SILAS
“So, his season is over?”Kent asked Lou, our head trainer, as we waited outside Nate’s hospital room. For once, he appeared concerned about something besides ticket sales and social media follows, although losing Nate could render a big loss of both for the Bats.
“I really can’t tell you. Until all the tests come back, we have no idea what kind of damage has been done. He’s young and healthy, so that works in his favor, but…” Lou trailed off, turning his head toward the curtain around Nate’s bed. “I can’t tell you anything right now.”
We’d been practicing for our first game in Boston this morning when I’d spotted Nate go down at the plate.
We all rushed over and found him rolling back and forth in the dirt, clutching his shoulder. I’d hoped he’d stand up and tell us all to back off, but when I spied the angry tears in his eyes, I’d known it was bad.
We’d been at the hospital all day as he underwent all sorts of examinations and tests. Our doctors consulted with the ones at the hospital, but no real conclusions were made.
The tests we’d sent him for a few weeks ago had shown nothing but a minor muscle strain, so the trainers had workedwith him to keep it strong and flexible, depending on him to tell us his level of pain. I didn’t know if this was a worsening injury or a new one, just that it was excruciating enough for him to leave the field without a fight.
Ending his season now would be terrible. Most of it was already gone, but we were closer to a play-off spot than any of us had anticipated, and we needed Nate. But if this was a career-ending injury, I was too worried about him to consider what that would mean for the team. I’d have to worry about it soon, but thinking of it all ending for him in his twenties, remembering how devastating it had been for me at forty-two, made me sick to my stomach.
I may not have been able to get as close to him personally as the other guys, but we’d grown into a mutual respect. He’d worked hard, and when he was on point, his talent could almost make me overlook the arrogance he still held on to, although it was noticeably less than at the start of the season.
We were on our way to clinching a wild card spot, and with one of our best players possibly gone, I didn’t know how we’d do it. I’d have management expectations to figure out and a sharp drop in team morale to contend with.
I tried to inhale but couldn’t take in a full breath.
“I’ll go talk to him,” I said, heading into his room with a slow approach in case the painkillers had knocked him out.
“Let me guess. I’m out,” Nate rasped in a gravelly voice.
“We’re waiting on tests. No one knows anything yet.”
He rolled his head toward me as he leaned into the pillow.
“How did you do it?”
“Do what?”
“Figure out how to live when your career was over.”
“You don’t know that. And that mind-set won’t help you now. You’re young and strong. I was an old man when I blew out my knee,” I said, smiling when I caught the corner of his mouth lift.“Had I been your age, I would have told the doctors to fuck off and fought to come back even if they told me I couldn’t.”
He nodded, pressing his hand to his forehead.
“I don’t know who I am without this.”
I felt every tortured word. I’d been in a hospital bed, staring at the lights and wondering what the hell to do with the rest of my life. But at least I’d gotten to do what I’d loved for half of it, and I hoped for the same for Nate.
“I’m planning on you coming back, and you should be too. I bet, soon, you’ll be as good as new, and you can tell me to fuck off whenever I ask about your shoulder.”
He huffed out a laugh.
“Thanks, Coach.”
“Anytime,” I said, giving his arm a soft jab. “Get some sleep. Pain meds make it nice and dreamless.”
“Shit, I hope so,” he said on a yawn. “Good luck tomorrow.”
Our game was at noon tomorrow, and the assistant coaches had taken over running the rest of practice. We’d be as ready as we could be, and I couldn’t do anything beyond that.
“Go back to the hotel and get some sleep.” Kent slapped my back on my way out. “Nothing we can do about it now.”
“Right. See you tomorrow,” I said, trudging out of the hospital exit and plopping down on an outside bench as I arranged for a cab back to the hotel on my phone.
