American Football: King of the Bay Area

Chapter 380: Chapter 377: Friends at First Sight

“But we watch game film every week too. What’s the difference?”

“Of course it’s different. Take a two-hour game film, for example. Some people might be done in half an hour, just skimming through it and calling it a day. But others might need to spend a whole day going through it slowly, reviewing every single offensive drive, every single play, over and over again.”

“But…”

“But the two completely different ways of watching don’t necessarily mean there’s a world of difference in efficiency.

When you watch game film, you first have to define your purpose before you dive in.

For the same offensive drive, are we watching the overall formation, the quarterback’s perspective, or the shifts in the Defense Team’s formation? You have to have a clear understanding of the entire tactical system in your head and do enough prep work…”

“You mean, you have to do your homework even before watching the game film.”

“Of course. During the preparation phase, we might need to watch the game film once over to get a basic understanding of our opponent’s system. Then, we rewatch it with a specific purpose. While watching, you also need to take notes, jot down all the key points, and then think about it all together at the end.”

“For a quarterback, there must be a lot more to pay attention to besides just the passing routes, right?”

“Yes. Besides the offense, I also need to watch what the Defense Team is doing. It must be the same for a point guard, right? You need to observe everything happening on the entire court.”

“Yeah, that’s why every time I watch game film, I feel like there’s too much information. My brain can’t quite keep up, and I always end up forgetting things.”

…

“Hey! Would you two young men like a beer?”

A voice interrupted the conversation between Lu Ke and Curry. Curry’s eyes instantly lit up. He looked up and said excitedly, “Really? Can I? I’ll have one then! Lu Ke, what about you?”

Then, Curry noticed the half-smile playing on Lu Ke’s lips and paused, a little stunned. Lu Ke then said, “This is my agent, Lech.”

Lech smiled and nodded at Curry in greeting.

Only then did Curry realize his mistake. He looked embarrassed and mumbled, not knowing what to say, “Sorry…”

But Lech just laughed graciously. “It’s fine. I should be the one apologizing for interrupting your conversation. It’s not every day a young man finds a friend he clicks with.”

The connection between people was truly a curious thing.

Some people trade insults the first time they meet. Even without any prior grudges, they just can’t stand the sight of each other, and it might stay that way for their entire lives. But other people, complete strangers, can hit it off immediately. The chemistry in their effortless conversation makes it seem like they have endless things to talk about, and a friendship is forged with ease.

Like family ties, friendship is also a kind of fated connection.

His gaze fell upon Lu Ke and Curry, and a gentle smile appeared in his eyes. “This is obviously good news for the sponsors. It’s a shame they didn’t bring a camera today. Otherwise, making a behind-the-scenes documentary would’ve been a great idea.”

Lu Ke and Curry both laughed at Lech’s teasing. Then, Lech continued, “It’s just that you two have lost track of time. The crew on set is waiting to wrap up, and you’re the only two left. That’s why I had to come over and give you a reminder.”

As Lech spoke, Lu Ke and Curry turned to look behind them at the same time. Only then did they notice that the entire studio had been cleaned up. Most of the staff had already left, leaving only a dozen or so people scattered about, watching the two young men with pitiful, expectant eyes, waiting for the signal to clock out.

“Oh, sorry, really sorry.” Lu Ke quickly stood up and offered a sincere apology to the staff members in the distance. A beat behind him, Curry also got to his feet, apologizing profusely.

It was then that Lu Ke realized he and Curry had been so engrossed in their conversation that they had forgotten to change. Both of them were still in their last outfits from the shoot, their sweat having long since dried naturally. It was a clear indicator of just how long they had been talking.

Hurriedly, Lu Ke got up and rushed toward the locker room. Seeing his hasty movements, the crew members quickly called out, “No need to rush! We still have a few last things to wrap up here.”

Lu Ke didn’t slow his pace. Before entering the locker room, he said with a chuckle, “Maybe you should have just cut the power. That way, Stephen and I would have gotten the message.”

His joke made everyone roar with laughter, and the atmosphere lightened up again. Curry finally snapped out of it and scurried to the locker room to change his clothes.

In no more than three minutes, Lu Ke and Curry had changed their clothes, packed their bags, and were finally ready to leave.

Standing at the studio entrance, Lu Ke looked left and right before noticing, “Where’s your agent? Or are you planning to drive home yourself?”

“This is San Francisco. I live in Oakland now, remember?” Curry said with a laugh. “My hotel isn’t far from here. If I hail a cab, it’s only a five-minute ride back. So my agent left after bringing me here this afternoon.”

Lu Ke blinked and thought for a moment. “You mean, you’re going back to your hotel now to call room service and spend a long night all by yourself?”

Looking at the sympathetic expression on Lu Ke’s face, Curry couldn’t help but laugh. “I thought that sounded pretty good, but now that you put it that way, why does it suddenly sound so strange?”

“Because it is really strange, and really pathetic.” Lu Ke patted Curry’s shoulder. “Come on, come home with me. I just moved into my new place today, so cooking is probably out of the question, but we can order takeout. At least you won’t have to reenact *Robinson Crusoe* in your hotel room, talking to your basketball.”

Curry burst out laughing. “Are you serious? That’s great for me, of course. Can we watch game film together? The San Francisco 49ers’ film would be fine. I want to hear how you actually watch it, and your tactical analysis. You know, I’ve flipped through a quarterback’s playbook before. It was like *The Da Vinci Code*; I couldn’t understand a thing.”

“No problem,” Lu Ke agreed readily with a nod.

“Are you sure?” After the initial excitement, Curry started to worry. He only just realized that they had met just that afternoon; they had only been friends for half a day. “You just said you moved today. Doesn’t that mean you still need to unpack tonight? I can help, of course, but are you sure it’s okay?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” Lu Ke extended the invitation graciously. “Or do you have a date tonight? If that’s the case, I won’t bother you. We can arrange another time tomorrow.”

“Ha ha, very funny.” Curry chuckled. “If Ayesha heard that, she’d definitely raise her fists and come after you.”

“Ayesha?” Lu Ke paused, slightly stunned.

“My wife.” Curry gave a surprising answer. Lu Ke hadn’t expected this at all. Curry, who was only twenty-three this year, was already married? ‘Is that… considered marrying young?’

Seeing the exaggerated expression on Lu Ke’s face, Curry laughed again. “We just got married on July 30th. Ayesha was supposed to come with me this time, but a two-day shooting schedule was too much of a rush, so she stayed in Oakland.”

Lu Ke pursed his lips and nodded meaningfully. “That’s good. It keeps the temptations of the outside world at bay, so you can focus completely on training and games. That’s good. So, let’s still watch game film together tonight. I wouldn’t want to be unable to answer to Ayesha.”

“Answer for what?” Curry caught the deeper meaning in Lu Ke’s words and immediately pressed him.

“For the game film, what else did you think?” Lu Ke said with a straight face, putting on the expression of a perfect gentleman. “I’m such a kind and innocent young man. Please don’t let your mind wander.”

Now it was Curry’s turn to be put on the spot, leaving him at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Even though he had just moved today, he hadn’t unpacked much of his luggage, but Lu Ke had packed all the equipment related to his daily training and game preparation securely. He just never expected to use it tonight. Plans can’t keep up with changes, can they?

Standing to the side, Lech was already dumbfounded.

For an agent, it was a good thing for his player to be so focused, dedicated, and professional. But too much of a good thing could be bad. ‘Isn’t Lu Ke a little *too* focused?’ Today was not only the first day of the bye week, but after such a busy and exhausting day of work, Lu Ke still had the energy to watch game film?

However, Lech didn’t ask. He immediately noticed something. The Lu Ke from this afternoon’s shoot—exhausted, drenched in sweat, and listless—was now full of life again. Especially when game film was mentioned, those dark eyes of his actually lit up again. Clearly, Lu Ke had come “alive” again.

Chuckling in spite of himself, Lech gently shook his head, unsure whether he should feel relieved or worried.

Starting with moving house and ending with watching game film, the first day of Lu Ke’s bye week was certainly rich and varied. More importantly, he had made a new friend, which was definitely the biggest gain.

After getting home, Lu Ke and Curry got busy. They dug out a laptop and a projector, set up a makeshift viewing station, and started playing the game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions. Lu Ke had originally thought he wouldn’t have time to watch it until at least Friday, but unexpectedly, he’d found the time on Monday.

Just as he was about to play the game film, Lu Ke’s phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and said to Curry, who was sitting next to him, “Perfect timing. Let me introduce you to a friend. A madman, an absolute madman.”

Curry, however, had a disbelieving look on his face. “Aren’t *you* the madman?”

Lu Ke burst out laughing and answered the phone. “Hey, Mr. JJ Watt, good evening.”