This story is also written for the 21st birthday of Lee Chun-Soo, Korea's 'speedbullet' of a midfielder/striker whose tearful post- match displays after the Germany and Turkey games caused a flurry of Kleenex handouts in my living room. *Sniff*

A very happy birthday to you, Chun-Soo!

I've decided to explore a naughtier side of Song Chong-Gug in this story. FYI, he's the guy who tirelessly ran up and down the pitch for the full 686 minutes of Korea's appearance in the World Cup, and stole balls with 'candy-from-a-baby' ease. His victims? Oh... just a few chaps from the other side of the continental landmass: Totti, Figo, Del Piero, Luis Enrique... you've probably heard of them.

The setting of this story is right after one of the opening matches of South Korea's domestic K-League 2002 season, on Sunday July 7th. Busan I.cons (Chong-Gug's team) met Ulsan Hyundai Tigers (Chun-Soo' s team) in Busan. Chong-Gug came off the bench in the 35th minute and was met with rousing applause. Chun-Soo didn't even get to play *pouts* but Ulsan won the game 2-1 nonetheless. Chong-gug didn't score, but he knocked one of the Ulsan players out cold with a really hard free kick. *lol*

After his debut with the national squad back at the Sydney Olympics, Chun-Soo was nicknamed 'The Millennium Express' for his speed and his future potential. You wanna know what Chong-Gug's nickname is? It's 'Prince of the Hiddink Squad'. Yep, that's right. I swear, I didn't make that one up!

Oh, and Chun-Soo is known to be a bit of a hotheaded rascal before the World Cup. He's always saying to the media about how good he thinks he is, he doesn't seem to have too much respect for the senior players, and threw quite a bit of a public hissy fit after failing to secure a contract with French club Lille. I find that hilarious, and worthy of a fic! Whether this World Cup has humbled him or has gotten more into his head remains to be seen, but I'm willing to bet he felt rather upset about not playing against the Busan I.cons. He must be itching to go against Chong-Gug *lol*

All the more reason for Chong-Gug to put him in his place, wouldn't you say?

Recommended music companion : 'My Sacrifice' by Creed

Busan, July 7th 2002 Kudok Stadium

We lost today - the Ulsan Tigers played very well and we never really got off the ground. I knew that the local media and the fans were looking upon me to bring some glory to Busan Icons this season, but I can't change a team's fortune single-handedly. I was going to need help, and the help wasn't there today. Maybe it's just first-match jitters, something that will go away as the season wears on. I hope so.

Other than that, the match was exciting. I trembled from head to toe when I was called in as a substitution, and the crowd welcomed me with a fervor eerily reminiscent of our World Cup matches. If I close my eyes and let myself drift, I can imagine the sea of red in the stands, the chanting of 'Dae Han Min Guk', and the song 'Oh Pilsung Korea.'

But then I opened my eyes and realized that this is reality. Not the World Cup, but the K-League. And instead of playing with Lee Chun-Soo, I would be playing against him. As it turned out, he didn't play at all.

Whether the coach wanted to rest him after the World Cup or was saving him for the next match I wouldn't know, but I'm sure he wanted to play. Sometimes during the match I caught his eyes as he sat dejectedly on the bench. He wanted to play. He wanted to play against me. Isn't that what he's always said?

"Chong-Gug, if you think I'm a great teammate, then once the league starts you'll think of me as an even greater opponent," he once said.

While others may interpret his remarks as a sign of arrogance, I just laugh and shake my head at him. For as long as I've known him, Chun-Soo's always very vocal, very confident in his abilities. Though he's sometimes criticized for not showing enough respect to older players and for being arrogant, I knew it had more to do with his excess boyish energy than any real desire to become a bitchy prima donna.

I dug my fingers into the left pocket of my trainers, feeling the little box there, trying to imagine the expression on Chun-Soo's face when I give it to him. The sweet little face that had been constantly in my dreams ever since we parted ways... four days ago.

Four days? God, I'm becoming a lovesick teenager all over again. Four days and my nerve endings already felt like they're ready to snap.

My heart was pounding in my ears, echoing the sound of my footsteps as I walked down the corridor connecting our team's dressing rooms with his team's. I knock at the door to the Ulsan Tigers' dressing room. It was Young-Min who opened the door. He didn't look too surprised to see me, probably assuming that I was just going to drop by and say hello.

"Hey, Chong-Gug!" he said. Several other players looked up at me and I nodded at them.

"Hi. Great game today, guys."

"You played good, too." Young-Min said. "I nearly went deaf when you came off the bench, the ovation was so loud! Felt awesome, didn't it?"

"Like Heaven." I smiled. "Is Chun-Soo here?"

Young-Min shook his head. "He's still in the showers."

"What?" I frowned. "He didn't even play today. Why would he need a shower?"

Jin-Sub looked up from the bench. "I think he's upset about not playing, and he's just there pounding the walls or something,"

"Yeah, he looked pretty angry when he knew he wasn't going to play," Young-Min added.

"Did he start an argument with the coach or something?" I asked, a little worried.

"Oh, no." Jin-Sub shook his head. "In front of the coach he's a perfect angel. But once coach turns his back, he starts a temper tantrum. He's just full of hot air, but he doesn't have enough balls to confront the coach one-on-one about this kind of thing,"

Young-Min smiled sardonically. "The arrogant little bastard."

I laughed. "I think I'll just go there and find him,"

"If you do find him, tell him the bus is leaving in twenty minutes with or without him." Jin-Sub said. "Just so he doesn't overestimate his own importance."

"Oh, don't worry. I'll tell him." I said as I walked out of the room and closed the door behind me.

Arrogant little bastard, huh?

I smiled as I walked the short distance from the dressing rooms to the shower stalls. He may be the arrogant little bastard in everyone else's eyes, but he's shown me a side of him I don't think anyone else have ever seen.

I can knock that smug grin right out of his face with just a touch. I can strip him of that youthful pride in a matter of seconds. I have broken him time and time again. I know how to make him beg, how to make him twist and moan. I've heard that voice pleading with me, sultry and desperate. He can be as proud and free-spirited as he would like, but he's mine. Mine.

I guess the REAL arrogant bastard here is me.

Just thinking about it caused a stirring in my groin as I slowly entered the shower area. It was empty save for one stall, the noise of splashing water coming from behind the steamed glass door. I saw the pile of clothes on one of the benches and knew that it was him. It was Chun-Soo.

I undressed myself quickly, piling my clothes next to his. My cock was already hard at the thought of him, and I couldn't help a wicked smile quirking across my lips as I reached the handle of the shower stall's glass door.

I yanked it open, not even bothering with subtletly. Chun-Soo's back was towards the door, and he only managed to turn halfway around before I pounced on him, pressing my chest against his back and quickly covering his mouth with one hand to stop him screaming. The hot water stung my skin and within seconds I was soaking wet. He tried to fight me, of course, but his slippery hands couldn't get a hold of me and my other arm was already wrapped around his waist. The feeling of his wet body struggling in my arms sent shivers straight to my groin, causing my cock to swell up against the crack of his ass.

"Sshhhh... " I whispered in his ear. "It's me, Soo."

Immediately his struggle stopped, so I released my grip around him and took my hand from his mouth. He turned around to face me, water cascading down his trim body and the suds pooling at his feet - so beautiful.

"Ch... Chong-Gug! What are you... "

"What am I doing here?" I smiled at him. "You make it sound like I'm not welcome,"

Soo was still staring at me, a dumbstruck expression that made him almost unbearably cute. "I... I don't... I mean, I've never been jumped in the shower before,"

I laughed. Oh, you smart little rascal. Never at a loss for words. "There's a first time for everything, right?"

Chun-Soo responded by grabbing my face in both of his hands and pulling me down to kiss him. His taste ignited my mouth and shredded my self-control into pieces. God, I've missed him. I wrap my arms around his waist and lift him completely of the slippery tile floor, pressing his back against the cold wall. He yelped into my mouth, but I knew it was from surprise and not from pain. The hot spray from the shower was hitting me squarely in the back, almost burning my skin right off, but I didn't care. His tongue was wrestling mine like there was no tomorrow, and I could feel his cock springing into full hardness against my stomach.

I would have let it go on forever, but I reminded myself that we didn't have much time on our hands. Releasing my mouth from his was difficult because he felt like he was ready to suck the last living breath out of me, but I somehow managed it.

I sank to my knees in front of him, never relinquishing eye contact. The look in his eyes was part scared and part excited, and it made me want him even more. My tongue delved into the puckered hole of his navel before trailing down his left thigh, deliberately avoiding his straining erection.

"Chong-Gug... " he mewled.

"Patience, Soo." My firm words silenced him. I continued lapping my tongue at the pliant flesh of his thigh, until I reached my real destination.

The scar. The surgical scar that extended just above his left knee down to the inside of his calf. I don't know if surgery tends to oversensitize one's stimuli receptors, but one thing I know is this: Whenever I touch him there, he goes wild.

I brushed my lips just at the start of that trail of marred flesh, and I thought he was just going to fall over me. His knees were shaking, and he was bracing his back against the wall for support.

"Chong-Gug... " this time my name came out like a whispered prayer, and I loved how it sounded. I kissed the scar, tongued it, dragged my tongue across it and felt every ridge and bump along the way. I sucked on his flesh hard enough to leave marks - I wanted to brand him there.

Knowing that time was running out, I moved up his body again, this time stopping to suck the tip of his cock into my mouth. He shivered, and I wrapped my lips around him and took him deeper. His fingers were tangling in my hair, willing me to move faster, suck harder. But I wasn't going to give him that. I'm calling the shots here. I let his cock slip from my mouth and stood up on shaky legs, standing face-to-face with him under the prickling spray of hot water.

"Your bus leaves in twenty minutes," I whispered with rasping breath.

"So... you wanna fuck now?"

"No, I'm thinking we can just bathe each other clean and discuss the importance of genital hygiene." I deadpanned, a little irritated. "Of course I wanna fuck now!"

"Oh, I don't know... " he pouted his lips teasingly. Damn, he's trying to make me go nuts. And he knows how. "Discussing genital hygiene sounds fun, too."

Growling, I grabbed him by the waist and spun him around. Chun-Soo let out a squeal of delight as he realized what I was up to. In an instant I had him bent over with his hands braced against the wall, and one of my fingers was already teasing the rim of his puckered entrance, contemplating my next action.

"Damn... " he whispered over his shoulders. "You're not playing nice today."

"You're giving me no other choice." I said darkly, and jammed my finger into him hard.

The sound that came out of him as I rammed my finger against his prostate was a gut-wrenching scream, but to me it was the song of Heaven. I've broken him. He's mine now.

"I think you like that, don't you?"

He looked over his shoulder, eyes wide and lustful. "More... Chong- Gug, please."

And he's begging me already. I was having the time of my life.

I wriggled my finger inside him, eliciting lewd moans that probably carried over all the way to the rafters in the stadium. I added another finger and started to work him faster to loosen him up. His inner muscles wrapped around my fingers tightly, almost sucking them in, and I imagined what it would feel to have my cock in there. I nudged his legs to spread them wider, and he obliged.

"You want this, don't you?" I said as I pulled out my fingers and positioned my cock at his entrance.

"Yes... " he hissed through gritted teeth.

"You want this thing inside you?"

"Yes... just do it, Chong-Gug. Please!"

There was no way I could've resisted him any longer. I grabbed his hips for leverage and thrust in, burying myself to the hilt in one swift move. For a moment I thought Soo's knees would give up on him, but I held him tightly to keep him from falling. My hands snaked their away around his waist, taking possession of his hard cock just as I began to move in and out of him.

I knew I wasn't going to last long, but I tried to make the most of it. Soo was screaming like I was trying to kill him, but I knew those were sounds of pure enjoyment. I grunted with each thrust I drove home into his willing body, my hands pumping his cock as hard and as fast as I could. The bloodrush coursed through my veins and I was rocked by the sheer strength of it, setting a brutal rhythm for our coupling.

I felt his body stiffen, and I knew he was close to coming. Quickly I pulled him up by the waist, my chest moulding against the wet smoothness of his back. Our heads were right under the water spray now, creating a curtain of noise around us. It sounded almost like... almost like the roar of a stadium crowd. Knowing his release was imminent, I gave his cock a slow, deliberate pull and whispered wickedly in his ears.

"Oh... Pilsung... Korea."

I don't know why I chose to say those words, but it worked. He wailed, and soon he was spurting all over my hands. As his orgasm coursed through him, his anal muscles clamped and clenched around me, and I was gone. I came, releasing deep within him, willing each precious little drop into his body.

When the tremors were over and we had both regained our breath, I eased myself out of him and pulled him up to stand in front of me. Sealing his lips with mine, I wrapped my arms around that body, one hand reaching behind him to turn off the shower.

As our lips parted, the only sounds left were that of our labored breathing, and the water dripping from our bodies and onto the slick tile floor.

"Let's get out of here." I motioned him towards the door. "Your bus will be leaving soon, and they'll leave with or without you."

He nodded and we exited the stall together, quickly going over to the bench where our clothes were.

"Thank you." Chun-Soo said as he got into his clothes. "I needed that."

I smiled at him and got back into my t-shirt and trainers, and felt the weight of the object in my pocket. Of course... how could I forget? I reached inside and pulled out the velvet-covered box, walking over to where he was standing.

"What's that?" he asked as he saw the box.

"It's for you... " I held it towards him. "Happy Birthday."

His eyes went wide, and a smile broke across his lips. "Chong-Gug! You remembered - but my birthday is still two days away!"

"Yeah, but I won't be seeing you on that day, will I?" I gave him the box. "Open it."

He did, and a feeling of joy surged up my being when I saw his eyes sparkle with awe. The gift was a small pewter figurine of a pouncing tiger, complete with his name engraved in silver letters on the black base.

"Do you like it?"

"It's beautiful!" He looked up to me and smiled.

"I thought it was fitting... you are my little tiger, after all."

"It's perfect, Chong-Gug." He put the tiger back in its box and closed it, then hugged me tightly. "Thank you."

"No, Tiger... thank you." I said. "You run along now... before you get left behind."

Smiling, he ran towards the door. After giving me one last, parting look, he was gone.

Yes, my little Tiger... run along now. And don't think I won't be catching up with you again soon. I will. Just wait and see.

-fin-