Catching Faith

Prologue

May 2021

Jake came out of the school and unhooked his white and blue surgical mask from his face, breathing in a breath of fresh air. He smiled as he saw Riley standing by her cute little car that made her even more adorable than she already was. He walked towards her and stopped, skipping a little as he picked her up and spun her around.

"Hi, beautiful," he whispered as he kissed her. "I missed you."

"You just saw me yesterday!" she said, her hand on his face, looking into his eyes.

"I know," Jake said, his countenance now becoming solemn. "I just want to cherish moments like this with you now...  in case we don't get another chance."

Riley looked at him sadly and threw her arms around Jake's neck, allowing him to bury his head in her shoulder. They stood there for a few minutes, just enjoying each other's company until Riley pulled away from Jake.

"Come on, handsome. We're gonna be late."

Jake smiled at her and put his stuff in the back, climbing into the passenger seat of the car. As he sat down, he looked at Riley who was standing by the door.

"What?"

"I like it when you drive. It's hot," she said, shyly.

Jake grinned helplessly. God, he loved this girl so much.

Jake and Riley walked hand in hand into Dizzy's and sat down with Nick and Mackenzie- not without a few hugs though.

Real physical contact had been hard to come by and they had missed it. A lot.

They all sat down; Riley and Jake across from Nick and Mac.

"So, what's new with you guys?" Riley asked, eager to catch up with her friends. Mackenzie looked at Nick for approval. She then turned to grab something out of her purse and dangled it in front of Riley and Jake.

They were... keys?!

Riley's hands flew up to her face in shock. "No! Really?"

Mac grinned happily. Jake looked at Nick with the same surprised look.

"Yep. It's true. My girl and I are getting our first house. We move in next week. And we want you guys to help," Nick said, smiling at Jake.

"Of course, we will! Right, babe?" Riley asked Jake. Jake shook himself out of his little daydream and nodded.

"Yeah, of course."

Nick gave him a funny glance, but Jake brushed it off. Mac noticed and widened her eyes at Riley.

"Uh, Nick. I'm gonna go get some food. Riley, you want to come to help me?"

Riley took the hint and slid out of the booth, leaving Jake and Nick alone.

"So, what's wrong?" Nick asked.

"What? There's nothing wrong," Jake said, defensively.

Nick dipped his head a little, giving Jake the glance. Jake sighed, looking behind Nick at Riley and Mac who were standing at the counter. Mac turned to Riley and whispered something as Riley leaned her head back and laughed, smiling.

It made Jake smile too.

Nick turned around to see what Jake was looking at.

"How are you and Riley?"

Jake was grateful he changed the subject. "We're great. I love her," he said shortly, suddenly feeling very unsociable.

Nick took a drink out of his coffee cup and swallowed. "Does your strange mood have anything to do with Riley?"

"What? What strange mood?" Jake asked, as innocent as he possibly could.

But Nick picked up on it anyway.

"You know what I mean, Wolff," Nick said as he crossed his arms, leaning on the table.

Jake looked down at his black ring, fingering the edges slightly, looking back up at Nick. "It's just... last year. I've been thinking about it a lot recently."

Nick shook his head, staring out the window in a sort of trance. "2020, man. What a year."

"You could say that again," Jake said, agreeing wholeheartedly.