Chapter 78

Ted Billings smiled broadly when a carload of women pulled up to drop off his first-round draft pick.

“They’re staying, right?” he asked. “Stacy will murder me if they don’t. I told her that she wouldn’t be the only one in the stands this year.”

“They’re just going to park,” Phil assured him with a laugh. “I asked them to watch for Stacy and invite her to sit with them. I had some classes with her last year. I didn’t know you two were dating.”

“Engaged,” Ted said proudly. “We’ve been together since I was in 10^th grade and she was a freshman. Our parents made us promise to wait until one of us graduates to get married or we’d already have done it. We live together – but don’t let her parents know.”

“My lips are sealed,” Phil promised. It was an easy promise to make since the odds on him actually meeting Stacy’s parents were practically nil. “Hey, before I forget, we’re having a little cookout later at our house. Would you and Stacy like to join us? It’s nothing major, just burgers and dogs off the grill.”

“That sounds like fun,” Ted said. “Thanks, man.”

“Bring your swimsuits because we have a pool,” Phil added. “Oh, and I think a bunch of us are heading up to Summer Fun Fest again. Bob took Katelyn up there last night and she said it was a blast.”

“Bob Prohl,” Ted asked, “the quietest guy I know? He went out with one of those girls you drove up with? Are you serious?”

“I’m serious,” Phil said. “It was their first date so go easy on him.”

“Which one is Katelyn?” Ted asked, watching as the women walked down the sidewalk to the field. “I know you’re dating Hailey – everyone knows her. I don’t know the others. Oh, wait, I guess it’s the girl who’s not your girlfriend and not holding hands with another girl. Did I suss that out or what?”

“First try even,” Phil joked. “It’s not a problem about Tiffany and Molly, is it?”

“You tell me,” Ted said with half a shrug. “I don’t know either of them so how would I know if it’s a problem?”

Phil rolled his eyes.

“Oh, you mean do I care if they hold hands?” Ted asked as though he just figured it out. “I don’t care at all. Stacy won’t care either.”

“How about the fact that Katelyn is black and Bob isn’t?” Phil inquired, deciding bluntness worked just as well as finesse.

“He’s not?” Ted asked, feigning shock. “That man has some explaining to do. He checked African-American on the scholarship papers. That’s the only way he got into Heilman. Shit, Phil, I know you have to ask but it doesn’t make a damn to us what they are. My parents split when I was 10 and my dad was miserable for years afterward. He finally met someone nice – and she died last summer. I thought he was going to die right along with her. The woman my dad met was from Cambodia and I didn’t care at all. She made him happy. She was only with us for two years but I loved her just like she was my Mom. Love is too scarce a commodity to worry about things you can’t change.”

Phil nodded appreciatively.

“See, all those foul tips I’ve taken off my head has done me some good,” Ted joked. “You head on in and get your jersey. We’re the home team and we get green.”

“Why’d you take home team instead of first pick,” Phil wondered. “It’s not like the game means anything in the grand scheme of things.”

“I like the white pants that go with them,” Ted said with a laugh. “The all-gray uniforms make my butt look fat.”

“Christ,” Phil muttered as he turned away. Ted hooked his arm.

“Two reasons,” Ted said, “neither to do with my ass. Bob deserved to be the first pick. He’s the best player on the team and we all know it.”

“Yeah,” Phil admitted.

“And I knew I could get the guy I wanted with the second pick and get to be home team,” Ted concluded. “The difference between Bob and his backup isn’t as stark as between you and Jones. Plus you can pitch an inning or two so I didn’t have to waste a pick on a pitcher. I’ve got a stronger bench, more power in the lineup and the best pitcher on the team. I thought this through.”

“Uh, thanks,” Phil said, slightly embarrassed.

“And before I forget, this game does mean something so we’re playing to win,” Ted said.

Phil met his gaze.

“One thing you should know, Ted. I always play to win.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” the catcher said. “Go get your uniform. You’re here early so you can have your pick of numbers if it’s available.”

Phil nodded and met the assistant coach in the home team dugout.

“Oh, good,” the guy said, “what number do you want?”

“Whatever fits,” Phil said.

“You don’t have a favorite?” the coach wondered.

“One-seventy-four but that won’t fit on my back,” Phil replied. “Seriously, it doesn’t matter to me and I’m sure it does to some of the others. I’ll trade if you give me one someone else wants. I just want a jersey that will contain my massive biceps and pecs.”

Phil gave a body builder’s pose and the coach laughed. He stood six-feet tall but weighed only about 180.

“I like you, Warner,” he said. “You’re going to bring something to this team we’ve lacked. You’re all out on the field but off the field you’re not afraid to keep it loose. Here, I’ll give you my old number. Is 13 OK?”

“Sure but don’t you want it?” Phil asked.

“Coaches get numbers in the 50s,” he explained. “You’ll do it proud. There was no one last year I thought could do it justice so I kept in the box.”

“Great, a jersey that hasn’t been washed since it was worn two years ago,” Phil joked. The coach tossed him the button down shirt and then sifted through a box for a pair of pants his size. The last item was sanitary socks and stirrups but those were one size fits all.

Phil walked to the end of the dugout and pulled his shorts down.

“Hey, Warner, there is a bathroom, for Christ’s sake,” the coach yelled. “There are women in the stands for once.”

“His girlfriend and roommates,” Ted said, coming around the corner. “The way they’re hooting and laughing I don’t think they’re offended.”

Phil stood on his spikes while he pulled on his pants and the socks. He put his jersey on over his undershirt and Ted saw the number.

“Hey, all right!” the catcher said. “Good to have that out of mothballs. If I didn’t like No. 5 so much I would have asked for it. Bob’s the same way with No. 11. Did you ask or did he offer?”

“He gave it to me,” Phil said. “He said it used to be his number. I promised him I’d do my best not to embarrass it.”

“You’ll be fine,” Ted said. “I think your entourage wants a private moment. Just make sure you’re back in the dugout before Skip comes.”

“Sure, Ted,” Phil agreed and he jogged across the field to the fence that separated the playing field from the small bleachers on the third base line.

“What’s your number?” Hailey asked when she came down to meet him.

“Thirteen,” Phil told her.

“That was my number!” Katelyn exclaimed. “Cool.”

“What’s Bob’s number?” Hailey whispered.

“Eleven,” Phil said.

“And Ted’s?” she asked again in a soft voice.

“Five,” Phil answered. “Don’t ask me any others because those are all I know.”

“I’m going to take some of the bonus money your mom paid me and buy us all jerseys,” Hailey informed him. “I saw them on sale last year at one of the stores in the student center. They had a bunch of numbers. I want one with your number on it. I was going to get one for Katelyn with Bob’s and one for Stacy with Ted’s. Do you think that’s too much?”

“What about Molly and Tiff?” Phil asked.

“I was going to get one with a six and the other with a nine,” Hailey said with a mischievous grin. “What size should I get Stacy?”

“The same size you get Molly?” he wondered. “Are you going now?”

“We have an hour and fifteen minutes before you start,” Hailey said. “I’ll just tell them you forgot your cup or something. Cute tush by the way.”

“Don’t spend a lot of money,” he cautioned. “You earned that money. Nothing was given to you.”

“I know and I want to share with the friends I almost lost this summer and with the new friend I hope we make,” Hailey said. “I won’t go crazy but she gave me a $5,000 bonus for staying that extra week.”

“Jesus Christ,” Phil said. “I would have stayed for half of that.”

“You ain’t got what I got, Babe,” she said with a wink. “Give me a kiss before I go – unless it’s forbidden or something.”

Phil lifted his cap off his head and kissed her softly on the lips.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“I get a little gooshy every time you tell me that,” Hailey told him with a sultry smile. “Do really good today and I’ll have a special surprise for you tonight.”

“You with a bow around your waist?” Phil asked hopefully.

“Stop or I’ll have to swing by the house and put on some panties,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows. “Wouldn’t want my gooshy pussy to cause a scene.”

“You ever try to run with a hard-on?” Phil asked.

“Uh, no,” Hailey said. “Then stop before I have to try to figure out how,” Phil said. “Get your cute little tushy on the move if you’re going.”

“Will do, Boss,” Hailey said. “See you in a while.”

Stacy arrived a few minutes later and Katelyn immediately ushered her up to join them. Phil’s team was loosening on the sidelines while the other team took infield. Phil saw Stacy wave to her boyfriend, who was Phil’s partner in long toss.

Hailey arrived about 15 minutes before game time and the five young women disappeared into the bathroom. They didn’t emerge for a few minutes but when they did all activity stopped.

Phil was in the middle of coming in from fielding practice and almost tripped over the foul line. The coach hitting the ball to the infielders stopped in mid-swing and turned to see why all of his infielders were looking toward the bathrooms. One of the players on the other team got hit with a thrown ball when he caught a glimpse and turned his head to get a better view.

The jerseys they wore were the team colors of green, gray and white. Hailey and Stacy both wore gray; Katelyn had on green and Molly and Tiffany wore white. Almost the entire team stopped to watch them – not only because of the novelty of having fans but because the jerseys were unbuttoned to show a hint of cleavage and were long enough that no one could tell if the females wore anything underneath.

It wasn’t until they lifted the hem to sit down that anyone could see their short shorts beneath. Phil made it to the dugout steps and glanced down to see the manager looking up at him.

“It wasn’t my idea,” Phil said quickly.

“Figures,” the guy said. “I thought I might have someone on the team with half a brain. Turns out you’re a dumbass like the rest of these numb nuts.”

Then the oddest thing happened. The man actually smiled. In a week of practice Phil had never seen that particular expression on the skipper’s face. He’d seen agitation; he’d seen consternation; he’d seen resignation and maybe even constipation. He had never seen a smile. It took him a moment to regain his equilibrium. By that time, Ted was patting him on the back.

“Thanks for including Stacy in that,” he said earnestly.

“That was Hailey,” Phil pointed out. “She told me she was going to do it and asked for your number so she could get the right jersey for Stacy.”

Ted sat down for a moment and got a drink of water. Catching was brutal anytime but it was worse when the humidity is high – as it was that Saturday morning.

“I heard some really nasty stories about her last year,” he said.

“All true, probably,” Phil cut in. “It took her some time to get her priorities right. She figured out that treating people well goes a lot farther than seeing how much you can use them. I had a few study groups with Stacy last year and I know she’s a really nice person. I knew she had a boyfriend but I didn’t know it was you. Hailey just wanted her to know she has some more friends if she wants them.”

“The problem with living in town is that you don’t make friends easily,” Ted said. “Your old ones have mostly gone away and you don’t have any new ones to replace them.”

“Tell me about it,” Phil lamented. He related his story from the year before.

“Then you know,” Ted replied. “This is my last year at Heilman. Stacy has another after this year. I was little worried about leaving. I’m planning to join the Navy next summer but I was going to delay enlistment for a year. Neither of us wanted to do that but I was really worried about what would happen to her if she was here with nobody. This might be a start to seeing those worries disappear.”

“I hope so,” Phil said. “I can tell you’re a straight-up guy. I hope we can become friends this year, too.”

“That would be nice,” Ted agreed. “I don’t go to parties or to the clubs. I’ve spent most of my college life hanging out with Stacy. It’s been great but I don’t want to listen to other people tell stories about all the crazy shit they did in college and have nothing to add.”

They gray team finished warm-ups about that time and the green team took the field. The game cruised along without much happening until the top of the fourth. Bob led off with a walk and the number two hitter bunted him to second. The third hitter hit a blooper to shallow right and Phil took off at a sprint, calling out that he would make the catch. Just before he got to it, the second baseman dove in front of him, catching Phil across the shins with his shoulder and sending Phil sprawling face-first across the grass.

The ball dropped for a hit and Bob raced home. The batter wound up on third by the time the first baseman hustled out and tracked down the ball. Phil felt like kicking the second baseman in the ribs when he got to his feet. The lazy fucker wouldn’t move five feet to his left for a grounder but runs out 40 feet for a ball that wasn’t his to catch.