Chapter 30: Meeting in person
That night, I returned to my B&B, exhausted like a dog that's been walked eight times. All I wanted to do was throw myself into the soft, big bed and lay there. But before I even touched the sheets, an overly energetic large dog grabbed me from behind.
"I'm so tired... Lin Yan... stop making trouble..." I half closed my eyes and pushed him weakly.
Lin Yan's warm lips touched the back of my neck, his voice filled with a hint of dissatisfaction and resentment: "Ruirui, how long have you been walking and you're already so tired? It seems that for our future 'happy life', you really need to exercise more." He paused, and his tone became more persuasive, "Go get a gym membership when you get home and come with me."
Me: “…” I seemed to see the challenging fitness career in the future beckoning to me.
Sure enough, upon returning from our trip, Lin Yan promptly signed up for a two-person annual gym membership. He even chose a high-end gym with state-of-the-art facilities, not far from home and school. From then on, my happy, homebody lifestyle was forced to include a new torture: the gym check-in.
That day, I resigned myself to my fate and stepped onto the treadmill, setting it to the lowest setting. I leisurely sauntered along, like an elderly man taking a stroll. The clanking of plates clattered against each other in the nearby equipment area, and I glanced over boredly. He was a well-trained guy, his muscles defined but not exaggerated, his movements smooth and precise. He clearly had been a regular at the gym. He also looked quite energetic and cheerful.
He had just finished a set of heavy bench presses, sat up panting, and picked up his phone. Perhaps too tired to talk, he used voice-to-text and said to the phone:
"Brother, are you online tonight? Zhou Tian should be fine, right?"
The phone screen faithfully converted his breathy (and a little breathless) voice into text and sent it out.
Then he started complaining again: "Damn, last night's game pissed me off! I met some stupid marksman who was 0-10 and still had the nerve to criticize the support! His awareness is shit, and he relies entirely on his face to take skills! I really want to shove the keyboard in his mouth!"
He was ranting with such passion, spit flying everywhere (even though he was just talking to his phone). At that moment, my phone, like it had been fast-forwarded, started vibrating furiously on the treadmill! The message notifications all rang out in unison!
I was startled, quickly stopped the treadmill, and frantically pulled out my phone. On the screen, a long-dormant gaming group (name: Zuan Nursing Home) exploded, and the latest news was @my:
"@锐不停草! Go online on Sunday and fuck him! I've got that stupid shooter's ID from last night! If you don't kill him and make him quit, I'll kill you!"
"@Unstoppable? Playing dead? Come back quickly!"
"@Sharp Unstoppable bastard, you're picking up girls at the gym? You don't even reply to my messages?"
I:"……"
An extremely absurd premonition washed over me. I looked up suddenly at the muscular man next to me who had just finished a voice message complaining.
Almost at the same time, he heard the unique message alert sound on my phone, which he once complained was "like a tractor starting", and looked up at me in confusion.
The air froze for half a second.
Great shock and disbelief appeared on both faces at the same time.
"What the hell?!" "Fuck! Unstoppable?!"
“Old Dog?!” “Brother Dog?!”
We both shouted out each other's game ID almost at the same time.
It’s a fucking small world!
Who would have thought that two netizens who had been passionate about Zaun and mocked each other's "Goblin Operations" in the game for almost two years would actually meet in real life in this way in the gym of the same school!
"Holy crap! It's really you, Old Dog!" The muscular man (game ID: Berserker Old Dog) looked me up and down with a look of astonishment on his face. "Every day in the group, they say you're a shady, creeping goblin who relies entirely on proxy play! But... you actually look like this?! So white? So... uh... delicate and handsome? (He struggled to find a word) What does this have to do with goblins?"
I was mortified by his gaze, and I retorted bluntly, "Ha, same here! Everyone in the group says you're a keyboard warrior who only knows how to talk big, and you must be a fat otaku in real life! But... your body is so... amazing, old dog! Are you riding a bike under the table while playing games?"
We looked at each other and couldn't help but burst out laughing. What a strange fate! For the next half hour, we didn't even get on the treadmill. We just sat in the lounge, drinking water and furiously complaining about the embarrassing moments and in-game stunts of our other "goblin" teammates. We chatted animatedly, as if we'd known each other for eight hundred years.
On the way back, I was in a good mood and couldn't wait to share this outrageous encounter with Lin Yan.
"Lin Yan! Guess who I met at the gym today? Berserker Old Dog! The one I told you about, the netizen who's awesome at playing top solo and even better at trolling others! He's actually from our school! And he's a big shot at the gym! Hahaha, what a coincidence!"
Hearing this, Lin Yan turned his head and glanced at me. His face still had that gentle smile, but his eyes behind the lenses narrowed slightly, like a fox that had found its prey.
"Oh? Really?" His voice was gentle and meaningful. "Ruirui has a wide circle of friends. Sometimes it's high school classmates, sometimes gaming friends..." He paused and asked casually, "Is your friend... handsome?"
My alarm bells went off! That familiar smell of jealousy! Although he wasn't as crazy as before, the sour tone hadn't changed at all!
My will to survive instantly overwhelmed me, and I immediately declared my opinion firmly: "He's not handsome at all! He's just a big guy! All muscled up. And his face? He's nowhere near as good as yours! He's not even on the same level!" I added, "Really! Believe me! His face is just... just barely presentable! From a distance, he looks like a human, but up close... well, still looks like a human!"
Lin Yan was amused by my exaggerated description, and the curve of his mouth deepened. He seemed quite satisfied with my answer and did not ask any further questions.
However, from that day on, I was horrified to discover that Lin Yan's frequency of going to the gym had increased significantly! And his training intensity had increased significantly! He used to go three or four times a week, but now he'd spend every day there! Every time he came back, his muscles seemed to be more defined, and beneath his sweat-soaked T-shirt, the explosive power was overwhelming.
I vaguely guessed the reason—damn, this idiot was competing with a "big guy" online who he'd never met (in his eyes)! Just because I said he practiced well?!
What’s even worse is that the consequences of this “involution” are directly reflected in…night life.
Can two people who both work out have the same physical strength? Obviously not!
Lin Yan's stamina was already insane before, but now it's even more incredible! His endurance, explosive power, stamina... all improved! Running until midnight was considered intense before, but now? So many times, I watched in despair as the sky outside the window changed from pitch black to deep blue, then to pale white, and finally to full sunlight! He even managed to chuckle effortlessly in my ear, his breath barely audible!
One time, we fucked for almost the entire day! From the bright afternoon sun, to the early evening lights, and then into the dead of night! I wondered if I'd indulged in it too much. Eventually, I couldn't even muster the energy to moan. I collapsed on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, contemplating life.
Lin Yan, that bastard, hugged me contentedly, his fingers occasionally stroking my sweaty waist (which was now much tighter, and he jokingly called it a "certified fitness coach's waist"), and said with a bit of pride: "It seems that the exercise is working well? What do you think, Ruirui?"
What do I think? I feel like if this continues, I'm going to start to wonder if I'm going to die! Who can stand this every time?
Exhausted once again, I collapsed in the bathtub and let Lin Yan wash me. The warm water soothed my aching muscles, and I closed my eyes comfortably, feeling drowsy.
Lin Yan held the shower head and gently washed my back, his eyes falling on the ambiguous marks on my body and the newly added muscles that became more smooth due to exercise. His eyes darkened, and he leaned over to my ear. His voice was filled with the laziness of afterward and a hint of subtle possessiveness, and he chuckled:
"Ruirui looks so good now." His fingers traced the outline of my abdominal muscles. "More powerful than before." He paused and added meaningfully, "But... he still looks the best when I bully him until he has no strength left."
I was so tired that I didn't even have the energy to roll my eyes. I could only snort through my nose: "Get lost...pervert..."
Lin Yan smiled softly and kissed the top of my head: "Well, I'm only perverted towards you." He turned off the shower, wrapped me in a large bath towel, and held me sideways.
The moment my body was lifted into the air, I instinctively put my arms around his neck. Looking at his smooth jawline and the satisfied smile on his face, feeling the steady and powerful strength coming from his arms, the resentment of being "tormented" in my heart inexplicably dissipated.
Forget it… Although the process was tiring like being skinned… but…
I leaned in his arms, smelling the familiar fresh scent on him, and thought vaguely: This guy has a really good body... It's quite comfortable to hug him... and... it seems... he doesn't hate fitness so much?
(Outside the bathroom door, Snowball scratched at the frosted glass door, meowing in dissatisfaction: Shit shoveler! You guys are playing in the water in there without me! Come out and feed the cat!)
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