03

The leaping river and sea, the waving river and sea, the pursed-lip river and sea, the drinking river and sea, the sweating river and sea... The river and sea, the river and sea, "river and sea" scattered all over the ground

Gu Xinlie fell silent, staring at me with a hesitant expression. His teammates were urging him loudly not far away. I let out a chuckle, stood on my tiptoes, and patted his shoulder: "Alright, if you want to watch the NBA, come to America and we can go together."

I looked at him speechlessly: "I have no interest in basketball."

I just remembered the joke I made before playing basketball this afternoon, saying "If I win, you have to treat me to barbecue," but I clearly lost

The path I have chosen appears both solitary and winding, lacking abundant sunlight and dew, devoid of much laughter and joy. However, I turn my head to look at the river and sea walking alongside me, his bangs falling into his eyes, resembling a shattered moon.

Fool, I just wanted to see Rukawa Kaede

Do you want to hit?" He asked me again.

I said.

"Good." He nodded.

What are you doing? I frowned impatiently

So in this last physical education class, I set up the easel as usual and tied my hair up in preparation to begin work

"Hmm," he said flatly, then closed the book in his hands, "Let me treat you to barbecue."

I smiled as I shook hands with him, then walked out of the gymnasium with my easel, ready to enjoy my alma mater once more. As I passed by the basketball court, I inadvertently turned my head and saw a group of young boys fiercely competing on the court. Just then, a basketball rolled to my feet, and I bent down to pick it up. A boy ran up to me and apologetically said, "I’m sorry."

I was taken aback, stealing a glance out of the corner of my eye, and then I looked again at Jiang Hai. He, however, remained unfazed, calmly squatting down to pick up the sheets of paper one by one, folding them neatly, and placing them back into my drawing board.

However, it has been proven that the structure of my brain is exactly the same as that of Gu Xinlie, and is completely unusable. After ten minutes, I suffered a devastating defeat. Jiang Hai actually used only his right hand the entire time; indeed, Jiang Hai is left-handed.

If I win, I thought, you can treat me to barbecue

As a loyal follower of Jiang Hai, I unreservedly take up the racket, filled with confidence, ready to engage him in a fierce battle of three hundred rounds

Oh, it is like this, "He is somewhat rambling, probably not even aware of what he is saying," don't forget to go to Los Angeles for this year's NBA season, the Rockets have a game.

But didn't you used to really enjoy watching "Slam Dunk"?

I was taken aback! I hurriedly stood up and ran my hand through my disheveled hair, but in my excitement, my knee bumped into my easel, which fell to the ground with a loud "bang," causing all the paintings inside to tumble out.

"Jiang He." Jiang Hai rarely took the initiative to call out to me; he walked over to my side and handed me the racket, saying, "Let's play a game."

I stood in the gentle breeze of May, bidding farewell to my parallel self.

Jiang Hai and I still seem somewhat out of place among them. Typically, during physical education classes, girls often pair up in twos or threes to play badminton. However, since middle school, Jiang Hai and I have been habitually unaccepted by our classmates. At first, I decisively chose to skip classes. In contrast, Jiang Hai's solution to this predicament is evidently much more adept than mine; he plays squash alone in the gym.

The serve is mine, but I am somewhat distracted, repeatedly hitting the ball out of bounds. When I attempt a backhand, I even swing my racket out of my hand. Jiang Hai quickly scores nine points, and as he tosses the ball, he walks up to me and says, "Let's play together again after going to the United States."

As the college entrance examination approaches its final sprint phase, teachers begin to assertively take over physical education classes. Therefore, when a physical education class finally survives, the entire class rushes out like a group of gorillas that have been confined in a zoo for a month.

He then turned back, walking while not forgetting to justify himself: "Hey, it's not like I have to see it."

He stood with his hands on his hips and laughed heartily: "I am a genius!"

In that moment, I suddenly felt a bit dazed. If I had not encountered Jiang Hai, if I had chosen a mundane path, then I too should be one of them now, freely enjoying youth, without so many halos above my head, and without having to experience the pain of forcing growth.

Really?" He widened his eyes in surprise, "What you said.

However, I still prefer my current self

"Hit, of course hit!" I nodded vigorously, "If I win, treat me to barbecue."

Then, with my drawing board on my back, I bounced back to my world. It was already after school hours, and the classroom was empty. I was surprised to find Jiang Hai still sitting in his seat: "Why haven't you left?"

Well

I raised my head and exchanged glances with Gu Xinlie

Since that day, I knew not to humiliate myself by relying on my athletic abilities in front of Jiang Hai. Fortunately, I have never known what it means to give up in my life. The next time I had physical education class, I brought a sketchpad and sat on the gym floor to draw quick sketches. Jiang Hai's smooth calf lines, Jiang Hai's chin glistening with sweat, as I drew, I couldn't help but marvel at how Jiang Hai truly represents the pinnacle of God's creation.

"Wait a moment." He took the ball, turned around and threw it to a teammate still on the court, then looked back at me, unsure of what he wanted to say

He was wearing a white sports tank top, looking quite presentable. It turned out that our physical education classes were at the same time, and I had never noticed this in three years. I was in a good mood and did not seek to pick a fight with him, simply handing him the ball.

Indeed, Jiang Hai and I have a long, long time ahead of us

I smiled and set down the drawing board: "Alright."

The girls in middle school uniforms surrounded the court tightly, cheering loudly for Gu Xinlie. He smiled and raised his arms, high-fiving each of his teammates.

I stood on the steps watching their game for a while. Gu Xinlie made a layup in three steps, his wrist flicking gently, and the basketball traced a beautiful arc in the air, landing steadily in the hoop. Suddenly, I recalled the days six or seven years ago when we hid under the desk to secretly watch "Slam Dunk." Sakuragi Hanamichi practiced shooting day and night, making twenty thousand shots, and in the end, he stood on the court, shattering everyone's expectations.

Are you waiting for me