masseuse’s hands.
He jogs out to the mound, takes off his hat, and whispers something to the girl. She steps away from the microphone, and he picks it up.
“Oh my God,” Ariel says next to me.
Spencer grabs her hand. The strength of their hold shows between their white knuckles.
My dad’s hand claps my shoulder, conveying it will be okay. Whatever Crosby’s decided to do in this moment will be for the better and not the worst.
“Hello.” His voice shakes.
I miss that arrogant guy who used to own this town.
The stadium quiets, leaving only the sounds of crickets from the field past the stadium. Everyone is on the edge of their seats to hear what Crosby Lynch has to say.
“Many of you know me, but for those of you who don’t, my name is Crosby Lynch. I grew up in Beltline, playing ball.”
He nods to Coach Weathers, who had his wife push him back out onto the field between home and first base.
“Coach Weathers taught me everything, and I’m honored for more than this opportunity to play for him tonight. He and all of Beltline built me into the man I am. A man I’m proud of. I lost that man briefly when I lost my best friend, Noah Ford.”
When he pauses, I move to stand up, to comfort him through this horrible time, but my dad’s hand stops me, and I slowly ease back down on the bench.
Brax leaves the dugout and stands next to Coach Weathers.
“Again, I deeply apologize for that accident, and you can bet I wish there were a way I could go back in time, but it took me a long time to come to grips with the fact that I can’t.” His eyes search for me until they lock with mine. “Too long.”
A few softened faces turn my way.
“This town lost a lot that night. A great ballplayer, a fun-spirited girl. Together, they were a couple who were what small-town fantasies are about. It also lost the safety and security it’d possessed. I hope tonight is successful in restoring that, and this town is able to move forward with the memory of Noah and Kedsey as more than tragic deaths. Thank you for listening to me.”
He hands the microphone over to the girl but then hastily pulls it back his way. “Oh, and, Ella Keaton?”
All eyes turn to me.
“Thanks for taking over Noah’s job and for convincing me that I’m worth more than I believe I am. I love you.”
I blow him a kiss. The tears cascade down my cheeks, and my mom rests a Kleenex on my shoulder.
He releases the microphone.
While the girl is composing herself, Brax meets Crosby halfway and swings his arm around Crosby’s shoulders, pulling him in to whisper something in his ear.
Mr. and Mrs. Brentwood stand up from their seats and begin to clap. Slowly, a few more pop up, and before Brax and Crosby reach Coach Weathers, the majority of the people in the stands are clapping for Crosby.
The high school student is finally able to sing the national anthem, and the crowd quiets, waiting for the game to start.
“Excuse me? Ella Keaton?” A boy no more than eleven years old leans over Jen from the aisle.
“Yes?”
All eyes move back my way.
He pulls out a box from behind his back. “Your favorite player asked me to deliver this to you.” He practically drops it in my lap and disappears up the steps.
“Thank you!” I yell.
“Speedy,” Jen remarks. She helps me hold the brown box.
I glance around, feeling my mom’s breath hitting the back of my neck. All eyes are on me in this moment. I slowly open it and peek in, hiding the contents from everyone else until I catch sight that it’s not something X-rated.
Flipping the lid completely off, I laugh. I pull the sweatshirt out of the box, and everyone around me aahs.
There’s a white note pinned to the hood’s strings. Wear me.
I strip off my Ridgemont sweatshirt and replace it with my new Ridgemont Baseball sweatshirt, embroidered with I Belong to Number Twenty-Two on the back.
“He’s so sweet,” Ariel says.
My hand clasps over my heart, and I swoon along with her.
My mom’s asking me questions, and Jen’s taking pictures with my phone when someone lets out a loud whistle. Each of us stops and searches out where it came from.
Crosby’s propped up on the railing, and he’s waving me over.
I slide by Jen and run down the steps.
My lips immediately find his.
“I take it, you like?” he