American Football: King of the Bay Area

Jeff carefully studied the signature on the scarf, but he couldn’t make it out at all. It wasn’t even in English. He hesitated, and though it might be a bit rude, he still asked, ”Bambi, you... um, what’s your name?”

Jeff knew, of course, that Bambi was just a nickname. It was the name all the Brown Bear Team players had been shouting in celebration after last night’s game, so he had remembered it. But as for Bambi’s real name, he had no idea.

”Lu Ke.”

”Luke?” Jeff asked doubtfully. Lu Ke really didn’t look like a ”Luke.”

”The pronunciation is similar, but they’re two completely different characters in Chinese,” Lu Ke explained with a smile. ”Actually, Bambi is fine too. It started as a joke among friends, but I’ve gotten used to it now.”

A name was just a label. At first, Lu Ke didn’t like the nickname either, but gradually, he started calling himself that in a self-deprecating, playful way. Unexpectedly, it worked wonders, helping him make many friends and gradually break the ice in his school life after immigrating.

Now, his close friends, the kids next door, and other neighbors all called him that.

”Lu Ke. I think I can handle that pronunciation. It’s at least simpler than ’ni hao’.” Jeff let out a hearty laugh. After laughing, Jeff hesitated for a moment, then finally clenched his fist and said, ”If there’s a bowl game—I’m just saying, if—then please, you have to bring the Rose Bowl back for us, okay?”

The last game of the season had just ended yesterday, and the Rose Bowl was an invitational game. It was still being decided which team from the top four would be invited. The Brown Bear Team was ranked fourth in their Alliance this season, and it was still uncertain whether they would receive an invitation, not to mention that their potential opponents were far stronger than them.

Even though Jeff emphasized the ”if,” his urgency and sincerity were palpable.

UCLA hadn’t gotten a whiff of the Rose Bowl in a very, very long time. The traditional football powerhouse had been in decline for far too long. In fact, the last time they had even played in the Rose Bowl was back in 1999, and the last time they had won it was in 1986—a time so distant that many of the students here hadn’t even been born yet.

In stark contrast, the University of Southern California had won five Rose Bowls since the new millennium, including an incredible four-peat in the last four years. They were on fire, the hottest team around!

Every year, the Brown Bear Team had to watch as their crosstown archrivals triumphed at their own home field, the Rose Bowl Stadium. It was like watching the enemy celebrate a victory in your own backyard. The torment was worse than death, a form of extreme torture. This was a major reason why the last game was so sweet—not only did they defeat the Trojans Team, but they had also stepped on their rivals’ shoulders to climb into the top four.

The celebration had only just begun.

Lu Ke understood the emotion behind Jeff’s request. After all, for the past three years, he and every other UCLA student had gone through the same torment. So, Lu Ke broke into a smile and chuckled softly, ”If.”

”I believe in you!” Jeff clenched his fist and pumped it twice. ”Guys, we should get going. Lu Ke needs to train, get adjusted, and rest. We’re getting in the way of his schedule.”

”Actually, you’re the main culprit here, you know?” Nate’s retort made everyone, including Lu Ke, burst out laughing.

As they turned to leave, they were still yelling, ”You’re the man! That’s right, you’re the man!” They cheered, jumped, and sprinted away, making the early morning training grounds livelier than ever before.

After seeing off the group of supporters, Lu Ke saw his training partners: John, Logan, and Marcus. Not one of them was missing.

Lu Ke was a little surprised. A big reason he had insisted on running today was because of a system quest, but what about them? ”What are you guys doing here?”

”Habit,” Logan was the first to complain. ”I woke up and realized it was a quarter past seven. I tried to go back to sleep, but I just couldn’t. Bambi, this damn biological clock! I want to keep sleeping!” As he spoke, Logan deliberately ran his hands through his hair in frustration, making Lu Ke laugh. But John and Marcus nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Lu Ke laughed even more heartily. ”I’m just setting you guys up to become superstars. When you get those career bonuses, remember to give me a cut.” Now everyone was laughing.

John stepped forward. ”So, shall we start today’s training regimen?”

”Let’s start with warm-ups. Bambi’s already finished his. If we don’t warm up, we’ll never keep up with him,” Marcus said with a grin.

But Logan shook his head, a look of mock superiority on his face. ”You’re probably the only one who can’t handle it. I’ll be absolutely fine.”

”Can’t handle it.” When used to describe a man, that phrase could have many meanings. Logan’s was clearly suggestive, which instantly made Marcus shout in frustration, ”Hey! I never said I can’t handle it! If you don’t believe me, let’s go a round and see!”

And with that, Logan and Marcus started sprinting toward the field. With no agreement and no rules, the two of them had spontaneously started a race. Lu Ke jutted his chin toward John. ”Not going to join them? You’re already a second behind; you’ll never catch up now.”

John just shook his head slightly, his gaze falling upon the field before them as his expression grew somber. ”Have you realized it yet? Yesterday was the last game of our college careers. If there’s no Rose Bowl, then four years of college football are over just like that. And very likely, my entire football career too.”

Until John mentioned it, Lu Ke hadn’t really felt it. But now it suddenly hit him: the last game of the 2011 NCAA regular season was over. If there was no Rose Bowl, it meant the seniors had made their final appearance on an NCAA field. Fortunately, they had ended it with a victory. The regret was that he hadn’t even had time to properly savor it, and college was already over.

It was true for John, for Logan, for Marcus, and for Lu Ke himself.

For most student-athletes, this was the end. The Professional Alliance was another level entirely; not every college player could make it to the pros. To be more precise, even for those who did, it was a whole new challenge. Countless football players who had excelled in college, even Heisman Trophy winners, faded into obscurity after joining the Alliance.

The Brown Bear Team had been weak for a long time, and this year’s senior class was, on average, still inferior to the Trojans. In next year’s draft, the number of players who would successfully make it into the Alliance could probably be counted on one hand. Even for Lu Ke himself, with his current skill level, whether he could enter the Alliance was a huge question mark.

”You mean...?” As a journalism major, Lu Ke was highly sensitive to such details. He could hear the regret and melancholy in John’s words, but also a sense of release.

John broke into a broad smile. ”Yeah. I’ve decided not to enter the draft.” This meant that once he graduated from college, it would be the end of his football career.

Turning his head, John saw the astonishment on Lu Ke’s face. Before Lu Ke could speak, John continued with a smile, ”I know the memories from these past six months have been wonderful. I never expected to be able to get back on the field as an official player. But I also know my abilities are limited. This is it. This is my peak. Even if I managed to squeeze into the professional league, the team would probably cut me after a year, two at most. Rather than let that happen, it’s better to end things gracefully.”

”At least I was the one who caught the final Touchdown that let the Brown Bear Team come back against the Trojans Team. That’s the masterpiece of my career; everyone will remember that moment.” John winked, a hint of pride and excitement in his eyes. ”After the game, my dad called me. He... uh... he was really emotional.”

What John didn’t say was that he could hear his father wiping away tears on the other end of the line, even though his father refused to admit it.

”So I think this is the perfect ending.” John let out a long breath. He had already made his decision, but actually saying it out loud brought an indescribable sense of loss.

’He once thought he could become a professional player, fighting on the field for his whole life. But reality was cruel, and he had accepted that a long time ago, hadn’t he? These last six months on the field felt like stolen, wonderful moments. He should be content.’

”We don’t know which two teams will make it to the Rose Bowl this year yet, but I was thinking... until the NCAA announces the invitations, I’m going to keep coming here to practice every day. You know, before I say goodbye for good, I should firmly remember how much I used to hate this place, how much I wanted to escape it.” As John spoke, they both couldn’t help but laugh. ”So, what do you say? Will you join me? Keep practicing with me?”

Originally, it was John and the others accompanying Lu Ke in his practice, but now their roles were reversed.

Lu Ke didn’t correct John, just nodded with a smile. ”Of course. No problem. It would be my honor! Why don’t we start right now?”

With that, Lu Ke started running, signaling for John to join him, and the two of them ran toward Logan and Marcus.

”Hey, Bambi, have you seen the campus paper today? Front page, headline—the whole page is your picture! I heard they’re already sold out!” Logan yelled. ”On our way to the training grounds just now, we were getting screams and cheers from beautiful girls the whole way! I haven’t gotten this kind of treatment in years, haha!”

”We won the Los Angeles derby, we’re gods! At least for the next week, anyway!” Marcus cheered along. ”Front page of the campus paper... what’s next, the Los Angeles Times? Then the scouts, then the Alliance?”

”Marcus, you should probably worry about final exams in two weeks first.” Lu Ke’s one sentence immediately made the other three groan in despair. ”Hey, Bambi, I was just trying to forget about that! You’re a Demon, a Demon!”