Jiheon left the office and returned to his desk in the Promotion Team. Taking up his cigarettes and phone, he headed to the smoking room.
Thankfully, it was quite early, and there was nobody inside. He sat down in the corner and took a look at the business card first. It probably belonged to the person from the supporters association who had given Mrs. Shim’s number to Ko. A number had been written in ink on the back of the card—presumably Mrs. Shim’s.
A sigh escaped him. It was better to focus on how to navigate this situation.
I’m just a salaried worker. I do what I’m told.
It pained him to bring up the connection—tenuous at best—from over ten years ago, but he didn’t have the luxury of being picky at work. The decision was ultimately up to the other party. He would only do what he could.
Once he'd made up his mind, Jiheon took out his phone right away. It was best to get things like this over with quickly.
He double-checked the eleven digits and keyed them in.
“Hello,” came the gracious voice of a middle-aged woman. Jiheon was taken aback. From what he vaguely remembered of Jaekyung’s mother, she hadn’t sounded like that.
Jiheon adopted his most serious tone.
“Hello, this is Assistant Manager Jung Jiheon from ProEdge, a professional sports agency. I received your number from Mr. Ko Hyunseok.”
He tensed, expecting her to ask who Ko Hyunseok was, but she seemed to recognize the name immediately.
“Oh, yes. I remember, Mr. Ko. The one the supporters’ association gave my number to, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I wonder why he didn’t call me himself, and...”
She trailed off, and Jiheon detected a slight note of displeasure. She had meant for her number to be passed on to a managing director, but instead, a lowly assistant manager had ended up calling her. Jiheon understood perfectly, of course.
While he was still considering how to explain, Mrs. Shim spoke again.
“In any case, Mr... Jung. I did give my number at the request of that person from the association, but we are already in talks with another agency.”
“Kavva, right?”
“Yes, the articles are already out there. It would be pointless to deny it. Let me be honest with you. We’ll probably sign with them.”
That was quick, just as I expected. She didn’t even leave the door open with a vague promise to call back if anything changed. Jiheon wasn’t just impressed by her firmness—he respected it. He firmly believed in turning things down outright when there was no real chance.
“Yes, I see...”
Jiheon mumbled, pretending to be disappointed. While it would have been nice for him to simply say, All right. Kavva is a great agency. They’ll give Gwon Jaekyung amazing support. But please feel free to call us at any time if there’s anything we can do to help, and hang up, but unfortunately, Jiheon had a mission to carry out.
“I understand. Pardon me if this is a sudden question, but you are Gwon Jaekyung’s mother, aren’t you?”
“What? Of course I am,” the woman said, seeming nonplussed. Jiheon adopted a more friendly tone.
“Perhaps you remember me, Ma’am. We met long ago at Ilsan Swimming Center.”
“Oh, did we?” Mrs. Shim replied glumly.
Jiheon, unfazed, continued in a pleasant voice.
“Yes. That’s where I was trained. I remember speaking to you a few times. Your son was in fourth or fifth grade at the time.”
“Oh, was he...?” she murmured, sounding thoughtful.
The mention of training seemed to make the woman slightly cautious. Jiheon guessed she was trying to recall which swimmers had trained there.
After a brief silence, Mrs. Shim spoke again.
“One moment, Mr. Jung. What was your name again?”
“Jung Jiheon.”
“My goodness!” she exclaimed with a shrill cry.
“What, really? You’re Jiheon? The swimmer! My goodness!”
“I’m no longer a professional swimmer,” Jiheon said with a laugh.
“Oh, yes. Of course. Silly me,” she said.
Then she kept on repeating Oh my god, as though she simply couldn’t believe it. She made a great deal of fuss and finally began to sound more like the woman Jiheon remembered.
“So, you quit swimming and now work at an agency?”
“Yes, at ProEdge.”
“I see, I see. Wow...”
Mrs. Shim seemed momentarily at a loss for words. Jiheon knew it was unfair to bring this up now of all times, but he couldn’t help himself.
“I know it sounds biased coming from me, but it really is a great company. Our CEO is a former volleyball player. He played in a professional league, and he understands athletes better than anyone. Many of our employees, myself included, are former professional athletes. I truly believe we can offer Jaekyung solid support. That’s why I wanted the chance to meet you and explain that in person.”
Jiheon kept his tone friendly while adding a layer of respectful formality. His aim was to touch upon their shared past, stir a sense of nostalgia, and build trust in both himself and the agency he represented.
But Mrs. Shim was no pushover.
“You’re right. An agency like that would definitely understand athletes better. But I’m sorry. We’ve nearly finalized everything with Kavva already. All that’s left is signing. Starting talks with another agency at this point wouldn’t feel right, would it? They’ve told the decision is completely ours, but it still wouldn’t be fair to make you come out and meet us when we are unlikely to change our minds.”
Jiheon admired the firm stance she took. He could have begged and tried to persuade her to meet him anyway and hear the offer, since it was such an important opportunity for his agency. But he didn’t want to push her that far.
“Right. I fully understand. It wouldn’t be appropriate for us to step in now, when the contract’s practically signed. Kavva will take good care of Gwon Jaekyung, I’m sure. You’ve made a great choice,” Jiheon said pleasantly, drawing the conversation to a close.
“They had you call me on purpose. I’m sorry it has to be like this.”
“Not at all. I’m actually surprised you remember me.”
He meant it.
“Frankly, I wasn’t sure until the moment I called. I was worried it might catch you off guard if I suddenly brought up that we knew each other. I’m surprised you remembered me right away. Thank you.”
“Oh, how could I forget you, Jiheon? Jaekyung was so fond of you.”
This woman had always been skilled at formalities—even ten years ago. Whenever she saw him, she would ask various questions, always ending with, I hope you recover soon. We need you back in the water, don’t we? You have no idea how fond Jaekyung is of you. Jiheon didn’t buy it for a second, of course.
“It’d be nice to catch up over a meal one of these days.”
The same was true today. It would do him no good to believe in things like this, which were only said as filler. That was just how it always was—polite white lies meant to sound pleasant.
“All right then. I’ll be waiting. Sorry for taking up so much of your time. Have a nice day, Ma’am. Please give my regards to Jaekyung,” Jiheon said with a polite smile, phone still in hand.
When the call was over, he sighed and put the phone away in his pocket.
That’s it. I’ve done more than my share. He could explain that the contract with Kavva was basically a done deal, and that though he’d made an offer, the mother had refused on grounds of fair play. Ko would have to accept.
Jiheon sighed and picked up the pack of cigarettes on the table. He took a long drag, and though it was only for a moment, he felt as though all his worldly concerns melted away. It hadn’t been long since he arrived at work, and lighting up already might’ve earned him a scolding—but he’d just completed an important task, and he figured that justified it. He smoked slowly, down to the final puff.
Soon after he returned to the office from his morning smoke, Ko called him over again. It made him want another cigarette, but he hung up and stood.
As he tried to figure out the most polite way to explain that he had truly done his best and that the woman had already made up her mind, he realized he’d already reached the fourth floor, where the managing director’s office was.
Jiheon knocked on the door with a pained look on his face.
“Yes, come in,” came the response immediately. Jiheon took a deep breath and opened the door.
“Ah! Mr. Jung!”
Ko sprang to his feet as Jiheon entered, then continued without pause.
“Mr. Choi just gave me a call! We’re meeting tomorrow afternoon for a chat!”
“Mr. Choi...?”
Who’s that? he wanted to ask, but unable to bring himself to, he blinked in silence. Ko read his expression.
“What? You don’t know Mr. Choi? You know, the manager in charge of Gwon Jaekyung! Mr. Choi from Korea Aquatics!”
“Oh,” Jiheon murmured.
Gwon Jaekyung had no agency of his own, so the national swimming association that was Korea Aquatics had organized a temporary support group for the athlete through a department that was in charge of providing support for swimmers. This manager was probably part of that group.
Jiheon suddenly snapped to attention. If someone like that arranged a meeting, does that mean they’re actually willing to meet with us? Before Jiheon could even ask, Ko, visibly thrilled, continued explaining.
“It seems Mrs. Shim spoke to him. She wanted to at least have a meeting after you contacted her in person. You were right, Mr. Jung! You’re basically Jaekyung’s senior, are you not? At least in swimming.”
Senior? What difference does that even make? I’ve been retired for years. Jiheon wished he could say the words out loud with a frown on his face, but it wasn’t worth the effort. Besides, he didn’t have the courage to try something like that with a managing director, of all people. In the end, Jiheon simply smiled and said vaguely.
“Well, I’m glad she remembered me. It’s great to hear that things worked out. If you’ll excuse me, I have some work to—”
“All right. Off you go,” Ko said, waving him off before Jiheon could finish. The old man even held the door open for Jiheon. He was clearly in a good mood.
“You’ll have to block out a couple of hours tomorrow afternoon. But don’t let it get in the way of your work,” Ko said, surprising Jiheon as he left the office.
“I’m sorry?” Jiheon asked, turning around.
“Why would I...” he began, then trailed off as a thought struck him.
“You want me to come?”
“Of course I do,” Ko said, his eyes growing wide as if Jiheon had asked something ridiculous.
“Mrs. Shim wants you there. She only agreed to the meeting because of you. You're not thinking of skipping it, are you?” Ko asked.
Jiheon wasn’t sure what to say to that. All he knew was that he badly needed a smoke.