Page 60 of Signs and Signals

The game is just about over, here we are at the bottom of the ninth, and we are winning by two runs. No matter what we won this game, the Rangers did not play their best, from what I hear from Emerson, anyway.

We are waiting in the hall across from the locker room, waiting for Atlas to come out. There are a couple journalists waiting beside the door, waiting for the guys to open the door so they can attack their prey.

On the left side of the door is a guy with greasy hair, holding a recorder and some notecards. He is dressed in khaki pants and jacket, with a white dress shirt, which looks more gray than white. Every time he looks our way and licks his lips, I get a chill that runs down my spine.

Beside the creepy guy are two women dressed similarly, dressed to impress, hoping to get the attention of someone huge. Someone that could give them a big pay day if they were interviewed.

On the right side of the door, is another woman, who looks like the complete opposite of the women across from her. She looks like a fairy, if I am being honest, from her strawberry blonde pixie cut, her big blue eyes, pert little nose that tilts upward in the most adorable way. She looks as though she feels out of place, I guess she could be new, and this is her first time in the locker room, attempting to get one of the guys to let you interview them.

Haven keeps staring at her, and I know what she is thinking, she thinks she is Tinkerbell in human form. I nudge her shoulder and when she looks at me, I shake my head at her, her response, an eye roll, a huff, and then goes back to staring at the poor woman. She already looks scared to death; my daughter is probably making her uncomfortable the way she is gawking at her.

Moments later, the door to the locker room opens and they guys start pouring out. Haven and I know better than to move from our spot, Atlas told us that it is mayhem down here due to the journalists. Atlas is never one of the first ones out the door anyway, so we may as well stay put.

As the players pile into the hallway, the fairy takes a step back, her eyes look bigger than they were before, I know that look well, she is scared. As for the others, they are like vultures. They yell a different player’s name when the one theycalled earlier doesn’t respond right away. Atlas was right, this is mayhem.

I keep my eye on Tink, the poor woman looks like she is on the verge of a panic attack. I grab Haven’s hand, and we fight our way to where the woman stands. Haven is thrilled, she is probably thinking, Atlas is going to yell at us for moving, but it is going to be worth it to meet a real-life fairy. The smile on her face is definitely giving her away.

“Excuse me, ma’am, hi, are you okay?” I ask her, she looks as though she is trying to disappear inside the wall.

“Oh, uh, y-yeah. I’m cool. Are y-you okay?” she asks, which confuses me a little, but I go along with it. If anyone could make someone’s stress melt away it is Haven.

“My name is Indya, and this is my daughter, Haven. I don’t know if you noticed, but she has been staring at you for an uncomfortable amount of time. She thinks you are Tinkerbell in human form,” I whisper the last part, giving her a little wink, so she knows we are not going to harm her.

“Oh! That’s new. I mean—” she starts giggling, her cheeks heat, “—I’m not Tinkerbell, but my name is Joey. This place is insane. Sorry. I get a little anxiety-ridden in an outrageous crowd, but I guess I need to get used to it if I want to be taken seriously as a journalist.”

My eyes widen, oh my goodness, I bet she is the Joey that Atlas was telling me about. I am smiling so hard, I am probably freaking her out, but who cares? Atlas is going to be thrilled to see her again.

I look down to Haven and tell her my theory, and she gets a look on her face and says,Atlas knew Tinkerbell this entire time and has never brought her over to play. That is so rude. I’m giving his bracelet to Zan for that.

I just laugh, and when I look up Joey has her head tilted to the side, confused. So, I explain, how she is hearing impairedand then tell her what she said about Atlas. She starts to laugh as well. Which is also fairy-like, soft but high pitched. Maybe she shouldn’t have worn the green dress that stops a little above her knee with gladiator sandals. She is so giving fairy vibes.

I feel him before I see him, and when I turn, he has a pissed off expression on his face as he stands in the exact spot where we are supposed to be waiting. Haven releases my hand and makes a run toward him. She may be tiny, but she is plowing through the journalists and players standing between her and her destination. When Atlas sees her his face lights up, losing all the irritation that was there just moments ago.

I see him signing, and asking where I am, Haven points our way, his gaze follows her little finger.

“Indy, what I told you it was chaos—” he stops speaking when he sees Joey.

“Joey! How the hell are you?” Atlas exclaims. The last time he saw her was when he went to her job to confront James, but didn’t get to speak to her.

“Hi, I’m okay. How about you? Great game by the way,” Joey says shyly.

I elbow Atlas in his side, well it is more like his waist, because I am not that tall and he towers over me, getting him to calm down and to actually see she is kind of freaking out right now. Not because of the athletes, but because of the crowd.

“Atlas, where is Zander?” I ask, giving him a smirk. It takes him two seconds to realize what I am going on about, and he is down with the plan for Joey to interview them both.

Zander is still in the locker room, he likes to wait until the journalists leave because he says that they don’t care about the game or the player, they care about the paycheck. So, it is rare for anyone to get an interview with him after a game, especially when it isn’t one that is scheduled. I grab Joey’s hand pullingher along with me, I have a hold of Atlas’s belt loop, and he is carrying Haven, so she doesn’t get lost in the crowd.

Thankfully it is quiet inside the locker room and Zander and Atlas agree to let Joey interview them both. They were not only impressed by her professionalism, but the questions she asked. If they would have seen her earlier, they would never have believed this was the same woman. She is confident, professional, and very knowledgeable in the sport and all the players. It is really impressive. I am impressed and so are the guys.

Joey and I exchange numbers, and I tell her I need her to meet my best friend, and we all need to hang out. She almost doesn’t believe me when I tell her that, but my goal is to make friends, and she gets to be the guinea pig.

Look at me, mama, I am making friends, new ones, not people I meet through other people. Me. I did this, and I think Joey and I are going to be great friends.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Atlas

The entire Legends team is stressing the fuck out right now. We are about to play the sixth game of the series, and if we lose, the Rangers will win the World Series for the second year in a row. If we win, we will go on to play the seventh and final game, and whoever comes out on top of that game, will be the victors of it all.

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