Page 20 of The Night We Met

“It’s nice to meet you too.” I respond once I finally find my voice.

Sarah excuses herself not so discreetly, leaving Mason and I just looking at each other.

“So...where are you from?” Mason starts.

I look at him incredulously, which gives me time to gather myself. “Is that really the question that you’re going to start out with?”

He looks taken aback. “Um…no?”

“Perfect! Let’s start again.” I’m not usually this bam in your face! But with Mason, I figure I might have to be.

“Okay. Um, if you could identify with any animal, which would you choose?”

Oh my stars and stripes. “You’re not opposed to marriage after only knowing someone for thirty seconds, right?” I ask jokingly, although maybe a hint of seriousness laced in my teasing question.

“You know, Khloe and Lamar seem to be going strong, so why not?” Mason jokes back.

I may have met my match. “Touché. Identify with an animal. It’s a toss-up between an elephant or a horse.”

“Okay. If you chose an elephant, why?” He asks as he leads us, with a hand on my lower back, to a little bench in the garage. The butterflies take flight. And just from that one innocent touch…I think I know. We’re still in view of the football team, but this way we’re not screaming our answers over the sound of the music.

“Elephants are kind, nurturing, loyal, and gentle. That’s just one side of them. On the other, they’re protective in a way that just brings goosebumps to my arms. With their young, they place them in the middle. A protective barrier from predators and sometimes those in the herd. But they’ll also defend their whole entire herd from predators. Plus, they’re a few of the only animals to have an impressive memory. Yeah. I think having the memory of an elephant would be better than having the memory of a goldfish. Plus elephants are my grandma’s favorite animal.”

Mason looks at me with a smile on his face. “And if you chose a horse instead?”

“Oh goodness. Horses come in all different shapes, sizes, and colors. They can be trained and used for very different things. But if I had to choose, it’d be the wild horses, or the ponies. Watching them adapt to an environment and then having to defend themselves against man and the earth’s natural changes takes a lot of fortitude. I’ve seen pictures of wild horses on the Eastern Shore in Virginia. It was breathtaking. But when it comes to horses they’re also like elephants. They’re gentle, loving, nurturing, and protective. And when it comes down to it, they’ll protect those that need it.”

“What’s your major?” He asks, looking at me in wonderment.

“Psychology. Why?”

He shakes his head in bewilderment. “With those answers, you could have easily gone the philosopher route.”

“Eh. No way to make a living off of that.”

“Sure there is! Motivational speaking is one way. Conferences on how to dig deeper on things that might not make much sense to others. Think of all the book deals you could have.”

He’s smart. I hate that I judge athletes. My best friend is an athlete and he finished in the top 10% of our class along with me.

“Maybe one day. Okay your turn. What would your spirit animal be?”

“Hmm. A lion.”

“Why?”

“Lions operate in packs. Granted they’re mostly female, I operate in a male pack so that’s one major difference. But the lions work as a team with the other lions and lionesses. The lion is the leader of the pack, but also the loner.”

I see where he’s getting. “So even though you’re probably surrounded by droves of coeds on campus, you’re still a loner. How is that possible?”

“I never liked the attention.” He starts and scrunches his eyebrows in concentration. “Football came easy to me. Obviously, I mean I wouldn’t be on the team if I didn’t like the sport or have the talent or drive. But I help the team get the wins and I’ve kept myself in that spot. The fanfare that comes with being the starting QB becomes a distraction more often than not. So I do my best to keep my head down and focus on football. As much as this school loves believing that us athletes juggle the girls at this school, I’ve always been a one-on-one type of guy.”

“Interesting. No pressure though.” I say while my heart is threatening to burst from my chest.

“No...shit...I mean. I didn’t mean that you’d be the girl that I go after. I’d never do that to any female. My momma taught me better than that.”

I breathe a sigh of relief. “Well, if I was looking for someone, you might be my top pick.”

He turns his smile up a notch. “Do you wanna take a shot with me Kamryn?”

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