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“Good. Flight took forever. I learned to surf.” Harrison glances at Brooks, then holds out a hand. “Hey, man. I’m Harrison.”
“I’m Brooks.”
Harrison glances back and forth between the two of us, the question clear on his face. I’m relieved when Brooks elaborates.
“I go to Arlington with Finn. He invited me.”
“Oh. Nice. You from the area?”
Brooks rolls the ball on his hip, shaking his head. “San Fran, actually.”
“Nice. I’ve never been up that far north.”
“It’s a cool city.”
An awkward silence falls. “Want to play H-O-R-S-E with us?” I ask Harrison. “We were just about to start.”
“Nah, I’m good, thanks. Just wanted to say hi. Gotten my ass kicked by you before, Cas.”
I roll my eyes. He’s neglecting to mention that was a team’s round, and most of the credit belonged to my partner.
“See you later,” Harrison continues. “Nice to meet you, Brooks.”
“You, too.” Brooks glances at me, one eyebrow raised as soon as Harrison walks away. “Ex?” Then winces. “Sorry. I swear I’m not normally this nosy.”
I smile. “It’s fine. And no, we’re just friends. It’s a small town thing, I guess. Everyone kinda keeps track of each other.”
His hum sounds a lot like a disagreement, but Brooks says nothing else. He takes his first shot, which is a near miss.
I retrieve the ball and take my first shot. My unlucky streak finally ends, the ball falling through the hoop with a satisfyingswish.
Brooks groans. “Knew it.”
I grin. “Good luck.”
He misses making the same shot, but it’s close. And he’s a good sport about it, which is more than I can say for a lot of guys.
By the time he hits E, we’re both breathless and laughing.
“Good game,” Brooks congratulates. “Rematch?”
I smile but shake my head. “I should head out soon. Just going to grab some more water before I do.”
My cup was drained a while ago. I might have won, but Brooks was a decent opponent.
I finished the game with H-O-R, a few lucky bounces deserving most of the credit for my victory.
Brooks pulls in a deep breath that strips me of ease even before he starts talking. “Can I get your number? I’ll be here for a few more days, and I had a lot of fun hanging out with you. Would love to do it again sometime.”
I could say yes.
Shouldsay yes, probably.
My summer has sucked, and based on what little I know of him, Brooks seems like a genuinely nice guy. A unicorn, in other words.
It usually takes me a while to warm up to strangers, but I feel like I’ve known Brooks for a lot longer than however long it’s been since he came over to the bleachers.
But my head is already shaking, which I don’t realize until I notice his hopeful expression has shifted to embarrassed.
