(Complete) Kenzie Lynch grew up around baseball, but her father refuses to let her get involved with any players. Christopher Jett's loves baseball, Coach Lynch and the girl he can't have. After six years, can they learn to be friends and will frie...
Assist: The official scorer awards an assist to every defensive player who fields or touches the ball (after it has been hit by the batter) prior to a putout
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Seven years ago...
Getting Kim to walk home when she wanted to be back with the frigging infield was almost impossible. Finally he threw her over his shoulder and carried her home. As much of an issue Kimmy was, he had bigger worries. Why did he kiss that girl? Why had he thought Kenzie had left? Maybe because Kimmy had disappeared.
He hadn't expected to find Kimmy having sex with an audience.
She was heavy to carry and to make it worse she kicked him. Kenzie tried to calm Kim down. Kenzie looked dazed and Jett worried about her. Lord, he tried to protect her from seeing in that room.
He set her down. "Kimmy, you're drunk!"
"I'm not drunk. I want to go back."
Kenzie yelled. "Shut up Kimmy! The party's over."
"Why are you mad at me?"
He followed the girls up to Kenzie's dorm room. Thankfully, her roommate went home for the weekend. This wasn't exactly the circumstance he had imagined for his first invite to Kenzie's room.
Kimmy had stopped wishing to be back at the party and announced, "Sex makes me tired."
Jett heard Kenzie sob. She had tears streaming down her face. She cried, "What happened, Kimmy?"
"They like me. I'm not too young. You two should try it." She laughed like she'd told a funny joke.
Jett pulled Kenzie into the hallway. "Are you okay?"
She shook her head.
"This isn't her. She was always like me." Please let that be code for still a virgin, Jett hoped. "She was better off having her crush on Ben."
"She needs you?"
"Why?"
Because you are caring, instead he replied, "Because she's looking for love in the wrong ways. She grew up without a father figure."
"Just my father. I grew up without a mother and I didn't get drunk tonight."
"Your father more than makes up for your mother."
"How do you know so much?"
"Because I took psychology at NHA, remember?"
She laughed, but her eyes didn't join in. They looked tormented. He worried she saw inside the room. He reached out and put his arms around her. His heart sped up like he was sprinting down the line. How could a hug cause his heart to go crazy when the kissing had just bored him? Slowly he ran his hand along the silky strands he loved. It was down loose covering her shoulders
He whispered, "Kenze, I can stay if you need me to."
She shook her head and opened her door. Kimmy was already asleep. He reluctantly turned to leave when Kenzie called out, "Thanks."
He waved and kept walking.
The next morning, Gilly and Andy were at the team's unofficial table in the dining hall. He followed Ben and sat down. Not wanting to look at his teammates, he asked Ben about his night with Emily.
"Uh, okay."
He nodded. That didn't sound enthusiastic.
Gilly said, "We had a great night. A hot thing was more than willing."
Jett shouted, "She was drunk!"
"No man, she wasn't, she recited the states in alphabetical order."
Ben looked at Jett in shock. He whispered, "Kim can do that. She learned a song in school." Jett nodded and Ben pounded his fist on the table. "Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!"
Jett worried about Kimmy, but Ben was angry.
"Hey Ben." Jett whispered, "Kenzie was pretty upset with Kim last night."
"Yeah, whatever." Ben was looking across the room at Emily and frowning.
Jett thought of Betsy, Kimmy's mother. They owed it to her to look out for her.
"We both let her down last night, man."
Ben abruptly stood and walked out leaving his tray behind. Jett watched him go unsure if he was angry at Kim or himself.
Betsy worked hard at the bank to support the two of them for as long as Jett had been around. He only knew Kim's father had left them, just like Ben and Kenzie's mother. Betsy made them cookies and treated Jett like he was family. She didn't deserve a daughter who got drunk and Jett cringed.
When life sucked like it did that morning, Jett felt homesick. His mother had a way of talking things through, making him feel better. This was not the kind of thing he could share with his mother, especially not over the phone. He loved his parents and was lucky because not only did they love him, but they loved each other. That was what he wanted when he was older.
