Public relationship and fans' blessings
Chapter 10: Public Relationship and Fans’ Blessings
The days after Lin Yu and Su Ran confirmed their relationship were like cotton balls coated in frosting—a sweetness tinged with cautious nervousness. They never dared to date near the training base, instead traveling halfway around the city to meet in secluded restaurants or parks. Lin Yu would always arrive half an hour early, confirming there were no familiar faces before messaging Su Ran. Su Ran, in turn, would wear a hat and a mask, and even when he sat down, he would subconsciously observe his surroundings, only letting his nerves relax when Lin Yu pushed a cup of hot milk towards him.
"Next time, let's go see that new sci-fi movie?" After dinner one day, Lin Yu poked at the unfinished cake in Su Ran's bowl, his voice tinged with anticipation. Just as Su Ran nodded, a message popped up on his phone from the team group chat, urging him to return and practice Zhuge Liang. The two hurriedly said their goodbyes. Lin Yu watched Su Ran's hurried departure, feeling a mixture of bittersweetness and warmth in his heart—their love, quietly growing within the cracks of their professional gamer identities, had also instilled a cherishing that others didn't understand.
But the truth will eventually come to light. One weekend afternoon, the two were dining at a secluded private restaurant. Lin Yu was serving Su Ran his favorite sweet and sour pork ribs when a flash of light suddenly appeared outside the window. Su Ran instinctively looked up, only to see a masked figure hurriedly running away. "Oh no, it might be a fan." Lin Yu's heartbeat quickened instantly, and Su Ran put down her chopsticks, her fingertips slightly cold—the thing they had been most worried about had finally happened.
That evening, the photo was posted to the front page of an esports forum. In it, Lin Yu's hand hovered over Su Ran's bowl, the two of them smiling at each other. The tenderness in Lin Yu's eyes and the smile on Su Ran's lips were unmistakable. The post's title was particularly eye-catching: [Shocking! SG Lin Yu and AY Su Ran on a private date, their intimate behavior suggests a relationship!] In just half an hour, the comments exceeded 5,000.
"Am I seeing things right? This is Lin Yu and Su Ran? Aren't they old enemies?"
"The 'Yu Ran CP' I've been fantasizing about for a year is actually real! Who would have guessed this? My hands are shaking now!"
"I object! They are the core players of the opposing team. Will their relationship affect the fairness of the competition?"
"Is the person above overthinking it? The contestants are human too. What's wrong with falling in love? As long as it doesn't interfere with training, just give your blessing!"
"When I saw them passing water to each other after the game, I felt something was wrong. It turns out there was something fishy going on!"
Online discussion flooded in like a tide, with excited CP fans flooding their screens with comments, rational fans worried about the competition, and anti-fans with malicious speculation. The next morning, the coaches of SG and AY spoke with Lin Yu and Su Ran respectively.
"What do you think?" Coach SG placed his phone on the table. The controversial photo was on the screen. His tone was not accusatory, but serious. "If you want to stay together, you must be prepared to face the pressure. If you think it will affect your training, you must make a decision as soon as possible."
Lin Yu sat in his chair, his mind racing back to every moment he'd spent with Su Ran—the late-night video calls they'd used to review games together, the encouraging messages Su Ran had sent when training wasn't going well, the way Su Ran had blushed and said, "I like you, too," the day they confirmed their relationship. He took a deep breath, raised his head, and said firmly, "I want to be with Su Ran, and I won't miss training or competitions."
Elsewhere, Coach AY was also talking to Su Ran. Su Ran clutched the corner of her clothes, her voice soft but clear: "I like Lin Yu. We will separate our relationship from work and won't cause any trouble for the team."
That evening, Lin Yu and Su Ran met at a park they often frequented. Moonlight shone on a bench as they sat side by side, silent. After a long moment, Lin Yu spoke first: "Let's be open." Su Ran turned to look at him, surprise in her eyes. "I don't want to be secretive anymore," Lin Yu said, holding Su Ran's hand, feeling the warmth from his fingertips. "We haven't done anything wrong, there's no need to hide from others." Su Ran looked at Lin Yu's serious gaze and nodded, her uneasiness gradually replaced by determination.
At eleven o'clock sharp, Lin Yu and Su Ran simultaneously updated their social media accounts. The message was a short one-sentence message: "We're together. Thank you for your support and concern. We will continue to work hard to bring you more exciting games on the court." The accompanying photo was a specially taken photo of the two of them—Lin Yu, wearing the red SG uniform, and Su Ran, wearing the blue AY uniform. They stood side by side in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows in the training room, the sunlight falling on them, their smiles bright and open.
The moment the dynamic was released, the server was almost paralyzed. In the comment section, the blessing messages fell like snowflakes:
"It's official! It's official! I've been waiting for it! Lin Yu and Su Ran must be happy!"
"The love story between the Red Team and the Blue Team! What a fantastic plot! I'm going to bow down to them first!"
"I was worried you wouldn't dare to be open about it, but I didn't expect you to be so open and honest. You're definitely fans of the right people!"
"Support you! Looking forward to your 'love-hate relationship' (not) on the court next season!"
Some fans are still worried: "Although I wish you all the best, I'm still worried that your relationship will affect your performance. After all, the competition next season will be very fierce." "I hope you can prioritize and don't let down those who like you."
After seeing these comments, Lin Yu and Su Ran discussed and decided to hold a joint live broadcast to respond. At the beginning of the live broadcast, the two sat in their respective training rooms, with their figures shown on the split screen, and the barrage of comments instantly filled the screen.
"Hello everyone, I'm Lin Yu."
"Hello everyone, I'm Su Ran."
Lin Yu spoke first, his tone gentle: "Thank you all for your blessings and concern. Regarding competition and love, Su Ran and I have a consensus - we will completely separate our relationship from work. We are opponents in training and lovers in private. We will not let our feelings affect our training."
Su Ran then added, "Next season we will work even harder to prove ourselves with our results and not let our supporters down. Furthermore..." He looked towards the camera with a slight smile, "Even though we're rivals on the court, we'll learn from each other and improve together."
During the live broadcast, the two didn't deliberately show affection, but the occasional eye contact when they looked at each other, or the details such as Lin Yu reminding Su Ran "don't drink ice cola", made fans feel their sincerity. Gradually, the voices of doubt became fewer and fewer, and the barrage of comments were filled with blessings such as "so sweet" and "keep it up".
After going public with their relationship, Lin Yu and Su Ran finally stopped hiding. They'd go to a breakfast shop near the training base for soy milk and fried dough sticks. If Lin Yu ran out of time for practice, Su Ran would wait for him at the entrance to the SG base with a hot meal. When Su Ran hit a technical bottleneck, Lin Yu would review games with him late into the night, discussing Zhuge Liang's ultimate angles in front of the screen. They'd occasionally argue over tactical disagreements, but it always ended with Su Ran saying, "Okay, I'll do as you say," and Lin Yu saying, "I'll do as you say next time."
Their teammates quickly accepted their relationship. SG's substitute jungler would often tease Lin Yu, "Brother Yu, didn't Brother Su Ran bring you a heart-warming lunch box today?" AY's mid laner would joke with Su Ran, "Brother Ran, don't go easy on me next time, or Lin Yu will accuse you of being partial." Lin Yu and Su Ran never got angry; they just smiled and responded. The once-serious training atmosphere became more relaxed and enjoyable.
In the blink of an eye, the new season kicked off. The opening match was between SG and AY. Before the match, fans flooded the comment section with comments like "Looking forward to the Yu Ran showdown" and "Don't play too aggressively, remember to stick together after the game." During the match, Lin Yu's Li Bai and Su Ran's Zhuge Liang engaged in a fierce clash. When Lin Yu dove around to cut into the backline, Su Ran would precisely interrupt with his ultimate; when Su Ran tried to harvest, Lin Yu would use his second skill to evade damage. But unlike before, their play was less sharp and more tacitly coordinated.
In the final teamfight, Lin Yu's Li Bai defended the base with all his might, while Su Ran's Zhuge Liang was just a hair's breadth away from destroying the crystal, only to be countered by Lin Yu's ultimate. At the end of the match, SG secured a narrow victory. As is customary, the players exchanged greetings with a handshake. Lin Yu approached Su Ran, reached out and shook his hand, whispering, "Well done!" Su Ran replied, "You too!" Their eyes met, a look of encouragement only they could understand.
Fans in the audience took out their phones to take pictures of this scene, leaving comments filled with "I'm so happy" and "This is the best rivalry and love." They were no longer focused on winning or losing the game, but were more eager to see Lin Yu and Su Ran grow on the court—both as competitors and as lovers who supported each other.
During a post-match interview, a reporter asked Lin Yu, "Was there any pressure playing against Su Ran?" Lin Yu smiled and replied, "Of course there was pressure, but it was more of a motivation. I know that only by becoming stronger can I stand on a higher stage with him." Su Ran was asked the same question in another interview room, and his answer was gentle yet firm, "I was very happy playing against Lin Yu. We were both working hard for our teams and for each other."
Under the moonlight, Lin Yu and Su Ran walked side by side on the way back to the hotel. Lin Yu held a couple's keychain given to him by a fan, one engraved with "Yu" and the other with "Ran". He handed the one engraved with "Ran" to Su Ran, who took it and carefully hung it on her backpack.
"I won't let you win in the next game." Su Ran looked at Lin Yu with a smile in his eyes.
Lin Yu held his hand and said confidently, "I'll wait for you to win."
Their love, born from esports, has grown through understanding, and will continue to shine brighter through their collaboration and competition on the field. Those doubts and concerns they once held have long since transformed into sincere blessings from their fans, accompanying them as they journey even further.
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