“Don't," she snapped and I stopped. No fighting back, no response, no arguing. I simply turned my ass right around and sat back on her bed. If I had a tail, it would sure as shit have been tucked between my legs.”

“I was one hundred percent not in control of this situation. This girl fucking owned me right now. I sat on that bed waiting for her to give me the time of day. I didn't necessarily like this feeling, but I suffered through it... for her. I convinced myself that I'd probably suffer through pretty much anything for this girl.”

“Chrystle? I'm back!" I refused to say that I was home because Cassie was my home. But I'd lost that, and her, forever, so I'd never truly be home again.”

“Being on that pitcher’s mound, it’s the one thing I’m really good at. The one thing I haven’t fucked up. And when I’m on the field, everything else fades away. You know?” He turned to look at me, his eyes craving understanding. I smiled and he continued. “It’s like my mind is clear when I’m out there. It’s not about my mom or my dad or the stupid shit I’ve done. It’s about me, the ball, and the batter. It’s the one place in the world where I feel like I’m in control. Like I have a say in what happens around me.”I stopped my head from nodding in agreement once I realized that I was doing it. “I feel that way when I’m taking pictures. Anything that I’m not seeing through my lens fades away in the background. And I get to frame my picture any way I choose. I get to dictate how it looks. What’s in it. What isn’t. Behind that lens I have complete control in how things are seen.”He smiled, his dimples indenting his cheeks. “You get it.”

“Oh my God, you feel incredible." He breathed heavily against my ear. "Holy shit, I may never recover from this.”

“It's not that I can't live without you; it's that I don't want to. There's a difference. We all make choices in life and I choose you.My heart belongs to you. And I'm not asking for it back, even if you won't want it anymore. I'm just asking for a chance to have your again. I promise I'll be more careful with it this time.”

“She smiled and her whole face lit up. Or maybe it was mine. All I know for certain is that smile lit up even my darkest days.”