A Silver Summer

Chapter 16

Chapter sixteen 

"This is just too perfect." Ivy giggled as the girls spotted their future target. 

"We aren't doing it till tonight." Mel warned them all one last time. 'Project pay back's a witch' was set in motion after breakfast when the girls snuck into the kitchen after the serving ladies left for break. 

"I can't wait to see his face." Ivy giggled again. 

"Not till tonight." Mel sternly said over her shoulder as she walked out of the bullpen and positioned herself to the left of the home plate. The girls luckily had all their field games together... and so did Ryleigh. 

"Swing batta' batta'! Swing!" Keira chanted and was seated by Anika. 

"She's on our team so you don't want to distract her." Anika playfully scolded. 

"Just checkin' to make sure she's focused." 

The pitcher lobbed the baseball in Mel's direction and she swung the metal bat. The two objects collided with a loud ting that echoed in Anika's ears. 

"Go! Go Mel! Go M-E-L-I-S-S-A!" Keira sang while doing a cheering dance. By the time the outfield threw the ball in, Mel was already landed on third base. 

"Alright Annie, bring our Mel and yourself home." Ivy patted Anika's shoulder as she passed by the magenta haired girl. 

"I'll try." she muttered more to herself and picked up the bat, giving it a few swings to test the weight in her hands. From the corner of her eye she saw the pitcher turn around to the outfield and motion something with his hands. Her grey eyes found Ryleigh at second base. Standing a few steps away from the base, he returned her glare with one of his signature smirks. With a roll of her eyes, Anika stepped up to home plate and rested the bat over she shoulder. The pitcher wound up and hurled the ball dangerously close to Anika's face so that she had to jump back to avoid the flash of white. A chorus of yells came from her bullpen and Anika also noticed that Mel looked ready to storm over to the mound and beat the kid to a pulp. With a shake of her head to Mel, Anika inched up to the plate and positioned herself again. She looked up from her feet to meet the pitcher's eyes over his black leather glove. Anika tightened her grip on the bat and thought back to the time when Greg's older brother took them out to do some mailbox smashing in an abandoned town. 

Anika's smirk grew wider as he wound up again and threw the ball down the middle expecting her to jump back for the rest of his pitches. What he wasn't expecting was line drive to his stomach. The ball cracked off the bat and shot directly to pitcher's mound. With a gurgled yelp, the pitcher collapsed on the ground. 

Anika smirked at him and a shocked looking Ryleigh before taking off around the bases. His team members were all shouting at him to get up and throw the ball but all the pitcher could do was groan. By the time the first baseman ran over to the mound, Mel and Anika had already crossed home plate. The pitcher waved off the help from his teammates and slowly picked himself up and made his way off the field. The game continued and the new pitcher threw straight down the middle each time. 

"Hey miss dominator. Heard you put another in the infirmary." Skinner snuck up on the girls as they were headed to the lunchroom after showering. He squeezed his tall frame between Anika and Ivy and slung his arms around each of their shoulders. 

"He almost hit this beautiful face." Anika brushed her fingertips past her cheeks. 

"Oh no he didn't." Skinner gasped dramatically. "So you cracked two of his ribs?"

"Really two?" Keira smirked as she replayed him falling down. 

"It was indirect. The ball kind of hit him." Anika sheepishly kicked a rock off the path.