“I wanted to, but I was afraid you’d make me leave, and then I’d be arrested for stalking because I couldn’t leave you alone. I’d have followed you everywhere.”

She choked. Or laughed. He wasn’t sure what the sound was. “Why?”

“Because I’m in love with you. I have been since our first date. Now pass me the steering lines and let me land this thing.”

“Where?” She handed him the lines.

“Do you know where we are?”

She went silent for a few seconds. “Over a high school. Not sure which one. We can land in the football field.”

“Exactly.”

“We’re coming back to this conversation if we live.”

“We’ll live. We have too much to live for.”

Gavin worked with the wind to drift as far as he wanted, then used the lines to pull left, then right, then over the field.

The occupied field.

“Gym class?” Sarah asked.

“Football practice. They’ll move.” Hopefully.

Two men dressed in black shirts looked up, watchful. Pointing. As Gavin and Sarah got closer, it seemed to finally dawn on them that they were aiming for the field.

The kids and adults scattered, giving Gavin plenty of room to land.

His feet touched the ground first and he ran a few steps with Sarah attached to his back, stopped, and went to his knees. Her grip never loosened. “Sarah?”

“Yeah?”

“You can let go now.”

“Right.” Her fingers released.

Gavin looked up to find the entire football team and coaches surrounding them.

“Y’all okay?” the nearest teen asked.

“I think so.” There was no way Gavin would be able to get the knot out of the seatbelt strapping Sarah to him. “Sarah? Can you undo the buckle?”

“Um . . . yeah.”

He felt her hands working between them and then the buckle released. Gavin pulled away from Sarah. His legs weakened and he wilted to the grass and rolled on his back.

“Gavin?” Sarah asked.

“Yeah?”

“We’re alive, right?”

“Feels like it.”

“You’re alive,” a gruff voice said. “Wanna tell me why you had to land on my field in the middle of my practice? You couldn’t land on the empty baseball field like your friend?”

“Friend?” Gavin rolled to his feet and pulled Sarah up with him.

“Yeah, he came down not five minutes ago.”

“The plane,” Sarah said. “Where did it go down?”

“Not sure. We heard the plane crash and then you landed.”

Chills danced over his skin and Gavin gripped Sarah’s hand. “Did you see which way the other guy went?”

“No. Now, if you two don’t need medical help, could you please vacate the field so we can finish our practice?”

“Glad to as soon as you let me use your phone.”

The man sighed and held his finger to the screen, then tapped it. He passed the phone to Gavin.