Lost Boy

Chapter Three

"One of the greatest regrets of life is being what others would want you to be, rather than being yourself."

- Shannon L. Alder.

. . .

My breath floated in front of my eyes in small clouds of fog. Boy was it cold today.

When Ada picked me up I knew I should have brought a warmer jacket. It was going to be a cold night, I guessed as I looked at the houses we passed on our way to the football field.

I checked my phone, 6:45 pm. Fifteen minutes to go.

"How l-l-long are we gonna be here for?" I asked, placing my head between the front two seats of the car so Ada and Scar could hear me.

"Probably a couple of hours maybe, depending on how long Dean takes to get changed afterwards." Scar shrugged, causing me to groan in dislike.

Eventually, through the foggy windscreen I could see the silhouette of the field appearing up ahead, so I mentally prepared myself for what was about to happen.

Just get through tonight. It's just one game and one party, what could go wrong?

When we finally arrived the seats were so packed that we had to push our way through the crowds to find a small row at the back. As Ada and Scarlett ran to get popcorn, I noticed the players running out onto the field. Instinctively I searched the team for Dean, looking for the number nine painted in white on his back.

He must have passed us already or something, I thought to myself rubbing my arms for warmth, oh well.

Turns out I didn't need to keep looking for him, as he had already found me.

"Fawn! Over here sunshine!" I flinched and felt my heart screech to a halt as I heard my name being yelled amongst all the chatter. The whole crowd seemed to quiet down, and gradually through all of the people I saw Dean's head appear in the centre of the field, already staring right at me.

The second our eyes made contact he came jogging towards me. Maybe he was just coming to chat with the others or something, I thought, silently praying that he wasn't about to make me the centre of attention.

He knew I hated that... right?

Turns out I was wrong.

"You made it!" He cried, hopping the fence and running up to me. Before I could open my mouth to reply I was thrown up in the air and spun around. I let out a squeal as my hair flew around us and got caught in my mouth. I spat it out in disgust and tried pinning it back behind my ears hopelessly.

When I was finally set on my own two feet the world seemed to be spinning. "Woah, sorry sunshine, didn't mean to make you dizzy." He laughed, steadying me as I wobbled and giving me a look that I couldn't understand. "I didn't think you were coming."

"N-n-neither did I." I shrugged.

"What changed your mind?"

"Who d-do you think?" I nodded towards Ada and Scar. "I underestimated their skills of p-persuasion."

"They just knew how much I wanted you to come."

"W-what?" I asked and looked up at him, surprised at his bluntness.

"Look Fawn, I've been trying to tell you for some time, and I thought I was being obvious but clearly my hints haven't been working. You see, I-"

I didn't get to hear what he was saying as the coach blew his whistle and demanded Dean get back onto the field because the match was starting. He apologized profusely, and I assured him he could tell me after the game. But when I sat back down, I had a bad feeling in my stomach.