Secrets Of Third Base

6

Cade still hasn't emerged by the time the line up is being called. Not that he is in it, but she's pretty sure there is still some sort of obligation to be suited up and on the bench for game play unless you're on injury reserve or something.

She wonders if she made a mistake allowing him a place to hide.

When she opens the door to her office, it's dark and quiet. The motion sensing lights had shut off. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust and notice there was actually still someone in there.

The lights come on when she enters.

Cade is asleep with his head on his forearm, resting on the desk.

He actually looks somewhat peaceful.

The closer she gets, she is hit with a smell. She cocks her eyebrow. It's faint, but she can't pinpoint exactly what it is.

Her eyes widen when she realizes what she's looking at.

The grey jogger pants Cade has on have a large wet spot, spread across his crotch and streaming down one of his legs. The floor looks dry, though.

She has a moment of panic, realizing she is going to have to wake him up in that state.

He might cut himself from the team. Hell, she might, too.

She considers going to find Cam. Maybe he would respond better to him. She also doesn't want to get him in trouble by pulling him away either. 

"Shit." She whispers, knowing she will have to do this on her own.

She stops to think how she is going to approach this. The clubhouse manager probably had Cade's uniform prepped and cleaned. Her office isn't far away. She also doesn't want to draw more attention to the situation than she really needs to.

She peeks out onto the field, where they are, in fact, begninng to prep for first pitch. The locker room is probably empty.

She decides at this point, she's already screwed. May as well add 'breaking and entering' to her pink slip.

She sneaks through the back door, using her master key. She's relieved to see it is empty.

Cade's uniform is hanging nicely in his cubby. His black and orange jersey is clean and pressed on a hanger.

Belmount
15

The bag he had come in with is on the floor in front of it.

She lifts the flap, which is unzipped. It has what looks to be a couple changes of clothes.

She grabs that too, along with the uniform.

She creeps quietly back into the office. She lays the uniform down carefully on top of the duffle. Then she takes a deep breath.

He hasn't moved. He actually looks kind of peaceful. She can't believe no one has come looking for him yet. Or maybe they have and just haven't come up here. Why would they?

"Hey, Cade." She says softly.

He jostles a little, but doesn't open his eyes.

"Cade. It's time to wake up, Buddy." She tries again. This time, his eyes flutter slowly.

She rubs his back.

He smiles up at her for a split second before panic spreads across his face. He shoots up and looks down at his crotch. She can see he is about to spiral.

"Hey. Hey, look at me. It's okay." She says.

His chest is moving so hard that she can see it through his baggy shirt. She gets down to his level, in the chair.

"It's not a big deal." She assures.

He still doesn't respond.

"I'm so sorry." He says after a long moment, trying to get up. She is kneeling in front of him, so he can't stand.

"Hey. Just relax for a second, okay?" She says.

He settles back into his seat. There are tears falling from his eyes again, crossing over the dried tear tracks that were already there.

"I know you didn't get a lot of sleep last night. This can be a natural response to that."

He doesn't look like he believes a word of what she says.

It's a bold move, but she takes his hand in hers. She squeezes it, rubbing her thumb over his fingers. He doesn't fight her. They lock eyes.

"It's really not a big deal, okay? No one else knows. I went to the locker room and got your bag and your uniform. You can change in here. Don't stress about it. It happens."

He still doesn't look sure, but his body relaxes a little.

She doesn't know why she has the urge to pull him in to kiss him, but she does. She resists though.

"You saw it before?" He asks, looking down at his feet now.

"I came to check on you about ten minutes ago. I noticed. I didn't want to embarrass you. I wanted to make sure you had what you needed to clean up. It's really not a big deal. I'm glad you were able to get some rest. It was just an accident."

"It's always just an accident." He whispers.

"What?" She asks, but he doesn't offer any further explanation.

He leans his head down. She still has his hand.

It's probably crossing personal and professional lines, but she rests her hand on the back of his neck, rubbing the skin below his hairline. Again, he doesn't fight it. As a matter of fact, his entire body relaxes when she does it. He seems to respond better to physical touch than comforting words.

She tickles his neck for a while. He eventually lifts his head.

"I better get changed." He says.

She smiles at him. She can't help it.

It's a little surprising when he smiles back, that shy smile she is quickly getting weak in the knees for.

She stands up and goes to exit the room.

"Hey, Brooke. Thanks for this." He says.

"Anytime." She says and throws him a wink.

He starts blushing then.

She shuts the door behind her.

The players are in their spots. The countdown clock reads 31 seconds. She begins to make the mad dash back to the dugout, where she stays incase she's needed.

She braces herself to be chewed out for not being there sooner.

However, no one says anything. The guys are already out, and if the coach is upset, he doesn't show it.

Nobody actually says anything to her at all until the next half inning, when the guys come back for thier at-bat.

"Do you know where Cade is?" Cam asks, cornering her in the back of the dugout.

Almost on que, Cade strolls down, jumping over the small fence separating the arena from the bullpen.

He jogs over and into the bench.

He isn't smiling, but he doesn't look like he has been hit by a bus anymore. He's prepping some of the equipment.

He isn't actually playing tonight, but he is wearing his uniform. She knows a couple other guys are there incase the team needs a sub, too.

Cam points at him, questioning, eyebrow raised.

"I'm sorry. He was upset. I let him sit in my office for a while. I'm sorry Cam. I shouldn't have."

"No, Brooke. He's...he's okay. Usually on these days...." he trails off.

"Whatever you did, thanks." He says.

She realizes he doesn't have time to elaborate.

She looks at Cade. He still looks kind of rough. His eyes are still red but the deep blue bags have mostly subsided.

He catches her looking, but doesn't look away. She kinda loves him already.