Hayden's Shelter

Chapter 4- Hayden At Bat

I normally give about two seconds thought to what I'm going to wear. Plus! With the heat here, it's basically shorts and whatever t-shirt I pull out of the stack. But this morning feels different. It feels like a date, but it most definitely cannot be one. I grab a dodgers shirt and loose basketball shorts in case anything pops up.

It's already crazy hot by 9 AM when I open the front door to find Tank looking cute in a tight blue compression shirt that hugged his developing chest and a blue BYU baseball cap. He was definitely set on that college.

"You ready to go down in flames, boy-eee?" Tank comes out with this deep and creepy voice. He sneers at me and tips his baseball cap as if to say I've been warned. It's kinda hot, but I burst out laughing and his persona breaks.

"C'mon, Hayden! I'm trying to psyche you out! You weren't supposed to laugh!" Tank whines.

"It's just... Do you even get how cute you are?" I ask and instantly regret my words. Tank blushes and kicks at the stone entryway of our humble townhome.

"I do. I try to only use my power for good though. I will not let this beauty ruin my caring heart!" Tank put the back of his hand to his forehead like he's feeling faint from the struggle.

I just grin. I know it's useless to fight this. He's too cute to fight it.

"We better get going. I reserved a cage for us and they start the hour whether you're there or not!" Tank has this down to a science.

He races down Baseline then makes the turn light at Val Vista. We get a tour of more creamsicle dotted neighborhoods. It's like an ice cream truck bomb landed on this city and spewed peach stucco over everything.

The batting place is tucked away in the back of a recreation center near a deserted playground. He raced here but there are only two other cars in the lot.

"Looks busy. I hope they have enough balls!" I point towards the wide open lot.

"Players get lazy in the summer. It's easy to take off when it's this hot, but when you want to be good at something you have to put in the work." Tank says this like he's heard it from his parents a million times.

We start to get out but then he reaches over the gear shifter and puts his hand on mine. It warms me from the inside and I pause for a minute to soak it in. I look over and his big green eyes are drinking me in. My heart begins to pound and I can feel my shorts start to tent. I pulled away from him. This was not a date.

"Hayden," Tank starts, but I'm already out of his car.

"Let's do this!" I yell and sprint up towards the batting place. Tank grabs his bag and follows me. I don't look back to check on him. He has a season pass to this place and the old guy working the booth knows him. We head into the cage on the far end. There's only one other kid there, two cages down.

It's already hot out and there isn't much shade, but Tank sets up the cage like a pro. He brought several bats and he picks them up and weighs them as if he hasn't seen them before.

"This should be best for you. Not too heavy, is it?" he asks. He hands me the bat and then goes to check the pitching machine. I have no idea what weight a bat should be, but I tell him it's great. He lets me go first. I take my stance over the center base and he turns the machine on.

There's a little beep before it sends a ball hurtling towards me. I'd been to a batting cage before, but it was years ago with my dad. I square up and take a swing. I hit the first ball and get an appreciative nod from Tank who's watching from near the pitch.

"Good, good. Ease up on your stance. Not so tight," he coaches and instantly it makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong.

The second ball comes out and I swing but miss it. Tank squats down and studies me. He's so focused and it distracts me. The third ball comes out and I miss it entirely, not even close.