The Hitting Zone

When we got home, Dave didn't let Noah off despite his happy news. He pulled him into the backyard and urged him to get the catcher's gear on. It was his turn for a bullpen session, but Noah didn't mind. He liked to play no matter what it was.

Mom came out of the office downstairs just as Kyle and I were about to go up to our room. "Where's Noah?"

"Backyard with Dave." Kyle pointed.

Mom glanced out and saw them getting work in. She smiled and looked back to us. "Okay, well I'm thinking about going out for dinner so I might have to cut them short today. You boys go shower and then I'll call them in for their turn after."

Kyle nodded. "Sure. Where are we going for dinner?"

"The steakhouse on the coast." She told us. "Grampa and your dad already know. They're at the store now, but they'll be back soon." She glanced at the backyard before lowering her voice. "Zeke said he'll meet us there."

"Wow." Kyle was just as surprised as me. "How's he going to get here?"

"He borrowed the car from Rhys." She answered. "Hopefully traffic isn't too bad."

"Is Rhys not coming too? They could have been carpooling."

Mom shook her head. "Zeke said Rhys would have some kind of pitching practice this evening. Zeke had just finished practice himself." She frowned. "Hopefully he showered before he left."

Kyle laughed. "Mom, he's the most responsible out of all of us. If he doesn't shower, maybe we should send him to a counselor for some psychiatric help." He nudged me. "Think we can send him to Dr. Moore?"

"Dr. Moore is a psychologist, not a psychiatrist." I corrected him.

"It was a joke." Kyle sighed shook his head. "Wasted on you." He started to climb the stairs. "I'm going to shower and try to get some homework done before we go. You might have to keep an eye on Dave and Noah, Mom. Or they might stay out there for hours."

I looked at Mom. "I think Zeke will shower." It'd be a long smelly car ride if he didn't.

Mom patted my shoulder. "Thanks honey. That's the reassurance I was looking for."

I smiled, nodded, and followed Kyle's tracks going upstairs. I showered in the bathroom in the hall and put on some nicer clothes like khakis and a button up shirt. When I came out of the bathroom, I ran into Grampa in the hallway.

"Lookin' sharp, young man." He nodded at me and went into his room. "I guess I should change too."

I didn't think too much about it until I saw him before we left. Grampa changed out of his daily wear and had put on a suit. Black and white. I'm pretty sure...this was the suit he wore to Gramma's funeral.

Noah confirmed it for me by asking him outright. "Are you wearing the same suit you wore to the funeral?"

Grampa nodded. "Of course. I only have one good suit."

"It's not like we're mourning my career." Noah joked and laughed. "We're trying to celebrate here, Grampa."

He scoffed. "What do you know?" He adjusted his tie. "This is a show of respect."

Noah straightened up and gave a small bow. "I thank you, good sir."

We loaded up in the suv and headed for dinner. Dad spoke with the hostess and she led us to a table in the back, looking over the beach. Two familiar faces already sat at the table. Zeke was expected, but Jeremy wasn't.

Noah rushed over and started talking a mile a minute about he became vice captain. Zeke and Jeremy didn't mind at all and listened with patience as the rest of us got seated around.

When Noah was finished, I addressed Jeremy. "I thought you wanted to celebrate on the weekend?"

Jeremy laughed and gave a small shrug. "What can I say? When I spoke with Wayne and found out that Zeke was headed down, I thought I would just crash the party while giving him a lift. That drive is no joke during rush hour."

"We're happy you could make it." Mom told him.

Our table of nine was the biggest there. The server did her best to get our drinks before taking our food order. Once it was out of the way, the whole table started talking at once. We got to hear about Zeke's college practice and how he was getting ready for the season. He even told us about Rhys and how he earned the second spot in the pitching rotation.

Jeremy had to explain to Mom that Rose couldn't make it since she was visiting her old college roommates on the East Coast to ask them to be her bridesmaids. They did decide on a venue for their wedding already; apparently Rose had the idea in mind for quite some time but Jeremy wouldn't tell us the exact location. They wanted to keep it a secret until the invitations came out.

"Are you going to invite all of us at least?" Noah asked.

"Of course!" Jeremy grinned and nodded. "You guys are like a bonus family to me. I'd be mad if any of you miss it." He glanced at Zeke and the twins. "We considered all kinds of dates to work around everyone's generic schedules. Especially if you all are in college by the end of the year."

"Thanks, but no worries. I won't be in college." Kyle casually said for everyone to hear.

There was an awkward pause as most of our eyes went to Mom to see what she would say.

She frowned. "How can you be so certain? You still have a couple official visits left."

Kyle looked at her directly. "I saw what I wanted to see this summer. That was enough for me. I'm going to aim to get drafted and go from there. Even if it's a late round pick. I'll just work my way up through the levels."

Mom looked like she wanted to say more, but was interrupted by Dave. "Don't worry, Mom. I'm still looking at colleges."

"Do you have any particular one in mind?" Dad asked, clearly interested in his son's academic future.

"Vanderbilt." Dave declared proudly.

Noah let out a low whistle. "You're dreaming big. Hope you aren't banking on a scholarship. You're no Zeke and Vandy sure isn't Stanford."

Dave chucked a wadded up napkin at him. "Shut it, punk."

"For the last time, scholarships aren't needed." Dad took over. "They're appreciated, but not necessary. It's okay for you boys to rely on your mother and I." He glanced at Mom and shared a 'look' before speaking again. "We don't want to argue about the paths you want to take for the future. We had to force Zeke to see that college can be an option. We shouldn't have to do that again. If the twins think they have made some satisfactory visits, then they can make their decision whenever they want."

"Decision made." Kyle stated confidently.

All eyes drifted to Dave.

Dave laughed, a little self-conscious. "I mean...I'd have to see if the coach there would be down to have me. I've only really talked to their pitching coach."

"Go visit and see what it's like." Noah then whispered loudly and dramatically. "At minimum, ask if they can lower the GPA requirements for you."

Dave threw a piece of bread at him this time.

It smacked him on the nose, but Noah just laughed and picked it up to eat. "Thanks. I was getting hungry."