EPT*****
It was my last day traveling in Seoul, and I decided to spend the last evening watching a Code S match at the GomTV studio in Gangnam.
There were three Protosses playing that night. One of them was Parting. I've always been a fan of him even before the Soul Train era when he was at his peak.
The games went on and unfortunately he found himself in the losers bracket against Soo. Not sure whether if it was a skill problem, the fact that they were close teammates or the current balance of races, but clearly it seemed that he was disadvantaged against Soo. Even the casters seemed to agree.
The pressure was on. As i watched him in the booth I could tell he was extremely nervous and anxious. In my mind, i was praying hard for Parting to win, my dream ending would be a successful Soul Train build with a bunch of elevator micros using warp prism.
Unfortunately, he did the soul train and lost. I could tell he micro-ed his heart out like any Code S protoss would, but the strategy failed because a single ling run by revealed his build and Soo was able to prepare for it. The score was 1-1.
In the deciding match, he knew that he would not be able to defeat Soo in a standard long game so he went for a proxy gate. However, Soo's micro was perfect and was able to seize victory.
Parting was devastated. I could see the look of disappointment on his face. He knew that despite doing his best he let down his fans and himself.
After that me and my friend went behind to use the washroom. To our surprise, Parting was there, washing the tears of disappointment from of his face. We waited for him outside because we wanted to ask for a photo with him.
I actually felt quite bad to ask for it considering he lost, but I really wanted it badly because I was a huge fan and I was leaving, so i mustered the guts to ask if he was okay with it. He was still trying to hold it together. Having to face his fans face to face after a terrible defeat.
He did his best to muster up a smile and it was at this moment i could totally understand how he felt. I said to him- "You fought well parting. Parting Fighting!"
He said thank you and shook my hand. His hands were still cold and clammy from the earlier match. We took a picture together.
As he left, out of instinct i shouted to him- "we love you parting" and he stopped, turned around and replied-" i love you too". And walked off. The only difference was, I noticed he held his head up high again, and I could tell that he has strengthened his resolve to make a comeback next season for his fans. And I will definitely be watching his games from afar
Dedicated to Parting.
P.S would be great if someone could translate this to Korean for him to read
P.S.S if you ever go to Seoul i highly recommend watching a live match. The experience is surreal.
