There was a match on the weekend.
The opponent was a team called Atalanta, but I wasn't called up.
Meaning I couldn't even sit on the bench.
I had thought I did my part reasonably well during the practice game, so I had been hopeful, but...
It seemed that in The Manager's eyes, I still wasn't at the level to play in an actual match.
Now next week, no wait.
Ji-woo is coming this weekend.
In a situation where time was running out, I couldn't even make the match entry, so I was feeling anxious.
But there was nothing I could do about it, so I just did individual training.
Honestly, expecting to make the entry after playing briefly as a fill-in during a practice match was stupid in itself.
Anyway, the weekend passed like that.
Weekday training began.
Monday, I trained with the reserve group.
Tuesday, and Wednesday too, training with the reserve group.
And then Thursday, as my anxiety only grew.
"Ji-an. Ji-an, you go over there."
"Huh? Ah, yes!"
I was called up to the main squad group.
And I trained there.
I was genuinely happy, but there was no time to enjoy that happiness.
Because the moment I was called up, tactical training began.
All training is like this, but fundamentals training or physical training can be done somewhat on autopilot. Since it's close to simple repetition.
But tactical training requires concentration at every moment, so I had to stay sharp and focused during the session.
Fortunately, the tactical training wasn't particularly complicated.
I trained with the other players who played my position—that is, Second Forward.
Currently, there were three players who could play this position in the main squad group, including me.
First option was Gino Calvani.
Second option was Andrea Mondi.
And third option was me.
The training was conducted with the three of us taking turns performing the role.
Because of that, I had no choice but to approach training more combatively than ever before.
Think about it.
When a certain situation was presented, Gino, Andrea, and I would go in one after another and show our respective plays.
Isn't that an environment where it's too easy to be compared?
If Gino and Andrea handled the situation easily, but I looked like I was floundering?
Manager-nim would be like:
Hmm, he's still lacking quite a bit.
No way I can put him in a weekend match! Something like that.
Well, anyway.
The focus of the training was broadly on two things.
One was how to move the ball from midfield to the final third when we had possession in the middle of the pitch.
The other was how to finish the play once we were in the final third.
With these two situations in mind, we executed partial tactical drills while building chemistry with the midfielders or other forwards.
What was somewhat interesting was that even in the same situations, the three of us had completely different styles of solving them.
Gino clearly had good chemistry with his teammates because he had played as a starter for so long.
Andrea was more the type to solve things with individual ability.
I just adapted moment by moment, sometimes utilizing teammates and sometimes opting for individual play.
Of course, that didn't mean I was the most complete among us.
Gino's play was smooth, and Andrea stood out.
I was just barely scraping by with the feeling of 'let's at least not get criticized.'
Still, the power of desperation was greater than I thought.
Because I was able to finish training without any notable mistakes.
There were even times when Gino and Andrea were getting critiqued while I was being praised.
Well... that was only because the expectations for me were different compared to those two.
"Alright. Good work everyone. Rest well tomorrow. Manage your condition on Saturday. See you on Sunday."
"Good work!"
Whew.
Anyway, I did my best in the given circumstances.
Now whether I could play in the weekend match or not was entirely up to Manager-nim's decision.
Honestly, I know that hoping to make the match entry after training with the main squad just once is greedy.
But right now, I'm in a situation where I have to be greedy, so I can't help it.
Ji-woo arrives tomorrow.
Setting aside any shame, I silently pleaded.
Please.
Please give me a chance, Manager!
ㆍㆍㆍ
After Thursday's training ended, the next day.
When Friday afternoon came, my phone was on fire.
About one message per minute was coming in, and they were all from Ji-woo.
Ji-woo: [Photo]
Ji-woo: Finally arrived!!!
Ji-woo: Now taking a taxi into the city!!
Ji-woo: The streets are so pretty ㅜㅜㅜ
Yeah.
Ji-woo had arrived.
Honestly, up until yesterday it hadn't felt real, but now it finally did.
She's here. For real.
And I was in trouble.
Somehow I felt like there was a fire at my feet, so I quickly took a shower first.
"Should have bought some clothes."
After washing up and opening the closet, I sighed.
All I had were uniforms and tracksuits.
I did have some jeans and t-shirts, but they were things I wore when I was younger, so they felt kind of tacky.
Oh well, nothing I can do about it.
I'll just go in a tracksuit.
It's not like I'm going to meet a girlfriend or anything.
Ji-woo: I arrived at the homestay house!!
Ji-woo: Let's meet in like an hour!
An hour?
What kind of preparation takes an hour?
The house where Ji-woo would be staying wasn't very far. If I had to describe it, it was about the next neighborhood over.
She would be doing a homestay at a regular family's house, and once school started, she'd be attending classes there, she had said.
Thankfully, it was a different school from mine.
By the way...
"Whew."
With some time to spare, I lay on the bed and stared blankly at the ceiling.
It was a strange feeling.
A little... nervous, I guess?
For some reason, I felt a bit jittery.
I mean, when we were young we were together almost every day.
And even after I came abroad to study, we stayed in touch constantly.
I didn't know why I was getting nervous now, of all times.
...It's really not like I'm going on a date or anything.
Hmm.
Still, it wasn't an unpleasant kind of jitters.
What do you call this again?
A Pleasant Trembling...
I don't know.
"Is the text still not here."
I let out a sigh and checked my phone again.
It should be about time for a message from the team.
The squad call-up list message.
Was it always this late?
It feels like it's coming later than usual today.
Whew.
Will I get to play, or won't I?
I did reasonably well during training, though.
If I'm not included on the roster, what excuse should I give Ji-woo?
That I'm taking this week off to rest?
Or would it be better to say the opponent is so weak that I don't even need to go out?
Ugh.
I don't know.
Usually I was glad when the call-up text didn't come.
But right now, I couldn't wait for it any more.
Hurry up and come already, please!
Ji-woo: I'm almost done getting ready!
Ji-woo: Start heading out!
...I wasn't talking to you.
Anyway, I should probably get going.
Check the mirror once before I leave.
"Are you eating out?"
"Yes. I'm planning to eat nearby."
"Alright. Have a good time. Don't stay out too late."
I had already told Dad beforehand.
Ji-woo used to come over to our house sometimes in Korea, so she and Dad knew each other well.
I was putting on my shoes to leave when Dad said,
"Son."
"Yes?"
"Do well out there."
"...Do well at what?"
"Never mind. Go on."
"?"
What does he mean, do well?
"...I'm heading out."
*
"Here it is."
The place where Ji-woo would be staying was about a twenty-minute walk from our house.
She said she didn't know the way since she had just arrived, and told me to come pick her up, so I had no choice but to come right to the front of the house.
After sending a message that I had arrived, I let out a sigh for no reason.
Why am I even nervous? This is annoying.
Come to think of it, it really had been a long time since we last met.
Three years.
I wonder how it'll be. Will it be awkward?
Nah.
We've been friends since we were seven.
We've been keeping in touch constantly too.
There won't be anything awkward.
"..."
I was waiting, thinking about various things.
"Hey!"
A familiar voice reached me and I looked up.
It was Ji-woo.
Ji-woo was bouncing toward me with a bright smile on her face.
Uh...
I stared at her blankly for a moment, then raised my hand in a clumsy wave.
"Uh... hi."
Even I thought it was kind of a dumb greeting, but I couldn't help it.
No... she's changed a lot.
I had been seeing her through photos all this time, but seeing her in person felt completely different.
The Kim Ji-woo I knew could have practically passed for a boy...
"Hey! What kind of first greeting is that? Aren't you happy to see me?"
"...Huh? Yeah, yeah."
"...? Hello?"
I was stuttering like something had broken, so Ji-woo waved her palm in front of my face.
For a moment, a scent like hand cream wafted in and made my head spin.
I turned my head away for no real reason and said,
"What are you wearing?"
"My clothes? Why? Am I pretty?"
Ji-woo grinned and twirled this way and that as if showing off.
"...You never wore skirts or anything before."
Ji-woo was wearing a dress.
Did she always like dressing up like this?
Well, it was the style that a lot of tourists wore, but.
She used to only wear pants, no exceptions.
Ji-woo tilted her head with a smirk and said,
"Why? Do I suddenly look like a girl now that I'm wearing a skirt?"
"What..."
"Then why can't you look me in the eye? Hm?"
"Ah, why are you being like this."
"Did you fall for me? Hm? Hm?"
Every time I turned my head, she followed and tried to make eye contact, so I just turned my whole body around.
"...Let's just go eat."
"I asked if I look like a girl to you now!"
If she's not a girl then what is she, a boy?
Only her appearance had changed; she was still the same on the inside.
"Let's go together!"
Seeing her enjoy teasing me, I finally felt like the Ji-woo I knew had really arrived.
*
"Wow... this place has such a nice atmosphere. What is this? Did you look it up?"
"No, I just came in because I saw it."
"Really? But it's really nice?"
"It's all like this here. Just a normal neighborhood restaurant."
"Wow... Europe really is different..."
I chuckled watching Ji-woo look around the restaurant in amazement.
Ever since we were kids, if someone was taking anyone somewhere, it was always me being the one dragged along.
Whether it was going out to play, going sightseeing, or whatever.
Ji-woo was always the one who suggested going first.
But now that it was the opposite, how should I put it.
I felt like I had somehow become an adult, something like that.
Even though, honestly, I don't have that many good memories of being in Italy.
I casually poured myself some water and drank it, not even giving the restaurant interior a glance.
Just like coming to a regular restaurant near my house that I visited often.
The truth was, this was a restaurant I had looked up on a review site and had never been to before.
It was the same when ordering.
"Um... if we order two pastas like this, that should be good. Want to get something to share in the middle too?"
"Uh... sure, you decide. I don't know anything about this."
"The bistecca here is supposed to be good, so... Excuse me, we'd like to order."
The truth was, since coming to Italy, I had never once ordered for myself at a restaurant like this.
When I came with Dad, Dad did it, and the few times I came with the coaches, the coaches did it.
I was nervous for no reason, but I ordered as nonchalantly as possible, as if I did this every day.
"Sì. Non avete altro da ordinare?"
"Perfetto."
"Sì."
Nonchalant yet cool.
After finishing the order and closing the menu with a thwap, pushing it to the side, Ji-woo looked at me with an indecipherable smile.
"...What?"
"Hm? Nothing, you just seem different somehow, you know?"
"How so?"
"Up until you were in Korea, you were such a baby. This noona had to take care of every little thing. You've grown up a lot. You really have."
"Please."
I scoffed as if it were ridiculous, but honestly, it was true. But now that it was the other way around, I felt like puffing out my chest for some reason.
...But actually, this wasn't the time to be putting on airs like this.
Because the call-up message still hadn't arrived.
"So, the day after tomorrow? You have a match, right?"
"Huh? ...Yeah."
"Can I get my hopes up? Am I finally going to see our football genius in action?"
She pokes right where it stings, like a ghost.
She doesn't even like football that much, so why is she so excited about this?
I avoided Ji-woo's sparkling gaze, pretending to be distracted by something else.
"Well... whether you do or not is up to you."
"Then make me a promise."
"What promise?"
"Score a goal in the match tomorrow. How about it? You can do that much for a friend you're seeing after three years, right? Our Ji-an is a genius, after all."
"...I can't promise something like that."
"Why? Is it hard?"
"It's not that it's hard..."
When I trailed off, Ji-woo tilted her head.
No... seriously.
What excuse should I make?
Should I just be honest right now and say, 'Forget scoring, I don't even know if I'll get to play'?
Up until yesterday, my bravado came out so easily, but now that I was really on the verge of being caught, the words wouldn't come.
"Hmm. I guess scoring isn't something you can just do whenever you want, right?"
Wait, is she actually expecting that much from me?
When I didn't answer and she looked disappointed, I was about to say something as an excuse.
Buzzz-
My phone vibrated in my pocket.
I immediately checked it, and it was a message from the Coach.
After confirming the message, I put the phone back in my pocket, calmly steadied my heart, and said,
"Why would you need a promise for something like that? What's so hard about scoring a goal? How many do you want?"
It was a message saying I was included in the squad call-up list for the Sunday match.