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His construction company has been successful for years. He’s always been a hands-on boss so I knew he’d be on site. "Higher, get those pieces level!” I search for his booming voice. Over my shoulder, I spot his trademark curly black hair. That mop makes me smile, some things do stay the same.
I jog in his direction. His back is toward me, so I smack it like the good old days. He freezes when he whips around.
"Dylan!" I grin.
"When?"
"Yesterday." I look around. "I can see business is booming."
"Yeah, Jessie commissioned it. Subsidized housing. You know she's mayor now?"
"Unfortunately, yes. She flexed her newfound power yesterday at my parents house."
Theo narrows his eyes. "Something tells it wasn't a pleasant meeting."
"You could say that.”
"Gimme a minute," Theo says and walks over to his men. "You boys keep moving forward. I’ll be back."
We walk toward a coffee shop down the street. Eyes trail me as I make my way to the counter. A boy around ten soon approaches.
"Can I get a selfie?"
"Sure kid." I nod. "Why not?"
He takes the picture and runs off to show his mom, beaming. Little things like that make my day. Knowing that because of baseball, I’ve touched someone’s life. I can’t let that change. These kids need the same chance I was given. Even if I ruined it for myself, they deserve an opportunity to do things differently.
"So, retiring," Theo walks over, coffees in hand, "how's that going? You know it could’ve been avoided if you’d just learned to keep your hands to yourself. Just saying."
He’s not wrong.
"Retiring is okay since my parents are pretty chill about my ban. But I definitely hit a brick wall," I say and flex my jaw muscle. "Jessie."
"What did she do now? Last time I remember, she was egging your bike." He chuckles.
"Yes, that was bad enough. Now she plans on tearing down the baseball stadium for a ridiculous community garden."
"Not a bad idea if you think of it."
I drum my fingers on my cup. "Really? You think taking away baseball for these kids is a good idea. It may be the only thing that can get them out of here. It gives them a chance at a future."
"Well, when you put it that way, maybe not."
"Good." I tsk. "Because I plan to rebuild the stadium. I may have messed up my life, but I won’t let that happen to the kids because of her.”
"The problem with this is that nothing happens in town now without Jessie's approval. You have to take this case to the town council she heads."
"Who does she think she is?"
Theo chuckles again. "The mayor."
"That's not funny."
"I know. I'm sorry. But it is entertaining watching her get under your skin.”
"I'm going to get what I want."
Theo reclines in his seat, grinning. "This is going to fun to watch.”
