The Hitting Zone

Mrs. Atkins found the missing members of the family and brought them back to us. As a group, we headed to our designated field where we would play game one.

Zeke led the pack, with his parents right behind him. Noah and I walked behind them, with the twins behind us. As we maneuvered through the crowd, my eyes started to drift around as I took in my surroundings. This tournament had the same amount of teams as the other one, but Zeke was right about there being more people and it wasn't just students. Besides...what kind of students would want to wake up this early to watch some high school baseball? Our school was three hours away and I couldn't imagine anyone coming to watch us play potentially only one game.

Someone bumped into the back of my shoulder, making me think it was one of the twins. I quickly turned to see what they wanted, but was greeted by an unfamiliar face. The older man apologized and kept walking. I stopped and looked for the twins, then for Noah, and then for anyone I knew...

They were gone! I must have gotten separated when my eyes started to wander. I clutched the straps of my bag and frantically searched for them with my eyes. But it was no use. I was too short, and there were too many people. My panic started to rise.

"You look lost, son." An old man approached me, giving a gentle expression.

I gulped. Then nodded.

He looked me up and down. "You look familiar somehow. What school do you go to?" He looked at my hat, which only had a W on it. Mr. Atkins jacket covered my school's name and I thought about revealing it.

But, his words struck a chord from within. 'Familiar'..? Now that he mentions it...I feel like I've seen him before. Maybe it's his voice. I squinted, trying to recall the escaping memory.

It suddenly hit me. Stranger danger! Zeke said that to me before when an old man tried talking to me. His face wasn't clear in the bright sun, but his voice was distinguishable. I started to back up to try and get away. Back then, Zeke said to avoid adults I don't know when I'm alone because they could have not-so-good intentions.

The old man noticed my odd behavior and raised an eyebrow. "What is it? You don't need help?"

I shook my head as fast as I could. I didn't want his help. Not at all.

"Coach! There you are!" A tall kid in his baseball uniform grabbed the coach's attention. "I was looking everywhere for you." He took off his hat to reveal a shiny head without a strand of hair.

My eyes widened as I recognized him as well. Baldy! From the cages! The guy who snatched Noah's money because I broke a bat. I started to hyperventilate. Why is this happening? Weren't we a long way from the house? Can the world truly be this small?

"I was trying to help out this kid." The older man spoke. "He obviously looked lost and now even looks distressed. I should at least take him to the information booth so he can find his team. Why don't you get the team together and head to the field?"

I was about to turn and run, but a hand gripped my shoulder making me jump in fright. I started to shake as I peeked to see who else has shown up.

Noah! I sighed with relief and almost let a few tears of joy out.

Noah frowned at me. "Where'd you go of a sudden? I took my eyes off you for a minute and then we couldn't find you! Come on. Let's get going. I've got to tell everyone I found you."

I nodded eagerly, wiping the water that gathered at the corner of my eyes.

Noah noticed and his frown deepened. "Are you crying? What happened? Did you get scared?" He paused. "Did someone scare you?"

Before I could answer, the old man came closer with his player in tow. "Oh! Looks like the boy found someone he knows! What a relief. Looks like there's nothing for us to do."

Noah turned to look at who came close to address us. And like a car wreck in slow motion, Noah and baldy made eye contact. I couldn't do anything to stop it except pray that he wouldn't remember.

"Thief!" Noah exclaimed, pointing his index finger at baldy, recognizing him almost immediately. "You're the guy who stole my money at The Cages!" Okay, so Noah remembered the guy, but may be fuzzy on the details of what really happened. Suffering from selective memory, I see.

Baldy's eyes widened and his jaw dropped, realizing who we were on the dot. "What are you two doing here? Watching your brother play or something? You're a long way from home."

"You know these boys?" The old man studied us.

"They show up at The Cages in Marlo." Naming our favorite pastime. "Me and some of the guys had a run in with them." He sneered at Noah. "Especially that one. He tried betting on his friend and lost some money on it."

"We wouldn't have lost if you didn't cheat." Noah claimed.

"You wouldn't have lost, if you didn't gamble." A stern voice came from behind. Zeke joined our little party of four. He knew the old man by sight. "Coach Porter. Good to see you. Maybe you should also have a discussion with your team about unauthorized gambling."

"Ah! Zeke Atkins!" Coach Porter smiled bright. "I knew I recognized this kid from somewhere. And don't worry about my boys, I'll make sure they know that gambling is illegal for minors. Even unofficial betting." He glanced at baldy.

Baldy had the decency to look ashamed unlike my best friend, who continued to uphold a self righteous attitude. Zeke put an end to it by resting a hand on his head.

"We'll see you in a few." Zeke said as he dragged Noah away and I quickly followed. The coach and his player didn't have a chance to respond, leaving me a little clueless in what Zeke meant by that. He let go of Noah and glanced at the pair of us. "Why do you two always attract trouble?"

"Do not." Noah refuted. "I found Jake and he looked like he was about to cry. So I asked who was being mean and then those two jumped in. How do you know them?"

Zeke looked to me first. "You were about to cry?"

I scrunched up my nose. "Not really. I was just happy to find Noah. I still get jumpy with strangers and then I saw that he was the old man from the cages so I felt anxious too."

Zeke gave a nod. "That's fine. Next time, head to an information booth or security to locate the field. Mom and Dad were worried that you ran off again."

"I assured them you wouldn't do that anymore. Especially with us right beside you." Noah cut in. "But back to how you know them, Zeke??"

Zeke rolled his eyes. "That was the coach of Sunset Preparatory. A private school near Watsonville. They tried to recruit me a couple of times. They're also our first opponents."