48 – First Taste of Frothy Kiss
048
Germany left quite an impression on Joo Ji-tae.
His career, which had been on the rise since the transfer to the German Bundesliga, took a downturn.
In the first round, the club where he signed his first professional contract was PSV from the Netherlands.
Unlike now, when Joo Ji-tae is recognized as a world-class talent, back then, he was merely a promising player known in the Asian region. Of course, he wasn’t widely recognized as a promising talent. Some European clubs showed interest, but the level of attention from European clubs was like throwing interest at an obscure Asian prospect as if reluctantly sending a greeting.
In other words, it was pretty oppressive.
Amidst this, the only club that showed sincere and proactive appeal was PSV from the Netherlands, and Joo Ji-tae’s choice was obvious.
And then, two months.
It took Joo Ji-tae just two months to adapt to the unfamiliar country of the Netherlands and prepare for his debut on the professional stage.
However, for PSV and Joo Ji-tae, misfortune struck just as his professional debut was about to begin, with the sudden death of his mother.
The promising player who, despite not being exemplary, was full of professional awareness disappeared.
Nevertheless, with his exceptional talent intact, Joo Ji-tae quickly rose to become the league’s top prospect upon his debut, and within just two years, he brought a substantial transfer fee to PSV.
Joo Ji-tae’s second club was Sevilla in La Liga, Spain.
Sevilla, evaluated as a mid-to-high-ranking team, aimed for a top-tier position, namely entering the Champions League.
Upon joining Sevilla, Joo Ji-tae immediately gifted them a ticket to the Champions League, solidifying his status as a global prospect.
Despite proving his competitiveness in the La Liga, Sevilla’s finances were not sufficient to keep hold of the promising player who dazzled in both La Liga and the Champions League.
Two years after joining Sevilla.
Joo Ji-tae makes a transfer to Chelsea.
In the footsteps that led from the Big League in the Netherlands to La Liga, and then to Chelsea, a team aiming for victory in the EPL, became the pinnacle of Ju Ji-tae’s career.
The accumulated physical strain from the Netherlands ultimately led to his downfall at Chelsea.
When he transferred to Chelsea, Ju Ji-tae’s body was already at its limit.
Starting with an injury in his debut match, more than half of the three years spent at Chelsea were consumed by injuries and rehabilitation.
He played a mere 31 games in three seasons. Despite managing to showcase fragments of his brilliant talent with 11 goals and 8 assists, it was not reasonable for any coach to include a player in the roster who played an average of 10 games per season and ended up on the sidelines. Especially a high-earning player with a staggering salary.
Eventually, Ju Ji-tae was sold to Bayern Munich, a club based in Germany, as if he were being released.
He barely held on in the Bundesliga with TSV 1860 Munich.
His player life, filled with personal issues, rumors, mockery, injuries, and rehabilitation, experienced its first setback, and the moment for his career to continue its descent had arrived.
Life in Munich wasn’t too bad.
Despite his broken and battered body, Ju Ji-tae managed to reduce the frequency and duration of injuries, thanks to restraining his unique style of play. Even though it was fortunate that he played 20 games a year, considering his fragile physique, he received recognition by delivering outstanding performances and successfully stabilizing the team in the middle to lower ranks.
Thanks to him, there were discussions about “what if” stories, imagining a scenario where Ju Ji-tae was diligent, where he managed his body rigorously. But even with all that, Ju Ji-tae remained unchanged.
After team training, he continued to drink all night and spent his days with women.
As the winter of his third and final year of the contract approached, with Ju Ji-tae lying injured again, contemplating his next destination, Cha Yeojin appeared.
Just like when he received a call and welcomed her at Munich International Airport, this time too, Ju Ji-tae was at Munich International Airport.
“…It’s just like back then.”
Just like the first time he welcomed Cha Yeojin, the scene was identical, right here, at Munich International Airport.
In the distance, Cha Yeojin approached, just like back then.
The attention of people was drawn to her aura emanating from her slender height of 172cm and overwhelming leg length of 106cm. It was no different whether she was approaching this way or that time.
Dragging a large suitcase, Cha Yeojin approached, lifting the sunglasses that covered her small face.
“Do you have anything to say to me?”
Surprisingly, she threw the same words at him, identical to back then.
Seeing the overlapping scene with the first encounter, Ju Ji-tae was filled with bitterness.
How could it be so consistent?
But this time, it wasn’t the first encounter.
In this moment, there were many things that were not present for the Ju Ji-tae of that time, for Cha Yeojin.
Youth, health, passion… and hope for the future.
Therefore, Ju Ji-tae said,
“Sorry.”
Just like back then,
“Welcome. Noona.”
She gave a different response.
Perhaps that’s why.
Chae Yeojin’s reaction was also different from back then.
A crisp expression,
“…Nuna, that’s cheating.”
Because she was caught off guard.
If you were to ask what the difference is, it’s like a woman’s lipstick. Just like Yves Saint Laurent 12 Coral Dolce and 43 Orange Perfecto look the same red but are different, it’s something an ordinary man wouldn’t notice.
And Ju Ji-tae was not an ordinary man.
* * *
I found out during the first meeting that between Terminals 1 and 2 on the third floor of Munich International Airport, there’s the world’s only airport brewery, AirBräu. Actually, Chae Yeojin was the one who brought Ju Ji-tae, who didn’t even know the geography, even though he was the one who came to pick her up last time.
Fortunately, this time Chae Yeojin didn’t need to search with a sigh, as Ju Ji-tae, learned from the past experience, took the lead and guided them to AirBräu.
“Did Jae-shin come?”
“I didn’t tell him you were coming.”
“Hmm.”
A strange sound came from Chae Yeojin, who stood beside her large suitcase like a barrier.
Even though it felt like a snort of ‘I know your mistake’ or ‘I know you’re being shameless,’ Ju Ji-tae shrugged nonchalantly with a bold expression.
Of course, he had the right to be bold.
And he was indeed bold.
Of course, just because he was confident, it didn’t mean others acknowledged it.
“What’s up all of a sudden? You just came without saying anything.”
“Why, can’t I come?”
“It’s not like that. It’s not what I mean.”
“Then what do you mean?”
“It would have been nice if you had told me in advance.”
“Were we supposed to talk before coming? Ah~ It wasn’t like this in the old days. You used to come to my house without saying anything, stealing panties, and now that you’ve grown up, you’re bullying me like this. It’s pitiful and sad.”
“This is not the neighbor’s house; it’s Germany.”
Contrary to the oppressive nature of the conversation, Chae Yeojin’s consistently cheerful expression suddenly stiffened.
“If you were a goddess, you wouldn’t say that.”
Intuitively sensing an unusual atmosphere, Joo Ji-tae carefully chose his words.
“Why did Joyeosin suddenly show up here?”
“It’s your girlfriend.”
It was a futile effort.
“It’s just—”
“Don’t make empty, unnecessary remarks in front of me.”
From Noble mtl dot com
He even paused in his speech.
“…She’s young. Because she’s a kid.”
“Yeah. Yeoshin is young. Still a child.”
Smiling as if satisfied with the clumsy excuse, Chaeyeon continued,
“I have no intention of getting in your way. I know better than anyone how long Yeoshin has liked you since she was young. As her sister, I can’t steal the man my younger sister likes, right?”
She began saying strange things.
“Have you kissed?”
“Are you crazy? I didn’t kiss her. I told you, she’s a kid.”
“Hmm. So, I—”
Crash!
Chaeyeon, who had picked up the beer glass in front of her and downed it in one gulp, approached with her lips and said,
“I’ll handle it until Yeoshin grows up.”
With white foam splattered, she left.
“Let’s go. Get up.”
After that, she abruptly stood up, leaving the carrier behind, and briskly walked away. As I hurriedly picked up my belongings to follow, an unexpected remark flew in.
“It’s disgustingly heavy. Why are you carrying so much like this?”
“It’s the first kiss.”
“…What?”
“Yeoshin is a grown-up, and I can’t even imagine that I took your first kiss, right?”
Joo Ji-tae was left dumbfounded by the sneering side profile.
“You said you were doing it for Joyeosin just now, so what the hell are you doing?”
“Nothing. I told you. I support you two.”
Walking side by side, Chaeyeon walked a step ahead. Holding the fingers she had caught from behind and constantly fidgeting, Chaeyeon spoke.
“You know, our family is a mess, right? That’s why I don’t believe in love. Don’t want it either. Marriage, even less. But still, desires need to be satisfied, right?”
“So what’s your point? You want to have a fling?”
“…Can you please shut up?”
Joo Ji-tae closed his mouth in a strange composure.
“So, since the goddess is going to have everything, is this okay? It was just a first kiss. Showing my panties was also a first—”
“Panties are for Jayshin too…”
“…”
An expressionless face turned around.
Joo Ji-tae felt strangely familiar with the current situation, reminiscent of the first time.
Strange. It seemed like it was the same during the first encounter… He had undoubtedly returned from the first experience to the second, yet why was the situation identical to the first time?
The woman was not just familiar but almost irritatingly so.
Hundreds of women in bed… No, maybe more than a thousand.
Now, she used to pride herself on being sharp, but why was it so difficult today?
“Back then, I said I hated love, dating, marriage, and became a fling-hunter… Why is it different this time?”
However, Joo Ji-tae was missing the most important fact.
Despite having relationships with many women, they were all casual encounters. There had never been a genuine exchange of feelings and emotions.
That’s right.
Joo Ji-tae had no experience in love… He was a complete novice.
With an oddly expressionless face, Chaeyeon caught up and walked ahead again.
“I genuinely hope things go well between you and the goddess.”
They headed to a familiar place.
“However… the goddess is still young. Until she grows up… Until then, just for a brief moment… Let’s satisfy each other’s desires. You want it too, right? That’s why you did those things to me. No?”
The place where Joo Ji-tae first had a relationship with Chaeyeon during the first encounter.
Right in front of that hotel, Chaeyeon smiled.
“It’s okay. I won’t tell the goddess. I won’t make it awkward or troublesome. This is just… a momentary mischief.”
It was a smile that looked precarious.
