Nick sat there on the bleachers of Lincoln High School watching the girls get ready for their big game. It was the semifinals and if the girls won, they would head to the championships. The boys were playing after the girls. Nick sat with his teammates, Brian, Howie, AJ, and Kevin. They were the best of friends and hung out a lot outside of school at the underage club, The Underdog. They would also perform every Friday night and they got paid to do that. They had formed a singing group and wrote their own songs. Nick sat there watching his best friend, Brizee warm up with her friends and teammates, Alicia, Amy, Amanda and Kristin. Alicia was Brian’s girlfriend. Amy was Howie’s. Amanda was AJ’s. Kristin was Kevin’s. They all hung out as a group at the Shake Shack after games. Nick was harboring a huge crush on Brizee. She had been dating a guy named Jake for a year. He had heard that they broke up two days ago because Jake moved away and they didn’t want to do the long distance relationship so they mutually parted ways. Brian knew how he felt about her.

        “You okay, Nick,” Brian said.

        “She’s beautiful,” Nick said softly.

        “Go talk to her after the game, Nick,” Brian said. Nick sighed and nodded. The game began. By halftime, Lincoln High was ahead. Nick watched as the other team purposely caused Brizee to foul out and sit out on the bench but that didn’t stop Lincoln High from winning the game. The other team knew Brizee was one of the best players and with her out of the game, they thought they had the shot to win but didn’t count on the rest of the team to pick up the slack. Alicia led the team to victory. After the game was over, the girls went to change while the guys got on the floor to warm up before their game. The girls came out and sat in the stands to watch the game. Alicia looked at Brizee.

        “You okay,” Alicia said. Brizee didn’t answer as she watched Nick do lay-ups.

        “Briz,” Alicia said.

        “What,” Brizee said.

        “Do you like Nick?” Alicia said.

        “Yeah, but I am not ready for a relationship right now,” Brizee said.

        “Because of Jake,” Alicia said.

        “I need to get over him before moving onto someone else,” Brizee said.

        “Hey, are you coming tomorrow night?” Alicia said.

        “Where?” Brizee asked.

        “The Underdog,” Alicia said.

        “I don’t know, I might stay in and watch a movie,” Brizee said.

        “The guys are singing,” Alicia said.

        “The guys sing?” Brizee asked.

        “I thought you knew that,” Alicia said.

        “No, Jake never wanted to go there,” Brizee said.

        “You so have to come, Nick’s one of your best friends, come with us, the guys have to be there early so it’s just us girls,” Alicia said.

        “Okay, I’ll go,” Brizee said.

        “Good, because they are awesome, they could make it big someday,” Alicia said.

        “I think Nick likes me more than a friend,” Brizee said. Alicia looked at her.

        “Briz, what makes you think that,” Alicia said.

        “I just have this feeling,” Brizee said. Alicia knew he did from what Brian told her.

        “Brizee, he is a great guy and boyfriend material if you wanted one,” Alicia said.

        “I know, I really care about him,” Brizee said.

        “You know what, just talk to him,” Alicia said.

        “Maybe later,” Brizee said. The boys game began and she and the girls cheered them onto victory. After the game, the guys went to change. The girls waited for them. Nick was the first to come out and he walked over to the girls.

        “Hey, great game, girls,” Nick said.

        “Same to you, Nick!” Brizee said.

        “I better get home, tons of homework to do and parents would kill me if I didn’t get it all done,” Nick said.

        “Nick, we are going to the Shake Shack,” Alicia said.

        “Sorry, Ali, I have too much homework,” Nick said. He waved to them and went out the door. Brizee went after him and caught him at his car.

        “Nick, wait, can you give me a ride home, my car’s in the shop,” Brizee said.

        “Sure,” Nick said. They got into the car and he took her home. She said bye and got out and went inside and got to her room and got on her computer and saw an email from Jake saying he has a new girlfriend and he was happy. She deleted the email and realized it was time to move on and the person was Nick. The next night, they were at the Underdog to watch the guys. She sat with the girls and watched the guys perform. She watched Nick and he saw her and smiled at her and winked. After they were done, she went over to Nick and pulled him outside and looked at him. He looked at her. She pushed him against the wall and kissed him hungrily. She felt his arms wrap around her as he returned the kiss. He pulled back and rested his forehead against hers.

        “Wow, you have no idea how much I have dreamed about this,” Nick said softly.

        “So you do like me,” Brizee said.

        “Very much,” Nick said.

        “Let’s get out of here, go somewhere to be alone,” Brizee said. He smiled and she pulled him to his car.

        “I came with the girls,” Brizee said.

        “I drove myself,” Nick said as they got in his car and took off.  They went to the beach and walked along the shoreline to a secluded area.

        “I always come here and think about things,” Nick said. Brizee looked at him.

        “Did you bring girls here?” Brizee asked.

        “No, you are the first one,” Nick said. Brizee smiled and put her arms around him.

        “I’m honored,” Brizee said. He smiled and leaned down and kissed her softly.

        “Brizee,” Nick said resting his forehead against hers.

        “Yes,” Brizee said.

        “Will you be my girlfriend?” Nick asked.

        “Yes, I will,” Brizee said.

        “And will you go to the prom with me?” Nick asked.

        “Yes, definitely,” Brizee said. He smiled and kissed her tenderly.