Summary: A meet-cute of how Asha and Cameron met.
It’s early, too early for anyone normal to be awake but that’s exactly why Asha’s there. The campus track wraps around the Bayview Knights’ football field, still slick with dew, and she’s on her third lap before the sun even thinks about showing up. Her breath comes out in steady puffs, her playlist thumping through one earbud while the other hangs loose.
Running’s her peace. The one hour no one asks for anything. No Sirens rehearsals. No school politics. No smiling for pictures. Just her, her heartbeat, and the rhythm of her shoes against the turf.
Until she hits something that feels like a wall.
She goes down hard, phone, water bottle, pride, all hitting the ground with her.
“ Whoa-damn!” A voice says above her. Startled but half laughing. “ You okay? You came at me like a linebacker.”
Asha pushes herself up, annoyed, bits of turf stuck to her palms. “Seriously?” she mutters, looking up.
The guy crouching in front of her has that guilty but charming look, the kind of face that says I know I messed up but you might forgive me anyway. Short brown hair, still a little messy, t-shirt stretched across his shoulders, and that faint smirk that looks like it comes too easily.
He offers his hand. “Cameron Cade. Quarterback.”
“Good for you,” she says, taking it only because she wants off the ground.
He pulls her up with ease, steadying her by the arm. “You’re welcome.”
She glares, dusting off her leggings. “Didn’t say thank you.”
“You didn’t have to,” he says, a grin tugging at his lips.
Asha grabs her phone, slipping the earbud back in. “You shouldn’t be standing in the middle of the track. People actually use it.”
“I didn’t think anyone would be out here this early,” he says, jogging a few steps backward, still watching her.
“Well, surprise. Some of us actually like working for things,” she fires back.
“Ouch,” he says, mock offended. “That sounded personal.”
“It wasn’t,” she says, even though she kind of meant it.
She takes off again, expecting him to let her go. He doesn’t.
Cameron falls right into stride beside her, long legs easily matching her pace. “You always run like you’re trying to outrun something?”
“I run like I’m trying to get away from people who talk too much,” she says, eyes straight ahead.
He laughs low, warm, annoyingly nice to listen to. “So… me, then.”
So, what’s your name?” he asks, glancing over at her.
She doesn’t answer, just keeps running, eyes forward, steady breath.
They go a few more yards in silence before he says, a little grin tugging at his mouth, “You don’t gotta tell me your name I already know who you are.”
“Doubt it,” she says, switching her earbuds out but keeping one in just in case she needs an excuse not to talk.
“No, really. Asha Brooks. Head of the Bayview Sirens.”
She glances over at him, suspicious. “And how would you know that?”
He shrugs, pretending to focus on his breathing. “After the game last week -halftime I, uh… might’ve asked around.”
Her brow lifts. “You asked around about me?”
He nods, still running beside her, expression easy. “Yeah. Wanted to know who the girl was that had half the stadium watching her instead of the scoreboard.”
She snorts. “Uh-huh. And what’d they say?”
He grins, breath even despite the pace. “That you’re a stuck-up, straight-A, rich girl who doesn’t mess with football players.”
Asha rolls her eyes. “ Wrong. My family and I are just middle-class. I had to work just as hard as you for my scholarship.”
“So if you heard that I don't mess with football players why are you here then?” she asks.
He smirks, dimples deep. “’Cause that’s actually my type,” he says with a low laugh. “I love when girls act like they aren’t interested. Makes the chase more fun.”
She huffs out a laugh before she can stop it, shaking her head. “You really don’t quit, do you?”
“Not when it matters,” he says easily, glancing over at her. “Besides, you keep running away — kinda makes me wanna keep up.”
By the time they finish the last lap, Asha slows to a jog, hands on her hips, catching her breath. Cameron’s barely winded, standing beside her with that same aggravating smile.
“You run every morning like this?” he asks.
“Only when I need to clear my head,” she says, stretching one leg behind her.
He mirrors her stretch badly his eyes flicking toward her ass when she bends down to touch her toes. He looks away fast, pretending to adjust his stance, but she catches it anyway.
“Eyes up, Cade,” she says without looking at him.
He chuckles, not even trying to deny it. “Force of habit.”
She switches legs, still stretching, while he mimics her again, clearly enjoying the excuse to stay close.
When she’s done, she reaches for her phone, slipping it into her armband. “Well, this was… something. Try not to get run over next time.”
“Can’t make promises like that,” he says, stepping in front of her, grin playing at his mouth. “But I can ask for your number. That’s fair, right?”
Asha laughs under her breath, shaking her head. “You can ask.”
She gives him a small, polite smile. “Still no.”
He presses a hand to his chest like she just wounded him. “Ouch. You’re really making me work for it, huh?”
“Think of it as cardio,” she says, walking past him.
He chuckles with that easy, deep sound once more. “That’s fine,” he calls after her, smirking as she looks back over her shoulder. “I have a feeling you’ll belong to me someday.”
Asha rolls her eyes but can’t help the smile tugging at her lips. “Keep dreaming, quarterback.”
He grins wider, dimples showing full force. “Already am.”
