I saw the catcher squatting next to the plate. He stuck his right arm straight up into the sky, reaching for the ball. I decided he wasn’t a person, just a thing in my way.
I had time for one more breath before I slid.
I took a big gulp of air, then hit the dirt. Tucking my right leg under my body, I stuck my left foot out and skidded toward the plate.
The umpire yanked his mask off.
The first part of me to hit the catcher was my right knee, which hurt because I was going fast and he was wearing plastic armor on his legs. Then he fell on me. That hurt even more because I was small and he was big. He tagged me with the ball in his glove.
But my left leg was already on the plate.
The umpire aimed a finger at my leg before hollering “Safe!” so loud his call echoed off the wall of the grandstand.
Hands reached down and pulled me up.
“You did it, Wyatt!” someone yelled. “You won the game!”
I was so happy. I had never done anything like that in my life. I had never won the game. But I’d done it now. I’d knocked that catcher over and scored the winning run in the last inning of our last game of the season. All ninety-eight pounds of me had taken down the thing in my way. I wondered what else I could knock down.
Could I knock down Spencer Randle?
My whole team mobbed me. They pounded on my helmet and slapped me on the back. I smiled the whole time, even though being hit on the head by eight guys who were all bigger than me was kind of painful.
When the celebration finally ended, I saw Mom and Dad clapping in the bleachers, but it was Evan I wanted to see the most. I broke away from the pack and found her hanging out with a group of her friends from her school, Parkside.
After slipping away from them, she stuck out her fist. “That was so cool,” she said.
It might have been my imagination, but I thought Evan was looking at me the same way she had looked at Brian Braun right before we saw Swing and a Miss.
I bumped my fist into hers. “Thanks. I’m not even hurt.”
Evan pointed to my leg. “You might feel it later. Sometimes after a game I’m so amped up I don’t realize something hurts until the next day, and then it’s like, oh man, ouch, when did I do that? But I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
McKlusky ran over and grabbed my arm. “Pizza,” he said. “Now.”
Evan pointed at her friends, who were talking to Julian, Shane, and Luther, who also went to Parkside. “I gotta go too,” she said. “I’ll see you soon.”
I watched Evan run back to the Parkside girls. I was so happy it didn’t even bother me when I saw her chatting with Julian. After all, he hadn’t scored the winning run. I had.
Pizza never tasted so good. “Hey, Wyatt,” said Caleb when we were eating. “You really dumped that catcher on his butt.”
“Yeah,” McKlusky added. “You looked like a running back.”
That was when Julian walked by our table. “Did I hear you right?” he asked, stopping suddenly. “Did I just hear someone say Wyatt could be a running back?”
So much for being the hero, I thought, feeling half as big as I had a minute ago.
“What’s so crazy about Wyatt being a running back?” Caleb asked.
Julian pointed at me. “You’re talking about this Wyatt, right? He wouldn’t gain a single yard.”
I just looked straight ahead, hoping they’d walk away. Luckily, Julian went over to the video games, leaving me with McKlusky and Caleb.
“How come you let him talk to you like that?” Caleb asked.
“What am I supposed to do? He’s bigger than me.”
“It’s not always about who’s bigger,” Caleb replied.
Roy sat down across from me. “Caleb’s right,” he said. “That catcher was bigger than you. And you flattened him like a pancake.” He pushed up his sleeves and surveyed the pizza. “If you ran at them like that, they’d probably be afraid of you.”
“Yeah, right,” I said, picking up a breadstick instead.
“I’m serious,” Roy replied. “You were like a wild animal out there. I’m a little afraid of you.”
“Me too,” said McKlusky, nodding with his mouth full. “You should play football in the park with us sometime. It’s just for fun.”
“Listen to him,” Roy said. “Nobody messes with football players. And then there’s the girls.”
“Yeah,” said Caleb. “And this summer there’s a flag football league at the rec center.”
“I don’t know,” I told them. “I might be going to golf camp.”
“Golf camp?” Roy asked in disbelief. He grabbed his sides and pretended to laugh. “You’re kidding, right?”
“It wasn’t my idea,” I said, wishing I hadn’t mentioned it.
“Here’s some free advice,” said Roy, wiping his face. “If anyone ever asks you if you’re going to golf camp, do yourself a favor and lie.”
“What’s so bad about golf camp?” I asked.
“Nothing,” said Caleb. “If you’re a hundred.”
“Stick with football,” said Roy, grabbing the last slice of pizza. “Or baseball. Anything but golf.”
When the pizza was all gone, it was time to leave. McKlusky and I found our bags and headed for the door. “Like I said, a bunch of us play football in the park on weekends, usually around noon. It’s just two-hand touch. No tackling.”
“I’ll see if I can make it,” I said as McKlusky and I headed off in opposite directions. There was no doubt in my mind, I wanted to play football with McKlusky and the other guys. The question was whether Mom would let me. And that was something I didn’t think McKlusky really needed to know.
Who cared what Mom thought, anyway? I could handle a game of football. Maybe I’d even plow over someone like I’d plowed over that catcher. Replaying the collision in my mind, I remembered how my teammates had slapped me on the back. And I could still hear Caleb telling me I should play football. I knew for sure there was no way I would ever feel that way playing golf.
By the time I got to my house, I was six inches taller than I had been when I’d left. And then I did something really, really dumb.
CHAPTER SEVEN
When I got home, I could hear Mom and Dad talking in the kitchen about their work schedules. There was no sign of Aaron or Kate. Quietly, I found the school directory we kept by the telephone in the living room.
I looked up Randle and found the number. Then I dialed. My heart was pounding, but I willed myself not to hang up. I was starting a new life. I wasn’t going to be afraid anymore. I was going to earn a little respect.
Besides, what did I have to lose? Spencer already knew it was me. Or at least that was what I thought.
“Who’s this?” Spencer asked when he came to the phone.
“This is Wyatt Parker,” I said clearly. “The guy who told on you.”
“That was you?” he asked. “You got me suspended for more than a week. Groton said he would have suspended me for the rest of the year but he wants me to come back for the last week so I can end on a positive note. Can you believe that garbage?”
My mouth dried up like the desert. “You s-s-said you knew who it was,” I stammered.
“I thought it was that punk Morelli,” Spencer said. “He’s got the biggest mouth in school. I was looking forward to shutting it for him. But I guess I’ll have to teach you a lesson instead.”
This was not going the way I had thought it would. I tried to get back some of the courage I had felt earlier. I remembered what Evan had said about turning the tables on Spencer. “Or maybe I’ll teach you a lesson,” I said, my voice quavering.
“Are you crazy?” Spencer asked. “You’re threatening me? Nobody threatens me.”
“That wasn’t a threat. That was a promise. I didn’t threaten you.”
“I promise you,” Spencer growled, “I am going to make you regret picking up the phone.”
“Well, I’m going to make you regret answering it.”
“You just don’t know when to stop talking, do you?” Spencer asked.
“Apparently not.”
“Good. When I get back to school, we can talk all day long, if you know what I mean.”
The line went dead.
I didn’t feel like talking during dinner. Luckily Dad was busy with Aaron. “Have you found anything to do this summer?” he asked. “If the answer is no, you’re going to be stuffing envelopes at my office. All day, all week, all summer.”
“I’m volunteering in the park,” Aaron replied.
That surprised me. I couldn’t picture Aaron volunteering. Unless it was volunteering to steal golf carts and roll them into sand traps, which is what he did last summer.
Dad was surprised too. “Really?” he asked. “Volunteering how?”
“Um, just cleaning up trash and clearing trails.”
“Did you hear about this at school?” asked Mom.
“Yup, at school.” Aaron kept his eyes on his plate. “Oh, I need one of those orange vests. For safety.”
“Well, good for you, Aaron,” said Dad, nodding proudly. “I’m glad you found something productive to do.”
They seemed so happy that I decided to speak up after all. “Can I play flag football?”
Dad leaned back in his chair. “What was that?” he asked.
“Some friends of mine are playing flag football this summer. Can I play too?”
“You’re going to golf camp,” Dad replied.
“With me,” Kate reminded everyone. “And my new clubs.”
“Only if you get a B on that math test,” Mom reminded her.
I kept working on Dad, hoping for a break. “Golf camp isn’t all summer.”
“When does football start?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I just heard about it today.”
Dad looked skeptical. “This doesn’t sound very well thought out.”
“Or safe,” Mom added.
“There’s no tackling or anything,” I explained.
“I think the answer is no,” Mom replied. “After golf camp, if you still want to try another sport, we can find something for you. Maybe tennis. Or swimming.”
I remembered Roy telling me that nobody messed with football players. I doubted anyone ever said nobody messes with tennis players.
After dinner I went to the back porch to read, but the armchair was occupied. Aaron was picking pieces of lint out of the fabric of the cushion and tossing them absentmindedly into the darkness.
“What are you doing here?” I asked. “Shouldn’t you be on the phone with your girlfriend?”
“I don’t have a girlfriend,” Aaron mumbled.
“What?” I said, taking a seat on the porch swing where Evan usually sat.
“I. Don’t. Have. A. Girlfriend,” he said again. “She dumped me.”
“Didn’t you take her to River Tunes?”
“It has nothing to do with River Tunes,” Aaron snapped. “She dumped me because she doesn’t appreciate me.” He pounded on one of the arms of the chair. “Man! I can’t wait for summer. I am going to break someone’s bones.”
“Picking up trash?” I asked.
“I’m not picking up any trash.”
“What do you mean? What about your volunteer job at the park?”
“Are you nuts?” Aaron said. “I’m not volunteering in the park. I’m playing football.”
Sensing something big, I sat up straight. “You are? Where?”
“None of your business.”
“Please tell me.”
“No, and don’t ask me again. And don’t even think about telling Mom and Dad what I told you.”
“Is it flag football? Because a bunch of my friends are—”
“It’s not flag football. Give me a break.”
Aaron was right, that was a dumb question. But the more he refused to tell me where he was playing football, the more I had to know the truth. “Is it at the high school?”
“I told you not to ask me again,” Aaron said, getting out of the armchair. “I’m going inside.” He kicked a bucket of lawn darts that had been sitting upright on the porch. Darts and hoops spilled everywhere. “Don’t follow me.”
With frogs croaking in the background, I pushed myself back and forth on the swing and thought more about my conversation with Aaron. It was easy to believe he would make up a story about volunteering in the park to get Mom and Dad off his back. But I couldn’t figure out the football part. Mom and Dad already let him play football. Why would he need to lie to them about playing this summer? Did he think Mom and Dad wouldn’t believe he’d be able to do both? Suddenly, it was all I could think about.
I tried to distract myself by reading more of Frankenstein. When that didn’t work, I went to my computer and searched for football leagues in Pilchuck and got about a ton of links to stories about Pilchuck High School. So I typed in football leagues in Pilchuck summer, but I didn’t find anything except the flag football league at the rec center.
I fell asleep that night wondering what Aaron was up to and how I could get in on it, because whatever it was sounded like a lot more fun than golf camp.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Maybe he got recruited for a secret team that plays football during the day and fights crime at night,” Evan guessed on Tuesday evening.
She was in her usual spot on the porch and I was a few feet away in the armchair. “I don’t think so,” I said. “Aaron causes crime. He doesn’t fight it.”
“Are we even sure it’s football? He might be doing something he’s too embarrassed to tell anyone about, like ice-skating or chess.”
“Trust me, Aaron only knows two things, football and … actually, he only knows one thing.” I tilted my neck back and stared up at the sky. “Argh, I have to know what it is!”
“Why do you care so much?” Evan asked.
“I care because … why should Aaron get to play football this summer while I have to play golf? It’s not fair.”
Evan narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side. “Wait, you want to play football?” She said it like she hadn’t heard me right.
“Don’t act so surprised,” I said. “I’ve played football before.”
“Tell me one time you played football.”
“Okay, maybe I can’t think of a time right now, but that doesn’t mean I’m never allowed to play. Isn’t there a first time for everything?”
“You really want to play football?” Evan said again, the disbelief in her voice fading. “Like with pads and helmets?”
“I haven’t thought that much about it,” I said. “I just want to try it.”
Evan’s eyes sparkled. “Go, Wyatt! That’s so cool. You should definitely try it. I saw the sign-up sheet for the flag football league at the rec center. Did you ask your parents yet?”
“They’re thinking it over,” I explained, reluctant to admit they had already said no. Not when I had finally found someone who was on my side. “My mom is afraid I might get hurt. I mean, I’m not the biggest guy in the world.”
“So what? There was this girl on my lacrosse team last year who was short, but she was a total star because nobody could check her.”
“Why not?”
“She was too quick.”
“You really think I could play football?”
“Yes, I do,” Evan said. “I bet you could even be on the freshman team next year.”
“No way.”
“Way. All you need is practice.” Evan poked me in the ribs. “And a few meals. Oh, and you have to let me watch a game.” She shook her head. “I never thought I would get to see Wyatt Parker playing football,” she added, hopping off the swing. “Gotta run.”
I slapped her hand as she passed by. “Toodle-oo, kangaroo.”
“Keep it real, harbor seal.”
Not long after Evan left, the screen door flew open and Aaron appeared on the porch. “Are you any good at geometry?” he asked.
“Geometry?”
“Yeah, geometry. You know, like shapes. I have to do all these calculations and I think my teacher might have explained it all on a day I was out. So, can you help me?”
“Fine,” I said. I stood halfway up, then sat back down. “Hold on. If you want my help, you need to tell me where you’re playing football this summer.”
Aaron’s face went tense. He closed the door behind him and made a slashing motion across his throat. “What are you doing?” he hissed. “I told you not to say anything about that.”
“Do you want my help or not?”
Aaron rolled his eyes upward and bit down on his lip. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll tell you …”
I pumped my fist. “Yes!”
“… after you help me.”
“Deal,” I said, jumping to my feet.
It took me about an hour to teach Aaron how to calculate the angle of a triangle using the lengths of the sides. I could have taught him to do it the other way around too, but I was afraid his brain would overheat.
“Thanks,” he said, closing his book. “You really saved me.”
“Yeah, yeah. Talk to me about football.”
Aaron was about to answer when there was a knock on the door. “What?” he barked.
“Mom wants you to take out the garbage,” said Kate, sticking her head into Aaron’s room.
“Got it.”
Kate didn’t move.
“Why are you still here?” Aaron asked.
A smile crept across Kate’s face. “What were you guys talking about? Will you tell me?”
“It was nothing,” I said. “I was just helping him with his math.”
Kate didn’t buy it. “I can keep a secret,” she promised. “Please tell me.”
“Man!” Aaron cried. “Why does everyone in this house have to know everything?”
Kate stepped farther into the room. “So there is a secret. I knew it! Are you in trouble? Did you get a new girlfriend? Is Sara mad?”
“Scram,” said Aaron. “Now.” He looked over at me. “Both of you.”
The League Page 4