American Football: King of the Bay Area

”Lu Ke, can I have your autograph?”

”What’s it like playing in a game with all those professional players?”

”A photo! I want to take a photo, can I?”

”Oh my god, oh my god, it’s really him! He’s so much more handsome than he looks on TV! Oh my god!”

”Can I ask? During ’that pass,’ what was going through your head?”

...

The incessant chattering and questions swirled around Lu Ke and Julia, completely surrounding them. The pair was caught totally off guard, unsure how to handle such a strange and chaotic situation.

As the crowd gathering around them continued to swell, seemingly without end, Lu Ke raised his voice and shouted, ”Quiet, everyone, quiet down!” Lu Ke’s voice blasted through the loud music, finally managing to calm the chaos slightly. ”Thank you, thank you for your... curiosity. This is the homecoming dance, so please, enjoy the party. I’m here as a date, so if you’ll excuse me, I need to fulfill my duties as her escort.”

The onlookers immediately let out a long, suggestive ”Ooooh!”

The drawn-out sound was filled with countless unspoken meanings. Julia’s cheeks immediately flushed beet-red, burning hot. She couldn’t help but grit her teeth. ’Damn it, Lu Ke.’ She should have known he loved playing pranks. He was a natural at them, and even Logan had fallen for his tricks plenty of times.

”Please make some room, everyone. I’m about to ask my date for the first dance of the night,” Lu Ke said again.

”Ooooh...” The onlookers let out another knowing sound, their shared glances full of playful suggestion. This time, however, the crowd actually parted, clearing a path straight to the dance floor.

Clearly, this was not part of the plan; things were quickly spiraling out of their control. Before they knew it, they were in a situation they couldn’t easily back out of.

Lu Ke could only manage a wry smile. ’He’d dug this hole, now he had to jump in.’ So, he politely extended his right hand. ”My dear Julia, may I have this dance?”

Julia could feel the weight of everyone’s stares on her, sharp as arrows piercing her from all sides. If those gazes were real, she’d look like a porcupine by now. This feeling of being the center of everyone’s attention was just so strange.

Lifting her head, Julia saw the smile in Lu Ke’s eyes. She gritted her teeth and mouthed the words, ”Are you sure? I thought you said you couldn’t dance!”

Lu Ke raised an eyebrow, his expression a mask of innocence, as if to say, ’Do you have a better idea?’ But wait, was that teasing glint in his eye actually saying, ’The audience is waiting. It wouldn’t be right to disappoint them, would it?’ What on earth did he mean?

But Lu Ke didn’t give Julia time to think. He simply glanced down at his outstretched right hand. Involuntarily, Julia’s gaze followed. His hand was broad and large, with long, well-defined fingers, strong and powerful like bamboo shoots in spring. It looked as though he could create a safe harbor just by curling his fingers.

For some reason, a blush crept up her cheeks. Julia realized her imagination was running wild and let out two exaggerated coughs to hide her embarrassment. But she immediately realized her coughing was a dead giveaway, only drawing more attention to herself. The realization made Julia scrunch up her whole face as she gritted her teeth in frustration.

Pushing all distracting thoughts aside, Julia placed her left hand in Lu Ke’s right. His hand was solid and broad, and a faint warmth radiated from it. It felt as if she could feel his pulse through her fingertips. Her mind went blank. Julia had no idea how things had developed to this point. The next moment, she was following his lead, gliding onto the dance floor.

Standing outside the crowd, Mark still hadn’t left, dazedly watching Lu Ke and Julia. His date seemed to have disappeared without a trace, nowhere to be found. His buddies were excitedly and feverishly gathered in a semicircle, pumping their fists and cheering for Lu Ke; even Francis was no exception.

Mark stood all alone on the outskirts, like an exile that no one paid any mind. The whole dance was deafeningly noisy and incredibly lively, but none of it seemed to have anything to do with him. Mark couldn’t help but wonder: How on earth did things get to this point? And where exactly did it all start to go wrong?

The boisterous cheering was incessant, so loud it almost drowned out the background music. It snapped Julia out of her thoughts, and she suddenly realized something very important—

”Didn’t you say you couldn’t dance?” Julia suddenly looked up at Lu Ke, her eyes filled with suspicion and shock.

Lu Ke’s smile tightened, and his eyes drifted upward evasively. ”No, I never said that.”

Julia opened her mouth to argue, but when she thought back, she realized he was right. Lu Ke had never actually said that. He’d only said, ”I’m not responsible for a date’s duties tonight,” which was ambiguously misleading. Realizing her mistake, Julia bit her lip and shot Lu Ke an annoyed glare.

Just then, the upbeat dance track faded out and a tender love song began to flow through the speakers. The teenagers who had been energetically dancing now pulled their partners close, swaying slowly, their feet moving in a waltz. They were lost in the gentle melody, each couple enjoying their own private world.

Lu Ke and Julia had only just stepped onto the dance floor, swaying a bit to the beat without really getting into it. But now, with the sudden change in music, the atmosphere grew delicate. It wouldn’t have been a big deal, but the relentlessly cheering crowd on the sidelines made Julia feel completely stiff and self-conscious.

”My dear Wicked Witch, may I have the honor of this dance?”

Julia heard Lu Ke’s familiar voice, his mock-serious tone laced with a hint of lighthearted humor. She couldn’t help but laugh. Looking up into his smiling eyes, she felt her tension melt away and her limbs relax. She politely gathered her skirt and dipped into a clumsy, vaguely aristocratic curtsy.

”My noble Royal Knight, of course. The honor is mine,” Julia replied.

The two of them adopted a convincing waltz-hold and, following the melody, began to turn and glide across the floor.

A smile reached deep into Julia’s eyes. She looked at Lu Ke and said with sincerity, ”Thank you.” The word was barely out before she let out a soft chuckle. ”I don’t just mean for being my date tonight. You were a huge help back there, saving me from total humiliation in front of Mark and Jenny.”

”Don’t mention it.” Lu Ke didn’t just offer a polite platitude; he chuckled and nodded, then added, ”Thank *you*.”

Julia looked momentarily stunned, unable to process it. Why would Lu Ke be thanking her?

Then, Lu Ke said with mock-seriousness, ”Thank you for giving me the chance to enjoy the superstar treatment.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the large group of people by the dance floor, gesticulating wildly, their faces lit up with excitement. They seemed to be eagerly telling all their friends about the night’s amazing events. The scene was certainly full of... energy.

Julia couldn’t help but smile. ”If this counts as superstar treatment, then what would you call the cheers you get at Candlestick Park?”

”Adrenaline.” Lu Ke’s slyly clever reply made Julia pause and savor it for a moment before she burst out laughing. Her whole face lit up, revealing a truly girlish radiance and joy. The shadow of having her date replaced at the last minute finally vanished completely.

”Julia, you deserve better,” Lu Ke said. Julia’s expression was one of confusion, so Lu Ke continued, ”I’m serious. You deserve better.”

No extra explanation, no grand philosophy, and no chicken soup for the soul. Just those four words, ”You deserve better.” But the look in Lu Ke’s eyes was so genuine and sincere that Julia’s heart skipped a beat. The music in her ears and the neon lights in the corner of her eye seemed to disappear in an instant. The whole world went quiet, and she could clearly hear the pounding of her heart: THUMP, THUMP.

But a moment later, a sharp pain shot up her calf. All the romance, all the delicate ambiguity, evaporated. Her face scrunched up and she winced, looking at Lu Ke in utter confusion. ”I thought you could dance!” That last move had been Lu Ke’s handiwork; he’d clipped her on the shin during a turn.

Before Lu Ke had a chance to speak, he started to step back, but he was a fraction too slow and stepped right on Julia’s toes. Lu Ke watched as her mouth fell open in an exaggerated expression of bone-deep agony. His own face screwed up in sympathy. ”But I never said I was *good* at it.”

Julia felt a breath catch in her chest, stuck somewhere between indignation and laughter.

Then she saw Lu Ke’s movements turn cautious. His muscles stiffened, making him look slightly clumsy. It seemed the two consecutive mistakes had thrown him off his game, showing none of the heroic grace he had while dominating on the field. Julia couldn’t hold it in anymore and let out a soft chuckle. ”So,” she teased, ”back in that dance-off you had, who actually won? You or Logan?”

Lu Ke opened his mouth, then closed it. He pictured the cringey dance-off from back then—it had been the equivalent of a multi-car pile-up. He answered with grave seriousness, ”I think, perhaps, we should discuss matters of state.”

PFFT. Julia couldn’t help it and burst out laughing. She watched as Lu Ke squeezed his eyes shut, his expression like a man facing a firing squad as he braced for the spray. Julia wanted to protest that she hadn’t actually sprayed him.

But Lu Ke’s expression was just too perfect. Her shoulders were shaking from the effort of holding back her laughter. She deliberately remained silent, just watching him. After a good while, she saw him cautiously crack one eye open. That’s when Julia finally gave in and let out a peal of laughter.

The homecoming dance was way more interesting and a lot more fun than she had ever imagined. Starting her senior year of high school like this… Julia felt it was a pretty good start.