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Again, the crowd in green and gold stood up, cheering and pumping their fists as they shared the victory with their team.

By the time Quinn was at second base, the team was spilling out onto the field, jumping and shouting, clapping each other on the back, grabbing fellow teammates in tight, squeezing hugs.

At home base, they all waited for him to finish his run before jumping on him in celebration.

The giant huddle of boys jostled him back and forth, messing up his hair even more as he dropped his batting helmet to the ground. Chris and Jett found him in the mass of bodies and both grabbed him up into a tight group hug.

“We fucking did it!” Jett shouted, followed by a loud howl as he tossed his ball cap in the air.

“We knew you had it in the bag for us, Case,” said Chris, slapping him on the back. Then he grabbed Quinn’s arm to bring him to a halt.

Their huddle had gradually moved, jumping and skipping, to the middle of the field.

Chris turned Quinn around to face the fence near the dugout, bringing his attention to the absolutely stunning picture of Rae squeezing her way into the field.

Quinn gave Chris and Jett each a pat on the back before jogging over to meet his favorite person on home base.

Rae jumped into Quinn’s arms, wrapping her arms around the back of his neck, and he held tight around her waist as he spun her around, making her feet leave the ground.

When Quinn stopped spinning, she set her feet back down and giggled as she steadied herself.

He waited for the ‘Congratulations, All-Star’ or ‘You did it, Case!’ but it didn’t come.

Instead, she looked him in the eyes, her bright blue ones twinkling back at him as she smiled, then for a brief moment he saw her gaze flit down to his lips.

His heart jolted into action a split-second before he could register what was about to happen.

Her arms tightened around the back of his neck as she pulled him down to her and kissed him .

Her lips were pressed against his, and his eyes went wide with stunned disbelief.

When she didn’t release him or take her lips away, he closed his eyes and sunk into the kiss.

Wrapping his arms tighter around her small waist, he pulled her body against his.

Her lips were soft. They felt full and just completely perfect against his.

She tasted like cinnamon and smelled like her familiar scent of coconut and vanilla.

He wanted more. More of her. More of her mouth, her scent, her taste.

He wanted to freeze this moment and stay in it forever.

His heart was beating out of his chest and he was breathing her in, leaning over her, making her back arch slightly as he greedily demanded more of her lips.

At that cursed moment when they finally parted, she looked up at him and he was pleased to see she was just as breathless as he was.

Quinn brought one gloved hand up and cupped the side of her face gently before pulling her toward him, joining their lips again.

He had a hard time closing his eyes, because he wanted to watch this moment as long as it lasted to make sure it wasn’t a dream.

He allowed his eyelids to flutter shut to give himself the courage to take the kiss one step further.

Slowly, he slipped his tongue out and licked her lips.

Quinn delighted at her small gasp of surprise, and smiled into her lips as she parted them enough to let him in.

Holy Mother of sweet baby Jesus. I’m kissing Rae. On the mouth. I’m French kissing Rae. And she tastes like a cinnamon roll. That’s my new favorite food. Fuck, I don’t want this to end.

He felt as she began to let her arms loosen and her mouth started to pull back.

Quinn shook his head in protest and pulled her closer to him.

He loved her body pressed to his. He could devour her with his body and wrap her up in it.

He could feel where her hips and the small mounds of her breasts pushed against him.

It was only when he realized other parts liked pressing into Rae, too, that he finally let up.

Quinn’s forehead rested against hers where his hat was flipped backwards on her head. He let out a slow shuddering breath as he held her close and smiled. He tried to be cool, he really did. But dammit, this was Rae! He couldn’t help the stupid, big grin that wouldn’t leave his face.

“Good game, Case,” Rae said through her own grin.

Oh shit, that’s right. I just won the state championship game. Again.

“Yeah, thanks,” Quinn said breathlessly.

“I’m sure you guys will have a party somewhere, but feel free to come over when you get back,” she offered.

God, how did she sound so cool about this? Like she hadn’t just made out with her best friend?

“Oh, right,” Quinn glanced at the team still celebrating. “You could come. I mean, the guys like you. You know how to fit right in.”

Rae smiled up at him. “Go celebrate with your team, Quinn. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Ho-ly shit!” Jett exclaimed, plopping into the seat across from Quinn and Chris’s bus seat.

The bus ride home was going to be loud and rowdy, buzzing with the excitement of this final win. Everyone was on cloud nine, high on the feeling of winning a major game, and Quinn was high on the lingering taste of cinnamon and frosting Rae had left on his tongue.

“You finally did it!” Jett threw his hands in the air. “You finally fucking did it! How was it? Everything you hoped for? Is it weird to say you guys look good together? I thought it would be weird, and, well, it kind of was, because you’re two of my best friends, but...holy shit! Good for you!”

Quinn hadn’t been able to wipe the dopey, love-struck grin off his face.

“It was... fuck , it was amazing! Guys...that happened. I can’t believe it happened.

She told me to come over after we get done partying and I feel like I’m going to get there and kiss her and she’ll be like ‘what are ya doin there, Case?’ like it never happened.

But it did! I was there and it happened. ”

“You being there is sort of an essential part of the equation,” Chris chortled. “Does this mean you guys are gonna be...a thing? You gonna do the long distance thing from Michigan to Arizona in the fall, or what?”

“Whoa, whoa!” Jett put his hands up. “Don’t be a downer, Chris.

Come on, let him enjoy this. They still have the whole summer to be together.

Dude, her parents are never home. It’s gonna be so easy to fool around and not get caught.

You guys can make out and have sex all summer.

” He paused and made a near-horrified face.

“Oh, God, this is Rae! Why are we talking about having sex with her?”

“We will not be having sex with her, first of all,” Quinn said pointedly, “and on that note...I wonder if this changes things.”

“Of course it changes things, Case,” said Chris, as though explaining to someone particularly idiotic that fire is hot.

“You guys have been best friends for eleven years and now you’re going to start developing deep love feelings and getting physical and touching. That’s how relationships work, dude.”

“No, not that,” Quinn waved a hand dismissively. “No, I mean the pact that we made at the beginning of the year.”

“We made a pact?” Jett asked curiously. “About Rae?”

Rolling his eyes, Quinn replied, “No, me and Rae made one. About...having sex.”

Chris and Jett both went wide-eyed and their eyebrows shot upward. Chris leaned his head in closer, “I’m sorry, you guys made a sex pact? What the- Why didn’t you tell us?”

Quinn shrugged. “It was just supposed to be between us, I think. I don’t think she told anyone. But it might not even matter now. We can just have sex on our own terms, when it feels like a good time in the relationship.”

“Explain, please,” Jett said, looking thoroughly confused, as well as a little concerned. “What were the terms of this sex pact?”

“Well,” Quinn nodded his head from side to side, feeling awkward at discussing this private arrangement, “Rae has this thing about not wanting to be a virgin her first day of college, I guess. I told her it was dumb and that no one would care or know, but she has it in her head that college is just like sex and parties and more sex and study partners that you have sex with. So she wants to be prepared.”

Jett chuckled, “That sounds like Rae.”

Chris nodded his agreement, “Always thinkin’ ahead, that girl. Even if her view is a little distorted by that TV drama shit she watches.”

“Well, basically, that’s it. She just said if she hadn’t had sex by the end of the year, that I would be her first.” Quinn gave another lame and awkward shrug.

“And...you agreed to that?” Chris quirked an eyebrow skeptically.

“Yeah, so?”

“Quinn, you’re crazy about this girl. You don’t just want sex with her, you want to be with her,” said Chris, again using his Explaining Obvious Shit to a Simpleton voice.

“You’re telling me you agreed to have no-strings-attached sex with her?

You were gonna just blow your load, pat her on the ass and say ‘Go get ‘em, Tiger’ and send her off to a sea of horny college dudes?”

Quinn narrowed his eyes into a glare. “That was unnecessarily crass, and no , that’s not what I was going to do.”

“Wait, wait,” Jett held a hand up to pause the conversation. “Rae was completely fine with you hooking up with whoever you wanted all year...and as long as she hadn’t had sex, it didn’t matter how many chicks you’d been with, she still wanted to do it?”

Ahh, shit. I was hoping they wouldn’t get to this part.