One of the Boys

Chapter 2: The Lost Boy

Landon:

The day Lucie told us she was leaving, was the day I decided to quit baseball. 

It was spring of my Sophomore year of high school, and I had been playing on Langston High School's varsity team since freshman year. Outside of school I played AAU baseball with the goal of making it to the majors or at least a Division I college. I was going to be starting pitcher this year, a feat an underclassman on a prestigious varsity team rarely accomplished.  For a good portion of my life everything was about baseball.  

Then one day I broke my collar bone and tore my shoulder. 

It was a stupid accident. I had been at a house party when someone tripped and knocked me down the stairs. I nearly broke my neck but at the last second had managed to twist my body around so that I landed on my shoulder.  A broken collar bone and torn shoulder didn't seem like that big of the deal. I didn't even cry when the accident happened. 

After surgery and physical training,  I was told that I wouldn't gain any of the same muscles and strengths back in my right shoulder. That was my pitching arm. At first I didn't believe them and continued to rigorously train my arm. Then when I saw that my pitching decreased by about 20 mph, and my shoulder only became worse. I knew I was done. It was then that I cried. 

There was no point in trying. I wanted to save myself the humiliation of going from starting pitcher to water boy. I didn't want to be the kid who everyone grimaced at when he stepped on the mound or the kid everyone shook their head in pity wondering what happened to him. So that sunny spring day, the day before pre-season I quit and never looked back.

~~~~~

Lucie was furious when she found out.

"Are you kidding me?" she cried out in outrage. We were sitting on the porch steps of Kei's house when I told her the news. 

"What?" I raised my eyebrows, taking a sip of soda from a can of root beer. 

"You're just going to give up like that? After 9 years of playing baseball?" She demanded, punching the side of my arm with her knuckles. I grimaced. For a 15 year old girl, she was an awkward skinny flat chested teen with more of a guy's arm than most guys her age. Lucie's hair was tied in a haphazard low pony tail and was wearing long athletic shorts and a baggie t-shirt that was probably mine. 

"What's the point if I'm only going to be benched?" I said with a flat expression. 

"Well maybe 'cause you love the sport and with practice you'll get better!" Lucie was always the optimistic one. At times she had a deadly cynicism, but a majority of her personality was built on always looking on the bright side of things. But Lucie knew my arm would never get better. She had seen me practice with it first hand. 

"I can't play. I've accepted it, so you should too," I sighed and handed her my half full soda can. She downed the rest of its contents and wiped some soda droplets that missed her mouth and rolled down her chin. 

"Anyways," I clapped my hands together then rested my arms on my knees. "Why did you call the McCallister Boys to Kei's house?" We were still waiting on Kei coming back from his lacrosse try outs and Devin and Soren to finish their homework to meet us down the street. 

"I'll tell you guys when everyone's here," the smile on Lucie's face vanished. She stared steadily ahead with her eyes resting on the pavement. Without warning she crushed the empty root beer can with her foot, smashing it into a compact metal circle. "Five bucks that I can get this into the recycling bin," she betted, holding up the tin mass and pointing to Kei's recycling bin that was 30 feet away. I knew Lucie could make the shot. She played baseball for nearly as long as I had and had a deadly arm. But I betted anyways, because I was a gambler and always liked to risk things.