If he hadn’t hit the ball.

If she hadn’t caught it and tossed back the most luminous smile in the annals of baseball.

If he hadn’t scribbled his number on it.

If she hadn’t called, laughing and calling him “ballsy.”

But he had and she had. Together for eternal If.

Tilia Klebenov Jacobs is the author of Wrong Place, Wrong Time and Second Helpings at the Serve You Right Café as well as numerous short stories. She is a reviewer for IndieReader.com, a judge in San Francisco’s Soul-Making Keats Literary Competition, and a board member of Mystery Writers of America. Additionally, Tilia teaches writing classes for prison inmates. See more at tiliaklebenovjacobs.com.