Come on, do it like me. Ah-[Second update]
Of course, Lu Yuanqiu hadn't participated in either of those sports meets.
The girl with glasses on the podium read the messages of encouragement with tremendous enthusiasm.
She had also noticed that the boy on the track was the one who had snatched her microphone yesterday. As she read, she couldn't help diverting some of her attention his way.
Huh? He's that fast? I didn't expect him to be so good.
Soon, the second lap began. Lu Yuanqiu clenched his teeth, veins bulging, and launched into a four-hundred-meter sprint.
An engine-like growl came from beside him. Mao Sheng turned to look with a solemn expression, solemnly watched Lu Yuanqiu slowly overtake him, and solemnly stared at Lu Yuanqiu's back!
With that same solemn expression, he was left in Lu Yuanqiu's dust!
Impossible!
This is absolutely impossible!
Mao Sheng thought this with the utmost solemnity.
Before the race, Lu Yuanqiu had been so timid that he hadn't even dared look at him.
Could he have been playing weak to catch me off guard?!
Damn you, Lu Yuanqiu! You don't play fair!
Mao Sheng solemnly cursed him inwardly.
Damn, this physical boost from being reborn feels amazing!
Lu Yuanqiu raced ahead in first place, cackling Heh heh heh to himself.
It wasn't so outrageous that he could compete with national or world champions, but it still surprised him.
Really, what pleased him most was the miraculous ability his rebirth had given him: dunking.
That miraculous skill alone could make him famous throughout Lucheng No. 7 Middle School, among boys and girls alike. No exaggeration. Absolutely none.
Of course, he would need an official basketball game to show it off.
On the second lap, Lu Yuanqiu crossed the finish line first without any suspense.
He panted heavily like an ox, one hand braced against his waist, his foot planted on the finish line like a king. A faint haze of heat rose from his broad back.
The eight-hundred-meter race was one of the meet's most popular events. Whenever it took place, it was bound to draw attention.
Quite a few girls were already looking at Lu Yuanqiu differently.
This was the perfect moment for hormones to surge.
"Lu Yuanqiu! You're amazing! I love you to death, you little rascal!"
His homeroom teacher, Liu Wei, shouted and jumped for joy like a child.
Lu Yuanqiu cocked an eyebrow at her smugly.
Everyone in Class 28 cheered for Lu Yuanqiu, except Zhang Bowen.
Zhang Bowen suddenly wondered whether he really was suited to being the class sports representative.
But Lu Yuanqiu had long since stopped caring whether he held that position.
There was only one thing about it that mattered to him.
Someone had supported him once. That was enough.
The boy happily looked toward the girl at the back of the crowd. After taking first place, his first thought was to share his joy with Bai Qingxia.
When Bai Qingxia saw him looking her way, her slender figure no longer seemed quite so lonely. She quickly raised the two bottles of Scream in her hands and gave them a gentle shake, signaling to him a little shyly.
Oh? She bought me drinks?
Lu Yuanqiu hurried over.
By the finish line, Class 29's homeroom teacher, Cao Yan, stared in surprise at Mao Sheng as he finished second. "How did you get left behind? The eight hundred meters is your specialty."
Liu Wei was still smiling smugly at her from nearby.
Cao Yan ignored her, then suddenly heard her solemn student say, "Lu Yuanqiu... Lu Yuanqiu was pretending to be weak... He... he made me let my guard down!"
You've been reading too many novels... Still, Cao Yan turned to look at the tall boy.
She was a little puzzled. As she remembered it, this student named Lu Yuanqiu had never shown enthusiasm for anything before, much less entered an event at the sports meet.
Why had he become so much more conspicuous this semester?
It didn't matter.
However good he was at sports, his grades were still dead last.
Whatever face Class 29 lost to Class 28 at the sports meet, they would win it back with their class average on the major exams.
Seemingly reassured by that thought, Cao Yan gained a little more confidence as she looked at Liu Wei.
Hah, Liu Wei, you think having Bai Qingxia is enough?
As long as Lu Yuanqiu is still in your class, you'll never get that average up!
The top student in the year and the very worst are both in your class. I really don't know whether to congratulate you or pity you.
"You bought me drinks?"
Lu Yuanqiu looked at the bottles of Scream in Bai Qingxia's hands in surprise.
The girl lifted her eyes to him, a few strands of hair fluttering in the breeze and brushing against her delicate, fair face.
Bai Qingxia nodded gently and quickly held out both bottles. "They're for you."
"There are two. Let's have one each."
Lu Yuanqiu took only one.
But Bai Qingxia shook her head. "I'm not having any. They're both for you."
Lu Yuanqiu teased her with a smile. "Wow, look at you now that you've earned some money. But I really can't drink two bottles."
Bai Qingxia looked shy for a moment, then refused to accept that. She quickly pushed the second bottle into his arms and said earnestly, "Then drink it this afternoon."
Lu Yuanqiu suddenly thought she was a little like his grandmother.
The old woman was always secretly slipping him tens of thousands in spending money. Every time, Lu Yuanqiu would say helplessly, "Grandma, I really can't spend all this."
His grandmother would glare sternly at him. "Then take your time spending it. Hurry up and put it away before your parents see."
Just now, Bai Qingxia had seemed so much like his grandmother.
But although Lu Yuanqiu didn't dare argue with his grandmother, surely he could argue with the girl in front of him?
"You. Drink it. We're having one each, understand? I'm not asking."
Lu Yuanqiu's expression was stern. He knew those two bottles must have cost Bai Qingxia what she would normally spend on five or six days of meals, and she probably hardly ever had drinks like these herself.
Hearing Lu Yuanqiu give an order, the girl instinctively didn't dare disobey.
She nodded. "All right."
Holding the Scream, Bai Qingxia twisted the cap, instinctively narrowing her lovely eyes as she exerted herself. The cap opened with a crack, but she discovered another layer of plastic film underneath.
Bai Qingxia stared at it blankly, unsure how to drink it.
Wasn't she supposed to be able to drink it as soon as she opened the cap?
She looked up at Lu Yuanqiu and saw him slowly unscrew his cap, then peel off the film by hand.
Bai Qingxia hurried to copy him. After removing the film, she brought the opening toward her lips. Lu Yuanqiu quickly stopped her with a smile. "Wait, wait. That's not how you drink it."
The girl held the drink out to him with both hands, an embarrassed little
smile on her face. Drawing her neck in slightly, she cautiously glanced up at Lu Yuanqiu and explained, "I... I've never had this before."
Lu Yuanqiu laughed. "Neither have I. I've seen Zhong Jincheng and the others drink it this way. It's pretty fun. Here, let me show you."
Lu Yuanqiu suddenly felt a sting in his nose.
She spent several days' worth of meal money to buy me two bottles of an "expensive" drink she's never even tried.
What have I, Lu Yuanqiu, ever done to deserve being treated so well by such a wonderful girl?
Putting the cap back on, Lu Yuanqiu squeezed the bottle and squirted the drink into his mouth.
Bai Qingxia's eyes lit up as she watched. She quickly lowered her head to inspect the bottle's nipple-like spout in surprise. "So there's a hole here."
"Right. You try it too."
As Lu Yuanqiu spoke, he opened his mouth with an "Ah" and squirted the drink inside.
Bai Qingxia felt too embarrassed to do that in public. She held the bottle in both hands, and Lu Yuanqiu lifted her arm a little, encouraging her. "Come on, do it like me. Ah-"
Bai Qingxia raised her hands too, opened her little mouth, and let out an "Ah-"