Chapter Two: The Fall

Things had not gone much better for the Away Team as the day progressed. The first game recorded had been charades played around a cheering section forty people strong. The Home Team had won that game as well, earning them 500,000 won to go along with their four golden piggybanks. The Away Team did, however, win the photograph battle. Their victory came only with the help of Gary, who had the amazing talent of looking relaxed in every photo.

The next piggybank hunt had led both teams to the swimming pool where the pigs were hidden in the water and on the diving boards. Currently, the Away Team had two piggybanks and 500,000 won, while the Home Team had six piggybanks and 500,000 won. Not an insurmountable gap, but Ji Hyo was beginning to wish they hadn’t agreed to play rock-paper-scissors.

“Kwang Soo looks like he’s about to cry,” said Jong Kook, leaning back in his white, plastic chair.

“Kwang Soo,” added Jae Suk. “Your mouth is too open.”

Ji Hyo watched as Kwang Soo made his way along the edge of the pool, towards the stairs that lead to the high diving boards. Kwang Soo’s head was bent, and he looked like he was about to be sick.

The third game of the day was a loyalty test, where each team member would jump from one of the diving platforms and whichever team had the highest total height would win 500,000 won. Both teams had totals of 21 meters at the moment, with only Kwang Soo for the Away Team and Jong Kook for the Home Team left to jump.

Watching Kwang Soo climb the stairs to the 7.5 meter platform, Ji Hyo began to regret her decision to jump only 5 meters. Standing up there hadn’t been as bad as she’d expected. She’d thought about going higher, but her teammates had assured her that 5 meters was acceptable. Now that the game was coming to an end, she wished she’d tried one of the higher platforms instead.

Kwang Soo stepped out onto the 7.5 meter platform and look down. A blank, cloudy expression appeared on his broad face, causing the spectators to burst into laughter.

“Kwang Soo,” called out Jong Kook. “No way.”

“You can do it,” said Ji Hyo.

“Don’t tell him that,” muttered Jong Kook under his breath. “He might listen to you.”

Ji Hyo grinned. If Kwang Soo jumped from the 7.5 meter platform, then Jong Kook would have to jump from 10 meters in order to win the game.

“Kwang Soo,” shouted Jae Suk. “You have to jump from at least there.”

“You can do it,” said Ji Hyo again. She glanced behind her and saw that Jong Kook scowling. She smiled at him.

“There he goes,” said Jong Kook.

Ji Hyo turned around to see Kwang Soo heading up the stairs to the 10 meter platform. If he jumped from there, then Jong Kook could only tie the game. Ji Hyo clapped her hands excitedly. 

“Go down,” shouted Jong Kook. “Don’t go there. Up is bad. Kwang Soo, not there.”

Ji Hyo covered to hide her laughter. Jong Kook was cute when he was pleading.

As Kwang Soo reached the top, the Away Team stood up to show their support. Ji Hyo adjusted the towel around her shoulders and clapped her hands. “You can do it, Kwang Soo!”

“Wow,” said Kwang Soo as he reached the end of the platform. “It’s so high.”

“You don’t need to jump that high,” said Jong Kook.

“Come down,” said Suk Jin. He glanced at the Away Team. “You guys should dissuade him. Think of his safety.”

Ji Hyo laughed at the Home Team’s desperate attempts.

Kwang Soo stood still at the edge of the platform, a sort of stunned expression on his face.

“Are you confident?” asked Jae Suk.

“Does he look confident?” asked Gary.

“We should probably encourage him,” said Haha.

“Good idea.” Jae Suk lifted his hands in the air. “Kwang Soo, fighting!”

Gary and Haha started to chant, “Lee Kwang Soo! Lee Kwang Soo! Lee Kwang Soo!” and Jae Suk and Ji Hyo followed suit. Ji Hyo clapped her hands in time to the beat. “Lee Kwang Soo! Lee Kwang Soo!”

“Kwang Soo, not there,” said Suk Jin.

A part of Ji Hyo just wanted to see someone jump from the 10 meter platform. Suk Jin and Haha, who were both afraid of heights, had jumped from 3.5 meters, while Ji Hyo, Ha Ra, Joong Ki, and Gary had all jumped from 5 meters. Chun Hee and Jae Suk had both managed 7.5 meters, keeping the teams even. No one had dared the 10 meter platform yet.

“Kwang Soo,” shouted Jae Suk. “Be confident if you want to do it.”

Ji Hyo glanced to her right and saw that Jong Kook was still sitting down, his hands clasped together in a sort of prayer.

“He’s going down,” said Jae Suk.

Ji Hyo’s shoulders sagged with disappointment as she watched Kwang Soo descend the stairs back to the 7.5 meter platform. The excitement drained from her and she sat back down in her chair.

“He can’t do it,” said Chun Hee.

“Kwang Soo,” said Jae Suk, stepping past Ji Hyo. “Come down. We thought you were good at swimming, so we put you last. But it seems we made the wrong decision. Compared to winning, we’d much rather you come out of this safe and alive. It’s not your fault, so come down.”

Chun Hee placed a hand on Jong Kook’s shoulder and said, “Hyung, we don’t care if you come out of this safe and alive—we’d much rather you win.”

Kwang Soo stood on the edge of the 7.5 meter platform. He took off his hat, scratched his head, and stared down at the clear surface of the water.

Ji Hyo giggled. “Why is he scratching his head?”

After he finished scratching Kwang Soo leaned forward and dropped his red baseball cap into the water, testing the distance.

“It’s fine,” said Jae Suk. “Fighting!”

“Fighting!” cried Ji Hyo.

Kwang Soo looked up at the 10 meter then back down at the 7.5 meter then back up at the 10 meter. Over and over again her looked back and forth.

“There’s nothing to be seen,” said Jong Kook. “Just look down!”

“Go down,” said Jae Suk. “If it’s too much, go down. We won’t be mad if you jump from 5 meters.”

“Go down!” shouted Jong Kook.

Ji Hyo grinned. She had never imagined that Kim Jong Kook was afraid of heights.

Haha and Gary were snickering with laughter as Jong Kook and Jae Suk both urged Kwang Soo to descend to the 5 meter platform. Poor Kwang Soo looked so confused up on that ledge.

Finally, after much urging and arguments that Jong Kook couldn’t do that 10 meter either, Kwang Soo stepped forward to the edge of the board. He placed his hands over his face and took a deep breath.

“No one will blame you if you jump from the 5 meter,” said Jae Suk.

“Of course,” said Jong Kook. “Jump down from there. Jump down.”

“Before that,” said Kwang Soo, placing a hand on his chest. “I want to say—”

“Jump down,” interrupted Jae Suk “Jump down.”

“Yes, yes,” said Haha, clapping. “Jump down.”

Kwang Soo glared down at his teammates. There was a moment’s silence, and then the spectators started to laugh. Poor, pitiful Kwang Soo couldn’t even have his final words on the diving platform without being interrupted. Ji Hyo could already see the character that Kwang Soo was forming with the help of his hyungs. She wondered what kind of character she would create. Hopefully one the viewers would like.

“Are you ready?” asked Jae Suk.

Kwang Soo didn’t even acknowledge that he’d heard Jae Suk; he just stared down at the surface of the pool.

“It’s been almost ten minutes,” said Ha Ra.

“One,” said Jae Suk. “Two. Three. Four. Five.”

Ji Hyo had thought Kwang Soo would chicken out, but on the count of “five”, Kwang Soo leapt off the diving board. Ha Ra screamed, while Ji Hyo leapt up from her seat. He’d done it. Kwang Soo had finally jumped. It wasn’t from the 10 meter board, but he had at least jumped.

Joong Ki gave Kwang Soo a congratulatory hug after a soaking wet Kwang Soo dragged himself from the water. Kwang Soo’s jump put the score at 28.5 meters for the Away Team and 21 meters for the Home Team. Jong Kook, the last jumper, would have to go from the 10 meter board for his team to win.

Ji Hyo hard a sigh and glanced back at Jong Kook. He adjusted his baseball cap nervously as he got to his feet. Jong Kook looked cute with curling black hair sticking out from under his hat and a worried expression on his face. The second she thought that, Ji Hyo mentally kicked herself. Having those kinds of thoughts was dangerous.

As Jong Kook made his way over the stairs, he paused to hit a punching bag a couple times. Jae Suk snorted at Jong Kook’s pre-jump exercise. Jong Kook used to do boxing when he was younger—though Ji Hyo would never admit that she knew that fact—so throwing a few punches probably eased his nerves.

“He’ll do it,” said Suk Jin, watching Jong Kook climb the stairs. “He’ll do 10 meters.”

“It’s really high,” said Kwang Soo. “You don’t realize it until you’re standing up there, but it’s really high.”

“I’m going up to support him,” said Joong Ki, getting up from his seat.

“To the 10 meter?” asked Chun Hee.

Joong Ki shook his head in horror. “The 7.5 meter is as far as I’ll go.”

Ji Hyo watched as Joong Ki made his way along the side of the pool to the stairs. He was still dripping water from his own dip into the pool. Ji Hyo wasn’t certain why Joong Ki felt the need to accompany Jong Kook; it wasn’t as though Jong Kook had asked him to. Though, thought Ji Hyo, maybe it was to make Joong Ki himself feel better about only jumping from the 5 meter platform.

“He’ll do it,” said Suk Jin again. He spoke with surprising confidence for a man who had only jumped 3.5 meters.

“Hyung,” called out Kang Soo. “It’s no joke. You could get hurt.”

Jong Kook ignored Kwang Soo and continued to the 10 meter platform. He didn’t even pause to consider the 7.5 meter. Ji Hyo smiled. Maybe Suk Jin was right, maybe Jong Kook would do it.

As Jong Kook stepped further out onto the 10 meter platform, Joong Ki did the same on the 7.5 meter. Slowly, Jong Kook crouched down at the edge of the platform and peered down. Ha Ra and Ji Hyo both started giggling. Ji Hyo had the feeling that she had Ha Ra were giggling about the same thing: Jong Kook looked adorable peeping over the edge—and that wasn’t something one could say often about a man as muscular as he was.

“Should I come up there?” asked Jae Suk.

“Hyung can’t say anything up there,” said Chun Hee with a faint laugh.

Jong Kook stepped back and stood up again.

“Hyung,” said Kwang Soo. “It’s impossible to jump from there.”

“Ah.” Jong Kook shook his hands about as if warming up for a sports match. “This is a problem.”

“A problem?” repeated Gary blankly. “He calls it a problem.”

Jong Kook started to walk towards the edge, as if to jump, but as he drew near, Suk Jin started to cry, “Here we go, here we go!” Jong Kook stopped and stared down at his audience.

Suk Jin started to clap to the words “Kim Jong Kook! Kim Jong Kook! Kim Jong Kook!”

A wide smile spread across Jong Kook’s face, laughing at Suk Jin’s enthusiasm.

“Jong Kook,” cried Suk Jin, pointing dramatically up at the 10 meter platform. “You’re Kim Jong Kook.”

“I know.” Jong Kook hesitated and then said, “It’s really very high.”

Suk Jin looked stunned for a moment, unable to imagine the height. Then, he started up his chant again. “Kim Jong Kook. Kim Jong Kook. Kim Jong Kook.”

“Oppa,” said Ha Ra, “you can do it.”

“You can do it, Jong Kook-ah,” said Suk Jin.

Haha and Jae Suk had started to cheer for Jong Kook, even though his succeeding meant a loss for the Away Team. Maybe, like Ji Hyo, they just wanted to see someone jump from the 10 meter platform.

Jong Kook took a deep breath. “I want to jump. I want to jump even if I die.”

And then, he walked forward. One hand pinching his nose and the other on his shorts, Jong Kook walked forward. And he just kept going until he walked right off the platform.

Ha Ra screamed. Suk Jin cried out. Ji Hyo opened soundlessly. Down, down, down Jong Kook plummeted. He kept his body straight like a pencil and slipped into the water with almost no splash. His hat came off on impact, surrounded by white bubbles. And then, Jong Kook resurfaced, brush his curling, black hair out of his eyes.

Jae Suk stepped forward, stuttering with disbelief. Ha Ra placed her hands over before clapping with Chun Hee. Suk Jin started up his chant again, “Kim Jong Kook. Kim Jong Kook. Kim Jong Kook.”

Ji Hyo was still frozen in place, clutching the sides of her head and hanging open. It was only when she heard Ha Ra and Chun Hee’s applause that she managed to move. Her hands clapped together automatically, a robotic response. Her eyes were glued to Jong Kook, who had grabbed his baseball cap and was now swimming towards the edge of the pool. She barely heard what the other members of the cast were saying about Jong Kook’s splash.

She clasped her hands together and rested her index fingers against her lips. She had forgotten why she had liked him so much in his Turbo days and why she had liked him so much on X-Man. He was strong, not just physically, but mentally too. And, of course, it helped that he was witty and attractive. As he hauled himself out of the pool, she couldn’t help but admire the way the wet, blue t-shirt clung to his body.

No.

That one word broke Ji Hyo out of her reverie. She was not a teenage girl anymore. She was a professional actress who was here for a job. She was not going to let the part of her that was still that sixteen-year-old Turbo fan take over. Kim Jong Kook was nothing more than a respected colleague. She needed this job—she actually enjoyed this job—and letting an old, foolish crush get in the way was not a good way to start.

Suddenly, the foreboding, cloudy sky that afternoon made sense. It was a bad omen. It foretold of her failure. But Ji Hyo was a professional. She wouldn’t let one bad omen dictate her life. She would film this show, she would have fun doing it, and she definitely, definitely would not fall for a coworker.  

The sky was pitch black and starless. Kim Jong Kook stared up, shielding his eyes from the lights of the stadium. His legs ached from running up and down the stands of the Suwon World Cup Stadium, looking for plastic, golden piggybanks. This time, his team had only found two while the Away Team had found three, but the Home Team still had more piggybanks and more money in total.

Jong Kook looked around at the other cast members of Running Man. The entire Away Team was sitting down on the grass, breathing heavily, and so was most of the Home Team. Only Jong Kook, Chun Hee, and Suk Jin were still standing—and Suk Jin looked like he was about to pass out. Even though Jong Kook’s legs hurt from all the stair climbing, he had to admit he was in better shape than the rest of the cast. He could only imagine what they felt like.

“Everyone ran well,” said Jae Suk once the PDs, FDs, audio directors, writers, and cameramen were settled in front of the cast. “But the VJs who ran with us…their stamina was a bit…”

Jong Kook nodded. “When I was going up the steps, my VJ just stood at the bottom and took a long shot.”

“And the one with me,” said Jae Suk, “At the end he was like, ‘Ah, hyung!’” Jae Suk faked heavy, raspy breathing. “‘They found it!’”

“And the audio director who was following me.” Suk Jin searched the staff until he found the man. “That audio director. His voice will be captured together with mine.” Suk Jin added his own heavy breathing sound effect. “I don’t know if he can use the recording anymore.”

“We still have another game to play,” said Jae Suk.

Jong Kook fought the urge to groan. Recording for Running Man lasted from late afternoon until sunrise. He’d been busy doing a charity project on Sunday and hadn’t had a lot of time to sleep. Already his eyes had begun to sting with exhaustion. However, he smiled for the cameras and followed the staff’s directions to the stands. As he walked, he heard Joong Ki ask, “How are you holding up, noona?”

Jong Kook glanced over to his left and saw Song Ji Hyo walking beside Joong Ki. Since both Ji Hyo and Joong Ki were in the acting business, Jong Kook didn’t know them well. While he had a tremendous singing career and a successful variety career, he had never seriously touched the realm of acting. Though he was curious about his cast mates, Jong Kook didn’t think it would be appropriate to force himself into their conversation, so he remained quiet.

“I want a nap,” said Ji Hyo honestly.

“Noona always took naps on set,” said Joong Ki with a smile.

Jong Kook had forgotten that Joong Ki and Ji Hyo had been in A Frozen Flower together. Most people in the Korean entertainment industry had met each other at some event or on some variety show to the extent that, at some point, it became impossible to keep track. Jong Kook had admired Jae Suk’s ability to know celebrities and their doings so well—though even Jae Suk wasn’t perfect.

“Are you tired, hyung?” asked Joong Ki.

Jong Kook blinked when he saw Joong Ki staring at him. He hadn’t expected to be dragged into the conversation so suddenly. “A little. The exercise woke me up.”

“Jae Suk-hyung is always saying that you exercise too much,” said Joong Ki.

Ji Hyo smiled mutely.

“Jae Suk-hyung should exercise more himself before he criticizes,” said Jong Kook.

“I want to exercise more,” said Joong Ki. “My legs are too weak.”

“Come to the gym with me some time. And I’ll help you figure out a routine.” Jong Kook glanced at Jae Suk’s back and said, “I tried to teach Jae Suk-hyung once. He followed the routine for almost month and then refused to go to the gym with me.”

Joong Ki laughed. “I bet your routine was too intense.”

“It was to help him stay healthy,” said Jong Kook.

Once again, Ji Hyo smiled without saying a word.

“Are you enjoying the show?” asked Jong Kook, trying to bring her into the conversation.

“Yes. It’s fun.”

“I like action-based shows,” said Jong Kook. “They’re what I’m best at.”

Ji Hyo nodded.

Jong Kook was saved from trying to continue the conversation by their arrival at the location for the next game. Apparently, the next game was for two people from the same team to sit at a table with noise cancelling headphones. One person would shout out random questions from a list and the other would shout out random answers from another list. If the question and answer matched, then the pair would earn a point.

The game resulted in some hilarious combinations such as “My name is ‘I’ve found ginseng’!” and “Napoleon’s famous words were ‘Lend me 4,000 won!”. The Home Team ended up winning the competition, earning them another 500,000 won to add to their winnings.

The final competition took place in the indoor sports hall. The ceiling was lit by about twenty bright, white lights, and the floor was made of artificial turf the color of grass. There was a plastic goal with string netting at the far end of the sports hall. It was too small to be an actual football goal, but was perfect for the final game of the night.

“It’s so nice,” said Ha Ra as the teams formed a line, facing the cameras.

“Compared to the outdoors,” said Jae Suk.

“The indoors is so much better,” Haha finished for him.

“This is the warming-up hall,” said Myuk PD once all the cameras were in place. “Players come here to warm up before matches.”

“Wow. Amazing. Professional players warm up here?” The cast members all gave exaggerated reactions. They looked around the sports hall, pretending to be flabbergasted by its size and importance. That’s not to say the sports hall wasn’t impressive; it was just that variety shows required the hosts to be extreme. They had been allowed to shoot at Suwon World Cup Stadium on the condition that they advertised the attraction, and that’s exactly what the cast was doing.

“But we’ve already warmed up outside,” said Jae Suk. “Why do we need to warm up again in here?”

“Maybe it’s a warm-down activity,” said Jong Kook.

“Warm-up, warm-down,” said Haha. “It’s hot outside. I want to be cool.”

“I want to sleep,” said Gary.

The cast laughed. They’d been filming for almost sixteen hours now and every single one of them could feel the exhaustion creeping in. However, they had to keep the smiles on their faces and their energy levels high.

“Because Ha Ra is always having activities in Japan,” said Jae Suk, “you must be really tired right now.”

“No,” said Ha Ra. “I’m having too much fun.”

“Even though amongst us, none of us have a schedule as hectic Ha Ra’s,” said Jae Suk, “she’s the most awake right now.”

Jong Kook grinned. Another requirement of the variety show was to make the guests look good—something at which Jae Suk was excellent. Make the guest comfortable, show off their good traits, and make their bad traits endearing.

“Suk Jin,” asked Jae Suk, “what are you doing tomorrow?”

“Rest,” said Suk Jin.

Ha Ra laughed and clapped her hands together. The difference in their schedules amused her.

“Really, Ha Ra didn’t even glance at Suk Jin-hyung when he spoke,” said Haha.

Suk Jin feigned a disappointed look. Then, he glared at Ha Ra and said, “I could even draw the back of your skull from memory by now.”

“Sorry, sorry,” said Ha Ra through her laughter.

“Don’t ignore your sunbaes,” said Suk Jin.

“She’s not ignoring any of us,” said Jong Kook.

“Just you, hyung,” added Haha.

Suk Jin folded his arms across his chest and glowered at Ha Ra—which, of course, made her only laugh even more.

After the noise had died down, the cast faced the cameras and waited for Myuk PD’s explanation of the game. Basically, one goalkeeper from each team would hang from the crossbar of the truncated goal and use his or her body to stop any footballs from passing through.

Jong Kook looked at the crossbar, which wasn’t particularly high, and then asked, “Can Haha defend the balls that are down low?”

“Aish, hyung,” cried Haha. “Why do you always mention my height?”

Jong Kook grinned at his friend of fifteen years and asked, “Should I talk about girlfriends instead?”

Haha laughed and took a step forward, ready for the challenge. “Hyung, what? Are you trying to say that you’ve never had a girlfriend before? I know a lot too. Haven’t you had one before?”

Of course, Jong Kook had had a girlfriend before, something Haha knew very well. Jong Kook had dated in high school, he’d dated during his Turbo years, and he’d dated during his X-Man years. He’d dated regular people and he’d dated celebrities. Of course, Jong Kook didn’t expect Haha to reveal anything in front of the cameras, but he had to play along with the scenario.

“What?” asked Jong Kook, taking a step forward and putting on his best angry face. “What did you say?”

Kwang Soo pulled Haha away from Jong Kook, and Jae Suk stepped between the two friends.

“Please go back,” said Jae Suk. “Don’t hurt our Haha.”

“It wasn’t a very amicable break-up, right?” asked Haha.

Jong Kook stepped back to join his team. He’d told Haha that very morning about the end of his two month long relationship. There was a possibility that his ex-girlfriend would see this recording and take it too seriously. While she’d been mad at him by the end of their relationship, he didn’t want her to feel hurt.

“We know what we should know,” said Jae Suk, “and what we don’t know should remain that way.”

“Is Haha really all right?” asked Jong Kook sharply. There was a hint of frustration in his voice.

Haha laughed. “Are you trying to show your temper?”

“What are you saying? I was originally this kind of person.” Jong Kook wasn’t truly angry; his relationship had been rough for the past month, and he hadn’t been upset with its end. But he would have to have a talk with Haha about revealing his relationship status on the show.

Suddenly, Jae Suk started to chuckle. “Suk Jin-hyung just asked Ha Ra, ‘Who is Jong Kook’s girlfriend?’”

Jong Kook couldn’t help laughing aloud at that. He could just picture Suk Jin prying for gossip like a teenage school girl.

“Why would you ask Ha Ra this kind of question?” asked Jae Suk. “Is she good friends with Jong Kook?”

“I thought everything’s known amongst idols,” said Suk Jin.

“I don’t tell everyone everything,” said Jong Kook after his laughter had subsided.

Myuk PD finally put an end to the talk of Jong Kook’s love life—something that Jong Kook was extremely grateful for. His past and present girlfriends were no one else’s business.

“Does your team want to defend first?” Jae Suk asked.

Suk Jin scoffed at Jae Suk’s attempt to trick them. “We will kick first. Don’t you know I really wanted to kick?”

Suddenly, Jae Suk pointed at Jong Kook and asked, “Who is that person that I don’t recognize?”

Everyone turned to look at Jong Kook with amused but puzzled expressions on their faces. Jong Kook stood there with his arms clasped, waiting for Jae Suk to deliver the punchline.

Then, Jae Suk said, “He looks like a character on the second season of Sparta.”

Immediately, the cast started falling over themselves with laughter. Jong Kook glanced down at his biceps and fought the urge to sigh. Jae Suk never stopped teasing him about his muscles.

“He can be a new character,” said Gary.

The Away Team put Kwang Soo in the goal. Kwang Soo was so tall that his feet touched the ground even when holding onto the cross bar. If there was one thing about Kwang Soo that Jong Kook would always envy, it was the height. At 175 cm, Jong Kook was average height for a Korean male. Kwang Soo, however, was 190.5 cm—something very few Koreans reached.

A minute was given for each team to shoot on goal. Kwang Soo’s height allowed him to block numerous shots, and the Home Team only managed to score three goals. The teams switched places, and Joong Ki played the role of goalie for their team. There was a huge gap between Joong Ki’s feet and the floor.

“There’s too much space,” said Suk Jin.

After Jae Suk cried “Start!” Haha kicked the ball towards the goal. It rolled along the ground and rolled beneath Joong Ki’s feet—an easy goal.

Jong Kook groaned. “We should have had Chun Hee do it.”

The Away Team laughed and clapped their hands as Gary also kicked the ball low and on the ground. It rolled underneath Joong Ki’s feet and into the goal. The Away Team won the challenge with ease.

They decided to do the second round with each team taking ten shots, and whoever had the most goals out of ten would win. The Home Team kicked first and managed to get seven balls in. This time, they decided to let Chun Hee, who was 188 cm, be the goalkeeper.

“We should have done this to begin with,” said Jong Kook.

“It was nice to see flower-boy Joong Ki embarrassed though,” said Suk Jin.

Joong Ki laughed. “Hyung!”

“Your legs were so high off the ground,” said Jong Kook.

“Chun Hee’s feet don’t touch the ground either!” cried Joong Ki.

To the Home Team’s disappointment, both Haha and Gary scored. However, Chun Hee managed to block the next three shots. As the game dragged on, Jong Kook noticed Chun Hee’s arms start to tremble. Chun Hee’s energy was fading and he could barely hold onto the crossbar anymore.

“This is why you need to go to the gym more,” said Jong Kook.

They were on the last shot, which was going to be made by Ji Hyo. If Chun Hee managed to block Ji Hyo’s shot, then the Home Team would win that round.

“Just block one more,” said Suk Jin. “One more.”

Chun Hee sat on the floor, looking tired and entertained all at once.

“As long as Ji Hyo succeeds, we’ll win,” said Jae Suk.

“Yes,” said Jong Kook. “We’re counting on this.”

“Fighting,” said Kwang Soo.

Jong Kook watched as Ji Hyo stepped back, preparing to kick the final ball. The things Jong Kook knew about Song Ji Hyo could be counted on one hand: she was an actress, her last movie had been in 2008, her real name wasn’t “Song Ji Hyo”, she could be tough when she wanted to be, and she had a pretty smile. Even though they’d been on Family Outing together before this, Jong Kook felt like this was his first time meeting Ji Hyo. While she was at ease talking to Joong Ki and Jae Suk, she never spoke a word around Jong Kook. He couldn’t figure out if it was because she didn’t like him or because she was just extremely introverted.

“Fighting, Chun Hee,” said Suk Jin.

Chun Hee took a deep breath and jumped up to the crossbar. He managed to hold himself up for a second before falling to the ground.

“Chun Hee…” said Jae Suk, trying not to laugh.

“Can’t we change goalkeeper?” asked Suk Jin.

Chun Hee tried to grab onto the crossbar again and, not surprisingly, fell off again. “This thing is slippery…”

“That’s something we can’t do anything about,” said Jae Suk. “Kwang Soo also had to hold on until the very end.”

Finally, Chun Hee managed to get onto the crossbar—though the process took many failures.

All eyes turned to Ji Hyo who jogged forward and swung her foot to kick. He foot passed over the football in a feint. She grinned up at Chun Hee, who still clinging desperately to the crossbar.

“Yes,” said Jae Suk. “That’s it, Ji Hyo. Like that.”

“Have some mercy,” said Joong Ki.

Ji Hyo backed up and ran forward again. Once more, she stopped right in front of the football without kicking it.

“Yah!” said Jong Kook. “Chun Hee looks like he’s about to cry.”

“Kick it!” cried Suk Jin.

Ji Hyo laughed, and then while the Home Team was only half-paying attention, she kicked it. And Chun Hee missed.

Jong Kook groaned as the Away Team jumped into celebration mode. The two teams had tied, which meant they had to go into the third round. In the third round, the team only got a point if the football stayed in the goal. The Away Team decided to use the short Haha as the goalkeeper, while the Home Team decided to use Joong Ki.

“Joong Ki is a thousand times better than Haha.” After he said this, Jong Kook grinned at Haha, knowing that talking about height would get on his friend’s nerves.

Sure enough, Haha charged forward and threw a football at Jong Kook. The football missed, but Haha called out to his “hyung” using informal language.

“Yah?” Jong Kook stepped forward. “You want your hyung to teach you a lesson?”

Haha glanced down at Jong Kook’s arms and then back up at his face. In a small voice, Haha said, “No.”

Laughing at their own bad acting, Haha and Jong Kook returned to their teams.

“Both of you look very close to each other,” said Suk Jin forlornly. “Even arguing can be close to each other. Why don’t you argue with me?”

Jong Kook shook his head, smiling. He didn’t know Suk Jin well enough yet to pick fake fights. He’d met Suk Jin a couple of times of the show Star Golden Bell and they’d had some good laughs during the show, but when he’d talked to Suk Jin off-camera, Jong Kook had realized that they weren’t people who saw eye-to-eye.

Joong Ki got into the goal for the Home Team, and the Away Team prepared to kick. Jong Kook didn’t have high hopes for Joong Ki’s goalie skills—even if he was taller than Haha. Sure enough, the Away Team got four balls to stay in the goal. Haha jumped in the goal, but he was so short that it was easy for the Home Team to kick the balls underneath him. Just as Jong Kook had predicted, Haha didn’t touch a single football. However, all but two of the Home Team’s footballs bounced back out of the goal.

Jong Kook groaned. That was 500,000 won to the Away Team.

Seventeen hours had passed since the start of filming. Jong Kook’s eyes were having trouble staying open, and he wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed and sleep for at least ten hours. The other cast members looked much the same. Gary kept yawning, and Ji Hyo was swaying on her feet. Suk Jin had even taken a nap between games. However, they had the last segment of the show to film, which would decide who stayed to serve coffee and who was allowed to go home and rest.

The cast gathered in front of the barred entranceway of Suwon Stadium, the light of the morning sun streaming in through the gate. There were two tables that held the piggybanks that each team had earned throughout the night. The Home Team stood on the left, facing the cameras, and the Away Team stood on the right. There were television screens behind both tables, which would keep count of the money each team had earned.

“I really want to win,” said Suk Jin

Jong Kook nodded and tried not to yawn. “Yes.”

“We really tried our best to win,” said Suk Jin, looking at his teammates.

“I’m desperate to win,” said Joong Ki.

Jae Suk nodded. “That’s what everyone here is thinking. No one wants to stay and serve coffee.”

“We all want to sleep in our comfy beds,” said Chun Hee.

“I don’t even care about a bed,” said Haha. “I’ll sleep on a park bench at this point.”

“Let’s do this,” said Jae Suk.

“Our prize money is the same,” said Jong Kook. “Both teams earned 1,500,000 won through games.”

On the screens behind both teams appeared the numbers 1,500,000. Then, Jae Suk poured the first of his team’s piggybanks into the money counter; it contained 500 won coins. The second had 100 won coins. Then, the Home Team added their first two piggybanks to the counter. One had 100 won coins and the other had 10 won coins. In the end, when all the piggybanks were added, the final score came onto the screens.

The Away Team had 2,000,000 won and the Home Team had 2,030,000 won.

Jong Kook breathed a sigh of relief before hugging his teammates. By 30,000 won, they were the victors. They wouldn’t have to stay behind in the stadium.

Shadows had crossed over the Away Team’s faces as they realized they would have to remain awake for a few more hours. There was a grating noise, and before anyone realized what was going on, the front gate had begun to open.

“Only the Home Team can leave,” said Myuk PD.

Suk Jin and Joong Ki hugged, unable to contain their excitement.

“Sleep!” cried Chun Hee.

“I can’t even walk straight,” said Ha Ra. “And my eyes keep fluttering closed.”

“Can you get some sleep before your schedule begins?” asked Jae Suk.

Ha Ra nodded. “I’ll sleep in the van.”

“Ji Hyo looks like she’s about to collapse,” said Jong Kook, looking over the pitiable Away Team.

Ji Hyo nodded miserably. Though Jong Kook had to admit that she still looked pretty with dark circles under her eyes.

“The Home Team can leave,” said Myuk PD again.

Picking up on the not-so-subtle cue, the Home Team moved to shake hands with the Away Team and then leave.

Haha grabbed onto Jong Kook’s shirt and said, “Take me with you.”

“Don’t drink too much coffee,” said Jong Kook, prying off Haha’s hands. “You’ll make yourself sick.

“Good job today, Ji Hyo,” said Suk Jin.

Joong Ki gave her a half-hug. “Noona was awesome.”

“I hope we’ll see you next time,” added Jong Kook because it seemed like the polite thing to say.

Ji Hyo smiled at him without saying a word. Unable to help himself, Jong Kook smiled back. Then, he followed the rest of his team outside the stadium into the light of the morning sun. Despite the exhaustion in his muscles and his head, Jong Kook felt happy. Running Man seemed to be heading in the right direction. Perhaps, thought Jong Kook, the full cast of Running Man was finally here. The first episode had felt lacking in some way, like there was a missing element. After all, the main cast had been entirely male. Myuk PD had assured them that there would be at least one female member. Perhaps, Song Ji Hyo was that last member needed to make Running Man a success.

Jong Kook looked up at the pale, blue sky. Good weather was always a good sign. And with that last thought, he headed home.