He’d also found himself hanging on the words that she said. He’d even discovered, much to his shock and confusion, that he was actually disappoint...d that Lynn was sixteen and that he probably would never get the chance to know her in quite the way he wanted to. All of these somewhat romantic thoughts were silly, though, weren’t they? Justin had a girlfriend back home in Denver, and it was actually Lynn who’d convinced him to go back to her and try to work things out. He had no real way of. Mysmile starts to fade, though, as I feel several pairs of eyes start todrill into the back of my head."Can- can my friends come along?" I nervously ask."Told you," Nikki whispers to Jacinta, unaware I could tell what she wassaying."We can't take photos of EVERYONE," Jacinta says hesitantly. "Itprobably won't even be me doing it as I'll be, well, 'unavailable'...Don't see there's any harm in people coming along to watch, though." Oh my god!" Melissa predictably squeaks from the gaggle behind. ”“That’s a gift. Really it is. It’s amazing how this program works. By the way, you guys want to go to the diner after this?”“I’ll go with you,” said Jerome.“I’ll go too,” said Phil. “I’ve got nothing better to do.”“Irving? Manuel?”“Not tonight,” said Irving, “but thanks.”And Manuel chose not to respond to Charlie’s invitation. “Okay, then,” said Charlie. “Now where are the two ladies?”“Speak of the devils,” said Irving.LaShaun and Eliza walked in as happy and buoyant as ever, almost like two. He was sitting on the bench, like I had told him, but he was sweating as he anticipated hearing his name. Finally, the announcer said, "Playing right defense, a junior, Richard Ingrams!" Rich stood up quickly, intending to run out onto the field to join the starting lineup. He took two steps and tripped over a gear bag. He tumbled to the ground, rolling in a heap. He leapt up and ran as fast as he could out to his teammates, never looking back. The rest of us, the substitutes and the equipment.