The Lost Genius

"Wow."

This short exclamation said it all. It was an appropriate reaction that represented the feelings of friend, enemy, and referee alike.

"No kidding, I think he got 90 mph?"

"Isn't it faster than that?"

"Why doesn't a kid like that play baseball?"

It was an after-school activity.

In other words, it was a club, but everyone here loved and enjoyed baseball.

That's why they looked at Lucas with respect in their eyes. Lucas paid no attention to their gazes. After all, he was once the best prospect in Korea.

Even if he hadn't played baseball for two years, there was no way he'd forget the habits he'd had all his life. So, it was a natural result.

Swoosh—!

Thump—!

"Strike!"

Swoosh—!

Thump—!

"Strike out!"

A series of fastballs.

Even when the batter swung the bat, the ball was already in the catcher's mitt. Lucas ended the inning with only nine balls.

Then he returned to the dugout and calmly lifted his bag onto his shoulder.

"I'll go then."

The members of the dugout were disappointed, but there was no way to catch Lucas.

---

The man who watched Lucas's throw through the barbed wire outside the stadium widened his eyes.

'What is this?'

At that moment, Lucas stepped onto the mound. The man trembled and pointed the speed gun in his hand at Lucas's pitches.

First pitch like that.

The moment the ball hit the mitt, the man's eyes turned to the numbers on the speed gun.

"Ninety... ninety…"

91 miles per hour.

146 kilometers per hour.

That was the speed of the ball thrown by that black-haired foreigner.

The man rubbed his eyes mercilessly. He wondered if there was something wrong with the speed gun or if the numbers he was seeing were incorrect.

However, when the same number was recorded for the second and third pitches, he couldn't control his jaw from dropping.

This wasn't the only surprise.

When Lucas faced the next batter, the speed went up 1 mph to 92 mph—148 kilometers per hour.

The average major league speed is 93 mph.

The black-haired student who climbed onto the mound without even warming up properly was only a mile short of the average speed of the major league.

'What if he warmed up properly?'

When the speed reached 92 mph, the man smiled with joy. But something unexpected happened. Lucas lifted his bag and left the field during the game.

"What?"

The man did not understand his actions.

However, he chased after Lucas, seeing it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

"Hey! Student! Student!"

The man blocked Lucas's path, breathing heavily. Lucas frowned at the white adult man who suddenly blocked his way.

"Who are you?"

The man took a deep breath and then smiled.

"I am the head coach of the FS High School baseball team. My name is Donald Trump."

Lucas frowned even more, but Donald continued speaking calmly.

"I watched you unexpectedly. So, how about joining the school baseball team?"

Lucas shook his head instead of answering, but the man didn't care.

"It's a loss for humanity that talented people like you don't play baseball."

Lucas listened with one ear and let it out the other. What a loss to humanity.

He thought to himself that even a passing dog would laugh and walked past Donald.

However, Donald once again blocked Lucas's path.

"Why don't you think about it carefully? You have a talent for baseball."

"I don't like it. I plan to succeed through my studies."

The answer was so firm that Donald ended up stepping aside. However, he could not take his eyes off Lucas's slowly retreating figure.

---

"I'm home."

Since his father and mother were out at work, there was no one at home except him.

Lucas always said hello every time he entered the house, even though he knew that no one would welcome him.

It had become a habit to fill some of the emptiness with the greetings he said to himself.

'I'm tired.'

Lucas immediately lay down on the bed to relieve his fatigue.

The round trip to school alone took over two hours. There were quite a few Asians in LA, but his parents were worried about his future.

-If you mix with Asians, your English skills will not improve.

In the end, they found FS High School, which had no Asians, and enrolled him there.

Therefore, quite a bit of time was devoted to commuting to school. Lucas was more tired than usual, so he tossed and turned.

'I played baseball today.'

And even talked to a white man I didn't know.

Lucas recalled the conversation with the man.

'I have a talent for baseball?'

He knew. He knew himself better than anyone else.

He was a promising prospect not only for himself but also for Korea.

Lucas closed his eyes tightly.

Not all prospects succeed. On the contrary, he had personally witnessed the sight of promising players who had made their names known since childhood disappearing without a sound.

There was no guarantee that he wouldn't end up like that too.

So, Lucas decided not to waste time on an uncertain future.

'In the end, my father was right.'

I will live a successful life through studying. Because it will be a happy and stable choice for the future.

However, perhaps because he still had some lingering feelings about baseball, the thoughts continued to torment him.

Lucas closed his eyes tightly and went to sleep to erase the thoughts that were bothering his mind.

That's why he didn't notice the tears flowing down his cheeks.