Courage to follow your heart

by Christina Aas

  She noticed a large group of the students were standing in the center square between the buildings. They were laughing and yelling up to some of the other students, her neighbors apparently, asking them to join them in a game of basketball. Kris thought it sounded like a lot of fun, just what she needed to distract her, and yelled down “Room for one more?” One in the group shouted in reply “Sure, come join us at the court near the old office building over there.” And pointed across the asphalt square. “See you soon!” Kris quickly stepped back inside and pulled off her piquet shirt and khaki shorts, and put on something slightly more athletic and comfortable for running around. She grinned at the thought of finding a likeminded crowd being into sports. She would not survive if she only had to be sequestered inside reading books all summer.

  The court was already filled with roughly 15 people so they decided to make it a small tournament and created four teams. Kris noticed one girl taking charge and immediately felt a common vibe from her personality. She’s potential friend material, Kris thought. The girl had curly brown hair which looked like it was left to lead a life of its own. She sported a tough attitude and wore typical basketball shorts, oversized and baggy. Kris walked up to the girl and introduced herself. “Any space still free on this team? I’m Kris by the way.” The two power women shook hands. “Sure, I think we’re just lacking one person, so it fits perfect. I’m Hunter.” Hunter looked Kris thoroughly from top to bottom, sizing her equal. “Hunter? For real?” Kris raised her eyebrows at Hunter. “Yeah, well the name my parents insisted on giving me is Catherine, but it just didn’t fit quite right with my personality” she grinned back at Kris. “I get it, trust me. My full name is Kristine, but it’s just a bit too square for me, ya know?” Kris winked back, and a friendship was formed. “Okay, let’s beat these suckers. You any good at this game?” Hunter eyed the court ahead of them. “I’ve played a few games in my life, but only with friends and in very informal settings. But, I’m sure we’ll beat their asses.” Kris cockily replied and started wandering out toward the center of the court. While she walked out she glanced around at the crowd. Quite some pretty girls here this summer, she thought.

  One girl on the opposite side singled out from the crowd Kris surveyed. She was a girly girl in a team filled with only guys, but she seemed perfectly comfortable and in her element. Probably went to some engineering study filled with mostly guys, Kris thought to herself while further examining the girl. The girl had long blond hair that fell relaxed down on her shoulders. Her eyes were her most prominent feature Kris noted, they were big and blue and seemed to draw attention to them immediately. It was clear that this girl was intelligent, sharply intelligent, which was evident from the way she gazed out across the court. Yet, her eyes radiated inviting warmth which spread to her smile and was absolutely enticing. “You noticed her too huh?”, Hunter asked with a wink. “She’s absolutely adorable; I certainly wouldn’t mind flirting a bit with her this summer, if she’s into that.” Kris felt a tinge of annoyance at Hunter’s statement, although she could not quite understand why. She had just broken up with her girlfriend back in Canada, and did not need any new love interest down here. She was done with complexity now, this summer she just wanted to have fun. This girl would never be a just-sex-kinda-girl, Kris could see that much. Nope, better stay away from her and focus on her classes. “I’m gonna bow down from this one and let you have her” Kris winked back. “Huh? You’re trying to tell me you would win if this was a competition? Good to know you don’t lack imagination at least” Hunter grinned and slapped Kris friendly on her shoulder. “Let’s play ball!”

  Liz couldn’t help but notice two pairs of eyes examining her from a distance. She did not want to disrupt the moment, so she pretended not to see them and kept her focus on the jokes her teammates were throwing around. She loved geeky jokes, in particular geeky space jokes. But the pairs of eyes were still focused on her apparently, and the two girls seemed to be discussing her even. She felt a tingle deep inside her and a blush spreading toward her face. Damn, please stupid body, do not blush so they can see it. She did not want the girls to see how affected she was by their stare. One of them was the stunning girl she had herself been amazed by earlier that day at the registration office. The other was the gay girl with the cool attitude. Maybe the stunning girl is also gay then? Liz thought to herself. A girl can hope. The girls turned toward the center of the court and readied themselves for the game ahead.

  The two first teams seemed a bit uneven in their assembly. The team with the two girls appeared to have most of the experienced players and was almost wiping the floor with the other team. The game went by rather quickly and sooner than she was ready for it Liz had to get up as it was her team’s turn to shoot some hoops. Their competition was an all-guy team, but luckily the guys seemed to be a good mixture of sportive and nerdy. She hoped that her teammates would be skilled enough to get them through this match, as her own skills in basketball were rather lacking. From past experience she knew she was better at defense, since she never managed to hit the hoop when she tossed a ball. Liz found her spot in front of the hoop and put her game face on. At the side lines she saw Katie and Felicia waving at her and smiling. They held both thumbs up and cheered her on. How nice of them, that’s really sweet she thought to herself and smiled. It seemed these two girls would be good friends to have over the summer.

  Someone whistled and the two guys in the center fought for the first ball. Erik, on her team, managed to flick it over to Bryan. Erik was another aerospace engineer, from Germany, a tall and well-built guy who had been playing basketball next to his studies for the past ten years. Bryan, from the US, was already working at an engineering company within software and was eager to learn some more hands-on space related topics to try and shift his career in that direction. Bryan quickly took the ball and ran with it across the court to toss it into the hoop. Our first point already, this is looking to be a good match! Liz met the rest of the team in the center to cheer Bryan and Erik on. “Great job you two!”

  The game continued in that direction, the two guys Bryan and Erik seemed to be quite the duo on the field and held the ball for most of the play. Liz was happy enough, as this enabled her to be on a winning team looking like she was contributing to the sport, but in reality they were managing without her hopeless skills. Even with her lack of winning contribution, the game was still very tiring. It entailed a lot of running back and forth. Liz was thrilled when the final whistle blew to their victory. It was decided to let the two losing teams play first and Liz couldn’t have been happier to get a breather. She ran over to Katie and Felicia to grab some water and sit down for a while.

  “Awesome game you guys, congratulations on winning” Felicia yelled at the rest of Liz’ teammates, obviously trying to put on a flirtatious look. The guys didn’t seem to catch on properly, but at least they smiled back to her. “Damn, your teammates are good-looking Liz! I almost want to play basketball myself now, just to be able to stand close to such nice bodies” Felicia grinned widely. “A girl should indulge herself.” she winked at Liz, who sat exhausted on the ground. “At this point I’m so tired I wouldn’t mind you sub for me, but I’m sure I’ll have my energy back once it’s time for us to hit the court again. And then I’ll be jealous of you for having all the action.” She winked back at Felicia, while a knot tied in her belly for faking her emotions.

  Erik took a long sip of his water bottle, before emptying some of it across his hair and face to cool off. The California sun was blistering and the sweat drops wouldn’t stop running down his face. But it felt really great to be able to play basket again. Bryan stood next to him, stretching his triceps and looking out across the court. “So, you like it here so far?” Erik asked while he closed the cap on his water bottle. “Sure, what’s not to like. A summer filled with fun activities and new people to get to know, I’m loving it!” Bryan smiled brightly. “Any new people you’re particularly interested in getting to know?” Erik w
inked at him as they both peered out over the asphalt square surrounded by trees and green park patches. “Actually, there is this one girl I noticed already during registration – the brown-haired Australian one.” Bryan tossed his head in the direction of Katie across the court. Erik followed his eyesight and nodded. “Yeah, I can see why you noticed her. She seems cute. You know if she’s interested too?” Bryan put his hands in his pockets and shifted back toward Erik. “Nah, doesn’t seem like it. She was pretty evasive yesterday when I introduced myself.” Erik winked at Bryan. “But that doesn’t stop us does it? You should keep trying! Eventually she’ll take the hint” he grinned widely and slapped Bryan friendly on his back. “Yeah, maybe I should. She’s too interesting to give up on that easily.” He smiled back. “How about you though, anyone peaked your attention so far?” Erik shrugged his shoulders while grinning. “Just about every girl here. Nah, just kidding. But there’s quite some interesting chicks here though, ripe for my picking if ya know what I mean?” he laughed heartily and threw his head back. Bryan punched him in shoulder. “Just hold your horses okay.” Erik rubbed his hands together. “Don’t worry, I have a well thought plan already. I’m gonna charm my way into each and every heart.” He grinned, Bryan shook his head in dismay and the two of them turned to walk back to their team mates.

  After what seemed to be a far too short time it was their turn for the game again. Now they would play opposite the other winning team. The one with the stunning girl, Liz thought with dread. How am I possibly going to hide my attraction…? “Good luck Liz”, Katie hugged her and patted her back. “We’ll be right here with the water bottle and the bench” she smiled comfortingly.

  “Thanks you two!” Liz gave them a thumbs up and ran out toward the center of the court again to meet up with her teammates.

  The whistle blew and the ball bounced high up in the air before Hunter managed to jump up, grab it and fling it toward one of the guys on her team. Kris ran with long strides toward the hoop and readied herself for the assist she knew would come. She jumped as high as she could and pushed the ball down into the basket with great success. “1-0, great start everyone!” she shouted to the rest of the team while running back up the court. One of the guys on the other team, Erik was his name she thought, had the ball and was bringing it up fast toward their basket. Erik passed it to the blond girl with the beautiful eyes and as Kris ran up toward her she couldn’t help but admire the girl’s body. She really does have a gorgeous body, slightly tanned, but in a natural way. Kris let her eyes travel downwards. Nicely toned legs and a very cute butt. “Hmmm”, she wasn’t so sure she would let Hunter have this one after all. She glanced quickly over to Hunter and caught her glare in return, a glare clearly stating Stay away from her, she’s mine! Kris smiled to herself – all is fair in love and war… But for now, let’s start with the basket.

  Kris surrounded the blond girl and tried to limit her options for passing the ball further. The blond girl seemed a bit distracted, and she certainly was avoiding any eye contact, Kris noted. Finally, she passed it to one of the other guys on her team, and Kris turned away to run off, but not before turning back one last time and shooting her a quick smile. The girl looked perplexed and very surprised. I like flirting with girls who are not so used to it – they’re the cutest, Kris thought to herself before taking off down the court.

  Hunter caught up with her and shoved her index finger into her side. “Ey! I saw your little move over there. Didn’t you say you weren’t interested?” Kris smiled crookedly in return, winking at Hunter “Sorry, I was just enjoying the view and being polite”, before she ran off toward the ball again.

  Liz was panting heavily when she stopped briefly. During the last couple of passes the opposite team had really taken control of the court and she felt like all she was doing was running back and forth like a maniac. Every time she thought things were going in their favor and she could run toward the hoop to help prepare the score, one of the opposite team members grabbed a hold of the ball and reversed the game again. Thus, she merely ran back and forth repeatedly. I hope this game is over soon. She was exhausted, in addition to trying very hard to not lose her focus all the time. The stunning girl was even more breathtaking when she was running, really showing off her ripped muscles and a gorgeous behind. Liz repeatedly had to fight the urge to grab it, so instead she looked away and pretended to be taking a breather.

  Finally, Liz heard the whistle signaling the end of the game. They had lost, but not by much, so all in all it had been a great game and a good break in the Californian afternoon sun. Everyone walked up to the center of the court to politely shake the hands of the winning team. Liz walked up with Erik and Bryan, shaking the hands of everyone at the opposite team. When she came to the curly-haired cool girl, the girl winked right at her and smiled. “Hey you, nice game you played.” The brown-haired girl lingered in her handshake. “Have you played basketball before maybe?” the curly girl asked her. “No, just for fun, like this. But thank you. You were not so bad yourself”, Liz smiled back. “I’m Hunter”, the curly girl stretched out her hand. “I’m Liz. Congrats on winning today. I look forward to the rematch. We’ll beat you guys then” Liz smiled and shook her hand. “If you want to practice some one-on-one before that time, don’t hesitate to lemme know, eyh? I can be a pretty good tutor, if you like” Hunter said while jokingly patting the pretty girl’s shoulder. Liz couldn’t help but notice that Hunter’s eyes were straying slowly down her body and up again while she said this. “I’ll keep that in mind” she smiled a bit embarrassed before continue walking along the line of team members to greet. She’s not afraid of showing her interest at least.

  At the end of the line the stunning girl was standing. “Congratulations on a great game, well played” Liz dared herself to say to her. “Thanks, but you guys were pretty decent yourselves too.” Kris reached out her hand. “What’s your name by the way? I’m Kris” she said while she gently grasped Liz’ hand to shake it. “I’m Liz, from Sweden. I just got here yesterday so I’m a bit jetlagged still, if I seem off my beat sometimes.” Liz smiled before quickly averting her eyes downward. “I’ll have my energy back up again in a few days I think. How about you, where are you from?” she uttered nervously while letting go of Kris’ hand. She could feel the sparks shooting up her arm from their brief touch. She wasn’t sure if she just imagined it because she wanted to or if it really happened, but she could have sworn that the thumb of Kris had slowly stroked across her hand while they shook. Whatever it was it was affecting her whole body. Kris looked deep into her eyes and she lost sight of anything around them except the green swirls deepening while she looked into them.

  “I’m from Canada myself. I drove down here yesterday on my bike. So, no jet lag at least” Kris smiled and curled her lip into an incredibly cute smirk. Liz felt her knees weaken and slightly tremble. Gosh, her eyes are truly breathtakingly beautiful. But Liz was very unsure how Kris felt in return. She seemed totally cool, while Liz could feel herself almost drooling. She had to get away. “Wow, motorcycle, really cool. I always wanted to try one. My best friend in the Netherlands, where I live now, has one and takes me for a ride from time to time. It’s so nice to feel the air whoosh by while we speed down the highway.” Liz dreamed back to her time in the Netherlands. “Ah, you like riding? Well, if we have time here and you can get a helmet, then I can take you for a ride sometime” Kris stated before Hunter walked up and patted her back. “Hey you two, ready for some food?” Hunter asked while positioning herself between Kris and Liz with her hand slowly moving up the lower back of Liz. Liz felt a bit embarrassed by the obvious flirting. “I think I’ll grab a shower first, but maybe I’ll see you guys later by the canteen. Enjoy your late lunch in any case” she said quickly before wandering off, her thoughts going back to the last words she had heard. She wants to take me for a motorcycle ride...

  Chapter 5

  The first evening all the students had been tired and jetlagged. They had turned
in early in light of the welcome ceremony scheduled at the crack of dawn the next morning. Liz had greatly appreciated having a few hours to herself to mentally process some of her first impressions. There were nearly 130 different people from all over the world here. Never mind that I will meet a lot of new people this summer, but there are so many new cultures to get to know. It almost feels like travelling the entire world in 80 days.

  Liz smiled to herself in the mirror and leaned in to apply the brush to her eyelid. Finally we get to learn all the details about this summer program this morning, I can’t wait! They had been told that the dean of the summer school would address them in her opening speech before they would receive their curriculum lists from the various teachers. Liz leaned back to get a better overview in the mirror and patted down the imaginary wrinkles in her dress. She had picked a summer dress to wear today since the temperature had already risen above 25°C outside. I hope she’ll see me...I wonder what she’ll think. Liz looked down the dotted pattern of black and white of her dress. I can’t believe she asked me to go motorcycle riding with her sometime. Liz felt butterflies filling her belly, excitement rippling through her body. But damn, she’s incredibly good-looking! I can’t believe she actually spoke to me. She seems to have her pick of girls, if she is in fact gay... Liz grabbed her purse from the desk and reached for the room keys. She did one last look-over in the mirror. I can’t really know until I try I guess. I have to find the courage somehow to just keep trying. Maybe eventually it’ll be my turn.