ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS

14. RUNAWAY

★ Leonard ★

My life could have been set after my marriage with Beth. I got a scholarship at the University of Texas playing baseball for the Longhorns. I was quite a pitcher in high school. We won the state championship twice while I pitched for my high school team, the Kangaroos.

It was a very natural choice for Beth and me to choose the University of Texas because it is only three hours away from home. They have one of the best baseball teams in the entire Big 12 Conference. Beth also got a scholarship from the university. She was a superb cheerleader. Her team had gone to nationals to compete in the finals.

We had already rented an apartment near campus and began to buy some furniture to decorate our new nest. Our plan was very ambitious. After graduating from the University of Texas, my goal was to be scouted by the Texas Rangers. Beth's was to become a cheerleader for the Dallas Cowboys.

We were often called "a perfect American couple" by our friends and relatives. That was exactly how we felt. I always thought this was how our life would be, and eventually, we would have a family and grow old together, just like my dad and mom. It was all planned out, and I didn't doubt our plan until life threw me a curveball.

But everything fell apart.

August is coming to an end, and September is just around the corner. I have to make my choice of what I will be doing for my life. Am I attending the University this fall or doing something else?

This is the first choice I have to make since I lost Beth. I decide to take off and wander around until I find myself again. It just doesn't make any sense to go to college when I am totally lost, and I have lost all my motivation to become a professional ballplayer. It no longer makes any sense to me without Beth.

So I decided to see the coach who gave me the university's scholarship and explained to him why I am not coming this fall. I set up an appointment and see him at the Disch-Falk Field, the home of the Longhorns' baseball team.

I drive my pick-up truck to Austin. His office is located at the baseball stadium. When I enter the stadium, it gives me a chill. It is the sensation that my dream is getting so close to becoming a reality, but right before I grab it, it slips away from my fingers.

This is the place where I could have pitched for the next four years if the accident didn't take Beth out of my life. I can do nothing about it now, even though so many times I wished I could go back in time and fix it all up.

I talk to the security at the entrance and tell him about my appointment with Coach Pierce. He buzzed me in and directed me to his office. So I follow his directions.

When I arrive at his office, the door is wide open, and he is on the phone with someone. He gives me a sign to wait while he continues talking on the phone. I wait outside until he finishes his conversation. In a few minutes, he hangs up and indicates with his fingers for me to come into the office.

"I am sorry about making you wait. Yes, what can I do for you, young man?"

He doesn't recognize me at first. I walk into his office and shake his hand, and then start to explain to him why I came to see him.

"My name is Leonard White. I received a scholarship from you, and I am supposed to start this fall with your baseball program."

I doubt for a moment and shake it off.

"Unfortunately, something happened in my life, and I decided not to enroll at the University."

He is surprised to see that someone who received the scholarship declines to attend the school. It doesn't happen often, so he is curious to find out the reason.