Was I really that nice to him? I just talked to him a couple of times when I saw him around.
Jiheon was taken aback, but assumed Mrs. Shim was just being a little dramatic and moved on.
“Jaejun was a great kid. Really friendly. If anything, he helped me kill time during my breaks. Smart, too—and fun to talk to,” Jiheon said, complimenting her son.
“He was the same age as my sister. It felt like I was talking to a little brother of my own.”
Jiheon didn’t mention that he’d nearly forgotten the name, and just kept talking about how he’d always wanted a little brother like that. Suddenly, Jaekyung slammed his chopsticks down on the table with a loud bang and stood up.
“What? Are you done eating already?”
Mrs. Shim asked, surprised, but Jaekyung ignored her.
“Oh, dear me.”
Mrs. Shim let out a deep sigh once Jaekyung had disappeared into his room.
“Still doing that, I see,” she muttered under her breath. Then she turned to Jiheon and apologized with an apologetic look.
“I’m sorry. He can be so unpredictable.”
“Not at all,” Jiheon said.
He paused, searching for the right words, but she spoke first.
“You’ll probably notice when you look through the paperwork, but I’ve been divorced from their father for a while now.”
“I see.”
“Yes. I think it’s been... what, five years? We parted ways not long after Jaekyung started training in Australia.”
Divorce wasn’t exactly rare among parents of athletes. Making it as an athlete usually meant one parent, at least, had to give up their job and follow the child around. For less popular sports, overseas training was almost inevitable. Many athletes went through their parents’ divorce—or even a complete family breakdown—along the way.
“The older one chose to live with their father. We still talk sometimes. As for Jaekyung... I am ashamed to admit it, but he never really got along with his brother. After the divorce, it’s like they completely cut ties.”
“Yes, I see...” Jiheon said, feigning surprise. But he wasn’t. Not really.
He’d seen enough—the way Jaekyung acted at the pool, how distant he was. Honestly, it would’ve shocked him more to hear they were close.
“It must have been tough, raising him on your own overseas,” Jiheon said.
“Not at all. It would’ve been tougher in Korea, but Australia made things easier.”
She laughed, saying that everything was better over there—except for the language barrier.
“You know what’s hardest for parents of athletes? It’s when the kid doesn’t perform well, or gets injured. But Jaekyung didn’t have any of those problems. He had already done well in Korea, and after moving to Australia, he never once slipped behind. He kept breaking records, one after another—and that got me excited too. His father at least kept up with the child support, so we didn’t have to worry about money.”
Mrs. Shim seemed unusually focused on her son’s income—perhaps because, from what Jiheon had heard, her ex-husband’s family was quite wealthy.
“Frankly, I thought we were done for when the Kavva deal fell through. I’m so glad we signed with you,” she said.
Now that the contract had been signed, Mrs. Shim had dropped all reservations. She was fully on board with ProEdge.
“And Jaekyung says he’ll take any ad deal that comes his way. That’s all thanks to you, Jiheon—I mean, Mr. Jung.”
“Oh, no, really—I didn’t do much.”
“Don’t say that! If it hadn’t been for you, Jaekyung would have never chosen ProEdge.”
Jiheon tensed. Could she know about the agreement I wrote for him?
He sat stiffly, too uneasy to ask. Mrs. Shim continued.
“You know what I mean. Without you, he wouldn’t even know what ProEdge was, I’d bet. When I first told him the agency had contacted us, he didn’t care at all. But when I said you worked there, and that you’d called personally, he agreed to meet.”
“Ah...”
So that’s what she meant. Jiheon let out a small sigh of relief. Even so, it was still quite surprising.
“I see... I just figured you had worked hard to convince him. I thought that’s how the meeting happened.”
“If I’d arranged that meeting, we’d have just had a meal and gone our separate ways. We weren’t interested in a contract with ProEdge at all. If I’m not serious about it, I don’t mention it at all.”
Mrs. Shim had said something similar to Jiheon over the phone, right before hanging up. Jiheon had been confused—maybe even a little shocked—when he heard a meeting that had been arranged so soon after.
So Jaekyung was the one to suggest the meeting.
Jiheon had never even considered the possibility. And even now, he could barely believe it.
With nothing left to say, Jiheon kept his eyes on his clasped hands. Jaekyung’s mother went back to her usual stories.
“You have no idea how much Jaekyung’s always liked you. Whenever I asked him about his day at the pool, he never talked about his coach. It was always about seeing you, or how you watched him swim for a while.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Jiheon went over to Jaekyung’s room after they finished eating. He stood at the door and knocked gently. Mrs. Shim’s voice came from the kitchen, where she was making coffee.
“He won’t answer the door. Just go in. It’s fine.”
Taking her word for it, Jiheon opened the door without further hesitation. Jaekyung, lying in bed with his headphones on, frowned.
“What?” he said.
“Do you have somewhere to be today?”
“What?” Jaekyung asked, taking off his headphones.
“Do you have anything else on your schedule today?”
“Why do you ask?”
“If you have nothing else, I’m going to see the head of the athlete’s supporters association. Want to come along?”
“What for?”
“Oh, just to let him know you’re with us now. So we start off on the right foot, you know?”
“No,” Jaekyung said flatly, already tuning out.
“Why not? Don't want to go?”
“He’ll obviously tell me to go to the Olympics. Why would I want that?” Jaekyung said, looking as if he couldn’t be bothered.
“And that old man won’t be too happy to see me, anyway. I was in Korea a few years back for the Olympic team trials. He kept trying to meet me, so I had a word with him.”
“Wait... what did you say to him?”
“I told him I didn’t have time to train if he kept bugging me.”
This one is the real deal, Jiheon thought gravely.
Even knowing how blunt he could be, Jiheon hadn’t expected him to act that way with someone who paid him. If he had been the type to kiss up and kick down, Jiheon would’ve told him to get over himself. But if he treated everyone the same, he had to give him some credit.
“All right... I suppose he would be surprised to see you.”
Jiheon nodded and said he would go alone—that Jaekyung should get some rest. Jiheon was closing the door when Jaekyung asked.
“You’re only going to say hello to the president?”
“No. I’m stopping by the Korea Aquatics office, too.”
“Why?”
“Well, same reason. To say hello.”
Jaekyung frowned silently, apparently unhappy about something. Jiheon decided not to worry about it. It would be much faster—and easier—to find the things he liked about the world than to figure out what had made him grumpy.
“Get some rest,” Jiheon said before leaving the room.
“Is Jaekyung coming?” Mrs. Shim asked, handing him a cup of coffee.
“No.”
“Thought as much. Why would he agree to go?”
Mrs. Shim said, shaking her head. She hadn’t expected him to go in the least.
“He even skipped the afternoon training because he was tired. I guess it’s better for him to rest on days like this.”
Jiheon had barely finished speaking when the bedroom door opened and Jaekyung walked out wearing a baseball cap.
“I’m going to see a friend. You’re going in the same direction, so give me a lift,” Jaekyung said.
“Where are you meeting your friend?” Jiheon asked.
“Itaewon.”
The Korea Aquatics office was in Yongsan, so it was more or less on the way.
“But I need to stop by Mr. Cho’s place first. I’m seeing him at two,” Jiheon said, checking the time on his phone.
“You’ll have to wait in the car while I talk to him. Do you mind? It won’t take long—it’s just a quick chat.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Okay then. Let’s go,” Jiheon said, finishing his coffee and setting the cup down.