Out of My League

Chapter 6 (Noah)

Game days, whether high school, minors, or the majors, have always been stressful to me.

Even the ones that I knew would be an easy win.

The simple thought of messing up in front of thousands of people gives me major anxiety. Still, I can't help but feel excited.

There's a certain thrill from baseball that I haven't been able to find anywhere else.

"You ready?"

Connor startles me out of my thoughts with his words.

"Ready for what?" I ask.

"To start warming up," he looks at me, confused, "Did you hit your head?"

I check the clock on the wall above him.

"Did you hit yours?" Releasing a short laugh, I say, "We don't need to start warming up for an hour, buddy."

Connor bunches his eyebrows together, "I thought the dugout seemed too empty for a game day. I'm still on that spring forward time."

I shake my head, laughing.

Spring forward was two months ago, but I don't mention that to Connor.

Instead, I watch as he walks across the dugout and plops onto the bench next to me, stretching his legs out and crossing them at the ankles.

"What do you think of that new manager?"

"She seems nice."

"Yeah, she does," Connor nods and then says, "I miss Kenz."

"I do, too, but she'll be back soon," I can't help but smile, "With a mini one of her."

"Or a mini Bryce," Connor grins, "What is it with you and thinking that this baby is going to be a girl?"

I shrug, "I just have my suspicions."

"And," I add at his narrowed eyes, "I'm rarely wrong, so you better get used to the idea that this baby will be a girl."

"Were you wrong with Allison?"

I shake my head, "Told her it was a girl from the first ultrasound."

"And you were right," Connor shakes his head, laughing, "What do you think my firstborn will be?"

"What firstborn?" I tease, "You don't even have a girlfriend."

"Yeah?" He reaches over and musses my hair up, chuckling, "And I probably won't anytime soon."

"Don't like Izzy the way you thought you would?"

"She's cute," he shrugs, sticking his nail under a split piece of wood on the old, worn down bench, "But she's not into me."

"She could be."

"She's not," he insists with a shake of his head, "And I don't want a girl that's into my best friend, anyway."

I pause what I'd been doing - cracking my knuckles - to spring on my best friend, "Huh?"

"Come on, man, you aren't blind," he insists, "Izzy's into you."

"She's a fan of me," I reply, "There's a huge difference between being into someone and being a fan of them. She doesn't even know me."

That's definitely a lie; I think the girl might know more about me than I know about myself.

Connor doesn't need to know that, though. I'll just prove his point.

"I'm just saying that, maybe, you should think about it," he shrugs, "It isn't as if she's ugly."

"I know that."