She Wore the Team Mascot Costume to Pay for College — Then the Star Quarterback Left His Cheerleader Girlfriend for Her
Chapter 14
The proposal happened one year later.
Not at a stadium.
Not in front of cameras.
Not in a luxury restaurant.
At the tiny campus field where Emily had spent her first season inside the buffalo costume.
Jackson brought her there at sunset.
The stadium was empty.
The lights were off.
The field was quiet.
“Why here?” she asked.
He smiled.
“Because this is where I first fell for you.”
“I thought you didn’t know.”
“I didn’t know who was inside.”
She laughed.
“Exactly.”
He took her hand.
“Maybe that’s why it mattered.”
He dropped to one knee.
Emily covered her mouth.
“Jackson…”
“I don’t want the girl everyone sees.”
He looked up at her.
“I want the woman who worked three jobs, studied until midnight, and danced around in that ridiculous costume because she refused to give up on her future.”
She was crying now.
“I love you.”
He held out the ring.
“Will you marry me?”
Emily laughed through her tears.
“Yes.”
He stood.
She threw her arms around him.
He kissed her beneath the empty stadium lights.
For once, there was no crowd.
Just them.
