William, stunned for a moment, took off after her. She ran faster than he expected.
She led by a few yards and William didn’t know if he could catch up.
He picked up momentum and began gaining on her, until his right foot struck
something solid.
“Ahhh!” he shouted as he crashed to the ground, grabbing his foot. Grass stains
spread across his rented white dress shirt.
He turned to see how far Casey had gotten, but she had turned around to check on
him.
“Are you okay? What happened?” she asked.
“I stepped on something hard,” he said.
Casey knelt beside him and examined his foot. “Well, it’s not bleeding,” she
informed him.
She spotted the rock he’d stepped on and picked it up for a closer look. “Looks
like this is the culprit,” she said.
“Why would there be a rock in the middle of a football field?” William asked, not
expecting an answer.
“Well,” Casey mused, “I suppose a month ago, someone predicted prom would lead to a
barefoot race across the field and scattered a bunch of rocks to ensure victory.”
William chuckled.
She saw the thought cross his face and smirked. “That was a joke,” she assured him.
“I wouldn’t need a rock to beat you in a race.”
“I would hope not,” William said with a grin.
“You should be fine,” Casey said.
William stretched out on the field, staring up at the sky. Casey lay beside him,
using his jacket as a pillow, then reached for his hand.