Chapter 255: Chapter 255: Too Nervous to Breathe Chapter 255: Chapter 255: Too Nervous to Breathe Shen Zhaozhao, though not well-versed in billiards, knew that he was more than just moderately skilled; he was clearly very good!
“When did you learn this?” she couldn’t help but ask.
Sheng Chuyi looked at her and said, “After I moved to Jing City.”
In two years, one could learn many things, especially someone as smart as him, mastering anything didn’t seem strange.
“Do you want to give it a try?” Chuyi asked.
“Sure!” Shen Zhaozhao nodded.
Chuyi immediately handed her the cue stick he was holding.
Zhaozhao gave it a try, but unfortunately, her first shot was off, not even touching the ball.
Chuyi simply took her hand, teaching her, “Relax, spread your fingers, slowly arch your joints upwards, with your thumb as raised as possible and close to your forefinger to stabilize the cue stick and prevent slipping.”
The two of them were very close, Zhaozhao was almost entirely nestled in his arms, her back pressed against his chest, her heart uncontrollably racing.
They had been in even more intimate positions before, but it had never felt , so tense she dared not breathe.
His voice continued near her ear, “When holding the cue, your left hand should be about one and a half palm’s distance from the tip of the cue, the right hand the same distance from the grip end.”
“Lower your waist, the lower to the table, the better…”
Zhaozhao felt as if she was ill, and severely so!
Otherwise, why would just hearing his voice make her feel indescribably uncomfortable?
Seemingly noticing her lack of focus, Chuyi reminded her.
Zhaozhao immediately composed herself, daring not to let her thoughts wander.
“Keep your eyes on the cue and the ball, when you feel the cue, the ball, and the pocket you are aiming for are aligned, then shoot in that direction,” Chuyi instructed while guiding her hand forward with the cue.
With a “bang,” the two balls collided, and one successfully fell into the pocket.
“Yay, it went in!” Zhaozhao jumped up excitedly, accidentally hitting Chuyi’s chin behind her.
A muffled groan came from behind.
Zhaozhao quickly turned around and saw a red mark on his chin where she had hit him.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do it, are you okay?” Zhaozhao hastily apologized.
“It’s okay! You keep practicing,” Chuyi handed the cue stick back to her, then walked aside.
Unfortunately, without Chuyi’s hands-on demonstration, Zhaozhao tried several shots without any success.
But, at least she was hitting the balls now.
“No worries, just try a few more times and you’ll get it,” Chuyi comforted her.
Zhaozhao also felt that with a few more practice rounds, she could definitely make the shots.
“By the way, how long did it take you to learn?” Zhaozhao couldn’t help but ask.
Chuyi: “If it’s just about learning, seeing someone demonstrate once was enough for me, but to master it well took about three hours.”
Zhaozhao: “Are you sure it only took you three hours, not three days or three weeks?”
She felt that three hours could, at most, ensure she touched the ball every time, whether it would go into the pocket was a matter of luck.
Chuyi: “Three hours was enough!”
She shouldn’t have asked.
Some people’s presence is just to undermine others’ enthusiasm.
Luckily, she had known from a young age that she was not as good as him, and being discouraged so often had made her mentally stronger.
Between internal conflict and self-doubt, she chose to simply give up and lie down.