Can anyone hear us?

12

"What do you want?" I asked the three men pitifully.

"Good game you played tonight."

"My dad is head coach of one of the largest baseball teams. He can have any of you thrown out of MLB in no time." Elizabeth said.

"You don't know shit." One spat.

"Hey, get out of here while you have the chance." Jake said while standing up from the bar stool.

I pulled Jake back.

"We asked you to leave." I got up in the 'leader's' face and slightly pushed him.

"Not until you respect us." He replied. He grabbed Jake by his collar and slammed his face into the counter. The leader's friend grabbed a glass bottle and smashed it over his head. The bartender seemed to know that this fight would end. And soon.

Two police men entered the bar and a worker pointed out the other team's players. The police took them all by the wrists and escorted them out of the building.

"Jake, are you dead?" I asked.

"No, ass. I'm not." He replied. Jake seemed to have no scratches from the bottle.

"Why didn't you do anything to stop the fight?" I asked the bartender. She held up a black device with a red button.

She said, "this device signals for the police to come when things get ugly."

"I gotta get to my dads. See you at tomorrow's game." As I walked onto the sidewalk, my phone rang.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Aron, hey uh, are you busy?" The coach asked. He sounded uneasy.

"No why?"

"Can you walk to my house and see if anyone is outside?"

"Sure."

"But be careful. Extremely careful." He said. I said goodbye and hung up. Why am I looking for people outside his house?

I arrived and stepped onto the lawn, pulling out my phone flashlight so I could see. I spotted two men dressed in black creeping up on his house. I quickly turned the phone off and ran to the side of the house so they couldn't see me.

They held something in their hand and threw it through the house window. Before I could react, smoke filled the house, fire alarms going off. I dropped my phone and ran inside the house, trying to cover my mouth with my shirt.

"Coach!" I yelled over the alarms. I sprinted up the stairs, coughing a little from the smoke. "Coach!"

He entered the hallway in front of me.

"We gotta go! I'll explain once were out." I told him. I paused to cough.

"You go, I'll be behind you." He said.

"No! Go!" I yelled louder and he ran down the stairs and out the front door. I continued to look for his wife, the smoke making me dizzy.

"Where is he?" I heard her say behind me. I turned around and she stood at the top of the stairs.

"Go! He made it out." I said, scaring her.

"Aron?"

"I'll be behind you!" She went downstairs. I was about to go to the stairs when a fire exploded at the bottom, crawling upstairs.

I retreated back and into a bedroom. I needed to get out. The only way was the stairs.

Running to the stairs while constantly coughing, I needed to jump them.

One...two...three

I jumped the flight of burning stairs and landed on the floor hard. I sprinted out the front door and the coach ran up to me.

"Aron! Are you hurt?" I held him up a finger and turned away, vomiting from all the smoke. The fire truck and police had just arrived.

"It was a grenade." I said in between breaths.

Once the firemen put the fire out, the coach asked, "Can we stay with you? Our house is going to take days to recover."

"Ok. My dad has extra rooms."

--------------------------

"Dad, I'm home."

He came from the living room and was about to say some nasty remark when he saw he had company.

"This is my coach and his wife. They need to stay with us for a few days while their... House is going through renovations." I lied.

"Ok. Your room will be down the hallway to the left." My dad pointed it out and they both walked towards their room.

"Aron, what the hell are you thinking? I can't afford two more mouths to feed!"

"Why? You're only feeding yourself, not me. And I'm paying for it like I always do." I replied. He was about to argue with me but I was too exhausted to fight. I walked up to my room and plopped down on my bed.

Then my phone began to ring. I moaned, just wanting rest. After all, I have a game tomorrow. I picked the phone up when it didn't stop ringing.

"Hello?" I said groggily.

"Hey Aron. What happened? I heard there was a fire and the news showed the coach's house." Elizabeth began.

"Um, yeah everything's fine."

"Were you there?"

"Yeah."

"Were you hurt? How did the fire stop?" She asked eagerly.

"Uh I'm fine. Some...people.." I dozed off.

"Aron!" I heard Elizabeth shout and I awoke.

"Yeah yeah. People started the fire."

"Who?" I fell asleep again. I heard Elizabeth sigh before I was completely asleep.

--------------------------

I startled awake, something soft hitting my face. Rubbing my eyes, I realized it was a pillow.

"Get up. Even though I'm in the same house as you doesn't mean I'm not your coach." The coach said walking down the hallway. Ugh.

I sat on the side of the bed when dad came in my room, shutting the door behind him.

"What now?" I asked. He walked towards me and slapped me across the face. "What the hell!"

"You smell like fire. You were there, at his house. Why?"

"Helping him!" I claimed.

"Who is Elizabeth?" He asked. "She accidentally called the house phone."

"No one. Just a friend."

"I will find out the truth and when I do, you'll be sorry." He spat in my face and slammed the door shut. I checked my phone but it was dead. I must've left it on all night.

I heard faint screams and looked out my window. Ted was there trying to get my attention. I opened it.

"What're you doing? If people see me with you, we'll be in tons of trouble!" I size just loud enough so he could hear me.

"Just come here! I think I found a mascot!"

..... What?