Rivals (Sequel To Pitcher)

Know Yourself

Austin was cheating on me. 

Although I should have been unhappy about it, I wasn't it. 

Maybe it was because I never really loved him. 

Or perhaps because of Aaron and how he smiled. 

Not how he smiled but how he made me smile. 

I have never known myself. 

I always thought that I have. 

But I never truly did. 

Aaron's adorable southern drawl brought my mind back to the game and from the second he spoke I smiled. "Ace, you do know that you still  have to come for the anthem even if you aren't pitching, right?" 

"Yes, of course, I know that I was just thinking." 

"Oh, what were you thinking about might I ask?"  He leaned his head down so he could better talk to me. 

"Silly things you wouldn't understand or want to." I blushed only in the slightest.

"Are you certain of that?" A smile sprawled across his face as he spoke. 

"Quite certain, tiger." I made sure my smile was convincing as we paused on the baseline to hear the anthem. 

After that the game was off to a quick start, Aaron jogging out to the mound, me smiling to myself as I watched him pitch. God is there anything I love more than watching Aaron Nola pitch? 

He is so calm and composed, it is as though nothing could ever upset him. Diversions are ineffective with Aaron Nola. That is where his talent surpasses mine. He does not allow words or numbers distract him as I do. He is invincible. 

From the way Aaron carries himself to the way he pitches the ball, he is beautiful. How could he be so graceful and gentle as an angel whilst also holding the intimidation of a villain? I have known him as both my angel and my villain. The truth is that he is no villain I should fear, he is only a harmless angel sent to make me smile. 

I guess you could say that I was not necessarily discreet in my newfound excitement over watching Aaron. So it should not have been a surprise at all when Odubel, sat down beside me in the fifth inning while  Aaron was attempting to bat,  and gave me the biggest smirk of all time.

"You look happy today." He said without breaking his smirk. 

"I'm just pleased that we have our best pitcher on the mound tonight."

"Sure you are...:" 

"What? He is good!"

"You must think I'm stupid if you think that I would actually fall for that. Abs, you are literally the best pitcher in the history of the MLB and you are telling me that Aaron Nola is better?" 

"I didn't say he's better, just that he's good...really really good." At that Odubel shrugged and left, chuckling to himself. 

Perhaps I was grinning foolishly at Aaron or giggling to myself at the very mention of him. Maybe I was cheering a bit louder for him than I usually do. But what did that matter? 

Aaron Nola was quite perfect in my opinion. Perfect for me and only me of course. We could have a life together, run away to New Orleans and get a little house on Royal. Nothing too fancy will do. We could have a couple of kids who we'd play catch with constantly. He'd attempt to teach me fishing. Eventually, we'd come to the conclusion that he'd go fishing and I'd cook the food. I smiled at the fantasy now planted in my mind.  Now I had a fantasy that I wished nothing more than to be in it myself. 

"What're you dreaming of, princess?" Before I knew it Aaron Nola was nudging me in the shoulder. 

"Oh, nothing." I glowed as I spoke. 

"Nothing? It's just been nothing with you today. So let me get this straight here, you have been the entirety of today daydreaming about...nothing?" Hot damn, who gave Louisiana boys the right to make anything sound so sexy with that accent? 

"Yes, it's nothing, tiger." Then, suddenly I was hit with the uncertainty of what to do next. Was I supposed to do something in order to imply that he was the nothing I had spent the game thinking of? I knew without a doubt he already knew that full well. 

"Nothing?" 

"Quit asking that, you're making me feel really stupid sitting next to you here right now!"

"Stupid?" He laughed and looked at me like I had lost my mind. "Ace, you do realize that I ain't ever thought of you as stupid, right?" 

I shrugged. 

"Abigail, you ain't stupid, you're just cute." Then in another second he was gone, off to pitch another inning in his game. As we turned the page towards another chapter in our book. Cute, huh? Try crazy, Nola.