The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden

hooded sweatshirt, and stuffing his face with peanuts. “I wonder what this guy would do if I did.”
     
    I laugh, tucking my hands between my legs. “Probably throw those peanuts at you.”
     
    He pulls a face and then exaggeratedly rubs his belly. “Good, I hope he does. I’m starving.”
     
    I glance up at the timer. “There’s only two more minutes left.”
     
    “And are we winning or losing?”
     
    “The score is twenty-eight to three.”
     
    He raises his hands to the side, aiming me a “duh” look. “And who’s twenty-eight?”
     
    I point at my chest. “We are. We’re winning by a lot.”
     
    He bobs his head from side to side, eyeing the woman in front of us, inhaling a hamburger. “God, I’m so hungry.”
     
    I sigh, pointing at the stairway. “Then go get something to eat. There are some booths outside.”
     
    He stares at the stairs skeptically. “Will you come with me? Sports people are intense.”
     
    Laughing, I get to my feet and he follows me. I say excuse me at least ten times while I accidentally step on people’s toes. When we are on the stairs, I let out a breath of relief at the open space and follow Seth as he trots down to the bottom.
     
    “You’re not leaving, are you?” I hear someone shout over the rustle of the crowd.
     
    Kayden is standing at the sidelines, looking extremely sexy in his uniform, his emerald eyes locked on me.
     
    I shake my head, wrapping my fingers around the cold railing, and lean over it. “No, Seth just needs to get something to eat!”
     
    “Good, because I don’t want you to take your luck with you!” he shouts with a wink and a smile.
     
    I try not to let a big silly grin surface on my lips. “Don’t worry! I’ll be back!”
     
    Wait for me afterwards , he mouths, his lips moving slowly from beneath his helmet. Mesmerized, I nod and he turns back to his team with a spring in his walk.
     
    I return my attention back to the aisle and almost run into Seth. “I thought you kept walking.” I brace myself against the railing and step back.
     
    He gapes at me unfathomably. “I can’t believe this.”
     
    I inch to the side out of a man’s way. “Believe what?”
     
    He shakes his head in awe. “You’re in love with him.”
     
    I roll my eyes, almost laughing. “I am not. Now can we please go get you something to eat before the game ends and we get taken out by the crowd.”
     
    Shaking his head, he backs toward the last flight of stairs, still thinking the same absurd thought, but he’s wrong. I’m not in love with Kayden. I barely know him and love requires a lot of time, a lot of trust, and a lot of other things I don’t understand.
     
    ***
     
    Seth leaves me in the tunnel, just outside the locker room. He has a date tonight with Greyson and he walks off toward his car with a skip in his walk. After the crowd clears, I sit down on the concrete and check my text messages.
     
    Mom: Hey sweetie. I’ve been trying to call you for the last few hours. I wanted to know if you were coming home for Thanksgiving. I know it’s kind of late notice and I already told you we’re going out of town, but our plans changed and we are going to be home. Call me.
     
    I sigh at the thought of going home to the memories and the lies. I put my phone in the pocket of my jacket and direct my concentration to the side as rain begins to pour down from the sky and flood the sidewalks and streets. The streetlights flicker through the raindrops and I inhale in the scent, closing my eyes.
     
    “Holy fucking hell.” Kayden’s voice rises over the noise.
     
    I open my eyes. He’s standing just in front of me, dressed in a grey Henley, dark jeans, and boots. His hair is damp and his eyes are locked on the rain. I push to my feet and brush the dirt off the back of my jeans.
     
    “I was right about your luck,” he says. “We totally kicked their asses.”
     
    I shake my head. “I think that was all you guys. Not me.”
     
    His legs stretch toward me as he closes the space between us. “No way, that was all you. I played better than I ever have because I knew you were watching and I was trying to impress you.”
     
    “You know I’ve seen you play before, right?”
     
    He tilts his head to the side. “When?”
     
    I shrug. “Sometimes my dad would make me go with him to practice because my parents thought I needed to get out of the house more. I would hang out under the bleachers and watch.” He looks at me sadly as