* * *
The man beckoned the young Taehyun over, but when Taehyun didn’t budge, the man came out to bring him inside.
He helped Taehyun into his uniform and lined him up with the other kids, starting with some simple warm-up exercises.
“Wow, you’re really tall.”
“How old are you?”
“What’s that on your forehead?”
When the kids threw questions at him, the man would step in and answer for him.
“Hey, don’t bother the new kid too much,” he’d say, making the children laugh and insist they weren’t being mean.
Taehyun was confused by how quickly the atmosphere became so friendly.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
Everyone used to avoid him, even saying he smelled bad.
But here, his height was admired, and his strength was something others envied.
“That scar on your forehead—it looks so cool!”
The scar, one he always hid, was from a glass bottle his father had thrown at him.
But here, it was treated as if it symbolized bravery.
After the hour-long class ended, the kids went home one by one, getting onto the school bus.
Left alone with the cheerful man, Taehyun kept staring at his shoes and finally spoke.
“I… I don’t have money to pay for the classes.”
Rather than thanking the man for letting him attend, this was the first thing he blurted out.
Though the man had invited him to come when he had time, to take regular classes with the others, he would need his parents’ permission.
And since everything came with a cost, his parents would have to pay for these lessons.
Taehyun quietly thought of his parents. His mother barely had any money left after his father took most of it.
If he wanted permission for anything extra, he’d have to ask his father.
But there was no way that man would spend any money on him.
So this was impossible.
The man must have let him in today out of kindness, but once he realized Taehyun couldn’t pay, he’d throw him out. Taehyun clenched his eyes shut, preparing for the disappointment.
He imagined the man would be frustrated, maybe even angry that he’d wasted his time.
Taehyun thought of his father again and braced himself, expecting the man to hit him.
It always hurt less when he tensed up before the blow.
But instead of a fist or a slap, what touched his head was something much softer and gentler.
“…?”
It was the man’s hand, tenderly ruffling his hair.
He smiled and said, “Hey, kid, what are you talking about, bringing up money to an adult? Did I ever ask you for money?”
The man then gave Taehyun a firm pat on the back, so strong that Taehyun didn’t know how to react.
Seeing Taehyun’s bewildered expression, the man burst into laughter.
“Look at you, with those big hands and long legs. That’s a rare talent. If you keep training, you could grow up to be like Choi Seongkyun someday! It’d be a real waste if you didn’t start now.”
Even Taehyun had heard of Choi Seongkyun, a name familiar from the last Olympics, where he’d won gold.
Taehyun’s father had watched his interviews on TV several times.
“Yes, our nation’s pride, Choi Seongkyun! He’s made our country proud!”
The man on TV seemed like someone who lived in a completely different world from Taehyun, someone who had no fears or hardships, only applause and admiration.
Could Taehyun really grow up to be like that?
He shook his head in disbelief.
The man ruffled his hair again and said,
“I’m telling you, it’d be a waste. From now on, you just come to the dojang at this time every day in that uniform. Think of it as a scholarship or something. Now, give me your parents’ number. I’ll talk to them myself.”
At those words, Taehyun’s face turned pale again.
What if his father opposed it?
While he could somewhat predict his mother’s reaction, he had no idea how his father would respond.
Would he readily accept the idea that someone was watching over Taehyun at no cost, or would he get angry and ask, “What right do you have to meddle with someone else’s child?”
But even before that, the sheer humiliation of introducing his father, who was only ever an embarrassment to be seen with, made Taehyun feel ashamed.
“……”
In the end, Taehyun couldn’t say anything and just silently shed tears.
The man, seeing Taehyun suddenly burst into tears, was startled and tried to console him.
“Uh, uh? What’s wrong, why are you crying all of a sudden? If you cry in your uniform, the other kids will tease you. They’ll ask what you’ve learned at the dojo. Hmm?”
The man fumbled around awkwardly, trying to comfort Taehyun, who couldn’t stop crying for quite some time.
About thirty minutes later, the man finally managed to get Taehyun’s mother’s contact information, stepped into the office for a short call, and came back out.
As soon as he emerged with a thumbs-up and a wide grin, young Taehyun instinctively knew this was the turning point that would change his life.
“If you win a gold medal later, you have to bring it to me first, okay? I’m the first one to invest in you, kid!”
And that instinct proved to be right.
Although the condition the man jokingly imposed was never fulfilled.
“……”
When Taehyun woke up from the dream, he felt unexpectedly lighter than he’d anticipated.
After blinking a few times, he saw the ceiling he had glimpsed before falling asleep in Sejin’s arms.
Sejin, who had been lying beside him before they fell asleep on the same bed, was no longer there.
Maybe he had left for early morning training.
After checking the clock, which pointed to 8 a.m., Taehyun got up and headed for the bathroom.
As he opened the bedroom door, he heard sounds coming from the kitchen.
So, Sejin hadn’t left after all.
“What time are you leaving?”
Taehyun, still awkward and without fully dressing, stood in the hallway to avoid the tension and asked.
Sejin responded from the kitchen.
“In an hour. Do you want some coffee?”
Taehyun declined immediately.
“No, I can’t drink caffeine.”
“Ah.”
If Sejin couldn’t even remember that, it only confirmed how little attention he had ever paid to Taehyun.
It wasn’t like Taehyun hadn’t complained multiple times about how inconvenient it was not being able to drink coffee when they were together.
“Just a glass of cold water, please. I’ll eat breakfast at the center.”
The sports complex where both Taehyun and Sejin were based had plenty of amenities like a cafeteria, as it was in the same building as the large facility for general members.
While other athletes complained about the lack of variety, grumbling that it was all bland salads or diet food, Taehyun, who had to eat that sort of thing at home anyway, was grateful to get it for free.
He was no cook, and the idea of buying ingredients, stocking the fridge, and then making meals before the food went bad always felt like a hassle.
“Alright, then I’ll just brew coffee for myself.”
The fact that a 22-year-old athlete was starting his morning with coffee was kind of amusing, but Sejin standing in front of the machine, waiting for his espresso to extract, somehow fit his delicate image perfectly.
Whether it did or not didn’t really concern Taehyun though, and right now, the most pressing issue was taking a shower.
As the hot water hit him in the bathroom, helping him reset, Taehyun’s mind wandered back to his own thoughts.
Why did he dream of that moment today of all days?
It had been a while since the master had passed away.
He had been the benefactor who made Taehyun an atheist, convinced there was no such thing as a god.
He wasn’t a man like his father, who drank like a fish.
In fact, he even hated secondhand smoke, always cautious about setting a bad example for the kids.
Who would’ve thought he’d pass away at such a young age?
Watching him leave this world due to illness before even turning 50 had made Taehyun feel bitter about the world.
If someone had to go early, it should’ve been someone like his father, not him.
Why was a worthless person like his father still alive and breathing somewhere, while the master, who had changed Taehyun’s and many other kids’ lives, had to leave so soon?
No one had ever given him a satisfactory answer.
* * *
Thanks for the translation
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