“Yeah. Zaria said something like that. She’s a more understanding person than I am.”
“Or, you care a whole lot about how your dad hurt your family and made you have to be the man of the house. Or, you can’t understand how he did that because you would never abandon anyone no matter your situation. But, Zade, sometimes life has a really funny way of working out.”
“What do you mean?”
“‘Life is a highway, and I want to ride it all night long,’” I joked.
“Did you really just lyric advise me?”
“Yup. Did it work?”
“Not at all. Dork.” He laughed and I considered that a mission complete. “How is this good? I don’t see any good in it yet.”
“Zade, your family might grow three more people. You could help your dad’s legacy, however much you hate it, live on. You might be a role model for your newfound siblings. You get to decide what to make of this. If you want to go in guns blazing, then go for it. This is your life and your prerogative. But, as the face of Zwillows Pillows, I think you should take the classy route.”
“Youwouldbring that up.”
“Of course I did. My boyfriend has a fan club and I’m not president.”
“I can talk to some people. Get you a membership card,” he teased, laughter coming back into his eyes.
“Nah, I get the real thing. I think I win. This is way better than the pillow cases with your face on them.”
“No fucking way—they don’t have that, do they?” He pouted again.
“My birthday is coming up. You now know what to get me.”
“You’re ridiculous, but you’re mine.”
“Yeah, I guess I am.” And I liked it.
Epilogue
Zade
Five months later, first game of the season
I held my breath. We were two outs away from beating our rivals. I stood against the fence, my hands above my head. Zeke, our closer, struck out their biggest hitter. We cheered, the stands going crazy. He had two more outs to go.
“Let’s go, Zeke!” I shouted, adrenaline pumping through me. Coach stood to my right. He always led with a silent strength and never showed emotion. I’d thrown a shut out for eight innings and he’d hit my back. Luckily, I spoke ‘coach’ and knew I’d done a hell of a job.
Zeke threw his sick curve, the batter getting a piece of it. He pulled it, not connecting well and it bounced to Aaron at short. He backhanded it, shot the ball to first and got the out.
“Yes! One more, baby!” I hung over the edge, some of the bench guys and other pitchers joining me. I smiled, noticing their wrist bands. We’d decided all upperclassmen were going to wear them for Aaron’s dad, and the rest of the team caught on. I looked into the stands, seeing his dad and family there. He’d had his surgery over Christmas break and seemed to be doing okay. They were waiting to see if the cancer had spread, but Aaron had finally figured out a way to deal with it. Well, the best he could. No one could get over that.
Zeke threw two pitches, the count 2 and 0. He needed to change speed, throw the hitter off. Jeff motioned for a change up behind the plate. He threw it but missed his spot. The ball soared into the outfield. Tanner sprinted toward the fence. I stood, waiting with the rest of the crowd to see if he caught it. He jumped, arm outstretched to full length and he gloved it. We won the game.
“Yes!” I jumped over the fence and stormed the field with everyone else. It felt fucking great winning the first game of the season, but to our rivals?Hell yeah!
“Way to go!” I jumped on top of Zeke’s back, Jeff hugging us, too. Aaron laughed, all of us enjoying the moment. I snuck a glance out to the stands. Callie and Greta jumped up and down, along with Zaria and our half siblings. She didn’t look as comfortable as Callie, but she cheered her face off nonetheless.
We shook hands with the other team and met in the locker room for our post-game talk with coach. He celebrated our success and made a plan for the next game. We dedicated our win to Aaron’s dad and I showered as quickly as I could. I wanted to go see my girl.
She waited by the fence, her hair in braids, and proudly wearing my jersey. I hopped the short metal fence and took her in my arms. “Hey, girl.”
“You threw great! Your arm—it looks amazing. You totally increased your speed by at least two. I swear there were some—”
I kissed her, shutting her up. “I cannot tell you how much I fucking love seeing you in my jersey. Favorite thing ever.”
