Blake was lonely.
It was a real bitch, considering he’d spent years wishing for more alone time.
He’d chosen to stay behind for the National Holiday while his friends lived it up in Thailand, but he was starting to regret his decision.
At first, having the dorm to himself was great. Blake walked through the halls half-naked and blasted his music as loud as he liked. He didn’t have to study or do homework. He did whatever he wanted whenever he wanted.
The high lasted two or three days before Blake started missing FEA’s noise and bustle. He missed bantering with Farrah. He even missed Luke’s dumb texts. Sure, he enjoyed exploring Shanghai, but it would be nice to, you know, have someone join him.
He couldn’t even talk to his family or friends back home. Besides the Austin-Shanghai time difference, his mom and sister were busy with school as an art teacher and student, respectively. Landon was busy prepping to take over his mother’s empire. He didn’t want to call Cleo and open a can of worms, and he would rather poke his eyes out than speak with his dad.
After his morning jog at World Expo park, Blake went to Nanjing Road instead of returning to the dorm. He needed to be around people.
He got off at the People’s Square station and walked to East Nanjing. The famous pedestrian street bustled with activity. He wanted people; he got people. They streamed by in a relentless, never-ending wave of humanity.
Shanghai was the most populous city in the most populous country in the world, and it never let you forget it.
Blake wandered aimlessly, unsure what he was searching for. He passed by couples, families, and tourists gawking at the spectacle. Huge signs and video advertisements loomed overhead, screaming for attention.
A few days ago, these things made him feel alive. Free. No one knew him here. He could do and be whoever he wanted. But now…
Blake stopped. The man behind him cursed and walked around him, knocking into Blake’s shoulder as he did so. A harried-looking young mother ran past with three children. Her gaze flicked over Blake before she turned her attention to the child trying to scrape a piece of old gum off the sidewalk. A group of teenagers huddled over a phone and laughed at something on-screen.
Blake saw them but didn’t see them. He could only focus on the image in his mind’s eye, of himself standing in the middle of Shanghai’s busiest street, surrounded by people who didn’t know and didn’t care who he was.
One ant among thousands.
A stranger in a strange land.
Loneliness settled like a rock in the pit of his stomach.
For the first time in his life, Blake was homesick.
He resumed his walk down Nanjing Road and kept his eyes peeled for something, anything that reminded him of home. He bypassed McDonald’s—he wasn’t that desperate—and made a left onto an adjacent street. Ten minutes later, he stumbled onto a sports bar named The End Zone.
Not the most creative name, but it sounded comfortingly American.
“Hey.” The bartender smiled when he walked in. She resembled a young Angelina Jolie, and her name tag indicated she was called Mina.
“Hey.” Blake parked himself at the bar and ordered a cup of coffee and the signature breakfast plate—eggs, bacon, home fries, toast.
The place was empty this early in the morning, and there were no interesting games on TV, so Blake settled for flirting with Mina, who seemed all too happy to flirt back. In the space of ten minutes, Blake learned she grew up in Phoenix, graduated from Arizona State with a degree in public relations, and took a gap year to travel and visit her brother in Shanghai.
Blake was shocked to learn Mina’s brother owned the End Zone. From what she told him, her brother was only a few years older than her, and she was twenty-two, twenty-three tops.
“How’d he end up here?” Blake broke off a piece of bacon and popped it in his mouth. It tasted like home.
The bells above the door jangled as another customer walked in.
“He hated school and dropped out his junior year to backpack around Asia. He loved Shanghai so much he moved here. Got a gig in the restaurant industry, made some good connections, and opened this place two years ago.”
“You make it sound so easy.” The wheels in Blake’s head started turning. When he chose to major in business, he’d been thinking about a corporate job in marketing or operations. Not entrepreneurship. He didn’t know the first thing about starting and running a business. The thought of doing his own thing was tempting, though. Blake could be his own boss. No one would tell him what to do.
“It was tough at first, but he made it work. Greg’s good at this sort of thing.” Mina left to tend to the other customer, but not before giving Blake a wink that said she’d be back.
Blake’s heart beat fast. The wheels in his head turned faster.
He liked sports bars. He knew what people who frequented sports bars liked because he’d grown up with them. He knew how to build and sell a brand—he’d been selling himself as a brand for years.
It was like a dam broke. After months of not knowing what he wanted to do after graduation, the ideas flowed so fast Blake couldn’t keep up.
He asked for the check and scribbled his signature, eager to return to the dorm and put some of his ideas on paper. They might not lead anywhere, but it felt good to have a plan. He couldn’t wait to tell—
Who?
His family? His father wasn’t going to be happy unless Blake rejoined the football world; his mother and Joy would try their best to be supportive, but they wouldn’t get it.
His friends? His Shanghai friends were in Thailand, and they didn’t know him well enough to understand why he was so excited.
Meanwhile, his friends back home were far and few in between after he quit the team. He and Cleo didn’t part on the best terms, and Landon had his hands full with his mother.
When Blake led the TSU Mustangs to their third national championship, he had 50,000 people cheering him on. When it came to the personal wins, he had no one.
The realization washed over him like a cold shower.
“It was nice talking to you.” Mina whisked his signed receipt off the counter. “I have to keep an eye on things until my brother gets in tonight, but I’ll be free after eight.” She pressed another slip of paper into Blake’s hand. “We could have some fun. No strings attached.”
Blake raised his eyebrows. “No strings attached, huh?”
“I’m in Shanghai for a few more weeks, and you’re cute.” Mina shrugged. “It doesn’t have to be a big thing.”
Blake thought about the empty dorm waiting for him on campus and slipped her number into his pocket. “I’ll see you at eight.”
