Page 97 of Running With Lions

“It will.” Suppressing a chuckle, Sebastian shakes up his water. Mason’s going to be the first one to burst Willie’s bubble. Sebastian’s looking forward to it.

“Dude.” Zach nudges Sebastian with an elbow. “Emir is abeast.”

Sebastian crosses his ankles and lays his hands in his lap. He whispers, “Yeah.”

Emir has become a monster on the pitch. He’s every attacker’s, including Mason’s, worst nightmare. He outruns everyone and has a good read on a player’s next move. He protects the penalty box as if it’s his, as if he’s determined to keep people away from Sebastian. It’d be flattering, but they’re still not talking.

Zach knocks their shoulders. “They’re crediting you for his turnaround. Mad respect, Bastian.”

Sebastian lifts his eyebrows. Did he doanythingfor Emir? These days, all he does is give Emir a thumbs-up every time he makes a good play on the pitch. Sebastian’s a coward. He should be shouting “I love you” as a good ‘80s movie demands. Sebastian is no Jake Ryan.

Even now, Sebastian’s got it bad, staring at Emir in his practice uniform while Emir leans on Hunter or talks with Gio. His eyes scan Emir’s toned calves, his narrow waist, his broad shoulders, and that skinny, long neck.

What a lovesick loser! All he has to do is stop being so sulky and say all of this to Emir. He finishes his water.

“We’ve got this in the bag, man,” says Zach, offering Sebastian a fist bump. He reciprocates and focuses on what’s ahead.

The Spartans are dust.

27

Sebastian’s not hiding.

He’s calling this meditating, huddled in his old Lions hoodie, which now smells like Emir, with his knees pulled to his chest. His ass is numb from sitting on the stadium’s cold stone bleachers.

John P. McKee Stadium, across from Bloomington High, belongs to the local community college. It’s a coliseum built for gladiators. And because BHS’s football team sucks, the college rents out the stadium for the soccer team’s home games. It has a collegiate-level playing field, renovated locker rooms, and enough space to fit the whole city in the stands.

It’s cool enough that Sebastian’s breath is visible when he exhales. He studies the pitch. A lot of dreams come true on that stretch of green and white. Last year, a lot of dreams were crushed there too.

Sebastian fishes out his phone, keys in the code, and then glares at it. His wallpaper is a profile photo of his sworn enemy: St. Catherine’s star attacker, Dawson. The guy is set for the pros; he’s that good. “Asshole,” Sebastian whispers. He keeps his photo as a reminder. He will not be beat by Dawson this year.

Friday, everyone will remember his name.

“Wow, this place sure is weird when it’s not packed with people cheering you on.” Lily settles next to him. Sighing wistfully, she drops her purse in her lap.

Sebastian pockets his phone. Usually, after practice, he hitches a ride with Mason. Today, Sebastian needed to be alone.

Lily pokes his cheek and asks, “Okay, what’s got you down, Bumble Bee?”

No one’s around to hear her, but Sebastian’s still slightly embarrassed. She won’t hesitate to use the nickname publicly. Parents say the worst things when a crowd’s around, as if they earn extra parenting points for humiliating their children.

“Well,” Sebastian starts, but Lily is wearing hermeans businessface, so he bites his tongue.

Her superpower is seeing through his bullshit.

He says, shyly, “I’m scared, Mom. When the season’s over, I have no clue what to do.” His unexpected fearlessness outweighs the sweat breaking out across his hairline. “I don’t know if I want to go to college, let alone where. All I have is this sport and the guys. After that, I’m lost.”

Lily hums, and here it comes: The Talk about how important college is and that life goes on after sports. But Lily is an unpredictable force of nature. She asks, “What’s wrong with being lost?”

Sebastian laughs. Behind his eyelashes is a needling burn. “It’s wrong, Mom. I should be looking forward to college, to playing on a professional team.”

“But why?”

“Because—”

Lily holds up a hand, and Sebastian’s mouth snaps shut. She says, “Bastian, you can do whatever you want, when you want. The only thing in life youhave to dois live it.” Her hand covers his, squeezing. “Go to college, chase your dreams of being a pro athlete. Or take some time off, find yourself, and be an ‘adult’ later.”

Sebastian blinks hard.

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