Clock: 0:05.
The stadium erupted with noise. Only five seconds, and the other team had no time-outs. Victory was practically printed and laminated. Still, I didn’t exhale until the scoreboard’s last red digit flipped to zero.
Final. Rebels 27, Wildcats 24.
The buzzer went off and helmets flew, bodies collided in celebration, and somewhere in the madness, #71 tore off toward the sideline, searching.
For me.
We’d won.He’dwon. And judging by the way his smile bulldozed every rational thought in my head, I was about to too.
Sawyer spotted me and broke into a sprint, cutting through the sidelines like nothing else mattered. I barely had time to react before his arms wrapped around my waist, lifting me clear off the ground.
“Ellie, baby.” His voice was low as he placed me back down.
Before I could answer, his family started shouting and laughing, pulling him away in a mix of congratulations and back slaps.
I stepped to the side, trying to catch my breath. Sawyer gave me a little smile, then started talking to everyone.
I stepped back, letting the noise pass over me and giving Sawyer a moment. Colt approached me a few seconds later.
“Ellie,” he greeted.
“Hey.”
He didn’t look at me right away. His gaze stayed on Sawyer, who was grinning as he said something to Dorian and Trent, completely wrapped up in the moment. The joy radiated off him,his brother standing next to me with his normal unreadable look.
“I don’t really know you,” Colt said finally. “But I know him. Better than anyone.”
I said nothing.
“He’s given up more than most people realize. For football, for this team, for our family. You’re the first thing I’ve seen that makes him light up like this.”
He didn’t sound mad or even emotional. Just factual, like he was laying down the truth and leaving it there.
“But if you’re not all in, you need to let him go.” He glanced at me. “You’ve got your own world. Big stage. Big future. And that’s fine, but if he’s not a part of that future, don’t keep him hoping. Because he will.”
I still didn’t answer.
He gave a small nod, as if that was all he came to say, before he disappeared into the crowd.
I stood there for a while, eyes back on Sawyer. He hadn’t stopped smiling, and I didn’t know what the hell I was supposed to do with any of it anymore.
FORTY-THREE
Sawyer
This was the dream.I was going to the Super Bowl for my last season, but it didn’t feel the way I always imagined.
Something was wrong. Ellie hadn’t said anything, but she didn’t need to. I could sense it. She was fine after the game for a minute. Then, I saw it—Colt pulling her aside, saying something he probably thought no one else would notice. But I saw the way her face changed, that tight nod, the way she didn’t look at him again.
She hadn’t been herself since.
My family came back to my place to celebrate. There were music, drinks, and way too many people in my small condo. And Ellie barely said two words the whole time.
Now, the place had cleared out, leaving just the two of us. She was curled into the corner of my couch, shoulders tense, picking at her fingernails. Her smile flicked up when I walked over, but it didn’t reach her eyes. I dropped to my knees and took her hands, coaxing her fingers to still.
“Ellie.” I pressed a quick kiss to her knuckles.
