Is this Love? | ONC 2023

nine

"Alright girls, let's head upstairs," Coach Troy's voice echoes throughout the locker room. I stand from the bench, wiping my shorts and pulling my shirt down to cover my butt.

I follow the other girls up and out of the locker room and into the gym. Immediately, my eyes scanned the gym for Dakota. He was standing on the other side talking to a few guys. His hair was pulled back into a low bun today. I shook my head, fixing my attention on my feet as I marched to the bleachers. Coach Hendricks was standing close by with his clipboard in hand, taking attendance. Normally, I would strike up a conversation, but today I decided to find my seat on the bleachers.

Not in the mood to socialize, I try to sit away from the other students. They find their way around me anyway, and I'm surrounded. My brows pinched together in annoyance. It's like they do this on purpose.

Class officially starts a few minutes later. After attendance, Coach tells us we will be starting our baseball unit. He tells us that the next week or two we'll be meeting in the gym for attendance, then to the baseball fields. "We'll be outside every day for this unit unless it rains, so dress appropriately. Alright, let's get moving."

I exit the bleachers and make a bee-line for Coach Hendricks, but I'm stopped halfway by the boy I was trying to avoid. Dakota.

"Hey. Are y'all heading outside today?" He asked me.

"Yes." Looking past him I see Coach has already left. I turn my attention back to the boy in front of me, the nervousness reappearing. "Are y'all?"

"Mhm. May I walk with you to the field?"

"Su—"

"Hey, Koda! Who's that you talkin' with?" A boy shouts from across the gym before appearing by Dakota's side. He smiles at me, giving me a once over. "She's cute. Is she your girlfriend?"

"No!" I protested, maybe a bit too quickly. "Not yet," I think I heard Dakota say, but I'm not sure. I see him smirk which makes my body heat up.

"I- he asked me- ugh, forget it." I stomped off. I can hear them laughing behind me which makes me speed up. How embarrassing.

It's not long after that I find myself at the baseball fields. Coach informed us that we would be playing wiffle ball today. He counts us off by ones and twos, then, "If you're a one, you're pitching first. Also, grab a jersey from the bag. I don't care what color. If you're a two, you're hitting first."

I'm a two.

"Hey, Coach," I said aloud as I jogged over to him. "How much do I have to take part to get my participation credit for the day?"

"The whole time."

"Aw, c'mon. I'm not good at baseball."

"And how will you ever get good if you don't play?"

He has a point. I exhale through my nose. "What if I played half the time?"

"Then you get half the points."

"I'll take that." I can hear him chuckle as I walked away, which made me believe even if I didn't play he wouldn't fail me. Me and Coach were close–at least that's what I told myself. I was honestly excited for the baseball unit. It seemed fun enough, but when I noticed Dakota's class was also outside on the other field, I couldn't play. What if he happened to be watching me and I strike out? What if I hold the bat weird or pitch horribly, or something else embarrassing? Would he laugh at me?

I stand at the very end of the line of batters. My hope was that by the time the line dwindled and it was my turn, class would be over, so I wouldn't actually have to play. I look towards the other field and see Dakota with the boy from earlier along with another boy. They all seemed close. I smiled, watching them jump all over one another and laughing.

Dakota seemed well-liked and fun to be around. This made me think of the stories my mom told me about my dad and how he was in high school. She said he was very popular being on the football team, but that wasn't what made her interested in him. She said that when they were alone, he was quite clumsy with his words. I chuckled to myself and sat in the grass. I couldn't imagine my dad stuttering and making a fool of himself; although, that would be quite the sight to see. My eyes find Dakota again. He's standing with his foot on third base. It looked like he was going to try and steal a base. As the pitcher throws the ball, Dakota darts toward home plate. The batter hits the ball hard and it flies beyond the guys in the outfield; they scrambled for the ball. Dakota makes it home and the batter to second base. Dakota seemed confident in his abilities as an athlete. I wondered if he played on the baseball team.

Coach Hendricks blows his whistle, snatching me from my thoughts. "Switch sides."

I stand from the grass and wipe off my shorts. That was fast. I jog towards second base and look around. Standing here I wouldn't have to do much. Second base seemed like a good base–there wasn't as much pressure to perform here as there was on first or third. That's where it really mattered.

I hear the whistle blow from the other field. They're switching too. I watch as Dakota drops the bat and walks off the home plate. Our eyes meet and he smiles, sending me a wave. I wave back and watch as he makes his way over to third base. We're not close enough, but I suddenly get the impulse to talk to him, but what would I even say?

"Hey! Catch that!" Someone is shouting at me. It's a girl; she's standing on the pitcher's mound. "Get the ball!" She shouts again.

I looked up, seeing the ball flying towards me. I followed the ball and reached for it as it started to descend from its arch. It hits my hand but bounces out and rolls. I rush toward it and scoop it in my hands.

"Throw it to second!" The girl screams at me again. The batter has just hit first base and is rushing toward second. There's a boy standing there now with his foot on second base.

"Here, throw it here!" He shouts.

I toss the ball with all my might but it lands short. The boy grunts, rushing off the base and scooping up the ball. He then darts back to the base but the batter makes it. "Safe!" Coach Hendricks shouts. The boy groans, tossing the ball back to the pitcher. I kind of feel bad, but I tried! I looked toward the other field and Dakota was smiling at me, giving me two thumbs up.

I turn away, smiling. Thanks, Dakota.

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Word count: 1146

Total: 11 052