3rd & Long

Chapter 6: Neutral Zone Infraction

Raf shifted on the couch as he began to talk again, "Yeah I know she's a fighter. I just wish she didn't have to fight so much. After going through all this with her... I don't think I can see myself leaving her side anytime soon. Thank you so much for covering here in San Francisco for me."

Nat glanced away at her friend's words. While letting Raf be close to his mom was a big part of the reason she had agreed to swap places, it wasn't the only one. "I don't mind that. You know how I was feeling having to spend another year with the Lightning and with Dustin. Honestly your offer felt like the best thing that could've happened to me, I just wish it would've happened under different circumstances."

Upon hearing the mention of her ex boyfriend, Raf met Nat's eyes again. "How are you feeling about all of that? I can't imagine it was easy seeing him at the game."

Nat was silent for a bit before letting out a slight chuckle. "Well it got easier every time Bosa got a sack on him. That 3rd one definitely made me feel better than anything else I tried." Nat could feel the giant smile on her face and only hoped Raf wouldn't be able to read further into it.

Fortunately, his gaze was on the puppy again. "Like I said, that man is terrifying. I really hope he stays with the Pioneers a long time."

Nat knew Bosa was in his last year of his contract with the Pioneers, but she couldn't imagine him leaving. The team was starting to look like real contenders again and she knew how close he was with the other players. Coupled with the fact he was looking like he had another incredible year ahead of him, and it seemed like a no-brainer that the Pioneers would do everything in their power to make sure the defensive end stayed in the bay.

I'm the one who's not staying. Nat reminded herself. I'm only here for the year. I won't be sticking around long enough in Nick Bosa's life.

Raf had now taken Sugar from Nat and was letting her lick all over his face. "You better take good care of her Nasty Nat. I'll be coming back for her next weekend and I expect her to be in the same condition I'm leaving her."

Nat laughed as she shook the former thoughts from her brain. "Of course. Me and my niece are gonna have the best time, isn't that right my little sugar cube." Nat spoke as she went to pet the dog as well.

Raf handed Sugar to her new babysitter as he took a gulp of the water he got from the kitchen. "Well, the Lightning aren't gonna be heading back until the morning so I'm good to spend the night here. Should we get out some tequila?" Raf inquired.

Nat felt brief panic but tried to keep her cool exterior. "Nah, I don't really feel like drinking. How about we watch some Pioneer highlights on Youtube instead?"

...

The following day Nat took her seat next to Ellie as they awaited their post game meeting. Looking at the monitor Mr. Stoll had set up, Nat could see the next team they would be taking on was the Seattle Sparrowhawks, a divisional rival. Games within the division were always taken the most serious since they were the determiners of who would move on to the playoffs, so she knew this would be an all hands on deck situation. It was also given a primetime spot, meaning there would be a lot of late practices for the boys.

"We'll get the meeting started in just a moment, I'm just waiting to hear back from the coach regarding a few things." Mr. Stoll explained.

Nat looked over at Ellie who was scrolling on her phone. Nat could see she was picking out photos from the game to post online. She noticed a man with a mustache and shoulder length hair in several pictures.