Sprint, sprint again!
After more than half a year of daily training, Lu Ke had gradually adapted to the rhythm and intensity of speed endurance running. Now, varying his speed was no longer difficult; the challenge was to increase the frequency of his speed changes and the maximum speed he could reach during them. Today, Lu Ke was going all out, pushing his speed to the limit.
He sprinted at breakneck speed, with the wind whistling in his ears, running faster and faster, completely in a 100-meter dash state. Although it's not easy to catch up after falling behind by three seconds, Lu Ke was slowly closing the distance. After about ninety meters, the girl was almost within reach.
Lu Ke slightly slowed down, caught up to her, and ran side by side.
This small gesture seemed to provoke the girl's determination to push her limits. She gritted her teeth and started to speed up again, but it was clearly a futile effort. How could an ordinary girl compete against a professional college football player?
Lu Ke only sped up slightly and stayed right next to the girl, neither falling behind nor passing her. They ran side by side like that. No matter how hard the girl tried, she couldn't shake Lu Ke. After a short burst of speed, she gradually slowed down. After running for about 1,500 meters, the girl's endurance and stamina reached their limit, and she finally had to stop.
Speed running is not an easy task.
Lu Ke didn't stop, but he turned his head, gave the girl a look, smiled, and continued to run forward after he passed her. His 10,000-meter running task for the day wasn't over yet.
The girl stood in place, walking slowly, slowly, and regulating her breathing. She watched Lu Ke's back get farther and farther away, and she helplessly looked up at the sky and let out a long sigh. She rolled her eyes, filled with helplessness, and then pouted, complaining, "Bambi is such a beast."
On second thought, Bambi is a wild animal. So, that checks out.
Lu Ke's pace and rhythm were not interrupted. He followed his plan, ran a lap, and returned to the training field, where he meticulously completed his running training for the day. However, this time, he didn't head for the field but instead walked slowly toward the stands.
On the stands, the girl was resting her right elbow on her knee and her chin in her hand, leaning forward. A curious and inquisitive expression filled her cheeks, and her soft lips were slightly pouted with a pink sheen. The sweat on her forehead, which hadn't completely dried, showed her healthy and vibrant glow. Her bright eyes and white teeth were sparkling.
She was bathed in the golden sunlight behind her, as if all the light and brilliance had fallen into her blue eyes, which sparkled and were breathtakingly beautiful.
At this moment, she was looking down at the sweaty Lu Ke. A beautiful curve formed on her full lips. "Training is done?" She didn't seem surprised at all by Lu Ke's persistent running, as she was already used to it. "Is it just me, or have you increased your training load?"
"I have no choice if I want to adapt to a higher level of competition," Lu Ke said, shrugging his shoulders with a helpless expression.
The girl didn't hold back and "pfft'd" at him, complaining, "I think you're just enjoying it. You must have a masochistic streak." Her confident tone, mixed with a hint of sarcasm and disgust, and her upward-looking eyes vividly expressed her emotions.
Lu Ke still had a smile on his face. Without flinching or explaining, he said calmly, "That's what the girl who once dehydrated herself while working out said."
"Once! That was just one time!" The girl's shoulders slumped, and she stuck out her tongue in an exaggerated "oh my god" expression, letting out a heavy sigh. "Can't we just let that go? Bambi, the world is already so tough. Let's not hurt each other, okay?" Her quirky appearance was so funny that it made people laugh.
Lu Ke shook his head at her playful act, furrowed his brows, and kept backing away. "Whoa, do I know you?" His expression of trying to distance himself was so genuine that the girl gritted her teeth. She finally looked at Lu Ke and raised her hands in surrender. "Truce?"
"Truce? Are you sure? Why do I feel like I won by a landslide today?" Lu Ke was trying to push his luck, but when he saw the girl's angry expression, he decided to back off. "Truce, of course, truce. It's a tie again today."
The girl rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, as if to say, "You'd better back off."
This time, Lu Ke didn't say anything else and obediently shut his mouth. He walked around the track, went up to the stands, and sat down next to the girl, handing her the towel that was tied around his waist. "It's clean," he added.
Seeing the girl take the towel, Lu Ke smiled lightly. "When did you get back to Los Angeles? You didn't mention it in your last email. Otherwise, I would have driven to the airport to pick you up."
"I came back to Los Angeles just to see you, didn't you know? Aren't you touched?" The girl wiped the sweat from her forehead with a big gesture and nudged Lu Ke's arm with her elbow, her face full of a brilliant smile.
Lu Ke's smile curled up at the corners of his mouth. "Yeah, I'm very touched."
This firm answer, however, made the girl freeze for a moment. "Hey, if you just agree so easily, what am I supposed to do with the rest of my plan?"
"Go with the flow," Lu Ke's reply made the girl choke on her words. Her stunned expression made Lu Ke burst into cheerful laughter.
The girl sitting next to him was named Candice Swanepoel, a model who was a rising star and gaining a lot of attention.
Born in South Africa, Candice was discovered by a scout when she was fourteen and entered the modeling industry. She started as a nobody and gradually worked her way up to where she was today, with her career finally taking off.
Candice and Lu Ke's first meeting was by chance.
In the summer of 2004, after finishing eighth grade and before starting high school, Lu Ke got his parents' permission to take a self-challenge trip. He put on his backpack and headed for the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail for a hiking trip.
This trail, known as the Pacific Crest Trail, is one of the most difficult hikes, taking four to six months to complete. It passes through twenty-five national forests and seven national parks, making it one of the most serious extreme challenges.
For his first hiking challenge, Lu Ke didn't try to bite off more than he could chew. He chose the section in California, which passes through Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park. He planned to finish the whole trip in about fifteen to twenty days.
On one section of the trail, Lu Ke happened to meet Candice and her companion. At the time, Candice's companion had twisted her ankle, and they had accidentally spilled most of their drinking water. They were in a difficult situation, stuck between a rock and a hard place. Luckily, Lu Ke happened to pass by and offered a helping hand.
Lu Ke first helped with the sprained ankle, then shared some of his drinking water and food. After that, he continued on his way alone, reached the official supply station and campground, and notified the professional rescue team, who went back to help them.
That night, Lu Ke and Candice and her friend reunited at the campground.
Out of genuine gratitude and a similar age, the three young people started talking.
One was a Chinese boy with a dream of playing football, hoping to become the first Chinese player to enter the NFL. One was a country girl from a poor town in South Africa, who longed to make a name for herself in the highly competitive modeling industry. The other was an ordinary girl from a backward small town in the Midwest, who hoped to make a name for herself in Hollywood.
Three young people with dreams, or what could be called impractical and elusive dreams, came together. And with different ideas and goals, they embarked on the Pacific Crest Trail. Through a twist of fate, they had a wonderful conversation.
That night, the three of them talked late into the night. Candice's companion couldn't stay up any longer and went to sleep first, while Lu Ke and Candice sat outside the camp, bathed in starlight, and talked for most of the night until dawn, when they both finally went to sleep.
The next day, Lu Ke got up and went on his way again. The two girls were too weak, and one of them had a sprained ankle, so they stayed at the campground to rest for a few days before continuing their journey.
It was just a chance meeting. After that, they had no contact. In 2004, social media wasn't popular yet. Email and MSN were the mainstream, so they didn't exchange contact information and had no way of finding each other.
Lu Ke and Candice's reunion was another chance encounter.
In the spring of 2005, Candice went to San Francisco for a modeling audition and unexpectedly ran into Lu Ke in Union Square. At the time, Lu Ke was working a part-time job for Valentine's Day, where the pay was about three times the usual rate. So, Lu Ke was dressed in a teddy bear costume, handing out balloons and roses in Union Square, and ushering customers into Macy's.
At the time, Candice was being harassed by a stranger who kept following her and asking for her phone number. Candice repeatedly refused, but the man wouldn't leave her alone. Lu Ke, pretending to be Candice's boyfriend, came out of nowhere, staged a surprise event, gave her a rose, and drove the man away.
This was their second meeting. This time, they exchanged emails and became friends.
Six years passed in the blink of an eye.
In the past two years, Candice had attracted countless eyes. In 2009, at the age of twenty-one, she became one of the five new Angels of "Victoria's Secret." In 2010, which was last year, she officially signed a contract and became a Victoria's Secret runway model, earning the opportunity to walk in the annual fashion extravaganza. Her career was on an unstoppable upward trajectory.
As for Lu Ke, he had just gone through the draft and was unfortunately an undrafted rookie.
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