TCWSITD – Chapter 22

Shen Ju couldn’t sleep.

Every time he closed his eyes, that image from the staircase returned—Lin Jiang.

His silhouette beneath the team jacket was hauntingly beautiful, all sharp bones and elegance. Fingers lowered, a cigarette hanging between them, smoke curling into the air like art. Even the shadow he cast against the wall seemed on the verge of unfurling into butterfly wings.

Shen Ju had never been that close to him before—close enough to clearly see the color of his lips.

In the darkness, desire in the human heart magnifies infinitely.

His throat moved involuntarily.

Shen Ju had the sudden urge to taste the flavor of those lips. Summoning all his courage, he reached out and took the cigarette from Lin Jiang’s fingers.

And to his surprise—

It was sweet.

Just remembering it made Shen Ju’s ears burn all over again.

He threw on some clothes and headed downstairs to clear his head. On the way, he passed a 24-hour convenience store and went in, deliberately picking out the exact brand of cigarettes Lin Jiang smoked.

So it was mint-flavored—no wonder it had tasted sweet.

Back outside, he tried to light one the way Lin Jiang had. He didn’t know how to smoke; his movements were clumsy and inexperienced.

The cool night breeze slightly carried away the heat. Just as Shen Ju finally calmed down, he turned a corner and saw Lin Jiang. The suppressed heat inside him surged wildly and overwhelmed him.

Lin Jiang leaned casually against the railing, a cigarette held between his fingers. He looked up casually, his gaze fixed on Shen Ju.

He gave him a slow once-over. “Still up?”

Shen Ju felt like a student caught red-handed. He immediately took the cigarette out of his mouth but then remembered Lin Jiang said he’s only a kid and hesitated to put it back.

Their eyes met in the silent night.

Lin Jiang put his phone back into his pocket and walked toward Shen Ju. Naturally, he took the cigarette from his hand and said, “Smoking isn’t a good habit.”

Shen Ju met his gaze. “What about you?”

Lin Jiang smiled. “I’m different from you. I can’t quit. Honestly, if you’re stressed, you should try other ways to relieve it. Smoking will make you addicted.”

Shen Ju wasn’t particularly stressed. He simply wanted to understand what was going through Lin Jiang’s mind when he smoked.

The cigarette box in his pocket grew warm from his fidgeting. Unable to hold back, Shen Ju asked, “Captain, is your stress because of OT?”

Lin Jiang took a slow drag. “No, OT actually relaxes me. I smoke because of things from my past—it’s nothing to do with you guys.”

“Then…” Shen Ju hesitated, searching his eyes. “Will you leave OT and go back to KUG?”

Lin Jiang was stunned. “Why do you ask?”

“Rumors online say that the manager who signed your contract with KUG got fired and now they’re hoping to make amends with you.”

Lin Jiang set the cigarette aside, the corner of his mouth twitching like he’d just heard something laughable. “You’re overthinking it. They’d never try to reconcile with me. KUG is just like its owner—proud to a fault and never learns to lower its head.”

He leaned lazily against the pillar, a quiet smile tugging at his lips as he looked at Shen Ju. In the darkness, his eyes shimmered like fireworks. “Besides, I’ve never planned on going back.”

Behind them, a loud bang erupted—fireworks really did explode in the sky.

Lin Jiang lifted his face toward the fiery glow, his profile breathtakingly beautiful against the dark night. His lips moved slightly, as if saying something, but Shen Ju couldn’t make it out.

Only one word reached his ears—

Like.

His thoughts scattered like fireworks—wild, brilliant, impossible to control.

Lin Jiang turned back amid the fireworks, smiling at him. “Why do you look like you’re carrying the weight of the world? Smile more.”

He reached out and poked the corner of Shen Ju’s mouth, revealing sharp little canine teeth.

Thump-thump, thump-thump—

His heart raced wildly.

Shen Ju really wanted to bite him.

No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than he acted on it.

With his sharp canines, he gently bit Lin Jiang’s finger, grinding his teeth against the skin.

Bang! A firework lit up the sky behind them in dazzling bloom.

Lin Jiang was briefly stunned, then his smile bloomed even more brilliantly.

Lin Jiang pinched Shen Ju’s cheek, his eyes brimming with amusement as he teased, “Puppy Shen, you really do bite, huh?”

Shen Ju’s face flushed uncontrollably.

He turned away, grumbling in protest, “I’m not a puppy.”

A warm hand landed on his head, ruffling his hair gently, still carrying Lin Jiang’s laughter. “Alright, alright—you’re not.”

Back in his room, Shen Ju lay wide awake.

He felt trapped in a dream—hazy, romantic, too beautiful to be real. And at the far end of that dream… was a desire so tender, so outrageous, he hadn’t dared admit it even to himself.

But now—

He could reach for it.

He could bite it. Lightly.

He even wanted to melt Lin Jiang into his body.

The next day, both Shen Ju and Song Zhixu were late.

Duren glared at the two delinquents, both with dark circles under their eyes, and slammed the table hard. “It’s already the Summer Split, and you two are still slacking off? And you, Song Zhixu! Just two days ago, Lin Jiang fined you for playing like trash. Have you learned nothing? Sneaking out for skewers in the middle of the night—what were you thinking?”

Song Zhixu, used to being scolded, immediately dropped to his knees in apology. “Sorry! It won’t happen again!”

Shen Ju kept his head down, lost in thought, not arguing back at all. Seeing this, A’Deng couldn’t help but whisper to Zhou Wen, “Don’t you think Shen Ju’s been acting kinda weird lately?”

Zhou Wen nodded with mock seriousness—he’d noticed it long ago.

Shen Ju used to be a wolf who’d bite at the sky and earth. Now he was obedient like a dog.

Everyone in the club was clearly enjoying the show—except Lin Jiang, who finally stepped in to smooth things over. “Manager Du, it’s not their fault. I didn’t have dinner yesterday, so I asked Song Zhixu to take me out for a late-night snack. We came back a little late, that’s all.”

The moment he heard Lin Jiang’s voice, Duren’s attitude did a complete 180 degrees. “Aiya, Lin Jiang, how could you skip meals? You can’t neglect your health! No matter how busy you are, you’ve got to eat properly.”

Song Zhixu thought he was off the hook until Duren suddenly called out, “And you, Song Zhixu! If you were treating people, why didn’t you invite me? You stingy bastard never spend a dime. The one time you treat someone, I should’ve driven over just to snag a few bites!”

“Hey, hey—” Song Zhixu rushed to stop him. “Old Du, please, don’t say that out loud—leave me some dignity!”

Their teammates burst into merciless laughter.

After the brief chaos, it was finally time for everyone to focus on the day’s real task.

Afternoon, 5 PM.

OT vs ZOG.

“Why are we scheduled on the same day as KUG again? The organizers have to be doing this on purpose.”

The biggest talking point of this Summer Split was the complicated, unclear relationship between Lin Jiang and KUG—one moment at odds, the next, rumors of reconciliation. The drama raked in plenty of traffic.

The organizers weren’t fools; they knew exactly how to maximize the hype.

Lin Jiang saw right through it. “They’re pairing us with KUG again so the headlines write themselves. Doesn’t matter who wins—as long as people talk. But if you don’t want to be KUG’s stepping stone, we’d better play our best.”

His provocation worked like a charm. Even the usually laid-back Song Zhixu immediately scrambled to check his equipment. Duren tried to say something but got pushed aside mid-sentence.

“Don’t distract me. Go bother someone else.”

The team bus arrived at the venue two hours early, just in time to catch TG securing a 2:0 victory in the 3 PM match.

“Have you noticed how strong TG is this year? Not a single mistake from any of the players in all their matches. They feel even stronger than KUG overall.”

Lin Jiang thought to himself. Of course they’re stronger than KUG. This year, it’s not just TG—YIT and SNG are outperforming KUG.

Alike, KUG’s star player, only cared about showing off in matches, completely disregarding his teammates. In the BO3 regular season, it was manageable, but in the BO5 playoffs, his weaknesses were fully exposed—either blowing 2:0 leads or losing despite massive gold advantages, almost like a routine.

Riding on the second-place points Lin Jiang had secured for them in the Spring Split, they almost got pushed into the promotion tournament—basically perfected the art of fan torture.

Lin Jiang said nothing, waiting for KUG to crash and burn on their own.

He carefully wrapped the bandages on his hands but felt they were still too loose, so he called Song Zhixu over for a tighter wrap.

Most players wore wrist guards, but bandages like these were only used for more serious hand injuries. Song Zhixu belatedly realized, “Captain, does your hand hurt a lot?”

Lin Jiang rubbed his wrist, “It’s okay.”

After all, having played professionally for four years, hand problems were inevitable. It was normal.

Lin Jiang took the chance to remind his teammates, “You all should take better care of your wrists too, especially Shen Ju. As an AD, your hands bear the heaviest load.”

Shen Ju nodded, then stared at Lin Jiang’s hand, lost in thought.

When no one was paying attention, he suddenly stood up and called Duren out, and said a few words. Duren nodded, then took out his phone to make a call.

The match was about to begin, and the players got ready to go on stage.

As they left the break room, OT crossed paths with the entire KUG team arriving at the venue.

Alike led the way. He carried a black backpack, wore black sneakers, and stood at the end of the long corridor, staring at Lin Jiang.

Thud… thud…

Each step landed on a path entirely different from his past life.

Naturally, he expected a completely different outcome this time.

Lin Jiang withdrew his icy gaze, brushed past Alike, and led his team onto the stage.

The atmosphere in the venue remained intense. The host introduced the players, both sides took their seats, and equipment was connected.

Before the match, Lin Jiang took the lead in analyzing ZOG. Although they appeared to be a bottom-tier team, their resilience was formidable—they could take bites out of even the strongest opponents, let alone OT, who were, at best, a mid-tier team.

Both sides entered the game. ZOG picked their most familiar team fight composition, while Lin Jiang countered with a lineup built for the late-game.

Mid lane was Azir, top lane Renekton, AD Kai’Sa, and the jungle role was filled by Sejuani, who excelled in the mid-game.

Before they hit the lanes, Lin Jiang repeatedly reminded them, “Try to gain an advantage in lane.”

A late-game composition still needed to secure an early-game advantage—was this really necessary against ZOG?

At first, Song Zhixu thought Lin Jiang was being overly cautious.

He pressured his lane opponent with Renekton. The past few days of intense solo training had clearly paid off as he immediately gained a lead in CS[mfn]creep score – gaming term; a player is earning more gold and experience by “last-hitting”, allowing them to purchase items and become stronger[/mfn].

By Level 3, Lin Jiang had already forced the enemy mid laner back to base. At Level 6, he had them too scared to even touch the minion wave.

The bot lane also secured a kill at Level 6.

With things going so smoothly, the match entered the mid-game, and Song Zhixu started feeling the cracks.

“Why is the dragon theirs again?”

A’Deng looked somewhat embarrassed.

He had been trying to take the dragon just now, but was discovered by the enemy jungler. He lost the Smite battle.

He instinctively apologized, “Sorry, sorry, my fault—I used Smite too early!”

A’Deng was notoriously unlucky in the league. When it came to contesting dragons, he’d never won a single Smite fight. All he could do was apologize afterward, earning him the internet’s mocking nickname: the “Apology Jungler.”

Lin Jiang’s gaze darkened, a sense of foreboding creeping in.

When they played VT and FOU, those teams had gone all-out targeting him. But ZOG was different. They’d ignored him completely.

Instead, they’d focused all their pressure on OT’s weakest link—

A’Deng.

OT’s hidden flaw.

Lin Jiang’s worst fear was starting to unfold.

***

Meanwhile, in the KUG’s break room.

As the live broadcast reached this point, Alike stood up and scoffed as he walked away.

He had initially been wary of Lin Jiang, but seeing his teammates perform so poorly, that wariness suddenly vanished without a trace.

Lin Jiang, you don’t seriously think you can carry four people on your back, do you?

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