DASH

Chapter 14

"I think it's okay to stay here," Jihon's request prompted the taxi driver to head towards the main entrance of the gymnasium. Although the taxi driver did it for the convenience of the passenger, Jihon experienced the whole range of unpleasant sensations. He wanted to postpone the moment of meeting this person at least for a while.

"Well, at least I won't have to take a few extra steps in this hot weather," Jihong reasoned, deciding to remain grateful. After paying the fare and getting out of the taxi, he thanked the driver and wished him a good day.

However, as he approached the gymnasium building, he involuntarily slowed his pace and sighed. The thought of turning back and avoiding the meeting crossed his mind, but he knew it would make it even harder for him to muster up his courage next time. He wondered if there would be any other chance at all.

After visiting the hospital, Jihong first called Mrs. Shim to ask about Jaekyung's whereabouts. He knew that if he hesitated, he could postpone the meeting indefinitely. The more difficult the task, the more he realized the importance of solving it. Fortunately, Mrs. Shim was happy to tell him where her son was, without asking anything extra. It was a municipal gymnasium in Gwacheon. She said that Jaekyung will be training there before the upcoming competition.

Jaekyung participated in international competitions for all five years, but never trained for the national team. No, he did it only once. In the third year of high school, he was selected as part of the national team for the Asian Games and participated in group classes. However, after that, he refrained from them even during the Olympic Games and World Championships. The athlete of the national team was absent from general training and, for some reason, decided to train outside the sports complex. When he first decided not to go there before the Olympics, there were rumors that the coach was furious and even insulted him. But in the end, through the mediation of the federation and the Swimmers' Association, Jaekyung was allowed to refuse such events, and he proudly took five medals at the Olympic Games. After that, no one could say a word against him. As always, Jaekyung continued private training in Australia with the former coach of the Australian national team and arrived there just a week before the competition.

Jihong expected the athlete to join them as he had arrived in Korea two months earlier. However, it turned out that Jaekyung had decided to study privately again. The Australian coach who had worked with him for seven years did not accompany him this time. Judging by what Jihong read in the article, it is difficult for the coach to leave home for a long time, since someone from his family was facing a serious operation. Well, given Jaekyung's condition now, the lack of a coach won't be such a big problem. After all, he is an athlete who has been training hard for the past decade and knows better than anyone how to improve his skills. So now that there is only a month and a half left before the competition, he seems to be focusing on reducing the time spent in the water and strengthening the muscles. According to his mother, Jaekyung works out on the water in the mornings, including strength training on the third floor of the gym. During the day, he swam for only two hours. And in the evenings, he was given massage or manual therapy to relieve muscle fatigue.

"I need to tell you something about yesterday," and once again, Jihon gathered his courage, feeling his last chance slipping away. "If you're not busy, can you give me a minute?" Jaekyung, looking at him and coming closer, casually threw a large sports bag from his shoulder, threw it into the chair, and sat down opposite Jihon.

"First of all, I want to apologize," Jihong mumbled as soon as the guy sat down. He knew that hesitation would make it harder for him to speak out. "I'm sorry. You probably came to tell me a very important thing, because you were worried, but I took your words wrong. It may sound like an excuse, but I couldn't help it, because this was the first time something like this had happened."

Ah, that just sounds like an excuse, Jihon thought as he smiled awkwardly. But there was no response from Jaekyung. He didn't even look in his direction, but just sat cross-legged and armed, concentrating on the abandoned bag. The towel covering his head prevented Jihon from seeing his mood. Jihong didn't have time to dwell on his complaints, and ask Jaekyong to listen or even look at him. Given the character of the athlete, Jihong could not afford something like this.

"In any case, we will not have a friendly conversation, I understand everything. Just let me say what I have to say and then leave," keeping this in mind, Jihon forced himself to continue, "... You were right. Just in case, I went to the hospital today and there was indeed a small problem with the chip that caused it to not work properly for the past few days. I wouldn't have noticed, since there are no alphas next to me, and I don't feel my own smell... I probably wouldn't have known if it hadn't been for you. I almost got into trouble, but thanks to you, everything was resolved. Thank you."

Jihon folded his hands on the table, squeezing out the words: "I was angry yesterday because I didn't believe you... Once again, I apologize." Remembering what he had said to Jaekyung, Jihong couldn't help but lower his head, "You must have been very worried, and I'm truly sorry that I misunderstood you and got angry myself. I know that such words will not make you feel better, but I am sincerely sorry..."

"I just want you to know," Jihon, who had raised his head to continue, suddenly stopped. He was surprised to find that Jaekyung, who he thought was looking somewhere to the side, was directing his attention at him while his arms were still crossed. "I, I hope you don't get too angry with me."