To the Ruta Arena I

Wednesday, May 1, 2013.

****

It was half-past four in the evening, only an hour and a half to the start of the Norwegian Football Cup second-round game between Rosenborg BK and Strindheim IL.

Zachary stood among the other Rosenborg players in the Lerkendal Idresspark parking lot, waiting to board the bus to Ruta Arena—the home ground of Strindheim Idrettslag. Like the rest of his teammates, he was clad in a full all-black designer suit and sleek, gentle shoes—looking like he was heading to a classy wedding dinner rather than a football game.