Small Town Whisperings

Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A United Front
Julia's POV
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I was sitting on my front porch's steps as I took in the peaceful scenery. It was getting darker by the minute since it was late at night. I turned my head to the side and saw Ty walking down the sidewalk with his head hung low.

"Townsend?" I called out to him confused. Ty looked up at me and I could see he was upset over something. I haven't seen him since first period this morning and when we were in class together, we didn't speak or look at one another.

"Tucker... hey," Ty softly greeted me with a weak smile. I scooted over to make room for him. Ty sat down next to me and looked straight ahead.

"What are you doing here?" I questioned him. Tyler finally broke his gaze and looked over at me.

"I'm sorry for how I acted towards you at church," Ty confessed. "You were trying to be a great friend and I shut you down."

"It's alright. Are you good now or do you still need to talk about it?" I questioned him.

"Why do I suck?"

"Huh?" I asked him with a confused face.

"I'm a terrible pitcher right now. Why can't I pitch normally anymore? What happened to me?" Ty leaned his head on my shoulder causing me to wrap my arms around his shoulders and hug him against me.

"Listen to me, you're not a terrible pitcher alright. Maybe you're just leaning too far forward or it's some other easy fix. What does your coach think the problem is?"

Ty let out a sigh, "he talked to my mom about me. He knows I suck..."

I opened my mouth to rebuttal his comment, but Ty continued to speak. "Can we sit here for a few, just staring into the night?" I nodded my head yes causing Ty to sit up and pull me into his side. I leaned my head against his shoulder neck area while he wrapped his arms around me tightly.

Ty leaned back against the porch's railing as we watched the sun completely vanish into the night. After a while of sitting in peace, I decided to speak up and try to figure out what happened with Ty.

"Ty, I mean this in nicest way possible but does the fact your parents are getting a divorce have anything to do with your pitching skills right now? Like is that all you think about on the mound?"

"No," Tyler denied me instantly before letting out a soft sigh. "Maybe... okay yes. It's all that's in my head when I pitch. I see my parents in the stands and it just reminds me that they're not together anymore."

"What about Noreen?" I asked, digging a little deeper. I felt Ty nod his head against my shoulder. "I know it sucks, but you're gonna have to get used to it. You need to focus on something else instead of your parents. Maybe think about Gabe's mitt as Jackson's head. Just focus on nailing his face with one of your heaters."

Tyler let out a chuckle, "I wish it was that easy."

"It will take some time, but you got it. I believe in you." Tyler squeezed me tighter.

"Thanks Tucker." I let out a soft hmm before relaxing more into Ty's arms. We watched the stars for a little bit longer before my eyes slowly started to close.

The next thing I know, I'm being shook by someone. I slowly opened my eyes and saw Ty doing the same thing. I squinted at the bright light that was in front of me before my eyes fully adjusted to it.

"Ty? Dad?" I called out confused before I realized where I was and what happened.

"Of course, you two fell asleep outside," my dad stated with a chuckle. "You're lucky it wasn't a cold night."