Page 12 of The Perfect Hit

6

Colt

“What are you up to?” Nate asked, hitting me on the back when I got to the lunchroom the day of tryouts. There weren’t many days where we ate lunch at school, but the turkey with mashed potatoes and gravy was a hit among the baseball team.

“Just trying to keep my grades from tanking,” I said.

I’d struggled with one of the newer math concepts and had stayed after a few minutes for the teacher to explain it to me. Not that I would admit all that in front of the guys. We all had our things we’d had to conquer over the past year, and I didn’t want math to get in the way of playing baseball.

I preferred preparation now rather than sitting on the bench during games or, worse, living at the library until I brought it back up.

Sterling had been the one to test that, always having to go in and ask his teachers for extra credit and mercy for turning in late assignments. Nash and Wyatt hadn’t gotten into too much trouble yet, but it was a daily conscious thing for me, always making sure I was caught up or ahead of the upcoming schoolwork just so I could keep my grades higher.

But I’d figured out that if I could just keep on top of what the topic was right then, instead of procrastinating, I could usually get through things pretty easily. I was no genius like Nate, but I didn’t have to be. A little studying and not putting off my homework made all the difference.

“What do you mean?” Logan asked.

Nate leaned in. “Colt’s dad won’t let him play unless he keeps his grades up.”

Logan looked perplexed. “Your dad? The one who yells and cheers really loud at the games?”

I nodded, feeling a mixture of pride and humiliation at that. With all the overtime, he’d missed a bunch of our fall ball games, but when he could make it, he was probably the biggest Rosemont Royal fan out there.

“Great, I’m sitting between a genius and another kid who does his homework.” Logan dipped his roll in the gravy, taking a big bite.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, pulling the plastic silverware out of the package, my eyebrow raised as I waited for his answer.

Logan shrugged. “Just that school is kind of lame. I’m not going to need calculus or trigonometry when I graduate.”

I may not have been convinced of it either, but it didn’t hurt to learn it now, just in case. “Are you planning on farming for the rest of your life?”

“No,” Logan said, shaking his head from side to side slowly. “But that’s not the worst thing a guy can do.”

“Then what can it hurt? You might as well suffer through it now and be done.”

Nate nodded. “If you’re having trouble in those subjects, I can help. They aren’t that tough when you figure out the secrets.”

I smiled at Nate, liking the new change in him. A few weeks ago, none of us even knew about his past, but finding out he was a child genius hadn’t changed our opinions of him. Now that he was more open about it all, I could see a different kind of satisfaction.

“How’s Hazel’s play going?” Nate asked, stuffing a scoop of mashed potatoes in his mouth after.

“She said auditions start today.”

“What if she asks you to star in it?” Nate’s eyes focused on my expression, and I probably resembled a fish out of water with all the air I was drinking in.

The question was different from my brothers’ teasing on Sunday. They’d suggested I’d join just because I wanted to, but Nate had phrased it as Hazel asking. That put a different spin on it.

I shook my head. “There’s no way she’s going to ask me to be in the play. She knows how important this year is for our team.”

“But what if she said she’d go out with you if you were in it?” Logan pointed his plastic spoon in my direction, as if trying to emphasize it more.

That question caused me to pause at the worst time ever, because the rest of the table had stopped talking about whatever and turned to look at me.

“I don’t know. I guess it would depend on the timing.” I turned my baseball cap around so the bill was down my back, feeling my palms start to sweat with this kind of attention.

“You’re actually thinking about it?” Dax asked, lifting his cup to take a drink.

I blinked several times, wishing this was some strange dream I would wake up from. A white lie formed. “I hadn't really thought about it until Logan said something. Guys, I know I’m not a huge impact player on the team, but I want to be there for our wins.”

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