Chapter 104: The Things He Chose to Bury

After much thought, Ji-tae decided to turn away from the wounded, bleeding heart within him.

He roughly covered it up, hid it tightly, and even locked it away.

There was no way Woojoo, who only looked at volleyball, would accept a confession that went beyond that.

From the start, the idea of confessing had been foolish.

A rival he wanted to defeat, someone skilled at volleyball.

If he could stay by Woojoo’s side, if Woojoo would just look at him, that alone was enough for Ji-tae.

Once he came to that conclusion, his heart actually felt lighter.

Because now he knew exactly how to treat Woojoo.

Won Ji-tae, who was good at volleyball.

That was the kind of person Woojoo found interesting, and it wasn’t hard to match that.

He thought that was enough.

He liked volleyball, and he liked Woojoo.

If he wanted to stay alongside the things he loved, then all he had to do was hide his own feelings.

If it meant he could continue being with Woojoo, that was a cheap price to pay.

After entering high school, Ji-tae devoted himself even more to training, and naturally, his interest in his family decreased.

Since they had never shown interest in him to begin with, nothing really changed in his daily life.

“I’m home.”

That day too, he greeted his mother in the living room and was about to head inside when he noticed something different about her expression.

She had been growing more gaunt every night, but honestly, he had even thought the quiet house was better.

“…Did something happen?”

Still, her expression looked unusually bad, so after several days, Ji-tae finally spoke to her.

“Sniff…”

At that one question, his mother suddenly broke down and collapsed to the floor.

Startled, Ji-tae dropped his bag and rushed over to her.

“Ji-tae, what should I do… I think your father is seeing someone else…”

Ji-tae’s brows furrowed.

His mother rambled on about how things had felt strange lately, how something seemed off.

“…Don’t cry. It’s probably not true. You must be mistaken.”

Ji-tae awkwardly patted her back.

To be honest, he didn’t think someone obsessed with work would have time for another woman, but he had grown increasingly numb to his parents’ matters.

Even as he comforted her now, he just found it bothersome and wished it would pass quickly.

He didn’t even want to hear her crying.

“Won Ji-tae is perfect.”

How could someone like him be called perfect?

Remembering Woojoo’s words, Ji-tae bit the inside of his mouth hard.

“Ji-tae, can you call your father…”

“Yeah. I’ll call him.”

He answered half-heartedly.

He always said that to his mother, but in truth, he had never once contacted his father.

A single call from his son wouldn’t bring him home anyway.

So once again, he let it pass.

After all, his mother would eventually brighten up again after his father showed her a little kindness.

But he would realize much later that this had been a careless thought.

By his senior year, Ji-tae had become even busier.

He spent more time at school, in the gym, and in the staff room with his coach than at home.

Together with his coach, he also began discussing his future path.

For the first time, Ji-tae found himself looking forward to what came next in life.

When he became an adult and entered the next chapter, what kind of player would he be?

What kind of volleyball would he play?

And in that future, Woojoo would surely be there as well.

The more he thought about it, the more his heart raced.

Immersed in that happiness and anticipation, Ji-tae ignored the occasional sound of crying coming from his parents’ room.

He simply thought time would solve everything and passed by his mother without a second thought.

Then the final high school match approached.

The finalists were Daehyeon High and Wonjang High.

Once again, Woojoo and Ji-tae faced each other for the title.

The result was a dramatic victory for Wonjang High.

Ji-tae blankly looked around the gym where everything from his high school days had finally come to an end.

Then, in the now-empty gym, he spotted Woojoo quietly crying.

Woojoo, who had never shown tears in any match before, was shedding clear tears.

Seeing that, Ji-tae felt an urge to hug him.

But as rivals, he couldn’t comfort him that way.

Just as Woojoo had comforted him in his own way, Ji-tae comforted Woojoo in his own way.

“I’ll win next time.”

Perhaps it worked, as Woojoo soon walked away with renewed determination.

Watching his back, Ji-tae made a vow.

That no matter what, he would always stand beside Woojoo as his rival.

Whether it was comforting him after a loss or being provoked when Woojoo won, as long as Woojoo stood on the court holding a volleyball, Ji-tae would be there too.

With that lighter heart, Ji-tae returned home—only to be greeted by an unfamiliar pair of shoes at the entrance.

“Stop it already!”

At that moment, a loud shout and his mother’s scream echoed.

Startled, Ji-tae rushed into the living room.

His mother was collapsed on the floor, and his father stood in front of her, barely containing his anger.

“What are you doing?”

His father, noticing Ji-tae, let out a deep sigh and ran a hand through his hair.

“I asked what you’re doing!”

As Ji-tae moved to support his mother, he noticed a paper lying on the floor.

[Divorce papers]

His eyes trembled for a moment.

His father quickly picked it up and flipped it face down on the table.

“What is that?”

“What do you think? You’re old enough to understand.”

His father avoided his gaze.

At that moment, Ji-tae noticed his left ring finger—bare.

“…Father, are you seeing someone else?”

“What?”

His father visibly flinched, then scolded his mother for saying unnecessary things in front of the child.

At that moment, Ji-tae was certain.

Everything his mother had said was true.

The reason his father hadn’t been coming home wasn’t because of work, but because of someone else.

“So it was real… damn it.”

A curse slipped from Ji-tae’s lips.

A man who had abandoned his family now having an affair—it was absurd.

The hope and anticipation that had filled his heart just moments ago were suddenly smeared with filth.

“Just finish filling that out and contact me.”

“Wait, please! This can’t be how it ends. Please…”

As his father tried to leave, his mother hurriedly got up and followed him.

Ji-tae stood there blankly, watching.

“Please think about it one more time. Ji-tae is still young… please…”

She clung to him, while his father frowned and tried to shake her off like an annoying insect.

Even that scene stirred nothing in Ji-tae.

“Ji-tae! Come and persuade your father too, please!”

Even now, his mother tried to use him.

She told him to beg a father who had never given him love or attention, who had returned after months just to demand a divorce, not to leave.

“What is wrong with you! Let go!”

And then it happened.

Standing at the entrance of the living room, his father grabbed his mother’s wrists, pulled them away, and shoved her back with force.

Already weak, she staggered and was about to fall backward.

“Mom…”

That was the moment Ji-tae finally moved.

He rushed forward and caught her by the shoulders.

But her body was completely limp, and with his unstable footing from rushing in, he couldn’t properly support her weight.

Holding her, Ji-tae fell backward.

Behind them was a heavy three-tier glass shelf holding an aquarium and various items.

Crash—!

As Ji-tae fell onto it, the shelf and aquarium shattered violently.

The loud crash echoed through the living room, even stopping his father in his tracks.

“J-Ji-tae!”

He heard his mother scream.

Why did she look so shocked?

As he wondered that—

“Ah…”

A sharp pain shot through his right shoulder.

With trembling hands, he touched it and felt something sharp embedded there.

A large shard of glass.

Red blood began dripping onto the clean marble floor.

When he pulled his hand away, his palm was soaked with blood.

The broken shard had pierced through his clothes and lodged deep into his shoulder.

His mother, crying, frantically made a phone call.

Even his father started moving in panic.

Watching them, a hollow laugh escaped Ji-tae.

Only in a situation like this do they finally look at me.

Blood pooled around him.

Not just his shoulder—small fragments were embedded all over his body.

In the red puddle on the floor, a fish from the aquarium flopped helplessly.

Ji-tae stared at it blankly.

For some reason, it felt like he could see Woojoo’s face reflected there.

The fish, which had been desperately jumping to survive, gradually stopped moving.

📚 Also on NHV Novels

I’m Not the Saintess! I’m a Good-for-Nothing Young Master!

Female ProtagonistGender BenderReverse Pursuit

Read Now →
Not interested