The heater broke down last night.
As a result, neither Blake Su nor Mia Quinn slept well. By the time they woke up, it was already close to noon. Blake Su reported the situation to the hotel. After confirming the issue, the hotel refunded their money and offered a full month of free stay in any suite as compensation.
Neither of them liked making trouble, and since the hotel took responsibility, the matter was settled just like that.
But after all the delays, it was already afternoon.
The skiing plan was basically ruined.
The two of them walked down the street. Mia Quinn tapped her finger against her lips, her big eyes wandering around aimlessly.
Blake Su thought for a moment and said,
"How about we just walk around nearby? This is Los Angeles—just wandering around feels pretty fresh and interesting.
Then tonight we can watch a movie. The Christmas releases have good reviews. What do you think?"
"Sounds good!"
Mia Quinn agreed happily.
So...
They first wandered around a nearby shopping district in the afternoon. Then Mia Quinn dragged Blake Su into a large arcade.
They played the dance machine.
They raced arcade cars and played shooting games.
They also tried the basketball shooting game, which happened to be Blake Su's favorite.
There were more than a dozen shooting machines there. The highest record was 420 points.
Second place was only 300.
Then—
Blake Su and Mia Quinn teamed up and pushed the record to 450 points. Considering it was a casual two-player run, that score was pretty incredible.
Nearby, some couples who had been eager to try were stunned when they saw Blake Su's score.
"Wow! No wonder you play basketball. That's awesome!"
Mia Quinn gave Blake Su a thumbs-up.
Blake Su raised his eyebrows proudly.
"Of course. Using a professional skill to challenge a hobby game is easy."
"Hehehe~ Little Blake acting smug is so annoying~"
"What? No way!"
After playing almost every game in the arcade, they finally stopped beside a claw machine.
Blake Su grinned.
"Quinnie, watch me grab a doll for you."
"That's not easy, you know."
Mia Quinn said with a faint smile.
And sure enough—her words came true.
Blake Su tried nearly a hundred times without grabbing anything. Watching him waste so much money, Mia Quinn said,
"Forget it. This just isn't your thing. I don't want it anymore."
"Not my thing? A man can't be told he can't do it!"
Accidentally "provoked" by Mia Quinn, Blake Su became even more determined to grab a doll.
Finally...
After dozens more attempts—
He successfully caught a small doll!
...
6 PM.
The two arrived at a fairly popular Italian restaurant for dinner.
While waiting for their food, Mia Quinn was still deciding which movie to watch.
Meanwhile, Blake Su's attention had drifted to the TV inside the restaurant, which was broadcasting the Christmas game between the Celtics and the Magic.
"Hm?"
Mia Quinn had just been about to tell him which movie to pick, but when she noticed the light in his eyes, she followed his gaze and saw the NBA game on the TV.
She couldn't help smiling.
"Blake, which game do you think will be the most exciting one in today's Christmas games?"
"The 10 PM matchup—Lakers vs. Heat—will definitely be the most exciting.
Of course, Celtics vs. Magic is also a great game.
And also—"
The moment NBA came up, Blake Su instantly turned into a chatterbox.
But he quickly realized it and scratched his head awkwardly.
Changing the subject, he asked,
"Quinnie, what movie do you want to watch tonight?"
"Uh... I'm still deciding. Let's eat first. I'm starving. Why is the food taking so long?"
She pouted, her little face scrunched up in frustration. It looked incredibly cute.
Blake Su laughed.
"I'll go check with the waiter. It's Christmas after all, and this restaurant is pretty popular. Slow service is normal."
"Okay."
While Blake Su went to ask the waiter, Mia Quinn secretly bought two tickets for the Lakers vs. Heat game.
After dinner.
"This Italian food was so good!"
After leaving the restaurant, Mia Quinn gave the place high praise.
Blake Su also thought it was great.
"A place this crowded and popular must have its reasons.
Oh right—Quinnie, did you decide which movie to watch?"
"Yep!"
Mia Quinn smiled.
"Wait here for a moment. I'll go pick up the movie tickets so we don't have to line up later."
"You already bought them?"
Blake Su had just taken out his phone to buy tickets when he suddenly realized—and Mia Quinn had already disappeared.
A moment later.
Mia Quinn walked back with two tickets in her hand and gave them to Blake Su.
"Let's go."
"Go where? The theater is right here."
"Go where?"
That question caught Mia Quinn off guard. She glanced at the tickets again and said,
"Of course we're going to the Staples Center to watch the game."
"What?!"
Blake Su froze.
Then he looked down at the tickets in his hand and immediately understood everything.
"Quinnie, you..."
Mia Quinn grabbed Blake Su's arm and laughed.
"During dinner you looked like you wanted to crawl right into the TV. Come on—I know exactly what you want to do!"
As she spoke, she even imitated the way Blake Su had been stretching his neck to watch the screen earlier.
"It wasn't that exaggerated!"
Blake Su burst out laughing.
Mia Quinn laughed brightly as well.
Laughing and chatting, the two of them headed toward the Staples Center...
...
9:30 PM.
There were still thirty minutes before the Lakers vs. Heat Christmas showdown began.
Blake Su and Mia Quinn arrived smoothly at the arena. After buying hot drinks, a large bucket of popcorn, and some snacks, the two entered the arena.
Since they bought the tickets relatively late, the good seats were already gone, so their seats were a bit farther back.
Blake Su didn't mind at all.
After all, the fact that Mia Quinn—a girl—was willing to come watch a basketball game with him already made him very happy.
Mia Quinn pointed at Kobe Bryant on the court, wearing the gold No. 24 jersey and warming up.
"Quinnie used to be a Kobe fan.
'4 a.m. in Los Angeles.'—remember?"
She said it with a slightly proud expression.
"Impressive."
Blake Su smiled.
"I like Kobe too."
Then Mia Quinn added,
"But now, I'm a fan of Blake."
"Really?!"
Blake Su looked surprised.
Mia Quinn smiled sweetly.
"Little Blake who hit 13 three-pointers, scored 65 points, and made that game-winning steal and layup.
That was really cool."
"Whoa..."
Blake Su had absolutely no resistance to girls who liked basketball.
Overjoyed, he lunged forward to hug Mia Quinn, but she laughed shyly and quickly raised her hands to stop him.
"Looks like basketball really is your favorite, Little Blake~"
Mia Quinn teased him, smiling brightly.
Soon.
The warm-ups on the court ended.
Lakers vs. Heat—
The most anticipated Christmas game was about to begin!