Blackbirds

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

​"And it's a blasted off of Shinoda's bat to right field.....it's over the fence! The Soldiers win with a walk off home run!"

​He touched home plate and was jumped on by his team. They leaped on him and hit him on the head. He grinned as he was lifted onto two of his buddies' shoulders. They led him to the bench and he grinned before throwing his hat in his locker.

​"Yea Shinoda! You did it. Of course you'd be the one to come through. We count on you," one of his teammates said with a grin. Mike smiled at him and just shook his head.

​"We're all a team. We all count on each other," he said.

​"Shinoda! Come here please," his coach called him. Mike sighed and walked towards his coach's office. He sat down.
​
​"Hi coach," he said quickly.

​"Mike. You're having a great season. Now, since we're entering the playoffs in two weeks, I've asked a couple scouts from different MLB teams to come and watch. They've heard great things about you. You probably don't have much longer here. You're a great player. We'll be retiring the number twelve after you leave."

​Mike felt his emotions come forward. Tears filled his eyes. "That means so much. God coach, that means so much to me."

​"You deserve it Mike. Just keep playing as well as you've been."

​"You know I do what I can," Mike said wiping his eyes, "Agoura's my home. It's always been."

​"Get back to your team now. And keep playing like the fire you are."
​
​Mike smiled and then walked out the door. His best friend and teammate, Dave Farrell came over to him.

​"Hello there super star. Did you just get an offer?" Dave asked as they walked onto the diamond. Everyone else had left but he and Dave liked to hang out on the diamond afterwards. Sometimes they'd do batting practice since Dave was their star pitcher. He was sometimes needed to sub in if a player couldn't play and he wasn't a bad batter either.

​"No I didn't. What about you?"

​"Scouts."

​"Same here," Mike said giving his friend a hug, "You and I are going to be awesome!"

​"That's the problem Mike, we won't be put in the same team after this. We'll know each other so well."

​"That's true. But we can always see each other during games and stuff. And talk and hang out when there's nothing going on."

​Dave nodded and gave him his signature grin before stretching his arm, "Do you want to do anything?"

​"I don't know. Maybe tomorrow. We deserve a break."

​"Dude this is so cool. We're almost there. Almost to the MLB."

​"I know. You want to head back to my dorm or go to your house?" Mike asked. He lived at the college but Dave had his apartment.

​"I'm going home man. See you later," he said. Mike nodded and then headed to the dorms. He sighed as he laid down in his bed. Playoffs started next week and they had to prove that they deserved to be there. He hoped it would all work out ok. If they could win the series, he and Dave had an almost one hundred percent chance of getting into the major leagues. He was exhausted. He always was after a game. Baseball was everything in his life, if he couldn't play baseball then life wasn't worth living anymore. He remembered the first time he'd ever played baseball. He and one of his best friends had played it in the park when they were only five years old.

​"Come on Mike! Hit the dang ball!"

​Mike gasped, "Chester! You said 'dang'!"

​"Oh no! Mike wanna hear something else? My dad says this all the time. He says 'dammit!'

​"Chester! Don't say words like that!"

​Chester giggled and tossed the plastic ball towards him. Mike swung the plastic bat at the ball and he felt the ball connect with the bat. The ball went flying and hit his friend in the face. Chester cried out and fell to the ground. He was holding his hands to face and crying.

​"Chester! Oh my god I'm so sorry," Mike gasped as he ran forward, "Let me look. Let me see if you're hurt."

​Chester lowered his hands and there was a red mark on the side of his face. It looked like it hurt. Mike sat down next to his friend and put his arm around him.

​"I didn't mean to hit it that hard," he said quietly. Chester shook his head and wiped his eyes.

​"It's ok Mike."

​"Kid, that was a good hit!"

​Mike looked up and saw a guy coming towards them. He smiled and knelt down in front of them.

​"I run a t-ball team. How would you like to play on my team?"

​"Uh....I don't know how to play baseball," Mike said as he hugged Chester.

​"That's ok. We explain the rules and everything. All you need to do is show up," the man said, "You hit great. It'd be awesome to have you on our team."

​"I'd have to check with my parents," Mike said and the man nodded before giving him a card.
​
​"Just call me if you want to join."

​Mike nodded and then smiled before taking his friend's hand, "Come on Chester. Let's go home."

​He hadn't seen Chester in a long time. They'd had a falling out during high school and they never spoke to each other again. He wondered how he was doing. The other boy had always been so shy around everyone. He also was terrible in school. So Mike guessed that his old friend was out selling drugs and getting drunk every night. That boy had always thought he knew everything about everyone. Well the only person he knew nothing about was himself and he'd started digging a hole too deep to climb out of. Maybe that was the reason that they'd had a falling out. Chester had started drinking when he was sixteen. He'd done drugs since he was fourteen and he'd even tried to get Mike high on several occasions. He'd started having sex with people in the school and then saying that they'd cornered him. That it was against his will. That they were the sluts. Not him. But Mike knew everything and he'd cornered Chester the one day about it and threatened to tell everyone about his issues. He still remembered how that boy had looked. His hair was falling into his face. His eyes were dull and had dark circles surrounding them, signaling the recent fix he'd gotten. His clothes hung off of him because he'd started starving himself. He was a total wreck and a disgrace. And Mike had told him just that. He still remembered it.

​He shoved the thin boy against the locker, "Look what you've done to yourself! Are you seriously happy like this?"

​"Yes."

​"What is wrong with you? You're a wreck! You're a disgrace! You're disgusting!" Mike said angrily.

​"I'm dealing!" Chester retorted. Mike shook his shoulders angrily.

​"You're not dealing, you're destroying yourself! What could you possibly have to deal with!?"

​"Everything! But why would you care Mr. Baseball Star? That's all you've ever cared about! Ever since we hung out that one day and you hit me in the face! It's always been baseball with you!"

​"Fuck you Chester! You're my friend! And you're destroying yourself! How do you think all those girls feel when you told everyone that they're sluts? I'm going to set the truth straight!" Mike snarled.

​"That's none of your business!" Chester growled back at him. Mike punched his friend in the gut and watched as his fist almost touched the lockers behind him.

​"Look at you! You're barely human anymore Chester! You're a drug reliant, alcoholic loser!"

​"Fuck you," Chester gasped as he held his stomach. Mike grabbed his collar and dragged him towards the cafeteria. He led him up to the front and yelled.

​"You've all been told that the girls he's slept with were sluts and forced him into it! He's lying! He forced them and they consented! What you're looking at here, is a selfish loser who only cares about himself. He's the reason they aren't happy anymore. It's his fault because they did nothing to hint at wanting to have sex with him at all except for consenting so they weren't hurt!"

​The whole school stared at the two of them. Mike still held onto Chester but all of a sudden he was ripped from his grasp. Mike turned to find three of the jocks who had ditched their girlfriends for sleeping with Chester standing around him.

​"Well, well, if what Shinoda says is true, I think it's time that the real slut gets the punishment he deserves."

​Chester was squirming in the boy's grasp but he was way too weak to get out. He was trapped. Mike watched as his best friend for ten years was bloodily beat to the ground and left in a heap. His drug addict, alcoholic, friend. And then he didn't care anymore. Chester had made his choice. And if he wanted to go down this road, Mike would let him. Two of the jocks grabbed Chester's form and walked to the door. They threw him out onto the sidewalk outside the school and everyone cheered. Because no one wanted people like that around.

​He wondered if Chester was dead. Maybe he'd overdosed. It would be better if he had. The world really didn't need Chester. He was just one of those kids that parents and teachers told you not to be like. Chester had gotten hell for the rest of his life. Teachers failed him because of the way he'd acted. If he was even near a fight when it happened, he'd be the one getting in trouble for it. He worked alone on group projects because no one would associate with him and the teachers didn't care. He was suspended more than everyone in the school combined. He was pathetic.

​"Thank god I didn't end up like him," he whispered as he rolled over on his bed. Tomorrow he'd see Dave. They could go play some more baseball.