Superstar From Age 0

Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun, seo Eun-chan and his wife, and Kim Hee-sang and his wife gathered at Seo-jun's house to watch the game.

They were fairly close with Park Ji-ho, who was Seo-jun's childhood friend. Subin and Eunsu were sleeping in Seo-jun's room.

Chicken and beer were set on the table.

“Sister. Is Seo-jun watching the game too?”

“Yeah. He texted me that he's watching it live with his friends.”

Seo Eun-chan asked and Seo Eun-hye showed him her phone.

There were pictures that Seo-jun had sent in the chat window.

She smiled involuntarily at the sight of Seo-jun wearing a uniform and taking pictures with his other friends.

“Oh. The game is starting.”

At Kim Hee-sang's words, everyone's eyes turned to the TV.

The players started to move as the whistle signaled the start of the game.

“Being a pro is tough.”

“I know. It's totally different from student games.”

Lee Min-jun and Seo Eun-hye looked at Park Ji-ho, who couldn't score a goal easily, with a pitying expression.

They remembered how he used to score goals effortlessly.

“We still have the second half to go. We have to wait and see.”

Choi Soohee said and Kim Hee-sang nodded his head repeatedly.

Everyone smiled faintly at the sight of the perfect couple and looked at the TV. The captain was approaching Park Ji-ho.

Kim Su-ryeon suddenly opened her mouth.

“I wonder how many people are watching this game. They did a lot of promotion for it.”

Especially with Seo-jun's name.

As the head of the promotion team at Cocoa Entertainment, she had been checking it constantly, so she was curious.

“I don't know. It's a second division game and a third league, so I don't think many people will watch it… Maybe only Seo-jun's fans?”

Everyone seemed to agree with Seo Eun-chan's words. They were watching it because they knew him, but other people didn't have that reason.

“Oh…!”

While they were talking, Park Ji-ho got the ball. It was a scene that had happened several times in the first half, but they all cheered for Park Ji-ho with bright eyes.

And then,

[Park Ji-hooo!!!]

[He scores his first goal at 44 minutes and 12 seconds! Barcelona FC B! Goal by number 11, Park Ji-ho!!]

He scored his first goal.

As Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun, Kim Hee-sang and his wife, and Seo Eun-chan and his wife were about to cheer, there was a place where the cheers were heard first.

It was the downstairs apartment.

Wow!

The shouts that burst out made Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun look at each other and laugh.

“I guess the people downstairs are watching too.”

“I know. Oh, I have to send a congratulatory text to the twins!”

The first half ended and the second half began. Another goal came from Park Ji-ho's foot. Wow! This time, they heard cheers from the upstairs apartment too.

“It seems like more people are watching than we thought?”

“I know.”

Kim Su-ryeon looked at the ceiling with an interested face.

Of course, she couldn't see the situation upstairs, but instead, she checked the internet reactions.

The reactions were more numerous after the first goal and the article came out.

And then,

[41 minutes into the second half! Park Ji-ho!! He achieves his first hat-trick after his pro debut, and at the same time, he secures the promotion to the second division!!]

The final goal was scored.

Hat-trick!

Park Ji-ho, who ran to the stands to do the goal ceremony with his friends, was caught on the screen and the audience went crazy.

“Woohoo!!”

There were cheers from Seo-jun's house and the nearby houses.

“…What are you doing, mom?”

Subin, who rubbed his eyes and came out because of the loud noise, blinked his eyes at the noisy living room.

The adults were too overwhelmed to notice that Subin had come out. Subin's eyes naturally turned to the TV screen.

“Oh, it's Seo-jun hyung.”

Subin, who had a good sense, found his favorite hyung among the many spectators in an instant.

***

Wow!!

Park Ji-ho, who was doing the goal ceremony in front of the stands where his friends were, was dragged back to the field by the captain.

There was still some time left in the game.

The audience, who had been cheering madly, slowly calmed down as the players returned to the field. Of course, their butts were still bouncing.

Seo-jun, who was trying to calm down his pounding heart and sit down, scratched his cheek as he saw the earphones that had fallen to the floor.

He must have been too excited.

He picked up the earphones and plugged them into his ears, and he heard the voice shouting hat-trick! as he rewound the replay.

The game resumed.

There was still some time left in the game, but the atmosphere had completely changed with the score of 3-0.

The other team and Barca B didn't push themselves too hard and let the time pass.

And finally.

The long whistle that signaled the end of the game echoed in the mini stadium.

[Barcelona FC B! They return to the second division, La Liga 2, for the first time in eight years!]

Another round of cheers erupted.

The coach and staff of Barcelona FC B, who were on the bench, also raised their arms and shouted, and the director looked at the players who had worked hard with a happy expression.

“/Second division!!/”

“/Ji-ho! You did a great job today!/”

There was a fierce celebration for Park Ji-ho, the hero of today. Park Ji-ho smiled brightly at the congratulations of his teammates, who would be playing in the second division from next season.

***

“Ha. That was fun.”

“I know.”

The friends, who had shouted with all their might, had exhausted faces, but they were full of joy.

Seo-jun was also similar, but he recovered his condition quickly thanks to his ability.

“Hyung. When is Ji-ho coming?”

Kim Tae-ju, who had shouted like crazy, asked with a half-breathed voice at Ji-woo's question.

“He’ll be here soon, I guess.”

“Are they not having a promotion celebration party or something?”

“They’re too tired to do it today. They’ll probably set a date later.”

As Kim Tae-ju answered Mina's question, seo-jun took out his vibrating phone from his pocket. It was a contact from Korea.

“…Oh.”

“What's wrong, seo-jun?”

Ji-yoon asked with a curious expression and Seo-jun scratched his cheek and said.

“I guess I was caught on the broadcast.”

Ji-yoon's eyes widened at Seo-jun's words.

That was something that Seo-jun and his friends had thought of when they heard that the game would be broadcasted in Korea.

No matter how well Seo-jun could disguise himself, that was just a passing thing, but if it was recorded on video, people would eventually notice that ‘Hey, isn't this Lee Seo-jun?’.

‘That doesn't mean I can't live my normal life.’

They had discussed how to avoid being caught on the broadcast too much, such as doing the goal ceremony in another stand even if he scored a goal, or cheering less conspicuously, but they had forgotten all about it because they were too happy.

“Did a lot of people see it? Were there any articles?”

“No. Subin saw it first.”

It was possible for Subin, who was sensitive to the media. Besides, seo-jun was too excited to control his ability well.

“It's only a matter of time before they find out.”

The president and the PR manager of Cocoa Entertainment, who had heard Subin's words and looked for Seo-jun on the relay screen, were amazed that Subin could find Seo-jun, who was as small as a fingernail, among so many people.

-Seo Eun-chan: It seems like they haven't found him yet.

-Seo Eun-chan: Contact me if you need anything.

Seo-jun and Ji-yoon looked around after sending a reply to Seo Eun-chan. Most of the people had left. Everyone was so immersed in today's game that no one seemed to recognize Seo-jun.

“It doesn't look like we’ll be found out soon, right?”

Seo-jun nodded at Ji-yoon's words.

“Yeah. I think we’ll be fine as long as we don't get caught until we go to France.”

“True.”

Since Europe had many countries close to each other, they wouldn't be able to find him once he left Barcelona.

‘Besides, I won't have to appear on TV like this in other countries.’

It was a normal trip, after all.

“Seo-jun, Ji-yoon. Ji-ho is coming out soon.”

“Really? Let's go.”

Seo-jun and Ji-yoon got up from their seats at Mina's words.

Seo-jun and the kids, along with Kim Tae-ju, walked down the stairs of the stands and headed for the entrance.

On the way to the entrance, there was a place where they sold uniforms and souvenirs.

Today's game seemed to have left a quite impressive impression, as the number 11 uniform was sold out without even being displayed on the shelves.

“Huh, those guys?”

Two men caught Seo-jun's eye. The kids, who had turned their heads at Seo-jun's words, blinked their eyes and then smiled bitterly. Well, of course!

“/Number 11! Number 11!/”

The man who had bought the number 11 uniform early and wore it looked at his friend, who was shouting for number 11, with disbelief.

“Hahaha.”

The man who had said that Ji-ho was not fit for the first team changed his words in less than three hours. Seo-jun and the kids laughed brightly, feeling as if they had relieved a decade-old grudge.

***

When they came out of the stadium, the game had been over for quite a while, but there were still kids waiting for the players.

They looked very cute, holding their uniforms tightly and staring at the entrance with sparkling eyes. Some adults also stood out.

“It's number 11.”

“True.”

Ji-ho's words that people came to get his autograph were not a bluff.

Soon after, the players of Barcelona FC B came out. The fans who had been waiting rushed to the players.

There were not as many fans as the first team, but their passion was enough.

“/Ji-ho, you were awesome today! A hat-trick!/”

“/Thank you for cheering for me!/”

Ji-ho smiled and signed the kids’ uniforms.

Seo-jun's eyes widened. It sounded like English, but when he listened carefully, it was Spanish.

“Ji-ho learned Spanish too?”

“Spanish?”

The kids blinked their eyes at Seo-jun's question. They had never heard that Ji-ho spoke Spanish. The answer came from Kim Tae-ju.

“He's learning it here. After all, spanish is more familiar to young fans than English.”

Seo-jun and the kids marveled at that.

“Ji-ho has grown up.”

“True. He's as fan-loving as Seo-jun.”

The kids nodded at Seo-jun's words.

“Well, he's been watching Seo-jun do it since he was young.”

“Is it early education?”

The kids and Kim Tae-ju burst into laughter at Ji-woo's words.

“/Ji-ho! You were amazing today!/”

“/I want to score a hat-trick like Ji-ho too!/”

The kids got their autographs first, and then the adults.

There were some Koreans, and those two men were among them, making Seo-jun and his friends’ expressions strange.

“I've been watching you since your debut. Ji-ho! You were really cool today!”

“Really? Thank you!”

The man who confidently got his autograph looked different from the man who had received Seo-jun and his friends’ glares.

He seemed to remember his words at Camp Nou. His friend snorted and sneered at him.

Ji-ho, who was puzzled by the man's hesitation, reached out his hand first. Number 11. It was his uniform.

Ji-ho smiled and said.

“Thank you for cheering for me today.”

“…I really enjoyed watching it. I’ll keep cheering for you! Until you get promoted to the first team, no, even when you’re in the first team, don't get hurt and show us a good game!”

“? Yes! I will!”

Ji-ho blinked his eyes at the man's words that sounded like a vow, and nodded with a smile.

Seo-jun and his friends smiled with satisfaction.

***

“Did that happen?”

“That's right.”

The dinner at the restaurant that Mina had chosen was more enjoyable than ever.

“Anti… maybe not. Anyway, he was so amazing today that he even turned someone like that into a fan.”

Kim Tae-ju nodded his head repeatedly, and Ji-ho, who had unwittingly taken a cool revenge, laughed cheerfully. Somehow. He remembered his friends who had told him to win.

“So. What was wrong with you in the first half? You were very different from usual.”

The kids and Kim Tae-ju looked at Ji-ho at Ji-woo's question.

“Well, that's…”

They made a dumbfounded expression at Ji-ho's story that he was too excited and couldn't control his strength. They felt like they had wasted their worries.

“What do you mean? They’re not kids who laugh just by running…”

Seo-jun brought up the story that he had heard from the director when he was a child actor, that the running scenes of the kids were the hardest to shoot. The kids and Kim Tae-ju burst into laughter.

“It was a scary scene where they were chased by adults, but they ran with smiling faces because they found it fun, so it was hard to film.”

“Ahahaha. True. Everything was fun back then.”

“Ji-ho's mental age is that low…”

At Ji-woo's words, seo-jun and the kids laughed again. The kids’ chatter about today's game didn't stop.

***

-Crazy?? A hat-trick??

=No, how can he suddenly appear like this?

-I guess the next door is watching this too?? We screamed together??

=22 My downstairs too??

-I turned it off in the first half because it was frustrating, but I started watching again when I heard he scored the first goal, and it was refreshing?

-I wonder what the captain of Barca B said to him.

=22 He scored the first goal right after talking to the captain. What kind of advice was it?

-But didn't someone say that he could do better by himself??? Do you want to try a hat-trick???

-I've been watching him since his debut, but Ji-ho's form today is no joke.

=22 If he keeps this up, he’ll be in the first team soon.

=33 I’ll have to watch the second league too… Expectations rising!!

=Will they call him for the next World Cup?

=It would be awesome if he played with Choi Si-hyuk!

-I watched it for a while because he was Seo-jun's friend. 1 person.

=22 I turned it on when I heard that Seo-jun's friend scored a goal, and watched until the hat-trick in the second half. 1 person.

-I can't sleep because I'm watching the replay??

=Me too??? I have to sleep now??

***

Two days later.

Cocoa Entertainment Team 2 office.

Ahn Da Ho looked at the articles.

[Barcelona FC B, promoted to the second league for the first time in 8 years!]

[Ji-ho, a hat-trick in the promotion match!]

[Ji-ho, the possibility of joining the next World Cup?]

It had been two days since the game, but there were still articles related to Ji-ho. And Team 2, which was in charge of actor Lee Seo-jun, was looking for Seo-jun's news among them.

“Have they not found out yet?”

Looking at the pictures of Seo-jun, who was touring Barcelona, it seemed that the rumor had not spread there.

Still, it was widely known that Ji-ho and Seo-jun were friends, so it was only a matter of time before they caught people's attention.

“Team leader! It's out!”

Ahn Da Ho jumped up from his seat and headed to the employee's desk. It was a post on a community.

[Title: Isn't this Lee Seo-jun? (With photo)]