Scalding sweat slowly slid down his skin as boiling blood surged through his body. All of his pores opened up, and steam rose from him as if he were in a sauna. The sound of his heart pounding like war drums hammered against his eardrums. His muscles were tightened to the extreme, ready to explode.
Lu Ke kept his hands relaxed in front of him. His left foot supported his body, while his right foot was in a lunge, toes on the ground, with all his strength concentrated in his calf. His eyes, peering through his helmet, were fixed on the number 44 player in the dark blue uniform in front of him. That was the opposing team's quarterback, his target. In his peripheral vision, he couldn't see any other defensive players; his gaze was solely on that one figure.
"Hut!"
The quarterback shouted. The center snapped the ball, the quarterback received it, dropped back, surveyed the field, and prepared to throw.
The moment he heard the sound, Lu Ke's right foot pushed off like a spring, and he charged forward with his head down. The other defensive players seemed to have ignored Lu Ke's presence. He took a small detour, moving as if he were in a no-man's-land, and in just five or six steps, he was in front of the quarterback.
Lu Ke had no intention of stopping. He slightly thrust his right shoulder forward, like an out-of-control high-speed train, and slammed into the quarterback's chest. At the same time, his hands accurately grabbed the quarterback's waist and drove him hard into the ground.
The quarterback was like a soft willow branch, completely helpless. He was pinned to the ground, every muscle in his body crying out in pain.
"Beep," the whistle blew, signaling the end of the play with a quarterback sack.
Lu Ke stood up, sweat dripping into his eyes. But before he could wipe it away, Kevin Prince, standing in front of him, looked like an enraged bull. He slammed the football at Lu Ke's head and shouted obscenities, "What the hell are you doing, you goddamn mutt! What the fuck are you doing!"
Kevin continued to curse as he lunged at Lu Ke, starting a scuffle. But Lu Ke didn't back down, grabbing Kevin's helmet. The two of them butted heads like bulls, refusing to yield.
The other players swarmed over. Kevin cursed with foul language, "You shameless yellow monkey! Go back to China! You show-off! You bastard! You disgusting Bambi! You son of a bitch!"
Upon hearing the discriminatory words, Lu Ke lost his temper. He had only been in a standoff, but now he began to throw punches. He landed a heavy punch to Kevin's stomach, and then another, targeting the soft ribs and driving his fist down hard. The vicious right hook made Kevin start to wail as if his life was in danger.
That's when all hell broke loose.
Lu Ke was a scout team member, not a formal one. In the graduation yearbook, he wouldn't even be listed as a team member. Kevin, on the other hand, was a key player, albeit on the third string. He was still on the roster and could play in official games. There was no doubt that the two were worlds apart.
So, the key players swarmed Lu Ke, pulled him away forcefully, and threw him to the ground, starting to gang up on him.
Lu Ke, outnumbered, felt like he was in a siege. A flurry of punches and kicks rained down on him. He was completely unable to fight back and curled up into a ball. But he gritted his teeth and refused to cry out in pain, enduring everything in silence.
Wham, wham, wham, someone with no sense of decency kicked Lu Ke's helmet hard. In a football game, even grabbing a helmet is a penalty, let alone any action targeting the head. Yet here was such a dirty, despicable act. Lu Ke felt his brain shake, the world swayed, and his stomach churned. In a daze, his vision suddenly went black, and a bright light, like a sky full of stars, appeared in his mind.
But it only lasted for a moment.
With a crisp "ding" sound, the chaotic crowd was finally pulled apart. "Bambi, Bambi, are you okay?" a worried voice came from his side. Without opening his eyes, Lu Ke knew it was Logan Newman, his best friend. Logan was a first-string player.
"You sons of bitches! Are you all crazy?" Logan yelled angrily at his teammates. "If you've popped too many blue pills and have energy to burn, there's a pack of stray dogs outside the school gate! Go get them!"
At that moment, Coach Rick Neuheisel walked over with an awkward gait, spitting as he screamed, "You brats, what's going on? What's going on? Prince, have you lost your mind?"
Completely unaware of the coach's presence, Kevin's anger didn't subside. He took off his helmet, his face flushed, and roared, "Bastard! You're a bastard! You're dead! I'm telling you, you're dead!"
The coach shoved Kevin's chest hard. Only then did Kevin notice the short, white-haired old man in front of him, the man who held his fate in his hands. He gasped for air and loudly complained to the coach, "This was just a simple tactical drill, a practice. Does he even know what a practice is? He's acting like it's the Super Bowl!"
Why could a scout team member sack a key player so easily? The reason was simple: it was a practice. One side wasn't taking it seriously and was just going through the motions; the other was giving it his all. And so, bang!
"Bullshit!" Faced with Kevin's fury, Logan charged forward without hesitation, pressing his helmet against Kevin's helmet, refusing to back down. "You're just a whining wimp! What do you do besides complain? I guarantee it! Lu Ke would perform better as a quarterback than you!"
"What did you say?" Kevin's anger completely spiraled out of control. He butted back like a bull. "Try it! Let that trash try! That weak paper man, a glass man who'll shatter with a light bump! He's not even a backup, just a scout team member. If he can complete a pass, I'll eat this football! Damn it! You stupid and disgusting psychos! Come on, come and try it!"
The calm crowd erupted once more. All the teammates, starters, backups, and scout players, crowded together, and the situation started to get out of control, on the verge of becoming a major incident.
In the middle of the crowd, Lu Ke was on the ground, having lost the initiative and completely unable to resist. He was like a small boat in a raging storm, about to capsize at any moment. Just then, a pair of hands grabbed his shoulders and pulled him backward, successfully getting him out of the huddle. Fresh air rushed into his lungs, and he finally felt alive again.
"Bambi, are you crazy?" The angry voice sounded in his ear, with a hint of concern.
"Bambi" was his nickname. At first, it was just a joke among his Chinese immigrant friends because his last name sounded like "deer." Since the cartoon "Bambi" was so famous, they started calling him that playfully. Over time, other friends he made also started using the nickname.
Bambi is a fawn, and football is often called a barbarian's sport. Being on the field felt like a fawn in a pack of lions, creating a sarcastic effect. The team members always liked to call the not-so-strong Lu Ke this, a nickname filled with ridicule, mockery, and discrimination.
Lu Ke looked up and glanced at him. "Hey, John." It was another scout team member, John Ward.
John rolled his eyes. Amidst the shouting, he yelled furiously, "Your heroic John Wayne-like act just made us look terrible. Please, tone it down!"
"Tone it down?" Lu Ke frowned, confused.
John almost gritted his teeth. "Everyone is saying we have to work as hard as Lu, we have to work as hard as Lu! I'm sick of hearing it." John's eyes were wide open, his face contorted. "What's the point of getting your head kicked every day? It's not worth it, you know. You have to play in at least one regular-season game to be a real player. But the problem is, you're never going to play! So don't act like a savior, you're a piece of shit! You're a goddamn scout player! Not even a backup!"
"Get lost, John!" Lu Ke waved his hand dismissively. "If you don't like it, you can leave!"
"You lunatics, calm down, all of you, calm down!" Rick roared. The coaching staff also rushed over, working together to get the situation under control.
The crowd gradually separated, but the young, hot-blooded faces were still filled with anger, shouting at each other, "Come on, let's see!" "A challenge is a challenge, you stupid donkeys who've eaten too many pills!"...
"Quiet! Jesus Christ, Jesus!" Rick was utterly furious. "All of you, get back to practice!"
"Coach, just let Bambi try it. Bambi can easily crush that idiot!" The angry declaration came from Logan.
"Try it! I'm telling you, my bet is still on! If he can complete a pass, I'll swallow this football whole!" This was Kevin's unwavering response.
"Then let's have a contest!" Rick was beyond annoyed. He waved his hand as if shooing flies. "Three-on-three! Quarterback, receiver, and defensive player, pick them yourselves! After the contest, all of you shut up! The losing team gets double the training! Go, all of you get on the field! Three-on-three, start now!"
"Bambi, Bambi!" Logan sprinted over to Lu Ke, shouting excitedly, "Hurry! We'll teach Kevin a lesson and show that trash what you're made of! You were the best quarterback in high school! Now let them see!"
However, Lu Ke didn't respond, because a strange voice rang out in his mind: The All-Star System has finished binding and is officially starting. Countdown: three, two, one...
NOTE:
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