Catch My Breath

I showered and threw on my favorite pair of faded jeans, a light sweater and sneakers. Seeing as we’d be outside all day, I figured casual was best.

“Braids and a baseball hat?” Stephanie giggled.

“It’s comfortable. Besides, if the weather goes sour and it starts to rain I'll be covered.”

“Always so prepared,” Stephanie remarked as she slid on her vintage sunglasses. “Alright, Sporty Barbie, ready to go?"

"Let's do this.”

Groups of young men and women clad in various team apparel lined the street leading up to the pub. The air was thick with cigarette smoke and excited chatter. The sun was shining and many people were taking advantage of the rare, nice weather.

"This is insanity. Look at all these people. Figures that Darren would pick the most popular area to meet." Stephanie craned her neck to get a better view through the throng of sports fans. She had a good three inches on me so I just watched all the people nearby.

I became very engrossed in a trio of young men to my right. They debated the merits of one player over another on a particular team. I hadn't the foggiest idea what they were talking about, but enjoyed listening to their accents.

An elbow suddenly greeted me in the side.

"Ow! What the hell?"

"Sorry, sorry. I see Darren. Let's go."

We navigated our way through several groups of people standing on the sidewalk. Once we reached a clearing, I spotted Darren. His spiky blond hair was immobile in the breeze as he chatted to someone next to him. My view of the other person was obstructed by a rather tall, lanky guy. As soon as he walked away, I sucked in a breath.

“Holy shit.” I stopped short.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“That’s him,” I barely squeaked out. Stephanie paused and followed my gaze. I drank in every inch of him. Faded black jeans molded to his toned legs perfectly. His lean upper body was showcased in a tight, long sleeved gray cotton shirt. Snap out of it, Meyers.

“Shut the front door, no it’s not.”

I didn’t have a chance to answer her. Darren saw us and waved us over. I married my eyes to the pavement and took a deep breath.

“Hey, you two. I ordered up some nice, Florida sunshine for today. What do you think?”

“Not bad,” Stephanie laughed.

Glancing up at Darren from under the rim of my hat, I could feel the other guy staring at me.

“Lia, Stephanie. This is Alastair Holden. He’s coming to the match with us. Don’t let his ginger hair frighten you.”

Even his name dripped with elegance. I squared my shoulders and boldly fixed my stare on him. So help me God, he was incredible.

“Get your eyes checked, MacCourty,” he said dryly. “It’s nice to see you again, Amelia.”

Darren’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. He looked from Alastair to me. “You two know each other?”

“We met last night by the bar,” Alastair answered, “she was having some trouble negotiating the carpet.”

“Well then. We should get walking toward the stadium," Darren said. "It's about a twenty-five minute walk from here and the match starts in forty-five."

Stephanie linked arms with him as they started up the street. "We'll lead the way. You guys try to keep up.”

I fell into step with Alastair. A nervous, twitchy energy radiated from every cell in my body. We walked silently side by side for several minutes.

"So, this rugby thing I saw you playing earlier. When did you start?"

"This rugby thing…" He mimicked me. "You have quite a way with words."

“Are you going to tease me or answer my question?” I raised an eyebrow, looking at him incredulously.

“University.”

“Do you play anything else? Or is rugby it?”

“That’s pretty much it for organized sport. Work doesn’t allow me much free time, so I only get to join in on the weekends every so often.”

“Is this one of those free weekends?”

“It seems to be.”

His arm bumped into mine and I noticed a little smile cross his lips.

“What would you normally be doing if Darren hadn’t asked you to the game?”

“Working, probably.”

“That sounds amazing,” I snickered. “Do you ever have any fun?”

“You are quite the curious kitten, aren’t you? Questions, questions, questions.”

“They’re instrumental in getting answers.” I replied with a grin.

“Fair enough.”

As charming as he was, I could tell he was also extremely guarded. He steered the conversation away from himself so it focused more on me. I was just as guarded though. For the time being, I planned to keep him at arm’s length.

We all huddled at the street corner waiting for the crosswalk signal to change. As we stood in silence, I noticed several women staring at Alastair. They casually sized me up before whispering amongst themselves. He flicked his gaze from me to them. When we got the go-ahead, Alastair placed his hand at the small of my back. It was a light touch, but I was aware of the warmth bleeding through my sweater.

The stadium loomed large in the distance. I could hear singing and chanting the closer we got to it. Darren passed a ticket to each of us.

“Now, this is very important,” he said solemnly, looking at Stephanie and me. “You must only cheer for my side.”

Stephanie burst out laughing at Darren’s seriousness. “It’s just a game, D.”

“It’s so much more than that, Steph,” he exclaimed, turning to walk through the gate. Alastair and I followed close behind. Once we got past the turnstiles, we walked through a tunnel into the stadium. Our seats weren’t too shabby; along midfield, tenth row. Darren attempted to explain the finer aspects of the game to Stephanie. She shot me a pleading look of help and surrendered to his lessons.

“Is this your first proper Scottish football match then?” Alastair asked.