He ran, and he ran like there was no tomorrow. Lu Ke couldn't remember the last time he ran with such abandon, so frantically, so desperately. But that wasn't important anymore. He just ran with all his might, pouring his entire being into it.
The burning sensation in his lungs reached its peak, then exploded like a firework. The pain instantly spread throughout his chest. He gritted his teeth so hard he could hear his molars groaning, squeezing the last bit of energy out of his body as he ran with all his might, ignoring everything else. In a daze, after breaking through the point of exhaustion, his weak knees straightened again, his leaden feet became firm again, and his tired calves became excited again. His speed actually picked up, and he felt a continuous surge of energy, getting faster and faster, gradually closing the distance between himself and Candice.
The human body and mind are full of countless unsolvable mysteries. After breaking through one limitation, you might open a door to a new world and enter a higher state. This is especially true for athletes. At this moment, Lu Ke wasn't sure if he had broken through a limitation, but what was certain was that his body felt light again, and the burst of speed and endurance became clear. Then, he stepped on the gas and began to pass Candice.
Candice turned her head and was startled to see Lu Ke catching up to her at full speed. She quickly sped up, but in a contest of absolute speed and explosive power, she was no match for a professional athlete like Lu Ke. She could only watch as her lead of nearly 50 meters was chipped away little by little and then overtaken. Just like that, Candice watched as Lu Ke zipped past her like he was in a 100-meter dash at the Olympics, creating a small whirlwind in the air and gradually increasing the distance between them. The powerful explosive force was simply astonishing.
Even so, Candice didn't give up. She gritted her teeth and continued to follow Lu Ke, pushing her speed to the limit. She could clearly feel the burning sensation and the rush of her fat burning. In a trance, she forgot the passage of time and the distance, simply relying on her instincts to continuously release energy.
Finally, when the view suddenly opened up, standing at the end of the uphill road, through the tall and slender trees, he could overlook the entire city. It was then that Lu Ke stopped running. The endless trees were like a green flood, flowing down the hill below his feet. The rolling waves stopped in front of the light gray steel jungle, and the entire city unfolded before him, magnificent and grand. The world was vast and boundless.
"Ah!"
With a blank mind, devoid of thought and contemplation, Lu Ke reflexively roared at the sight before him. He clenched his fists, and his entire body trembled slightly from the force. The endless roar continued to erupt, but even so, it wasn't enough. Then, with red eyes, like a lunatic who had lost his mind, Lu Ke began to curse wildly. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" One curse after another, releasing all his anger, all his suppression, all his frustration, all his grievances. There was nothing held back. The lingering roars echoed under the clear blue sky and the endless coastline, again and again.
"Fuck!"
Right after, another curse came from his side. He turned his head and saw a breathless Candice standing next to him. She didn't ask or say anything. She just took a moment to catch her breath and then started cursing along with Lu Ke. Her sharp and vicious tone was not inferior in the slightest. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" A string of curses, quick and smooth. Even with spittle flying, she didn't care about her image. As she cursed, a smile appeared on her face. Candice turned her head, laughed brightly, and raised an eyebrow at Lu Ke, giving him a challenging "Fuck!"
Lu Ke caught a glimpse of a mischievous glint in Candice's eyes. He was slightly taken aback, then laughed to himself and joined in the cursing. "Fuck!" In this back-and-forth, the two of them finally turned and looked at the vast emptiness before them, as if they were throwing away all their emotional garbage. After a torrent of curses, they stopped, breathless. They were so agitated and so frantic that they couldn't breathe properly. The two of them started to cough, one after the other. While coughing, they laughed at each other's sorry state. The coughing was so hard that tears welled up in their eyes, and they couldn't help but laugh out loud.
After a long while, the laughter finally stopped. The negative emotions had completely disappeared, and their bodies were drained. Lu Ke slumped to the ground. At this moment, he didn't care about how pathetic he looked. Although his mind kept telling him that after a long run, he shouldn't sit down and should walk slowly, he was so exhausted today that if he continued to walk, he would probably roll down the hill like a log. So, Lu Ke sat down without any guilt. Candice also plopped down on the ground, not caring about the dirt and mess.
They looked at each other's disheveled state, covered in sweat, with messy hair, and even some streaks of dirt from sweat on their cheeks. It was both absurd and hilarious, and they couldn't help but smile again.
"When did you come to San Francisco?" Lu Ke asked. Candice rolled her eyes and started to complain endlessly. "I've been living in San Francisco for ten days, and you didn't know at all? God, I know you don't care about what I'm up to, but isn't that a little too cold? We're friends, friends! And you didn't even know I was in San Francisco?"
Lu Ke wasn't angry at all. Instead, he laughed, which made Candice stop for a moment. "What's so funny?"
"You have good lung capacity. You ran and then said all that in one breath without being winded," Lu Ke's focus was intoxicating. Candice was speechless. Then she saw the brilliant light return to the corners of Lu Ke's mouth, which reassured her. She knew that the Lu Ke she knew was back.
So, it was time to settle the score. "Spill it," Candice said, punching Lu Ke hard on the shoulder. However, she was a little drained, so her punch wasn't very hard. "Are you insane? Why didn't you reply to my texts? Why didn't you answer my calls? I almost thought you had disappeared! I almost thought you were going to give up!"
Just thinking about it again made Candice mad. After the game ended last night, she had been worried about Lu Ke's condition. She couldn't imagine how devastating it would be to lose a game in such a frustrating and suffocating way. As a spectator, she already felt incredibly miserable, and the fans in San Francisco were up all night drinking to vent their frustrations. So, what about Lu Ke, the person directly involved?
Moreover, Candice knew that the NFL and the modeling industry were essentially the same. It was a business where profit comes first. Winning brings everything, and losing exposes everything. Lu Ke's first season of his career wasn't even over yet. He had no foundation or accumulation, and he couldn't even be called stable. After two consecutive losses, all the criticism, all the conflicts, and all the pressure would explode. Candice knew that this was part of sports, but she couldn't help but worry about Lu Ke.
But this damned guy didn't reply to her texts or answer her calls. He was completely out of contact. Even if she wanted to help and show her concern, she couldn't. That feeling of powerlessness kept Candice up all night. Otherwise, she wouldn't have gone out of her way to come here today and successfully found the person on Lu Ke's regular running route. Candice kept telling herself that this was about Lu Ke, not her. Her worries, her tension, and her anxiety were not the main point. Lu Ke's condition was what mattered. So, she had been suppressing her emotions until she was sure Lu Ke was okay. Only then did she finally let it out.
Punch after punch, Candice slammed Lu Ke on the shoulder. Then she saw Lu Ke make an exaggerated pained expression, which left Candice speechless. After she finished venting her emotions, a sense of guilt and worry resurfaced. "I know, I know. You don't want to talk to anyone. You want to be left alone. You need to be quiet and get some rest. But... but can't you at least let me know that nine sacks didn't give you a concussion?"
At the end, her complaining turned into a joke, but the slight tremble in her voice revealed the true emotions deep inside her heart. Lu Ke accepted all the accusations gracefully and then chuckled. "Hey, girl, hey, I'm the one who took the sacks and experienced the loss. Let's not add more drama to it, okay?"
Candice couldn't hold it in and let out a chuckle. All her emotions broke down. Her eyes widened, and she looked at Lu Ke, purposely putting on a serious face. "What, are you going to roll around on the ground and cry now? If you want to put on a show, I don't mind being the audience."
"You know, a man should hide in a dark corner and be sad all by himself..." Lu Ke's words were cut off by Candice, who rolled her eyes without hesitation. "Hey, hey, I'm being serious. You could at least pretend to be a little sad."
They both burst out laughing at the same time. After they finished laughing, they just sat there and looked at the wide-open view in front of them. The vast sky and the sea made their annoyed and depressed moods feel a little more open. It seemed that the storm had finally passed.
A huge failure can make a person fall into a deep abyss and never recover, but it can also be a chance for a person to start from scratch and begin anew. For Lu Ke, failure was just a catalyst to motivate him to work harder. And a painful failure had a double effect.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes, I'm sure."
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