Simon.” I nudge her shoulder before I retreat to home plate. My mind races with old memories and doubts of whether I’ll get through a whole game.
“Kyle Avery slams his second, three-run homer of the night in the bottom of the ninth, Clutching the Texas state title for the Eagles! This young man has a bright future ahead of him!”
I scratch my left foot in the dirt four times, then my right foot twice. Grabbing the bat with both hands, I stretch my arms behind my neck. I drop my left arm and swing the bat in a circle with my right wrist a few times.
“Christ, A-Rod. Are you done with your pre-bat routine? You forgot to adjust your gloves and tap your helmet twice,” Olivia yells at me.
“Smart-ass.” I smile and roll my eyes, taking my stance and point to deep right field. “Let’s go.”
“You’re a righty … there is no way you can hit deep right.” She stands up straight and leans on her hip.
“Bullshit! Dinner, on me , says I can switch hit and bomb to left, too.” I point the bat toward her and raise an eyebrow.
“You know what? Deal.” She pulls the strings on the glove and punches her fist into the mitt twice before picking up the ball and wiggling her fingers.
I really hope I don’t suck.
“You’re killin’ me, Simon.” I lower the bat and look at the imaginary watch on my wrist. “I don’t have all day.”
She sticks her tongue out at me and pitches a floater. It comes toward me in slow motion with a million arrows begging me to launch it into next year. My mind switches off and instinct takes over. Before I can think, my left heel rises off the sandy dirt and I raise the bat back farther. I crush the ball so hard I almost expect the casing to fly off. The sound of contact reverberates and explodes like a strike of lightning splitting a tree. Olivia’s head arcs with the ball and follows it as it lands about ten feet beyond the right field fence.
“Nice throw!” The swing takes my breath away completely. I almost need to use the bat as a cane for support. A familiar smile flows across my face and the rush comes back as if it never left … the rush of playing and knowing this is what my life was meant for. The hole in my heart starts to close and the missing piece reappears as quickly as it went.
“Kyle!” She runs over to me with the same amount of wide-eyed astonishment I think is all over my face. “That was incredible! Your stance, your follow-through, everything was perfect. For someone who hasn’t played in a few years , you’re pretty awesome.” She sighs and the most beautiful smile stretches across her face.
“Thanks.” I want nothing more than to kiss her right here on the field. Instead, I take a deep breath, squeezing the bat, and return to the batter’s box.
Olivia pitches me another ball, and I hit it out of the park again with even more force, confirming our deal. Every apprehension I had about playing leaves my mind on the spot. Suffocating tension fills the air as I walk over to her, dropping my bat.
“I think I owe you dinner. Considering I didn’t hear it land, maybe a few rounds of beers, too.” I take another step and tug her closer. She looks up, either totally expectant or petrified. I want her, but I know she doesn’t feel the same way … not yet, anyway. I might be an asshole because I know she’s not ready to move forward, but I can’t stop whatever is building between us right now.
“Hey, guys!” Aubrey calls out with a laugh. “C’mon, no making out on the field, this is a family establishment.”
Noah nods with a smile, mouthing nice to me as we both step back. I swallow hard. I haven’t talked to him since the night we signed up, but I hope he didn’t run his mouth to anyone. I’m surprisingly okay with playing, but I’m not ready to talk about how the six MLB teams scouting me left the game before I was carted off the field.
I’m not ready to tell everyone I don’t know what to do with my life. How the accident I
“Kyle Avery slams his second, three-run homer of the night in the bottom of the ninth, Clutching the Texas state title for the Eagles! This young man has a bright future ahead of him!”
I scratch my left foot in the dirt four times, then my right foot twice. Grabbing the bat with both hands, I stretch my arms behind my neck. I drop my left arm and swing the bat in a circle with my right wrist a few times.
“Christ, A-Rod. Are you done with your pre-bat routine? You forgot to adjust your gloves and tap your helmet twice,” Olivia yells at me.
“Smart-ass.” I smile and roll my eyes, taking my stance and point to deep right field. “Let’s go.”
“You’re a righty … there is no way you can hit deep right.” She stands up straight and leans on her hip.
“Bullshit! Dinner, on me , says I can switch hit and bomb to left, too.” I point the bat toward her and raise an eyebrow.
“You know what? Deal.” She pulls the strings on the glove and punches her fist into the mitt twice before picking up the ball and wiggling her fingers.
I really hope I don’t suck.
“You’re killin’ me, Simon.” I lower the bat and look at the imaginary watch on my wrist. “I don’t have all day.”
She sticks her tongue out at me and pitches a floater. It comes toward me in slow motion with a million arrows begging me to launch it into next year. My mind switches off and instinct takes over. Before I can think, my left heel rises off the sandy dirt and I raise the bat back farther. I crush the ball so hard I almost expect the casing to fly off. The sound of contact reverberates and explodes like a strike of lightning splitting a tree. Olivia’s head arcs with the ball and follows it as it lands about ten feet beyond the right field fence.
“Nice throw!” The swing takes my breath away completely. I almost need to use the bat as a cane for support. A familiar smile flows across my face and the rush comes back as if it never left … the rush of playing and knowing this is what my life was meant for. The hole in my heart starts to close and the missing piece reappears as quickly as it went.
“Kyle!” She runs over to me with the same amount of wide-eyed astonishment I think is all over my face. “That was incredible! Your stance, your follow-through, everything was perfect. For someone who hasn’t played in a few years , you’re pretty awesome.” She sighs and the most beautiful smile stretches across her face.
“Thanks.” I want nothing more than to kiss her right here on the field. Instead, I take a deep breath, squeezing the bat, and return to the batter’s box.
Olivia pitches me another ball, and I hit it out of the park again with even more force, confirming our deal. Every apprehension I had about playing leaves my mind on the spot. Suffocating tension fills the air as I walk over to her, dropping my bat.
“I think I owe you dinner. Considering I didn’t hear it land, maybe a few rounds of beers, too.” I take another step and tug her closer. She looks up, either totally expectant or petrified. I want her, but I know she doesn’t feel the same way … not yet, anyway. I might be an asshole because I know she’s not ready to move forward, but I can’t stop whatever is building between us right now.
“Hey, guys!” Aubrey calls out with a laugh. “C’mon, no making out on the field, this is a family establishment.”
Noah nods with a smile, mouthing nice to me as we both step back. I swallow hard. I haven’t talked to him since the night we signed up, but I hope he didn’t run his mouth to anyone. I’m surprisingly okay with playing, but I’m not ready to talk about how the six MLB teams scouting me left the game before I was carted off the field.
I’m not ready to tell everyone I don’t know what to do with my life. How the accident I
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