As the sun began to set, Yang Yang and Vermaelen left De Toekomst and walked side by side toward the bus stop at the intersection.
Yang Yang was juggling the ball as usual. After four months of training, it had almost become instinctive.
Vermaelen watched Yang Yang with interest, always feeling that this teammate was strange and contradictory.
Normally, anyone able to join Ajax, even the Second Team, was an outstanding player among his peers. Yet Yang Yang was still doing this dull, tedious basic training. It was genuinely hard to understand.
"How did you come to Ajax?" Vermaelen finally gave in to his curiosity and asked.
After spending the entire day together, especially after the training session, Yang Yang and Vermaelen had clearly grown much closer. After thinking it over, Yang Yang told him everything about his time in Almere, leaving out only the Super Training Ground.
The Belgian was left dumbfounded. He had never expected Yang Yang to have completed the leap from Almere to Ajax in just four months. It was a hurdle countless professional players could not clear even after more than a decade.
"When I get the chance, I'll definitely visit that Skate Park and see your masterpiece." Vermaelen laughed.
He was referring to the Graffiti Wall Yang Yang had mentioned.
"What about you? How did you come to Ajax?" Yang Yang asked while juggling the ball.
"Me?" Vermaelen thought hard for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't know either. One day, some guy claiming to be an Ajax scout suddenly approached me. Then the next day, the club I was playing for told me they had decided to sell me to Ajax. They never asked for my opinion from start to finish."
"But afterward, someone from Ajax told me that because of