Once upon a time, Lu Zhengze and Jiang Youning were the ones who quietly waited for that light, refusing to leave no matter how violent the storm or landslides. The ones who unswervingly supported him in running at full speed towards his dream and created a warm harbor for him were Lu Zhengze and Jiang Youning.
Now, the light still shrouds the figures of the parents, but there is a figure blocking the wind and rain right in front of them. She fights side by side with him in all difficulties and redefines the meaning of home. That is Candice.
During the Super Bowl, the players' families can choose to stay in San Francisco or go to New York. The team is responsible for providing seats but not food and lodging. As long as there are too many players, many of whom are black players, it may be possible. Twenty or thirty people, or even more, if arranged in a unified manner, the cost will not be mentioned for the time being. The order and discipline that is difficult to adjust is the most troublesome, so it is still up to the players to arrange it themselves.
However, family members are not allowed to stay in the hotel, not even couples. If you want to come to visit, you can only wait in the hotel lobby like Candice and meet during non-training hours. Then there are access control at night. After the time is exceeded, you are not allowed to stay.
Although all players are adults, coaches still need to make rounds, just like training camp or dormitories.
After a busy and tiring day, being able to see Candice in the hotel was a bright spot in the gloomy weather. Lu Ke just stood there quietly, his shoulder lines relaxing like this, and then, he left He stepped forward and sat down next to Candice.
"ah!"
Candice, who was concentrating on her work, was suddenly interrupted by an external force. She was startled. Then she saw Lu Ke's figure. Her frightened expression had not had time to calm down, and she was about to give Lu Ke a good punch. Then Lu Ke moved her body inside, curled up, leaned on her thighs, and lay down directly. This made Candice's body muscles completely stiff, and she stared at Lu Ke at a loss.
"Bambi?" Candice's eyebrows showed a little worry. She opened her hands and shoulders directly, maintaining a stiff posture, not knowing what she should do.
"Give me five minutes." Lu Ke said vaguely, and then his whole body melted like marshmallows, all the tension and stiffness melted away, and he closed his eyes without any precautions, feeling dizzy. I fell asleep, and the fatigue and sleepiness began to peel off bit by bit.
Candice kept her movements awkwardly stiff, as if she had been put in a plaster. She looked at Lu Ke, then at the messy table, and carefully put the scissors in her right hand and the colored paper in her left hand back on the table. The strength on his shoulders slowly relaxed, and he lowered his head and looked at Lu Ke.
Lu Ke seemed to have nothing wrong with him, and fell asleep like this. His steady breathing and relaxed brows revealed a trace of peace; but Candice knew that this kind of Lu Ke was unusual, and the usual Lu Ke would never do this. To do such a childish thing, let alone in a public place.
Lu Ke didn't say anything, and Candice didn't ask. It's not because he doesn't care, but because he cares too much. Candice knows that the pressure of the entire team and the entire city is piled on his shoulders. Her concern will become another kind of pressure. It's better to wait quietly. Lu Ke's side.
She just wanted him to know that she would always be there when he needed her. Just like now.
Candice didn't ask or say anything. She just traced the lines of Lu Ke's eyebrows, eyes, bridge of nose, and lips with her eyes. Then before she realized it, the smile at the corner of her mouth rose slightly. Such a moment of leisure in the busy life gave her a small sense of happiness.
It stayed like this for a while, then Candice raised her head again and started to get busy again.
Candice was busy, and Lu Ke was asleep. The two of them just cuddled together, saying nothing or doing nothing, but the time became gentle like this.
"What are you busy with?" After a long time, Lu Ke's hoarse voice sounded, breaking the calm.
This time Candice was not frightened, but was slightly surprised. She glanced down and saw that Lu Ke still closed his eyes tightly. She knew that Lu Ke was still resting and just wanted to chat. She He lowered his voice and said casually, "A support card for Ryan."
"Cliff came here with the 'King of the Bay Area' flag, and we were ready to show up at MetLife Stadium carrying the flag, but we knew that this game still belonged to Ryan and Miles, and Miles came New York, so we wanted to do something and have Ryan with us for this game, and that's our commitment, isn't it?"
Candice knew that Lu Ke was relaxing, so she deliberately spoke in a trivial and verbose manner, explaining the whole ins and outs, including how they discussed it, how they conceived it, and how they finally executed it - the nine people were working together Prepare for this battle.
"By the way, Kate is here too. Do you remember her, right? Kate Wiggins. We originally thought it would be great if Kate could carry the support card and enter the field with Miles; but then we thought about it, this It was not appropriate, after all, Kate is not Ryan’s wife, so we decided to entrust Jonathan.”
Lu Ke didn't need to speak. He just closed his eyes and listened to Candice talking about everything in detail. He completely relaxed and said, "Tangtang, do you think we can defend the title?" After a long time, Lu Ke finally spoke. "This is Ryan's promise, Miles' wish, and Patrick, Ted, and Justin... I'm really afraid, afraid that I've failed to live up to their expectations."
This season... I have really experienced too much. Even if you are as strong as Lu Ke and are about to stand on the stage of the Super Bowl, you will inevitably start to worry about gains and losses.
It's one thing when you're in front of reporters, but it's another thing after you're out of the limelight. He didn't want Ryan's last wish to come to naught, nor did he want Miles' Christmas miracle to be wasted, and he didn't want them to fall before the finish line after struggling all season.
"What about you?" Candice didn't answer, but asked, "Bambi, what about you?"
Lu Ke fell silent and did not speak.
Candice was not in a hurry and put down the tool in her hand again, then gently touched Lu Ke's hair with her right hand, bent down and pressed a kiss on the side of her cheek, and whispered in his ear, "Bambi, then What about you? You also long for this championship. You are not only fighting for them, but also fighting for yourself. Remember? You always told me to fight with all your strength until the last moment, no matter what the final result is, as long as You need to have a clear conscience, then you can face it calmly."
"So, go out on that court and fight! That's enough! Ryan, Miles, and the teammates on the team, they will fight with you and then face you. Regarding the ending, this is the stage that belongs to you!" Candice whispered the ground-breaking words, which reverberated deeply in Lu Ke's heart.
Candice then added, "What's more, Jack and Annie will always be there, and I will always be there. No matter what the outcome, we will face it together; similarly, we will fight together."
Lu Ke opened his eyes, and then saw Candice's bright eyes shining brightly, as if all the light in the world was gathered here. He raised his upper body slightly and followed his breathing to find her lips. Flap, the curvature of the corners of the mouth rose slightly.
"Thank you." Lu Ke said softly, and the smile on his lips rose again, "Do you need my help? I should have twenty minutes to rest now." Then he should return to the room to study the game video.
"You'd better have a good rest." Candice wrinkled her nose and refused with disgust on her face, "Your hands are okay for passing the ball, but it's too bad to make these handicrafts. It's just a disservice."
Lu Ke did not argue and struggle, but covered his chest in a grandiose manner and shouted in pain, "Ouch!" as if he was hurt by Candice's words.
Candice couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Are my parents okay? The weather here is really bad. Everyone is fleeing New York, but we are running into a blizzard. They must not be used to it." Lu Ke asked worriedly.
Lu Zhengze, Jiang Youning, and Candice all lived in the Hilton Hotel not far away and had followed the large army to the east coast early.
Compared to Lu Ke, who was so busy that his feet never touched the ground, Candice accompanied them every day.
"They went to New York for a day trip today and climbed to the top of the Empire State Building. By the way, they took photos and saved them in my phone and will send them to you later. They are indeed not used to the weather, but the two of them They were all a little excited, saying that they had rarely seen snow before and could not help but look forward to it.”
Candice's words made Lu Ke laugh directly, "In China, our hometown is the south, and we can hardly see snow, so every time I see snow, I can't help but be curious. If I were not a rugby player, I should also I'd love to see snow, but after those few games I changed my mind."
They chatted and chatted like this. There was almost no nutrition topic, just trivial matters in life. But the pace of time slowed down like this, and even the sound of breathing and the slowly flowing heating in the bar stopped. It became beautiful, and then Lu Ke found a moment of peace.
Just twenty minutes went by in a blink of an eye.
Lu Ke did not delay any further, left a kiss on Candice's forehead, then turned and left the bar, preparing to go to the room to continue completing the tactical meeting; Candice did not leave immediately, but stayed in the bar to complete the meeting. After finishing the support card, he packed up his things, got up and left the Westin Hotel.
Standing at the door of the hotel, the cold weather came in. Candice couldn't help but pull her coat closer. She raised her head and could vaguely catch some traces of starlight, which seemed to be twinkling. Candice silently prayed: I hope that the day of the competition will be good. Have a nice weather.
