A/N: As I've noted before, in my world, the Becketts are Mets fans. And yes, I have them playing the same teams but this is set in the future. And I have to say this: LET'S GO METS!
Kate Beckett Castle looked across the breakfast table at her five year old son, James. James had inherited the baseball loving gene from the Beckett side of the family, and he was one excited little guy. Last night, after he was in bed, the Mets had beaten the Dodgers. While she or Rick usually had to drag him out of bed on school days (even if he loved school, he loved sleep more. He was such a Castle!), this morning he was out of bed and knocking on their door at 6 AM. When she told him the news, he celebrated so loudly, he woke up his dad. He had wanted to call his Grandpa Jim, but she told him they should wait a little while.
So here they were, right before making the call. Rick had informed Jamie that the National League Championship Series versus the Cubs was starting on Saturday night. Jamie had been talking about how the National League Division Series had started last Friday and he was remembering watching with his grandpa at grandpa's house. He was now convinced he had to do the same thing or the Mets wouldn't win. And Kate knew through experience, nothing she could say would convince him otherwise. Even the fact that as season ticket holders, he and Grandpa (and Mom and Dad) could actually go to the game; no, since Jamie was a Beckett and a very superstitious Mets fan, he felt he had to re-create the scenario of what he did during the first game of the NLDS.
Kate knew what that was like, because when she was almost seven years old, the Mets won the World Series. She had her rituals too. She had gone to a game that August with her parents. It was chilly for August, and her mom let her wear a new sweater to the game - a wildly striped sweater that was mostly royal blue, which was one of the Mets colors. They had won that night, and a month later, when they won the National League East title, she had been wearing the sweater again. So her dad had teased her and told her that sweater was the lucky sweater. But her mom, a lifelong Mets fan too, had truly believed that. So whenever the Mets needed a big win that October, her mom made sure she was wearing that sweater – and it worked. She had worn it on that Monday in October when the Mets won the 1986 World Series. (She remembered that night well – her dad woke her up so she could watch them get the last outs. She only found out later how her dad had to cajole her mom into letting that happen)
So she knew the power of superstition. She was living proof of that. And her husband firmly believed in all of this stuff as well. So she texted her dad, and told him what Jamie would want to do. She and Rick would go to Game 1 with Alexis and Mike while Hannah would stay with Grandma Martha. This would please the baseball gods since that had been the setup last Friday night. Then, Jamie and Jim could go to Game 2 at Citi Field with her and Rick. After she got the text back from her dad agreeing to her plan (along with a "he's just like his mom – superstitious Mets fan") she let Jamie call his grandpa. And felt the magic of the everyday take over as she watched her five year old celebrate with her dad.
Another A/N: the story of the lucky sweater happened to me. However, I was an adult but the other facts of the lucky sweater are true. Any superstitious fan will understand.
