Page 55 of No Easy Catch
She had a great point, like she always did, and I made the move to start getting dressed. “I’m glad I have you on my team.”
Her face warmed and we got dressed within a minute. “Let’s grab some food and head there.”
“You read my mind.”
My teammates’cars were scattered around the stadium parking lot and my coach’s blue Chevy stood in the same spot it always did, right in the front. “I didn’t even think about making sure you get home. It’s too cold to walk back.”
“I’m bundled up and the walk will be good for me.” She zipped her coat up to her chin and shut the car door before matching my stride. “I’m curious. What’s a normal practice for you?”
Normal? Hm.“Running defense drills, working with pitchers and hitting. We watch film of our previous at-bats to analyze our swing and work with the necessary coaches depending on what needs work.”
“Sounds intense. What kind of coaches focus on what?” She pursed her lips in thought. “I’m trying to get a picture of how much interaction all the players have with each coach. Like your head coach—he works with every player, yes?”
“He runs the ship, yeah.” We marched through the double doors and sounds of the batting cages being used echoed down the hall. The familiar smell of rubber and leather greeted me like a hug, as it did every time I walked into the stadium, but the nostalgia had more of a bitterness to it now.My experience is tainted by this scandal.I hoped I’d get over how betrayed I felt in time, but it wasn’t the moment to dwell. We needed my phone. Amber eyed each wall, hugging her notebook close to her chest, and cleared her throat.
“Well? How many coaches?”
“Right. Uh, we have a pitching coach, catching coach, hitting, infield and outfield coaches, some specialized in base running,a bullpen coach and our head, who is also the manager of the team.”
She nodded and made a note. “That’s a lot of coaches. Say, could a player not interact with one of those coaches, ever? Go four years and not have to work with a specific one?”
I thought about it and frowned. “I guess so. If you’re an outfielder, I guess you’d only work with base running, outfield and hitting.” I scratched my neck and nodded at two of the younger guys on the team who walked by us. They had the fresh-faced awe that I used to wear and it made me sad to know my days at this campus were numbered. Amber remained quiet as we walked farther into the stadium and passed one of the weight rooms. We approached the end of the hallway where my coach’s office was and I stopped her. “I’m going to see if he’s in there.”
“Should I wait for you?” She bit down on her lip and glanced down the hallway. “I am the only non-athlete here and my goal is to remain unnoticed.”
“Yes, wait here.” I hated the worry lines that appeared around her eyes and I didn’t think twice before reaching out and placing my hand on her arm. “It’ll be fine, I promise.”
She gave me a weak smile and leaned against the wall and I took a deep breath before knocking on his door. “Come in,” carried through and I entered. He glanced up and widened his eyes.He isn’t expecting me.
“Hey, Coach.” I stood at the entrance, not quite moving closer to his desk but not standing in the doorway. My nerves buzzed as I tried to read him for any clues. “I think I left my phone here yesterday.”
He sighed, sounding older than he had in the years I’d known him, and ran a hand over his face. “I’m surprised you lasted this long without it. Aren’t you all addicted to those damn things?”
I forced a laugh. “I survived.”
He stood and moved toward his line of file cabinets and opened the top shelf. “Here. I didn’t want to mess with it and wasn’t sure whose it was. Couldn’t figure out how to turn the damn thing off, either.”
He passed it to me and the screen lit up with texts and notifications from social media. Relief coursed through my blood.He didn’t read her text.There was no way, not with the hundreds of notifications and his blatant lack of technology skills I had witnessed my four year on the team. “Thank you.”
“Be careful with your phone, son, you don’t want the wrong people getting hold of it.”
I tensed. Did he tone change, or was it just me? His weathered expression remained blank as he stared at me and sweat dripped down my forehead, despite the freezing temperatures. “No kidding. I’ll be more careful.”
“Good. Now, did you think about what we talked about yesterday?”
The draft, my future, telling my teammates.“Honestly, no.”
“The sooner you get it out in the open, the better you’ll feel. You’re walking around tense with the weight of the world on your shoulders and I can’t have one of my captains distracted with our first game weeks away.”
The fact he’d chosen me captain made everything worse. The lead in my stomach weighed me down and I almost felt sick. “I’ll do it soon.”
“What’s the worst that can happen?”
“They don’t understand my choice.”
My coach scoffed and leveled his gaze with me. “That’s not what’s bothering you. What’s the real reason you don’t want to tell them?”
I glanced at the door, making sure no one was there, and lowered my voice. The truth flowed out of me because I was desperate and relieved to talk aboutthisrather than theinvestigation. “That I won’t be one of them anymore. We’ve all had the same goal all these years and learning mine’s different…it could change things.”
