I pushed Dax’s long arm away and opened the passenger door. “I’m fine. Just hoping we can do more batting practice than running today.”
Ben snickered. “That won’t happen. Not on the first day at least. That’s how Coach weeds them out from the beginning, remember?” There were always plenty of kids at tryouts, ones who hadn’t practiced since their machine-pitch youth and had decided they were suddenly going to join the team without practicing beforehand. Coach Maddox liked to make things difficult the first day to see who would show up for day two.
We walked back to the school, and I groaned. Chemistry was my last class of the day and my least favorite of all time. Why couldn’t science be just about the experiments instead of balancing equations?
“I’m this way,” I said, pointing down the other hall. The guys waved and continued chatting as they moved away. I took a few steps and turned, bumping into someone. Papers and notebooks flew in several directions, looking like a giant snowstorm around us.
“Watch where you’re going, jerk.” The voice was familiar, and seeing the auburn hair pulled back in what looked like a bird’s nest of a ponytail told me it was the girl I’d thought about minutes before.
Standing there, I debated whether or not to help her pick up the mess around us. “Nice to see you too, Nickel.”
Penny’s head flicked up to glare at me, her lips pinched together in a way that gave me satisfaction from using the old nickname she’d always hated.
“You can at least help me pick some of this up, you know. I’m going to be late this period.” She was busy scooping papers together, and I finally bent down and picked up the notebook. The front was covered in scribbles.
“‘I heart question mark,’” I read aloud. Giving her a half-smile, I said, “Oh, does Nickel have a secret crush? And instead of writing initials, she’s being exceptionally vague.”
She snatched the notebook from my hands and gathered everything, standing quickly. With a lick of her lips that drew my eyes, she brushed a loose piece of hair out of her face. “That’s none of your business, and it hasn’t been for a long time. I’m surprised you even remember who I am.”
The comment stung a bit, but I had to keep my expression neutral. I wasn’t about to show weakness, not even when we’d shared so much in the past. And not that we’d ever discussed our crushes back when we were friends, but the thought intrigued me. Who would this tom-boy be into?
She walked down the hall, her legs stretching out longer and longer until she was practically speed walking.
“What? Don’t want to talk to your old friend Jake?”
“Not particularly, no.” Her eyebrows scrunched together, and her face puckered like she’d swallowed something bitter. I tried to think of the last time I’d seen her smile. Probably a few days ago when she was walking through the hall with her friends. But the last time she’d directed one at me? Years, probably. But it wasn’t like that should bother me.
We walked a few more paces in silence as I tried to think of something that would annoy her more. “I heard you guys got a new coach. How do you think he’ll be?”
“It’s a woman. And what’s with all the interest in softball all of a sudden?” She stopped and turned to look at me. Her gaze sent an odd sensation through my body, making me feel like I didn’t have control of the situation. I didn’t like it when I didn’t have control.
I shrugged, trying to push the feeling away. Raising my hands in surrender, I said, “I just thought I’d ask. We’re still neighbors, and I thought I’d try to chat for a minute. But it seems we’re going to be late, and I know how you are about being on time.” I turned and continued down the hall, hearing her footsteps scuttle behind me.
I walked into my classroom and heard her say, “Good luck on your tryouts today,” before heading into the classroom next door. One of the advanced-placement classes. I had no idea she was even taking one of those. For a moment, I felt guilty that someone with whom I’d been so close growing up was now practically a stranger.
The phrase on the front of her notebook had me even more curious. I’d have to find out who it was just so I could know who Penny Davis had a crush on. It would give me something to think about as my chemistry teacher droned on.
Chapter 3
Penny
My cheeks still felt hot long after bumping into Jake Davis. What a jerk. I’d gone through withdrawals of talking to him after he stopped hanging out with me three and a half years before, but it had been a long time since I’d even thought about him besides the occasional sighting in the halls or him getting into his Jeep next door. We’d been able to tell each other just about anything, until he shut me out.
I traced my fingers over the letters on my notebook, the ones Jake had read out loud. Of all the people to see that, why did it have to be him? I’d had this notebook for the last year and a half. Crazy, I know, but I wrote so small that a semester’s worth of classes only filled up about half the pages in each section.
My mind went back to when I’d written them at the very beginning of sophomore year, when I’d had a crush on two guys. I didn’t want people to put together initials, so I’d written the question mark. Since Johnny Goodman had moved away halfway through last year, I hadn’t really thought about what I’d written, just doing everything I could to pass my honors classes. When Jake read it earlier, I wanted to crawl into a hole.
I’d always liked Jake, always had a small crush on him, even when we were best friends. And I wished I could be rid of him now, that seeing him every once in a while didn’t cause something in me to jump or my pulse to race. But it was still there, and no matter how hard I tried to tell myself I didn’t like him, there was still a small bit of doubt holding its ground like the captain on a battlefield.
But there was absolutely no chance there. Jake was Rosemont royalty as he swaggered through the hallways, and I—well, I was a nerdy athlete, which meant my social status at school was near the bottom.
Not to mention that since the accident, it seemed as though the Jake I’d grown up with had been completely kidnapped, leaving a newer, stranger version in his place. I sometimes wondered what life would have been like had we never drifted apart. But would that mean I’d be in as much trouble as Jake or, worse, dead like Troy Johnson?
It couldn’t have been all Jake’s fault. He wasn’t driving, but he didn’t do anything to keep Troy from getting behind the wheel. At least, from what I heard.
History class passed much faster than normal, and soon enough I was in the girls’ locker room, changing into my shorts and long socks for tryouts. It was the end of January in Texas, so I grabbed my sweatshirt in case I needed it. I redid my ponytail, hoping it would stay in for the rest of the day. I wouldn’t have time to keep retying my waist-length hair, and I didn’t want to do anything to be on the new coach’s bad side.
“What do you think we’ll have to do for tryouts?” a bunch of the other excited girls asked.
I gave them a nod and a small smile. With butterflies in my stomach, I was ready, even for the lengthy amounts of running most coaches liked to introduce on the first day. I’d been waiting all day—no, all month—for this. Because once Christmas was over, this had been the next best-anticipated event, and I just needed to make it through.
I grabbed my bat bag and moved out the back doors to the softball field. It took a few minutes to walk there, but at least it was on our school campus, which wasn’t true of every high school. Our outfield fence was only about twenty yards from the guys’ fence, but we were on the far side, having to walk down the long gravel road to get there.
I laced up my cleats and did a few stretches, hoping to get rid of some of the excitement and anxiety bubbling inside me.
“Here goes another season,” a familiar voice said behind me.
I turned and grinned at Jessie, my catcher. We’d been together since we started competition softball at the age of eleven, and I trusted her with my life.
“Yep. It feel
s like we just finished up last season, and here we are again.”
Jessie pulled her glove out of her bag and stood, tossing the ball into it over and over again. “Yeah, but this year we’re upperclassmen. No more lugging gear forever.”
I couldn’t agree more. That was the hardest thing about being one of the freshmen or sophomores on the team. We were two of three sophomores the year before, with only two other freshmen, meaning we still had a lot of the responsibility of water bottles, the bag of bats, and the endless buckets of balls our previous coach required each practice.
I grabbed my glove from my bag and jogged backward a few paces. Jessie tossed the ball and I caught it, the snapping sound from my glove calming some of my anxiety. I knew how to do this, and no matter what the new coach would be like, I just had to keep focused and give it my all.
“What’s he doing over there?” Jessie asked as she threw the ball again.
I waited to catch it before turning in the direction she was looking. I didn’t look long as I saw Jake White with his forearms resting on top of the fence, looking in our direction. I turned my back to him and threw the ball back with more force than I’d intended.
“Whoa, Pen. What was that?” Jessie had barely caught the ball before it hit her face, and I knew I was going to get it.
Shaking my head, I said, “Sorry. I ran into him before last period today, and I’d be lying if I said I don’t want to strangle him sometimes.”
“Weren’t you two really good friends at one point? I remember him coming to a bunch of our games when we were twelve and thirteen.”
Sour bile crept into my throat, and I swallowed it down. “Yeah, but that was a lifetime ago. I’m not cool enough for his group anymore.”
I took several steps backward to lengthen the throws before moving back in to warm up throwing underhand. It was our routine to get to the field early and work on pitches as the rest of the team trickled in. It allowed me the maximum time to work on each pitch, making sure I was improving since I had to work after practice.
“I didn’t expect to see anyone out here so early,” said the coach as she walked over with a few bags slung over her shoulder. “Penny and Jessie, right?”
Jessie nodded, and I smiled at her, spinning the ball in my right hand a few times. A surge of anxiety hit my stomach, and I gripped the ball before winding up and letting go. The ball missed the strike zone by several inches, but I’d gotten some speed on it, causing a loud snap to come from Jessie’s glove and helping the tension release a bit.
“Looks good,” Coach Ambrose said. She set her stuff down and walked over to me. “What pitches do you throw?”
I licked my lips as I decided on my response. “The riseball is my favorite. I’ve got a good curve, and my change-up throws a lot of people off. I’ve been working on a screwball and a drop, but those aren’t as effective.”
She nodded, sticking her hands in her windbreaker pants pockets. “Okay, show me what you’ve got, Davis.”
I threw a few of the different pitches and focused on the mound each time I got the ball back from Jessie.
Coach Ambrose finally nodded. “It looks really good. And after all the information I researched on you, we just might have a state title this year for Rosemont.” She grinned at me. “Of course, you still have to make it through today’s tryouts.”
She walked away, and Jessie shrugged her shoulders, as confused as I was. She’d researched my stats? Why did that surprise me? It was a responsible coaching decision and probably helped her get to know most of the players who’d been on last year’s team.
I looked up as I turned around, seeing Jake still watching us. What was up with him? Years of silence and now he was interested in what was going on in my life? I just hoped the interest hadn’t come because of what was written on my notebook.
I was feeling confident as the girls made it out to the field and changed into cleats, ready for the tryout. This was the highest number we’d had in the last few years, and after seeing some of them throw, I wondered if they thought a new coach wouldn’t care if they’d ever played in their life.
After a quick introduction, Coach Ambrose said, “Line up behind home plate. We’ll get started with conditioning now.”
From the smile on her face, this was not going to be good.
Chapter 4
Jake
For some reason, I couldn’t keep my mind off Penny Davis. I was lucky that the hundreds and thousands of reps I’d done throughout the year took over, because all I could think about was my next-door neighbor. Seeing her precision in pitches, I knew all those long nights of throwing against the back shed had paid off. She was determined; I’d give her that. And when she’d seen me watching her, I’d had to hold back a smile at seeing her look of shock turn to one of irritation.
For some reason, I felt a slight attraction to her. It was strange to be looking at her and suddenly curious about who she could have a crush on. But then again, I’d always been comfortable around her back when we hung out. Was it the possibility that she could be taken by some other guy now that was getting to me?
As much as I’d hoped to avoid major running at the tryouts, my teammates were right in assuming it would be brutal. We sprinted and jogged for nearly forty-five minutes to start off the day, and by the end of that, at least five of the guys had packed up and left. It was always assumed that baseball was an easy sport since the players stood around most of the time. But with a team as competitive as we’d been the past few years, conditioning helped get us through the later innings of the game.
I nearly lost my cheeseburger when Coach Maddox finally told us to grab our gloves and head out to the field. The time flew from there as I moved from station to station. When we finished up, I looked over and was surprised to see the softball girls just barely leaving their field.
Penny was walking next to some of the girls I didn’t know, and I grabbed my bag, jogging to catch up with her.
“So, how’d it go?” I asked, giving her one of my biggest grins.
Her eyebrows rose, and she shifted her bat bag onto her shoulder. “What do you want, White? I think this is the most you’ve talked to me in years.”
I shrugged. “Maybe I want to talk to you. It looks like you guys had a tough tryout.” I turned my attention forward, not in the mood to gloat over the doe-eyed expressions of the girls walking on Penny’s other side. This was definitely a first.
“Lots of running and then the usual drills.” Her words came out clipped, as if she was just waiting for me to leave. I could take a hint, even though I wanted to badger her about who she was crushing on one more time. Why was that so interesting for me all of a sudden?
After a quick nod, I said, “Well, I hope you make it. I’ve gotta run, so I’ll see you around the yard.” I picked up my pace to catch up with Dax, who’d almost made it to the locker room.
A quick shower later, I came out to a nearly empty parking lot and threw my bag in the trunk of my new Jeep. Well, the restored version. From after the accident.
I shut the window and walked to the driver’s side, hearing a car trying to start but not turning over. I glanced to the left and found Penny with the most determined expression I’d ever seen, turning the ignition on her rust bucket.
I waited at least a minute before walking over to her. When she saw me outside, she rolled her eyes and slammed the steering wheel. A few seconds later, she rolled her window down.
“Here to gloat, White?” The sarcasm in her voice caused me to laugh, much louder than I expected.
“No, just thought I’d see if you need some help.” I crossed my arms on her door and glanced in. “Sounds like you need a new car.”
A fist flew at my left shoulder, connecting and leaving a surprising throbbing in its wake. “Easy for you to say. My dad can’t afford to buy me everything I want.”
I winced, thinking of all the strings attached to the “gifts” my parents gave me. Sure, it was nice to have an awesome SUV to drive
around, but it didn’t come without guilt and expectations, especially from my father.
She leaned forward and tried the ignition another time or two.
“Sorry, I’m not good with cars, but I can offer you a ride home.” I stood and motioned to my Jeep a few parking spots away.
Penny frowned, her lips pursed as though she’d eaten one of those sour candies. “Did you get knocked in the head at practice today? Because you’re acting really weird.”
“What do you mean ‘weird’? We used to do stuff like this all the time, even before we could drive. Maybe I realized how much I’ve missed hanging out with you.” As much as I wanted it to be a line, the kind I usually fed to all the fawning girls, the truth of it hit me in the chest. There were a lot of good memories with Penny by my side, and for the first time in a while, it was like I’d woken from a strange dream and wanted things to go back to the way they were before life erupted, for both of us.
She turned the key once more and shook her head when it didn’t start. Opening the door, she stepped out, her pointer finger waving before she even said any words. “The only reason I’m getting a ride from you is that I’ll be late for work if I don’t.” She slammed her door and marched over to my Jeep, not waiting for me to join her.
We hopped into the Jeep, and I put it in drive, turning the wheel toward the exit. The sound of the radio blasted through the vehicle. And then it didn’t.
I glared at Penny. “Hey, this is my vehicle. That means my radio station.”
She still had her fingers on the tuner, changing it to one of the country radio stations instead of the loud metal I’d been listening to. “Not when I’m in here, it doesn’t. How can you understand anything they’re saying anyway? It’s just a lot of loud instruments and screaming.”
She tapped her foot along with the mellow beat, her mouth moving with the words, drawing my eyes to her lips. Since when did I care about the lips of Penny Davis? I’d done my fair share of kissing the girls of Rosemont High in the last two years, but I’d never had such an urge to kiss someone as I had right then. Was it that she hated me to the point where it was like pulling teeth to get her to accept a ride home? Or was it—
The Perfect Play: A Boy Next Door Young Adult Romance (Rosemont High Baseball Book 1) Page 2