“Yeah, well, Sundstrom isn’t exactly known for his human decency.” He swipes his fingers against his palm, spreading around the condensation from his cup. “When he said he found a dual-threat at football camp who conveniently happened to be moving to Atherton—and we all know that second part is a bullshit cover for recruitment—he made it sound like he’d found the next Tebow. She was … not what any of us were picturing, though it makes sense that the only way he’d be able to get someone that good to move is if it were someone who’d never be able to play at their own school. Anyway, no one thought she’d last the day, let alone come back.”

Well, that all tracks. So much for my righteous anger at being left in the dark. “But she did. And y’all think she moved here specifically to play. And even with all that…”

“Yep, team’s still acting like she’s stomping on the flowers of Saint Robbie’s grave,” he says as he finally unwraps his straw and jams it into his cup. I don’t think he realizes he’s stabbing it in repeatedly as if it were human flesh until I put a Gator-green-nailed hand over his and hold it in place.

“He’s gone, Mig.” I keep my voice as soft as possible in the crowded space.

Miguel takes a sharp breath, and then his shoulders slump and his hand relaxes. “Sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize to me. I know who Robbie was. You’re not talking to a member of his fan club.”

“I know.” He turns his hand upside down and clasps mine, just for a second. “Thank you.”

We sit quietly, thinking, remembering, neither of us daring to say another word out loud. Finally, my curiosity gets the better of me and I break the silence.

“So, is she better than he was?”

“Oh, hell yeah. It’s a pretty low bar, but she’s got him beat in every way. Honestly, the Tebow comparison isn’t that far off, and Robbie was not a scrambling QB. She outran everyone but me and Devlin, and her arm is incredible. She also knows all our plays stone-cold, which Duggan sure as fuck didn’t. If she were a guy, they’d all get the fuck over it. Instead, the prick who went through my shit looking for deodorant and used my personal property to threaten me for months gets to remain the team hero.”