The Game

𝟔

𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑺𝒊𝒙 - 𝑨𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒌

I needed air — real air — so I threw on a tee, grabbed leashes, and took the pack out. Zeus and Dion were already dragging me toward the neighborhood park, tails doing the most; Coral, Rory, and Corey trotted like soldiers; Zahra stayed close because she was still the baby.

Sun was out, sky clean, breeze just right. I popped my AirPods in and started an easy jog around the loop, letting my head clear. For two minutes it was just breath and pavement.

Then I saw her.

She had that fresh out the shower look — curls still damp at the ends, skin dewy like she'd walked through a cloud. Oversized blue tee cropped just enough to flash a sliver of waist, blue biker shorts hugging her like they were custom, white socks and sneakers catching light every time she pushed off. The way her hair bounced when she ran, the way her waist narrowed into hips, the way that ridiculous, perfect ass moved... I damn near forgot how to put one foot in front of the other. I'd swear I knew her from somewhere, but my brain stalled out, choosing awe over memory.

I slowed to a jog to watch her form — smooth, light — and that's when fate tripped both of us.

She looked down at her phone. I looked at her. We met in the middle with a thud. My toe caught a leash; I pitched forward; she squeaked and went down; I landed half across her like the world's clumsiest linebacker.

"Shit — sorry, love," I blurted, scrambling. "You a'ight?"

Her eyes squeezed shut, then opened slow. Big, pretty, familiar. "I— I'm f— fine," she breathed, even though she winced.

I got my foot untangled and pushed up, then reached back for her. One hand found the small of her back, the other cupped the side of her head so she wouldn't smack it on the concrete. She was warm under my palm, stomach tightening under that tee, curls slick against my fingers. I lifted her easy and she wobbled into my chest. For a second we just stared — close enough for me to count the little gold flecks in her eyes.

"You hurt anywhere?" I asked, softer. "Back? Head?"

"I— I d— don't think s— so," she said, voice small. Shy. Cute.

"Take it slow." I dusted grass from her shoulders and, yeah, had to fight a smile when I brushed a green smear from the back of those shorts. She felt that — I heard the breath catch in her throat — so I moved my hand like it was no big deal.

Our dogs broke the stare by circling and barking like they were narrating the whole mess. She crouched, fussing with a caramel-colored Cavalier.

"Shai, chill," she scolded. "Be nice."

"Zahra," I snapped, and the smallest of my mutts sat like a princess. "Good girl."

When the noise dipped, I looked at the girl again — at the curve of her mouth, the way the sun made a halo out of her curls — and my brain finally tried to work.

"Do I know you?" I asked before I could stop it.

Something shifted behind her eyes — quick, like a door closing gentle but firm. It hit me in the chest. I'd said something wrong.

"We— we go to the same school," she said, barely above a whisper.

Crestwood. Right. I searched my head and came up empty, which pissed me off with myself because there was no way I'd forget this face.

"No disrespect," I said, honest, "but I swear I'd remember you anywhere. You're... beautiful, love."

Color climbed into her cheeks and she looked down, biting a smile. I had to flex my hands to keep from touching her again.

I cleared my throat and backed up half a step. "Uh — you mind if my dogs run with yours for a lap? Zahra needs the miles."

Her eyes flicked up. "Y— You wanna run with me?"

"If you're cool with it."

We took off side by side. Her stride was easy, natural. Every time we hit a patch of sun, her curls flashed; every time we hit shade, I had to fight the urge to look too long at how those shorts fit. I focused on something safe — dogs.

"What are their names?" I nodded at her pair.

She brightened, like I'd asked about her siblings. "This lil' fatty is Kyng — and that's Shai. She was super shy when I got her."

"Cute," I said, whistling my crew in. "Zeus, Dion, Coral, Rory, Corey — and the baby, Zahra."

Her eyebrows jumped. "Six?"

"Yeah. My girl hates it," I said before I could catch myself. "But they're family."

We finished our loop and dropped to a slow walk. Zahra decided Shai was her new best friend and jumped straight into my arms when I tapped my thigh. The girl crouched and all six noses went to her at once. She threw her head back and laughed — clean, bright — and, man, that sound hit something under my ribs I didn't know was exposed.

A little later, Shai juked me, bounced off my chest, and I exaggerated a fall. The girl's laugh turned into a light scream and she rushed over.

"You better get off my damn dog!" she yelled, swatting my shoulder, grinning.

"Ladies love me," I said from the ground, and she rolled her eyes like I'd said it a hundred times.

She started to stand; I caught her wrist without thinking, then let go when her breath hitched. The look she gave me — interested, shy, uncertain — punched a hole straight through my cool.

Her phone buzzed. She checked it and her face shifted. "I— I gotta go."

"Already?" I hated how disappointed I sounded. "Why?"

"I— I have to be somewhere," she said, clipping leashes back on. She looked up like she didn't want to move.

I stepped close but I didn't crowd her. "It was... nice, love."

"Yeah," she said, smile trying to win against responsibility.

I took a risk and touched her chin so she'd look right at me. "I enjoyed your company," I said. Her lips were right there — soft, glossy, asking for a promise — so I brushed the corner with mine. Not a real kiss, just a marker. She exhaled like she'd been holding that breath since the lap started.

"Hopefully I'll see you at school," I said.

She nodded, turned, and jogged off with Kyng and Shai. I stood there like an idiot, watching the blue of her tee get smaller.

"Wait!" I called, sudden panic. "I didn't get your name!"

Too late. Wind and distance ate the words.

I leashed the pack and sat on the low wall by the path, pretending to stretch while my head ran laps. The way her hair moved. The way her body fit itself. The way her eyes changed when I asked if I knew her — like I'd been missing something obvious for a long time. I tried her face against a hundred school hallways and couldn't place her. That annoyed me more than it should've. It also made me want to see her again so bad it felt stupid.

Phone vibrated.

"Yo," Malachi said. "We still hitting the courts or you bailing like last time?"

"I'm coming," I said, dragging a hand over my face. "And, bro... I just met the most amazing girl."

He barked a laugh. "You finally gonna leave Kay?"

Silence sat heavy for a second.

"I don't know," I said, honest and low. "But something's gotta give."

"Say less," he said. "I'll meet you in twenty."

We hung up. I stood, whistled the dogs in, and headed for the exit, still replaying that tiny smile, that not-quite kiss, that look when I asked a dumb question. Monday I'd have practice, homework, the same old routine — but my world felt a little tilted now, like the game had changed and I was just catching up.