Home Run King

by Stella

  He held his hands up, and I knew without a doubt that he believed me. “Okay. Like I said, I only needed to make sure. So now that we have that out of the way, how do you see this moving forward? The Titans aren’t done yet, and no matter what you say, with or without Nelson, we have a shot at the title. And considering how much money comes with each advancement in the playoffs, we can’t just let you ride off into the sunset and cash your checks without being part of the team.”

  “I wish I had answers for you, Coach. But I don’t. Trust me, I’ve looked at this from all angles. Until I can figure out a way to leave Katie and Daniel at home while I play, I don’t see my performances getting better. I’m sure that’s not what you want to hear, and believe me, I wish I had more to offer.”

  Coach picked up the envelope from the corner of his desk and opened it, though he held it so I couldn’t see what was inside. “Of the two other teams in the divisional, the only one with a better record than ours is San Diego. If they win their game tonight, they’ll have home-field advantage. But if New Mexico wins, our next two games will be here.”

  I had no idea why he felt the need to tell me this, yet I let him talk anyway. I was fully aware of what teams were playing and what their season records were. Not only that, but I knew a thing or two about how home-field advantage worked. Again, I kept my mouth shut and let him continue.

  “Lucky for us, the National League won the mid-summer classics, which means if we make it that far—and I don’t believe we won’t—the World Series will begin on the Titans’ diamond. I can pull you from the away games to keep you from traveling and let you stay at home with the family. However, I would need you present during all home games, which means your ass would be planted in the dugout. And as soon as you feel ready to join us, tell me and you can finish out whatever games we have left. There’s a stipulation to that: you must play all games from that moment forward. If you decide on game one of the World Series that you can come in with a clear head and give it your all, that would mean you travel with the team and you play with the team until the very end.”

  I took a moment to absorb this proposal. There had to be a catch, yet I couldn’t figure it out. “Why are you giving me this option?”

  “Because you’re a good man, Gage. Beneath the goofy front and wild reputation, you have a heart of gold. I believe in you, and I think you just need the freedom of deciding when you step back on that field in order to do what’s right. Because I have no doubt…before the World Series, you’ll see the bigger picture and find a way to make sure your entire family is taken care of—your brothers included.”

  My heart was heavy, and the weight of the world sat upon my shoulders. Yet the second I came home and found Katie asleep on the couch with Daniel on her chest, everything else vanished. I seriously had no clue how I’d gotten this lucky—both with the team and with these two.

  Katie stirred when I leaned over and pressed my lips to her head, and then she watched as I did the same to my son. “I didn’t even hear you come in. What time is it?” She didn’t wait for my answer before checking the clock on the cable box. “Why are you home so late?”

  “Coach wanted to talk to me.”

  I took the warm bundle of baby from her and helped her sit up. Concern swirled in her cerulean eyes, and there was no doubt a question burned her tongue. Then she placed her hand on my bicep, and I swear it felt as if she were holding onto me, bracing herself for horrible news.

  “He’s letting me stay home for away games. I don’t have to travel.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I was pulled.” Ignoring her gasp, I carried on. “I get to stay here with you and Danny Boy while the team travels, and during home games, I’ll have to be in attendance, but I’ll be in the dugout instead of playing.”

  “All because you had three bad days? You have a newborn at home, who happens to require food every two hours—including throughout the night. Can’t they give you a break? This is bullshit.”

  I loved it when she got feisty, though I could tell by her wince that it had caused her some discomfort. “They did give me a break. Did you miss the part where I told you that I don’t have to leave you or the bambino to travel?”

  “No. I also didn’t miss the part about you sitting out home games.”

  “It’ll be fine, Frankenstein.” I thought it was funny. Apparently, she didn’t. Tears filled her eyes, and I immediately regretted the nickname. “It was a joke—I’ll admit, a bad one, but a joke nonetheless. I swear. Don’t cry, Kathryn.”

  “I’m not crying because of the Frankenstein comment, and don’t call me Kathryn. It’s too formal…and stuffy. I don’t like it.”

  I wasn’t sure what was worse, post-baby hormones, or the ones before she gave birth that had turned her into a future episode of Snapped. Either way, I was a little worried to find out.

  “Then why are you crying?”

  “Because I feel like we ruined your career. Your team is in the playoffs, headed to the World Series, and you were pulled, all because you have to take care of Daniel and me. And by the way, don’t call him Danny Boy. I hate that, too.”

  It seemed I would have to start a notebook with all the names I couldn’t use.

  “No, baby.” Yeah, that had to be safe. There was no way she’d complain about that. “Everything’s okay. I promise. I’m not in trouble or anything, and he said I could rejoin the team as soon as I felt ready to.”

  “Now you’re treating me like a child who needs coddling.”

  Note to self, “baby” is also not acceptable.

  “I don’t even know what coddling means, so I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong or why you’re still crying. I think it might be a good idea if I hang out with Daniel”—I made sure to use his given name—“while you try to catch up on sleep out here.”

  “He’s going to be hungry again soon.”

  “Don’t worry, I got that covered. I’ll use the supply from the fridge.”

  “No!” She nearly jumped off the couch, but before she could do more than flinch, she held her lower stomach and curled into herself, crying even more. At least this time she had a legitimate reason for it. “If you use that then we might run out if my boobs quit working.”

  “Katie…we’ll be okay. You’ll get more and replace what I use. In the meantime, you’ll also get sleep. I’m sure that’ll help stimulate the things in there that produce milk.” I swirled my finger in a circle over her chest. “Your body can’t run on fumes.”

  “Says the man who’s done nothing but run around on an hour of sleep each night.”

  I helped Katie get settled onto the couch and handed her the remote. After I draped a blanket over her, I picked Daniel up again, surprised he hadn’t woken up with all the commotion and moving around, and headed upstairs to his room.

  While Katie slept downstairs, I called Coby to fill him in on the decision Coach and I had agreed to. Needless to say, he wasn’t all that surprised I had been pulled, though he was relieved to hear about the offer to stay home and the option to return.

  Coach more than likely assumed I only needed rest, and once the first set of away games were over, and I’d have roughly four days with the family, I would be ready to return. Coby thought the same thing, though I disagreed. I’d questioned my standing with the team for a while now, and that wouldn’t disappear after a couple extra hours of sleep each night.

  The Kylers came over to watch the fifth and final game of round one between the western division and the wild card winner. Ultimately, this would determine not only where the Titans would play their next two games, but against who. Which would also affect our chances of advancing to the World Series. Not only did San Diego have a better season than we did, but without Nelson or me, the cards were stacked against us.

  By the end of the game, Daniel was quiet in his swing, Katie was asleep on my shoulder, Ellie was passed out with her feet in Coby’s lap, the twins were coloring in the corner—as it turned out, on
the wall—and Corinne sat on the floor with her tub of Nutella. Meanwhile, Coby and I stared blankly at the television screen.

  “Well, Jim, it looks like we’ll be tuning in to see the Tuscaloosa Titans battle it out with the San Diego Tsunamis. Do you think Gage Nix will be able to pull it together in the next couple of days?”

  “You know, my wife and I laugh all the time about how we ended up with three kids in four years. Yes, we love each other, and we love our children. But the first eight to ten weeks after you bring a baby home, you’re basically drunk with exhaustion. There’s a reason neither of us can recall too much about the first few months of our kids’ lives. We were basically walking zombies. And I wish I could say it ended there. But honestly, sleep deprivation lasts until the baby sleeps through the night. I’d say Nix’s chances of finding his groove are slim.”

  “I’d say someone should suggest to him that he hire a caretaker until the Titans are done playing, but we all know what happened with the last woman he hired to care for someone. If I were his girlfriend, I wouldn’t let him do that, either. She’s got enough on her plate; she doesn’t need to worry about him impregnating someone else.”

  I switched off the TV, unable to listen to any more. I was just happy Katie didn’t hear it. They’d beaten her down enough over the last six months, none of which she deserved. It made me question how much better it would get if I bought out the rest of my contract.

  “You know it’s only gonna get worse, man. In two days, they’ll know you aren’t in San Diego with the team, and rumors will start to fly. Are you ready for that?”

  “No, but at this point, I don’t care. No matter what I do, they’ll find a way to talk shit—or try to make Katie look bad. At least Coach has my back. He said he wouldn’t tell anyone other than the guys on the team why I wasn’t with them.”

  “You know they’ll corner him and press him for a statement.”

  “Yeah, and I trust he’ll give them the most politically correct answer. Either way, I don’t care. I don’t have to stress about leaving these two for a few days, or live in fear that something will happen while I’m away.”

  “Dude, you can’t keep going like this. Trust me, I understand the need to protect your family, but if all you do is worry about what could happen if you aren’t there, you’ll never live your life. You’re a dad, sure. And one day, hopefully, a husband. But you still have to find some room on that resume to be you.”

  “Hey, Coby. Dr. Phil called—he said he wants his job back.”

  “Hey, Gage. The nineties called and said they’re tired of you, asked me to pull you back into the twenty-first century.”

  “Shows what you know. It’s the twentieth century.”

  His shoulders jumped with silent laughter as he tried to keep from waking the girls. “No it’s not, dumbass. But good try.”

  “The first two numbers of the year are two and zero. Twenty. Twentieth. I’m starting to think I keep you around to make me feel smart.”

  “Oh, yeah? I thought it was because of Ellie.”

  “Puh-lease. I lost interest in her years ago. Too bad she hasn’t lost any in me. Thank God Katie trusts me, otherwise she might ask that we not see each other anymore for fear your wife will try to make a move on me.”

  “Shut. Up. Gage.” Ironically, that came from both sides of me and sounded very much like a mixed tape of both Katie and Ellie’s voices.

  Coby snickered while rubbing Ellie’s bare feet. “And here I thought having a kid would make you grow up.”

  “I couldn’t do that to Rinny. If I grew up, she’d have no one to hang out with.”

  “You do know she has two brothers, right?”

  “Your point?”

  “Nothing. I apparently don’t have one.”

  “Doesn’t surprise me.”

  The media only got worse as each game passed. And after the Titans earned their spot in the World Series, the blame-game became endless. Either way, I was the bad guy. If we won, that would mean I had sat back and reaped the benefits earned by others. If we lost, I would have let my team down. We hadn’t even played the first game, and the commentators were already talking about how I would be at fault, win or lose. This time, though, Katie was the one who constantly turned off the TV to keep me from obsessing. Little did she know, I had Google alerts set up on my phone, so with or without the television, I knew what was going on.

  Complications following traumatic childbirth leave Nix at home, one article said. It went on to give very detailed information about Katie’s C-section, and the blood transfusion she’d needed to keep her from dying. Apparently, it all came from a “close family friend.” If so, this person clearly sucked at knowing the facts, because none of that happened.

  “Hey, you do know that Katie didn’t almost die when she had Daniel, right?” I asked Coby, who sat across from me at his desk. We were in the back of the gym of the school where he taught PE. On the Titans’ first away game in San Diego, I had decided to take Daniel out for a joy ride and ended up here. I’d been here every day since—aside from weekends and the days I had to be on the field for home games. It gave us bonding time—Coby and me—and allowed Daniel to get out of the house for a couple of hours. Plus, Katie was able to get some time to herself to rest.

  He stared at me with confusion for a moment, then shook his head. “Yeah, why?”

  “I keep seeing these stories online that are coming from a source close to the family. There was one yesterday that said something about Daniel having a serious medical condition because he was born early and I refused to keep him in the hospital longer. Again, it was quoted from someone in my inner circle.” I pointed to him and added, “My inner circle consists of you.”

  “And you never thought it could be someone else looking for a dollar in exchange for Gage Nix gossip?”

  “Like who? It says family friend. Neither of us has family aside from you fuckers.”

  He rolled his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. “You have a family. Both of you do. They just aren’t the nicest people in the world. Neither are the ones who make shit up for a quick buck.”

  “Are you telling me…you know who my dad is?” It was far easier to crack a joke than to delve into the idea of either Missy or my mother being the one—or ones—who’d said such disgusting things about Katie, Daniel, and me.

  “Yes.” He kept a straight face while pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. He came here a while ago looking for you, said he recognized you from TV and wanted to find you.”

  “What’d you tell him?” By now, I was perched on the end of the seat, completely forgetting this wasn’t real. Coby was a master of suspense. A real James Patterson if I’d ever seen one. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I didn’t think you’d wanna know who he was.”

  “Why not? Come on, Sirloin. Tell me already!”

  “Okay fine. But if you’re disappointed, don’t blame it on me.”

  “My pappy could never disappoint.” I totally got him to smirk with that one.

  “Danny DeVito.”

  “Wait…the guy from My Cousin Vinny?”

  “No, moron. That was Joe Pesci.”

  “Not him. The one who played the kid’s lawyer.”

  “Yeah…Vinny. Played by Joe Pesci.”

  “You’re all kinds of confused, my friend. You’re thinking of Bernie.”

  He hesitated for a moment, then said, “I don’t remember anyone named Bernie in that movie. But I’m a hundred percent positive Danny DeVito wasn’t in it.”

  “I’m even more positive he was.”

  “Even more positive than a hundred percent?”

  “Yup.” I leaned back in the chair and crossed my arms over my chest. “I know exactly who you’re talking about. He played Bernie—the guy who was buried on the beach at the end of the movie.”

  “That’s Weekend At Bernie’s, which neither Danny DeVito nor Joe Pesci was in.”
<
br />   “Oh, really, smart guy? Then who was?”

  “Hell if I remember.”

  “You do, you’re just trying to confuse me.”

  Coby ran his hands over his face, somehow seeming more tired after ten minutes with me than he did after chasing down a bunch of high school students all day. “Danny DeVito was in Twins.”

  “That’s right. He was Arnold’s twin.” I slapped my hand on the desk, completely forgetting about the sleeping baby in the carrier next to me. Luckily, Daniel didn’t wake up. “Holy shit, Corn-on-the-Cobe. You know what this means? My uncle is the guvenuh…goovunah…g-gah—”

  “It doesn’t matter how many times you try, you’ll never say it the way he does.” He always had to rain on my parade. “Not to mention, it was a movie. They aren’t really twins. They’re not even related. And Arnold isn’t the governor anymore.”

  “That’s such a shame. He did so well.”

  “Did he? Tell me, Gage…what state was he the governor for?”

  “America. Duh.”

  “Just when I think you can’t possibly surprise me any more…you do.”

  “If you weren’t stuck in this place all the time, you could learn a lot from me, Coby-Wan Kenobi. Or is it Obi-Wan KenCoby?”

  “Neither. It’s Coby.”

  “Oh, no! Not you, too!”

  “Not me what?”

  “Katie gave me shit the other day for calling him Danny. Then I called her Kathryn, and she bitched about that, too. Now you’re telling me I can’t fuck with your name, either? How about we start wearing name tags around each other, so I know what to call everyone before I just start resorting to Ass-One, Ass-Two, and Ass-Three.”