Home Run Kiss

Seventeen

My alarm never went off for the second time in a week. At least it was the weekend, so I really didn't have to rush anywhere. Dad said that Maddie was able to work at the bakery today, so I got to stay home with Mom and Abuela. Before I did that, though, I needed to run. My head was overwhelmed with things, and I needed that rush of adrenaline to make me feel better. I wasn't sure if Noah was going to come today or not, so I got up and started getting ready. 

I slipped out of my pajamas, pulling on my leggings and T-shirt. My tennis shoes were somewhere else in the house, so I unplugged my phone and attached it to my phone holder that was on my arm. My headphones were on my little bedside table, so I grabbed them and plugged them into my phone. I Love Lucy was already playing, and hearing Lucy speak calmed me down slightly. 

I walked out of my room, heading down the hallway. I didn't hear the TV on, which meant that Mom and Abuela were in the kitchen. I wasn't going to go in there, though. I remembered where I put my tennis shoes, and they weren't in there. My eyes glanced around the living room for a second, and then I saw my shoes. They were sitting next to the door, where I last left them. 

Picking my shoes up, I sat down on the couch. I undid the laces and slid my feet into the shoes, quickly tying them. Doing those monotonous activities really helped get my mind off of things, but soon enough, I was back to thinking about Noah and Taylor. I hadn't seen Noah since we kissed, and he never texted me after telling me we would talk later. He just disappeared from my life, and it upset me. 

Both him and Taylor seemed to be avoiding me at school. It wasn't that hard for Noah to avoid me since we didn't have any classes together, but we did have lunch together. He hadn't been showing up to lunch, though, and I went back to my old spot. Taylor never looked my way at lunch, and in the classes we had together, Taylor ignored me. I was glad that he didn't say anything to me because I would have yelled at him if he did. But Noah ignoring me was weird. I thought we had something between us, but I was wrong. 

"Lola?" Mom's voice brought me back to the present. She was standing in front of me, a frown on her face. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I said, hopping up from the couch. I gave her a quick grin. "I'm fine. I'm going on a run, though, so I'll see you later."

"Be careful."

"I always am."

I hurried out the door. Mom knew that there was something wrong with me, but she didn't question me about it. I was glad for that. Maddie also left me alone most of the time, though she did tell me that she was sorry for teasing me before Noah and I went to my room. She truly did look sorry, but I had already forgiven her for it. 

The sun wasn't out today. It was covered by dark clouds, making the day chillier than what I expected it to be. I wasn't about to go back inside and grab a sweatshirt, though. I had run in worse conditions than this, so I knew I could do it. 

I could hear my footfalls over the show I was listening to, which calmed me down even more. Running was my solace, the only time I could be myself. I had let Noah see the true me, and it must have been too much for him. Either that or he just wasn't ready to come back around after breaking down in my room. I was leaning toward the second half because it was something that I would do. 

How did this all start, anyway? It was all Taylor's fault. He made me join the group chat and I accidentally answered one of Noah's texts. I never got the chance to ask him about it. It was something about a home run kiss or whatever, and it was still intriguing to me. What was a home run kiss? It was probably something simple, like when one of the boys got a home run, they would kiss their girlfriend. Apparently Noah had never gotten a home run or had a girl to kiss, and he wanted to do it this year. He still wasn't the best player on the team, so I wasn't sure if he was going to achieve that goal. 

Over my show, I heard a couple more footsteps behind me. I didn't bother looking, though. If it were some of the baseball boys running after me for the game, I was going to let them get me. I was done with the team, and I really didn't want to win the game anyway. There wasn't a point to me winning, though it would be nice if I could rub it in Taylor's face. 

After a couple of minutes, there was a lot more footsteps behind me. I was a little afraid that random people were running after me, so I looked over my shoulder. It was some of the baseball boys, with Xian and Granger in the front. 

"What are you guys doing?" I ask, turning around. I stopped running and so did they. "I run by myself, not with a group."

"Well, you did ask us that one time if we wanted to run with you, so we're here now," Granger said, a grin on his face. He pointed to Xian and said, "It was hard convincing him to come, but he did when he saw how many of the other boys were coming."

My eyes travelled over the team, and they landed on someone in the back. It wasn't a boy back there. It was a girl that looked really familiar to me. She pushed her way to the front, a frown on her face. "Wow, Lola. I thought you would be more excited to see me," Sophie said, holding her arms out. 

I launched myself into her arms, letting out a sigh. She held me for a second, and I whispered, "I really need to talk to you."

"A little birdy told me everything," she said, squeezing me tight. "I'm sorry I was gone when this happened."

"It's alright." 

I pulled away from her embrace, feeling so much better than before. A real smile worked its way onto my face and I said, "Who all can keep up with me?" And with that, I took off running, laughing when I heard the boys and Sophie make identical noises. No matter what had happened before, I was going to be fine. I was resilient, thanks to my grandparents, and I could get through anything.