From beginning to end, Hathaway thought Deng Kai was just a football enthusiast.
"Club youth training players" may sound very professional, but in fact football has a huge influence in Europe.
A large proportion of boys who like sports in Europe have experience in club youth training.
The European Youth Championship belongs to the youth national teams.
These players represent the best group of youth academy talents.
Under normal circumstances, no one would treat the friends they meet casually as international-level players, right?
Just like you don't expect your classmates to easily get into Harvard… except maybe students from Chengdu No. 7 Middle School.
"This game is exciting. Both the Netherlands and Portugal are very strong. This is almost a finals-level match!" the staff said enthusiastically.
Because if Hathaway didn't watch the game, Marshall wouldn't arrange for the crew to watch it together, and no one would get free tickets.
"Portugal?" Hathaway suddenly thought of the Portugal jersey Kai wore when he went to meet her.
He's a Portuguese fan!
Maybe… I can meet him in the stands?
If we really meet, it must be God's arrangement.
And if that happens, I won't have any excuse left to keep worrying about whether we're compatible or about the age gap.
Let God decide this relationship.
Hathaway made up her mind instantly.
Coming from a middle-class background, she was generous, confident, and brave enough to express herself.
She didn't think chasing a boy would somehow lower her status.
She simply didn't know yet how she truly felt about Kai. She hoped to spend more time with him before making a final decision.
But if fate allowed them to meet here first, Hathaway was willing to take the risk.
"Okay. Let's go!" Hathaway nodded.
Then the staff outside the door shouted excitedly.
It turned out many people had already gathered outside the room.
Hathaway smiled.
If she had known that so many people wanted to watch the match, she would have agreed earlier.
She decided to treat it as a small gift for the staff.
At the same time, the staff were laughing happily.
Hathaway was well-educated and intelligent. She didn't have that annoying American "bad girl" personality. Everyone liked her very much.
Letting her see her boyfriend looking handsome while playing football on the field—this was their little gift to her.
Yes, handsome.
The The Princess Diaries crew had already recognized Kai's good looks.
As long as the kid grew a little taller, they would probably approve the marriage.
…
June 19th.
The quarterfinals of the European Youth Championship began.
The two teams facing each other were the Netherlands and Portugal.
More than 30,000 fans attended the match.
The The Princess Diaries crew used director Garry Marshall's connections and money to get an excellent viewing location, quite close to the stadium.
On the field, many players were wearing the jerseys of the Dutch or Portuguese youth national teams.
Hathaway suddenly noticed a Portuguese No. 24 jersey.
It looked exactly like the one Kai wore before, with "D.K. Caesar" printed on the back.
Caesar… as in Gaius Julius Caesar.
"So he's a fan of Caesar," Hathaway nodded.
She knew many football and basketball players liked to give themselves nicknames.
For example, Michael Jordan was called "Air Jordan," and Dennis Rodman had plenty of crazy nicknames too.
In Europe, some players even changed their names to imitate their idols while chasing their dreams, similar to what Nuno Gomes did.
"Caesar" sounded a little dramatic, but it probably belonged to a very powerful player.
Maybe Kai liked the name because both of their names had the pronunciation "Kai."
A normal name obsession, really.
People with certain sounds in their names tend to like similar names.
…Though thinking too deeply about it felt a bit unlucky, so Hathaway quickly dropped the thought.
As the players from both teams walked onto the pitch, the commentator began announcing their names.
Commentator: "Rafael…"
Dutch fans: "Van der Vaart!"
Commentator: "Wesley…"
Dutch fans: "Sneijder!"
Commentator: "Robin…"
Dutch fans: "Van Persie!"
Commentator: "Arjen…"
Dutch fans: "Robben!"
But when other players were introduced, the cheers were far smaller.
The difference in reputation between the players was obvious.
When the Portuguese team was introduced, Ricardo Quaresma received the loudest reaction.
His cheers were even louder than anyone from the Dutch side.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Hugo Viana, Hugo Almeida, and the others all received weaker responses compared to Quaresma.
But finally, something unexpected happened.
When the No. 24 player at the back of the team stepped onto the field—
Commentator: "Caesar!"
Portuguese fans: "Caesar! Caesar! Caesar!"
The cheers were nearly as loud as those for Quaresma.
At the same time, Dutch fans started booing loudly.
They hadn't lost their composure when Quaresma appeared, but they clearly disliked this Caesar.
The entire stadium exploded instantly.
The atmosphere became electric.
The tension in the match skyrocketed.
"This player seems very controversial. Why do Dutch fans hate him so much?" Hathaway asked in confusion.
Sitting next to her, her friend from the show Heather Matarazzo smiled mysteriously.
Play along.
Just keep pretending.
Pretend you don't know your little boyfriend.
Matarazzo said, "Of course it's because he's the most handsome man in this stadium."
Hathaway looked puzzled.
Are you serious?
Can this guy be as handsome as my Kai?
I'm afraid you've never seen my Kaikai!
Matarazzo continued, "He's the youngest player in this European Youth Championship. He's about three years younger than you. But I don't think age is a problem. I've watched several of his interviews, and honestly, his mentality is already very mature."
"To be honest, he's way better than those fake cool boys in the American entertainment and music industry."
"I think you made the right choice."
"Besides, he's considered the biggest discovery in Portuguese youth football this year. He led the team to win the UEFA Youth League and was named the tournament's Best Player."
"His future is incredibly promising."
"You know Manchester United, right? Sir Alex Ferguson and David Beckham both know him—and they like him. Some people even say Manchester United's Treble this year couldn't have happened without his support and guidance."
"He's also Chinese, and you have Mongolian ancestry. That's actually a pretty interesting match."
"The only downside is his height. But boys grow slower sometimes. Maybe he'll reach 1.8 meters in the future."
The more Hathaway listened, the more something felt wrong.
Are we watching football…
…or arranging a blind date?
Although everything you said sounds great, sorry—I already have someone I like.
"Why do you know him so well?" Hathaway wondered.
Could it be that her good friend liked this young player too?
What a coincidence… she also liked a boy who was younger than her.
Matarazzo smiled mysteriously.
"Because he's my best friend's boyfriend. Of course I had to check him out carefully."
"I've read his information and interviews several times. Honestly, I think my best friend will be very happy if she chooses him."
Hathaway nodded, but felt slightly disappointed.
She thought she was Matarazzo's only best friend.
Sigh… apparently she misjudged that relationship.
But if Matarazzo's best friend's boyfriend was really this Caesar, maybe she could ask him for a signed football.
If she gave Kai a football signed by Caesar, he would definitely be very happy.
Hathaway couldn't help but smile when she imagined it.
But soon, her smile froze.
Confusion appeared on her face.
Then shock.
And finally…
Joy.
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