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I open my mouth to say that I’d love some, but think better of it. What if Rae doesn’t want me here?
I shake my head. “No. Thank you, though. I gotta meet Jamie. The bakery happened to have Rae’s favorite coffee, so I grabbed her some.” I run my hand over my neck, feeling like an idiot.
Sarah’s smile grows as she takes it.
“She’ll love it. She was getting ready. Are you sure you don’t want to stay and give it to her?”
I glance at the stairs and shake my head. If she was in her closet, she would’ve heard me knocking and opened the window. Or at least texted me back. It’s fine. If she still needs space, I can give that to her.
But that doesn’t mean I don’t miss my best friend.
“Nah. I should head out. See you at Joel’s later?”
“Yeah.”
I nod and turn to go, but she calls after me. “Hey, Aaron.”
“Yeah?”
“Be patient. She’s getting there.”
“Sure. Later.”
She waves and returns to cooking as I head out the back door, trying to pretend I’m not as bummed as I am.
Another shitty throw. Awesome.
“It’s okay,” my friend Jamie, our team’s other pitcher, says to me. “Take a breath. Try to focus on your release. Your stance looks good.”
I’ve been trying to fight it, but my fingers don’t grip the ball the way they used to. It takes an extraordinary amount of focus and ample resting between pitches to throw. Even then, those few good throws aren’t the same level I used to pitch.
I wipe my brow. The morning sun is beating down on me. “A few more throws, then I’m done.”
He nods in agreement.
I throw six more pitches—two shitty ones, one good one, one okay, one great, one more shitty one, and then my hand locks up.
Jamie runs up to the mound, pulling his hat off. “Still locking up?”
I nod. Jamie is the only person outside of the six of us who I told about my hand. Granted, I did not tell him how I injured it. Just that I’d hurt it and been having issues with the stiffness since.
“Heat and ibuprofen. And maybe see a doctor.” He pats my shoulder as I shoot him a glare.
He rolls his eyes and starts cleaning up. I join him, but I’m moving slowly. Too many things in my life feel fucked right now, and I hate it.
Since he’s done before me, he heads out, waving as he goes. I finish throwing my glove and the last few balls in my bag when I hear a familiar voice.
“Hey, Aaron.”
I turn to the fence and see Caity leaning on her elbows against it. Throwing my bag over my shoulder, I make my way to the fence.
“Hey, what’s up?”
She shrugs. “I had early soccer practice. You practicing?”
“Just finished. What are you up to this weekend?”
She shrugs, then rolls her eyes. “I get to go hang with Aiden and his girlfriend.”
