I took off my shirt and wiped my face. It was just 6 in the morning and I was already sweating too much, must be because of running like a ing pro. I groaned out loud upon noticing that I already consumed the two bottles of water I brought.

“Got you!” Marcos Rojo, my teammate and bestfriend, handed Gatorade with his trademark smirk.

“Thanks, mate.” I hurriedly opened it and took the content in one gulp. I wiped my mouth and stared long at the open field. I felt him sitting beside me.

“Problem with Sophie?” I didn’t look at him. “Well, Tammy saw her leaving your room yesterday. She said she looked upset.” Tammy or Tamara Lewkins was one of our PAs.

“She saw me with Bella the other night.”

“Well, I can’t blame you. Bella is a bomb—. Wait, how much did she see?” Marcos looked at me like I grew some horns. I didn’t speak. “Brother!” He groaned because he knew that I did something foolish.

“I didn’t know why I did that but when I saw Sophie looking at me like I was like a ing King I just lost it, okay?! Seb called me but it was cut off so I went out but then I noticed her following me.”

“And when you saw Bella you just kissed her and Sophie witnessed that?”

“Aye.”

“.”

“Yeah, I ed up again.”

We became silent after that. My bestfriend probably realized how stupid I was. He stood, grabbed the ball and kicked it hard. Marcos then looked at me with his hands on his hips. 

“Why are you doing this to yourself, Yong? You both clearly like each other.”

“You know the answer to that.”

“What? Like you’re wrong for her and you don’t deserve her at all? Come on, that’s nonsense!”

“It’s the truth. His father won’t allow it to happen.”

“I admire Coach Seo but what he wanted for you to do is really unfair.”

“I understand his intentions, Marc. He only wants the best for Sophie.”

“Then prove to him that you’re the right man for his daughter!”

I stood from the bench. I looked at him. “I’ll just hurt her so this is better.”

**

I was seven years old when I lost my parents.  They were both Koreans but they chose to stay in England. They were doctors and philanthropists. They usually went to Africa for medical missions. They were so dedicated to their advocacies that they couldn’t find time for their one and only son. I still remembered how I celebrated my fifth birthday with my nannies. My mom sent me the toy that I liked while my dad promised a vacation to Japan after their mission in Mozambique. After the call, I threw the toy and refused to believe my father. I was right all along. The trip didn’t happen because they had to go back to Nigeria after that.

When they died, I just stared at their cold faces inside the coffins. I didn’t cry. People mistakenly thought my reaction was just because I was too young to grasp what happened. They didn’t know that before my parents’ death, they were already non-existent to me.

I grew up as a rebellious teenager. I got drunk and partied a lot. Illegal drugs weren’t my thing though. I knew I wouldn’t go that deeper. I never worried about money. My parents left a huge sum of it and it was all mine.

When I reached 18, my one and only aunt contacted me and urged me to transfer to Korea. We weren’t that close but when she told me she had brain tumor, I agreed. Before she died, she reminded me for many times not to trust people that much especially on handling my finances. I followed her. I still managed my money even when I played for Man Utd.

Life was n