Chapter 888: A Morning Greeting
The morning sun shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the entire living room without reservation. The subtle interplay of golden sunlight and gray concrete created a sense of modern and rustic time-travel. For a moment, it felt like being in a fairyland, forgetting time and place.
Candice groggily opened her eyes and saw Lu Ke close by.
Lu Ke was still in a deep sleep. It seemed that he had exhausted too much energy last night and hadn't woken up early today. However, today was a day off, so Lu Ke's schedule should be a little different. Maybe it wasn't time for his internal clock to wake up yet.
Candice still felt a little unreal. Everything that happened yesterday afternoon and last night felt so surreal. When the fragments of those moments appeared in her mind, her cheeks couldn't help but burn again. She quickly lowered her eyes but couldn't help but secretly raise them to carefully examine the face in front of her.
Lu Ke was actually a handsome man.
During games and practices, his eyes were always focused and bright, whether they were energetic, dominant, or passionate. All his emotions were hidden in them. His eyes easily attracted all the attention, so much so that people often overlooked his face. The nickname "Bloody Bambi" was not given for no reason.
But when she calmed down and looked closely, she could see that his facial features still had the gentle and elegant qualities of an Asian person, while his high nose bridge and handsome brows revealed a masculine aura. The moment the corners of his mouth turned up, his entire face would light up, making it impossible not to be moved.
Candice suddenly felt shy. She gently bit her lower lip. After a moment of hesitation, she raised her right hand and gently waved it in front of Lu Ke's eyes. After confirming that Lu Ke was in a deep sleep, she became bolder and used her right index finger to trace Lu Ke's features, one by one.
His eyebrows, eyes, nose, lips, chin, Adam's apple...
A smile unconsciously formed on her lips, little by little. Candice herself didn't even realize that her eyes were filled with a glow of happiness. But at that moment, Lu Ke's eyes suddenly opened. Candice was like a frightened bunny. She widened her eyes and gasped, "Ah!"
Then she quickly closed her eyes tightly, as if she could pretend she wasn't there if she just closed her eyes.
"Good morning," Lu Ke's voice was a little hoarse from just waking up, but it was like a feather gently brushing against Candice's ear. Her ears visibly turned bright red. Even though she still didn't say anything, Lu Ke couldn't help but chuckle softly, "What's wrong? Is it because you're not wearing makeup in the morning? Or is it because... you're remembering last night?"
"Lu! Ke!"
Candice wasn't the type to shrink away. She quickly opened her eyes and widened them to the extreme, expressing her strong dissatisfaction. But seeing Lu Ke's meaningful smile, her burning cheeks forced her to surrender. "Don't you have a morning workout? Let's go. I'll join you."
As she spoke, Candice felt something under the blanket quietly rising. The hot heat was surging on the outside of her thigh. Candice couldn't help but swallow. She quickly blinked. Action was faster than words. She immediately prepared to get up and flee in a panic.
But she was still no match for Lu Ke's speed.
A split second before she could move, Lu Ke wrapped his arm around Candice's waist. He flipped over, and their positions were reversed. Lu Ke easily took the dominant position above her. He supported himself on both sides of Candice's body, like a cage, trapping her. His arms slowly, slowly bent down. He got close to Candice's ear again and whispered, "Good morning!"
The same greeting was given a different meaning.
Outside the window was the crispness and coldness of late autumn, but inside the window was the warmth and beauty of early spring.
The passage of time lost its meaning again, but compared to last night, Lu Ke was more reserved. On one hand, it was for Candice's physical condition. There was no need to be so indulgent after the first time. They had a long life ahead of them. On the other hand, it was because of Lu Ke's schedule. He couldn't be too indulgent even on a day off.
After the exercise, he was drenched in sweat. Lu Ke went to the bathroom to take a shower. He felt refreshed. When he returned to the living room, he saw Candice still wrapped in a blanket and a comforter, curled up like a lazy cat. It seemed that she couldn't even move a single finger.
Lu Ke stood behind the sofa and asked loudly, "Didn't you say you were going to work out with me just now? What's wrong? Aren't you going to join me now?"
"Bambi!" Candice reached out and grabbed a pillow, throwing it at Lu Ke. But her arms had no strength left. The pillow flew in a parabola and fell onto the sofa.
When the pillow fell, Lu Ke had already dodged and walked away, leaving behind a series of low laughs. He could still faintly hear them even after the apartment door closed. Now, Candice was the only one in the room. She thought back to her embarrassment just now and buried her face in the blanket, wishing she could dig a hole and bury herself.
When Lu Ke came back from his morning workout, the living room was back to its original state. No, to be more precise, the living room had been completely renovated and tidied up.
The scattered game film analyses were all placed on the coffee table for easy reference. The fallen pillows, clothes, and blankets were all put away, leaving a tidy space. Even the overflowing trash cans and the dusty TV cabinet had been wiped clean. The entire space exuded a sense of home.
Despite all this, Lu Ke's most familiar and important things were still in their usual places: the projector, the playbook, and the whiteboard for tactical analysis.
Vaguely, nothing seemed to have changed, and yet a world of change was happening.
"Hurry up and take a shower and come eat breakfast," Candice's voice came from the kitchen. Lu Ke turned around and saw her wearing a large athletic T-shirt. Her graceful curves were hidden under the baggy men's T-shirt—Lu Ke's clothes—but it gave her a lazy and sexy look.
Unconsciously, a smile formed on his lips. "Okay," Lu Ke agreed without hesitation.
When Lu Ke appeared again, just five minutes later, Candice was already sitting at the dining table, flipping through today's "San Francisco Chronicle." "Are you still trying to gain weight? I made these breakfasts according to the recipe on the fridge. I shouldn't have made any mistakes, right?"
"Don't worry. Breakfast can be more flexible. Lunch and dinner should still follow the recipe, but I've already gained the weight I need to. Now it's more about building a good eating habit. Nothing else matters," Lu Ke said as he sat across from Candice. "Judy, my nutritionist, put that recipe there because I rarely spend time thinking about what to eat for my three meals, so she just made a plan for me in advance."
Candice pursed her lips and nodded in agreement. After thinking for a moment, a hint of satisfaction appeared in her eyes. "So, from now on, someone will eat with me according to the recipe. I'm no longer the one who has to sadly watch you guys eat big meals."
Lu Ke raised an eyebrow. "So... you mean you're going to eat breakfast with me from now on? Isn't that a little too fast?"
That's not what she meant at all!
Candice's eyes widened as she looked at Lu Ke. She fiercely ground her teeth, gnawing on the celery stick in her hand as if she was chewing on Lu Ke's bones. This made Lu Ke laugh happily. He raised his hands in surrender and stopped joking.
"Hmph," Candice wrinkled her nose and changed the subject. "I'm not sure about the specific arrangement of your game film analysis notes, but I noticed the dates on the covers, so I sorted them in reverse chronological order. If I messed up your order, just let me know, and I'll help you find them again. I know everyone has their own habits..."
"No, no. I don't have any habits in that regard. Reverse chronological order is good," Lu Ke said with a smile. "Most of the important information is already in my head. I take notes just in case I need to look something up. Sometimes, my other teammates will borrow them too."
"They can understand them?" Candice's eyes widened with an incredulous expression. "Those complicated plays have both offense and defense, and they just look like a bunch of strange symbols. I can't find any connections!"
"Haha, they're still learning," Lu Ke said. He couldn't help but recall the situation with the second-string players on the offense. They borrowed Lu Ke's game film notes, but they returned them the next day, their faces scrunched up in protest. They said they couldn't understand anything. In the end, Lu Ke had to sit down with them and explain everything face-to-face before they could figure out a little bit of it.
Lu Ke casually mentioned this little anecdote, which made Candice chuckle. "I can imagine the dumbfounded look on their faces. By the way, are you guys playing against the Chicago Bears this week, right? I saw their game film on the projector. How are they as an opponent? They're the toughest opponent this season, right?"
"Yeah, you could say that," Lu Ke thought seriously for a moment and nodded in agreement. "They're a bit like last year's Baltimore Ravens or Pittsburgh Steelers. They're already a strong defensive team..."
The two of them chatted casually, talking about football and fashion week, sharing their time alone.
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