Secrets Of Third Base

4

Things start moving quickly after the first couple of days. The season starts in 10 days. A 6 game homestand against followed by a week on the road with one day off in between.

The very last thing to do in the office is to organize and upload Caden Belmount's file. She'd been quietly avoiding it. It's still a tangled mess in a box on the floor.

With a large cup of coffee in hand and coming off of a full night's sleep, she pulls it out and begins organizing the dozens of notes and assements. She is surprised to see that many of them aren't actually Doctors notes. Many are disciplinary forms. Truancy notices.

She is baffled. Why would someone with so much talent just blow it all off?

She's gotten pretty close to Cam in the last couple days. He has really helped her learn her roll. He hasn't mentioned anything else about Belmount. She understands why everyone looks up to him.

After two hours, she finally has the folder in one peice. Another hour of uploading and the daunting task is finally completed.

She decides to just stay on her roll and do her check in with Caden. He is the last on her list. Not only because Cam asked her to.

She waits in the dugout until practice releases for lunch.

She flags Belmount down. She hasn't actually said any words to him yet. She hasn't even gotten within 30 feet of him, actually.

He jogs over. The closer he gets, the more confused she gets.

In her head, she'd pictured this guy being a 6'4, 230 pound douche bag, probably wearing pit vipers and snapping bubble gum with his mouth open.

The guy standing before her though...

He's maybe 5'11. Dark brown hair sticking out just a little from under a ballcap. His face is soft and friendly with flawless skin and the greenest eyes she has ever seen. He smiles at her shyly. His cheeks are turning pink.

"Hey, I'm Brooke. The new atheltic trainer. I apologize I haven't gotten to check in with you yet. It's been a little crazy the last couple days." She says.

Belmount smiles, this time showing his teeth. They aren't crooked, but they're the kind of straight that braces have never touched. Clean and white. His cheeks are rosy. He is kind of adorable. 

"Nice to meet you. I'm Cade. No worries. I get it. It's been the same way down here, too."

This guy isn't giving douche bag vibes.  Sure, she'd been told that, but from everything she's heard, it was hard to imagine anything but.

"I'm finally on the home stretch though. It's definitely a relief." She laughs.

Cade laughs, too. Brooke feels her heart starting to flutter in her chest. She's spent hours talking to young attractive men the last few days. Touching their skin and felt nothing. Right now, she feels weightless for this guy she just met and supposedly has some hard-core issues to assess.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" He asks.

She shakes her head.

"I appreciate that, but this is actually the last thing on my list. I just have to do a quick assessment to sign off that you're good to play next week."

It's then Cade's smile falls.

"Do you think we could do this somewhere else?" He looks around. There are people passing, but not too closely.

"Sure. We can head up to my office if you have a few."

He nods nervously. She's wondering if maybe this is the part of her story where she is beat to death by a baseball bat.

In her office, Cade cowers. He is toying with the buttons on his practice jersey.

Yet again. She's baffled.

"Take a seat." She says, gesturing to the empty chair next to her.

He is reluctant, but he does.

She begins going down her list of generic questions. He won't even look up at her. He answers, but his chin is glued to his chest. It's like his body is trying to twist into a pretzel between his arms and legs.

She can see he is anxious. That doesn't take a degree to see. She puts her pen down and rests her hand on his bicep.

"Hey. Are you okay? We don't have to do this right now."

He looks up for the first time. He looks terrified.

"I-I know we need to." He sputters.

His voice sounds entirely different than it did on the field. Those bright green eyes are now glassy and his teeth are chewing his bottom lip.

She closes her binder.

"It can wait." She assures.

"I...I'm sorry." He says.

"Hey, don't be sorry. Do these kind of things make you nervous?" She says, smiling softly.

Cade nods.

"I'm not trying to be difficult- I swear." He says, like that's something he has been told over and over again.

"Hey. Listen. Would it help to email me the answers? I can send you the document. I would just need your signature."

"Really?" He asks.

"You don't have any long standing injuries that could worsen from playing, right?"

Cade shakes his head no.

"Just write your email her. I will send it over and all I need is a signature when it's done. Okay?" She asks.

He nods. After they exchange emails, Cade gets up hastily to leave.

On this way out the door, he stops briefly. 

"Hey...thanks for this." He says

She smiles.

"You're welcome."