American Football: King of the Bay Area

The hotel lobby was spacious and brilliantly lit. Its visual design, an interplay of deep red and navy blue, was accented by elegant gladioli and lilies. A dark gray carpet stretched out across the floor. Lazy afternoon sunlight filtered through the massive glass windows, mingling with the soft, cream-colored interior lights and blurring the world’s boundaries, tempting one to simply close their eyes and drift away.

Inside the building, it was as warm as spring, while outside, the bleakness of late autumn reigned. The difference in seasons was separated by just a single heavy glass door, magically and wonderfully outlining a serene and peaceful scene.

The San Francisco 49ers players were scattered across the hotel lobby, chatting idly with relaxed expressions. They had a full two hours before leaving for the airport—plenty of time to enjoy a leisurely beer or a cup of coffee while waiting for the team to finish checking out.

Although the team had just suffered its first loss of the season today, and spirits were generally low, there was a silver lining. The pressure of maintaining their winning streak was gone for now, easing the tension. The team could now reset, unburdened, and start striding toward victory once more. Perhaps this was the proactive way to look at their setback.

”What time are we leaving?” Logan raised his wrist to check his watch, deliberately flashing it for all to see. He even waved it in front of Lu Ke and Marcus, the smug look on his face barely concealed—if he was even trying to conceal it at all.

Seeing that no one else was going to answer, Scott Torsin replied earnestly, ”We leave at four-thirty. The flight’s at seven tonight.”

Logan swung his left arm dramatically, stopping just short of shoving his wrist under everyone’s nose. ”It’s only two-forty. We have so, so, so much time. Why don’t we go for a walk around the city? Or maybe hit up a coffee shop and do some... ’field research’ on the local talent in Philadelphia?”

”Logan! Is that a new watch? Did you find a new sponsor?” Kendall Hunter, ever the earnest one, finally took the bait and exclaimed cheerfully.

Lu Ke, Marcus, and Aldon exchanged a look and chuckled in resignation.

Logan, however, beamed with satisfaction. ”It’s not set in stone, but my agent is in the final stages of negotiation. They sent me this to try out.”

”Which sponsor?” Kendall, ever the hype man, was not only excited but also the one to actually respond. The others just sat there, pretending not to hear.

For the past two days, Logan had been itching for a chance to show it off, but he couldn’t find the right moment. Lu Ke had, of course, noticed long ago. Logan’s attempts were so obvious he might as well have hung a banner; it would’ve been impossible not to see. So, Lu Ke and the guys had conspired to give him the cold shoulder and play dumb, which was absolutely killing Logan.

In reality, Logan’s potential sponsor was Nike.

Without a doubt, Nike was the biggest sponsor in the NFL and in the entire United States sports world—a dream opportunity for any athlete. Logan had caught their eye thanks to his excellent performance in the last three games. However, a major brand like Nike held all the cards, and Logan’s agent was fighting hard to secure better terms.

But just at the crucial moment, Logan clammed up, lowering his voice. ”It’s still a secret for now. Nothing’s confirmed until the papers are signed, but...”

Just as Logan was about to drop his exclusive bombshell, a sweet voice cut in. ”But, either way, you’re already one step behind Lu Ke.”

”PFFT.” Marcus and Aldon couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing. Even Lu Ke had to stifle a chuckle at the look of stunned confusion on Logan’s face.

The words caught in Logan’s throat. He stared blankly in the direction of the voice and saw the tall, radiant figure of Sophie Brook. Her long blonde hair was done in a fishtail braid that fell over her shoulder, stripping away some of her usual sharp competence and replacing it with the playful charm of the girl next door.

But the edge in her words was as sharp as ever, her pink lips curling into a pretty arc. ”Oh, you guys didn’t know? Lu Ke already signed with Under Armour. They’re his official sponsor for the next two years.” This press officer, a graduate of the University of Southern California, was clearly no ’close friend’ of Lu Ke’s.

The moment she finished speaking, all eyes were on Lu Ke, sharp and stunned like the spines of a hedgehog. All his teammates stared at him in astonishment. Lu Ke had never bragged about the sponsorship; over the past week, fighting for the starting spot had been his top priority, and he hadn’t found the right time to show off.

Lu Ke caught the mischievous, prankish glint in Sophie’s eyes. He tucked his chin slightly. ”Miss Brook, I was under the impression that a player’s personal information falls under a confidentiality agreement. It shouldn’t be disclosed so casually.”

”Oh, so it was a secret.” Sophie deliberately raised her right hand to cover her lips, her eyes wide with feigned innocence. Then she exclaimed, ”Oops!” The simple word, delivered with such dramatic flair, radiated the smug satisfaction of a successful prank.

During their first meeting, Lu Ke had easily gotten the upper hand. Today, Sophie had finally found her chance to get even.

Lu Ke gave a resigned laugh. He turned to his teammates, spread his hands, and announced magnanimously, ”The first three rounds are on me tonight.”

”Attaboy! Whoo!” Everyone started high-fiving. Even Logan was celebrating, waving his right hand as if swinging a cowboy’s lasso and leaping into the air.

In the blink of an eye, everyone forgave Lu Ke for his ”betrayal.” After all, they were getting free drinks tonight. What else mattered? Nothing, of course.

”I was originally going to treat you all to a three-star Michelin dinner, but now...” Lu Ke said with a look of utter regret. He watched as all his teammates froze on the spot, like they were playing a game of Red Light, Green Light.

Lu Ke then turned his gaze back to Sophie. ”So, was there something you needed?” Sophie was still stunned that the guys had forgiven Lu Ke so easily and didn’t react right away. Then she saw the teasing look in his eyes. ”Wait, don’t tell me you came all this way just to announce that I have a sponsorship from Under Armour?”

With just a single sentence, Sophie had lost the upper hand again. She couldn’t help but grit her teeth. ”You. Come with me. Now.” With that, she spun around and strode toward the hotel entrance.

”Ooooh, the pretty press officer has a crush on Lu Ke!” Marcus was the first to start heckling, then broke into a loud chant. ”Lu Ke and Sophie, sittin’ in a tree! Lu Ke and Sophie, sittin’ in a tree!” The others joined in, and even the members of the Defense Team sitting nearby started laughing and chanting along.

Sophie clenched her fists in frustration, squeezed her eyes shut, and beat a hasty retreat.

The classic American children’s taunt, ”Someone and someone, sittin’ in a tree,” implied a budding romance was about to lead to K-I-S-S-I-N-G. It was the go-to chant for teasing friends about a new crush.

Lu Ke stood up and retorted with a grin, ”Why don’t you guys go find a tree near the hotel? I’ll be right there.”

Lu Ke had deliberately taken their metaphorical taunt literally. Marcus froze, then turned to Logan, completely baffled. ”Did... did he get that, or not?” After all, Lu Ke was an immigrant; it was entirely plausible he didn’t know the chant.

Seeing the utterly bewildered look on Marcus’s face, Logan roared with laughter.

Once they left the hotel lobby, all the noise and laughter faded behind them. Lu Ke stopped beside Sophie and said with a smile, ”Sorry about that. Athletes are just... simple-minded like that.”

This was actually a callback to their first conversation. Sophie had made the mistake of teasing that athletes were simple-minded, and Lu Ke had deftly turned it against her, scoring a small victory in their verbal spar.

Now, Lu Ke was bringing it up again. Sophie understood immediately and gritted her teeth. ”I didn’t realize you held a grudge so well. I thought that was a female trait.”

Lu Ke didn’t argue. He just raised his hands in surrender and gave her a sincere look. This caught Sophie completely off guard, disarming her attack. If she pressed the issue, she would be admitting that women do indeed hold grudges, turning her own jab back on herself.

’This guy!’

Lu Ke decided to quit while he was ahead and quickly changed the subject. ”So, what’s up? The owner doesn’t want to talk to me, does he? After today...” A meeting with the boss after a loss was never a good sign.

For a split second, Sophie couldn’t help but crack a smile, but she immediately remembered Lu Ke was from UCLA and composed herself, her expression turning serious. ”No. I came to let you know that tomorrow is a day off, but the team has scheduled two exclusive interviews for you. One is with the *World Newspaper*, San Francisco’s largest Chinese-language paper, and the other is with a local San Francisco radio station. They won’t take long, two hours at most—we’ll keep it tight—but we need you to cooperate.”

”No problem,” Lu Ke agreed without hesitation.

Sophie shot him a suspicious look, sizing him up. This prompted Lu Ke to raise his hands in surrender once more. ”I’m a very cooperative player, believe me. Can’t you see how sincere my eyes are?”

”Tch.” Sophie rolled her eyes, not buying it for a second, and turned away. Her reaction made Lu Ke laugh out loud.

”Bambi! Bambi, is this your girlfriend?” Out of nowhere, two reporters rushed forward, shoving their recorders toward Lu Ke and Sophie, ambushing them with the explosive question.