Lin Wansheng looked at Mark, hesitated for a moment, and finally spoke.
“Do you train here every morning?”
“I… can I come over and learn what a quarterback needs to do?”
The expression on Mark’s face instantly froze. He couldn’t understand at all why Lin Wansheng would want to do this.
But after mistakenly thinking Lin Wansheng had been targeting his sister earlier, it had turned out to be his sister’s unrequited crush all along, and Lin Wansheng didn’t even know her.
Not to mention that crucial save Lin Wansheng had made during practice.
He broke out in a cold sweat whenever he thought back on it.
If not for that save, he really might have fallen headfirst and ended his career on the spot.
So he looked at Lin Wansheng very seriously and said:
“The quarterback position might seem like the most high-profile one.”
“But if you become a good wide receiver, that’s also excellent.”
“And if your goal is to play professionally, honestly, at least at the college level, wide receivers have an advantage over quarterbacks.”
“Think about it—a college team only has so many scholarship spots for quarterbacks.”
“If they already have a decent starter, the coach won’t want to spend years cultivating a new player from scratch.”
“Many quarterbacks who were elite in high school end up switching positions in college.”
“On the other hand, there are more wide receiver spots, so your chances of getting picked are higher.”
Lin Wansheng knew full well that Mark was speaking from his perspective, sincerely trying to do what was best for him.
But the system was offering far too much.
He looked at Mark and said with an unprecedented seriousness:
“Mark, I know wide receiver and quarterback are two different worlds.”
“But I want to try to understand your world.”
“I want to know what you see when you stand behind the line of scrimmage.”
“How you read the opposing safety’s alignment, how you judge whether a linebacker will blitz.”
“If I can learn to read the defense like you.”
“I can better anticipate the openings.”
“When you need me, I’ll already be in the right place.”
After hearing this, Mark was completely stunned.
He looked at Lin Wansheng, his eyes filled with disbelief and shock.
And a trace of admiration for a worthy opponent.
He had never imagined that a wide receiver would proactively ask to learn a quarterback’s mindset.
He thought for a moment, finally nodded, and agreed to this request that seemed somewhat strange, yet impossible to refuse.
He took another ball from his bag, handed it to Lin Wansheng, and began teaching him the most basic throwing motion.
...
...
...
Meanwhile, at Coach Bob’s new home.
Anna was standing by the huge kitchen island, helping her mom make French toast.
Meanwhile, the younger daughter, Aria, was happily sprawled on the newly bought giant Costco teddy bear on the living room carpet.
Bob walked out of the study holding a cup of coffee.
“Do you know what I admire most about myself?” He walked behind his wife, speaking as he spread his arms wide.
Tina laughed when she heard this. “Because you married such a great wife like me?”
Bob gently hugged his wife from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder.
“Yes, that’s absolutely what I admire most about myself.”
He casually took the coffee pot from his wife and refilled his cup halfway.
Then he said loudly to his daughter who was arranging the plates, “Thanks for helping make breakfast, Anna!”
He turned back, lowered his voice, and whispered in his wife’s ear, “What do you think about going out on a date tonight?”
Holding Tina from behind, the two of them shuffled toward the island as if dancing.
“Yeah, sounds good,” Tina responded with a smile.
“Then we’ll go see a movie.”
“Wow, someone’s in a great mood.”
“Of course,” Bob’s tone was filled with happiness.
“My team won, and we moved into a new house.”
“You’re starting work at the school next week. Things are great for our family now, aren’t they?”
He leaned in closer and whispered, “And then, we… have a little ‘dance’?”
With that, he lowered his head and kissed his wife on the lips.
“Ewwwww!”
Anna saw this scene and immediately covered her eyes in exaggerated horror.
“Can you two control yourselves? There are minors present!”
Hearing their daughter’s complaint, Bob and Tina dissolved into laughter.
In high spirits, Coach Bob drove his aging Ford pickup, taking his daughter Anna to school.
The morning sun was perfect. He rolled down the window, letting the crisp wind blow away the last of his drowsiness.
At an intersection, he stopped for a red light. Beside him, a Chevrolet pickup also pulled to a stop.
An East River Titans logo was plastered on the Chevy’s tailgate.
The driver glanced over at Bob in the driver’s seat and instantly recognized him.
The burly man honked his horn several times. Once Bob looked over, he broke into a wide grin, flashed a brilliant smile, and gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up, shouting through the window:
“Nice job, Coach! Friday night was fucking awesome!”
Bob smiled and waved back.
When the light turned green, he happily stepped on the gas and casually turned on the radio. It was still that same sports channel from before.
Inside the car, the male host’s voice—that had once made him gnash his teeth—sounded again.
But this time, it was completely different from the last.
“…If you missed the Titans vs. Cheetahs game broadcast on NY1 last Friday night, then all I can say is, you missed the most brilliant tactical victory in the New York high school league in the past three years!”
“The Cheetahs aren’t just state champions; in terms of physical advantage, they practically overwhelmed the Titans.”
“For those of you who didn’t watch the game, let me tell you—the Titans beat the crap out of them!”
“They even broke that team apart.”
“After the game, their star quarterback—”
“Beast Mike—beat up that wide receiver who made the mistake in the locker room! He’s been suspended indefinitely.”
Anna, sitting in the passenger seat, subconsciously covered her mouth upon hearing this, her eyes filled with shock.
Bob simply drove calmly, his face betraying no emotion.
The radio host’s voice continued.
“Coach Bob, my God. That defensive scheme in the final quarter was a masterpiece!”
“Here, I want to apologize for my disrespectful remarks toward Coach Bob last week!”
The host paused, then used a dramatically regretful tone to close out today’s show.
“Of course, while we congratulate Coach Bob,”
“let’s also take a moment to lament that young Beast Mike’s career, before it even began,”
“has already ended.”
Starting tomorrow, updates will likely be moved to 8:00 AM. Thank you, everyone~
Please keep reading, and please comment~ Thanks!