Sunshine // Benny Rodriguez

3

Before she could even process what was happening, Bella swung her bat and sent the ball flying into the outfield. She watched as it made its way towards Donnie in left field before dropping her bat and sprinting towards first base. She could hear mutters of disbelief as she passed some of the boys, but Benny was loud and clear, cheering her on from home plate. Much to her surprise, she made it all the way to 3rd base before she came crashing to the ground as the ball collided with her calf. She held out her hands to break her fall, but failed and went straight into the dirt with a large gasp. In shock, she stayed in her position on the ground as she watched Donnie storm out of the sandlot. It took her a moment to realize what had happened, not believing that her brother would purposely hurt her. She laid on the ground in shock before she heard footsteps pounding their way over to her.

"Bella, are you okay?"

She looked up to see Benny reaching his hand out to help her up. She slowly pulled herself onto her knees before grabbing his hand and hoisting herself up.

"Are you okay?" he repeated.

And that's when it happened. The tears came without notice, and Bella wasn't quite sure why. Maybe it was the pain, the embarrassment, or the shock. Whatever the cause, they were there. Benny's mouth fell open, and he had no idea what to do. Bella bit her lip in an attempt to compose herself, but instead let out a small sob.

"I should go Benny." she whispered, swiping the tears from her cheeks, "I shouldn't have been here in the first place."

"No, no, it's okay Bella, really." he sputtered, unsure of what words would be comforting.

"No, I should go home. Thank you for everything, Benny."

And with that, she was gone. He didn't try to stop her, everything seeming to happen so fast.

"Benny man, what was that about?"

"I don't know. Don't worry about it, just keep playing."

~~~

Bella burst through her front door, once again avoiding her questioning parents. She quickly made her way to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her. The tears flowing down her face were now out of anger. She was starting to see how many opportunities Donnie kept her from her whole life. She had to give up the chance for a group of friends just because he didn't want her there? She was furious, but there was nothing she could do. As the first born, Donnie was the angel child, so she knew that telling her parents would do no good. And clearly she couldn't persuade him into letting her play. Her anger was building up, but she felt helpless. Just as she was about to collapse onto her bed, she heard her door creak open and she turned to see Donnie standing in the doorway, rage evident on his face. Suddenly, all of her feelings of anger faded away and she felt her timid attitude immediately return. As Donnie stepped farther into the room, she quickly began to ramble.

"Look, Donnie, I'm sorry I showed up today. It won't happen again. I shouldn't ha-"

Her words instantly broke off as Donnie grabbed ahold of her forearm.

"Listen, Bella."

"Ow, Donnie, what the-"

"If I see you at the sandlot one more time, I swear you'll wish you were dead." he seethed, whispering so as to not alarm their parents.

His grip on her arm tightened enough to earn a small yelp, Bella immediately tugging in an attempt to escape. He gave her one last squeeze before jerking his arm away and briskly exiting the room. She was left standing with her jaw dropped, tears pouring down her face yet again.

~~~

Benny couldn't stop thinking about Bella. He knew she was hurting, but baseball was all he knew so he didn't know how to help, though he desperately wanted to. All he knew was that he wasn't going to let Donnie play with them anymore. He was a scumbag, and that was made evident in the way he treated Bella. The next morning, he made his way over to their house, despite his uncertainty of what to say. As he stepped out of his front door, he could see Bella standing in her yard watering the plants. As he moved closer, he could see the large bruise forming on her leg, just below her skirt. He felt an unexpected pang in his chest, disliking the sight of her in pain. However, he did take notice of how beautiful she looked. Of course he loved how she looked in her t-shirts, but there was something unusually captivating about her appearance. She was wearing a long-sleeved blouse which was surprising to him, considering it was a rather hot day.