Chapter Forty-Two: Affection

Last night at the celebration banquet, Lu Jinrong had already reminded Lu Suo not to drink too much—there was a task awaiting him the next day. The task was to attend the closing ceremony of the Provincial Games with Juno, both as athlete representatives, since they had each broken a provincial record.

So, the following morning, while Tian Shiwei, still suffering from last night's hangover and enjoying the rare day off with the whole team, slept like a log, Lu Suo had to get up early and set off for Yang City with Juno.

Today was September 12th, the day the Provincial Games would come to an end.

Sitting in the back seat of the car, Lu Suo gazed at the early morning scenery of Peng City, mind already wandering to the National Games in January—just four months away. Plenty of time, and yet, not much at all.

The past two months of training had given him a foothold in sprinting, but he was still a novice. His victory over Tian Shiwei owed much to luck, but even so, a win was a win. In the next four months, Lu Suo set himself the goal of leaving Tian Shiwei so far behind that he couldn’t even see the dust from his heels—a joke, really, for Tian Shiwei was strong, and to keep beating him would not be easy.

Besides, there were many other formidable opponents across the country. The sprinting standards in Yang City and Peng City were, nationally speaking, rather low...

A yawn sounded beside him.

Lu Suo turned to see Juno, bleary-eyed and half asleep. Clearly, this hour was too early for her as well.

She leaned her head against the window and drifted off. A jolt made her head knock loudly against the glass. Her thick hair did little to cushion the blow. Still groggy, she rubbed her head, looking quite dissatisfied.

“Old Lu, lend me your shoulder.”

Then she shifted over and rested her head on his shoulder. Lu Suo stiffened a little at the contact, catching a faint, fresh scent that was both floral and musky. He glanced down, catching only a glimpse of her face beneath her short hair, like a flower hidden among leaves.

Juno clearly regarded Lu Suo as one of her “bros,” or she wouldn’t have acted so intimately. Of course, Lu Suo was perhaps her closest “bro”—she’d never rest her head on Tian Shiwei’s shoulder, for instance.

And why had Lu Suo surpassed Tian Shiwei in Juno’s heart in such a short time? Perhaps the answer lay in the string of notifications over the past two months: “Juno’s affection for you has increased.”

Lu Suo averted his gaze, trying to relax both mind and body, leaning his head back against the headrest. Gradually, he too drifted off to sleep.

...

Juno woke up.

She felt wonderfully rested.

She seemed to have dreamt of a sumptuous feast.

But her body felt stiff and numb. Wanting to stretch, she suddenly realized that neither the place nor her position was quite right.

She remembered, in her half-asleep state, borrowing Lu Suo’s shoulder...

How embarrassing!

She immediately sat up straight.

Her abrupt movement woke Lu Suo as well. He stirred and opened his eyes.

Just as Juno was about to say something to break the awkwardness, she caught sight of a mark—and her face instantly flushed hot as if she were steaming.

On Lu Suo’s shoulder was a damp patch.

Oh no...

She immediately recalled dreaming of that feast, and now her face wasn’t the only thing burning—her brain was boiling too.

“You’re awake?” Lu Suo asked, and noticing her staring at his shoulder, added, “Don’t worry, it’ll dry soon.”

Of course Lu Suo had felt Juno’s drool—she must’ve missed breakfast and dreamt of food.

Juno’s face turned even redder. She tried to act calm, patting his shoulder in apology, then wiping at the spot, as if she could make it dry faster. Seeing that the mark remained, she wiped it a few more times.

...

Thanks to her diligent efforts, Lu Suo’s shirt was dry by the time they got out of the car—though perhaps the credit belonged more to Yang City’s early-morning heat, which lingered even at twenty-something degrees.

The closing ceremony was dreadfully dull.

As audience members, it might have been enjoyable to watch the performances; as participants waiting backstage, Lu Suo and Juno could only linger behind the scenes.

Their role was in a group singing segment. There’d been no rehearsal, but it didn’t matter—just move your lips, nobody cared if they sang off-key. After all, they were athletes, not singers.

“So boring...” Juno complained.

Lu Suo nodded in agreement.

“Let’s just sneak out,” Juno suddenly suggested.

What? Lu Suo looked at her—he genuinely hadn’t considered that option.

“Come on! Old Lu, let’s go have Yang City’s famous sweet and sour pork with pineapple!” Juno perked up at the mention of food.

“Calm down,” Lu Suo tried to reason. “We got up at five in the morning, took a car here for the closing ceremony, have been waiting three hours, and haven’t even had a sip of water...” The more he spoke, the more he felt a surge of irritation.

Damn, if the event was at ten, why drag them all the way from Peng City so early?

Lu Suo wasn’t one to sit quietly either. He looked at Juno, and she met his gaze—together, their eyes exchanged mutual annoyance and dissatisfaction, forming an unspoken pact. Let’s go!

So, an hour before the group singing, when the director came backstage to call out names, he found two missing.

Meanwhile, Lu Suo and Juno were already wandering the streets and alleys of Yang City.

“The first thing to do in Yang City is have morning tea!” Juno declared.

Lu Suo agreed. Having grown up in Peng City, he was no stranger to the local food culture; the tradition of morning tea was a perfect remedy for their rumbling stomachs. Soon, they were seated in a restaurant, their table covered with a dazzling array of plates and steamers.

“Don’t hold back, it’s my treat,” Juno said. “My family owns businesses here—consider me the host.”

“Then I won’t hold back!” Lu Suo was already famished.

And so, the two tore through dish after dish.

An athlete’s appetite is no small thing.

Soon, their table was stacked high with empty steamers and plates, and other diners couldn’t help but stare.

Feeling cheerful, Juno suggested, “Wanna make it a contest?”

Lu Suo glanced at his status bar, which had activated, and replied with a smile, “Sure!”

...

Originally, the goal for the day was to try the local specialty, sweet and sour pork with pineapple.

But starting with morning tea made perfect sense.

After eating, a walk to digest was in order—so they headed to Happy World amusement park, which also made sense.

Since they were there, why not try the rides with grand titles: the vertical roller coaster dubbed “King of Coasters,” the Guinness-record-holding Ten-Loop Coaster, the Motorbike Coaster, the U-Shaped Board, the Giant Swing, 4D cinema, and so forth? All perfectly logical.

Each time they finished a ride, Juno would habitually ask, “Wanna make it a contest?”—competing to see who’d get dizzy or throw up first on the roller coasters. And so, on Lu Suo’s side of the status bar, “Juno’s affection for you has increased” popped up again and again. All perfectly logical.

That day, Juno’s affection rose as quickly as it had over the previous two months.