Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

Summer before Senior Year

Eli

Just keep pushing. Just keep pushing.

This is the mantra I say to myself when I feel like my legs are about to die from making it up this hill on my mountain bike. My friends think I'm crazy for riding up, but to me, it's the most fun I've had in a while.

I need to be active. My body doesn't know anything different. High school baseball already ended, and practice for my national team doesn't start for another few days, so I finally had time to get on my bike.

I used to ride these hills between Mason Creek and Leighton River for hours before I started high school, where training for football, basketball and baseball got more intense. The phrase it's like riding a bike does not count when riding a steep uphill without stopping. No, it's not something you can just pick up and ride up again after taking a few years off from doing so, but I'm almost to the top, and there's no way I'm stopping now.

My lungs burn, and my legs feel like they're on fire, but I push that last bit and cross the finish line as the land plateaus, and I get my reward of an amazing view with the sun off in the horizon.

I hop off my bike and lay it on its side as I breathe in deep breaths with my hands on my hips while I walk around, calming my heart rate.

I forgot how much that ride sucked, but how much I loved it too.

Once I can breathe fairly normal, I grab my water bottle that's tucked in the holder of the bike and walk to a rock that's perched up on the opposite side of the land, overlooking the area I didn't ride up, but plan on riding down.

I squeeze water into my mouth, loving the taste and replenishment it gives me while I climb up on the rock and rest my arms on my knees that are perched up.

I sit like this and stare off into space, my mind completely blank as I take in the beauty that is our world and recoup from the beating my legs just took.

I could truly sit here for hours. There's something comforting in the quiet of the world. It's moments like this when I'm at my best.

My legs feel tight, so I stretch them out in front of me before deciding it's time to make my way back down the hill.

I pick up my bike, swing my leg around it, and pedal toward the other path that will lead me down the hill.

I make it a few feet when my tire hits a rock that stops it in its tracks and flips me over the handlebars.

With a hard thud, my body slams against the dirt and pebbles. I sit there for a brief moment, gathering my wits about me, mentally checking all my major body parts to make sure they still work.

"Are you okay?" I hear someone from behind me ask.

Looking her way, I see a woman running toward me.

I hold up my hand that I now notice has little cuts and scrapes with tiny rocks embedded in my palm. "I'm fine." I stand up and dust my legs off as she approaches.

"Are you sure? That looked bad."

I move my body, rolling my ankles and lifting my arms to make sure my shoulders are okay. "Yeah, I'm good. Not my first fall and definitely won't be my last," I tease, being truthful though.

Ever since I was little, my mom has said I'm a dare devil who doesn't learn his lesson. I've fallen so many times that I've lost count. It's like any sport though—the more you fail, the more you learn how to pick yourself up again.

I'm sure I'll hurt tonight and find cuts I didn't realize I had, but for this second, nothing is broken, so I'm good.

I reach down to pick up my bike, only to notice the tire didn't fare as good as my body. I spin it around, examining it slowly.

"Bummer," she says, pointing to where I now have a flat.

I sigh, knowing I didn't bring anything to fix it up here with me. "Goes with the territory."

I stand up and look in her direction for the first time, and am completely taken aback by the beauty standing in front of me. From afar, I just saw a woman running toward me, but now that I'm actually seeing her, I notice she's so much more with her dark hair and beautiful brown eyes.

She's definitely not from here. Between these two small towns, I would have seen her before.

"Guess I'm walking down." I pick up my bike and motion to where I was heading. "Are you walking this way?"

"I was actually. Mind if I join you?"

I nod my head in that direction, and we start making our way down. I've never spoken much, but admittedly, I'm more tongue-tied than normal, and I can't think of a thing to say.

"Sorry about your bike," she says.

I shrug it off. "It's an easy fix."

"Do you ride here often?"

"Yeah."

"Are you from here?"

"Yeah, Leighton River."

We walk a few steps more, and she laughs. "Man of few words, huh?"

I grin with a chuckle. "Yeah. Sorry." I stop and hold out my hand to her. "I'm Eli."

We shake.

"Well, Eli, I'm Liza."

"Liza? That's a pretty name." I start walking back down the hill.

"It means God's promise. I always thought that was cool. My parents just wanted a name from the Bible."

I chuckle under my breath. "Our parents are the same. Hence Eli."

She smiles, and I see the warmth behind it. There's something genuine about her darker features that bring out her cheekbones and jaw. Her dark brown hair is pulled up in a ponytail with many loose strands, which are flying around her face, yet she's not trying to fix them or redo the ponytail.

She tucks a few strands behind her ear as she continues to walk.

Suddenly, I'm the one who wants to talk. "Where are you from, Liza? I've never seen you around."

"I just moved to Mason Creek. My aunt and uncle live here, so they invited me to stay with them."

"Where are you from then?"

"California."

I laugh out loud. "And you moved here?"

She looks forward, lost in her thoughts for a moment. "I wanted a fresh start. Go where no one knew me."

"I get that. It won't last long here though. In these small towns, everyone knows everyone."

Her lips tilt up into a smile. "I like that idea though. I moved here from Stockton. It's a big city that's definitely up to no good. I needed to get out of there. My aunt said they are always looking for teachers out here so"—she opens her arms up wide—"here I am."

"You want to be a teacher?"

She nods. "Yep. Just finished my teaching credential program."

"What grade are you looking to teach?"

"I'm up for anything, but I've always seen myself in elementary, maybe second or third grade. That's what I taught during my student teaching program back home. We'll see what happens. What is meant to be will be," she says with a sense of finality, like she's just going with the flow of what her life will be. "How about you? Did you go the college route or start working right away?"

"I'm still in school," I respond.

At six foot five, two hundred fifteen pounds, I definitely don't look like a high school kid, so I'm not surprised she thinks I'm in college.

Technically, I was supposed to have graduated already, but with my birthday in June, my parents didn't want me graduating at seventeen, so they kept me back from starting kindergarten that first year I was eligible.

So, here I am. My birthday just passed, making me eighteen already, and I still have an entire year of high school to go.

It hasn't been too bad though because our family friends had kids my age, so Dalton, Ben, Maya, and I all go to school together, which I think had a lot to do with their decision-making too.

Our dads all grew up in Leighton River, then moved to California to attend Stanford together. They started a gaming company called TimeLand that did well, but when cell phones came out and people could download it to their phone, it exploded in popularity.

They decided to move the company back to Leighton River so us kids could grow up here. Not everyone is happy they moved here, but I'm glad they did. I've been to California once, and I'd much rather have the quietness Leighton River provides.

"How long have you been in town?" I ask.

"About a week."

"And?"

She laughs. "And what?"

"And you're already bored out of your mind. Admit it."

She shakes her head. "How can someone be bored when you have this around you?" She opens her hands out wide.

"They didn't have hills in Stockton?"

She lets out a breath, looking out in front of us in thought. I can tell there's more to the story of her moving here, but I don't pry.

"No," she finally responds. "At least nowhere you'd want to walk, especially alone. I remember coming here as a kid and feeling like it was a different planet."

Now, it's my turn to laugh. "Yeah, my mom says the same thing. She grew up in California."

"Really?" She turns to me, surprised.

"Yeah. My parents met at Stanford. My mom grew up in Southern California though."

"Southern California is nothing like Northern. That's why everyone wants to make it two different states, if not more."

"I get the feeling you didn't like it there," I ask, hoping I'm not prying too much. I just get the feeling there's this hurt inside of her.

"It's not that I didn't like it. Just wanted something different." She inhales a deep breath. "It's so beautiful here. The air alone is intoxicating."

I lean down and nudge her. "Talk to me again in winter when it's negative ten degrees out. You won't like the air that freezes your nose hair by just breathing in."

She laughs out loud, and I have to admit, it's super cute, and it makes me smile. Not many things have that effect on me.

"I guess you can ask me then how much I still like it here, but until winter, I'll enjoy what we have now."

"I like it. Living in denial of what's to come," I tease.

"No. It's more like enjoying the moment while it's here."

"What else have you done in this week you've been here?"

"Not much really. Just hanging out with family. My cousin, Justine, has a daughter, Emily, so it's been fun, getting to play with her. Other than that, I'm just getting settled in. I have to start looking for a job this week. At least I have a few months to find one and get situated. What about you? What's your goal in life?"

I let out a hard laugh. "I'm an athlete. To me, school is just the vehicle to make that happen. My mom always jokes that she knew when I was in kindergarten that sports were going to be the only thing that kept me in school. And she's right." I pause with a sigh. "I hate school. Give me a class that's hands-on, and I'm all in. Give me a book to read, and you've lost me."

"What kind of sports do you play?"

"Football, basketball, and baseball."

"Whoa. All three? And mountain biking?" She motions to my bike.

"I told you, I'm an athlete. I like to keep moving. Doing something. I can't just sit around and be lazy."

She giggles. "Being lazy is my favorite thing to do."

I nudge her. "Not necessarily true. You're here, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess. But I can lie around in my PJs all day, watching movies, if I want to." There's a pause in our conversation, and then she asks, "What sport do you like best?"

"Ah, the question of the year. I guess I'm going to have to decide here shortly. You can only go pro in one."

"That's your end goal? To go pro?"

"That's the plan. We'll see if it's in the cards though."

"See, you're like me. If it's for me, it will not pass me. We're all just along for the ride when you really think about it."

I nod, letting that thought sink in, liking the peace it brings. "That we are. Have you liked your ride so far?"

"There've been some bumps and bruises, but I'm here, smiling, so I can't ask for anything else."

I love this girl's outlook on life. I've been so stressed on making the decision of what sport to play, but she's right. Maybe I should just see what happens and not think about it so much.

"How about you?" she asks.

I grin. "Can't complain."

We make our way to where we both parked.

"This is me." I lift my bike into the back of my black Ram TRX.

"Nice truck," she says, then leans in to look at the tiny sticker I put in the corner of the window. "What's this mean?"

"That's the USA Baseball logo."

Her eyebrows tilt up slightly. "You don't have a football or basketball sticker on here."

I purse my lips in thought. "No, I don't."

"Then, I think you know what sport you like best."

I nod slowly. I never thought of it that way, but she brings up a good point. My trip to Cary, North Carolina, last year to play at USA Baseball's training facility was the coolest sports experience I've had so far; that's why I put the sticker there. I might love throwing to Dalton or Ben for touchdowns or going up for layups in basketball, but there's nothing more thrilling than hitting a ball out of the stadium.

"You might be onto something. Where are you parked?" I look around, then laugh. "Wait. That has to be you." I point at the Honda Civic with the California license plate.

She laughs. "Yeah, I guess that stands out around here."

I shrug. "Just shows you're not from here, is all. People will be intrigued to find out about the newbie."

She lets out a giggle. "I'll work on getting a new one today."

"Then, you're really moving here—for good?"

She nods proudly. "No turning back. I've made my decision, and I'm sticking this out."

I smile, loving how confident and sure of life this girl is. "What are your plans tonight? How about I take you out and really show you this town?"

A small grin grows on her face. "I'd like that."

I grab my phone, holding it up to her. "Can I get your number?"

She nods, and we exchange numbers.

"Cool. I'll call you later."

She walks back to her car, and I sneak a peek at her as she does so. It might have sucked that my bike got a flat, but turns out, I'm sure glad it did.