In the bedroom, the sixteen-year-old boy and girl sat on the bed. The awkward atmosphere in the room was mixed with the innocence of young teenagers. Their eyes met, then they both looked away at the same time.
Anna's delicate toes involuntarily curled up. Her hands tightly clutched the hem of her pajamas, and a flush crept up her swan-like neck to her earlobes.
Damn it! It's all Frank's fault! It's all Dad's fault! Why didn't they come themselves?
"Uh, well… didn't you have something to say?"
Jin Hayes was also a little confused. Anna had inexplicably knocked on the door and come in. Seeing that the only chair was occupied by his schoolbag, she had directly sat down beside him on the bed, her pretty face as calm and cool as ever, not saying a word.
What did she mean? Was she hinting at something?
No, no, absolutely impossible.
Her parents were still downstairs watching TV; she couldn't be so bold. The key was that he also had no experience in this area. At an age when hormones were surging, and as an athlete, Jin Hayes's blood was more vigorous than that of an ordinary high school student. He inevitably couldn't help but let his mind wander.
"Are you doing well recently?" Anna only uttered an inexplicable sentence after a long time.
"Aren't we seeing each other every day? I'm doing fine."
"What I mean is… you should focus all your attention on training and matches. Things outside the field might disrupt your focus. I don't want that."
???
Jin Hayes was even more confused. Didn't they say foreign girls liked to speak directly? Why was she being as reserved as an Asian person, liking to be a riddle-teller?
"What do you mean?"
Anna really didn't know how to explain, and her toes curled even tighter.
Five minutes earlier, Anna had been curled up on the sofa reading a book. Hans and Frank had mysteriously approached her.
"Anna, are you and Jin in love?"
"Huh?"
"I think Jin's recent fluctuations in form might be related to you. You must be causing that lad a lot of distress."
"Wait… huh?"
Anna was completely stunned. If it were before, she would definitely have rolled her eyes and looked at her unreliable father and brother with a look of disdain, as if they were idiots. But they had hit on Anna's little secret, subconsciously leaving her unable to refute. It was undeniable that Jin Hayes indeed held a special place in her heart. With that guy's unpredictable attitude, shouldn't she be the one feeling distressed?
"He wouldn't like me. No, impossible." Anna denied it repeatedly.
"Why impossible? I can feel it. Jin definitely has feelings for you."
"That's right. Asian boys can be more reserved; perhaps he doesn't know how to confess to you."
"Maybe it's your cold attitude that made him retreat."
Anna was utterly dumbfounded. She had hinted so many times, but Jin Hayes ignored her; he was clearly the cold one.
"In short, you must be causing Jin a lot of pain, affecting his match form. His performance in recent warm-up matches is far worse than last season. Anna, for the sake of Borussia Dortmund's results, you need to help him."
"Yes. Either reject him outright, or accept him. We need a normal Jin. Borussia Dortmund needs a normal Jin!"
"Wait a minute?"
Hans and Frank's serious expressions made Anna realize that they weren't joking.
Are they kidding?
Even Anna knew that the team's poor performance in recent warm-up matches might be related to Klopp's new tactics, and the team had undergone a change of coach and personnel, so there must be a period of adjustment. She wouldn't take the blame for this! Her father and brother were simply too unreliable. They were probably anxious due to the recent media criticism.
Anna didn't intend to pay attention to them, but she still inexplicably found herself standing outside Jin Hayes's room. And now she was sitting on his bed, her heart racing.
Oh, God, what am I doing?
Looking at Jin Hayes's clear amber eyes, Anna's heart fluttered. She actually wanted to know what Jin Hayes's attitude towards her was. Would he really like her, as her father and Frank said?
"Jin, what do you think of me? No, I mean… is there anything you want to say to me?"
Anna threw caution to the wind and bravely asked the question, like a student waiting for test results, her entire heart enveloped by anticipation and unease.
What should she do if he said that? Would she then be with him? Anna uncontrollably imagined many scenarios, and her elfin-like fair skin was getting redder and redder.
However, in Jin Hayes's eyes, Anna's behavior today was truly strange—too abnormal! Jin Hayes leaned in to observe her face carefully; it did seem a little off. Anna's delicate body trembled slightly. He reached out to touch her forehead, and sure enough, it was a little hot!
"I see. Anna, you've been doing so many photoshoots recently—you might be overly tired. You need a good rest."
"Huh?"
"It's already past 11 PM. Be good, go lie down quickly."
Jin Hayes pulled the dumbfounded Anna into her own bedroom and forcibly pressed her onto the bed.
"Wait a minute, I'll go get a thermometer to take your temperature."
As soon as Jin Hayes stepped out of Anna's bedroom, he heard the door slam shut with a click, locking it. Only then did he pause.
"She must be too tired and wants to rest early?"
Wait, something doesn't seem right.
Jin Hayes's subconscious suddenly became alert; he seemed to have overlooked something very important. It felt like reaching a critical moment in a story and raising a huge flag—but no matter how Jin Hayes replayed it in his mind, logically speaking, it seemed like Anna had a fever.
"Forget it. It's good to sleep early. I'll take her temperature again tomorrow."
The vague feeling of unease in his heart remained unresolved, so Jin Hayes simply stopped thinking about it and turned back to his own room.
Behind Anna's bedroom door, the girl leaned against the door, her face complex, and sighed softly:
"Schaf! Dummy!"
"Big dummy!!"
…
"Next up is a match preview: the 2008/09 Bundesliga season reignites! Welcome to CCTV Football Channel! This weekend will bring you a football feast! Beijing time, Saturday, 2:30 AM, the Bundesliga opening match: Bayern Munich vs. Hamburg; Saturday evening, 9:45 PM, the explosive Ruhr Derby arrives: Borussia Dortmund at home against Schalke 04! We hope fans won't miss it then! For more exciting matches and fixture schedules, please log in to—"
For Chinese fans, the excitement of the European Championship had not yet faded. Fans were still chatting about the rise of the Spain dynasty and still talking about Fernando Torres's decisive goal in the final.
The dynamics of the European transfer market also attracted fan attention. Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra stepped down at Manchester City, and the Abu Dhabi United Group's funds entered, officially taking over the club. Robinho transferred from Real Madrid to Manchester City for €42 million, becoming the transfer king of that summer. At the time, Premier League fans could not imagine that the future Premier League landscape for the next ten years had already been laid that summer.
Besides Robinho, only Jin Hayes's transfer attracted attention from across Europe. The 16-year-old Chinese talent transferred from Arsenal to Borussia Dortmund for €12.5 million. Both European media and fans, as well as domestic fans, were widely discussing whether Jin Hayes, in his "Bundesliga sophomore year," could replicate last season's dominance. His 16 assists in a single season had led the league, and while not an unbreakable record, it was an extraordinary achievement for a player his age.
"Generally, players hit a rookie wall. Bundesliga teams have studied Lord Jin thoroughly, so he probably won't be that magical."
"Young players are very unstable. Maybe he's already gotten carried away."
"Possibly. I heard his performance in recent warm-up matches hasn't been good."
"Getting carried away at only 16? That's it, then!"
"Not necessarily. Jin Hayes's performance has always been very stable. I believe in him."
"Borussia Dortmund's coach Klopp is not an easy opponent. What if Lord Jin doesn't adapt?"
"Anyway, there's a match in less than a week. We'll see his performance then. Simple as that."
Jin Hayes's fan club, the Bundesliga fan club, and the Borussia Dortmund fan club were already in an uproar. Before the match even began, countless eyes were already fixed on Jin Hayes, waiting to observe his every move with a magnifying glass. Including on foreign websites, Jin Hayes was also one of the most controversial stars in the Bundesliga.
On Twitter, a social networking platform that had recently emerged and was rapidly growing, there was an interesting topic: "The coach killer of the new season—I wonder how many coaches he can take down?"
Last season, Schalke 04's two head coaches, Mirko Slomka and Mike Büskens, were both sacked after losing to Borussia Dortmund. Bayern Munich's coach Ottmar Hitzfeld also quietly retired after being defeated twice by Dortmund, despite winning a league and cup double. When Jin Hayes was ruthless, he even took down his own coach—Thomas Doll was also sacked largely because of Jin Hayes. He had become a running joke in German football circles. Fans were very much looking forward to which head coach Jin Hayes would take down in the new season.
Jin Hayes had also registered an official account on Twitter, and his followers quickly surpassed 500,000. In his comment section, the most liked comment appeared: "Does Borussia Dortmund have a chance to contend for the championship this season?"
In response to this question, Jin Hayes's reply made many Borussia Dortmund fans extremely excited.
"Of course! The goal this season is the championship!"
Before the new Bundesliga season began, Borussia Dortmund's new number 10's statement ignited the fans' expectations. Could they really touch the championship this season?