The endless interviews are endless, the endless stream of congratulations is completely overwhelming, and countless noises are constantly swirling and stirring above the eardrums, Lu Ke strongly suspects-

Isn't this an away game? Where did so many people come to congratulate you? Those away staff came over to congratulate them, is this really good? If he's not mistaken, they seem to be sworn enemies in the same area, and they're the kind of people who have a long history of grudges, so what's going on?

Finally, Lu Ke got rid of the entanglement of reporters and returned to the locker room, all the noise was blocked out of the door panel, and the world was finally quiet.

Nearly an hour has passed since Sam Bradford's last pass was intercepted, and the continuous outburst of adrenaline has never stopped.

Not to think, but to be empty.

Throughout the long season, his mind was filled with all sorts of tactics, and he was even dreaming of watching the game footage – literally a real experience, and now he needs to enjoy a moment of blankness, thinking about nothing, doing nothing, and just letting go completely.

The huge visiting dressing room was empty, everyone was still outside for interviews and celebrations, and the noise of the stadium could be faintly heard shaking the air along the water pipes and through the concrete walls, but it did not seem noisy at all, but it accentuated the silence of the spacious space.

Little by little, the focus and focus of the eyes spread, and then slowly I became distracted.

"Babble", the sound of the door opening and closing quietly surged in the locker room, stirring up a faint echo, and the small sounds seemed to be amplified dozens of times, which made Lu Ke's thoughts instantly return to his head, and he followed the sound to cast his gaze, and then saw Alex Smith who appeared in front of him.

Alex's steps forward involuntarily stiffened in place, as if in slow motion, slowly put down, and looked at Lu Ke in a daze, the expression on his face had not yet had time to fully recover, adding a touch of embarrassment.

Obviously, Alex didn't expect that Lu Ke would stay alone in the locker room, instead of standing outside to receive applause and flowers, for a while, his thoughts were so stuck, he pointed to the back, and then to the front, trying to say something, but he couldn't make a sound at all, and the gestures only brought a sense of emptiness.

Realizing that he was embarrassed and jerky, Alex closed his eyes and sighed softly in frustration, as if he was a little embarrassed.

Alex didn't expect it, and neither did Lu Ke.

However, looking at Alex's movements, Lu Ke was the first to come back to his senses and asked aloud, "What, those reporters are willing to let you go?" ”

Today's second half of the game was crucial for Alex, who was not at the top of his game, but still maintained his good form, and in the upcoming playoffs, Alex is bound to have more attention. The reporter asked Lu Ke just now, presumably they will not let go of the parties either.

"No, they're like a swarm of flies, you can't get rid of them." After breaking the deadlock, Alex also returned to his normal state, waved his hand lightly, and said with a smile, "I finally had to push Michael and Vernon to them to get out, what about you?" I'm sure the journalists won't want you to leave. ”

"At the very least, they won't grapple any more ferociously than the Baltimore crows." Lu Ke shrugged his shoulders and complained to himself, causing Alex to chuckle.

After laughing, the atmosphere gradually settled. Alex didn't answer, not because he didn't want to, but because he didn't know what to say.

While they are not enemies, they are not friends either.

After the loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth week of the regular season, the barriers and alienation between them have been broken, and as the season progresses, the two gradually communicate more, and Alex is very happy to pass on his game experience to Lu Ke, and Lu Ke is also very happy to discuss the tactical manual with Alex.

However, all this is limited to the training ground and the field.

All communication between the two is limited to rugby, extremely professional and dedicated; They have never communicated with each other about private matters outside of the game, and their understanding of each other is infinitely close to zero.

Among the 49ers, the relationship between the three backup quarterbacks and Lu Ke is particularly clear, and Colin Kaepernick is the most distant, just training silently, with little to no communication; Scott Tolsin is the closest to him, and a group of rookie players often meet, often hold tactical meetings, and are friends in private.

Alex's position is not far away, it happens to be in the middle, in fact, it is a simple colleague relationship. Friendly, but not close. Once the topic leaves rugby, the atmosphere becomes jerky.

"I'll go take a shower first." Alex stiffly changed the subject and spoke dryly.

Lu Ke nodded in affirmation, "I'll sit down for a while." ”

"Probably not to look through the playbook, right?" Alex made a rare joke and joked.

Lu Ke didn't care, but patted the position next to him and signaled, "How about it, join together?" ”

"Oh! No! Alex waved his hand again and again, and then with a look of admiration and insensitivity on his face, he stepped back again and again, making a big circle, as if he wanted to avoid Lu Ke, the simple sigh and exaggerated expression formed a huge gap, and the two of them both laughed.

After a little joke, Alex walked straight in the direction of the bathroom, but his footsteps stopped hesitantly at the door, and after thinking about it, Alex turned around and said in a loud voice to the landing, "After the season is over, I should transfer away." ”

It's a secret for the time being.

It's not a hard and fast rule for every professional player to keep as many secrets as possible until the transfer is completed, but it's the norm. Of course, if you tear your face with the team, or deliberately let out the wind for the sake of salary increase, or other special circumstances, it will be a different matter.

Alex falls into the former.

The transfer matter has not been completely confirmed for the time being, only he and his agent know, and there is no rumor.

Although Alex himself didn't know why he wanted to tell Lu Ke at this moment, they couldn't even be considered friends; But his intuition was what he thought it was, so he said it calmly.

Perhaps, because they are comrades-in-arms, and Lu Ke has always been upright and fair, and has won the respect of the team with his strength and hard work, including him.

Sometimes, deep down, Alex quietly breeds a wave of envy. Not because of technical or tactical abilities, but because of Lu Ke's boldness, boldness and determination at the critical moment of the game, always burst out with an indomitable courage, and the perseverance and aura between killing and decisiveness have become the key to reversing the disadvantage.

That's exactly what he doesn't have.

As the saying goes, character determines fate. Alex couldn't help but wonder if he could be as decisive and resolute as Lu Ke, would his career be completely different?

Suddenly, Lu Ke was a little surprised, turned to look at Alex, and couldn't express his surprise between his eyebrows, "Are you sure?" ”

Alex nodded in the affirmative, then smiled slightly, "Or would you rather give me the starting position?" ”

Lu Ke spread his hands and said sincerely and firmly, "On the court, you will decide the winner with your strength." ”

It is such a calm and confident posture, such a posture of going all out, imperceptibly, which makes people impressed.

Alex chuckled twice, didn't answer, but changed the subject, "Here, even if I try my best, I may not be able to fight to a position that belongs to me; But there are 31 other teams in the league, and a lot of them need quarterbacks, and I'm still young, so I can still find opportunities and I can stand on the court as a starter. ”

There was a slight pause in the words, Alex seemed to stop talking, and the next words did not match his personality, but after hesitation, he gritted his teeth and said firmly, "I still want to stand on the court again, face to face with you, and then beat you with dignity." ”

After all, Alex was still unwilling; After all, Alex still has ambitions; After all, Alex is still trying.

That's a good thing.

Because for professional players in competitive sports, it's a brutal world of winning and losing. When they give up competition, when they give up hard work, when they give up ambition, what they enjoy and chase is already different.

That's the case with Payton Manning this season. Everyone chose to give up, no one was optimistic about his future, but he always refused to surrender, and he has been rehabilitating and recovering all the time, because he knows that if even he chooses to give up, then his career will come to an end.

The same goes for Alex Smith.

Partings and reunions, beginnings and ends, farewells and rebirths, it's all part of the professional league.

At the beginning of the college game, he said goodbye to John Ward, and also said goodbye to most of the players of the Bruins, and went their separate ways; Now in San Francisco 49ers, after the end of the season, they have to face the same problem, it's not a fairy tale, everyone can love each other for a lifetime.

It's just that Lu Ke didn't expect that the parting would come so quickly, and the first person to choose to say goodbye was Alex.

But when you think about it, it shouldn't come as a surprise. Alex is only 27 years old this year, and has just entered the prime of his career as a quarterback, and since he can't find his chance at the San Francisco 49ers, it is only natural to choose another team as a way out.

If you think about it from another perspective, Lu Ke may also choose to leave. So, the parting prelude was played.