From our vantage point on a hill behind it, the field stretches out like a grand stage, the end zones promising victory or defeat, while the bleachers on either side are packed with cheering fans, their faces blurred but their excitement palpable. The smells of popcorn and autumn leaves mingle in the cool night air, completing the perfect picture of a Friday night high school game.
“Those are my guys,” Austin murmurs, his eyes landing on the team as they huddle around a single man, who I assume is their coach.
“So this is one of those errands you’ve been running, huh? Yeah, you are such a recluse.” I roll my eyes as his fingers dig into my side, tickling me. “Stop it!”
“I’ll tickle more if you keep that up.” He stands up a little taller as he watches them. “They helped me get out of my own way.”
A silent understanding lands between us, settling into the comfortable space. Austin’s eyes sparkle as they flit around the field, taking in the energy, the chaotic sounds, and the bright lights.
“Friday night, baby,” I joke.
“It’s nostalgic,” he whispers. “They remind me of why I started. Their energy,” he says as he waves a hand at the team, “got me back on track for performance. It was one aspect of my recovery I was obviously focusing on.”
“What were the others?”
“Mindset and longevity. Longevity because I wanted to come back to the game, so I knew I needed to be persistent and also patient with myself. That’s another reason this part was so important, working with the kids.”
“And you didn’t tell anyone?”
He shakes his head. “I told Levi when he needed to know.”
“Mrs. Rosenblatt has seen you.”
“She has?” His eyes widen with surprise.
I bob my head up and down. “Mentioned it to me, but I never asked.”
“Why?”
“I figured if you wanted anyone to know what you were up to, you’d tell them.” I nudge him with my elbow. “I’m not going to out your secret. No way, man.”
“Thanks.” He chuckles.
“And the mindset part?”
No sooner are the words out of my mouth before I hear someone scream Austin’s name. Both of our heads spin as we look around and another voice joins the chorus. Then another. Within a few seconds, it becomes loudly obvious that the whole team has spotted us and is chanting for Austin to come to the field.
“Be right there!” he calls out, laughing as he turns to me. “You were asking about mindset? That”—he points to the teens—“has also helped. All for one and one for all. I’ve been a jerk, but I have been working on myself in the background. I pushed as many people away as I could, but I’m a lucky man because they all stayed by my side. They didn’t give up even when I wanted to.”
A feeling of warmth floods my veins. “That is a mindset all its own, isn’t it?”
“To show up when you don’t know what you’re going to get? You bet it is. For me and those around me.” He shakes his head. “But these boys reminded me to be resilient. They were losing last year, and this year, they’re on the track to play in the state championships. Visualization, meditation, working out together. I was here with them as their coach instilled that routine and wow…I got to see them fly.”
“Sounds like you did the mindset part of this to me,” I say as he wraps his hand around mine and we start to walk down the hill.
“Yes, somewhat. But it’s more than all of that.” He stops short, whipping me into his chest as he wraps his arms around my waist. “You, Bex. You’re fire. Your snappy comebacks, and the way you put me in my place. Those were the moments that I look at and can point to and say, ‘I think I started to wake up then.’ Because I was kind of on pause. I was going through the motions, but nothing had clicked. The day you showed up, my stakes got higher.”
“Hopefully your standards, too?” I tease, resting my forehead against his.
“Definitely,” he says as he smiles softly at my teasing, the warmth in his eyes making my heart flutter. Before I can say anything else, he closes the small space between us, his lips brushing against mine in a quick, tender kiss. It’s brief but full of meaning—like a promise wrapped in softness. His lips are warm and inviting, and I can feel the sincerity behind them, like he’s pouring all his unspoken feelings into this single fleeting moment. When he pulls back, his eyes lock onto mine, and I know without a doubt that something between us has just shifted, deepened.
He pulls back, his eyes still locked on mine, and without a word, takes my hand. There’s something unspoken between us as he gently leads me toward the football field. The cool night air wraps around us, and the distant hum of the crowd and the sight of the field feels almost surreal.
We reach the edge of the field, and I let my gaze drift across the turf, the place where so many games have been won and lost, where so much emotion has been poured out under the bright lights. It’s strange, really, how much this field means to him—and now, somehow, it means something to me, too.
As we walk along the sideline, hand in hand, I can’t help but think about how falling in love feels like… well, like getting Graves’ disease if I’m going to be honest.
It sneaks up on you when you least expect it, slowly taking over until you can’t remember what it was like to be without it. It makes you feel things you never imagined, makes your heart race, makes you question everything—and yet, here I am, standing on the edge of something terrifying and beautiful, and I realize I’m completely okay with it, and no matter what, everything will be fine.
