Dare You to Fall for the Catcher

by Lacy Andersen

  “Listen, the reason I called you here today is to come to a solution,” she said, steepling her fingers as she gazed at me. “To be honest, I see a lot of myself in you. The same fire. The same burning desire to succeed. You could go far, Mandy. In running, or anything else you put your mind to. I believe it.”

  I leaned back in my chair, feeling as if I’d been struck on the side of the head with the world’s softest pillow. Never in a million years had I imagined Coach Padilla would call me to her office and compliment me. Or compare me to her. It felt amazingly good. She was the kind of strong, take-no-prisoners female role model we needed in this world. To hear her say I would go far had me dancing on air.

  “Thanks, Coach.” I flashed her a nervous grin.

  “That being said”—she set her elbows on the desk and frowned—“that same fire is what’s going to ruin your career before it even starts. You can’t help yourself. It’s impossible for you to stay off the track. You’ll never heal correctly because you won’t let yourself. And because of that, I’m going to have to kick you off the team.”

  In a flash, all of those good feelings went away and I was left gripping the armrests of my chair and gaping at Coach. Horror coated my esophagus like a massive case of heartburn.

  She couldn’t be serious. This was my senior year of high school, my last season of track. If any of the schools that had offered me scholarships found out, they’d pull those offers in a heartbeat. I was ruined. Everything I’d worked for gone, in a puff of smoke.

  My tongue felt thick as I tried to argue. “But, Coach you can’t—”

  She held up a hand. “Relax, Hale. It’s only for a short time. When your doctor and I are satisfied with your progress, then you can return to the team.”

  The breath I’d been holding left my body in a whoosh. I slumped in the chair, already exhausted from the emotional roller coaster of today. At least there was a light at the end of the tunnel. My track career wasn’t totally ruined.

  “Okay, I think I can handle that.” I gripped the armrests. My mother’s voice played in my ears, her sage advice from the urgent care appointment playing on repeat. “Three weeks with no practice. I can do that. I can take up a hobby. Maybe knitting? Or cooking?”

  Coach Padilla made an expression that looked strangely like a smile crossed with a grimace and shook her head. “No, no, no. Like I said, I see a lot of myself in you. I know that won’t do. You’ll just find another way to involve yourself in practice. No, I’ve found something to occupy your time. Do it well, and I will approve your reentry into the track team. Fail, and you will effectively be off the team. Permanently.”

  I gulped. What kind of horrendous task had Coach Padilla set out for me? Scrubbing out the tadpole tanks in the science room? Sanitizing the boys’ locker room? Whatever it was, I’d set my shoulders and tackle it with the utmost of dignity, if that’s what it took.

  “I understand,” I told her, frowning. “What do I have to do?”

  She nodded approvingly and it felt like the temperature in the room went up three degrees. “I’ve already spoken about it to Coach Morgan. The baseball team manager is out sick for the next few weeks. I’d like you to take his place. It should be an innocuous enough chore. Not physical enough to worsen your ankle, but busying enough to chase away the temptation to involve yourself in my track practices again. And as you’ll still be part of a team sport, you can still collect your Varsity letter at the end of the year.”

  I was pretty sure I started hyperventilating. My vision spun before my eyes and the sudden desire to faint passed over me. “Wait, what? The baseball team manager? Isn’t there something else I can do? Anything else?”

  “No.” The disproving pucker was back. “I’ve made up my mind, Hale. It’s this, or you’re off the team. What do you say?”

  I couldn’t answer her. All I could do was envision Jayden’s smug face as I waited on him hand and foot in the team dugout. He was going to be so obnoxious. One of us wasn’t going to make it out alive.

  Ugh, if my entire life wasn’t riding on this track season, I’d say screw it and walk out that door. But I couldn’t. This was my only option. I had to accept.

  “I’ll do it.” My nostrils flared as I took a deep breath. “It’s only three weeks, right?”

  “Only three weeks.” She made the strange grimacing expression again, which I was coming to realize was her real smile. “You can do this, Hale. Heal up, showcase to Coach Morgan our track team work ethic, and get back on the team so you can lead us to districts. I know you can do it.”

  I hoped she was right, because as I walked out of that office, I was having some serious doubts as to my capability to do anything right these days. Between my ankle sprain, the fights with my little sister, my feud with Jayden, and this massive embarrassment, I was starting to wish I could just skip these last few months of my senior year.

  Chapter Seven

  Audrey stood next to me as we both stared in horror at the door to the boy’s locker room. A steady stream of baseball players had already come out of it, their duffel bags hanging over their shoulders.

  “I can’t believe you’re doing this,” she said, her nostrils flaring. “I can’t believe you’re going to be the baseball team’s manager.”

  My stomach clenched, a last hold-out sign of the rebellion in the back of my mind. I was doing this. I had no other choice.

  “You know, I seem to remember someone else who was so desperate to accomplish her goals that she wore a hundred-year-old mascot costume for several months,” I said, turning to Audrey. “So no judging, okay?”

  She held up her hands. “Touché. Just don’t let them get to you.”

  I straightened my shoulders. “They won’t. Nothing gets to me.”

  “Right.” She smirked, her eyes searching my face. “I love you and you’re my best friend, but you’re wound tighter than Coach Padilla’s laces on her tennis shoes. If you’re not careful, one little misstep is all it’s going to take to make you lose your precious control and then you’ll snap.”

  At that moment, Jayden came through the doors of the locker room, his baseball cap pulled down low over his face. He didn’t see me as he worked his fingers into his catcher’s mitt and headed toward the exit. A jolt went through my stomach at the sight of him. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from his retreating figure. Whatever else I could say about him, the guy really did look good in athletic shorts, especially with those muscular calves.

  “Speaking of things that get to you...” Audrey crossed her arms and wagged her eyebrows suggestively. “Don’t let your burning...whatever...for Jayden frustrate you. I know how you guys love to battle. Just do your three weeks and get back to the track. You can do this.”

  Her words snapped me out of my stare and I blushed when I realized what thoughts had been flying around my head. “You’re right. Just three weeks. Eyes on the prize.”

  Starting now.

  I rocked forward on my boot and followed the line of athletes across the school parking lot to the baseball and softball diamonds at the end of the grass. Keeping my eyes firmly away from the track, where I knew warm-ups had already begun, I scanned the field for a sign of Coach Morgan.

  He wasn’t a hard guy to spot. Coach Morgan was a retired history teacher who had been with Rock Valley High for almost twenty years. He was the opposite of Coach Padilla in nearly every way. Where she was athletic, toned, and tall, he was short, soft, and large, with a swollen belly that jiggled when he laughed. He had a small tuft of dirty blond hair that peeked beneath the brim of his dusty and stained cap, effectively hiding the bald spot I knew lingered underneath. A smile sat permanently on his lips and his blue eyes twinkled with fondness as he watched his baseball players drop their gear off in the dugout and line up in front of the pitcher’s mound.

  When he caught me lingering awkwardly behind the fence at home plate, he clapped his chubby hands together and waved me forward. I avoided everyone’s eyes, instead choosing to keep
my gaze strictly on the fine white-powdered lines around home plate as I approached.

  “Boys, boys, listen up.” Coach Morgan had a pleasant high-pitched voice that could put anyone at ease. “We’ve got a temporary new addition to the team. While Ashton is out recovering, Miss Hale is going to be taking over most of his duties. I expect you all to show the upmost respect to our team manager. Help her when needed. Watch your mouth around her, or you’ll be doing laps until you collapse. Do I make myself clear?”

  “Sir, yes, sir,” they all replied at once.

  I hazarded a glance up at the team and immediately made eye contact with Jayden. He was grinning at me as if he’d just stumbled upon the world’s greatest punch line. The smallest quirk of his lips was all it took to make my stomach clench with nerves. I tore my gaze away and stared solidly at Coach Morgan as he dove into talking the guys through today’s warm-ups.

  “And I think a few pop-up drills to finish off, how does that sound?” he asked, finishing up his instructions.

  The boys mumbled in agreement and then began to break off to start practice. Coach Morgan made an abrupt turn and started walking toward the dugout. I scrambled to follow him, not wanting to stay on the field one minute longer than I had to.

  “Hey, Coach, is there anything I can do?” The jittery feeling I’d had since this morning wasn’t going away and I needed something to occupy my thoughts, other than Jayden’s smirk. “Like compile player stats or something?”

  Coach stopped so fast, I nearly collided with his back. He turned halfway toward me, his mouth pulled down with an impressed frown. “Compiling stats? That sounds like an idea. Usually, Ashton just drove the Gator around with the supplies and kept the water cooler full. But I could get on board with that.”

  He picked a clipboard and pen off the bench in the dugout and pushed them into my hands. I flipped through the pages, a bunch of random handwritten statistics covered each of the pages.

  “Is this everything?”

  He nodded. “Everything from last year’s players. Do with that what you will. There’s a reason I never taught math, I tell you. If you can pull this off, I might have to ban you from returning to the track team.”

  He laughed and clutched his belly as he walked off, leaving me to sit on the bench and thumb through the pages more carefully. As much of a mess as this was, at least it seemed like I was going to have some solid tasks to distract me from that track field in the distance. Unlike my sister, I’d always kind of had a knack for math. Figuring out each player’s batting average would be a cinch.

  “Hey, Amanda, did you miss me so much you had to come join the baseball team?”

  I squeezed my eyes shut, the numbers on the pages disappearing into darkness. With a deep inhale, I opened them again and looked up to see Jayden leaning against the dugout fence in front of me, his mitt plastered to the chain-link fence and a grin on his face.

  “For your information, I’m here against my will,” I said with a flick of my pen. “Not because I missed you.”

  He used his tongue to move a sunflower seed between his teeth and crunched it, somehow still maintaining that ridiculous grin. “But you don’t deny missing me.”

  “I also don’t deny wanting to hit you upside the head, either,” I shot back.

  His eyes glimmered with humor as his fingers curled around the chain-link. It seemed that no matter what I shot at Jayden, he almost always had a comeback. And if there wasn’t a comeback, there was that everything-rolls-off-my-back attitude that drove me crazy. Just once, I would’ve liked to see him come down from that high horse and lose control of this smooth, cocky image he portrayed.

  “Is there anything else?” I demanded, eager to get back to the stats. I couldn’t concentrate with Jayden staring at me like that.

  “The guys are thirsty,” he said in a mock-pleading voice. “They sent me over here to find out when we’re getting some refreshments.”

  His whole pathetic act was enough to almost make me smile, but I held it in. “You know where the hose is.”

  “They also ran out of sunflower seeds.”

  “Sounds like a personal problem.”

  “And the protein bars are all gone.”

  I shrugged. “Protein bars aren’t all that good for you, anyway. Full of sugar.”

  “We’re collapsing of thirst and hunger and our team manager doesn’t care.” He spun his cap on his head so that the bill faced backwards and he could lean his forehead on the fence to give me a pathetic look. “Please don’t let us die out here, Amanda.”

  I bit on my lower lip as I watched Jayden beg, suddenly feeling a little guilty. Yeah, I was the team manager. Water was kind of in my job description. I supposed I couldn’t leave them hanging.

  “Fine.” I dropped the clipboard onto the bench next to me and stood to give him a take-no-attitude kind of stare. “I’ll get you your water. But don’t expect sunflower seeds from me. Or protein bars. I’m the team manager—not your waitress. Not a slave. Not even an indentured servant. Team manager. You get your own seeds. Got that?”

  A low chuckle came from his lips. “Loud and clear.”

  “And if you’re nice to me, I’ll even get you Gatorade.”

  “The good kind? Not that melon crap.”

  “Sure.”

  The corners of his eyes crinkled in a smile. “Sounds good.” He began to walk away, but paused and then turned slowly back to face the fence. “Just so we’re clear, how do you feel about laundry? I mean, Ashton used to wash the uniforms and stuff each week for the team, but if that’s beneath you...”

  My entire face flushed with what I imagined looked like a bad sunburn. I couldn’t help but envision a massive pile of dirt-stained uniforms in front of me, topped with a collection of white athletic supporters.

  Nope. No, thank you. Not happening.

  “I think it might be better for the guys to handle their own uniforms,” I said, pressing the backs of my hands to my cheeks to cool them down. “At least until Ashton comes back.”

  “Right.” His eyes twinkled and his jaw twitched as if he were holding back a laugh.

  I snatched the clipboard off the bench and tromped away, in search of the water coolers. At least I’d accomplished my mission for our first practice together. The guys knew where I stood. I wasn’t here to be pushed around. I’d do my job and I’d do it well. Stats, water, anything Coach Morgan needed. But no one was going to make me lose control.

  Not even Jayden.

  I had three weeks ahead of me. That included two home games and one away. There was no doubt that by the end of this, I’d be sick of Gatorade and the smell of leather and the sound of the metal bat hitting a baseball. But this was only temporary.

  Soon enough, I would be back on that track.

  And then no one could stop me.

  Chapter Eight

  It was only the second day of my stint as team manager, but I clung to the four-foot-tall fence surrounding the baseball diamond, the sight of my best friends and their boyfriends walking towards me as welcome as a shimmering oasis in the desert.

  “We come bearing gifts,” Trina said, a smile stretching across her gorgeous face.

  In her hands she held a cherry Icee with the clear, round lid on top and a bright red plastic straw. She handed it to me over the fence and then sipped on her own Icee as I took a huge gulp and closed my eyes to savor the sugary sensation.

  “Ahhh, heaven tastes like an unnatural cherry flavor,” I said with a happy sigh.

  “I still don’t understand how you guys can drink those things.” Mason Finnick came in to hug Trina from behind, his messy, dark hair falling onto his forehead as his blue eyes darted to me. “They’re pure sugar.”

  Trina giggled and pulled his arms tighter around her waist. Mason played point guard for our basketball team. He was tall, muscular, and usually carried a stern expression on his face, but it softened whenever he gazed at my best friend. It was too cute for words.

  “It’s
the only vice Mandy will allow herself,” Audrey replied, shooting me a smile as she came up beside them. “And besides, it’s tradition.”

  Her boyfriend, Rock Valley High’s quarterback Collin Preston, held tight to her hand. He had short brown hair, broad shoulders, and a bit of a bad-boy attitude. But he also had the ability to create beautiful music. He and Audrey had found each other through their mutual love of music and they were so sweet together.

  I liked both of their boyfriends a lot, which was saying something. I wouldn’t have approved of any guys less deserving for my besties.

  “You have no idea how much I needed this.” I leaned against the fence, allowing myself to give in to the exhaustion I’d been fighting all day. “Coach Morgan asked me to clean out the announcer’s booth before the first game tomorrow. It’s a rat’s nest up there. I think the last time it was cleaned was in the seventies, because I found an old Talking Heads ticket stub in one of the corners when I was sweeping.”

  “Oh hey, if you find a retainer, it’s mine,” Collin said with a hint of a teasing grin. “I’m pretty sure I lost it in there when I announced a game.”

  Audrey pulled back from her boyfriend and made a disgusted grimace. “First of all, ew. Don’t ever put that thing back in your mouth if you expect me to kiss you again. And secondly, when was this?”

  “Last year.” His eyes danced with humor. “Me and my friend Nick gave it a shot when the last announcer quit. Let’s just say, we weren’t asked to do it again. Guess you can’t get away with hassling the opposite team in the announcer’s booth, no matter how strong your school pride.”

  “Seriously? How did we miss that?” Trina leaned her head back on Mason’s chest. “I’d pay anything to go back in time just to hear you guys announce a game.”

  I folded my lips in and held back a smile. I could only imagine how horrible Collin had been at announcing a baseball game. It was too bad I’d missed it, but every Friday last year I’d been competing at a track meet, earning first place medals for my heats. Just like I should’ve been doing tomorrow. The bitter reminder of what I was missing out on stung, so I tried to push it out of my mind.