A/N: One of my shorter chapters, but it's cute, and more importantly, EARLY!!! :-)

Chapter 10: Halftime

At halftime, my dad beckoned to me. I politely excused myself and trudged down the bleacher stairs to him.

"What's up, Dad?" I asked, quickly greeting Aimee's dad too.

"Who's that guy?" He asked curiously.

"Who him?" I casually pointed to Seth. "That's Seth Clearwater. I have some classes with him. All his friends are on Junior Police patrol right now, but he ran his shift already. So, he's sitting with us." I threw the Junior Police thing in partially for my benefit. If my dad knew Seth was a good guy, he'd give me less grief.

"Just be careful." He said gruffly. I promised him I would, that it wasn't like that anyway, and returned to my seat.

"What was that all about?" Seth asked.

I groaned. "Dad wanted to know who you are and why you're sitting with me. I explained about the Junior Police thing and he chilled out. Says I need to be careful anyway. As if it was like that." I rolled my eyes.

Seth stood up. "I'll be right back." I nodded, not really paying attention. The school dance team was bravely trying to perform in the rain, and I had some acquaintances on the team. When I briefly checked to see where Seth had gone, my heart caught in my throat. Seth was standing in front of my dad, shaking hands with him.

"Aimee, look!" I said in a horrified whisper. She just looked at me with a weird look on her face, almost smug. We watched the drama unfold. They were talking loud enough that we could catch snippets of their conversation. The word 'daughter' kept coming up a lot. Then I heard the scariest and most magical words I had ever heard in my life, clear as day.

"Mr. Scott, may I escort your daughter to the dance after the game tonight?"

My jaw dropped. Aimee pumped her fist in the air with an excited "I knew it!" Dad spun around to look at me, taking in my elated and shocked expression.

"My daughter?" He asked. Seth nodded solemnly. "That girl, right there?" He asked, pointing to me as if he couldn't believe it.

"Yes, sir." Seth said. "It would be an honor if you'd let me."

He clapped Seth on his shoulder. "Son, you treat her right and you could take her to the moon and I wouldn't mind. Mess with her and you'll regret it."

"Don't worry sir! Thank you!" Seth said, joy on his features.

They conversed for a few more minutes, a serious look to their faces. Talking with much quieter voices, I couldn't hear a word. Then they shook hands again. Seth ran excitedly up to me. Then he looked bashful.

"Kayla, will you come to the dance with me?"

I nodded excitedly, still in shock.

Aimee broke the awkward silence. "Hooray, now we won't be alone!"

"I know! Crazy…" I said, in awe.

"Um, Kayla, I'm going to go get a pretzel or something, are you hungry?"

Truth be told, I was, but I didn't want to ruin this by making him think I was a pig. "I'm ok." I said, bending the truth.

"I'll be right back." He said, gently touching my shoulder. Levi stood up and followed him, going to get concessions for himself and Aimee too. Aimee pulled out her kit to check her blood sugar.

"So," I started, "Was that what you knew and wouldn't tell me?"

"Nope!" She said cheerfully, turning her attention back to her meter. "Not bad…" She murmured. She took out her pump to be ready to bolus for her snack.

The boys came back after that, each with a pretzel in both hands. Seth handed me one sheepishly.

"I know you said you weren't hungry, but everyone else was going to eat so I got you one anyway. Plus, I think you're actually hungry but don't want to weird me out. Trust me, when you see how much I eat, you aren't going to care anymore."

"Thanks. You're really perceptive." I said, smiling widely at him. "So, you met dear old dad. He didn't threaten to shoot you did he?" I asked, only half kidding.

He laughed loudly. "No. He seemed more surprised than anything. You don't have much luck with guys?" He asked.

"Not really, you're the first guy he's ever had to worry about." I said, embarrassed again.

"Well I consider it their loss, because now I get a beautiful date." He seemed to deliberate for a moment and put his hand around my shoulder. "And I don't think I'm going to share." He said in my ear.

I couldn't say or do anything. I was intently focused on not hyperventilating. Needless to say, I was kind of failing. Plus, my face was again, bright cherry red.

The game resumed shortly after that, but I was having problems paying attention. All I could feel was the smoldering arm around me. I glanced at my dad and noticed he seemed to be having a problem too, glancing up every so often to check up on us. I giggled at the absurdity of it all.

"What's so funny?" Seth asked. "I want to be a part of it."

"Watch my dad." I said.

We watched for a few minutes as he kept confirming we were still there. Seth joined in my laughter.

"What's his problem?" Seth asked, not unkindly.

I pondered how to put it to words. I cleared my throat. "I think it might have something to do with your arm…" I said self-consciously.

"Oh!" He said. His dark skin went a shade darker. "Oh… Um, does it bother you?" He asked, a little sadness in his eyes.

"No! Not at all!" I said a little more enthusiastically than I had planned.

"Good, because I don't really feel like letting go." He informed me, giving me a playful smile. I turned to Aimee and mouthed "Oh my gosh!" She nodded at me knowingly.

Meanwhile, the Wolves were destroying the Panthers forty nine to seven. By the beginning of the fourth quarter, many students were getting in line for the dance. We decided to stay under the cover since none of us had umbrellas, and our dads were eyeing the guys with some contempt. The game ended with a score of forty nine to ten, a landslide victory for the Wolves. We jumped up excitedly, eager for the dance. We said goodbye to our dads, the boys noticing their stern looks, and walked behind the grandstand to get in line for our first dance with dates.

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