Page 101 of The Shake Off

For the second time today, I couldn’t hold in the grin as I watched Ace jog out, his gloved hand held high as he waved to the home crowds.Hishome crowd.

I couldn’t blink. I didn’t want to miss a nanosecond of his arrival, clad in the black and gold uniform which fitted his body like a second skin, beaming out his ever-present grin. As much as I hadn’t wanted him to see me ogling, I tried not to be disappointed when he didn’t even notice me as he ducked under the awning and disappeared into the dugout.

The cheers didn’t die down.

It had been two months since I’d been reading sports news, and in that time, Ace had gone from being vilified to being loved once more. From the volume today, it was like he’d never fucked up to begin with. It was crazy, enough to give anyone whiplash. For the first time, I understood how desperate he’d been to fix his game.

How much pressure he was under to perform.

How much rested on his ability to pitch.

It was quickly becoming clear to me that I was now surplus to requirements.

We hadn’t discussed the party on Saturday or what would happen after, and the more I thought about it, the more my stomach churned. The whole thing had me reaching for the bottle of Tylenol and rubbing my temples.

I needed distraction, and peered down the row to the girls. “Hey, do you girls want hot dogs?”

Lowe nodded. “Yeah, I’m hungry. Let’s get another round of beers, too.”

Aside from the view, another bonus of sitting in the owner’s seats were the hot dog and beer dispenser guys who appeared to be assigned to us. No sooner did I signal one over than they both appeared. By the time Lowe and I had taken five of each and handed them around, the whole lineup had run out, along with The White Sox, and were now on the field warming up.

Ace and Parker had moved to the spot in front of the bleachers on the left-hand side, where little kids were up against the railings watching them throw and catch. So obviously, that’s what I did too. Every half a dozen balls, Ace would toss one over the railings and all the kids would leap in the air to catch it. By the time the boys were called off the field, he must have given ten balls away.

“That’s seriously cute.”

I turned to Kit to see what she was talking about, only to find she’d been watching the show I had.

“Yeah, it is,” I grinned at her. “Think I’ve got time to pee before the game starts?”

“Totally. We’re not batting first.”

“I know, but I don’t want to miss top of the first,” I replied, hoping I wouldn’t have to explain, but her frown made it clear I did because we rarely cared about the opposing team batting. “I don’t want to miss Ace pitching.”

A sly smile curved her lips. “Then hurry.”

Thankfully I was in sneakers, therefore managed to sprint up the steps as quickly as my legs would carry me. Also, thankfully, there was a bathroom right at the top of the steps. I wasn’t sure if it had been strategic so that no-one in the exec seats had to walk halfway around the stadium to pee, but I was grateful none the less because you could miss half the game looking for a bathroom in this place. The National Anthem began as I unbuttoned my jeans, and after peeing as quickly as I could, I still made it back to the seats with a minute to spare, dropping into my seat with a big puff of air.

“Okay,” I started and looked down the row at the girls. “Marnie, who’s going to win this game?”

She steepled her fingers together and drummed her fingertips as she thought about it. “It’ll be a close score today, closer than we’ve seen recently. The White Sox are having a good season, but maybe we’ll edge them out, seeing as we’re on home ground.”

“Beulah?”

“I’m going with Lions winning by one.”

I looked at Lowe and Kit, who spoke for the pair of them. “Same. We’re winning today, especially with you and your magic vagina as our secret weapon.”

The sip of beer Marnie had just taken got snorted out, and she choked hard until she spluttered for air. Little droplets of beer foam were dripping off the end of her nose. Lowe was laughing so much that tears leaked into the creases of her eyes. In the end, Beulah slapped Marnie on the back while summoning the hot dog guy for more napkins.

“You okay, Marn?”

“Yeah,” Marnie croaked. “Wasn’t expecting that.”

“You and me both,” I grinned at her.

“Okay!” Kit clapped her hands loudly, rubbing them together. “Let’s see if we’re right, shall we?”

We all faced forward as The Lions took to the field.

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