Tim and Marcus filled their plates with pork, potatoes, and cornbread. They ate ravenously, engaging in brief disjointed conversation about their respective weekends, purposely skirting the major issues that they both knew would come up later. As the food disappeared, Tim felt his own level of nervousness rise, realizing that one of them would soon be broaching the topic that had brought them together.

“So…you were a Nittany Lion?” he said, looking back into the living room.

Marcus lit up.

“Making Life Better!”

“Huh?”

“That’s the Penn State motto. Yeah, I was lucky enough to get drafted out of high school. I was a big kid then, and they had me playing line. When they saw the speed that I had, though, they decided that I’d...

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