The Hitting Zone

I thought it would take a minute to find Noah since he likes to wander, but he approached us as soon as we entered. He waved a piece of paper in my face, excited out of nowhere. I couldn't see what was written with him moving so much. Luckily Zeke snatched it from him and held it up to read. That didn't stop Noah from bouncing in place.

"What is it..?" I asked, confused on why he was so excited all of a sudden.

"It's summer ball!" Noah finally spat out. "We can play some games this month!"

I blinked in surprise. From my understanding Watsonville wasn't a big city and only had one travel time.

"Noah...this is a flyer for an adult softball league." Zeke spoke up after reading the paper.

"Yea! So?" Noah grinned.

"One, you're not an adult. Two, you don't know how to play softball. Three, you don't have a team." Zeke ticked off each reason by raising a finger until he got to three. He handed the paper back to Noah. "Sorry kiddo."

Noah frowned, gripping the flyer. He walked up to the counter where the lady was working the cash register. "Excuse me? Can anyone enter in the adult softball league? Or does it strictly mean 18 and over? That's kind of ageist, don't you think?"

The lady was completely stunned by his approach. "Uh, I'm not sure. It's something the owner runs. I think there has been teens on the teams over the years, but that's with their parents." She glanced to me and Zeke. "Are all three of you interested?"

"Yes!" Noah answered for us without asking. "Is the owner in today? Can we ask him about joining?"

"I'll ask if he's free. Just a moment." She got up and headed for his office. She returned in two minutes, nodding at Noah. "You boys can go on in. He'll hear you out."

Noah left us behind, heading for the office. I heard Zeke sigh as he followed along. I was last, just going with them since there wasn't a reason not to.

"Well if it isn't the Atkins boys." Mr. Williams chuckled from behind his desk as we filed into his office. "I heard you boys won a big game. Congratulations."

"Thanks." Noah placed the flyer on his desk, standing right up front. "Can anyone join this softball league? Or is there age requirements?"

Mr. Williams glanced at the paper. "It's an adult league. We don't usually include minors because they usually have their own league or sorts. Plus, it's a hassle for parents to sign a release form."

"I don't have a team to play on this summer." Noah told him. "The league is only six weeks long so it's perfect for me to play this summer. My parents won't care."

Mr. Williams tapped the paper. "You have to come up with your own team. At least ten players. The team fee is $500. Starts June 11th, games every Tuesday night, Thursday night, and Saturday morning. At least three people have to be over the age of 18 for supervision purposes." He glanced back at Zeke. "College players can participate, but you can't claim the prize if you win at the end."

Noah's smile got bigger the more Mr. Williams laid down the rules. He turned to Zeke. "Can we? Can we please??"

Zeke looked pensive. "You'll have to talk to Mom and Dad. This starts during finals week. We'll miss that Thursday because of my graduation. There's a lot of thought that needs to go in this. We don't even have ten players."

Noah wasn't put down at all. "So we'll forfeit one game! That's not a big deal. It's something to do for the month so Mom will be happy." He looked at Mr. Williams. "When is the money due? The roster?"

The old man pulled out a sheet of paper from his desk drawer. "This is a roster list. Needs to be filled out completely. Minimum is ten players, max at fifteen." He rummaged through another drawer and grabbed a short stack of papers. "These are the release forms. Everyone under the age of 18 will need to have their parents fill it out and sign. Those over 18 will fill out their own."

Noah accepted all the papers without complaint. "And the due date?"

"I like to make the schedules a week before and get them out to the teams, so no latter than June 4th." He stared intently at Noah. "No exceptions."

"We'll bring it by next Sunday!" Noah stated confidently.

He smiled. "Good to hear. If that's all...you can see yourselves out. If you have any questions, you know where to call."

Noah nodded and headed for the door.

"Quick question." Zeke spoke up.

Noah paused. Mr. Williams raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"It's a softball league so that means softball style pitching, correct?" Zeke asked.

"Yes. For the most part. As long as it's underhanded." Mr. Williams nodded.

"Can the teams be coed?"

"Most are."

"If I play and can't claim the first place prize, can my team?"

"No. The most I can do is donate the prize money to a charity in your team's name. I don't want to get college players in trouble and have them lose their eligibility."

Zeke nodded slowly. "Alright. Thank you."

"Anymore questions?"

Zeke and Noah shook their heads, but I had thought of one. I slightly raised my hand.

"Yes?" He looked at me directly.

"Can I use a wooden bat?" I asked, feeling nervous. I didn't mind if Noah roped me into playing softball, but I would definitely mind if wood bats aren't allowed.

"Yes." Mr. Williams nodded. "You're probably the only one with a good bat to use." He looked at Noah. "You do know you can't play softball with a baseball bat right?"

Noah looked a little embarrassed. "I didn't know. Is there, like, a handbook you can give us? For the rules?"

Mr. Williams got up from behind his desk and went to a filing cabinet. There he pulled out a stapled packet of a few sheets of paper. He handed it over to Zeke. "Seeing as your the oldest, you should have a look first."

Zeke held it securely. "Thanks for your time and patience."

He waved us out. "I hope to see you boys next week. If not for the league, then just to play in the cages."

"We'll definitely be back!" Noah left happily.

Zeke and I followed behind after saying our goodbyes.

Noah headed straight for the exit with his stack of papers in his hands and his bag on his back.

"We're not going to look at bats..?" I asked Zeke.

Zeke shook his head and sighed as we followed Noah from a distance. "Not today. Noah is too excited. The only thing he has on his mind is this adventure. We can look another time."

I nodded. With my eyes on Noah, I saw him pass the cafe without even glancing at the ice cream. He was too focused on going home and planning this thing out.

I looked up at Zeke again. "Are you going to play?"

Zeke cracked a smile. "Doesn't seem like there's too much of a choice for me." He was smiling at Noah's back and I understood immediately. He didn't want to let Noah down.

I was the same way. If Noah wanted me to play, I'll play. It was the least I could do for him.