By Zephyria 
Jung-hyun read those words over and over again.
It wasn’t impossible. Since he always used the 86 account to leave likes, he could look at his own account whenever he wanted.
The person who left a like every single time might have suddenly become curious. Maybe they were just bored.
It could have been a series of coincidences. The things he had written weren’t particularly unique or special.
Anyone living as a stranger in a distant foreign land would probably have thought the same things.
Despite his rational thoughts, his palms kept sweating. Jung-hyun didn’t know why he was so affected that he set aside everything he was doing (which was nothing more than a few reports he had no intention of writing properly) and spent dozens of minutes agonizing over this.
He chose a very abstract movie, then deleted it, thinking it wouldn’t suit Shin Ho-jae’s taste. He searched for ‘sad movies’ on the internet, wondering if it would be better to go with a more mainstream preference, but he repeatedly closed the window, unsatisfied.
It was a good thing he was home alone; otherwise, everyone would have definitely thought he was strange.
Jung-hyun tugged at his long bangs. On the phone screen, he saw a white window with only the words, “I thought for a long time about what to recommend,” written in it.
Jung-hyun hit the backspace key repeatedly to erase everything he had written, then pulled the portable stove closer to his chair.
86 @86_luck_number
Have you seen the animation where a grandfather and an Asian boy hang balloons around the house together?
After pressing enter, his heart raced so hard that it was difficult to concentrate on anything else.
Even he thought it was foolish. That he had been this nervous and conflicted over a single post.
Jung-hyun tried to refocus on the unfinished report, but it didn’t work. Deciding that he only needed to pretend to write it anyway, he simply closed the laptop.
Then, he stared blankly at his phone.
However, Shin Ho-jae’s account remained silent. Only after seeing that no posts were uploaded for several days—let alone a short word of thanks or a review of the movie—did Jung-hyun realize he was deeply disappointed.
Disappointed? Over a small coincidence that happened on the internet.
Had he actually expected something?
That Shin Ho-jae, just as he had, found comfort in his words and felt a sense of kinship?
There was no way. It was a stupid thought, like a child hoping a world-famous rock star would like them.
Feeling suddenly deflated, Jung-hyun didn’t access social media for several days. Since he had used it habitually, it naturally crossed his mind from time to time, but after shoving the app icon into the furthest corner, he deliberately avoided looking at it.
He was acting exactly like someone who was sulking. It was ridiculous, but it was only possible because Shin Ho-jae didn’t know him.
A few days passed, and Jung-hyun forgot about the matter for a while.
Then, accessing social media for the first time in a long while, Jung-hyun saw his post.
Lucky Shin @luck_86_shin
Jung-hyun stared at the screen in silence for a long time.
How could he describe the feeling he felt then?
Was it the thrill of knowing, He really read my post, he was watching? Gratitude? Or guilt for not accessing social media, unaware of this?
No, it was a surging sense of anticipation regarding a certain possibility.
Shin Ho-jae knows me too. Was he happy to see my post? Was he moved? Did he find even a little bit of comfort?
Did he think of me as someone special too? Did he wonder what kind of person I am?
…He, too, thinks of me.
His heart grew uncontrollably.
It became difficult for Jung-hyun to focus purely on the games as he once had. Whenever he kissed someone, he imagined the other person was Shin Ho-jae, and after rolling around messily with the Shin Ho-jae of his dreams, he invariably had wet dreams.
As if he had become an adolescent boy, lust would suddenly flare up at any given moment. It wasn’t something Jung-hyun could control.
A single connection, smaller than a speck of dust.
“Whew…”
The inside of the car was hot from the heater. However, instead of taking off his jumper, Jung-hyun pulled it up to his chin.
‘I guess you came all the way to see the away game.’
‘Actually, I don’t have a pen right now either.’
The faint scent of him lingered on the jumper. As he inhaled the scent deeply, his crotch bulged uncomfortably in an instant.
“Haa…”
Jung-hyun hesitated, but unable to endure it any longer, he slid his hand into his pants. The flesh, feeling as if it would ejaculate at any moment, throbbed in his hand.
‘Aren’t you cold?’
‘I can’t give you an autograph because I don’t have a pen, but.’
‘I have plenty of similar ones. I’m sorry it’s one I’ve worn.’
Under his tightly closed eyelids, his voice played on a loop countless times. His hand quickened, and wet, messy sounds began to fill the car.
A short vibration sounded from the phone tossed on the passenger seat. It was a vibration too faint to reach its owner, who was racing toward a climax of pleasure.
Lucky Shin @luck_86_shin
Just now
By any chance, are you Bingumturn?
(This post has been deleted.)
* * *
The news of his grandfather’s passing was sudden.
An order came from his father to return to Korea. It was his first visit in ten years.
Jung-hyun felt indifferent, thinking only that he would be able to see his mother’s face after a long time. His luggage consisted of a single suitcase. In it, he packed only one suit for the funeral.
He never dreamed that he would not be able to return here again. Just as when he was exiled to the United States, it was a decision in which Jung-hyun’s own will was not reflected at all.
In Seoul, a new role was assigned to Jung-hyun, and he accepted it for the sake of his mother’s happiness.
Naturally, he accessed social media less frequently, and shortly thereafter, Shin Ho-jae stopped posting new content as well.
Jung-hyun no longer thought about the events of that time.
He was too exhausted to continue savoring the bittersweet taste of unrequited love. What he needed was not a faded memory he had lightly tasted in his youth.
It had to be alcohol that could warm his body right now, and the actual physical presence of someone. Jung-hyun immersed himself in sex occasionally—no, quite frequently.
At first, it was “night play” forced upon him by Kwon Ki-hyuk. This was because he needed a certain context to make his brother’s sins his own.
But before he knew it, he found himself genuinely enjoying it. Ridiculously, acting like a degenerate suited him quite well. To the point where he wondered if this was his true self.
Time passed, and one day when he was 28, two years later, Jung-hyun discovered a nostalgic name in an internet article.
It was news that Shin Ho-jae had suddenly joined a Korean team.
* * *
Title: Yuk Du-min’s position on joining MJ Sports Team
Summary below:
The personal privacy and sexual orientation of the player must be respected. We express deep regret over the current situation and view it as a serious matter.
Lawsuits have been filed against the person who leaked private photos without consent, as well as the media and netizens who collaborated in the distribution and spread. No leniency will be shown.
The executives, employees, and players of MJ Sports Team will continue to actively participate in eliminating such cultures of discrimination and hate.
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Comments
└ So did they admit that the photo is actually Yuk Du-min?
└ The people deleting comments since morning are working hard lol. Lawsuit party.
└ Oh… it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a proper official statement.
* * *
“From this moment on, I, Yuk Du-min, withdraw my support for Owner Kwon Jung-hyun. Moving beyond a supportive relationship, the owner and I shall become one body.”
Yuk Du-min spoke as if taking an oath, his right hand open and his face quite solemn.
“Got it? Especially you, Ho-jae-ho-jae.”
“…Me?”
“Yeah. You think I don’t know you glare at our owner sometimes? No, no. From now on, any attack on the owner will be considered an attack on me. Okay?”
Shin Ho-jae shut his mouth with a reluctant expression.
Yuk Du-min continued to chatter incessantly, popping a small cream puff from a three-tier plate into his mouth. It was a dessert included in the welcome package of the Gangneung MJ Resort.
“What is this? It’s delicious!”
“The one next to it is good too.”
“Cheol, if you found something tasty, you should have presented it to me. Did you eat it all by yourself?”
Watching the two of them bicker as usual, Ho-jae leaned back against the sofa.
Considering that it was only yesterday that the photos spread online and he had poured out tears with swollen eyes, it was unbelievable how bright he had become.
This morning, MJ Sports Team had expressed a very strong position.
Whether it was because the mention of lawsuits was effective, the malicious comments criticizing and mocking him had noticeably decreased, and the internet articles that had simply mirrored Daily One’s report changed their tone overnight.
“So, I ended up having a meeting with the representative. I was a bit intimidated, but they told me about the upcoming legal procedures and how to respond. They told me to keep doing YouTube and social media if I’m okay with it. They said the sports team’s PR team would manage my comment section for a while. Plus, they’re providing a psychological counselor.”
Du-min chattered about what happened in the morning while eating a cupcake.
“And then they said they’d been thinking about it, and they’re going to recruit a mental coach for our team before the league starts. Saying that mental strength is the most important thing for players! Crazy, right?”
“It is crazy. The fact that they upgraded us to a suite today, too.”
“Right! Exactly! And then they gave me their personal contact info, telling me to reach out whenever I have questions or find it hard to cope… You know, Ho-jae-ho-jae? That moment when you see a halo behind a person?”
“…”
“The human Yuk Du-min… has been deeply moved…”
“It is worth being moved. Has there ever been a team that responded to a player’s issues like this…?”
Shin Ho-jae was also a bit surprised.
While he had gone to Kwon Jung-hyun’s room and knelt the previous night out of a desire for this matter to be resolved more quickly and easily, he hadn’t expected it to be settled so perfectly in a single day.
It was a far more proper response than expected. Almost as if they had been preparing for it in advance.
46 – Puck Drop