He was the definition of “low-cut Caesars with deep waves.” His dark skin complemented his tight jawline and chiseled features. The neck tattoos peeking through his shirt gave him the right amount of roughness. I peeped that his championship Warhawks t-shirt was slightly different from everyone else’s I’d seen tonight. He must have been a super fan or something.

“May I help you?” I finally managed to speak.

His eyes narrowed slightly, and the sexiest smirk coated his face. I didn’t know whether to be attracted to this man or annoyed. Why was he sitting here? It was weird.

“You actually can,” he replied, and his deep, raspy voice had me ready to jump out of my skin. “I think we can help each other.”

“Um… Help each other?” I asked with confusion plastered on my face. “I’m not here alone... my⁠—”

I glanced around, preparing to get up and leave. So much for getting a little quiet time.

“I know a fellow introvert whose social battery is running out when I see one,” he said, easing the tension a little and making me chuckle. My social battery was definitely running out.

“All the yelling was getting to me,” I replied, taking a deep breath and relaxing. He seemed cool enough that I didn’t need to take off running.

“Not a fan of two hundred Warhawks fans yelling for two hours, huh?” He flashed his pretty smile.

“Not at all.”

“It’s a gift and curse, but I’ve learned to tune it out.”

I looked between the floor and this friendly stranger. I didn’t know if I should look at him or look away. I didn’t want to come off as weird.

“You go to a lot of Warhawks games?” I asked.

“You can say that,” he replied. “I’m guessing you don’t.”

I shook my head.

“Football isn’t my thing. I’m here on a date.” I threw that last part out there just in case he tried to be more than friendly with me.

“A date, huh? And he let your beautiful ass slip away to a staircase alone?”

I didn’t respond. I just shrugged my shoulders. I wasn’t the type of girl to get aroused by someone calling me beautiful. I knew that already.

“How about we keep an eye on each other? You know? Two introverts finding safety in numbers. We can stage an emergency exit if either of us looks too uncomfortable.”

I chuckled again, turning my head to stare at the fine, strange man in disbelief.

“Look out for each other?” I needed clarification on exactly what he meant.

“Yeah. We introverts need to stick together. It’s a bunch of crazies out there.”

“It is.” I nodded, enjoying our playful banter.