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“I don’t care about football.”
I laughed. “That’s what one of the dads said. It’s refreshing because everyone around here seems to. If you go to the grocery store when Baltimore’s playing, it’s a ghost town.”
“I’ve never been into it.”
“I like how you’re different.” It was a small thing, but it showed Nick knew who he was, and he wasn’t ashamed to be that person. He didn’t cover the parts of himself that others wouldn’t like. He might have lived his life like it was going to be uprooted at any second, but he was true to himself. Maybe he hadn’t found anyone he wanted to be in a relationship with.
I cradled the cold water bottle in my hands, wondering why I liked that idea so much.
“Our first scrimmage is coming up on Sunday. Can you make it?”
“Sundays are my off day. I don’t have events, and I’ll save the administrative work for when he’s at school. So the schedule works out great for those days.”
“I’m glad you’ll be there.”
“I wouldn’t miss it.” Not just because it was Hunter’s first game, but I wanted to see Nick in action.
“I can’t wait to see how it goes. I know there’ll be mistakes. We’re still learning. There’s a lot of situational stuff, base running, where to throw, that kids just don’t know yet.”
“Are we playing a good team?”
“They’re new like us. A solid B team.”
“Just don’t tell Hunter and Brody they’re on a B team. They’re convinced they’re going to win every game.”
“That’s a great attitude to have. It’s all about confidence.”
“You never got your shot at the majors?”
“I left before my number was called.”
“Why would you do that?” I felt like all the air had been sucked from my lungs. Everything was telling me playing in the majors had been Nick’s dream. His muscles were tense, his knuckles white as he gripped the water bottle, and his expression sad.
“Austin got a girl pregnant. She was in and out of his life. He had the baby. He was in no position to raise Brody.”
“You helped him out when he was a baby?” Something about that admission pierced my heart.
“My parents did too, but I felt like it was where I was needed. My parents were older. Too old to be on call to take a baby at a moment’s notice. If Austin felt like partying, he’d drop Brody off. As he got older, he was better about taking care of him, or at least hiding that he wasn’t.”
“I’m sorry you gave up your dream, but I understand why you did.”
“Baseball’s competitive. In the county, I was one of the best, but when you get out there, you’re competing with the best of the best.”
“You think you would have made it, don’t you?” I asked him softly. It was in the way he seemed to hold the hurt separate from his words. Like he was creating distance.
“I know I would have. But Austin needed me, and it was what I was used to.”
“You were used to cleaning up Austin’s messes.” Because that was exactly what it was. Austin had a baby but wanted to party, Nick stepped in. Austin committed a crime and went to jail, Nick took over.
“This time, I hope to keep Brody with me. He’s better off.”
“I think so too, but—” I wondered if that was what Nick did. He had some savior complex. He swooped in and saved the day. But he didn’t know how to have a lasting committed relationship. He was the white knight. Always on call, but not there for the long term.
“If things don’t work out—”
“What do you mean, don’t work out?”
“If kids start picking on Brody at school or at baseball, I’ll protect him.”
