Fast Pitch

by Graysen Morgen

  "That's good."

  "Are you going to Sister Fred's ?" Bailey asked.

  "The team usually goes there to celebrate great games so I'll be there."

  "See you tonight then."

  Chapter 7

  Graham walked into Sister Fred's and maneuvered through the crowd near the bar and dance floor with Dashtin close to her back.

  "I can't believe how packed it is this early," Dashtin said in her ear.

  "It's because there's a band tonight," Graham said.

  They quickly found the team gathered around a small group of tables pushed together and covered with appetizers. The upperclassmen had a couple pitchers of beer on their end of the table. That's where Graham and Dashtin sat.

  "It's about time you got here," Whitney said handing them glasses for the pitcher. "The band is awesome."

  "You know we can't go anywhere in a hurry. Dashtin has to primp in front of the mirror for an hour." Graham poured herself and Dashtin a beer and cheered glasses with Whitney who agreed with her statement.

  Dashtin rolled her eyes. Taking a sip of the light beer she scanned the dance floor. She raised an eyebrow when her eyes landed on an unexpected sight. She watched the two women dancing together. The song was fast, but it was fairly obvious they were together with the moves they were making. She tried to nudge Graham with her elbow, but she'd moved closer to Whitney to hear what she was saying over the loud music. Dashtin finally got her attention when the couple sat down at the other end of the table.

  "What?" Graham said.

  Dashtin nodded in the opposite direction. Graham looked past her in time to see Bailey getting very cozy with a brown-haired girl. She raised an eyebrow and looked at Dashtin.

  "I told you she wasn't straight," Dashtin said.

  "Who's that with Bailey?" Graham asked.

  Whitney shrugged. "I think her name is Alex or something."

  "That's Alex?" Graham nearly spit beer all over Whitney.

  "What's wrong?"

  "Nothing, I assumed Alex was her overprotective boyfriend not girlfriend."

  Whitney laughed and shrugged. "There are more mailboxes in the world than you think."

  "You and your secret words," Graham laughed. "So now we're calling lesbians mailboxes?"

  "Yes," Whitney said. "You can't very well shout 'hey look at that lesbian over there', but if you say 'look at that mailbox' it's more casual and less blunt."

  "Alright, mailbox it is." Graham sipped her beer. "Did you hear this, Dashtin? We're now calling lesbians, mailboxes. It's the new code word spread it around."

  "Hey," Dashtin said. "Isn't that the team we beat today?"

  All three women watched a bunch of girls putting tables together nearby.

  "Looks like it," Whitney said.

  "I wonder if any of them are mailboxes?" Graham said. Whitney cheered glasses with her as they laughed.

  "Graham, guess who's here," Dashtin teased.

  Graham didn't have to look too far. Her eyes landed on the Latina headed her way.

  "Speaking of mailboxes," Graham said under her breath.

  "Hey everyone," Helena said staring at Graham. She sat down in the empty seat across from her.

  "Coach," Whitney said.

  "Oh please, I'm just like all of you. Leave the coaching to Walker and Parker."

  "Dance with me," Dashtin grabbed Graham's hand pulling her up out of her chair before she could respond.

  They always had a good time flirting when they danced. It was innocent and a lot fun. The band played a few fast songs that kept them on the floor spinning and twisting back and forth. Graham pulled Dashtin into her arms from behind grinding against her backside. Dashtin spun in her arms their lips inches apart. She smiled and laughed pushing Graham away with her hand in the center of her chest.

  They were so busy playing around on the dance floor that they missed a few of the other team members joining them. Graham and Dashtin sat down when the band started playing country music. Bailey and Alex passed them on their way to the dance floor. Graham couldn't keep her eyes off the small brunette on the dance floor keeping perfect rhythm with the beat in her tight jeans. She turned away when Alex pulled Bailey close grinding against her petite, toned body.

  Graham poured herself a second beer and drank a long sip.

  "Aren't you passed your limit?" Whitney teased.

  Graham flipped her the bird. "You know I can drink you all under the table. I just choose not to," she said as her eyes found the dance floor once again.

  "Want to dance?" Helena said close to her ear.

  Graham hadn't noticed that the Latina student coach moved to the chair next to her that was previously occupied by Dashtin who was apparently missing from the group.

  "No thanks," Graham said to her before turning back to Whitney. "Where's Dashtin?"

  "No idea," Whitney said with a shrug.

  Another fast song came on and Graham turned back to Helena. "Come on," she said as she stood up. Helena grinned from ear to ear.

  Graham was careful not to touch Helena despite her advances. They danced together for the next couple of fast songs. As soon as a slow song started they walked back towards the table. Bailey was standing by her chair when they walked by her.

  "I thought you only dance with Dashtin," she said.

  Graham spun around. She looked down at the young woman sitting next to Bailey's empty chair then back at Bailey's questioning green eyes.

  "I guess there's a lot we don't know about each other," she said and walked away in time to see Dashtin coming from the bathroom.

  "Are you ready to go?" Dashtin said reaching for her beer.

  "Dash, what have you done now?" Graham sighed.

  Dashtin grinned wiggling her eyebrows.

  "You didn't."

  "Oh I did. Twice actually," Dashtin laughed.

  Graham shook her head. "Is she even gay?"

  "Who knows?"

  "Where've you been?" Whitney asked Dashtin. "You missed Graham dancing with Helena."

  "You danced with her?" Dashtin raised an eyebrow.

  "You just screwed a girl from the other team in the bathroom!"

  "No! You didn't?" Whitney laughed.

  Graham cocked her head to the side and waited for Dashtin to speak.

  "Oh my god, you did! Who was it?" Whitney said.

  "The first baseman I'm guessing. This should make the game all that more interesting tomorrow," Graham said.

  "She followed me in there. What was I supposed to do, say no?"

  "I can't say anything. I slept with you too, but that was way back in my sophomore year when I was stupid and didn't know better," Whitney said.

  "I think I've had about enough excitement for one night. Are you riding with me?" Graham said. She loved her best friend, but there was no way she'd ever sleep with her. That's what made them so close.

  "Yes," Dashtin said.

  Chapter 8

  The third game of the weekend series started off great for the Pioneers because the opposing teams' first baseman was playing with a bundle of nerves, dropping balls and making horrible throws. The other team was helping them stay ahead in the game with seven runs scored in four innings, but Bailey's off pitching in the fifth inning allowed them to start making a comeback bringing the score to four to seven.

  "What did you do to that girl?" Whitney teased.

  "The same thing I did to you," Dashtin countered with a grin.

  Whitney rolled her eyes shaking her head.

  Graham walked back into the dugout after hitting a fly ball for an out. "What did I miss?" she said as she began putting her catching gear back on.

  "Nothing interesting," Whitney said as they watched Vanessa strike out and Claudia hit a foul ball for the third out.

  The first batter of the sixth inning was a slap-hitter. Bailey threw a screwball that turned in and the batter stepped too far inside and the ball hit her in the left forearm. The next batter was the first base player. She struck out in
three straight pitches. On the last pitch Graham threw the ball out to Dashtin to get her attention. She shrugged and threw it to Bailey.

  The next two batters managed to hit ground balls advancing the first batter and filling the bases. Graham gave Bailey the signal for a screwball and she shook her head no. She gave her the signal again and Bailey visibly shook her head no. Graham gave in and called for a rise ball which Bailey threw out of the strike zone causing ball-one. When she threw a second pitch into the dirt Graham pulled up her mask and ran out to the mound.

  "What's going on?" she asked.

  "I hit that girl."

  "Bailey, batters are going to get hit. It happens. Besides she was a crazy slap hitter that stepped into the damn ball. Take a deep breath and throw the ball the way you and I both know you can throw it. You've got this." Graham said with a grin before running back to the plate.

  Bailey threw a curve and then another rise ball for two strikes. With a two and two count she threw a screwball on the outside of the strike zone and the batter chased it for the third strike and third out of the inning. Graham breathed a sigh of relief as she raced into the dugout.

  "Good job," Graham wrapped her arm around Bailey's shoulders. Bailey moved into her and Graham stiffened. She casually moved away and sat down on the bench next to Dashtin.

  "That was a close one."

  "She lets the freshman nerves get to her."

  "You sure do defend her a lot," Dashtin said.

  "Why do you have such a problem with her?"

  "She always looks at me like she hates me. I think she's got it bad for you."

  "Oh please. Are we really going to go down that road again? She has a girlfriend and I'm not interested."

  "Oh sure. I've seen the way you look at her and that whole girlfriend thing is a joke. She only brought that girl around to see what your reaction would be."

  "I won't deny looking at her. She's beautiful, but she's a freshman and I'm not going there. That's your thing, not mine."

  "Fine. You might want to let her know that though."

  Graham turned her head in time to see Bailey looking her way. She nodded and turned back to Dashtin who had an 'I told you so' look on her face. She stood up and walked to the fence where the rest of the team was standing watching the game.

  The seventh inning came up and Bailey threw every pitch perfectly ending the inning and the game on three batters. The team hugged her, patted her back, and slapped her butt as they celebrated another win and shutout. They quickly slapped hands with the other team and collected their gear.

  "Way to go," Graham squeezed Bailey's shoulder as she walked past her towards the locker room.

  "Great come back, ladies. Bailey, you and Graham need to work on ball control this week. The rest of you be ready to work this week, we have practice Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We're away at Washington next weekend as you all know. The bus leaves at nine a.m. Friday so make sure you're not late," Coach Walker said looking directly at Dashtin. "Now, go celebrate. I'll see you Tuesday."

  When the coaching staff left the room Whitney called out, "Hey Dash, there's someone waiting outside for you."

  The blood drained from Dashtin's face. Graham laughed and ducked as Dashtin tossed her glove at her head. She sighed and walked towards the door.

  Whitney hid behind Graham as Dashtin opened the door and looked around. No one was there.

  "You ass," she yelled.

  "We all owe you this win. Everyone say thanks to Dashtin for taking one for the team and banging the other team's first baseman," Whitney squealed laughing as Dashtin grabbed her and put her in a headlock rubbing her knuckles on the top of her head. Most of the team knew what had happened anyway so they were all laughing. Graham noticed Bailey off to the side sitting in front of her locker with her back to the room.

  "No wonder she couldn't handle the ball. I thought maybe she was sick or hurt or something," one of their teammates said.

  "Yeah or something," Graham said with a grin.

  "We won the game didn't we?" Dashtin shook her head laughing.

  "Hey Dash, maybe you can help us out with Washington too," Whitney teased.

  "I'm going on strike!" Dashtin tossed her glove in her locker and slammed the door. She was still smiling and shaking her head.

  "Yeah right," Graham said. "I'll believe that when I see it."

  "Me too," Whitney and Vanessa said together.

  'I'm out of here, ladies. See you all this week," Graham said. "Dash, I'm stopping for take-out on my way home so you're on your own for dinner."

  "That's fine. I'll grab something."

  ~

  Graham was about to unlock her Jeep but turned around when she heard her name.

  "I wanted to thank you for what you said out there today," Bailey said. "I haven't hit anyone since my sophomore year of high school. I hit a girl in the head and gave her a concussion. I stopped pitching for a few months after that."

  "Wow. Today was nothing like that, Bailey. It was mostly the batter's own fault for stepping into the box."

  "I know that now, but..."

  "Look at me, you didn't hurt anyone today and you picked yourself right back up. You're a great pitcher. Mistakes are going to happen."

  Bailey sighed. "I know. Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks," she said turning to walk away.

  "Hey, if you don't have any plans with Alex I'm going to grab something to eat. Nothing fancy, probably just drive-thru."

  "Do you see Alex here?" Bailey said.

  "I'd never seen her before the other night so I have no idea."

  "She's working tonight," Bailey said walking around to the passenger side.

  "What do you want to eat?"

  "Whatever is fine with me."

  Graham rode through the first drive-thru she saw. They both ordered burgers and fries and she pulled out of the parking lot going in the opposite direction of the school. Graham drove across town and pulled into a small parking lot.

  "Have you ever been here?" she asked cutting the engine.

  "No."

  Graham got out and waited for Bailey to join her. "This is Harmon Park. It's sort of my thinking spot. I come out here sometimes and sit on the bench watching the river flow by," she said walking towards the bench down by the water. There were a few street lights in the parking lot, but the water was lit by the moonlight.

  "I can see why you come here," Bailey said taking a seat on the bench.

  "In the summer there are ducks everywhere looking for food." Graham sat next to her and opened the bag of food. "We're safe this time of year. It's too cold for the ducks."

  "It is pretty cold," Bailey said.

  "I have a jacket in the Jeep."

  "I'm okay, thanks." Bailey smiled.

  "Are you excited about our first away game?"

  "More nervous than anything probably, but yeah it's exciting."

  "You'll get over what happened today and move on to a new team and a new group of batters. Washington is our first conference game and they're usually a pretty good team. We just need to stay focused and we'll have a good weekend," Graham said.

  "I hope so. You make it sound so easy." Bailey finished eating and put her trash in the bin next to the bench. She sat much closer to Graham when she sat back down. Graham noticed she was shaking slightly.

  "You're cold," she said.

  "I'll be fine," Bailey said. "It's beautiful here. I'm going to have to remember to come back during the day and especially in the summer."

  "It's a great place to sit and think or write a paper." Graham smiled.

  "I hope you don't mind me borrowing your thinking spot. I use to go to the old pond at the edge of my family's farm and watch the ducks swim for hours. It was sort of a place to go and disappear from the world for a little while," Bailey said.

  "Do you miss home?"

  "I did at first. It's not easy being so far away, but after I went home for the holidays I was ready to leave again."

  "You
still have a while before you graduate. Do you think you will go back to Texas afterwards?"

  "I honestly don't know. Being a business major gives me a lot of opportunities so I guess I will see where that takes me. My family has had a dairy farm for three generations and my dad added quarter horse and pony breeding when he took it over. As a kid I often dreamed of owning the farm one day. I'm the first one in my family to go to college, so I will probably end up as a farmer with a business degree down the road," Bailey said smiling.

  "You could turn it into a dude ranch," Graham teased.

  "My great-grandfather would roll over in his grave!" Bailey laughed.

  Graham looked at Bailey's eyes sparkling in the moonlight. The sound of her laughter made Graham's chest ache. She didn't think she'd ever wanted anything more in her life, but she knew better than to get involved with the enigmatic freshman.

  "What's wrong? You look deep in thought."

  "I'm fine. We should probably go," Graham said.

  Bailey stood and grabbed Graham's hand when she started to walk away.

  "Thanks for bringing me here, Graham."

  Graham squeezed the small, cold hand holding hers. "You're welcome," she said.

  Bailey held her hand as they walked back to the parking lot. Graham unlocked her door and held it open for her. Bailey brushed against her as she moved to climb in the Jeep. They rode in silence as Graham drove across town. When they arrived at the dorm Bailey grabbed Graham's hand running her thumb over the top of it casually.

  "Have a good night," Graham said squeezing the hand holding hers.

  Chapter 9

  The week went by quickly due to grueling practices. By Friday Graham was ready for the weekend to be over. She and Dashtin arrived on time for the bus. They went to work helping the rest of the team load the bus with the equipment and suitcases.

  "It's time to load up ladies. We need to get on the road. Pick a seat buddy and get on the bus," Coach Walker said.

  Dashtin grabbed Graham's hand and pulled her onto the bus. They sat behind Whitney and Vanessa at the back of the bus. Bailey and Claudia wound up sitting on the aisle across from them.