Page 54 of Home Field Advantage
“And I’m Sage,” she chimes in. “This is my daddy, and I love baseball, too.”
I watch her as she walks over to the girl who just told us she would be a killer outfielder and introduces herself. My daughter is so bold and brave. She’s open to opportunities and making friends. She reminds me so much of myself, and I hate that it’s taken me so damn long to see it.
After we go through a round of introductions, the kids all grab their gloves. I hope I can remember their names by the end of practice. “Okay, let’s get this started. Since we’re inside, we’ll focus on the fundamentals, such as catching. I brought some tennis balls to start. Now let’s form two lines.”
The kids scatter around the gym like a group of cats in a bathtub.
“Two lines,” I shout again, gesturing with my hands like an airline marshal.
This is going to be harder than expected.
When they finally form two lines as best they can, I look around. Most of them are ready to go. Except I have one spinning in circles and another lying on the ground.
“Gabe, I’m going to toss you the tennis ball. Put your glove out in front of you to catch it.”
He nods in response, but when I let the ball out of my hands as lightly as possible, he leans forward dramatically, and it hits him in the forehead.
“You tried to kill me!” Gabe shrieks.
Tucker laughs off to the side, and I give the kid a knowing look before grabbing another one and tossing it to Sammy, the girl with the brightest glitter shoes I’ve ever seen. But she misses it completely, moving her glove just before the ball would have landed safely inside of it.
“You throw like my baby cousin,” she huffs, stomping her foot and crossing her arms over her chest.
Coaching isn’t new to me.
But coaching these kids? I feel completely fucking out of my element.
I decide to let them play catch with each other, standing off tothe side and watching as they run around, chasing balls in twelve different directions.
I notice Tucker watching me from the corner of my eye and do a double-take.
“You know, you can stop staring at me like a butterfly that’s going to fly away.”
He laughs, and it echoes in the gym. “You’re nothing like a butterfly. More like a bear. You’re like a bear we don’t normally see in town.”
“I…have no idea how to take that.”
Just as he opens his mouth to respond, the gym door behind us opens with a creak. We both turn to find Poppy walking in. My eyes trail over her body without skipping a beat. She’s wearing a pair of slim-fit jeans and a T-shirt covered by a yellow cardigan hanging over one shoulder. Once I reach her face again, the sounds of the kids shouting and their sneakers scuffing across the court are drowned out by the smile on her face.
God, she’s beautiful.
It’s not the first time I thought this, and it won’t be my last.
Her hair falls in loose, natural curls, and she tucks some behind her ear as she walks in our direction.
“I’m sorry,” she says. “It sounded like someone was being attacked as I was heading out for the day, and I thought I would check it out.”
Gabe runs to stand next to me, entirely out of breath. “That was me, Miss Barlow. Coach tried to assassinate me with a tennis ball.”
Poppy’s eyes widen, and Tucker barks out a laugh. “Pop, this is the most interesting afternoon of my life. I’m so glad I was asked to be an assistant coach because this is going to be the new highlight of the week for me.”
“You? Assistant coach?”
I roll my eyes. “He wasn’t actually asked.”
“NowthatI believe.” She laughs.
And the sound echoes off the walls, vibrating through me. Itwasn’t loud in the sense that everyone could hear it, but it shook me. Hearing her laugh will always have that effect on me. I want to bottle it up and listen to it whenever I feel I need a smile.
