1 week later

The sun was low on the horizon, painting the field in shades of amber and gold. Practice had ended over an hour ago, but you'd stayed behind, sitting in the outfield grass with your knees hugged to your chest. The distant hum of cicadas filled the silence, and every so often, a faint breeze would rustle the leaves on the trees lining the field.

You told yourself you stayed to enjoy the quiet. To catch a break from the noise of the team and the chaos of the past few months. But the longer you sat there, staring out at the empty diamond, the harder it became to lie to yourself.

It wasn't the field that kept you here. It wasn't the quiet, or the sunset, or the fact that you didn't really feel like going home.

It was him. Yuwen.

The thought hit you like a rogue fly ball, sharp and unexpected. You shook your head, trying to push it away, but it lingered, stubborn and unrelenting. Yuwen had been on your mind all day—not because of anything specific he'd done, but because of everything.

You leaned back, lying flat on the grass, your arm thrown over your eyes. This couldn't be happening. Yuwen? Seriously?

It didn't make sense. Or maybe it did, and that was the worst part.

When you'd first met him, you couldn't stand him. He was arrogant, cocky, impossible to talk to without wanting to throw something at him. But somewhere along the way, he'd stopped being just the smug, infuriating guy who thought he ran the world. He'd become... more.

You thought about the way his smirk softened when it was just the two of you, the way he'd started checking in on you after long practices, offering tips without making it seem like he was doing you a favor. He still teased you relentlessly, of course—but now, his teasing felt less like a game and more like... like he cared.

And that was dangerous. Because now you cared, too.

You groaned, pressing the heels of your hands against your eyes as if you could physically shove the feelings away. "This is so dumb," you muttered to yourself. "Get a grip."

But no matter how hard you tried to talk yourself out of it, the truth was impossible to ignore.

You liked Yuwen. And not just in a he's-not-so-bad way. No, this was something else entirely—something that made your chest tighten every time he smiled at you, that made your heart race when he stood a little too close. Something you'd been trying to deny for weeks but couldn't anymore.

The breeze picked up, carrying the faint smell of freshly cut grass and dirt, and you let out a long sigh. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. You'd come here to figure out who sent that note, to solve the mystery that had turned your life upside down. Falling for Yuwen wasn't part of the plan.

But maybe that was the problem. You'd spent so much time focusing on what you were supposed to do that you hadn't noticed what was actually happening. Somewhere along the way, Yuwen had stopped being the distraction and started being the reason you kept showing up.

You let your arm fall away from your face, staring up at the sky as the first stars began to appear. A tiny part of you wondered if he felt the same—if the teasing, the late-night talks, the way his eyes lingered on you sometimes meant more than he let on.

But the bigger part of you—the part that was scared—wasn't ready to find out. Not yet.

For now, you'd keep this to yourself. You weren't ready to admit it out loud, not to him, not even to yourself. But as you lay there in the fading light, the truth settled into your chest, warm and undeniable.

You liked Yuwen. And there was no going back.