Dear Ludmilla

Chapter 2

                                                              Baseball tryouts had knocked everything out of his mind for that week, even the girl he had seen at Central Park. He spent most of his time doing homework and practising his sport. Time passed by at a snail's pace, but eventually, the day came.

                                                               Ben was extremely nervous. Even thought the game hadn't even started yet, sweat was already dripping from his forehead. Sitting on the bench with a couple of other guys who he didn't know, he clutched his hands together, tapped his left foot and waited. One boy after another walked into the pitch and looked overjoyed or saddened, depending on whether they were on the team or not. Finally, his turn came.

                                                                Although the waiting was torture, the game passed like a wildfire. So fast that, in the years to come, he would not even remember what happened. All he would remember was the cheering as the coach announced that he was on the baseball team. He would remember the happiness he felt as after years of practising and thinking that he would never make it, he did, and it was worth it. He would remember searching in the crowd for his friends. He would remember seeing Micky, his best friend. He would remember seeing Brittany, the girl who Micky was enamoured with. And he would remember, to his amazement, that next to Brittany, there was the girl that he met at Central Park. 

                                                               She was looking at him intently. Not happily, exactly, but unlike the other she actually noticed him to what looked like interest. He suddenly realised that they had some sort of connection, maybe even verging on the supernatural. But how could that be? She was just a normal girl like everyone else, even though to Ben, she was special. With a nod to each other, they signaled each other to meet outside.

                                                              For a while, they just stared at each other. Then, Ben whispered softly. "It's you. The girl from Central Park. The girl drinking from the coffee cup, am I right?" The girl nodded, then asked him who he was. It was shocking for her that somebody she didn't even know remembered her from just a few days ago. Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by Ben clearing his throat.

                                                               "I'm...I'm Ben. Ben Novasky." After a brief pause, he continued. "And you are?" Her usually serious look turned into an anxious one as her eyebrows furrowed. She tried to hide it with a smile, and to her relief, it seemed as if Ben hadn't even noticed she was anxious. She murmured her name, then said it a bit louder as Ben had not heard her correctly. 

                                                               "Me? I'm Ludmilla Greene."