Chapter 2.1: Player Contract
TL: Pineapple
Editor: Isalee
After Coach Jeon left, everyone went their separate ways. They had already filled out their contract forms before the exam. For those who didn"t pa.s.s, their contracts had already been thrown away. But for those who pa.s.sed and became NK players, their contracts were held in the office.
Tomorrow, those that pa.s.sed the exam would receive their compensation from the contract. In less than ten minutes, everyone left Song Pa Gu Olympic Park"s indoor tennis courts.
No, there were still two people sitting next to each other on a bench.
Han Woo Jin and Choi Yeon Hyuk.
The two of them had a gut feeling that they were receiving special treatment. Maybe in the past today, only Choi Yeon Hyuk stayed in the empty court. The fact that Han Woo Jin remained here with him today was special. At least that"s what he thought.
"Woo Jin ah, did you also "hear" that you have to stay here?"
"Uh, yeah."
Choi Yeon Hyuk and Han Woo Jin laughed at each other.
The fact that they were specifically chosen by someone made them feel like they were special.
While they were giggling in the silent room, tennis coach Jeon opened the door and shouted,
"What are you guys laughing about in here?! Do you guys want me to give you a piece of h.e.l.l today?!!"
"I don"t care if you start today."
"Yeah, me too."
Coach Jeon Sang Shik tried to intimidate them by saying that they would begin training right after the exam but those two weren"t scared at all and seemed to be fine with it.
Coach Jeon Sang Shik smiled. Usually his players would curse and complain whenever he talked about practicing.
"I actually might be able to reach it with these two guys. We might reach the four major tournaments."
Coach Jeon"s dream of being able to find a sponsor when he was player was unable to be fulfilled because of his sluggish play during tournaments, so he was unable to find any sponsors for those four tournaments.
As a player, he wasn"t able to achieve his dream. But now, he is still able to achieve it through his players as a coach.
"Done. You two will sign a different contract from those other guys. Follow me and get in the car."
"Yes sir."
"Okay."
Both of them quickly answered back. It was expected that they would have more demands in their contracts because they were given more benefits. This was Choi Yeon Hyuk"s first time experiencing society. On the other hand, this was Han Woo Jin"s first time being properly treated as a player. They were both nervous as they made their first step.
Their tennis starts now.
As soon as they exited Olympic Park, there was a Mercedes Benz E-cla.s.s AMZ waiting in front of them. It was an expensive foreign car with a price of over $130 thousand. Coach Jeon approached the car, unlocked it without hesitation, and sat in the driver"s seat.
"Coach, you drive such nice car."
Choi Yeon Hyuk was a little overwhelmed.
Coaching an unpopular sport like tennis in Korea and being able to drive an expensive foreign car?
"Coach Jeon must be very capable to be able to get a car like this."
However, Han Woo Jin had plenty of experience riding his car and so he just opened the back door and sat in the backseat without giving off any sort of surprised expression.
He naturally pulled the seatbelt out and locked it.
Amazed at how naturally Han Woo Jin moved inside in his car, the owner, Jeon Sang Shik, and Choi Yeon Hyuk looked at him in bewilderment.
"What"s with this guy? Based off his resume, his family shouldn"t be that wealthy?"
"Wow is Woo Jin rich? He looks like he"s familiar with this car."
The two men who were thinking different thoughts looked at each other for a moment and settled down as the Mercedes Benz softly roared to life. Thanks to good driving skills along with a good car, the scenery slowly faded and the noise from the outside was drowned out.
The two people who were sitting in the back hadn"t known each other for long, so they had nothing to talk about and slowly began to get drowsy.
Coach Jeon Sang Shik glanced at them through the rearview mirror. Their new coach gave a sigh of relief after seeing that the two guys weren"t nervous about sitting next to each other as strangers in the same car for the first time. He was impressed when he saw that they were dared to go practice. But now that he saw them sleeping in his car, he felt disappointed.
"Hoo… I can"t tell whether they"re brave or they just have a peace of mind. Am I too old?"
When he himself was player, he was never told that he was an excellent player. But he was an excellent coach because he was able to strongly grasp a player"s personality, talent, and potential at once which couldn"t be matched by anyone else in Korea.
In addition, whenever he had time, he would go through foreign tennis tournament videos and he would watch all of the matches, from the amateurs to the pros.
Even though he was able to do all of that, he couldn"t grasp the potential of the two in the back of his car. Obviously, the two of them had tremendous potential compared to the other players, but he couldn"t pinpoint the special potential that they had.
"…It might be more fun not to know. The world doesn"t work the way one wants it to. All I can do is nurture you guys the best I can possibly can."
As a player, he couldn"t reach his dream. But as a coach, he wanted to do his best to help them achieve their dreams. Jeon Sang Shik squeezed the steering wheel and imagined these two young players holding the world tournament prize.
All men with big dreams were the same. Coach Jeon smiled as he continued to daydream and he stepped harder on the gas pedal.
***
NK Corporation Headquarters
One of the best logistics subsidiaries in Korea. The three people stepped in front of the building. The exterior of the building was huge. It seemed to be a combination of three or four high rise buildings which made them look like ants.
"Come here, we have an appointment for you guys."
As soon as the door opened you could see six employees at the front desk. They bowed and greeted them politely as soon as they entered. Coach Jeon rushed inside while the two players behind him were about to greet the employees.
Han Woo Jin and Choi Yeon Hyuk bowed to them and followed the coach because they were unaccustomed to being treated like that in such a large place.
"… I"ve been a pro player for ten years and I"ve never been here before."
Han Woo Jin laughed bitterly at the fact that he"d never been to the headquarters even though he played for NK for ten years. Almost all the players won tournaments and had their prizes displayed at headquarters. Money, prize, a commendation, these things were never given to Han Woo Jin.
"It"ll be different now."
Han Woo Jin entered the elevator and closed his eyes. He still couldn"t believe the situation he was currently in. He just wanted to sell his racket and he somehow ended up ten years in the past. Now whenever he holds a racket, strange things appear in his mind.
However, one thing was certain. Now his efforts will not be in vain.
The elevator was smooth, quick, and silent. When they arrived at the top floor, the light blinked. The three of them exited the elevator and a suited man with a solid body stood in front of them.
"Excuse me, but you cannot go beyond this point."
Coach Jeon Sang Shik pointed with his chin.
"Are you new? I have an appointment with the president, so move."
"Can I q-quickly check?"
"Do what you want. If we"re late, it"s not our responsibility."
The bodyguard"s confident att.i.tude quickly changed into a docile one as he put his hand on his earphone and listened. His face expression changed. He didn"t say anything as he quickly moved to the side.
"If I come up next time just let me go in, alright?"
"Yes. I"m sorry."
Coach Jeon wasn"t the type to complain about these small things with the higher-ups. However, even if he didn"t complain about this, the bodyguard would surely get a warning from his boss. So Coach Jeon patted the bodyguard"s shoulder and moved on.
"President? Is he talking about the NK president?"
Han Woo Jin couldn"t believe it. The president of NK company was one of the five people who maintained the economy in Korea. However, there wasn"t a single dirty rumor about him. He was considered to be a very n.o.ble man in today"s day and age. He only heard about him in the news and newspapers. He never thought he would come face-to-face with the president.
When he turned his gaze, Choi Yeon Hyuk also looked like he was incredibly nervous. These two large men that were walking side by side looked like new military recruits.
It wouldn"t be wrong to think that either.
As players going to sign a new contract with NK, it wasn"t wrong to say that they were basically being recruited like the army. The only difference was that they were going to a business company instead of the military.
The three people walked through the wide long hall and stood before a gleaming, dignified-looking door. The coach knocked on the door.
"President, it"s me. I called you earlier about the two players and brought them."
"Oh, hurry and come in."
You could hear a deep voice from behind the door. It was the voice of the NK president who controlled a portion of the economy of the Republic of Korea. Compared to the small shoulders of young tennis players, they had no power. These two had never met a man with such high status in their entire lives.
"Hey, hey. Relax. He"s not gonna eat you or anything."
The coach saw the two extremely stiff players spoke to them and to try to get them to laugh and relax a bit. Then the door quickly opened before they were ready.
"That person… President!"
Han Woo Jin and Choi Yeon Hyuk swallowed their saliva at the sight of that man.
In the large room was an older gentleman whose hair was half-gray that was stylishly pulled back and the man looked at them. His eyes had piercing gaze and his demeanor made it seem like there was no way that he was seventy years old. When they looked at him, their chests became tight with nervousness.
"Hurhur, is there something on my face? Hurry and take a seat."
The president laughed at them as the two quickly entered the room. Coach Jeon entered the room first and sat on the sofa. The two players, Han Woo Jin and Choi Yeon Hyuk, didn"t know where to sit and looked at each other for a moment before they sat on either side of Coach Jeon Sang Shik.
The president opened his drawer and took out two envelopes. The thick envelopes were placed on the table in front of them. "Could they be the new player contracts?"
As Han Woo Jin thought that, the President spoke up.
"I called you guys over to give you guys a different contract than the other players."
"A different contract?"
Han Woo Jin and Choi Yeon Hyuk stared at the envelopes in front of them.
/ ToC /