episode_0088

“Coach-nim.”

“Hmm?”

“Um, I have something I’d like to say… privately.”

“What is it? I need to make a call to a friend. Just tell me here.”

After the season had perfectly concluded.

To summarize this season, it was a complete and utter victory.

It was such a decisive victory, with the winner already determined a month prior, that it was said the competitive relay itself became uninteresting, having been utterly dominated.

There was nothing to be done.

Even if it was a sport meant for entertainment, they couldn’t be responsible for that much.

Although women’s volleyball’s popularity and market share are gradually rising, it’s still an unavoidable reality that it’s a small pond.

Anyway, that’s that.

From this moment, I intend to say something important to Coach-nim, something that will be a turning point in my life.

Coach-nim, who had been calmly walking down the hallway, turned back and stopped for me.

It seemed he sensed something from my uncharacteristically hesitant demeanor, but he would have to brace himself for more.

Because from now on, I─

“Um… I’ve decided to leave the team after this season.”

*

“Are you in your right mind right now!?”

Changing locations to the Coach’s office.

Sitting across from me on the sofa, Coach-nim raised his voice, even neglecting a call he said he needed to make.

I had wanted to convey my intentions quickly and be done with it. But as expected, it wasn’t as easy as roasting beans in a flash of lightning.

He held me back, insisting he absolutely couldn’t let me go like this until he heard a clear reason.

“Are you really going to leave? This team that’s currently on a winning streak?”

“……Yes.”

“Ha… Good heavens, what’s gotten into you?

Have you suddenly hit a rut with playing ball? Do you know how much it costs to terminate your contract right now?”

“I have… fully acquainted myself with the contract.”

At my answer, Coach-nim deepened the wrinkles below his cheekbones.

Then, perhaps sensing something else, the conversation veered off to an unexpected tangent.

“So, you got a contact from overseas?”

“Huh?

No, that’s not─”

“I know everything, Saerom.

Living overseas might seem cool and stylish, but Saerom, you’re not even good at English, are you? You’re not properly ripened yet. Do you think you’ll adapt well?”

“…….”

“Is it Turkey or Italy? Or even further across the water, towards the Americas? First of all, where did the contact come from?”

“No, it’s not that at all.”

“Then what on earth is it?!”

His face showed utter incomprehension.

Understanding his feelings, I kept my mouth shut, so he added, perhaps wondering if it was a possibility.

“Surely, you don’t mean you’re going to retire just like this, do you?”

“…….”

When I fell silent here, Coach-nim became even more flustered.

As if it was an unbelievable thought, he truly rushed out barefoot into the yard, trying to persuade me as if to stop me.

“A-Are you serious, at that flourishing age?

With a congenital physique that’s all-time great, and twice the effort and ability of others, you’re saying you’re already going to leave the professional team?”

“…….”

“Saerom, this isn’t something you can just let pass; it’s a matter of your life! You’re at the age where you should be making a name for yourself, at the peak of your prime—what are you thinking?”

It was unclear how to answer, so I held my tongue.

Most of Coach-nim’s conjectures hit the mark in nuance.

But there was one point he was consistently and greatly misunderstanding, so I brought that up.

“Coach-nim, actually, the contract… has already been discussed with Representative-nim. We’ve decided to mutually terminate the existing contract.”

“Representative-nim…?

T-That Cha Doyeon Representative-nim? You met with her separately and already came to an agreement?”

“Yes,”

“What on earth did Representative-nim say?!”

“She… Representative-nim said she would respect my decision.”

“Ah?

Haa, haaa… What on earth is this…?”

Upon hearing up to this point, Coach-nim scratched at his thinning hair.

His face showed utter incomprehension from start to finish.

Moreover, if the conversation had progressed this far, he would know it was beyond his authority.

Even if Coach-nim was the captain leading the club, Representative-nim, who was directly connected to the club’s capital, was ultimately the owner of the ship.

In other words, the moment Representative-nim’s name was mentioned, it was game over.

From Coach-nim’s perspective, he probably felt bypassed, so it wouldn’t be pleasant, but this was certain.

“Coach-nim, personally, I want to disappear quietly… without a retirement ceremony or any rumors. As quietly as possible.”

“…….”

Forgive me, but I had personally made sure to make this request as well.

I emphasized it because I didn’t want to cause any unnecessary commotion.

At that, Coach-nim, who had been heavily sighing as if chain-smoking, finally rummaged through his upper pocket for a cigarette.

“Haa…

I wonder if that will truly go as you wish. Considering your physique and ability, a star player who could have become the greatest in Korean volleyball history is leaving without knowing if it’s retirement, a transfer, or where you’re even going – I doubt this will end quietly.”

Coach-nim skillfully shook the cigarette pack in front of his mouth, pulling one out.

Just as he was about to light it—he fell into thought and whispered softly.

“…But, somehow, I’ll make it happen your way. Even if I don’t fully understand, you must have your reasons.”

“……Thank you very much.”

I simply bowed my head and offered my thanks.

Coach-nim was someone who meticulously looked after me, like a father.

He was a benefactor who greatly helped me adapt to life in Seoul.

“I’m sorry to be leaving like this.”

“…….”

However, it couldn’t be helped.

Because I had entered into a secret contract that I could never disclose to anyone, not even my family.

* * *

“You were already out here?”

“Oh… Representative-nim!”

As I waited at the designated meeting spot in front of the club building with a troubled expression, Representative-nim suddenly appeared beside me.

Lost in thought, I hastily greeted her.

It seemed I was in a period of deep thought, so my expression was serious,

Squeeze.

Representative-nim gently took my hand.

As if to say, ‘Don’t worry about anything anymore,’ she immediately took my hand.

With a nuance that everything was fine, she encouraged me with a smile.

“You’re just taking a short break now. The story you haven’t finished yet, Saerom, you can always write it again later, can’t you?”

“…Should I?”

“You’re still so young, what is there to worry about?”

As she said that, she gently put her arm around my waist.

My height was so tall that I always looked down at Representative-nim, but from her arm, which felt a bit thicker than before, I could feel a sense of reliability.

“Now now, let’s enjoy today.

Let’s make this a celebration, not a gloomy day. As a commemoration of your temporary retirement from being a volleyball player, how about we eat together?”

“……♥”

It was a date just like usual, for the first time in a while.

Though it was an event that would be a turning point in my life, Representative-nim gave me such confidence that my heart was drawn to it.

To put it simply, it was enjoyable.

A date where we ate to our heart’s content and went to a noraebang, just like always.

However, today, neither Representative-nim nor I touched alcohol.

And then,

*

“In the end… we came all the way home.”

“Why are you acting so uncharacteristically? This will become our daily routine from now on, you know.”

“Really…♥”

It had become natural for Representative-nim to come into my home.

Perhaps, normally, she would have quickly ‘pounced’ from the moment we entered the front door.

And I, for my part, would have enjoyed it while pretending to be troubled.

“Alright, then, you’re ready to put your stamp on a new contract, aren’t you?”

However, today was a special day.

It was the day to terminate the existing player contract, which brought a high annual salary, and to sign the secret contract I had made with Representative-nim, just the two of us.

Slightly hesitant, I mumbled with my lips and asked.

“Do we… really have to do that?”

“Hmm?”

“I… I can certainly do as Representative-nim wishes, but it’s just… doing it in reality makes me a little embarrassed.”

At that, Representative-nim pushed up the corners of her lips.

Again, as if to tell me not to worry, she patted my bottom.

“Still, it’s a contract in name, so we should leave one video behind to make it official, shouldn’t we?”

“…….”

“Don’t worry. As promised, it will be a video only I will watch for life. Shouldn’t we, at least the two of us, bring your player career to an end?”

“Then… very well.

Please wait in the living room. I will get ready and come out…♥”

Honestly, by this point, my body was trembling too.

I didn’t know if it was due to a strange sense of anticipation for what was about to happen, or out of fear for the moment my life would be decided.

Whatever it was, it was too late to turn back now.

I,

Click… clack.

Carefully, I finished getting ready in the room and came out.

As if wearing a new team uniform and smiling brightly for a photoshoot, I wore a full set of provocative black lingerie befitting the current situation.

When I went to the living room, Representative-nim was already preparing.

She had placed her phone on a tripod and finished preparations to finalize the contract, wearing only her panties.

And so, I stood in front of the phone.

Then, Representative-nim playfully raised her arm like a reporter and asked.

“Player Saerom, is it true that you will be announcing an important contract today?”

“Th-That’s right.”

“If you don’t mind, could you please tell us the contents of that contract?”

At that, I flinched and lowered my arms.

Actually, scribbled in my own crooked handwriting on my thighs, below my navel, were inscriptions that I had been covering up out of embarrassment.

Unable to help it, I slowly lowered my arms, revealing the following contents.

[10 billion won provided as birth incentive fund for each child born♥]

[Cha Doyeon Representative-nim’s exclusive cum-slut for life♥]

[Representative-nim’s cock for free service for life♥]

Truly, these were contents of unparalleled vulgarity.

In this moment, my legs, longer than others, made me feel even more embarrassed.

The sentences, written as if on a product, made us seem like a couple indulging in depraved play.

However, this was an actual contract I had made with Representative-nim..

The contents of the contract I shared with Representative-nim were as follows.

Grin.

At that, Representative-nim slowly entered the camera’s frame with a highly satisfied smile.

She approached from below, her panties taut as usual, and asked once more.

Even though she already knew everything, even though she had kissed me, she asked as if to confirm the decisive reason.

“Player Saerom, what is the reason you suddenly retired from your player career and accepted a contract like this?”

I mumbled.

Embarrassed, my face flushed hotly, and I barely managed to answer Representative-nim’s mischievous question.

“Because I’m… pregnant.”

After that, I bowed my head.

And then I extended the thing I had brought, tightly clutched in my hand.

A pregnancy test kit.

There were two lines on it.

Two clear lines were drawn.

“Ah… Well, that certainly can’t be helped.”

“……♥”

“It seems there’s no choice but a lifetime contract.”

As she said that, Representative-nim lifted me into her arms and rubbed it against my spot.

As if marking her territory, she captured everything on camera.

That’s right.

My temporary retirement was an unavoidable course of action.

Because Representative-nim’s child… had somehow already entered my womb.