“Yeah. I can play anywhere.”
More insulting than her nonchalance was that it was true. The team couldn’t afford to not have Abby in the lineup, and Kate knew there wasn’t a position she couldn’t master.
“If you don’t care, why have you been trying for shortstop this whole time?”
Abby squinted as if it were obvious. “I always play there because I’ve always been the best at it.”
“Exactly! You’re the best at it, so don’t give it to me out of pity!”
“Here we go again,” Mick said to Jill as she unclipped her shin guards.
“Oh, like you’ve been helping me out of pity?” Abby roared back.
Kate shuddered. Her heart trilled the same way it did during their argument before winter break. “Why do you hate me for helping you?”
“The same reason you hate me for offering to play second base! Consider us even.”
“No!”
Abby stood less than an inch from her, sweaty hair poking out from her stocking cap, eyes burning through Kate’s. “What do you want from me?” she asked.
Kate’s mouth dropped open for words that didn’t come. The scrappy inflection short-circuited her brain, spilled currents down her spine, sparking a rush of heat across her skin. Her knees might’ve buckled if it weren’t for Jill bumping in behind her.
“Okay, show’s over, folks,” Jill said. “Let’s take a walk. Abby, go smoke a cigarette or something.”
“She’s not supposed to smoke,” Kate said.
Abby gritted her teeth. “You’re not my babysitter.”
“Maybe I should be.” Kate didn’t veer her eyes from Abby’s. Something inside warned that breaking from her gaze would be more unbearable than the discomfort she endured beneath it.
“Okay, I’ll take Cruz.” Mick jerked Abby away and nodded at Jill. “You got Hutch. We’ll take this up again tomorrow.”
Kate watched Abby stomp out of the dugout, ignoring Jill’s assurances, inflamed with rage, and a senseless flutter. One she couldn’t shake, even as she lost what she thought she wanted most.
Abby knocked on Coach Whitley’s door two days after she named her shortstop. “You got a minute?” she asked.
“Of course.” Coach Whitley waved her inside. “I actually wanted to talk to you too.”
Abby gulped. “Oh.”
“No, it’s good.” Coach Whitley leaned on the front of her desk. “Your grades are looking much better.”
“Oh yeah?”
Abby’s shoulders loosened. She’d certainly tried harder, and studying meant spending extra time with Kate. Of course, over the last few days, they’d returned to glares and quiet. Only this distance crushed her.
Abby thought they might be nearing friendship, but the latest fight sent them back to square one. They warmed up together, but Kate didn’t bother with a hello. In return, when Abby spotted her in the library, she sat at a different table. She still stole glances at her so often that she didn’t get anything done.
“Seems things might be getting better with the team too?” Coach Whitley asked.
“Yeah, I guess.”
“And away from the field?”
Abby folded her arms across her chest like it might hide the truth. “I’m fine.”
“You know, I lost my dad when I was around your age. If you ever want to talk—”
