Weird Defender Joo Ji-Tae - Chapter 202



202 – Realization

202

If you had to describe Cho Yeo-shin’s life in one word, it would be ‘smooth sailing.’

At the age of 20, her life is still too young to be discussed, but Cho Yeo-shin’s life is indeed smooth sailing.

Born as the youngest daughter of a loving family, she received all the love and attention, living a life without any significant twists.

With her cute and lovely appearance, she was loved wherever she went, and with her bright and stress-free personality, she could easily shake off stress. In fact, she’s close to being able to forget things quickly.

Cho Yeo-shin, who lived each day happily, was the owner of a convenient ability to not remember stressful events for long.

The only unusual aspect is that she comes from a family of three generations of soccer players, so she’s familiar with the environment of a professional athlete, and she also has a French grandmother, making her a French-Korean mixed blood. By the way, her athletic ability is exceptionally good.

She’s not from a wealthy family, but she grew up in a relatively affluent environment. She has a loving family, a lovely appearance, and a bright personality that can forget bad things quickly. It seems like she has everything, but she also has a (prospective) husband who is envied by everyone.

Despite having everything, Cho Yeo-shin had worries.

‘What am I going to do with my life?’

Her recent worries were about her future.

At first glance, it seems like a typical worry of someone her age, but it’s entirely different. Cho Yeo-shin didn’t have to worry about making a living!

Her family wasn’t wealthy, but they were relatively affluent, and her (prospective) husband was making a lot of money, so what was there to worry about?

Cho Yeo-shin’s worry was ‘what to do in the future.’

Until now, she was just like her peers, attending school, but what about after graduation? College? Cho Yeo-shin didn’t have a passion for studying, but she wasn’t bad at it either, so her grades were decent. If she tried hard, she could even get into a Seoul-based university.

However, what major would she choose in college? What would she do in the future?

‘I feel like I’m falling behind.’

Originally, she didn’t have any thoughts, but as her friends worried about their futures, Cho Yeo-shin became serious and started self-reflection for the first time—

“What about being a model?”

“Perfect! It’s going to be so much fun! Thank you, Villa unnie!”

After meeting Villa, the owner of the luxury brand Charlotte, at the stadium, all her worries were resolved.

She became the global ambassador for Charlotte, following her appointment as the Asian ambassador!

In Korea, Charlotte is still a relatively unknown brand, but in Europe, it’s recognized as a luxury brand. The position of global main model for Charlotte is not an easy one, even for top models.

It’s not a position that a rookie model like Cho Yeo-shin could easily take, but she became the global main model for Charlotte despite being a rookie.

First of all, her appearance is suitable, and…

“I’m more grateful. Thanks to you, Charlotte’s popularity has skyrocketed.”

They were able to make “Joo Ji-tae” their model, which was a huge catch!

“Hehe, thanks to you, Unnie, it’s great.”

Villa Pillar pretended to be nonchalant, but her face was flushed as she playfully clung to Joo Ye-rin’s arm. It was still awkward for her, even though she had grown accustomed to it.

Although Villa Pillar had lived in Korea, where the Asian branch was located, for over four years, she still couldn’t get used to the bold skinship typical of Korean women.

However, as the daughter of the renowned Tobei family and the head of the Asian branch’s marketing team, Villa Pillar didn’t know that her reaction was amusing to Joo Ye-rin, making her cling even more.

Recently, the two had become fast friends, and they were now in the United States to watch the World Cup.

Joo Ye-rin was there to cheer on Joo Ji-tae, while Villa Pillar was there to check on the marketing situation in the US (or rather, to spend time with Joo Ye-rin).

As they watched the game together, Villa Pillar unconsciously asked, “Have you always not worn accessories?”

“What do you mean? I’m wearing this ring.”

Joo Ye-rin proudly showed off the ring on her finger.

“That’s something the company gave you for marketing purposes, right? You hardly wear necklaces or earrings. In Korea, many people do couple rings with their boyfriends, don’t they?”

“…Couple rings?”

Villa Pillar quickly changed the subject, noticing Joo Ye-rin’s suddenly changing expression.

As they watched the game, Villa Pillar felt relieved seeing Joo Ye-rin’s expression return to normal, but…

” Couple rings…”

Villa Pillar couldn’t help but notice Joo Ye-rin’s subtle concern.

* * *

After the 16th round match against Japan ended with a record-breaking 8:0 victory,

“This is a great day, a day of victory, where we defeated Japan 8:0 on the World Cup stage! It’s a magnificent achievement, just like Admiral Yi’s! Let’s go tell the Americans about the greatness of ‘Admiral Yi’!”

The coach, still drunk from the previous day’s victory, declared a day off after the morning recovery training.

It was an unusual decision, considering the short interval between international matches, but it was a common practice. It was impossible to cram in training during the short break, and it would only lead to injuries and decreased morale.

In any case, the team wouldn’t have any additional training except for recovery training after the match. It was better to give the players a day off and let the coaching staff prepare for the next game.

Joo Ji-tae, who had received the day off, was looking forward to taking a long rest, but…

“What? A date? Ah, I want to go too. But my schedule… Hmm? A day off? …Where did you hear that? Ah, Jae-shin… Yeah, you’re family, after all.”

Someone’s careless remark had led to an unexpected date.

Joo Ji-tae and Joo Ye-rin usually went on indoor dates.

Since they were so famous, going on a date outdoors would turn into a fan service event, so they ended up having indoor dates by default. But since they had known each other since they were young, their indoor dates were more like just lounging around at home.

It wasn’t a real date in the classical sense; it was just the two of them hanging out at home. They were so comfortable with each other that they didn’t feel any awkwardness even when they were in the same space.

Occasionally, they would go on outdoor dates, but only when they were overseas.

Even overseas, people wouldn’t fail to recognize Joo Ji-tae, but the ratio of fans would be much lower compared to Korea.

It was similar this time.

The two, wearing hats and masks, walked hand in hand like any ordinary couple.

“Oppa.”

Then, Joo Ye-rin suddenly spoke up.

“Are your hands not bored?”

“……?”

Joo Ji-tae was taken aback by the sudden question and turned around.

“Why? Are you hungry? Do you want me to buy you something to eat?”

“No! It’s not that!”

“Let’s see… hot dog? Popcorn?”

“No, not that!”

“Ah, you must be thirsty. What do you want to drink? Water? Smoothie?”

“Seriously! Look at my finger!”

Jo Yeoshin, who had been holding his hand, flapped her fingers open, as if to show them off.

“Long and pretty, aren’t they?”

“Heh, really? …No, it’s not that! My fingers look a bit bare, don’t they?”

“Ah, ah.”

Only then did Joo Jitae seem to understand, nodding his head and overlapping his fingers with hers.

“Done?”

“…Ring.”

“Huh?”

“I want to do a coupling ring too.”

“Coupling ring? Ah, ring.”

Joo Jitae gently stroked Jo Yeoshin’s middle finger with his own.

“It’s right here.”

“No way! That’s something the company gave us!”

Joo Jitae nodded.

‘Ah, I understand. She wants me to buy her an expensive gift, thinking she’s a girl.’

How many women had he dealt with during his first debut era? Joo Jitae, the king of entertainment who thought he knew women well, felt a pang of sadness, thinking that time had finally come.

“What should I buy? What brand?”

“Brand? Um… Hmm…”

How much did she want to spend? Joo Jitae pointed to a ring on the shelf, which cost only 12 dollars.

“How about that one?”

“That one? Ah, it’s pretty.”

It was pretty.

But he thought she would dislike it because it was cheap.

Joo Jitae, who thought he knew women well, bought the ring on the shelf for 12 dollars, just to tease her.

The women he had met before would show three reactions in this situation.

Those who openly showed disdain for cheap things were amateurs. Those who reluctantly accepted but gave a sidelong glance were intermediate. And the experts? They would at least pretend to be grateful.

Joo Jitae, who had roughly predicted her reaction, was, however—

“Thank you. I’ll really treasure it.”

He was stunned by Jo Yeoshin’s bright smile.

At that moment, Joo Jitae realized the truth.

‘Maybe I’m still a rookie…’

He was only skilled in the entertainment world, but a beginner when it came to love.

* * *

“Did you have a good date? …Why do you look like that?”

“…Forgive me, brother.”

“What’s going on? You went on a date and lost your taste.”

“Brother, I’ll make you the top scorer.”

“Brother.”

The power of love was immense.