Until the day you leave… Mom's words, spoken an hour ago, echoed in Zach's mind as he sat on his bed and pounded a baseball into his glove.
Until the day you leave… What day would that be? How soon? And would it be forever, or just for a few days? Would Mom and Dad want to keep him longer than the nannies had? He could probably enjoy being with Derek and Shanice for a week or two, but then he would want to come back home. This was, without question, his home now. He wanted to stay.
A knock sounded at his bedroom door a second before it opened. Dad stepped in. Usually it was Mom who tucked him into bed, but not always.
"Hey pal, all set?" Dad asked.
"Yeah," Zach answered. He jumped off the bed and returned his ball and glove to their place on his desk. Then he noticed the dirty clothes he had left in a pile on the floor after his bath. He snatched those up and deposited them in his hamper in the closet. Maybe if he didn't get in trouble for anything more, they would change their minds and let him stay. He leapt back onto the bed, situated himself under the blankets, and looked up at Dad.
Dad picked up the glove, trying it on his hand—the wrong hand for him, his right hand. That was his throwing hand. He punched the pocket a couple of times with his fist, then tossed the ball into it, testing it. "It's getting looser," he noted with approval. "You've been working on it."
Dad kept the glove on his hand as he came to sit on the edge of the bed. He took a deep breath and looked at Zach. "I…need to give you some bad news," he said hesitantly.
Zach's breath caught. Already? No! I tried really hard to be good today! I was helpful! I even took a bath without being told! Mom said she thought I was awesome!...But, came another voice in his mind, she also said, "Until the day you leave." Dad and Derek had worked it out yesterday. Why shouldn't they be ready for it to happen tomorrow?
He sat up, propping himself against the headrest. Bad news. "Is it about me?" He hoped his trepidation didn't show as strongly as he felt it. Whatever happened, he would be brave.
"Well, yes," Dad replied. "Not just you, though."
Douglas and Shauna, too, Zach realized. Yes, this would affect them just as much as him—though it might bother them less. Maybe they would be looking forward to a change. They had never lived without parents.
"It's about me, too," Dad continued.
Yes, because you made that deal with Derek. "I already know, Dad," Zach said, crestfallen. "Derek told me. And Mom too, sort of."
Dad suddenly looked hurt. "They did?"
"Yeah. I don't want to do it," Zach pleaded.
"You don't?" Now Dad really looked sad. Why would parents like Dad and Derek enjoy something so much that their kids—well, Zach at least—didn't want to happen at all?
Zach blinked back a tear. "I just want to stay here, Dad."
Dad ran a hand through his hair. "You're joking, right? You'd rather stay here and miss out on another adventure? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, pal. Very few people get a chance like this."
Zach banged a fist on the headrest. "I don't want that kind of adventure, Dad! I love you and Mom! I want—" He caught himself. He had never told anyone he loved them before, not even Rita. But it was true. "Dad, I really, really want to stay here with you and Mom." He sniffled. "Please don't make me leave."
"But you'll be with us, Zach. The whole time. I'll be standing right there with you." Dad looked confused. And worried, like he might be terribly disappointed. Then he cocked his head, taking on a gentler expression. "Does it scare you, Zach? Is that why you don't want to do it?"
Zach nodded. "If I go, I might never get to come back."
Dad rubbed his whole face with one hand. "You'll only be out there for a minute, pal. It's not like they're putting you on the team or anything. It's just an honorary thing."
Zach stared at Dad, perplexed. "The team? What team?"
"The Mariners, Zach. What did you think I was talking about?"
After another moment's confusion, relief washed over Zach like a cold, hard rain, making him shiver once all over. "I thought…but—You and Derek said you were going to trade me for Douglas and Shauna, and I would have to go live with Derek! I thought maybe it's like kids going to live with their other parent or something, and…"
Dad goggled at him. "Derek said… Oh!" Dad exclaimed, breaking into a wide grin. "You thought—! You did? Didn't you know he was joking? He jokes about everything!" Dad slapped Zach on the shoulder. "He was pulling your leg, pal!"
"But Mom, she said I'll have to leave here someday, and—"
"Well, you don't expect to live here until you're fifty, do you?" Dad laughed. His eyes studied Zach. "Is that why you've been trying to be so helpful today? And why you took a bath on your own? You thought we were going to send you to Derek's?"
"I thought…" He looked down at his hands, ashamed. "Yeah, I guess."
Dad smiled and shook his head. "We're not sending you anywhere, pal. You're staying right here."
"So…you're not tired of me?"
"Why would we be tired of you?"
"I don't know. The nannies, the ones after Rita, I think they got tired of me and—"
Dad interrupted him by handing him his glove and ball. "Hey, are you coming to this baseball game with us or not? Because if you really want to stay home by yourself…"
"A baseball game?" Zach was thoroughly befuddled. "The Mariners?"
Dad patted the glove as Zach held it in both hands. "Remember how I told you the Mariners invited me and Derek to throw out the first pitches at a game this summer?"
Zach nodded.
"That's this week."
Zach was still trying to figure out where he'd gone wrong. "But I saw you and Derek talking—"
"We were talking about the game," Dad explained.
"But you said you needed to tell me bad news…"
"The bad news is that Derek and I aren't going to throw out the first pitches after all. There's been a last-minute change." Dad didn't seem very sad about his bad news.
"Why? Did they get somebody else instead?"
"Derek and I decided to ask someone else to do it." Now Dad had that look he got when he was holding back secret information. "Someone we think will do a better job."
"Who?" Zach asked.
"Our sons…if you want to."
Zach's eyes popped wide open. "You want me… Really, Dad? You came in here to ask me…? That's not bad news! Me and Douglas, both?"
"If you want to," Dad repeated, grinning again. "But I could understand if you'd be too nervous, being in front of all those people, you know. I just thought—"
"Yes!" Zach said. "I want to, Dad! I do!" He would get to go to his first Mariners game and throw out the first pitch? This was unbelievable!
Dad's eyes were bright. He was as happy about this as Zach was. That was strange, since it meant Dad wouldn't get to throw out the pitch himself. "It was Derek's idea, actually. We'll go out there with you, but you guys throw the pitches. We figured we fix those fields up for kids to play on, so kids should get to throw out the first pitches. Besides, you and Douglas will be celebrities. Derek and I aren't sure we can handle that kind of pressure."
Zach slipped his glove back on his hand, marveling at the thought of wearing it at Safeco Field as he threw a pitch across home plate. "Wow, Dad, this is awesome," he said. Then another thought struck him. "What about Mom and Shanice and Shauna?"
"They get to come, too. They gave us enough tickets for all of us, and great seats, too."
Zach held the ball in his hand, gripping it as if to throw a fastball, just like Dad had shown him a few weeks ago. "Can you help me practice my pitching, Dad?"
"You bet—tomorrow, as soon as I get home from work."
"Okay." Zach stretched out flat on his bed again.
Dad pulled the covers up to his neck. "Want me to put the glove away for you?" he asked.
Za
ch held it up over his face, considering. "No, I think I'll keep it here with me tonight."
"Sure, all right," Dad chuckled. "See you in the morning."
"Good night, Dad," Zach responded. His dad wasn't trading him at all. No, he wanted him to throw out the first pitch at the Mariners game! Who said being here wasn't as fun as it had been at first? It was different now, more…normal somehow. He knew what to expect everyday; there were fewer surprises, though he had certainly received one tonight. But it was still fun to be with Mom and Dad. More than fun, it was…good. It felt right.
"Hey, Dad?" Zach asked as Dad neared the door.
He turned and looked back.
"Thanks, Dad."
Dad gave him a little smile. "Just throw a strike, all right? Good night."
He shut off the light and slipped out the door, and Zach curled up with his glove and slipped off to sleep.
The Boy Who Appeared from the Rain Page 74