The Little Prince of the Field - Chapter 21

The humidity in Gran Canary rose in a short time. Even if you don’t watch the news, you will notice the soggy feeling in the blanket as soon as you wake up. 

Even if it rains, it is clear that the temperature will rise for a while due to the nature of the island. 

Now, based on my experience, the weather on this island is at a level where it can be inferred. 

“Yuhan, let’s eat.” 

“Yes!” 

I put down the quilt at my bedside and went out to the living room. 

I was a little late, and the table was already filled with food.

“I heard you have a check-up today.” 

“Yes, They will do a complete checkup, and they’ll do a few more things while I’m at it.” 

“It won’t be a problem, right?” 

“Yes.” 

Today’s breakfast menu is normal bread, fat-free beef rump, spinach juice, and lactic acid pills. 

I know it’s good for the body, but it wasn’t very good food for a father and son to sit face to face at the table without saying a word. 

Of course, my father ate Korean-style side dishes with nurungji porridge. 

“Do you have any appointments in the afternoon?” 

“I told you last time, the… I said I would have to go downtown for a field trip. It’ll be done before three.” 

“Are you going downtown?” 

“Yes. They told me to come to Santa Ana Cathedral.” 

“It’s nice to be close.” 

“I am not going inside the cathedral, instead they said that we are going to a museum which is next to it.” 

Dad, as if he understood, kept his mouth shut. 

“Uncle Bari asked me to let you meet him in the afternoon. I guess the club wants to talk about the transfer issue.” 

“The manager didn’t say anything, so I don’t know if something has changed.” 

“He said he’d contact you through your cell phone. Don’t forget to take your cell phone with you.”

“Yes.” 

“I usually carry my cell phone with me. So it’s worth the money.” 

“…You don’t use it much.” 

After breakfast, I went on my way to the Gran Canaria Hospital at Gran Canaria University. 

Even though it was November, tourists dressed in light attire filled the alleys. 

The temperature drop below zero is something that can be experienced only in Korea, so merchants in Gran Canary were preparing to welcome the island’s heyday, which begins in December. 

“Buenos dias” 

“Long time no see.” 

Juan Naranjo, the physical coach, who was waiting in front of the hospital, greeted my dad lightly. 

They were not friendly, but they had met several times face-to-face, so they know each other.

As I stand, my dad’s car disappears over the hill, and Coach Juan moves his feet first as we enter the hospital.

“There’s no abnormality in your body, right?” 

“Yeah. I am very good.” 

“Today, I want to examine the ankle area that you had surgery on once more, and I want to do growth tests and muscle tests.” 

“Growth test?” 

“Well, we’re trying to figure out how big your kidneys are.”

“How do you do that?” 

“Measure the elbow joint with a radiation test. I did it the other day, don’t you remember? It will take only a while. The team doctor told me to check as much as possible.”

Just as the coach said, the test was over soon, but I had to wait a little longer in the waiting room to hear about the results from the doctor. 

I was not so bored as I had been responding to the autograph request of some local fans.

The nurse beckons to come in. 

It was my turn. 

“Kim, come in.” 

“Good morning.” 

“Good morning. I felt happy when I heard that you have recovered from your injuries and you are doing well.” 

“I feel happy too. Maybe I’m getting better.” 

“Hahaha, yes.” 

The doctor looks at the x-ray photo with a smile. 

It was a good sign that the wrinkles in the eyes did not move.

“Okay, first of all, you don’t have to worry about your ankle. As I said before, it’s healed well, and there’s no inflammatory response.” 

Coach Juan nodded his head from the side as if it was natural. 

The club and I can now relax. 

If I had known in advance that my injury was so worrisome even after my recovery, I would have stepped on the football shoes of the Santander midfielder who tackled me. 

Every time I think about it, I regret it.

I returned the frowned eyebrows back to their original state. 

“Kim, let’s see. According to tests, you will grow from 5.7 to 5.9 feet.” 

“How many centimeters is that?” 

“Hmm?” 

Coach Juan pulls his phone out of his pocket and tells me it’s 174 to 179 centimeters.

“It’s about 0.1 to 0.3 feet bigger in the future. Haha, you don’t like it much, do you?” 

“It’s smaller than I expected?” 

The doctor and coach Juan just laughed without knowing what I was thinking. 

Considering that my dad was less than 170 centimeters tall, it was not as bad as it seems, but there was a desire in my heart to cross 180cm.

“Is there a way to get bigger than that?”

“There’s an injection. But…….”

“No” 

A stern voice intervened and restrained the doctor’s words. It was coach Juan. 

“Anything that’s not natural is always a problem. Even if you have an abnormality in your bones, you can’t just do it. There are players who miss two or three seasons to get their bodies back in balance after rapid growth.” 

“….” 

“5.9 feet is big enough. Think of the results you’ve created with a height of 5.6 feet (170 cm). It’s important for professionals to make up for their shortcomings, but it’s more important to maintain and develop their strengths.” 

“Okay.”

To me, who reluctantly accepts, the doctor compliments coach Juan for not criticizing me about my body balance. 

Coach Juan uttered a moan as if it were natural. 

I’m the one who kept my diet, I’m the one who exercised. 

I felt strange because I felt like coach Juan was getting the praise. 

“Do you want to get off at Santa Ana?” 

“Yes.” 

Before lunch, the check-up was all over. 

The time was a little vague. 

I answered coach Juan in the car, but I don’t want to go fast. 

Eating along with people in the school was almost like a punishment for me. 

“Do you know where Santa Ana Cathedral is?”

“I don’t know. I have to call the teacher after arriving at the place.” 

I arrived at my destination in less than 10 minutes from the hospital. 

On the outskirts of the alleyway, Coach Juan points beyond the building.

“You see the cross? That’s Santa Ana Cathedral.” 

“Okay. Thanks for bringing me here.” 

“Haha, see you tomorrow.” 

I walked for a while in the direction coach Juan told me, but soon turned in exactly the opposite direction as his car disappeared from sight.

Even if I went, I was just going to eat. 

As long as I don’t get caught, it won’t be a problem, will it? 

As I enter the walking alley, which is not accessible by vehicle, stone buildings line both sides. 

There was no sign that could be recognized at a glance, so I had to look at the menu board set up at the entrance of the building one by one. 

There was no food that I couldn’t eat, but I didn’t like the crowded restaurant atmosphere, so I wandered around. 

I thought I had walked deep into the alley. 

When I began to get confused about where the cathedral was located, I saw a cafe sprinkled with sky blue paint on the outer wall of the building. 

“Fraggi.” 

 There are not many people around the cafe, so I walk around for a while and go inside. 

“Bienvenidos.” 

Glass showcases are lined with food. 

Food mixed with beans and asparagus, risotto, pie, sandwiches, etc. 

If it wasn’t for dieting I would have thought of eating these, which are high in calories.

The store itself was so cramped that you have to order quickly and go inside and take a seat from the few tables. 

If you can’t get a seat inside, you will have to eat among the tourists at a roadside table that has a red hat painted with palm trees over the head.

It was so terrible just to imagine. 

“Is this a baguette?” 

“Si. It’s a baguette with Hamons, tuna, pickled fish, cheese, and avocado on it separately. The one on top is olive.” 

Maybe because it’s near the cathedral, the tip of the toothpick that fixes the ingredients in the baguette is cross-shaped. 

Its price was 1 euro, which wasn’t that expensive. 

“Give me that, too. A mix of beans and asparagus.” 

“Si, anything to drink?” 

“Banana juice, with no sugar.”

“It’s 3 euros.” 

I opened the zipper of my pocket and took out the coins I have brought. 

It may look a little overcautious, but there are a lot of pickpockets in the neighborhood, so when I come out with money, I always wear zippered pants

When I finished ordering and entered the store, I saw three small tables. 

Fortunately, one seat was empty. 

The clock hanging on the cafe wall has just passed 12 o’clock. 

The people sitting at the table in the middle must be tourists who came on a family trip. 

The little boy was wearing a yellow T-shirt with a panoramic view of the island, so it was recognizable at a glance. 

“Kim?” 

My eyes accidentally met with the man sitting at the opposite table, who suddenly called my last name. 

The eyes of the tourist family sitting in the middle were drawn toward me. 

“What, it’s really Kim!”

“If you don’t mind, can I ask for an autograph and a photo?” 

The small cafe felt like a mole hole with the movement of the people. 

“Si. Give me a pen.” 

“Oh, wait a minute.” 

The gaze of the tourist family sitting in the middle is stinging. 

To be honest, I was a little embarrassed. I just wanted the food to come out soon. 

After I came to the second division, more and more people started to recognize my face, so I should have changed my lifestyle accordingly. 

I may have acted too poorly.

Next time, I should consider eating quietly along with the people in the school. 

One of the uncles took out Pedri’s uniform from his bag and asked me to sign it. 

I don’t know why he is getting my signature on Pedri’s uniform, but I wrote my name in Korean without saying much because I thought he would have gotten angry if I didn’t sign. 

Next came napkins and bags. 

He seemed to want my autograph on everything he had. 

I was going to take a picture with the three uncles and go back to my seat, but in the corner of the cafe, a blonde lady secretly looked around with her son holding a pen and paper. 

The lady pushed her son’s back and sent him towards me. 

“…Hi.”  

“Hola.” 

Unfortunately, I was so vulnerable to English that except for signing my autograph, I couldn’t continue making any conversation. 

It was fortunate that the food was served just in time. 

I ate the beans and asparagus with a fork and sucked the banana juice with a straw. 

The food was salty, and the drink was bland, so the combination went well. 

Marinated fish was not to taste, so it was filtered separately

Aside from the smell, it was because I thought it would be more beneficial to eat kimchi than to eat this.

I wish I could continue my own food reviews, but the orange-haired girl, who was glancing inside the cafe, approached my table and my thoughts were interrupted. 

I had an ominous feeling. 

Finally, the girl pulled out a table chair and sat down, then she murmured. 

“I barely found you. How did you know this place?” 

Should I tell this person that she was being rude? 

I kept silent until the moment the girl spoke again.

……..I couldn’t remember the Spanish word for rude.