THURSDAY, JULY 30

Their morning workouts and lacrosse practice had the boys feeling invigorated. That included the latest addition to lacrosse, Alex. Sam and Gregory had taken their classmate under their wings and spent time working with Alex to help him develop the basic skills outside of the team practices, as well as during the practices.

Afterwards, the boys heading to the BaseBrawl dropped their gear off, showered, and changed at Lukas and Michael's before stopping by the Café per Carol's instructions. She didn't want the boys to spend the day eating at concession stands. She hoped that getting a meal beforehand would head off some of their snacking during the games.

"Good morning, sweetheart." Vera always greeted Michael with a touch of the love she felt for the boy. "What are you boys doing here this morning?"

Michael smiled warmly, "We're going to see our friends play baseball today."

The boys ordered breakfast. In addition to the band members, they were joined by Jaden and Alex who were even more excited to see the Yard Goats play. All too soon, they'd paid and piled into SUVs to have Jaden's mother Marlene and Carol drive them to the Mission Hills sports park. "Your father and Zach," reminded Carol, "will be here to pick you up and drive you all to Matthew's game. And Matthew, thank you for singing the national anthem." They all nodded in understanding and headed to the ball fields.

They located the tournament brackets and found the Yard Goats were slated to play on Field 2. Matthew took charge. "You guys stay together and head to Field 2. The Goats are the visiting team and will be in the third-base dugout. I'll join you there after I sing. Got it?"

The boys nodded and answered in the affirmative. Then they went their separate ways.

The East Harbor gang didn't recognize many in the stands, though Coach Sanders was sitting not too far away. They did recognize their friends in their red, black, and white jerseys on the field warming up.

"Is Isaac coming?" asked Alex.

"Nah," answered Jaden. "He's having a bad day so he's staying home and getting some extra rest."

"That's too bad," added Michael. "I really like him." He pulled out his phone to send Isaac a "get well" text.

"What about Josh?" asked Jaden. "I thought he'd be here today."

"I did too," stated Alex, "but he sent a text this morning that some family thing came up and he wouldn't make it. He hasn't responded to any of my texts."

"That sucks," said Jaden. "Hope it's nothing bad."

"Do you think he changed his mind about liking the Goats?" asked Michael.

Alex was quick to answer, "No. Even last night before bed, he was texting about how much he likes all the guys from Mayfield, especially Grant. I think maybe something came up with his grandparents or something." He really didn't know, but where he was with his relationship with Josh, he had no reason to doubt a thing.

The announcer came over the PA system and asked everyone to stand for the national anthems. First was a girl singing "O'Canada". Even for the boys who didn't possess Lukas' perfect pitch, there were some painful sections of the Canadian anthem to listen to. When the song ended, they didn't say anything, but the looks they gave one another said so much.

Looking back to where the opening ceremony was happening, they watched Matthew walk out and take the mic. They waited for the backing track they'd recorded for him to begin, but it never started. The silence grew long enough that everyone understood something was amiss. They saw Carol's friend walk out and say something to Matthew then walk away.

"Please stand for our National Anthem as sung by East Harbor's Matthew Meijer, a member of the San Diego Force 18-and-under baseball team and the rock group, At the Majestic." There was applause for Matthew making his brothers smile with pride.

Then Matthew began singing a cappella. Upbeat, dramatic, yet without frills, Matthew's clear, powerful voice carried throughout the park. While the boys applauded and cheered for their bro, they suspected the rest of the audience was happy that the tournament was finally starting.

Matthew made it over to sit with his brothers. As he climbed the bleachers, a murmur ran through the crowd as they noted the band members attending the tournament and sitting behind the Yard Goats' dugout. From the start, it was clear that they were rooting for the team from Mayfield, Washington.

Sadly, the East Harbor contingent felt like they may have been more of a curse than support for their new friends. A series of lucky bounces and bloopers for the Tucson team gave them a quick 6-0 lead over the Yard Goats after just two innings.

"Man," groaned Jaden, "these guys have got to get something going and soon."

"Don't worry," said Alex, "these guys never give up. It's kind of a Mayfield baseball thing."

"But they've dug themselves into a huge hole," said Michael, feeling deflated after having such high hopes for the Yard Goats.

Matthew was feeling responsible for getting the boys from Mayfield in over their heads. But his experience with baseball told him to be patient. "Hey," he said leaning over to speak to the concerned boys, "Tucson has been really lucky so far. They're hitting like crap, and it's been luck that their hits are falling between the Goats. The Goats are hitting the ball hard, but so far, they've been hitting the ball right to the defense. That kind of luck can't hold out for seven innings." Saying it out loud, Matthew hoped he would believe it. It didn't work.

"Hey!"

A voice came from Matthew's right. He saw good-looking teen with a Yard Goats baseball cap in the row below turned around smiling at him. "Hi," he said.

"So, do you play for the San Diego Force? Are you spying on my bro and his friends?" joked Jackson Hallion.

Matthew liked this guy's sense of humor right off the bat. "Yeah, I play for the 18-and-under team."

"And he's only 16," added Michael with pride.

"What about you? Do you play ball?" asked Matthew.

"Yep. I'll be a senior at Mayfield this year."

"So, you play for Coach Sanders," answered Matthew with a bit of jealousy.

"Yeah, how did you know?" asked Jackson.

"Well, I lived in Mossyrock for a bit and wished I was playing for Coach Sanders instead."

"That's cool. My dad is the Yard Goats head coach, and my brother was the starting pitcher today."

"Ouch," replied Matthew.

"Yeah, well," said Jackson. The Goats were preparing to bat at the top of the third inning.

"Hey," said Matthew as Jackson started back to his seat. "Coach Sanders may be coming to see my game this afternoon. Maybe you can come too?"

"I'll see," said Jackson.

"If not, see you around the tournament," added Matthew.

The first batter up for the Goats continued the same streak of bad luck.

The next batter came to the plate. "Looks like they are already starting to sub out players," noted Christian.

"They're trying to find someone to add a spark to the game. Plus, they are probably changing pitchers, so they needed someone to bat while the pitcher warms up."

"Who is that?" asked Alex. It wasn't anyone he knew.

"It might be one of their pickup players," suggested Matthew. "At tournaments like this, teams usually pick up a few extra players since they play so many games in just a few days."

"Yeah," confirmed Jaden seeing the little strawberry blonde step to the plate. "Hey...that looks like Skip. I didn't think he was old enough to play for the Yard Goats." He seemed to remember that Skip was only eleven.

"What does that mean!" said Michael, taking mock offense to someone being too young to contribute.

After taking a ball and fouling off an outside pitch, Skip smacked a hard grounder to the right side of the field between the first and second basemen. Skip's grin could have lit a small city having gotten the first hit for the Yard Goats.

The boys stood and cheered for Gordy, hoping he would keep the rally going. But Gordy hit a line drive to the shortstop for the second out.

"Com'on Aiden!" yelled Michael. The other boys yelled for their friend, hoping the Goats could make a comeback.

The first pitch had the East Harbor gang screaming. Aiden drilled the ball into left-center field. The outfielders tried to track the ball down only to watch it bounce off the wall on the first bounce. The left fielder got to the ball first and fired the ball into third base. But instead of catching the lead runner, the throw was too late. Aiden slid in with a run scoring triple.

The Mayfield faithful cheered until Trent's fly ball to deep center field ended the rally and the inning, stranding Aiden on third.

The bottom of the third started much the way the previous two innings did with another blooper resulting in a Tucson baserunner. But then it was time for the Yard Goats' defense to wake up. The next batter hit a sharp grounder that Scott fielded at third, hit Aiden for the force out at second, and Aiden turned and fired to first to complete the double play. That brought life back to the Yard Goats' fans.

Before the inning was over, however, Tucson got their first solid hit. On a 1-1 pitch, Riley, the little Yard Goats pitcher, threw his fastball and the Tucson player launched it over the home run wall. Luckily, it was foul. Riley then proceeded to close out that half the inning.

The top of the fourth gave the Yard Goats' fans even more to cheer about. Their cleanup batter lead off the inning with a monster home run. A double followed by an RBI single made the score 6-3. An out and a walk brought little Riley up to bat with runners at first and second.

Alex yelled at the top of his lungs, "Go! Go! Goats!" The rest of the East Harbor gang were yelling similar sentiments. Whether or not Riley could even hear them is questionable, but Alex, Jaden and the gang liked to think they helped Riley drill a base-clearing double to end the scoring for the Goats in the inning. The Goats had closed the gap. The score was now 6-5.

"Holy shit! Can you believe it?" crowed Alex. "We're right back in this game!"

"Grant was right," chuckled Jaden. "These Goats don't quit. Instead, they butt you right in the ass!" The others enjoyed his joke as much as he did.

Matthew added, "I told you the Goats were playing better than Tucson." He was pleased to see the Mayfield team coming back against a much bigger and possibly a more talented team.

Riley picked up three outs in the bottom of the inning with just eight pitches. That brought the Goats up for the top of the fifth inning where the Tucson pitcher returned the favor, shutting down the Goats.

One of the best parts of the game came with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning. To keep Riley's pitch count low, Coach Hallion replaced Riley on the mound with Grant.

From Grant's body language, you could tell he was focused on his purpose. But no other player in this game had a louder cheering section, with Jaden and Alex leading the way. Facing Tucson's leadoff batter who was 3 for 3 in the game, Grant broke the hitter's streak getting the batter to fly out to the left fielder.

In the sixth inning, the Goats went down in order. Grant responded by pitching a scoreless bottom of the inning, but the way the boys were cheering, you'd have thought that Grant had won the game.

The top of the seventh was make or break time for the Goats. It was the last inning and they trailed 6-5.

"I'm so fucking nervous," said Jaden, standing and shaking his arms and legs as if he was loosening up for a swim meet.

"Me too," said Alex. He kept standing and sitting, too excited by the game to get comfortable.

The game had Matthew and his brothers on edge too. Lukas and Simon never found baseball all that exciting, but this was crazy. Michael wanted the Goats to start hitting because he wanted Mason to come to the plate. Matthew was excited, but confident. He'd watched the Goats gain their footing and he knew some of the boys at the top of the batting order this inning had been making solid contact. They were due for a hit. Unless Tucson pulled out a powerful closer, the Goats should pull out at least one more run.

And bring in a closer Tucson did. Coach Hallion also made changes to the Goats lineup. The first batter came to the plate.

"Is that Grant's boyfriend?" asked Michael.

"No," said Jaden, "that's his brother Lenny." With the pitching change for the bottom of the seventh, the Goats were changing catchers too.

On the second pitch, Lenny sent a laser beam at the Tucson shortstop. The line drive was snagged right off his shoelaces for the first out.

Emmett Haskins came to the plate next. The shortstop made another incredible play. Stealing a base hit up the middle, he snagged the grounder and threw Emmett out at first.

With two outs, Gordy came to the play.

"Com'on Gordy!" yelled Michael. He was really into the game. "Go! Go! Goats!"

Alex and Jaden were also noisily cheering for their "home team" while Lukas and Simon were on their feet yelling too.

When Gordy fell behind by a 0-2 count, the Mayfield fans felt deflated. Tucson was one strike away from knocking the Yard Goats down to the losers' bracket of the tournament. But Gordy wasn't finished. He held off on two pitches outside the strike zone then laced a single into left field.

Aiden stepped to the plate and the East Harbor boys increased the noise with shouts and stomping. On the first pitch, Aiden singled to center field causing Gordy to hold up at second. Aiden, standing at first base, represented the go-ahead run.

Trent came to the plate and worked the count in his favor, two balls and one strike. Keeping the excitement going and keeping the Tucson team off kilter, Coach Hallion called for a double steal. Both Gordy and Aiden were surprised, but immediately prepared to make the aggressive play.

The pitcher started his wind up and the baserunners took off. Matthew jumped to his feet yelled, "Go! Go! Go!"

Needing only one out to end the game, the catcher should have gone for the easier play. Instead, he went for the lead runner heading for third base. A less common throw, the Tucson catcher sailed the ball over the baseman's head. Gordy hopped up from his slide and turned on the afterburners to score. The throw from the left fielder went to third, however Aiden had wisely remained at second after the initial stolen base.

With go ahead run at second and two outs, Trent stood tall at home plate with a 2-2 count. Trent's brother Jackson was on his feet going nuts and Matthew and the other East Harbor boys joined him. Trent was hitless in the game, but that didn't rattle his confidence. The metallic clang of the bat driving a line drive into dead center sent Aiden immediately into a dead sprint. With two outs, he wasn't at risk of being forced out if the ball was caught. Rounding third, Aiden saw the Tucson center fielder picking up the ball after it bounced off the wall. Aiden coasted in with the go-ahead run and Trent slid into second for a double.

The Yard Goats' bench went crazy, and their fans were just as noisy in the bleachers. The Goats weren't able to drive in Trent, so they went into the bottom of the seventh with a one-run lead.

Now the pressure was on the bottom of the Tucson batting order. The Goats brought in their closer who struck out the first two batters and forced the third to hit a weak grounder to third for the final out.

The Goats and their fans erupted, drawing attention from around Mission Hills sports park. The doubts that the boys from a small town in Washington state didn't belong in this tournament were beginning to evaporate.

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At Mission Hills High School, Matthew's brothers accompanied by Jaden and Alex sat with Lars and Zach and prepared to watch the oldest Meijer boy's game.

The teams were warming up when Matthew came up into the stands to speak to his family. "Dad," he said, "Coach Sanders will be here. He's wearing a red polo with cargo shorts. So, if you see him, please say, 'Hi.'"

"Are you talking about me?" asked Larry.

Matthew turned and greeted Larry. "Dad, Zach, this is Coach Larry Sanders from Mayfield High School. His husband will be here over the weekend, and I thought it would be great for you to meet." While Larry shook hands with Lars and Zach, Matthew turned and gave Jackson a first bump. "Cool you could make the game." Matthew turned his attention to the younger men joining Larry and Jackson. Two looked familiar but he couldn't place...then Matthew realized who he was shaking hands with.

"Please, don't tell anyone," requested Marty Carlson. "We don't want to draw attention."

"Marty grew up in Mayfield," explained Larry to Zach and Lars.

"Yes," confirmed Marty. "This is my husband, Rich. Rich and I played middle- and high-school ball for Coach Sanders." He put a hand on Larry's shoulder. "We even won the state championship our senior year. I owe a lot to Coach."

"Hi Wade!" came the greeting from a 13-year-old in a dirty San Diego Force jersey who climbed the bleachers and gave the third young man a hug.

"Wade?" said Matthew out loud. "Wade Whalen!" Then he looked to see if anyone overheard his outburst. "So nice to meet you," he said shaking the other major leaguer's hand.

The younger boy was Wade Whalen's little brother Tim, a member of the San Diego Force 13-and-under team playing in the BaseBrawl. "Did you get to see any of my game?"

"Yes, I did little man, but we took off before we got recognized." Wade gave his little brother a hug.

"It's so great to meet both of you. I can't believe this," said Matthew. "Uh...I hope to see you after the game. I have to get back to the team."

Matthew hurried back to his team, and the latest arrivals found their seats. Tim made his way over to his peers. "Hey, I'm Tim. You guys were awesome last night! Are all concerts as good as that?" With an introduction like that, the boys couldn't help but welcome the newcomer. Michael and Christian scooted over so Tim could sit between Michael and Jaden. Tim's San Diego Force jersey was another great conversation starter for the boys.

Lars and Zach shook hands with Marty, Rich, and Wade before the five men sat and discussed the game at hand. Zach looked down the bench to Marty. "I have to say, I don't know much about the Majors, but I do know who Marty Carlson is. Matthew talks about you all the time. He even makes us watch all of your highlights."

Marty looked around to see who all was in the vicinity, but they seemed to have this section to themselves. "I do get that a lot, particularly from gay players."

Zach laughed and looked around at the group. "I can't speak for Wade and Tim, but Matthew happens to be the only straight one out of all of us." Wade didn't say anything about himself, nor did he speak for his little brother and his suspicions about Tim. "First and foremost, I think Matthew admires your play at third base which has tended to be his position this season. But living in a household with two gay dads and three gay brothers, he's a fierce ally and I know he admires your advocacy."

Lars then asked, "Wade, forgive me, but you're Marty's teammate, right?"

Wade smiled. "Yes, and he and Rich are two of my closest friends. Today was a travel day so we thought we'd come down and check out the BaseBrawl ahead of our three-game series in Anaheim this weekend."

Then Lars asked, "And Tim?"

"He's my little brother. I grew up in Oceanside and played for the Force as a kid too. It's an excellent program."

Larry turned to Wade and jokingly asked, "I suppose your loyalties are to the Force?"

"Yes, but I'm loyal to any and all Mayfield teams unless they are playing the Force." Wade glanced back to the field. He noticed the man coming out of the Force dugout. "That's Coach Davidson, so this must be the 18-and-under team. If I remember my 'At the Majestic' facts, isn't Matthew only 16?"

Zach laughed, "How are you equipped with 'At the Majestic' facts?"

"Well, 'Lost and Found' ends up on somebody's play list so we hear it all the time in the clubhouse or during practice. Plus, I have a thirteen-year-old brother."

"Point taken," smiled Zach.

"So, to be fair," said Wade, "I think you and your boys are more well-known than I am. I don't know about our future All-Star Marty, but definitely more popular than I am."

Lars answered with pride, "Ugh. You may be right about that. And yes, Matthew's the baby of the team, but he's becoming one of the leaders this season."

Marty, Rich, and Wade were impressed and looked forward to seeing the teen Coach Sanders told them about. Until the first pitch, the adults continued to enjoy each other's company. Zach moved over to talk to Marty, Rich, and Wade, being basically the same age as Marty and Rich, while Lars talked to Larry. Lars and Larry found much to talk about from working with kids to adoption. Both were happy to have time to connect with other adult gay men.

While the adults visited, the kids did too.

"You guys watched the Yard Goats' game, right? I thought they were getting blown out, then I heard they won," asked Tim. "What happened?"

"It was a really good game," stated Alex.

Jaden added, "Yeah, it started off really bad, but they came back and won!"

"Did Aiden have a good game?" asked Tim.

"Yeah, he did. How do you know Aiden?" asked Michael. He was surprised that the Mayfield boys had other friends in the SoCal area.

"Yeah, we've hung out before," stated Tim. "Other than the concert, how do you know them?"

"Well, Mason's all over our social media," stated Christian. "He is, after all, the band's self-proclaimed super fan."

"I used to live in Mayfield and go to school with Grant and the other guys," said Alex.

"Grant's my cousin," added Jaden. "I met them all when we went on a family vacation and visited my aunt and uncle."

Tim leaned in to ask under his breath pointed to Alex and Jaden, "So, I know Michael and Christian are boyfriends, and Lukas and Simon. I mean, you guys don't hide it online or during your shows. But yesterday I saw you two with other guys. Were those your boyfriends?"

Alex and Jaden nodded "yes."

"That's so cool you're all gay. It's almost like the guys from Mayfield. I mean, they're not all gay, but...you know..." They did understand what Tim was saying.

The boys continued to bond until game time. The Force took the field. Matthew was stationed at third in his all-white jersey and pants.

Today's opponent for the Force was PFA Bakersfield. PFA was a baseball development organization with teams across the western states. The Bakersfield team not only qualified for national the previous year, but they were just returning to California after winning the Las Vegas Summer Series tournament. They planned to play a series of games starting in East Harbor and working their way back to Bakersfield, north of Los Angeles.

Eli Selga, an incoming junior from Chula Vista, took the mound as starting pitcher for the Force. He was one of two juniors starting the game for the Force, Matthew being the other. Eli was excited to be pitching against Bakersfield having just recently committed to playing his collegiate baseball at UC Bakersfield.

But starting two juniors and the rest incoming seniors was in stark contrast to PFA Bakersfield. In addition to their incoming seniors, they were starting six players heading to college in the fall, including their starting pitcher.

Bakersfield's first batter stepped to the plate. There was an air of confidence verging on cockiness from the visitors in their black jerseys with red numbers and trim. The confidence was rightfully deserved. Three pitches into the game, Bakersfield had two sharply hit singles and runners on first and second.

The third batter was already at the plate, and it hardly felt like the game had started. In keeping with the first two batters, the third came to the plate swinging. One a 1-1 count, he drilled a line drive down the third base line. Matthew got a bead on the ball and timed it perfectly. With two steps, he leapt and stretched to his fullest to rob the batter of a multiple-base hit and at least one RBI. Keeping his head in the game, he hustled back to his position to hold the baserunners at first and second.

Michael was the first to leap to his feet with Matthew's catch. After the Yard Goats game, the rest of the East Harbor boys were excitable. Tim was as well. Even for the non-baseball players, they knew an outstanding play when they saw one.

Another outstanding play followed, this time by the Force center fielder, Jordan Otien. With a looping pop fly behind second base, Jordan immediately charged the ball. The Bakersfield baserunners thought the ball might fall and took several steps off the base waiting to see what would happen. Jordan slid as if he was a baserunner himself, catching the ball before popping back to his feet forcing the guys on base to make a hasty retreat.

After two quick singles, the Force came back with two great defensive plays to prevent runs. Their fans appreciated the defensive plays. Any relief felt by the Force and their fans, however, was quickly erased. The next batter, an incoming freshman at Vanderbilt, took Eli deep in the count before ripping a line into the right-center field gap, the ball rolled to the wall before being relayed into second, holding the batter to a double, but allowing two runs to score.

Eli responded with a strike out to end the top of the first, but the damage was done. The Force already found themselves in a hole they'd need to dig themselves out of.

The bottom of the first would not help. A strikeout, groundout to third, and a pop fly to right field sat the top of the Force batting order down 1-2-3.

When Eli took the mound for the second inning, he faced the bottom of the Bakersfield batting order and struck out the side. Looking like the Force had settled down, everyone anticipated the big bats of the Force coming up in the bottom of the second inning.

Nico Libed, batting clean-up, hit a grounder to the left side of the field. The Bakersfield shortstop backhanded the ball and threw Nico out by a couple steps.

Batting fifth for the Force was Matthew. His bros stood and cheered. He acted like he was only focused on the game, but he heard everything, and it brought a smile to his face. Before stepping into the batter's box, he went through his routine and focused. He hadn't faced a lot of lefties in game situations, so he took his time and was patient in his at bat. Leaving the bat on his shoulder, he let the pitcher work the count to two balls and two strikes. With this pitcher, he was able to look to the pitcher's glove during his delivery as a cue to where he could be able to pick up the ball in the pitcher's hand. The fifth pitch was a fastball. Matthew took an inside out swing and slapped the pitch foul down the right field line. The battery mistook that as a slow bat and set up to throw another fastball, this time over the inside of the plate.

When the pitcher released the pitch, Matthew's eyes grew wide. Turning quickly on the pitch, he lifted the ball over the infield with a line drive hooking towards the foul line. The Bakersfield outfielder got a good jump on the ball. He was helped when the ball bounced off the third baseline fence directly towards him. Matthew had a standup double to the cheers of the local crowd. However, Matthew was stranded at second when the Force designated hitter, Paul Midlam grounded to second and their shortstop, Brett Williams, struck out.

Both pitchers had solid third inning performances. Bakersfield's top of the order came to the plate and were sent back to the dugout with a strike out, pop fly to left, and then the sixth strikeout delivered by Eli. Bakersfield's pitcher faced the eighth, ninth, and leadoff batters of the Force, resulting in two strike outs and then another grounder to the shortstop.

The fourth inning started off much like the third. Eli was still sharp but was losing a bit of his steam. A grounder to second and a strike out sat down the first two Bakersfield batters. Their right fielder followed that up with a single on a hot grounder through the right side of the infield. That was as much as Bakersfield could manage. The next batter flied out to right for the final out of the top of the inning.

If the Force was going to make up any ground on the scoreboard, it seemed like this was the inning to do it. Otherwise, time was running out. Bakersfield brought in a new, right-handed pitcher, and it seemed like the Force batters might have their work cut out for them.

Joey Kellmer, the Force's second baseman, led off the bottom of the fourth inning with a single. Joey remained at first while the next two Force batters lined out to the Bakersfield second baseman and flied out to shallow left field.

Matthew stepped to the plate with two outs. The Force needed something to bring their bats to life and he felt this might be the time for him to take a calculated risk. The look Coach Davidson gave him before he stepped into the on-deck circle confirmed that his coach was on board.

With a new pitcher, Matthew took the first pitch to get a better read on the pitching motion. It was a strike just above his knees. The second pitch was a curve that broke late, missing the strike zone high and inside. The pitcher threw a second curveball, this time it was low and outside. He didn't feel that the pitcher had much movement on his pitches today, so Matthew waited for and expected a fastball. With the fourth pitch, the Bakersfield pitcher tried to throw another off-speed pitch and missed the strike zone. Matthew wasn't sure if they were trying to get him to chase a pitch, or if the pitcher was struggling to find the strike zone. The next pitch would either be a fastball, or he'd take the pitch making the pitcher throw a strike.

The pitcher wound up for the 3-1 pitch, Matthew stepped towards the mound and recognized a fat fastball. He swung for the fence. The sound of his bat making contact brought everyone to their feet, including Marty and Wade.

Matthew shuffled down the baseline towards first watching the ball sail over the left-field fence. The ball cleared the fence and the safety net causing the Force's bench to erupt. They heard the ball land on a local resident's car setting off the alarm. Matthew turned to the Force bench and yelled, trying to fire the team up before jogging the bases.

"Damn," said Wade under his breath when the ball rocketed off Matthew's bat. Marty just gave a "whoop" before the Mariners joined the rest of the Force family and friends in cheering for Matthew.

Coming into home, he pointed up to Michael and his brothers and thumped his chest with his fist. Just like that, the Force tied the game.

Bakersfield changed pitchers after Matthew's home run. The new pitcher ended the inning with a strikeout.

For the top of the fifth inning, the Force also changed pitchers. They brought in Mason Wright, a senior from University City. It was a bit of a rocky start for Mason. Staring with the bottom of the order, Mason walked the player in the eighth spot then gave up a single to the last batter in the lineup.

With two men on base and no outs, Mason faced the top of Bakersfield's order. The next batter worked him deep into the count before grounding out to Brett Williams at short. He chose to go for the lead runner. They got the out at third, but Matthew's throw to first couldn't get the speedster, just missing a double play. The following batter again worked the count fouling off a number of pitches, driving Mason's pitch count skyward. The last foul popped up down the third-base line. Matthew took off at top speed, reaching out and catching the ball over his shoulder before bouncing off the chain-link fence. The runners tagged and moved to second and third. The inning felt like it was getting away from the Force. It looked even worse when Mason loaded the bases with a walk.

With two outs, and the bases loaded, Mason faced the clean up batter. On the first pitch, the batter turned on a curve ball sending it into deep left field. Jacob Paul, the Force's left fielder, sprinted, diving to make the catch. The ball bounced over his glove and rolled into the corner of the park.

"Foul!" called out the umpire, seeing the ball land just outside of fair territory.

The players returned to their previous position before Mason delivered the 0-1 pitch. A fastball, the batter just caught the bottom of the ball fouling it off the catcher's mask. With two strikes, Mason threw a changeup. It crossed up the Bakersfield batter. In front of the pitch, he grounded the ball into the visitor's dugout. With a fastball high and outside, Mason got the batter to chase the pitch for the third out. The Force escaped without giving up a run to preserve the 2-2 tie.

It was a good thing. The 7-8-9 batters for the Force managed a strikeout, ground out to first, and a second strikeout to end the fifth inning.

Mason came back out to start the sixth while Gavin warmed up in the bullpen. Mason opened the top of the inning getting the first batter to fly out to Jacob Paul in left field. The next batter grounded to third. Matthew ran to his left to snag the grounder then spun and gunned the ball to first for the second out. The Force breathed a sigh of relief. They were one out away from ending the top of the inning and bringing in their closer for the seventh.

Down to the seventh batter in Bakersfield lineup, Mason settled onto the mound. Throwing a curve, Bakersfield's third baseman cranked a line drive into the left field corner for a stand up double. On the following pitch to the next batter, Bakersfield's center fielder drove a line drive over Jordan Otien's head in center field. Jordan turned to chase the ball, catching it on the bounce off the wall. Turning, he fired the ball to his cutoff who turned and threw the ball home to try to prevent the run from scoring, allowing the batter a stand-up double. The throw home was late. Bakersfield took a one-run lead.

ne run was too many. Coach Davidson pulled Mason and brought in their number one closer, Gavin Daley. Gavin struck out the ninth batter in Bakersfield's batting order to end the top of the sixth.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Force had a run to make up and the top of their order coming to the plate. Jordan led off the inning with a single to left. The Force bench turned up the volume as Joey came to the plate. A hard shot to the left side of the infield forced the Bakersfield shortstop to his knees to field the ball. He flicked the ball to second and the second baseman fired the ball to first for a double play. Jacob, batting third, struck out ending the sixth inning with Bakersfield still up by one run.

To start off the seventh inning, Gavin handled the top of Bakersfield's order striking out the side, giving up only a single to the third man in their batting order. Now it was do or die for the Force.

Bakersfield brought in their closer for the bottom of the seventh inning to face the meat of the order for the Force. First up, Nico worked a base on balls, and now represented the tying run on first.

Matthew came to the plate. The Force players chattered and yelled from the dugout and their fans rose to their feet. Matthew didn't hear a thing. He was in his zone, focused on the task at hand.

The first pitch was a curveball that Matthew smashed foul to the left. The second pitch was a fastball that Matthew turned on and pulled foul. With two strikes, Matthew watched the Bakersfield defense shift to the left. On the next pitch, Matthew stepped towards the plate and lifted the ball over the first baseman's head. With the right fielder shifted to towards center, the ball fell into no-man's land and rolled toward the corner. With the contact of the bat to the ball, both Nico and Matthew tore up the basepaths. Matthew knew they would send Nico home. If they somehow picked Nico off, Matthew planned to be on third so the tying run would be only 90 feet away.

The right fielder retrieved the ball and threw the ball to his cutoff. The cutoff turned and fired the ball home. The Bakersfield catcher knew he couldn't get Nico. Instead of trying to lay the tag on the teen diving into home, he turned and fired a bullet to third. The ball snapped into the pocket of the third baseman who immediately swiped at Matthew. But Matthew had already slid safely into third. The game was tied with the winning run on third.

Paul Midlam stepped to the plate. Overanxious, Paul struck out with four pitches. Brett Williams followed up with a grounder to second. Matthew led off third forcing the second baseman to charge allowing Brett to make it safely to first.

With one out and two on, Andrew Nagtalon, the Force's first baseman and an incoming senior at Mission Hills High School, stepped to the plate. Being on his high school field, Andrew was comfortable and ready to make something happen.

On the first pitch, Andrew popped a lazy fly to left field. Matthew and Brett stood firmly on base. Brett had no intention of moving, but Matthew was waiting for the coach to give him the word, and he would be off for home plate.

The fly wasn't as deep as the coach would have liked, but with their backs to the wall and the fly would be their second out, they'd have to take a chance. When the third base coach saw the fly smack into the fielder's glove, he yelled, "GO! GO! GO!"

Matthew took off like an Olympic sprinter at the gun. Looking up, he saw the catcher preparing for the incoming throw. He could tell the ball was in flight. As the catcher tracked the throw, he moved down the third baseline towards Matthew. Matthew prepared to dive to the right of the plate and swipe for the plate as he slid past. However, the catcher was now ten feet down the baseline tracking the final feet of the throw. Dropping low to catch the ball, the Bakersfield catcher turned towards the dugout, plowing into into Matthew's legs as the Force runner attempted at the last second to leap over the opposing player. The jump wasn't in time. The collision could be heard across the Mission Hills campus. Undercut by the catcher, Matthew tumbled through the air before landing in the dirt and rolling. He quickly located home plate and scrambled on hands and knees, slapping the plate with his hand. For a moment, the umpire lost track of the ball. It had arrived simultaneously when the catcher dove into the baserunner for the catch and tag. Looking around, he saw the ball bounce off the backstop.

"SAFE!"

Bakersfield was handed their first loss of the season.

----------------------     

"Wade Whalen," greeted Coach Davidson, "good to see you!" The coach walked over and shook the hand of one of his favorite major leaguers to come out of the of San Diego Force baseball program. Though Tom Davidson had never coached the older Whalen boy, Coach Davidson's early coaching career with the younger Force teams overlapped with Wade's last couple years with the program. "What brought you down to San Marcos?"

"Travel day," answered Wade. "Plus, Marty wanted to come down to see his old 13-and-under team play in the BaseBrawl."

"Marty Carlson," grinned Tom, "what a pleasure. I know Matthew tries to model his game after yours."

Marty smiled, embarrassed by the attention and praise. Something he still hadn't gotten used to. "Nice to meet you too Coach. I'd like to introduce you to the Coach that molded me into the player I am today. This is..." Marty turned but Larry wasn't by his side any longer. He was having an animated conversation with Lars and Zach. "Well, that is Coach Sanders, my high school coach."

"Is that him speaking to Dr. Meijer?" asked Tom.

"Yeah," said Marty. "He and Lars seem to have hit it off."

"I think you two and Larry can be a big help to Lars," mentioned Coach Davidson.

"How's that?" asked Wade.

"You saw Matthew play today. I've seen enough big leaguers come through this program to have a good idea who's got the skills and mental acuity to get a shot if he wants it."

Marty nodded. "That is one sweet swing."

"His baseball IQ is better than any player I've had at this level, and he's the youngest player we've had on the 18-and-under team," stressed the Coach.

"Hi Coach," said Larry as he and Lars joined the other men. "Quite a team you have there."

"Well, that was generous," admitted Coach Davidson. "We didn't play our best. Matthew saved our asses." After shaking Larry's hand, he reached for Lars'. "How are you doing today, Lars?"

"I'm good, Tom, thanks," replied Lars.

Coach Davidson continued, "I was just saying, Matthew's a special talent and will need to have support around him. I know he doesn't have a lot of family. I was just mentioning to Larry, Marty, and Wade that Matthew could use their support, even if it is just someone on the other end of a call or a text message once in a while."

Marty thought back to his days in Mayfield and how it took a village to help him make it. Coaches, his teammates, the Bednarzyks, Rich and his family, teachers...

"Of course," said Larry. He was aware of Matthew's family situation and really liked Lars. "Phil and I would be happy to offer our support however we can."

"Me too," offered Marty. "Rich and I will do what we can."

"I will, too. I'll be back down this way to visit family and will keep tabs on Matthew too," added Wade. "Besides, I think Tim has become fast friends with his brothers."

With that, the men turned to see Matthew walking their way with Michael riding on his back. Tim Whalen was looking up to Matthew with stars in his eyes, hoping he could someday play like his brother and Matthew. Simon, Lukas, Christian, Jaden, and Alex were with them, as well as Jackson, still chatting wildly about the game. Matthew placed his little brother on his feet, but Michael didn't stray. He simply leaned against Matthew to stay as close as possible to his big bro. Tim joined his big bro and did basically the same thing, putting his arm around Wade.

"Great game, Matthew," congratulated Larry. "That was impressive."

Matthew beamed with the praise. "Thank you, coach. That means a lot coming from you."

"What are we? Chopped liver?" asked Wade. "Welcome to the Force family, my man. You're making us proud."

"Thank you," said Matthew.

"He's making us proud too!" added Michael.

Marty stepped over and put his hand on Matthew's shoulder. "I don't give false praise. It's not productive. If you need any confirmation of that, you can ask Coach Sanders. But you've got something special. Keep working and let me know if you ever need anything."

Larry jumped in, "And if you don't believe Marty about his not giving false praise, you can just ask Aiden."

"You know Aiden?" asked Michael.

"Yep," said Marty. "He's my little bro."

"Michael," said Lars, "why don't you and the guys go find something to do so we can talk to Matthew."

Michael rolled his eyes. He hated it when he felt like he was being treated like a little kid.

"Com'on," said Christian, grabbing Michael's hand and leading the others over to the shade trees between the ball field and the school building.

"You go too, Tim," said Wade. "I'll come get you when we're ready to go. I told mom I'd have you home so you can rest up for tomorrow morning's game."

"Coach," asked Jackson addressing his high school coach, "do you mind if I stay?" Larry agreed.

The conversation turned to Matthew as an individual, not the ballplayer.

"That was a helluva performance on the diamond tonight," praised Marty. "Do you ever miss?" The major leaguer's smile let Matthew know he was teasing.

"Yeah, I do," admitted Matthew. "Coming back from our vacation in Europe, I didn't even start for the first week or two. July has just been a hot month."

"Don't be embarrassed about your success, Matthew," advised Coach Davidson. "There is a time to share and get credit for your accomplishments. It's not bragging."

Matthew looked at the ground and kicked a stone. Then he looked at the men he was standing with and stated the facts. "With tonight's game, in the month of July I'm batting .595 with 5 home runs and 29 RBIs. I'm lucky to have great teammates batting in the lineup ahead of me."

Wade asked rhetorically, "And you're playing up two years? Damn."

Lars and Zach understood that Matthew was having a good season so far, but they weren't baseball players. When two major league players and another championship winning coach make a big deal about your son's statistics, it starts really settling in at just how good Matthew could be. Lars felt his pride for his son swell.

Larry asked, "So what is your passion off the diamond?" Everyone expected Matthew to talk about his music and the band.

"Art," said Matthew. With a sense of self-assurance, he gained from time spent with his farfar in Europe, he added, "I'm a sculptor." Coach Davidson was even surprised by that answer. It was something Matthew didn't spend time talking about.

Lars pulled out his smart phone and pulled up photos he'd taken of Matthew's artwork. "Here," he said, offering his phone. The others looked through the photos.

"I'm surprised you didn't say music," said Jackson. Afterall, all the guys from Mayfield had reasoned, if you're making money and traveling the world being part of a rock band, why would you ever give that up.

"That's what I do with my brothers. It's a family thing," explained Matthew. "I love it and enjoy being with them, but professionally, I want to be a sculptor."

"What about baseball?" asked Wade.

"You know as well as I do that in the grand scheme of things, a baseball career is only a small part of your life. Until then, during off seasons, and after I no longer play baseball, I'll have my art. Besides, April, my girlfriend, is a painter. This is something we share."

Larry responded, "It's smart to think that way. Keeping baseball in perspective helps you keep from getting in your own head when you get into a batting slump or recovering from an injury. I'm no art critic, but these are impressive...absolutely incredible." The others agreed.

"Hey," said Jackson. The look on his face showed that he just realized something. "The Forest Grove guys called your brother Michael Grant. That means you're Matthew Grant and you said that you used to go to Mossyrock. Those guys that murdered that old couple over there were looking for you, weren't they? You're the grandson that..."

"Oh wow," interrupted Larry noticing the time on Lars' phone. "Jackson, we need to be getting back to Carlsbad. Let's all exchange numbers. Hopefully we can get together again while we're in California."

They pulled their phones out and made sure they had Lars and Matthew's numbers.

"The BaseBrawl teams are coming to the Mariners' game tomorrow night," noted Marty to Matthew. "Are you coming too?"

"No. I didn't know anything about that."

"I think we can dig up an extra ticket," assured Larry. "Are you available?"

"Yes!" answered Matthew.

Assuming Matthew would make it to the game, Marty added, "Well, make sure you come down and say 'hi' with the rest of the Yard Goats after the game."

Matthew smiled brightly. "I will!"

----------------------     

"Thanks, dad!"

"Thank you, Mr. Schultz," said Najma.

The young couple climbed out of Scott's father's car. "When did you want to be picked up?" asked Earl.

"Two hours," requested Scott. "Najma is expected home by five."

"Okay. Your mother or I will be here to pick you up. Don't make us wait."

Scott rolled his eyes. "We'll be here." He shut the door and waved to his dad as the car pulled away. Turning to his girlfriend, he stated, "I'm still surprised your parents let you come with me."

"I am too," she said, just as surprised and thrilled as Scott. She was also surprised that Scott asked her to go hiking at Buena Vista Park, a city park in Vista with a few miles of hiking trails. "I guess being in a public park seemed safe enough for them to give their consent."

Scott laughed to himself. He imagined the type of trouble Lukas could conjure up on a nature hike in a park like this. 'Errrrr,' he thought to himself, 'stop thinking about Lukas.' He walked over and dropped his backpack on a picnic table. Rifling through his things, he pulled out three field guides, the National Audubon Society's guides to the western region of wildflowers and trees, and the field guide to butterflies. He handed the butterfly guide to Najma.

"What are these for?" asked Najma.

"I thought we could try to identify some of the things we see on our hike.

Hesitantly, Najma answered, "Okay." She looked at the book Scott handed her and wondered who this boy was. Then again, she and Scott had only been allowed to hang out at school and school events. This was the first time the two had gotten to do something outside of school.

"Let's start at the pond," suggested Scott. The park's duck pond was next to the parking lot. Scott assumed that with a body of water there would be plenty of biodiversity and lots of things to identify. Throwing his backpack over his shoulder, he carried the tree and wildflower identification books and headed across the pavement.

"I think there's a bunch of people over there," said Najma apprehensively. "Let's go that way."

Scott listened and heard what sounded like people burping. "I don't think that's people. Those sounds are coming from that bunch of reeds in the water." He moved closer to have a look. Catching the culprit in the process of "burping", Scott laughed. He motioned Najma to come closer. He pointed and one of the Gadwall ducks gave their distinctive "burp-like" quacks. Najma laughed at her mistake and followed Scott to a large tree hanging over the pond.

Resting his hand on the trunk of the tree, he felt the texture of the bark and wondered how old the tree was. The trunk was wide enough that he wouldn't be able to touch his fingers if he hugged it. Making a mental note of the bark pattern, Scott turned his attention to the branch pattern, then the leaves. In some ways, it reminded him of the old tree at the park in Herning.

Najma watched Scott, the ducks, the people in the parking lot, then finally asked, "What kind of tree is it?"

"I don't know, this is my first time out with the field guides," answered Scott. He sat under the tree and opened the tree guide. Attempting to use the guide wasn't something Scott had considered. Now that he had a specific tree he wanted to identify, he had to spend a few minutes understanding how the book was structured so he could use it effectively.

Najma joined him and looked over his shoulder to see what he was doing.

"Here it is," he said excitedly. "This has to be a Coast Live Oak. See..." Held the book so Najma could get a better view of the photos. "The bark matches. See the way the branches start low and reach out kinda janky. And the leaves match too." He stood and retrieved a leaf from the tree so they could more closely compare it to the photo in the book. "It says here that they can grow up to 80 feet tall and the trunk can be up to three to four meters with the oldest getting up to 20 feet around! Can you believe that? This tree must be getting close to that size. And it says here, that the oldest, biggest of this species live to over 250 years old. That means this tree could be older than Old Town San Diego." Kids in the San Diego metro area all learned that Old Town San Diego, the first European settlement in California, was founded in 1769.

"Just imagine all the history, all the things that have happened since this tree was a seedling?" Scott momentarily lost himself in his thoughts and reading about the Coast Live Oak. Najma thought it was cute, but she wasn't nearly as excited as Scott.

They spent a bit more than an hour of their time at the park identifying trees and wildflowers around the duck pond before Najma requested they do some hiking.

Buena Vista Park was essentially a giant hill with a creek running around the bottom of the hill leading to the pond. The hill was a representation of the desert environment around the region. Going off trail would lead you into grassy areas with low shrubbery and wildflowers and areas warning of rattlesnakes. The low-lying areas like the pond and the creek, were riparian zones. A word Scott felt like he probably learned in science class and had forgotten. But according to the Field Guides, riparian zones are the lush, green areas along creeks and ponds.

The day wasn't overly hot, so they chose the trail to the top of the hill. Every time Scott saw something he'd want to look up, Najma made Scott pick it so he could look it up while they continued to walk. The soft yellow desert dandelions, the delicate white desert lilies, and the lush purple sand verbena captured Scott's interest and were recipients of his attention. What he failed to see was the dune evening primrose. Their beautiful white flowers only bloom from evening to mid-morning so he and Najma didn't notice them on their hike. They also found some very fragrant plants that Scott was interested in learning about, but weren't in his field guides.

Returning to the parking lot, they had about 15 minutes before one of Scott's parents would be there to pick them up. Scott put the field guides in his backpack and pulled out a journal so he could list the things he identified. It was a suggestion he read online and after his time here at Buena Vista Park, he realized how valuable keeping track would be. There was no way he would remember everything.

"Did you have fun?" asked Najma.

"Yeah...no...I don't know if I'd call it fun," said Scott. Then he concluded, "Yeah, it was fun."

She looked at him like he had four eyes. "What do you mean?"

He shut his journal and finished packing his bag. Until now, he hadn't tried to explain any of this. That's when he realized how distant he and his girlfriend were. They'd spoken often since school was out. But he realized how much closer he felt when he could see her every school day. But phone calls and texts don't always maintain the intimacy. But he trusted Najma and wanted to rekindle the feelings they shared before the summer. He chose to open up to her.

Scott began, "I don't know how to explain this, so bear with me." He told Najma about his time in Europe and how walking home to the Meijer farm in Herning had sparked something in him. A passion and an intellectual curiosity about nature. This hike was his first time exploring that interest here in California.

"How did it feel?" she asked.

"Wonderful," admitted Scott. "It really felt good to be out here with the trees and nature. I think the things we found and identified are really cool. I love being out in nature."

Najma wondered if there was more to the invitation to hang out with Scott while he communed with nature. It wasn't what she'd expected for a date, but it did seem important to Scott.

"My mom's here," said Scott seeing her car moving slowly through the parking lot as she scanned her surroundings looking for her baby boy. Scott stood and threw his backpack over his shoulder. He reached out to help Najma to her feet then held her hand as they walked to their ride. Smiling to himself, Scott was happy he finally shared what he was feeling with someone.

----------------------     

"Hey Gregory!" chirped Sam answering the Facetime call.

"Hey Sam!" Gregory smiled into his phone's camera. He couldn't help but smile when he saw Sam's smiling face.

"Dad wants to take us out to lunch Saturday. Make sure your 'rents are alright with that." Gregory didn't sound too excited about the lunch date.

Sam ignored Gregory's sour disposition. "You know my mom will be happy about that and my dad will go along with whatever mom wants. But I'll check in with her in a bit."

"You know what this is about, right?"

"Lunch?"

"No," groaned Gregory, "it's about what happened the other night. Dad's gonna take us out to talk to us about getting caught the other night."

"He told you that?" asked Sam.

"No, but this is the same thing he did the first-time mom walked in on us when we were asleep," explained Gregory. "He took me out so we could talk privately. I bet he even takes us to Los Junior's like he did the last time he wanted to have a conversation like this."

"Is that really so bad?" asked Sam. It was one thing that the two often disagreed on. Sam liked that Gregory's parents were interested in their coming out and their relationship. Gregory found it embarrassing that his parents were so aware of what he considered his sex life which he felt should be completely private. Gregory preferred the "don't ask, don't tell" approach seemingly employed by Sam's parents.

"Yes!" replied Gregory emphatically. "Besides, if that was dad who looked in, you know what he saw. Aren't you embarrassed?"

"Dude," said Sam with an air of casualness that seemed uncharacteristic for Sam under the circumstances, "your dad's bi. It's not like he's not done stuff like that before."

The thought of Chaz doing something like that flashed in Gregory's mind. Now he couldn't unsee it. "Ugh! No!"

"What's the issue? He'll be cool about it." Sam then lowered his voice. "Besides, your dad's hot."

"STOP!"

Sam laughed. He loved pushing Gregory's buttons.

"Anyway, make sure you have permission for lunch on Saturday," said Gregory before changing the topic. "Did you hear that some of the guys are skipping lacrosse tomorrow to go cheer on the baseball team with that kid...um...Mason is on?"

"Yeah, I heard about it. What do you want to do?" asked Sam.

Gregory thought for a moment. "Not sure. Let's decide while we work out tomorrow. We can find out more about the ride sharing and game times and stuff."

"Sounds good. See you at the gym."

----------------------     

Marlene opened the door.

"Whew! Thank you for letting me borrow your kitchen again, Mrs. Price," said Alex as he carried bags of groceries to the kitchen. "Jaden is a big help when it comes to making so many cookies."

"And so are our double ovens," added Jaden as he entered the kitchen. "Thanks for letting us use the kitchen to make cookies for Grant and the guys."

"I'm sure they appreciate your efforts," added Marlene. "Besides, I think Jaden prefers pizza for dinner instead of what I was planning to make." When Alex's hands were free, Marlene gave him a huge hug. "And please call me Marlene or mom. Stop calling me Mrs. Price."

Alex blushed from the warmth in which the affection was given. Knowing that Marlene was the sister of Grant's father, he always felt he should be on his absolute best behavior around them. Especially since they must have heard stories about when he lived in Mayfield and he and Grant were getting in trouble. Since Grant's mom blamed it all on him, he could only imagine how terrible those stories made him out to be.

"Thank you," said Alex.

"Now don't forget the cookies for us too," reminded Marlene releasing Alex from her hug. "So, what do you like on your pizza?"

Alex smiled, "Anything's fine."

"He's a pepperoni guy like me," answered Jaden.

"I'll order the pizzas while you guys get those cookies started." Marlene left, looking for her phone.

"What cookies are we going to make tonight?" asked Jaden, digging into the bags to help Alex unpack.

"Alex's Sweet and Salty Surprise, mostly," explained Alex. "But I'm going to make some chocolate chip for Aiden."

----------------------     

April let herself into the Meijer residence. "Hi, Dr. Meijer."

Lars looked toward the front door to see Matthew's girlfriend heading his way. "Hi, April," greeted Lars, rinsing the last of the dishes and adding them to the dishwasher. Zach poked his head out of their home office to greet Matthew's girlfriend.

Drying his hands, Lars dropped the towel on the counter and gave April a hug. "Matthew was getting sore after dinner. He's out back in the hot tub."

"Thank you," she said. There was something cool and easy about dating the son of a gay couple. April certainly appreciated it.

She exited out the back door and headed over to the hot tub. Matthew texted her earlier, so she was wearing her bathing suit under her shorts and top. Matthew's eyes lit up when he saw her. She smiled and dropped her bag on a chair close to the hot tub. He watched as she carefully undressed in preparation for joining him. Sliding into the warm, bubbly water, she scooted next to Matthew.

"Hey, babe," he said, welcoming April into the hot tub. Matthew draped his arm around her shoulders.

April settled in noting the peace and quiet. "I love your brothers, but sometimes I do like things a bit quieter."

"Yeah," laughed Matthew. They'd been acting like crazy heathens until just a little while ago until they decided to go find quiet time for themselves and their beaus. "They were pretty wound up tonight. The 13-and-under game this morning was a great comeback by their new friends. My game ended up being kinda crazy too."

"Oh really? Do tell..."

He didn't bother telling April about the Yard Goats' game, no matter how exciting he found it. He was happy that they'd won. They had played better, but it also meant he would get to see more of Larry, Marty, and the others. But he did recount the game he played against Bakersfield.

After watching a few of Matthew's games and having played a little softball when she was younger, April understood Matthew's retelling of the game and felt the tension he built with his storytelling.

"So, it's the bottom of the seventh inning and we're losing 3-2. Nico gets on base with a walk. He's our tying run. I'm up next and pull a couple of pitches foul. Bakersfield shifts their defense to the left. The next pitch I slap into the right field corner. With no outs, I want to make sure we get the tying run, so we don't lose. Knowing they'd only be able to throw one of us out, coach sends Nico home and I book it to third. That way if they throw out Nico, I'm in position to score. We both end up safe and now I'm the winning run on third base."

April just smiled and listened. In a way, Matthew was over explaining the game, but she understood it was only his excitement - not "mansplaining."

"Paul struck out for our first out. Then Brett grounded to the second baseman who held me at third instead of getting the out at first. It was a smart play. If I scored, we won. Letting a guy get to first, if the next batter hit into a double play, the inning is over, and we go into extra innings. Andrew was up next. He hit a fly ball to left field, but not deep enough for me to tag and make it into home easily. Coach yelled when the ball was caught, and I burned it into home. The throw was hard, but off target. It must have been curving because the catcher moved to catch it and ended up moving right at me. As he dove for the ball, I tried to jump over him but didn't make it. He crashed into my legs, and I went flying. After I landed, I looked for home plate. I crawled over and slapped my hand on it. Apparently, the throw got there just as we collided. A lot of people thought the catcher had caught the ball and tagged me in the collision. Everyone waited for the umpire to make the call. Then I heard him yell, 'Safe!' It was pretty awesome."

He received a kiss from April and a big hug. "Congratulations," she said. "How are you feeling after that collision?"

"A bit achy. That's why I suggested we hit the hot tub tonight."

"Why don't you turn around and let me help massage those aches away?"

----------------------     

Alex looked at his phone one last time before he turned off his bedroom light and went to bed. He never heard back from Josh. It worried him that perhaps a relative died or his mom was sick. He wanted to be there to help if he could. But it was late, and he was tired from all the baking. He checked his alarm clock one last time before turning out the light and rolling over to find a comfy position. Getting his pillows and blanket just right, he zonked out and floated off into dreamland.