With a wave to Pam and Erin, Sarah unlocked her Jeep and hopped inside. She’d just buckled her seatbelt when she spotted Bent and his soccer pals. They were walking in the middle of a huge crowd of happy supporters. Sarah rolled down her window, trying to hear what was being said. She could hear Bent chatting with the soccer captain, Dan. Dan told him to try to avoid getting into any more fights over the weekend. As the crowd cleared, Bent hung back in the shadows of the parking lot. He’d pulled out his phone and was scrolling through it. Elly and her group of worshippers appeared. Trish walked behind them with Chad, the other soccer captain. Every so often she’d burst out laughing at something he said. “Uh, why is it so cold now?” Elly complained. She threw her arms around Bent’s neck and kissed him. Sarah looked away. It’s not that she wasn’t used to seeing them together. It just made her uncomfortable. Elly and Bent spoke quietly together for several minutes. Elly kept laughing and pulling at his jacket. Their conversation was impossible for Sarah to hear. “We’ll see you later, Handsome,” Elly said as she and her friends headed towards their cars. Chad gave Bent a fist pump as he strolled by him, out into the parking lot. Sarah was about to drive off when her phone beeped. She reached over to grab her leather bag off the floor of the Jeep. Pulling out her phone, she checked the message.To her astonishment, it was from Bent.-Hey. You around? ~bSarah automatically ducked lower in her seat. She didn’t want him to see her sitting in her Jeep. As she debated how she could drive away without Bent noticing her vehicle, the group of girls in the puffy sweaters who’d sat behind Sarah on the bleachers approached Bent. The girl in the blue sweater was tugging the sleeve of the girl behind her, as if to keep her friend from escaping. Sarah, intrigued, leaned out the window to listen. “Um…excuse me, B-Bent. Uh…you had a really great game. Really great!” The girl looked frantically around at her friends for encouragement. “Oh, hey. How’s it going? Thanks for coming to the game,” Bent said. He wore his sweaty soccer uniform, though he’d removed his cleats and pulled on sneakers. He adjusted his jacket as the wind started to pick up. The girl in the blue sweater smiled wildly at him. “Um, we know you’re super busy. And you probably have someplace to be right now. But…but would you…well…my friend here. It’s her birthday. And…she wanted to tell you something.” The girl in blue all but pushed her friend in the pink sweater forward. The girl in the pink sweater was so happy, she beamed brightly at him. Though she tried hard to conceal her nervousness. “Hello, Bent. I just wanted to tell you what a great goal that was. You’re the best soccer player ever!” Bent had pocketed his phone. He grinned at the group of girls. “It’s your birthday, huh? Glad we won the game for you.” He bent down and picked a bright red flower. He handed it to the girl. “For you. How old are you today?” The girl in the pink sweater gasped. “Oh, it’s beautiful. THANK YOU! You’re SO NICE! I’m sixteen today.” She showed her friends the flower. Bent shrugged, smiling broadly. His milk chocolate eyes sparkled. “Sure thing. Happy sweet sixteen.” The girls waved goodbye, giggling excitedly. Bent pulled his phone out. He pressed a button and held the phone to his ear. Sarah’s phone started to ring VERY LOUDLY. He was CALLING HER! Before she could silence it, she saw Bent’s eyes flash in her direction.