Out of My League - Sarah Sutton Page 0,94

I could’ve told her how I teamed up with Walsh Hunter to finish it, and what came from that partnership.

But none of that was the truth. Though if I said the truth, that would be it. It would close the door to the Bayview High Report. No more newspaper, no more journalism. No more title for my résumé, no more internship.

I’d rather lose all that than lose Walsh’s respect forever. We may not end up together, but I couldn’t bear the idea of him never looking me in the eye again.

“I scrapped it.”

There was no missing the shock on her face. “You…you what?”

“I scrapped it yesterday morning. I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner, in case you were waiting on it.”

Scrapping the article meant a lot of things. Officially a forfeit, I surrendered to the war I’d been fighting all summer. No more newspaper, no more internship, no more outlet to catch my breath.

But I wasn’t alone. Before, my love of writing had been a way to feel less lonely. It always felt so good to have those words to keep me busy, keep me company. Now I had both my mom and my dad, both dedicated to making this work. And though there were no guarantees, though they might slip up sometimes, never had they ever opened their eyes to me like this. Though I’d have no journalism class, no internship, I had a family for the first time in a long time.

And besides, having my internship would’ve meant nothing if I knew that I cost Walsh his dream.

“What’s going on, anyway?” I asked, glancing around at the people leaving. “The game—isn’t it supposed to just be starting?”

Mrs. Gao glanced over her shoulder at the empty baseball field, not a single player in sight. “It’s been canceled, actually. Greenville ended up winning by forfeit. Someone accused our baseball team of cheating, so the umpire investigated, and he ended up disqualifying us.”

“Cheating?” I echoed, and though I knew I took in a breath, I couldn’t feel it. “Someone said the Royals cheated?”

“They must’ve found proof, too, or else they wouldn’t have canceled the game.” Mrs. Gao looked down at the toddler. “I should get her home. It was nice talking to you, Sophia. I’ll see you when school starts.”

I shook my head a little bit, trying to clear it, but the action didn’t help. My grip tightened on my trash bag.

Since there was no admission, I slipped past the gates with ease, standing on my tip-toes to see over the heads. I didn’t see any players anywhere, green for Greenville or purple for Bayview. They hadn’t left already, had they? There was no way. If parents were only just leaving, wouldn’t the players still be here? A raindrop fell on my glasses lens, spattering against the glass, and I hastily pulled them from my face to scrub it off.

“Bad news, Sophia,” Scott said, his voice immediately recognizable before I even got my glasses back on. “Your boyfriend’s a loser.”

I slipped on my glasses, looking up to meet Scott in the eye. Jewel stood just behind him, hair frizzing from the dampness in the air. For the first time ever, she had a pinched expression to her face, one that was less than happy. “What are you talking about?”

“He found out about the cheating and quit,” Scott shrugged, folding his arms. His baseball uniform looked pristine, not a speck of dirt or dust anywhere on his jersey or his pants. He’d managed to grow the scruff out longer than before, leaving a patchy and uneven dotting of brown. “And completely screwed his team over in the process.”

Screwed them over? Wait. “He told the umpire you guys cheated?” Why would he do that?

Scott gave me a look. One eyebrow raised, lips pursed, looking at me like I was stupid. “No, Walsh walked. Just before the game started, he just left. Quit. See, I would’ve been a better captain than him. I never would’ve walked out on my team.”

“Why did he walk?” I was alarmed now. Walsh wouldn’t have quit the baseball team, ever. That was the key to being on the county league. I looked around the sea of people, hoping his face or golden hair would stand out.

Scott let out a soft chuckle. “You know, when I told you to keep a secret, I expected you’d hold it in at least a few days before spilling the beans.”

The longer I listened to Scott talk, the more I couldn’t think straight. He