The Sandlot

Chapter 8

Yeah-Yeah pulled me over to the sandlot. He took me to stand where he always stands. Everyone else got in their usual spots. Yeah-Yeah held his extra glove out to me. I hesitated. Can I really do this?

"It's alright. Just grab the glove." Yeah-Yeah said.

I slowly reached out and took the glove. I put it on and smiled. It's been a long time since I've put a baseball glove on. I looked over to Benny.

"Alright, Ariel. Squints and Yeah-Yeah are going to stand behind you just in case you don't catch the ball, okay?" Benny said.

"Okay." I said.

He threw the ball but I was too slow. Yeah-Yeah caught it. He handed it to me. My heart was pounding. It was bringing back so many memories. Playing on the field with the team. My dad teaching me to play. Yeah-Yeah out his hands on my waist and turned me to face Benny.

"Throw it." he whispered.

And I threw it. It landed like 3 feet away from Benny. He went and picked up the ball. Then, he walked back over to batters place. I looked down. I'm horrible at this. Benny walked over to me. Yeah-Yeah wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into his chest. He set his head on my shoulder.

"It's okay. You'll get it. You just need practice, babe." he said. Babe. Even that reminds me of my dad. But it still made me smile.

"Don't feel bad, Shorty. You'll get it." Benny said.

He ran back over to his place on the field. Yeah-Yeah backed up. Benny threw the ball but Squints caught it. He handed me the ball and I threw it towards Benny. It landed a little closer. But not by much. He picked it up and went back to his place. He threw it again and I caught it. I actually caught it. Everyone cheered. Yeah-Yeah hugged me, picking me up and spinning me around. He set me back down and backed up some. I threw the ball to Benny but it still didn't make it to him. I looked down. Well, I may have caught it but I still can't throw that well.

"You're thinking about it. You can't think about it. You just gotta have fun. If you were having fun, you would've thrown it far enough." Yeah-Yeah said.

I nodded. I closed my eyes for a second. I thought of how I used to play a game of baseball with the team after all of their games. That was so much fun. I smiled and opened my eyes. Benny threw the ball and I caught it. I threw it back and he caught it. I had the biggest smile ever on my face. We went back and forth like that for a while. We decided to call the game for the rest of the day. I held the glove out to Yeah-Yeah.

"Keep it." he said.

"Thanks." I said.

We all went to the dugout. They all sat down. There was no more room to sit down so I just stood there. Yeah-Yeah grabbed me by my waist and pulled me into his lap. I smiled.

"Today went well." Squints said.

"Tomorrow you're pitching." Denunez said.

"Okay." I said.

Yeah-Yeah wrapped his arms around my waist. He rested his head on my shoulder.

"I love you, Shorty." he said.

"I love you, too, Yeah-Yeah." I said.

"Ewwww. Stop being all mushy." Ham said.

I smiled. My dad would have liked him. He would have liked all of them.

"My dad would have liked you guys." I said.

They smiled. I guess they didn't know what to say. To them, my dad was the greatest baseball player who ever lived. To me, he was my dad. One of my heroes. But these boys are also my heroes. Because they're the reason I picked up a baseball again. The reason I'm trying to relearn baseball.

"I'm not joking. He really would have liked you guys." I said.

"Would he like me?" Yeah-Yeah asked.

"Yeah. He would. He would definitely approve. If you don't believe me, go ask Mr. Mertle. Him and my dad are almost exactly the same. If Mr. Mertle approves of you, my dad most definitely would." I said.

He smiled and kissed me. My first kiss. Our first kiss. I'm sure my cheeks were red after that.

"Awwww. She's blushing." Squints said. I blushed harder.

"It's getting dark. We should all get home." Benny said.

"Yeah. We should." Squints said.

I got up and Yeah-Yeah got up. He grabbed my hand and walked me to the fallen fence. Once we stepped on it, Hercules came out and started barking and growling. Yeah-Yeah completely stopped.

"It's okay, Hercules. It's just me and Yeah-Yeah." I said.

He stopped and sat down. I walked to him and patted his head.

"You approve of him, don't you?" I asked.

Hercules stood up and sniffed Yeah-Yeah. He lay down and rested his head on Yeah-Yeah's feet. I smiled. I looked up at Yeah-Yeah.

"He likes you." I said.

"That's good to know." Yeah-Yeah said.

He walked me up to the door. I faced him.

"I don't want you to go." I said.

"I don't want to go. But I'll see you tomorrow. I love you." he said.

He leaned in and kissed me. I smiled and so did he.

"I love you, too. Bye." I said.

"Bye, babe," he said.

He turned and left. I watched him walk away until I couldn't see him anymore. I turned and went inside. Mr. Mertle was sitting at the table with Miller.

"How did it go?" Miller asked.

"I learned how to catch and throw again. They said I'm pitching tomorrow." I said.

"That's good. You've always been a fast learner." Miller said.

"You should go get some rest. Them boys are always out there early." Mr. Mertle said.

It's true. They are always out there early.

"Goodnight, guys." I said.

"Goodnight." they said.

I went up to my room and changed into my pj's. I lay down. After a while, I fell asleep.