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"I'm happy to hear that he'll be looking out for you boys . " Mr . Atkins told us at dinner when he knew that Jeremy had texted me back during school . "It's a long drive even without traffic . Make sure all your phones are charged . "
"I'll have to prepare some snacks tomorrow night . " Mrs . Atkins smiled at all of us . "Any special requests?"
"We probably won't have 'all-you-can-eat' seats again so dedicate a whole bag of cookies . " Noah suggested .
"Can we have money for hot dogs and drinks though?" Kyle asked .
"Peanuts too?" Dave wanted to know .
Mrs . Atkins nodded . "Yes, we'll be giving Zeke money on his debit card to cover one soda, one hotdog, and one bag of peanuts per a person . Anything else you boys want, you'll have to buy on your own . " She looked at Noah . "I'll bake the cookies, but I'm putting Zeke in charge . You can only have them after your dinner . "
Noah gave Zeke a look out of the corner of his eye . "Just do you know, you're almost a college athlete so you shouldn't eat too much sugar . "
Zeke rolled his eyes . Noah was abnormally defensive when it came to sweets .
Wednesday morning, Noah packed some more release forms with determination in his eyes . As we walked to our class, he stopped a few kids that he knew and asked them their summer plans . A lot of them were going on vacation and the conversation died there . Others, who didn't have plans, quickly refused to play in an adult softball league saying that's not how they wanted to spend their summer .
Noah didn't give up though . He approached everyone with the same kind of excitement that you would expect when making summer plans . In class with Alisha, he gave her a release form and explained that her parents needed to fill it out and sign it . And that he needed it back by Friday .
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" . . . " She smiled wryly . "You guys are really struggling, huh? I don't even own a glove . Or a bat . Or cleats . "
"Don't worry about all that!" Noah told her . "You can just wear running shoes and borrow the gear we have on hand . There's nothing wrong with sharing . Come on! It'll be fun!"
She glanced at me . "Didn't I tell you I would be a 'honorary member'? Why is Noah thinking that I'll actually be playing?"
I shuffled my feet, avoiding eye contact . "We don't have enough players . . . "
She sighed . "Okay . I understand . " She accepted the release form . "I'll give it back to you guys tomorrow . What's your mom's phone number in case my mom wants to talk to her?"
Noah gave her the number and she wrote it down . "Thanks! It's going to be fun, I promise!"
She smiled . "When it comes to you Noah, everything is fun . "
We went our separate ways for lunch, with Noah and I heading to our usual table and Alisha going off alone . Before we reached our table, a familiar figure could be seen, sitting there, looking impatient .
"Kaylee!" Noah greeted her first, speeding up to reach the table .
Kaylee looked up at us and frowned . "You guys are late . "
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Noah wasn't bothered by her attitude . He sat down and pulled out a release form . "We were recruiting! This is the release form that your parents have to fill out and sign . Games will be every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday . Are you any good at pitching?"
Kaylee's frown only became more prominent the more Noah spoke . I quietly sat down beside Noah and pulled out my lunch .
"I didn't say I would play . Yet . " Kaylee looked down at the release form without touching it . "And no, I don't pitch . You guys don't even have a pitcher?"
I stared at my sandwich .
"Well, maybe Mr . Miller knows how . " Noah said . "He said he has played before . "
"Wait . You got Mr . Miller to join you?" Kaylee asked .
"Yep! So far now, it's me, Jake, Zeke, Julian, his younger brother, Mr . Miller, Alisha, and you . " Noah grinned .
"Stop including me without my permission!" She raised her voice .
"But I thought you were here to agree . . . otherwise wouldn't you just ignore us again?" Noah asked, surprisingly calm .
Kaylee's eyes narrowed . "Depends on if you can agree to my conditions . "
"What are the conditions?" Noah raised an eyebrow .
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"I want a picture of Kyle's summer schedule . When and where he'll be . "
Noah nodded with ease . "I can do that . He already wrote it all out . I can take a picture tonight . "
"I also want to be invited over whenever Kyle is home . At least once a week . "
Noah scratched his cheek . "You'll have to compromise on this . Dave and Kyle have a very packed summer schedule . Going one place to the next . Colleges and camps . I can promise to invite you over when it's convenient and he's present . "
She nodded . "Acceptable . "
"Your sister still really likes Kyle?" Noah asked .
Kaylee sighed . "She . . . yea, she still likes him . He dumped her out of nowhere . She's mad, but she still cares . It's so dumb, isn't it?"
Noah shrugged . "We thought it was out of nowhere too . He didn't tell anyone what he was going to do until it was done . Dave thought he was giving up on baseball, but he pulled a complete reversal . "
"Thanks, I'm going to tell Marie that . " She looked a little better .
"Sure . " Noah pushed the form closer to her . "So . . ?"
"How much does this cost . . ?" She tapped the table .
"Free! Mom and Dad said they would cover the team fee!" Noah smiled . "We just need the players . Oh, and I guess I'll have to get some softballs and a bat for softball that we can share . "
"Give me another . " She double tapped the form . "If it's free, then I know someone that might also be interested . She's a sophomore on the JV team . More importantly, she can pitch . "
Noah didn't need to be told twice . He pulled out another form from his backpack and gave it to Kaylee . "Let me know if you need more! The minimum roster is ten players and we have to have it in by Sunday . "
Kaylee looked helpless . "Most girls have camps to go to . Or play on a summer team . We're not that much different than baseball players . "
"You don't have any camps to go to?" I asked, speaking up for the first time .
Kaylee shook her head, but didn't say anything . She got up . "I'll text you later, Noah . See you guys . " She waved and left .
Noah finally pulled out his lunch and started to stuff his face in a hurry . There were only a few minutes left of lunch so he didn't have a choice .
"Who else can we ask . . ?" Noah mumbled with his mouth full . "If Kaylee can get her friend to join, that would be nine . Just one more . "
"Why don't you ask Mr . Miller?" I suggested . "If he has played before, then wouldn't he know some other people that play?"
"Good idea!" Noah whipped out his phone and started to type furiously . He must be in a hurry to send the text before it's actual class time to avoid getting in trouble with Mr . Miller again . Noah supposedly owed him laps, but I don't know how, or if, it'll be enforced . It makes sense not to make it worse .
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