A Week of Contests (1)

"Out!"

A collective sigh rolled through the home crowd.

We'd sent Choi Jaehyeon, our fourth starter, to the mound and ground out a 10–8 win in a slugfest. Stretching the streak to two was nice, but the real encouraging sign was that the lineup had finally started to explode. We'd given up a few too many runs, sure — but the one and two starters were rock solid, and even the three-hole was at least average by my standards. For now, that was enough.

Next week we drew the Marines. Tuesday would be a bullpen day dressed up as a fifth starter's turn; Wednesday and Thursday, our one-two punch of Albert and Josh would take the ball. No matter how strong the other club was, a team with championship ambitions had to treat every start by the top of the rotation as a game they were simply not allowed to lose.

I'd sat today, and tomorrow was an off day. How the manager planned to use me was the question. Tuesday would almost certainly be the hinge. If we jumped out to an early lead, he might run me out there for a long outing the way he had the day before.

Either way… I'd leave it to him. Tomorrow was, for all practical purposes, my first real date with Song Hyeonji.

We showered, packed up, filed out of the stadium, and boarded the bus back to Seoul.

"Hyeonji, you heading straight out?"

"Yeah."

"We lined up a mixer — can you come?"

"Sorry. I don't think I'll have time."

"I haven't even said when it is."

"I'm going to be busy for a while."

A classmate had caught Song Hyeonji as she was packing up her bag after class.

"It's kind of hard for the rest of us if you're not there… You came last month."

"I'm not interested anymore. It was never fun anyway. I'm not going to these things from now on, so you don't have to tell me."

"…Fine."

Hyeonji delivered the verdict and walked out of the lecture hall.

What's her problem? So annoying.

Hyeonji wasn't the type to be rude — she almost never gave anyone a reason to dislike her. The trouble was structural. She kept showing up in every room that drew a crowd of guys, then quietly cut down anyone who actually made a move, and in doing so she had wrecked the local dating market. The other girls knew that even when a guy approached them, they were the consolation prize — second choice behind a pheasant named Song Hyeonji — and it left a bitter taste. They'd get more attention if she simply weren't there. But if she didn't show, the guys wouldn't show either. That was the bind, and in a knot that tangled, it was obvious which direction the arrows would fly.

She'd taken extra care with herself today, and she collected every glance on campus as she walked out. There had been a time when that kind of attention hadn't bothered her. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Lately, it wasn't enough. Even the little rush she used to get from a flood of YouTube comments had started to go dull. A new kind of stimulus had found her — and more and more, she had begun to feel that she was not like other women. She was someone special.

Song Hyeonji's campus wasn't that far from Gangnam. The trip from my place to here was actually the longer one.

I was still making the league minimum, so money was tight — but the second this season ended, I was moving out on my own.

"Sorry! I'm late, aren't I?"

I'd been standing in front of the station, lost in thought, when she arrived.

About fifteen minutes past the time we'd set. The text had come twenty minutes earlier.

She was out of breath, a sheen of sweat along her hairline. What kind of man could look at that and actually get angry?

"You could've just told me you'd be late and taken your time. I didn't mind waiting."

"But still… haah…"

The tension breaking only made her breathe harder. It was cute — funny, even — but thinking about how much the delay must have eaten at her the whole way over, I felt a little bad for her.

"We should get inside a cafe."

"…Okay."

I steered her into the first one I saw.

I'd expected it, but her face didn't look happy. She was still young enough that she couldn't hide what she felt.

I'd caught a glimpse earlier, and it was obvious she'd put real work into every inch of herself — long, glossy hair that swayed when she moved, fresh, youthful makeup, an outfit that practically announced college girl. She was exactly the picture I'd been hoping for. The fact that it had come just slightly undone only made her more attractive.

That, of course, was entirely my standard. Yu Suhyeon was the same way — women hated watching a carefully built look come apart, even a little. Hyeonji couldn't have been feeling great about it.

"Still beating yourself up?"

"Huh?"

"Next time, even if you're late, just come easy. It bothers me seeing you like this, Hyeonji."

"I'm sorry. You barely carved out the time, oppa. I know how exhausted you must be after playing all weekend…"

Come on. Fifteen minutes and she was like this — if she'd been a full hour late, would she have gotten down on her knees? She understood a ballplayer's life a little too well. I was grateful, in a way, but still.

"It's fine. We promised we'd have a good time today, so let's drop it. Okay?"

I slipped my hand around hers as I said it.

"…Okay."

Had that settled her down, at least a little? I led her toward the place I'd originally planned for lunch — a spot Yu Suhyeon had recommended. Not that she'd had any idea I'd be walking in with a twenty-year-old, just the two of us.

"You threw a lot this weekend. Aren't you tired?"

"I'm fine. The season's still a long way from over. I can't start falling apart already."

"Saturday was amazing, though. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, and I literally screamed when you struck that last guy out."

"Haha. That's embarrassing."

Whatever anxiety she'd been carrying had vanished. Her eyes ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠were lit up; she was leaning into every word.

"Ah… sorry. It's your day off and I keep talking baseball."

"Don't be. I watch baseball even when I'm not training or playing."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I'm a rookie, so it's not like I have that much free time — but I try to catch games from other countries when I can, and I study pitches a lot."

"You really don't know anything but baseball, oppa. Is that why you're so good?"

"Maybe."

She wasn't wrong. There were almost no players in this country who loved the game itself the way I did. I didn't have much interest in anything else. Take baseball out of my head and what was left was… well. Thinking about women.

I glanced at my phone. Yu Suhyeon had called.

"I'll be right back."

"Okay!"

I wasn't a fan of the phrase a woman's intuition, but something about this felt off.

The call could have stretched, so I gave her just enough of an out and hung up.

Seeing Song Hyeonji during the day and Yu Suhyeon at night would have been a lot of fun, but she'd said it was hard, so what could I do? I was still a little wary of meeting two women on the same day. Someday I'd be able to see both of them at once, out in the open. I'd have to work toward that.

"Haaah…"

Lee Junseong had no idea, but Song Hyeonji had been wound tight through every scrap of small talk.

Get it together, Song Hyeonji. Is that really all you have to say to him?

She had wanted him as her boyfriend for a while now. If this slid into a player-and-fan arrangement, it would be a complete disaster.

The truth was she was still anxious — still turning over whether he was actually interested in her or not.

Should I make a move? What if oppa ends up hating me?

In Song Hyeonji's entire life, the idea of being the one to approach a man had been unimaginable. She wasn't holding back because she was passive. She was holding back because she had never done this before.

By the time I got back, the food we'd ordered had arrived.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. You must be hungry — you should've started without me."

"No! It just came out. But… who called? You actually went outside to take it."

"Hm?"

"Most guys don't even bother stepping out when the phone rings…"

Meaning: if it had been a guy, I wouldn't have gone outside. Which was true. A close friend could wait for a callback.

Whether I take a call outside or not is my business — yeah, I probably shouldn't say that.

"My parents called out of nowhere."

"Ah…"

In a spot like this, that was the cleanest answer.

"Mom got on my case about going out when I'd finally come home."

"Ah…"

"Embarrassing. I'm a working adult and this is what I'm showing you."

"That can happen! It actually makes you look wholesome. Kind of cool, even? Lately all you hear about is players getting into trouble…"

Come to think of it, a guy on another club had gone out drinking on an off day not long ago and gotten a DUI. Seemed like I'd slid past that one cleanly enough. In a game, all I had to do was follow Park Ujin's lead. Handling women, I had to figure out myself — and it was quietly exhausting.

"Between YouTube and school, you must be pretty busy."

"Not like you, oppa."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"I don't know… I try to live diligently, but that's a separate thing. I think you're really impressive, Hyeonji. You're different from the people around you, somehow."

"Different? How?"

"Just… honestly, looking at the people around me, looking at friends my age — they all feel like kids. Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only one taking anything seriously. But you feel a little special. I've thought that since the first time I saw you."

"…"

"I have to stay locked in on my work, so I don't get close to people easily. I think a lot about only keeping people around who give off something positive. …Ah, sorry. Was that too serious? We just met. I don't know why I'm going on like this."

"I actually like hearing that? You're not saying I look old, right?"

"Of course not. Out of everyone I know, you're the freshest and cutest."

"Come on…"

A better reaction than I'd expected. I'd just recycled a few lines I'd picked up from some drama, and yet… which part had she liked? That I didn't have people around me and had still singled her out? That she felt special? Both?

Did being called special really land that hard? If so, she was more of a romantic than I'd figured.

And her interest in me looked plenty high…

The problem was that dating Song Hyeonji was not the goal. If anything, she looked like she'd be even more possessive than Yu Suhyeon. Drag this out too long before I got her into bed and she'd decide I'd been toying with her.

Not that I can exactly deny it…

I had to get closer to make any progress. Get too close and the whole thing blew up. And there was no guarantee she'd come along quietly even then. This was genuinely hard.

Hah… fine. Turning it over and over wasn't going to spit out an answer. Go for it first. Worry about the rest when I got there.

We kept talking until the time ran out and we stepped back outside.

The more I learned about Song Hyeonji, the less she seemed to lack. I'd already known the school was prestigious, but her family looked comfortably well-off too.

A woman who didn't need anything from anyone. Had I picked the wrong target? No. A woman like this was exactly the kind who felt the best to make yours. And there was something I could give her that nobody else could.

I wanted a result this week, while I was still in Seoul.

"What are you thinking about so hard?"

"Huh?"

"You've been zoning out."

"Ah, nothing, just… it feels like a shame."

"Why?"

"Time went faster than I thought. Maybe because being with you is fun?"

"Ah… I had a good time too! Hehe."

She smiled, shy and pleased. Could I push a little further?

"As much as I love ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠baseball, being a pro means every single day is a grind. Having you around makes it a little more bearable."

"I didn't do anything… I understand how hard it must be. Just watching makes my heart drop every time."

The reaction wasn't bad. More than anything, I could tell she respected me deeply as a ballplayer. Maybe that was the key.

"Hyeonji. You know I head back down next week, right?"

"I know. I memorize the nearby game schedule so I can go watch in person."

"I want to see you again before I leave."

"What?"

She stopped walking and looked at me. She had to feel it — asking for the next meeting in an atmosphere like this was a different kind of question.

"…Of course."

I barely stopped myself from pulling her into my arms.

One way or another, I had to make this girl mine this week. It was already a critical stretch for the club — and for me, every front of the next seven days was going to be a fight.