Page 72 of Love By The Falls

“Especially not these tickets.”

We walk down a narrow hallway, separating us from the crowd, and there are steel plates outside each door, mostly names of big corporations in the city.

“This is us,” says Austin, and I read the sign on the door. “Owner’s Box”.

“What?” says Jane when she walks inside. “Is this for real?” she whispers when she sees other people sitting in the seats below.

“Surprise,” says Austin. “It’s been killing me to hold this in ever since Casey told me what sort of seats these are.”

The boys ignore the tables and chairs in the room and run down to the reserved seats below. Our view is between home plate and first base, and while we have a perfect view of the whole stadium, we can still read the names on the players’ jerseys as they warm up tossing the ball.

“Holy shit,” I say, looking around, drinking in every detail around us. There are silver warming dishes on a table at the back and a man wearing a black-and-white uniform approaches. “Can I get you something to drink? Beer, wine, or soda?”

“Ah…” I’m too stunned to answer. “I’ll have sparkling water with lemon, please.”

He turns to Jane. “And for you, ma’am?”

She smiles and pretends to think about it. I know Jane is just as impressed as I am, but apparently better at hiding it. “What brands of beer do you have?”

“We have several local and imported ones.”

“I’ll take a Coors Light. Thanks.”

I sidle up to her. “You played that like a boss,” I say, covering my mouth to hold back a smirk.

Jane crosses her arms and raises her chin, and I lose the battle, laughing loudly next to her. She joins in easily and Austin looks at us over his shoulder. His eyebrows rise, questioning what we’re laughing at, and Jane waves him off.

“Wow, it’s warm in here,” I say, taking off my jean jacket. Now that I’m not in town, I permitted myself to wear a tight dress that shows off my newly formed baby bump. It’s still tiny, but it’s nice not to hide the pregnancy. I haven’t told anyone yet—not even my parents. It’s just never the right time. So, today feels liberating not to have to hide from anyone.

“Oh, you look so cute,” says Jane, staring at my bump. “You’ve always had the perfect pregnancy body. With Charlie, you looked like you stuffed a basketball under your shirt while I looked like I ate the entire team.”

We both laugh when the server returns with our drinks. “Thank you,” I say, accepting the bubbly glass of water.

“Please stand for the playing of our National Anthem,” says the announcer, and we walk down to our seats next to Austin and the boys.

Austin reminds the boys to remove their caps and place them over their hearts. The gesture is enduring, and I inhale to get a grip on my hormones as I want to cry. I’m so happy right now.

“Oh, say can you see…”

The sun shines down on the seats below us, but we’re covered in the shade. A gentle breeze ruffles my hair, and I push the loose strands away from my face. Closing my eyes, I sing along and feel the energy of the crowd, the moment, and the blessings around me. “Thank you,” I whisper.

The song ends with an eruption of applause, hoots, and catcalls. We take our seats, and I leave my baseball cap off since I no longer need it.

Casey is the starting pitcher, and we receive some nasty looks when we stand and cheer for him. I’m sure it’s confusing since we’re wearing Lions baseball caps, yet we’re cheering for a Jets player. But we’re loyal like that.

His first pitch is a strike, and the Lions player steps out of the box. At the next pitch, he pops the ball aboveCasey’s head and he easily catches it to get the first out. We cheer and the fans next to us boo.

“Hey, that’s our friend up there,” says Charlie. And I’m proud of him for sticking up for us. We faithfully cheer when the next batter strikes out, but silently whoop when Casey picks him off at first base.

My stomach growls loudly when the next batter comes to the plate, and Austin hears it. “I’ll go check if they’ve brought the food out yet.”

“No, no. I’ll go,” I say, but Austin is already up and puts his hand on my shoulder. “I got it.”

I turn to Jane. “You really lucked out with that one.”

“I know.”

The breeze picks up, and I put my jacket back on. I put my arm around Charlie, and he looks up at me. “Can I get a soda?”

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