“Let's talk about the real elephant in the room,” she nodded at me. “What happened out there?”
My heart hammered against my ribs, and I had to look away from her, staring at the other cars in the parking lot to occupy my racing mind.
“I was a liability,” I muttered slowly. “And despite themletting me play, I was scared of getting too close, scared of any real contact. And then Max scored the goal that he didn't need to. He could have passed it to me and given me a chance. It's what I do. I'm the striker, I score. Maybe I sucked at positioning and getting too close, but I was right there. It sucks he didn't trust me enough on this.”
“How's the knee?” she asked.
Turning back to face her, surprise crossed her face before she smiled.
“You didn't even think about it?” she asked, and I nodded.
“Doesn't bother me at all. It was a bit tender after all the running, but not more than usual.”
“Good.” Rosie seemed pleased with my answers. “So, what do you want to do now?”
What did I want to do? I wanted to go back to the field and shoot free kicks until I didn't miss one, but I knew that wasn't the problem. It was the contact and the positioning. I needed to be able to get up close and personal with others without the fear of something happening. That was my main challenge.
“How about a movie?” I asked, nodding towards my display.
“As much as I'm very impressed with your new car,” Rosie said. “I think we should go back.”
She must have seen my face fall, because she reached out, grabbing my hand. “But I'll stay with you.”
“Can we go to the field for a bit?” I asked quietly, suddenly feeling shy and stupid. “I just want to...”
“Yes,” Rosie nodded. “Want me to drive, or are you okay driving?”
If I wasn't already falling for this girl, that question would have pushed me over the edge and fallen in the fastest freefall in history.
There was no one like her. No one saw me for who I really was. She saw the real me and understood me on a deeper level.And in that moment, I knew I needed to do everything in my power to keep her.
“I'm good to drive, unless you would like to drive.” I watched as her face lit up, and I moved to open the door so she could climb over to the driver's seat. “You never drive?”
“Aaron never lets me,” she shrugged, putting the car in drive and giving me a much better driving experience from the get-go. “And I don't have a car because I love walking, the town is small, so it's fine.”
“If you ever want to drive, even with no destination in mind, let me know.”
And the smile she graced me with mended all of my broken parts.
I was a complete goner for this girl, and from now on, I started playing off-side.
The field stretched endlessly before me, the grass too green, the sky too bright. I was running, my legs pumping, the ball at my feet. Everything felt perfect...my knee strong, my breath even, my mind clear.
This was it. The championship game. The crowd roared my name.
I saw the opening, the perfect angle. Max passed the ball, and it rolled to me like destiny. The goalkeeper was out of position. All I had to do was shoot.
I pulled my leg back.
That's when I saw him.
Ander Sanchez. Westpoint's captain. His eyes locked on mine, and he smiled. Not a friendly smile. A predatory one.
He was too far away. He couldn't reach me in time. I was safe.
But then he was there, right behind me, impossibly close. I felt his presence like a storm cloud, dark and suffocating.
“You're dead,” he whispered.
