Chapter 741: An Offering of Friendship
Pushing open the door to the visiting team's locker room, a bustling wave of heat rushed out. The players who had finished their interviews and returned to the locker room early were chattering enthusiastically about the game's details: the thrilling, the exciting, the funny, the embarrassing... and so on. Because they had successfully started the season with a win, everyone's mood was naturally joyful.
Lu Ke stood at the door and scanned the room, but he didn't see Randy Moss. He grabbed LaMichael James, who was wobbly and about to go shower, and asked a question. LaMichael, without much thought, pointed to the corner near the northeast. "Randy's locker is over there. He went straight there after he came in."
Lu Ke took two steps to his left and saw Moss standing in front of his locker. Because of the angle, the two big guys, Isaac Sopoaga and Ray McDonald, were blocking his view, so he hadn't seen Moss.
Lu Ke patted LaMichael's shoulder to thank him and strode toward Moss.
LaMichael hummed a little tune carelessly, twirling his towel as he continued on his way.
As a rookie who had just joined the team this year, and for a position as competitive as running back, most of his time during a short training camp was spent memorizing the playbook. Even if he had heard about the commotion within the team, he wasn't sensitive enough to it.
But slowly, LaMichael realized something was wrong. Huh, why is everyone staring at me? Is my... towel on the floor? And is everyone shocked because of my size?
LaMichael subconsciously tugged at his towel, confirming it was still in the right place, and felt a little relieved.
Then what's going on?
LaMichael looked up and around the locker room and realized that everyone's eyes were not on him but on Lu Ke, who was not far behind him. Because their paths had crossed, he had been mistaken about their positions, which led to his illusion. But... something was still not right. Why was everyone staring at Lu Ke?
LaMichael simply stopped and turned around, following everyone's gaze. He then saw Ahmad Brooks coming from the side, blocking Lu Ke's path.
For LaMichael, it was inexplicable. The air in the locker room became tense. He could clearly feel the chattering in the locker room slowly, slowly dying down. There were still some whispers, but the feeling of collective attention shifting was too obvious. This made LaMichael feel nervous as well.
What's going on?
The same question appeared in Lu Ke's head. He looked at Brooks in confusion. "What's wrong?"
"...How was the interview? Was everything smooth?" Brooks stuttered a bit, but he managed to force a sentence out at the critical moment. Although it was a bit awkward, it was better than nothing. He gave a big smile and added, covering his panic, "I mean, did that annoying reporter from Sports Illustrated give you any more trouble?"
The conversation was back on track.
Lu Ke didn't overthink it. The whole team knew about Harry Evans. They often joked about him in the locker room. "Ha, today he said that I was the one who forced Alex Smith out, and he even vividly described how I used my Asian identity to pressure him through my agent and drive Alex away."
Such an absurd rumor was clearly meant to stir up trouble, but it wasn't a threat to Lu Ke at all. He continued to describe the little incident with a big smile and a relaxed tone. "I replied that if I had that kind of power, the first thing I would do is refuse any form of interview from Sports Illustrated."
"Haha!" Brooks couldn't help but clap and laugh. "I can just imagine Harry Evans's face."
Lu Ke spread his hands with an innocent expression. "I was trying my best not to hurt him. But overall, everything was fine. The questions today were mostly about the game. They were finally professional for once." While joking with a smile, Lu Ke took another step, bypassing Brooks, and continued on his way.
But Brooks turned around and took two big steps to get in front of Lu Ke again, blocking his path.
After two consecutive identical actions, Lu Ke also realized something was wrong. He looked at Brooks in confusion and asked, "Ahmad, are you okay?"
Brooks opened his mouth, trying to find another excuse, but under Lu Ke's gaze, he finally failed. He scratched his head in frustration and lowered his voice. "Bambi, are you sure? He's not an easy player to get along with. We should be enjoying the joy of victory right now. Let's deal with other things later, don't you think?"
Lu Ke immediately understood.
As a locker room leader, Brooks wasn't the serious and stern type. More often than not, he would crack jokes and lighten the mood. His motivational speeches and humorous remarks at critical moments could often fill the locker room and training field with laughter, minimizing friction between rookies and veterans.
At this moment, Brooks was worried about a conflict between Lu Ke and Moss.
After a full season together, the veterans, including Brooks, knew that Lu Ke seemed like a harmless, gentle scholar on the surface, but he hid a tough and unyielding spirit underneath. He wasn't afraid of conflict, nor would he avoid it. In a head-on confrontation, he could even hold the upper hand.
In other words, both Lu Ke and Moss were individuals with strong personalities and sharp edges. If they clashed, it would be a major collision. Compared to this, the locker room issues from last season seemed like child's play.
So, Brooks came to mediate immediately. He knew Lu Ke was not an unreasonable person, but as for Moss... no one was quite sure.
After joining the 49ers, Moss had always maintained his eccentric behavior. Not in a way that he completely refused to communicate with teammates, but in a way that he always maintained a high and unapproachable attitude.
On the training field, he mainly communicated with a small group of Black players. This wasn't racial discrimination, but because the 49ers' wide receivers and offensive linemen were predominantly Black. This was basically his work circle and his social circle. Off the field, he was mostly a loner, rarely talking to anyone except Vernon Davis.
His reputation preceded him.
As one of the league's top and most legendary wide receivers, there was more or less a sense of distance between him and the young 49ers team. It could be called admiration, or it could be called being unfamiliar. After all, many players on the team had indeed "grown up watching Moss play."
Brooks still hoped to avoid unnecessary conflict.
Facing Brooks's concerns, Lu Ke laughed. "Ahmad, we can't choose not to get along just because he's difficult. I think today's game might actually be a breakthrough. I want to try."
During the offseason and preseason, the 49ers had several get-togethers, both team-wide and for the offense. They had invited Moss several times and even used Vernon to connect with him, but Moss never showed up. The attempt to bridge the gap with alcohol had failed.
This meant that conventional methods were not working.
They had originally thought that building camaraderie through the game would be the best method. Being fully immersed in the game, the bond of fighting side-by-side could easily unite everyone. But today's game started with a dispute and another dispute, and things went off track again.
As Lu Ke said, maybe this was the breakthrough. It was like with men, sometimes all it takes is a good fight to vent all the emotions, and many problems can be solved.
Brooks tried to argue, but he couldn't find the words.
Lu Ke patted Brooks's arm and took another step.
This time, Brooks hesitated but ultimately did not stop him.
Unconsciously, all the noise in the locker room disappeared. Everyone's eyes were fixed on Lu Ke as he gradually approached Moss, who had his back to the locker room.
One was a league legend, arguably the biggest star on the 49ers team. The other was a rising star, but he was holding an increasingly important core position on the team. Now, these two players were about to clash head-on, and no one could predict what the outcome would be.
"Hey, Randy." Lu Ke stopped. He didn't hesitate and took the initiative to greet him.
"Huh!" A collective gasp was heard in the locker room. They hadn't expected Lu Ke to be so direct. What should they do now?
The sound of their breathing was too obvious. Lu Ke rolled his eyes, put his right hand behind his back, extended his thumb, index, and middle fingers. He then brought his index and middle fingers together, pressed them down hard to meet his thumb, making a "hush" gesture, telling the onlookers of this circus to be quiet.
Moss didn't answer and didn't turn around.
The entire locker room was approaching a state of complete silence. It was impossible for Moss not to have heard. This meant he was either pretending not to hear or didn't want to respond. His attitude was as clear as day.
But Lu Ke still didn't give up. He took another half-step forward, raised his voice again, and this time, instead of a greeting, he went straight to the point. He said sincerely, "Randy, I'm sorry. In the first quarter of the game today, my behavior was irrational and wrong. I owe you an apology."
Everyone held their breath, waiting for Moss's response.
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