Page 29 of The Perfect Hit

Without saying anything, she got back out of the truck, and I was more confused about where she would go without saying goodbye.

She opened the driver’s side door and said, “Scoot over.”

“What do you mean?”

She rolled her eyes. “Scoot over. I’ll drive you home.”

“What about your car?” I asked, still not budging.

“It’ll be fine here. I’ve got it all locked up, and no one is going to steal that thing. Not when there are BMWs and Teslas all over the parking lot.”

I laughed as she used both hands to push me, making me fall over headfirst onto the seat. I finally scooted over, having a hard time getting my foot around the hump in the middle.

“What are you doing here so late?” I asked her as she put the truck into reverse.

The clock on the dash said 7 pm, and I knew she wasn’t having play practice. At least, I hoped I hadn’t missed it. Now that I’d committed to both things, I wanted to see them through, but it was getting tricky to juggle it all.

She gave me a sheepish grin. “So, I’ve been walking all over the stage, trying to get the blocking for the third and fourth scenes down. I hate wasting everyone’s time when I’m trying to do it during rehearsals, so I figured I’d spend some time doing it tonight. Hopefully, it will make for a more productive practice tomorrow and we can go over the scene more than once in a night.”

After taking a right onto the road outside the school, she glanced over at me. “I’m guessing the game didn’t go so well, huh?”

I thought about that for a moment. Even in reflection, I went through so many emotions as I thought about my hit and then getting injured. And then seeing Adam in my spot sent my irritation spiking.

With a quick shrug, I said, “No, it wasn’t bad. We actually killed them. But I got a little more aggressive than usual, mostly because I got a decent hit. I made it to second base, where I rolled my ankle. Ben said nothing is torn, but I need to rest tonight and probably tomorrow.”

I didn’t want to let anyone down, least of all Hazel.

“That’s okay. We’ll just put a chair out for you to sit in while we rehearse. I mean, if that’s what you want to do.” She bit her bottom lip, looking nervous about something.

“What do you mean? I want to be in the play.” I didn’t want to be angry at her for the question, but it made me wonder if she didn’t want me there at all.

She glanced over at me for a few seconds and then asked, “You didn’t just join because of me? Because I’ve been paranoid about everything?”

“No, well, maybe it started out that way, but I really like this. It’s something different, and I don’t have people breathing down my neck about it. There’s so much pressure with baseball this year, and I just needed something that wasn’t being forced on me, you know?”

She sat back, a curious expression beaming back at me. “But you love baseball. That’s been your life for, like, ever.”

I thought about her words and realized they were true. “Yes, because that was what I knew. But stepping out of my comfort zone has been a lot of fun. I mean, I’m still not the best one on the stage, but I like the challenge.”

“Don’t you find baseball a challenge anymore?” She adjusted her hands on the wheel and turned to look at me for a split second before glancing back out at the road.

I chuckled. “Wow, you’re hitting all the deep questions today.”

She laughed too. “Sorry, it’s just interesting to hear you talk about this, like baseball is just another part of you instead of your whole life.”

Moments of silence filled the cab as we continued to drive down the road, getting closer to our neighborhood.

“Is that a bad thing?” I said just above a whisper.

Her slight hesitation caused me to panic. “No, I don’t think so. It’s just different. I guess you might feel the same if I suddenly decided to join the softball team.” She stopped a second and then said, “Full disclosure, that’s not happening. You saw me at your family’s Turkey Bowl game. I’d be lucky not to break my nose or something every time.”

We both laughed about that, long and hard. When I settled down, I said, “I just hope you know I’m here for you, no matter what changes happen.”

She gave me a thin-lipped smile and nodded. “Right back atcha. Now let’s get you inside and fix your ankle.”

The smile and the care she took while getting me out of the truck only made me want to kiss her. I just hoped that one day soon she’d feel the same about me.

18

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