TSPGOR 1

Chapter 1

 Breaking the Engagement Is the Future

“What the hell have you ever done for me, Dad?!”

And so the brat’s tantrum began again today.

Raise my allowance, buy me clothes, why don’t I have a mom—the repertoire was varied.

At times like this, the words I’d been holding back from deep inside threatened to burst out.

You’re not my kid.

So if you’ve got complaints, get lost.

But how could I say that?

What sin does she have?

Better she had never been born at all.

She used to be a good kid when she was young.

These days, maybe it’s puberty, but the number of outbursts has noticeably increased.

“You must take after your mom. Seeing that dog-shit personality of yours.”

It’s a story from over 15 years ago.

A child was conceived, a marriage happened, and a divorce happened.

The reason for divorce was my ex-wife’s affair.

Well, it was a common story you could find anywhere.

If it had ended there, I would’ve pulled myself together at the level of just whining.

My life wouldn’t have been ruined like this.

But the problem was that the target of that affair was my team colleague.

And among them, the teammate I was closest to—the team physio.

No, that piece of trash who approached me pretending to be close.

What was even more fucked up was that I got a paternity test just in case, and it turned out she wasn’t my daughter.

No wonder there wasn’t a single corner of her that resembled me.

That thing in my house doesn’t even know who her father is.

She’s living thinking it’s me, but there might come a day when she finds out.

Before I die, I plan to donate my assets to society and erase her from my family registry.

In a way, she’s a victim too.

It’s because I pity her that I’m raising her until she becomes an adult.

But now it’s about time to think about wrapping things up.

-Flick!

“Haa…”

With a frustrated heart, I came out to the smoking area in front of the house and exhaled cigarette smoke long and slow.

Of all places, the smoking area is next to the garbage dump.

What a shitty location they picked.

What if some lunatic sets a fire?

Ah, wait—could it mean smokers are treated the same as garbage?

“Fucking hell…”

I was doing well once too.

After getting hit by the triple combo of a colleague’s betrayal, divorce, and paternity test results, I wasn’t in my right mind.

I drank every day and destroyed myself.

Because I thought that was the only way to forget the pain of those times.

At least I didn’t touch drugs—that’s something.

[KIM JIN-HYEOK OUT!]

There was no way the supporters and the club would look kindly on a guy who couldn’t even manage himself.

Whatever my personal circumstances were, I was a professional who made money through football.

I came back to my hometown team for a “final challenge,” taking a massive pay cut, but my condition was the same here.

Once a life falls apart, it’s easy, but rebuilding it is nearly impossible.

And so, the first Asian Ballon d’Or winner had to walk toward retirement while getting buried in tremendous criticism.

What could I do?

At that point, I was already in no physical condition to play football, and my age was maxed out.

There are things that rehab and exercise alone can’t fix.

Yeah, this is my fault. It’s true.

No one threatened me to live in that insane state for so long.

But I had no intention of forgiving the bastards who provided the cause.

“Fucking assholes…”

I never knew those brilliant moments of glory could crumble in an instant, nor that the public would all turn their backs on me.

All kinds of malicious comments, insults.

I even got hit by an egg while coming out after a match.

It’s a wonder I didn’t develop social anxiety disorder.

Well, with the money I have left, I’ll at least be able to eat and live.

But that wasn’t the important thing.

I wanted to take everything I had and get revenge on the bastards who fucked up my life, but even that didn’t go my way.

Because of the law.

Whatever it was morally, the boundaries set by the law were what they were.

My ex-wife dumped a daughter that wasn’t even mine on me and left to find a new life.

The funnier thing is, she married some Moroccan model, not even the colleague she had the affair with.

“Haha…”

Only I was living like an idiot, barely clinging to life.

Just because a person hasn’t died doesn’t mean they’re alive.

This is all because of that damn marriage.

-Click, ring ring.

“Ugh! The smell of cigarettes! Quit already!”

When I came back inside after finishing my smoke, she scrunched up her face and covered her nose.

I couldn’t say anything in response.

I wanted to snap back with something, but at that moment, I felt a sensation like my blood pressure was surging backward toward my head, and dizziness washed over me.

“Ugh, so annoying! What is this every day! This shitty house! If only Mom were here!”

Soon, the voice of that girl screaming in front of me grew more and more distant.

I could feel my eyes rolling back, but I couldn’t do anything.

Ah, is this what dying feels like?

It’s more comfortable than I expected.

Yeah.

Dying will make things easier.

I’ve already written my will with the lawyer, so I just need to disappear comfortably.

“Dad! Dad? What’s wrong?!”

Even at the end, that unpleasant voice is struggling desperately to wake me up.

Who’s your dad, you brat.

I just wish everything would just fuck off.

This shitty world.

With that, I raised my middle finger with the last remaining strength.

“Haha. Mr. Kim is so dependable. You rushed the date because you wanted to marry our daughter before going to the England team?”

“Hehe… Mom, do you know our Jin-hyeok’s salary is a whopping 6 billion won! Isn’t that amazing?”

What is this.

Is this a dream?

“I’m so glad our Jin-hyeok is getting such a pretty bride. Haha!”

“Oh, we should be the ones thanking you for taking her.”

Suddenly, I felt like my head was spinning, so I kicked back my chair and leaned against the wall.

“Oh my, Mr. Kim. Are you not feeling well?”

That man calling me Mr. Kim.

He was definitely once my father-in-law.

The moment we became strangers, he was happily buying a new house and driving a foreign car with my money.

Fucking bastard.

“The bathroom… I just need to…”

Staggering, I leaned on the wall and went out to the hallway.

What’s going on?

This is definitely the Korean restaurant where I had my engagement meeting.

What is happening?

“Urgh!”

Dizziness and nausea brought up dry heaves.

“Son! Are you okay?”

Mom followed me out and supported me.

Ah, my mom was so young.

Dressed up nicely for the engagement meeting.

“Yeah. I’m fine now. I think I was just dizzy for a moment. I’ll go wash up.”

“Okay. Be careful.”

-Whoooosh! Splash!

After splashing water on my face, I could see clearly.

In the mirror, my face in its prime was making a bizarre expression.

A face that couldn’t laugh or cry—the world’s stupidest expression.

“Is this… reality…?”

I couldn’t believe it, but I decided to accept it quickly.

What else could I do?

When all my senses were shouting that this was real.

“Haa…!”

I took a deep breath and left the bathroom.

Today, I’m going to tear apart the future.

A life as a happy family man is not a phrase that exists in my life.

At the very least, I will not be entangled with those people until I die.

-Bang!

I threw open the door to the room roughly.

“Hoho! Let’s have the parents take a trip overseas together next time.”

“Sounds great! Haha!”

A warm, friendly atmosphere.

Sorry, but I need to break this mood.

I can’t live like that in this life either.

Especially, I don’t think I can face those people with a smile.

“Mom, let’s go.”

“What? Mr. Kim! What’s the sudden—”

As I started gathering my things to leave, the startled man shot up from his seat.

But I don’t want to exchange any more words with you, sir.

I’m barely holding back the urge to smack you.

“I’m calling off this marriage.”

Everyone froze at my words, but I turned my back and walked out without a care.

This is a decided matter anyway.

“Jagiya! What’s wrong…”

I didn’t even glance at her as she grabbed my arm.

Because I wasn’t happy to see her at all.

Actually, I knew even before the marriage.

That she had a friend she met often in Korea.

Back then, she said they were just friends, so I just thought, “I guess so.”

Actually, I think it started from this time.

Her wandering eye began then.

No, maybe she was always that kind of person.

What does that matter?

I’m just grateful that a chance to cancel this before the wedding has come.

“Why do you think I’m doing this? Figure it out yourself.”

Then she knelt before me.

In front of everyone, no less.

It’s a ploy to evoke sympathy and make me feel guilty.

Plus, I was a celebrity, so she knows that causing a scene like this will immediately make it an issue.

Clever bitch.

But that won’t work on me.

At least not on the me right now—I can see right through your black heart.

And you must have a guilty conscience, which is why you’re kneeling and begging like this.

I could see her eyes rolling busily.

How disgusting.

“I was wrong! I’m begging you like this! Please, please reconsider! Huh?”

“Just fuck off. You don’t even love me anyway.”

Leaving that one sentence behind, I walked out of the building.

Cleanly paying for the entire meal.

I didn’t want to leave any loose ends.

Now I’m going to focus on football.

Love?

Tell that to the dogs.

Something like that doesn’t exist in this world.

[Korea’s rising star, Kim Jin-hyeok. Following in Park Ji-sung’s footsteps, joins Manchester United.]

I immediately began preparing to wrap up my life in Korea and leave for England.

There was nothing I was attached to in this country anyway.

A country that tells me to cut half my assets and hand them over to a cheating woman’s household—I don’t need it.

I’ll work hard for national team matches since there’s no particular reason to refuse and it solves my military service issue, but that’s it.

Some texts came in saying this and that, but I blocked them all.

Things like “think it over again,” “how can you overturn everything so suddenly.”

They even mobilized acquaintances of acquaintances to send me text bombs.

In the end, it even escalated to threats.

[I’m going to sue you!]

“Pfft! Sue me with what? Idiot.”

[I’m pregnant!]

I felt I should properly reply to this one.

This time, you raise your own daughter.

[I know it’s not my kid. Before you sue me for blackmail, just fuck off.]

After that, no more texts came.

“Haa!”

My insides feel so refreshed.

I’m 23 years old.

What was I so desperate for that I chose to marry so early?

The world is wide and there are plenty of women.

I was crazy.

What was so great about that woman that my eyes rolled back?

“Jin-hyeok. Aren’t you going to tell me what on earth happened?”

Mom seemed a bit shocked.

I’m sorry, but this will be better than me getting divorced.

It’ll be a much better future than raising another man’s daughter whose father she doesn’t even know.

“Trust me. I found out recently too. She was a bad-quality person.”

“I see…”

Mom tended to believe me for the most part.

And for good reason—I was a model student who never caused a single problem.

I was a guy who didn’t even look in any direction other than football and studying.

I think I read the room a lot since I was young.

Because my father passed away early, and I worried Mom was struggling raising me alone.

And that guy went and got caught by some matchmaker auntie, met a shitty woman, and even married her.

Turns out later, she was a professional con artist who specifically targeted successful athletes.

That matchmaker auntie is destined to get caught by the police even if left alone.

She got nabbed for involvement in match-fixing using her connections.

“Mom, are you really going to stay in Korea?”

“Yeah. What would I do going abroad? I’m going to stay here and hang out with my friends.”

That was a relief.

To keep me from worrying, Mom pretended to recover quickly in her own way.

“Then, I’ll go earn lots of money, son.”

“Sure. Keep in touch once in a while.”

After a brief goodbye at the airport, I boarded the plane to England.

Now I had no wife to be stolen by a colleague, and no worries about assets being ripped off by a spouse.

“Hahaha!”

Just thinking about it made my insides feel refreshed.

Being alone is this comfortable.

And so I made up my mind again.

I will grind my entire youth into football.