Capturing You

Chapter 12: Lost and Found

     Calling the next few days leading up to the Super Bowl hectic would be an understatement to say the least.

     The Monday after the gala was the pep rally at Paul Brown Stadium. Tens of thousands of fans swarmed the district and the whole city that night had been abuzz with jubilee. PR worked about 16 hours straight that day, Spencer and Trish and I running on just fumes from attending the gala the night before. Luckily, everything was so busy that the adrenaline of it all kept us going. I hadn't had time to tell them that Joe and I had kissed, mostly because I'd been too wrapped up in taking photos that I couldn't really think about anything else but not missing a vital moment between the players. For the time being I just enjoyed keeping the secret as mine and Joe's.

     The only time I'd been able to catch a breath the day of the pep rally was during the setting off of the fireworks, Bengal-orange in the nearly pitch black sky. I was across the field from Joe at this point, but we'd exchanged glances from far away. Somehow, even though we must have looked like ants from each other's perspectives, we knew to look for each other at the right instance. Under the twinkly orange stars bursting into the sky, I finally felt as if I belonged where I was. I watched the sparks fizzle out into smoke and I hoped that my feeling of belonging wouldn't disappear just the same.

     The team and coaching staff led the way to land in Los Angeles for media week by Tuesday morning. The rest of the headquarters followed suit, and by mid-week we were all hunkered down in the city that would be hosting the Super Bowl.

     I had never been to Los Angeles before, but its familiar warmth embraced me like an old friend. I had been far too tired of the cold weather in Cincinnati. Lush palm trees and golden hills decorated the City of Angels and softened the blow of the fact that almost everyone and everything was decked out in that bright blue and yellow of the L.A. Rams, the Bengals' opposing team.

     Headquarters had set up shop at a hotel not too far from SoFi Stadium, all of us packed like sardines in the largest conference room. With all of this, you'd think we were the Oval Office preparing for a huge diplomatic deal.
Neither of us were assigned players to follow throughout the week or else it would have been too hectic, but Elena did tell me to keep a look-out on whatever Joe was doing in my downtime. For once, she'd praised me for my work on the photo essay; it was excellent, according to her. Though I felt dumb seeking her approval, I was also gratified to get it.

     I did take a handful of photos of Joe during the week. It was strange to go back to being his co-worker after the weekend we'd had, but that was the nature of things. Neither of us minded that the hellos and goodbyes were fleeting, because the gazes we'd give each other until we were out of each other's line of sight were sweet and lingering. I must have looked like I had a pathetic schoolgirl crush to be smiling at him so often, when I'd never been as warm doing my job before. Fortunately, everyone was running around so much that no one noticed. Those quick moments were ours.

     By Friday night, my arms and shoulders were jelly from holding up a large camera for hours on end, but seeing the fans rave over all the stuff we'd posted throughout the week at least felt gratifying. I had received a new influx of followers on my personal Instagram, too, from getting credited as the photographer for a handful of the photos.
It had occurred to me that I hadn't checked my personal Instagram in a while. A quick scroll through my feed showed the top few rows taken over by photos I'd taken of the Bengals, their stadium, and their practice facility. Sprinkled among them were photos of the scenery in Cincinnati, more so towards the beginning of my stay here. I looked through them fondly; I remembered being so smitten with the city. Even if the job I'd gotten left more to be desired at the time, now I felt more at peace with it. I might even say I'd grown fond of football.