough courtesy for a team he had belonged to a long time ago.

‘Still, it’ll be a while since I’ve seen Glenn’s face.’

As he thought of his welcome Sunbae’s name, Aaron happened to mutter his full name.

“Glenn, Glenn Mackenzie… was he the captain of Newum?”

“Yeah. But it seems the vice-captain mostly handles the team captain’s role now. Glenn is at that age… he can’t play in the Starting Lineup that often.”

Glenn was seven years older than Je-rim. In other words, he was currently 35—or nearly 37 by the Korean age-counting system. Even for a goalkeeper, that was an age where it was somewhat difficult to play as a starter for a mid-to-upper tier Premier League team; as a midfielder, Glenn had recently been appearing only occasionally as a second-half substitute.

There was a time when Glenn was spotlighted for his leadership, having taken on the captaincy at a young age, and ran around more vigorously than anyone. But now, he was called a veteran, sat on the bench, and there were often times when he couldn’t even come on as a substitute.

Seeing that made Je-rim feel uneasy, so honestly, he wasn’t very happy about the match against Newum. Especially since he knew Glenn wasn’t being sincere when he constantly talked about transferring to Saudi Arabia this Season for a massive payout.

“Were you close?”

That was when Aaron suddenly threw out an unexpected question. While thinking it was a useless question, Je-rim answered sincerely, driven by a sense of obligation to pay back the cost of the coffee he’d received.

“With Glenn? Rather than being close, I relied on him a lot. When I first transferred, he took great care of me, calling me ‘kid.’ Just as Reman follows me around, I used to follow Glenn everywhere…”

He still felt nothing but gratitude toward Glenn, who had looked after an 18-year-old Asian player who had spent his youth years in another league, without ignoring him or giving him the cold shoulder.

Glenn had also been a key pillar who led the glory alongside Je-rim, helping Newum—which had always stayed within the top 10—settle into 5th place, qualify for the Europa League, and even bring home a trophy. He was also the one who congratulated him more than anyone when Je-rim transferred to Sefton.

“How many years has it been already. Time really… what have I even done this year, and it’s already Christmas…”

The realization that he would be thirty in a few days suddenly washed over Je-rim. Officially, he was still twenty-eight, but… thinking that he was steadily approaching the age he had vaguely set as a deadline in his youth, he didn’t feel entirely pleasant.

Why? His resolve to retire without regrets after lifting the Big Ear remained unchanged. He wasn’t far from that goal. If the bracket luck was good, he could envision a future where he won the Champions League next spring, fulfilled the remainder of his contract, and then retired. Yet, Je-rim wondered why he didn’t feel a sense of relief.

Was it bittersweet? No, it was something more than that…

A snap of fingers echoed in front of the expressionless Je-rim. Thanks to that, his stray thoughts were cut off.

“Do you have plans for Christmas? Why are you so distressed when you don’t even have a lover. You don’t even have to deal with the headache of planning a date.”

Instead of correcting him that he wasn’t distressed for such a reason, Je-rim just laughed it off. He dismissed the momentary feeling of regret as a delusion, thinking that the time he would spend playing on the same team as Aaron was also running short.

“What about you? For a fellow solo, you’re quite…”

Aaron only shrugged and didn’t show much of a reaction. Seeing that suspicious attitude, Je-rim unconsciously tightened his grip on the coffee cup.

“What. Do you have someone?”

“I’m thinking of making some plans now.”

Plans, or a lover? But anyway, we have training even on Christmas Day, so what is he planning to do? Just as Je-rim was narrowing his eyes, wondering if Aaron had forgotten about training and was distracted by something else useless…

“Je-rim, if we win the match on the 23rd, as a reward, hang out with me on Eve.”

Upon realizing that the “plans” he was making were for Christmas Eve, not the day itself—and specifically plans with him—Je-rim’s menacingly twitching eyebrows quickly returned to their original angle.

But why the hell was this guy asking to hang out on a holiday as if he were asking for a date? Although they had made countless appointments to meet in the past, the way he seemed unusually cautious, combined with the special nature of the date, gave off a nuance that was strangely different from usual. Consequently, Je-rim hesitated, unable to agree instantly as he normally would.

“…Eve? What are we going to do for fun that day?”

“What do you mean ‘do for fun.’ You know, that thing you love to death.”

I’m an idiot for taking that seriously for even a second. Je-rim smacked Aaron’s back repeatedly. Aaron continued to smirk even while being beaten.

“Ouch. Ah, put the coffee cup down. If I get hit by that, my forehead will split. Then you’re the only one who loses.”

“Get your words straight. It’s not that I love it to death, it’s that you love it to death! You were just doing some perverted shit to a sleeping person’s thigh, and now you’re talking nonsense…!”

“Alright, alright. Anyway, you probably won’t even get to do that thing I love to death to your heart’s content this time. Because there’s another match right away on the 27th.”

Due to the Premier League tradition of cramming matches into the Boxing Day week, most teams boasted a brutal schedule at the end of December. Sefton, for instance, had to go to Newum for an away match on the 23rd and then play another team on the 27th. Even though the match on the 27th was a Sefton home game, it was equally exhausting.

But if they can’t have sex to their heart’s content, is there any reason to meet on their one day off? It would be much more rational for both to just rest at home. Je-rim asked back skeptically.

“Then why bother… is there something else you want to do?”

“Let’s just meet and hang out since we’re both guys with nothing to do. I don’t want to be stuck alone and lonely right before Christmas. Especially since I have no friends or family here besides you.”

Je-rim suddenly remembered that Aaron had transferred this summer, meaning only half a year had passed. Because Aaron’s adaptation had been so fast, Je-rim often forgot unless he forced himself to remember.

For Europeans, Christmas is an absolutely meaningful day to spend with family or a lover. Je-rim could understand the feeling of not wanting to be alone in a foreign country he hadn’t been in for long, so he nodded.

“…Fine then. I’ll hang out with you because I pity you.”

“My goodness, I’m so grateful I could cry… Ah, Je-rim! It’s starting.”

Suddenly raising his voice, Aaron tilted the angle of the laptop screen. The Champions League Round of 16 draw had begun. Je-rim also swallowed hard and focused on the screen.

From the capsule picking the teams that passed the group stage in 2nd place—the so-called non-seeded teams—Tavarona came out. Although an upset had occurred by them finishing 2nd, it seemed they had successfully advanced to the main tournament. Immediately, the draw began among the seeded teams to determine who would face Tavarona in the Round of 16. Sefton was, of course, included among the seeded teams that passed the group stage in 1st place.

‘The team that faces Tavarona from the Round of 16 basically has no advantage of being a seeded team.’

No matter how toothless the tiger might be, a tiger is still a tiger; they were not an opponent to be taken lightly. Still, he had an oddly lack of connection with Tavarona so far, and since it was the first draw, he expected the probability of Sefton being picked to be low, so he felt relatively at ease.

≪Tavarona’s opponent is… Sefton. A big match has been formed right from the start.≫

The captain of the team that was picked right from the first draw, facing the strongest non-seeded opponent that brought back nightmares of the last final, blinked slowly. In this unrealistic worst-case scenario, the only words he could manage were these.

“…Hey, looks like you’re about to face your former team soon, too.”

“…I guess so.”

* * *