Demons Beside You
chapter-171

Leonardo had initially been somewhat disappointed by Chen Zhao’s absence, but he did not expect Chen Zhao to have actually put in so much effort just to surprise him at his birthday party. Immediately, he felt rather touched.

“Leonardo, this is for you.” Chen Zhao passed Leonardo a gift box.

“Thank you, Chen… You look really handsome in this outfit.”

“Well, I take it as a white lie.”

“I’m serious! You indeed look great.”

The three returned to the living room. Sienna, Chris and David were all already there.

With colored ribbons everywhere, the living room was enveloped in a festive atmosphere.

“Chen, here you are!”

“Why are you in a Spider-Man costume?”

“Chen, you’re late. Finish this bottle first!” David threw Chen Zhao a bottle of beer.

“Isn’t it boring to just drink like this? Let’s have some programs!”

“Me.” Fali was not shy at all. “Find me a pole.”

“Are you going to pole dance?”

“I learned it before,” Fali said, “but it’ll be my first time dancing outside class.”

In fact, contrary to popular belief, pole dance was not just an erotic dance. There were even international competitions in professional pole dancing, including both male and female divisions.

Moreover, pole dancing was actually a good way to maintain one’s shape.

Leonardo found a pole and also held the pole vertical. Fali danced around Leonardo, performing teasing actions every now and then.

It was almost like a welfare Fali gave to the birthday boy. After the dance, everyone’s mood was heightened further.

“Fali, during my next birthday, dance for me too!” David laughed.

“Me too! Me too!” Chen Zhao echoed.

At the birthday party, the group sang and jumped around.

“Leonardo, my friend has a track and field competition later at LA Memorial Coliseum. I’ve asked him to give me a few tickets. How about we go and watch his competition together, and then go to a bar and drink all night?” Chen Zhao suggested.

“Sure. Now?”

“Of course. His competition is in an hour’s time. We can still make it in time.”

Chen Zhao had already asked Bord to wait outside the stadium with the tickets. Therefore, when they arrived at the stadium, they received their tickets straightaway.

“Chen, which one is your friend?”

“Rufford. Have you heard of him before?”

“No, but henceforth I shall be his loyal fan.”

The competition was a star invitational and there were many famous athletes from all over the world.

The atmosphere in the stadium was very lively. Americans surely loved track and field and America was also very strong in the sport.

America’s track and field had always been the best in the world.

There was such a saying: Bolt dominated sprinting, while Americans dominated track and field.

This was certainly not an exaggeration, because America’s track and field results had indeed been way ahead of the other countries.

100m sprint had always been a major and also the most popular part of track and field.

Thus, when the sprinters entered the field, the audience was lit with enthusiasm.

Then, the host started to announce each athlete’s name. Whenever an athlete’s name was called, the applause and cheers from the audience would reflect his popularity and reputation.

When Rufford’s name was announced, however, almost nothing could be heard from the audience. Not a lot of people knew him at all.

“David, let’s cheer for him!”

“Together.” David stood up and took out a plastic loudspeaker.

The group stood in a row and shouted together, “Rufford, all the best!!”

Rufford’s originally calm mood was enlivened at once.

He saw Chen Zhao and the people beside him.

Their cheer was very abrupt, but it ignited all the blood in his body.

The referee signaled all the participants to get ready. Rufford placed his right foot on the start line and got into position.

Following the gunshot, the eight sprinters flew across the track like eight rainbows.

A deafening silence erupted among the audience as everyone stared firmly at the sprinters.

In just ten seconds, the competition was over.

The audience was stirred up again. A number appeared on the screen.

Downwind, 1.1m/s

9.69!

Who? Who is it?!

Who achieved this result?

A name appeared on the screen: Rufford Kiran.

All the audience were bubbling with excitement. It was so far the best result to be achieved in international competitions that year.

While it did not break the world record, it was still an amazing achievement.

With this result, the sprinter would very likely win the championship even in Diamond League or Golden League.

Moreover, this result entered the top three among all the 100m sprint records in America.

Of course, it was still significantly slower than the world record of 9.58 seconds.

To sprinters, tenth of a second was already a very huge difference, hence the saying “Bolt dominated sprinting.” He was much better than all the other sprinters.

Rufford ran along the side of the track in excitement. He had actually won this star invitational and achieved such a fantastic result.

In addition, he also became the third 100m sprinter to achieve a timing of 9.7 seconds. He was destined to be the spotlight of the night.

At the moment, all the media teams in the stadium were crowding around and interviewing him.

“I need to thank one person. He’s my personal doctor. When everyone gave up on me, when the club gave up on me, he gave me hope. He gave me courage and confidence. When I was totally broke, he helped me. I also need to thank my coach, Mr. Bord…”

…

Chen Zhao and his friends only managed to meet Rufford half an hour after the prize-giving ceremony. Bord was beside Rufford too.

When Rufford saw Chen Zhao, he immediately gave Chen Zhao a warm hug.

Rufford had yet to fully calm down from his victory. Chen Zhao introduced his friends to him one by one.

“Rufford, do you still have any competitions in the next few days?”

“I have two national competitions.”

“Then I won’t ask you to come and drink with us. Take care of your body.”

“Have fun!” Rufford also wanted to go and play with Chen Zhao, but as an athlete, he knew that keeping sober and healthy was the wiser choice.

Furthermore, if he chose to go out and play, he would inevitably eat food that was unhealthy or even contained hormones.

Usually, an athlete would be banned from eating outside food half a month before a competition.

After bidding Rufford goodbye, Chen Zhao and his friends started their plan to drink through the night.

“Does anyone know where’s the nearest bar?”

“Me! I’ll lead the way,” David offered.

Chen Zhao had never been so relaxed before. Finishing Phillip Quinn and then partying with his friends made him feel better than ever.