The Nesscas Bible

Baseball

Lucas

I stare at the batter as he steps up to the plate with confidence. He tosses his bat into the air and it spins, the handle landing in his hand. The word "GUTS" can be seen in big, bold letters. The capped boy readies the bat and stares the pitcher right in the face. He stares me right in the face.

I toss the ball up and catch it, reeling my arm back. The batter nods and I throw the ball as fast as I can. It flies into the hands of the catcher.

"Strike one!" The umpire calls out. The batter nods and I catch the ball as it's thrown to me. I prepare to throw again. The batter nods and I throw the ball again. Darn, that wasn't as fast.

The sound of bat against ball rings out, the beautiful sound bringing me back into reality. I look around and quickly locate the ball, tracking it with my eyes. It's soaring through the air, probably over the fence. Yep, over the fence. I turn back to home plate. That was one dangerous swing.

-

"Hey, 10?" Somebody calls for me. I look up and see the batter.

"Oh, uh, h-hello." I greet the boy.

"Hi. I'd just like to point out that you're a really good pitcher." He says. That was... Random.

"And you looked a bit sad so I came over to comfort you. You alright?" He asks me. I smile.

"Y-Yeah... Thanks." I say.

"You sure?" He asks again.

"P-Positive."

"You... Wanna go out for ice-cream, just to make sure?" He offers. I laugh.

"If-If you don't mind. I'm L-Lucas." I tell him. He nods and smiles.

"I'm Ness."

-

I sit across from Ness, holding the banana flavoured ice-cream. He smiles at me and begins eating his ice-cream carefully and slowly. I bite into it.

Ness flips out for a moment, his face showing fear and confusion.

"Did you just bite your ice-cream?" He asks. I shrug.

"Y-Yeah?"

"With your teeth?"

"Yeahhhh...?"

"That's fucking awesome." He tells me, grinning. "I've got, like, suuuper sensitive teeth. Cold water hurts to drink sometimes."

"That's n-not very good..." I say, looking down at my ice-cream. A perfect bite has been taken out of it. Cool.

-

I throw the ball into the catcher's hands. They catch it and then throw it back. That one was too slow. I throw it towards them again. That was too obvious. I catch the ball and throw it to the catcher.

It launches through the air in an almost perfectly straight line.

"That was a good throw, Lucas." Someone behind me says. I turn to see who spoke. I don't want to say I was disappointed, but...

"Thanks, Fuel," I say to my childhood friend, turning back to the catcher. "But I still want to be better."

-

There he is again. The batter. Ness. One of the scariest opponents you can come across in baseball. And then there's me. Apparently one of the best pitchers to come across in baseball.

He waves to me and I wave back, smiling. I like him. I consider him my friend.

We play and, once again, he hits the ball. It wasn't as well this time. I tricked him and he barely tipped it. It was enough for him to ditch his bat and barrel along the diamond, however.

He only made it to second base this time around. I fist pump the air and turn to the next batter. Let's see if I can dupe this one out...

-

I get thanked for my "Oh so great" pitching skills at the end of the game. I honestly don't get it, I just throw a ball. Everyone thinks it's some 90-year-old wizard level stuff, though. I toss my belongings in my bag and leave the change rooms.

Outside is Ness, a smile on his face.

"Hey, Lucas!" He says, smiling and waving. I wave back and smile, too.

"H-Heya, Ness." I greet him. We talk about baseball stuff for a while, exchanging compliments and the like.

"Do you wanna come over?" He asks me eventually. It strikes me as sudden, weird, and great.

"Uh, s-sure! If you aren't b-busy, that is..." I say.

"Great! C'mon, I'll show you where I live." He says with a smile and an usher of his hand. I smile back and follow him as we walk along the sidewalk.

And this, oh semi-great brain of mine, is the start of a strong friendship.

fuck