Dude...Thats Not a Guy

9. Girly Pitches and Wide Catches

“You pitch like a girl!” Soraya’s voice could be heard across the other side of the oval

“Like you could do any better!” Xavier called back but it was obvious he was flirting with her, this would probably be a good time for me to leave them alone but you know…coaches orders and I want to see this train wreck.

“Well aren’t you guys just a couple of love birds” I called over to them, they both turned to look, Soraya pulling the catcher’s mask off her face to reveal her hair in a multi-coloured ponytail.

“What the fuck are you on?” Soraya stared sceptically at me,

“Yo Ash! What you doin here man?” Xavier shouted with a grin on his face as they moved to the centre of the pitch where I joined them,

“Coach asked me to give our new catcher here, some pointers” I shrugged, gesturing to Soraya with my thumb, “and I’d be damned if I suspected that a girl would try out for the guys baseball team, wouldn’t think you’d have the balls Ray” I smirked at her as she glared at me,

“Ass, let’s face it, I can probably beat your ass at this game” Soraya scoffed

“Pfft, yeah, and I shit butterflies” I snorted

“She’s actually not that bad, might even give you a run for your money” Xavier cut in with a smirk

“I think I’d like to see that for myself before I believe it” I stated stepping back off the pitch,

“Suit yourself” Soraya stated with an eyeroll but started making her way back to the catcher’s position behind home plate, Xavier chuckled, shot me a wink and a thumbs up before returning to the pitcher’s mound.

“Just five normal ones for now Xav” I called to him as I made my way closer to Soraya to watch her more closely, her stance seemed pretty good, a little wide maybe, but that’s easily correctable.

When the first pitch came down she shifted her position and adjusted her glove to receive the ball as it passed over the middle of the plate. It wasn’t perfect and there was much to be improved upon, but I remained silent as she stood from her crouch and threw the ball back to the Xavier. She had a good throw and judging by the way Xav flinched I could tell she was trying to prove a point.

The next four pitches went through and I continued to observe her technique and one thing became apparent as she continued to react in a robotic manner.

"Take off the helmet" I called, making my way over to her, she did as was told, most likely glad for the opportunity to remove it, considering how old and sweat soaked it probably was. Catching was by far not an easy task, dictating how a game goes and making the right calls is never easy, but that’s not even half of the physical strength and stamina necessary.

The sweat was visible on her forehead but she didn’t seem to care and I had been in her position too long to even notice it, instead I smirked at her,

"Getting tired yet?"

"Not even a little" she stated bluntly,

"Good" my smirk grew "because we have a lot of work to do if you’re going to be a catcher"

"What do you even know about baseball?" she raised an eyebrow, her annoyance clear "you weren’t even at the tryouts"

"I know a lot more than you do, that’s for sure" I stated with a cocky grin, I noticed Xavier making his way towards us,

"Pfft, and how would you know more than me Ass?" she questioned, a glare settling on her features and she placed her hand on her hip.

“I've been playing baseball since I was nine, competed for the state and travelled overseas to play” I stated proudly, my grin turning back into a smirk, “Now learn to take some advice Princess, because you are going to need it”