CAMP: Chapter 120

The place to eat was on the second floor of the hotel. Luo Mo’s choice of place naturally wasn’t bad. In terms of things like gaining people’s hearts, he never deliberately saved the money of Lin Yan, the boss behind the scenes. The food and drinks were all good and it was almost like a full banquet had been brought to the table.

The players naturally ate happily. After all, they just had gotten rid of the devil’s training and the competition rhythm. They wanted to take advantage of the rare gap before the playoffs, and all the appetite lost due to their nervousness seemed to come back in an instant. They swept up the dishes on the table like bandits entering a village.

There was the previous rule of not bringing alcohol to the table so all the drinks consumed were non-alcoholic. Still, this had no impact on everyone’s mood. After dinner, everyone collectively took the elevator to the seventh floor and headed into the clubhouse box inside the hotel. They didn’t say anything at the dinner table but once they started singing, they couldn’t hold back any longer.

Jian Ye was pushed out as the representative and asked cautiously, “Coach, you see… there is still a period of time until the playoffs. Isn’t it rare for everyone to come out?”

The latter words weren’t asked but Lin Yan quickly understood. He glanced at Jing Yuanzhou beside him with a smile, “Captain Jing, what do you think?”

Jing Yuanzhou was sitting on the edge of a sofa playing with dice. He didn’t lift his head and was obviously absent-minded. “It’s fine.”

Lin Yan relayed it. “Your captain said it is fine.”

Jian Ye originally just wanted to try it. He didn’t expect for the two people to talk so well today and the alcohol ban was actually lifted. He was happy and immediately called for the waiter to place an order. Lin Yan saw that the team members were preparing for a fight and reminded them, “I’m just lifting the ban occasionally. Don’t drink too crazily.”

Jian Ye made an ‘OK’ gesture while Bi Yaohua stopped his ghostly singing to respond, “Don’t worry, Coach. We have a sense of measure!”

Lin Yan retracted his gaze and glanced at Jing Yuanzhou who was still studying the dice and asked with a smile, “What’s wrong? Don’t you like this type of place where young people play?”

Jing Yuanzhou raised his eyes. He met such a knowing look and instantly felt a fire burn up. Lin Yan originally intended to tease this person. Then he saw that Jing Yuanzhou didn’t say anything and he became more interested. He was just about to say something when he saw Jing Yuanzhou suddenly push the dice to him. “Do you want to play?”

Lin Yan lowered his eyes. “I don’t play this very much.”

“It’s simple.  Just compare the numbers.” Jing Yuanzhou pulled a can over and placed it in front of himself. “In any case, the ban is lifted so whoever loses will drink a cup as punishment.”

He seemed to know that Lin Yan was going to say something and added slowly, “You can’t drink and can use juice instead.”

Lin Yan laughed. “You actually like to play this type of game.”

“I don’t like it.” Jing Yuanzhou’s answer was very direct with no hidden meaning at all. “However, the long night is hard to bear. We always have to find something to pass the time. Otherwise, I really can’t wait to go back.”

The words were vague but the single ‘can’t wait to go back’ was enough to make the surrounding restless atmosphere sink into ambiguity. As for what he was waiting for, in fact, the two of them knew.

Last time, it was Lin Yan himself who told Jing Yuanzhou that he would end the trial period if they won the last match of the regular season. The words had already come out and it couldn’t be withdrawn.

Lin Yan felt his throat dry up. He took a cup, poured watermelon juice into it and coughed twice. “Okay, I’ll play with you.”

After some time, the waiter brought over some red wine and beer. Jing Yuanzhou casually grabbed a few bottles as the waiter passed by. Lin Yan saw this and raised an eyebrow. “Why are you taking so much? Are you preparing to lose all night?”

Jing Yuanzhou opened a bottle of red wine and poured a glass. He heard the words and didn’t retort. “Shall we start?”

Lin Yan really had no interest in singing. Compared with the howling Bi Yaohua, he felt much more comfortable being with Jing Yuanzhou. He rolled up his sleeves and revealed a bare arm. “I’m coming!”

Then Lin Yan placed the dice under the lid, shook it violently and opened it. There were two 2s, which was four points.

Lin Yan exclaimed, “F*k?!”

Jing Yuanzhou saw this dissatisfied expression. A smile flashed in his eyes and he casually shook twice. Then he opened it. It was two 1s. This was two points and it was much smaller than a four.

Lin Yan was instantly happy. “Your luck is really bad. You can even lose against this?”

“Yes, I can’t play against you.” Jing Yuanzhou answered and took a drink from the cup beside him.

Lin Yan welcomed it and his interest rose. “Come, continue.”

The two of them played several more rounds and Jing Yuanzhou lost all of them. In such a hot atmosphere, Lin Yan couldn’t help taking off his coat. He replayed what had happened just now and looked at Jing Yuanzhou with a somewhat strange expression. “What type of luck do you have that you can’t even win a game?”

Jing Yuanzhou had drunk some red wine. At this time, he smiled with a vague hint of confusion in his eyes. “Perhaps even God thinks I should be planted in your hands?”

Lin Yan was taken aback by such a sight. If it hadn’t been for the presence of other people, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to control his desire to kiss this man on the spot. In fact, Lin Yan found that it wasn’t the wisest thing to hold a celebration party at this time. It wasn’t just Jing Yuanzhou. He didn’t know when it started but he frequently glanced at the time. He just hoped this evening would pass quickly so they could go back to the base to do things properly.

The faint smell of wine filled the surroundings. Lin Yan’s eyes swept over Jing Yuanzhou. He couldn’t tell if this person was drunk or not. Then he looked down at the empty wine bottle. “Do you plan to keep playing? It isn’t fun if you lose all the time, right?”

If the game continued like this, with Jing Yuanzhou’s excellent ‘luck’, Lin Yan wondered if all the wine in this box would be drunk by Jing Yuanzhou alone.

In contrast, Jing Yuanzhou didn’t hesitate. “Play, there’s nothing else to do anyway.”

It really did seem boring.

Lin Yan suggested, “It is fine to play but we should change the punishment method.”

Jing Yuanzhou didn’t say a word and waited for him to continue. Lin Yan recalled the games he played when he went out to parties with his friends and picked the most effortless option. “Yes, whoever loses will say something good about the other person. It’s fine as long as you make them happy.”

Jing Yuanzhou smiled. “So you like to listen to these things?”

Lin Yan glanced at him.

Jing Yuanzhou told him, “That’s fine, I have no problems.”

A new rule was set and the two men started over. Lin Yan rolled an eight and Jing Yuanzhou got a five. It was a game without a counterattack script. Lin Yan took Jing Yuanzhou’s wine glass and raised his eyes with a smile. “Come on, Captain. Say something nice to listen to?”

Jing Yuanzhou sat watching him. It wasn’t known what this person was thinking but a faint smile flashed in his eyes. Such an expression made Lin Yan’s heart jump slightly. He instinctively wanted to retreat when he saw this man lean forward. The slightly itchy breath came with the low magnetic voice that rubbed against his ear. “Lin Yan, what should I do? I seem to like you more and more…”

Such words seemed to tear away at his sense of reason so that Lin Yan froze in place for a long time. He finally regained his mind as heat rushed through his body. He pushed this person away and instinctively rubbed his face. “That’s it? Your good words are too perfunctory.”

Jing Yuanzhou leaned back against the sofa due to the push. He cleared his throat, which was a bit tight as if to prove his words. “It really isn’t perfunctory.”

He stressed a moment later. “Seriously.”

In the subtle atmosphere, Lin Yan shifted his gaze and picked up the dice. To be honest, he didn’t know why he still insisted on playing the game. Call it a subconscious instinct but it was more like anticipation. It was a type of anticipation toward this man’s mouth Simply put, he wanted to hear Jing Yuanzhou say more.

The one-sided losses continued. Every time he lost a game, the words ‘I like you’ fell out of Jing Yuanzhou’s mouth and lingered in Lin Yan’s ear along with the warm breath. It was like a repeated mantra and all the skin exposed to the environment continued to heat up. It wasn’t just Lin Yan, it was Jing Yuanzhou as well.

The itch in these two people’s hearts was unbearable. It might’ve been Lin Yan’s own rule but on such a specific occasion, it was enough to make everything lose its original meaning. He wanted to control the desire to go back and think of a way to pass the time but as a result, time passing by in this atmosphere was even more difficult to endure.

In the end, the game was unable to go on. It could be felt that both men’s moods were suspended on the edge. They stared at each other for a long time and the sound of ghosts and wolves in the background seemed to disappear. They could only see the deep emotions in each other’s eyes.

Jing Yuanzhou couldn’t bear it and moved to Lin Yan’s side. His fingers gently squeezed the soft neck and his voice and eyes were a bit confused. “What should I do? I really can’t wait.”

The distance was so close that they could clearly feel the ups and downs of each other’s heartbeats. The sudden silence made the atmosphere even more on the edge. They were desperate to confess, to tear apart the last layer of confusion and cast away that final hesitation completely.

Lin Yan was actually a person who paid attention to the formalities. In fact, until now, he was still thinking about what form he and Jing Yuanzhou should use to end this somewhat funny but memorable ‘probation period’ after they returned tonight.

Perhaps it was just due to the noisy atmosphere but such a question had plagued him all night. Due to his stagnant thinking, he couldn’t come up with an answer for a long time. It wasn’t until this moment that he suddenly realized—this matter itself didn’t need any answers.

Sometimes there was a moment when it could feel like everything was just right. Just like now.

There was a fire burning in both men’s eyes. Facing Jing Yuanzhou’s helpless inquiry, Lin Yan couldn’t resist it first. All night, everyone in the box had actually been self-aware. No one bothered the ‘two person world’ of the captain and the coach.

Currently, Bi Yaohua had pulled Chen Yushen over to sing a ‘love song duet.’ Then he unintentionally looked up and got stuck in the middle of the lyrics. He couldn’t help letting out a high note. “Oh f*k—?!”

Far away, he saw Lin Yan suddenly grab the beer on the table and drink it. Next to him, Jing Yuanzhou obviously hadn’t expected such a sudden move. He was too late to stop it and the beer can was thrown to the ground by Lin Yan.

The clear sound rang through the box and accompanied the ghostly call from Bi Yaohua, attracting the attention of everyone present.

Jing Yuanzhou raised his head at the attention only for Lin Yan’s figure to cover up his field of view. It was followed by a deep kiss. The smell of alcohol swept over them and intertwined in one place, dragging the two people holding each other down.

They completely fell.

---

Proofreader: Nao