Over the Line

Chapter Two

"Sam, do you think your mom has any marshmallows up at the house? I forgot to grab some when we went to the store." Sienna was always a sucker for something sweet, but her sweet tooth had been on a rampage lately.

"Probably. I can text her and ask if you want me to," Sam moved to pull his phone out of his pocket. She'd shot out of her seat and was on the move before he could get the screen unlocked though.

"No, it's okay. I'll just run up there." She trotted away before he could say anything else.

"Grab another bottle of wine while you're up there!" Yvette shouted after Sienna as she finished off what was left in her red solo cup.

After cleaning up dinner the group migrated from the patio to the laid stone fire pit by the lake. Warren had been so excited to build a fire, but Linda called him home to give the six some time to get settled. Even though everyone's parents lived fairly close together they decided to all shack up at Remi's lake house for the week. That way they could enjoy all the water toys, drinking without driving, and also no prying or eyes from parents or siblings.

"How're things looking for the team this year Parks?" Travis directed at Zander as he added another log to the flame.

"We picked up some pretty good talent in the draft and from free agency. It's kind of hard to tell how things will come together since a lot of guys have held out on attending the voluntary workouts." Zander used the poker to push around some of the burning logs to revive the nice flame. "I'll deny I ever said this, but I have to hope that that it doesn't come together too well if I want a shot at making it onto the team."

"Wait, wait, wait! Can you back up and say that again so I can catch it on camera? I can sell it for big money once you make it big." Yvette laughed and jokingly pulled out her phone.

"Oh hush," Remi rolled her eyes and laughed with the others. "Have you heard anything at all?"

"I've gotten some good feedback from my coaches. At this point their first pretty much waiting for all the ink to dry so they know how much cap space they have to work with." Zander was always a glass half full kind of guy. His mom, Ruddy, instilled that mentality in him.

Growing up without a father had been hard for Zander, Ruddy, and his little sister Kate. Ruddy juggled two jobs and would pick up miscellaneous work here and there, but you'd never hear her complain. She always gushed about how blessed she was to have her kids and the opportunity to provide for them. Zander and Kate's happiness meant everything to Ruddy and she didn't want them to miss out on anything because they'd been dealt a more difficult hand in life. She showed poise and grace when faced with adversity time and time again, which was something Remi saw more and more in Zander the older he got.

Remi remembered one time in middle school Zander was having a terrible day and wasn't performing well during a baseball game. He started throwing a temper tantrum and threw his bat in the dug out. One of the coaches yelled at him which sparked some fiery comment from Zander about him not being his father, that he didn't have a father, so what more could he expect. Ruddy and everyone else heard everything from the stands. Scott offered to talk to Zander after the game, but Ruddy had politely declined.

Remi remembered swinging with Kate on the playground after the game watching Ruddy and Zander sit at a picnic table. She could see him going through all the emotions with his mom from angry and yelling to sad and regretful. When the two joined Remi's family and Kate again Zander seemed a lot lighter and was laughing at something his Mom said. Before they pulled out of the parking lot, he ran over to coach and apologized for his actions and even offered to clean the dugout that weekend. That was the last time Remi could remember Zander acting that way.