On Saturday afternoon, the team loaded up the busses and headed out to Bridgeport College. Bridgeport College was about 8 hours away northeast and close to the Atlantic Ocean. Zoey did not know a lot about Bridgeport College or the town around it, but she knew it was not far from the beach house, and secretly she wanted to sneak away. As they loaded the bus, Bryan was in the very back as well as Zeke and Trey and a few of the guys in their fraternity and suite. Zoey sat upfront with her headphones on behind Coach K, wife Cesea, and of course baby Lorelei.
After the trip began, Bryan came to the front of the bus and asked Zoey to come to sit with him in the back of the bus. Zoey grabbed her stuff and moved to the back, and they chatted about the week and random and some silliness a lot of the way. Bryan asked Zoey about her parents and Zoey told him there was nothing important to tell and asked if they could talk about something else. In hopes of changing the conversation, Zoey asked "You are so curious about my life, how about your family, tell me about your life and family." Bryan became quiet, withdrawn, and began to stare out the window. Zoey said "see not always an easy topic. Have you heard of Bridgeport?" Bryan sighed. "Yes, I am actually from an area very close by and spent a lot of time near the Atlantic." Zoey nodded curiously and replied, so I guess your family would be able to come to say hello if we were to have some extra time available." Bryan sighed. "No not really and anyway, I have not seen my family since right after high school." interesting but I am actually from Bridgeport. My family lives near the college but I have not seen them since I graduated from High School. Zoey then asked if he had a girlfriend of friends close by? Bryan grinned and said, "sometimes I think you are the dumbest smart girl I know." Zoey was not sure what that was supposed to mean but she decided on that remark she would just chill and listen to her radio until they arrived. When in Bridgeport they unloaded into the room in the athletic building set up for the away team. The coach said everyone could go grab breakfast, go for a walk, explore but had to be back on campus in that room at 1 pm sharp no later. Since it was 8, Zoey decided to go on a walk. She didn't' think she needed to tell anyone where she was going since Coach only said be back by 1, so it meant she had time to look around. Bryan found Coach and asked if he knew where Zoey was. Coach said knowing Z, she was walking around, or sitting under a tree reading. He said thanks Coach and took a short jog in hopes of catching up to her. As he saw her in the distance, he began to worry that maybe she wanted her space or to be alone. Something was drawing him to her and maybe it was just easy to be around her. As he walked up, he noticed she had on headphones. He sent her a text:
Bryan: Don't want to startle you by tapping you on the
shoulder, but are you hungry and if so, do you want to
grab some breakfast?
Zoey looked at her phone and looked up and turned to look behind her to see Bryan coming up behind her. She grinned and asked "how did you know where I was, or are you following or stalking me? (Followed by a smirk). Bryan responded, "Coach told me but figured ya might want to grab some food. There is a good diner close so we could grab a bite."
They went to a local diner called Mama is where they had eggs, grits, bacon, sausage, toast, and juice. Bryan reminded Zoey to take her medication, which shocked Zoey because she was not aware that anyone knew. She said thanks I already did and said nothing more. They ate breakfast and periodically talked, but there was a lot of quiet and a lot of tensenesses.
After breakfast, Zoey and Bryan went to the counter to pay, and Bryan said, "I can pay for yours." Zoey looked over her shoulder and said, "thank you, but I am a big girl, and I can pay for my own. This was not a date. We are teammates." They each paid their tab and walked back to the college soccer field to be ready for the game.
The game started just as a storm started to blow in. The CU team scored 2 and Bridgeport scored 1 just as the rain started. They finished the game and headed to the locker room soaked and cold. The players all showered and packed up and loaded the busses for home.
