Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed



"Yeah."

"Are you going for your night run tonight?"

Owen: "Yep. Wanna join?"

"Sure."

They each went home to change into their workout gear.

Then, they met up, headed downstairs, and started their run.

The sun had already set, the sky slowly succumbing to darkness, with the ground gradually enveloped in the night's embrace.

By the time they completed a lap, the moon shone brightly, and the stars began to twinkle.

On their third lap, Roseanne couldn't keep up: "Mr. Reynolds, you go ahead, I'll take a break.”

Owen stopped as well: "You okay?"

Roseanne, drenched in sweat with flushed cheeks, replied: "Not too tired, just overheating."

Her hair was completely soaked, with beads of sweat rolling down her cheeks and soaking into her sports tee.

Owen suggested, "Let's not run then, let's walk for a bit.”

Roseanne touched her nose, feeling a bit embarrassed.

They continued along the tree-lined path and soon reached the gates of Kingswell University. Owen popped into a convenience store and bought two bottles of water, handing one to Roseanne after opening it.

"Thanks."

After passing the front gate and making half a circle, they arrived at the back gate.

Just beyond it was an open basketball court.

As they walked by, a basketball flew towards Roseanne's head.

She noticed and was about to dodge.

But Owen reacted faster, pulling her arm to bring her behind him while his other hand accurately caught the ball.

A whistle came from the court-

"Dude! Nice catch!"

Owen, dressed in a white basketball outfit, really looked the part of a college student at first glance.

"We're short one player, wanna join?"

Owen was tempted but looked at Roseanne, seeking her opinion.

Roseanne nodded: "Go ahead, Mr. Reynolds. I'll sit in the stands and watch."

She hadn't expected Owen to be into basketball...

As she sat down, a thought struck her-

Why did Owen look at her for approval before joining the game?

Once Owen hit the court, he blocked two shots in quick succession. Despite sitting a fair distance away, Roseanne could hear a chorus of boos and jeers.

"Wow! A real pro, huh?"

"Dude, you're awesome, but watch out for what's coming!"

Owen raised an eyebrow, his chin lifting slightly: "Oh? Let's see if you've got the skills."

The game intensified.

Owen was unstoppable, scoring

from both close and long range. Anytime the ball was in his hands, rarely missed the basket. His

1.ne

jumping ability was particularly

impressive, with several scores from dunks.

"Nice-"

Even Roseanne, the sole spectator, was thrilled.

get

After twenty minutes of constant offense, Owen showed no signs fatigue, eventually breaking through the ponent's defense-

"No more, no more!"

"We thought we were just picking up a random guy to fill the team, turned out we invited a legend. I give up."

"I'm done. Hats off to you, let's call it a day!"

Owen then caught the ball and threw it to a teammate.

The teammates immediately surrounded him, laughing, "Man, which department are you from? Hidden talent here!"

"So cool! You just rolled them over."

"Eh? Haven't seen you before. You're from Kingswell University, right? We play here often."

Owen: "Yeah, from Kingswell University, but I don't come here much."

"Not coming here often and still playing like this, man, are you showing off?"

“Let's add each other on social, so we can meet up for games. Today was just too good! Haha—”NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

Owen pulled out his phone, letting them add him one by one.

Suddenly someone asked, "Hey, is that girl in the stands your girlfriend?"

Owen looked up, and Roseanne, from afar, caught his gaze and waved back with a smile.