From Houston to Oklahoma, the distance in a straight line is 665 kilometers. It takes a day to drive, but it doesn't take a few hours to fly. After all, both places are subordinate to the West.

But because the NBA game ended very late, and Link was still in the rental house and had some unpleasantness with his garbage manager. So when Link arrived in Oklahoma City, it was already three o'clock in the morning.

Oklahoma City isn't like New York or Los Angeles, where the early hours of the morning aren't as glamour. As soon as he stepped off the plane, Link felt that everything around him was silent, and the whole city seemed to be covered in silence.

Walking out of the airport, the street was empty, only my own shadow under the street lamp.

It's December, and the average temperature in Oklahoma is just 2.8°C. Although compared to Minnesota and Toronto, where temperatures are more than 10 degrees below zero, the climate in Oklahoma is very comfortable. But in this silent early morning, looking at his lonely figure, Link standing on the street still couldn't help but zip up his coat.

Tonight was probably the worst night he'd ever had since he crossed over.

"University of Oklahoma School of Medicine." Stopping a taxi, Link told the driver his destination in a deep voice.

From time to time, the taxi always looked through the rearview mirror to see Link in the back row, and if he remembered correctly, the driver had seen the Chinese-American player on TV a few hours earlier playing for the Houston Rockets. It stands to reason that he shouldn't be in Oklahoma.

Originally, the driver had a lot of things to talk to Link, but seeing that Link didn't seem to be in a good mood, the driver didn't bother. He believed that Link's rush back must have something to do with the shocking incident.

At the same time, Link also picked up his phone and began to read the news. The pages about basketball news are all about Zike. The Epshaw affair is occupied. It may be the most famous night for the Blues and Upshaw, but the way they became famous is heart-wrenching.

And according to this news report, Link also probably figured out what happened.

Today, in the final 40 seconds of the fourth quarter in the Oklahoma Blues' home game against the Long Island Nets. Zeke. Upshaw was diligently chasing his opponent as he had done before.

At that moment, Upshaw suddenly covered his chest with his hands and fell face down to the ground, motionless.

At first, no one knew what was going on. Some people thought Upshaw was injured, but there was no way that any injury would have caused a player to faint directly.

After the referee and players called Upshaw several times to no avail, Upshaw was immediately rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. Then, Link receives a call from Upshaw's mother, Martha.

After watching the news again, Link covered his head in pain. He didn't know if there was a man named Zike in the world before he crossed over. Upshaw's guy has a sudden cardiac arrest on the basketball court.

Maybe there is, maybe not. But Link is sure that whether or not Upshaw survives the storm, he's just a thing of the past. Because as a time-traveler, Link never remembers hearing of a man named Zike in December 2010. Upshaw's player.

No one knew that there was a 26-year-old professional player who had worked hard for his NBA dream and collapsed on the basketball court. Nobody knows, Zike. What a great guy Upshaw is......

Link turned off his phone's screen and didn't continue watching the news about Upshaw. He didn't want his emotions to collapse the moment he saw Upshaw's family.

※※※

"Link, my boy, I don't know what Zike did wrong and why he should be punished like this."

The moment Link saw Upshaw's mother, the helpless black woman threw herself into Link's arms.

Link had two big dark circles under his eyes, he hadn't slept all night, and he had just been swept away by the NBA and fired his manager.

But at this time, looking at Upshaw, who was lying on a ventilator on the hospital bed, Link suddenly felt that his affairs were not worth mentioning at all.

"It's okay, Martha. Zike will be fine, the level of medical care is very developed now. You don't have to worry, I'm willing to cover all his medical expenses. ”

Upshaw had done a lot for Link, but at this time Link didn't know what he could do for Upshaw. The only thing he could do was to share some of the financial pressure on the family, which was already struggling enough.

"Zikta...... Have you had heart disease since childhood? Remembering the small pillbox that Upshaw used to carry with him at all times, Link asked cautiously.

"No, he only occasionally said he was sick to his chest, but nothing else told us. After examination, the doctor did not find the cause of his cardiac arrest...... Now Zike is still in the rescue, and he is not even out of danger. ”

Faced with Link's questioning, Martha burst into tears again.

Seeing this, Link didn't ask again. The blow suffered by this kind lady was big enough.

In this way, Link has been waiting with Upshaw's family. They all believed that this strong guy would definitely wake up.

However, it's the same as Link's fantasy that he can make a difference in the NBA, and that his manager must be wholeheartedly thinking about himself. The illusion that Upshaw would be out of danger was also shattered.

10 hours, 12 hours, 15 hours, 24 hours...... Upshaw still lay there quietly, not even blinking an eye.

At four o'clock in the morning on December 13, 48 hours after Link rushed to the hospital, the doctor who participated in the rescue walked out of the ward sweating profusely, looked at Link and his family next to Upshaw, and said the words that were already rotten in the TV series, but when they were actually heard, they were extremely heartbreaking.

"I'm sorry, we tried our best."

After two days of continuous treatment, everyone tried to pull him back from the line of life and death. Death held the scythe at the other end, watching the young man's body tug at it.

It succeeded, and developed medicine was defeated before it. Cardiac arrest, and there will be no next chapter in Upshaw's life.

Cry? Faint? Tear up? No, at that moment, there was only silence around Link.

It felt like the moment he returned to Oklahoma City in the early hours of the morning before yesterday. Dark, helpless, lonely.

Upshaw's mother froze for a few moments, then gradually looked up at Link. She took out an envelope from her handbag and handed it to the Chinese man in front of her, "This is written to you by Zike, and his teammates found it from his locker." I had hoped that he would hand it over to you. But now ......"

Link hurriedly took the envelope, and in this era of such a developed network, the communication method of writing letters was almost extinct. But it's clear that Upshaw wants some words to be preserved, not just a few strings of code in a huge database.

After handing the envelope to Link, Martha walked into the room and wept profusely. This strong woman can't hold it anymore.

※※※

My brother Link,

I hope you're doing well in Houston and I'm happy to see you in the NBA. Why write a letter? At first, I thought it was a stupid idea. But I have never been able to express my inner joy through a few text messages. I still feel that I can express my joy and pride by writing something by hand.

I knew from the beginning that your efforts would definitely pay off. I also played in Europe a few years ago, and to be honest, the wages there were much higher than in the Development League. But I'm still back, why? Isn't it all for the NBA? Congratulations, you've achieved what we all aspire to.

Of course, this is just the beginning, and the rest of the days will be difficult. You could be desperate for the next 10-day contract, you could have to play with your teammates on the training pitch for playing time. Perhaps, hahahaha, may be worried about your rent. But no matter what happens, you can't give up.

Because you are also my desire and spiritual pillar to enter the NBA, you fall, and my dream is shattered.

That's it, the game is about to start and I'm going to play. Hopefully, tomorrow morning, I'll see the news that you've signed a second 10-day contract.

Go ahead, man.

Zeke.