Welcome
Once the boys warmed up to me I got to play ball with them every day. Thank goodness it was summer, cause we had all the time in the world. At least, it felt like it. I wasn't amazing at the game, but I was good enough to play with them and that was good enough for me. I learned a few things here and there and, not gonna lie, I did get better. By the end of the week, I had managed to score nine home runs. I was getting ready for the day when I heard knocking on my door. "Si?" I asked as I buttoned up my shirt. My door opened and walked in my mom. "I'm gonna go to the store later today, are you gonna need anything?" I shook my head as I finished up. "No, do you need me to come with you?" She then shook her head. "No mamas," She then stared at me. "Mande?" I asked confused. "You remind me a lot of your Dad." I nodded my head. She sighed and turned to leave. "Have fun today, love you." Mom and Dad split up six months ago and it was hard. "Love you too Ma." The stress of both their jobs and them not spending enough time together messed things up for them. They loved each other, but things just simply weren't working out.
I headed to the sandlot and saw this huge Mastiff sitting on the outside of the diamond. He noticed me and barked, grabbing everyone's attention. He seemed friendly so I made my way to him. I whistled and patted my chest for him to come. He got up and made his way to me. I bent down and grabbed his face and gave him some lovin'. "Hello, handsome." He licked my face a few times and I couldn't contain my giggles. "What's this guy's name?" I asked. "His name is Hercules. He belongs to Mr. Mertle, the guy that lives over there." Yeah-Yeah said as he gestured to the worn-out green fence. "How fitting. What brings you all the way from Rome?" The boys seemed confused after I made that little joke. "He sometimes comes watches us play and after we're done playing we go visit Mr. Mertle." Squints replied. I stood up and patted Hercules on the side. "Okay, well you boys ready to play?" They gave me the same collective answer and we started.
Today's weather was beautiful, not too hot, cloudy or windy. I kept eyeing Hercules as I was playing the outer field. I've always loved dogs but have never owned one. It's kind of hard to when you live in an apartment in busy Brooklyn. As the game continued on I was starting to get kinda bored. There wasn't much action for an outfielder. I looked down at my watch and noticed a couple of hours had gone by. "Hey, guys! I'm gonna go visit Mr. Mertle, does anyone wanna go?" They all kind of stared at me for a little before I got my answer. "We usually play longer before we go," Bertram answered. "Alright, well I'll see ya guys there!" I whistled over to Hercules and patted my chest. "Come on handsome, let's go meet up with Mr. Mertle."
I made my way over to the front of the house and knocked on the door. It took a minute but an older man came to the door wearing sunglasses. "Hello?" He asked. I quickly caught on that he couldn't see when he didn't look down at me. "Hello Mr. Mertle, my name is Robin. I play with the boys over at the sandlot and I'm new to the neighborhood, so I figured I could come to talk to you before they come over." He opened the door. "It's nice to meet you, come inside."
Hercules went in before me and I simply followed. "So, tell me, where are you from?" He asked as he led me through the house. "Brooklyn," I answered. "How about those Dodgers?" He asked me. "Yeah, that's basically what Brooklyn is known for, besides the bridge," I admitted. Even though it had been a few years since the team was moved, they were still my team. He led me to this room that was filled with baseball memorabilia. "Wait here, I'll be back." He took Hercules with him and I looked around. Now, this guy was really into baseball. There were pictures, trophies, flags, balls, cards, you named it, it was there. "What got you to enjoy the sport?" He asked as he came back in. "Well, my Dad always loved the sport and he was looking forward to having a boy, but instead he got me. So, he made due. He taught me everything I know, well almost everything. The boys have been showing me a lot more stuff." He walked over to a table and sat down. Before I even knew it I just started rambling on and on. "Yes, those are some fine young men. You know, it wasn't until last summer that they started coming over and visiting. I had kept to myself for so long, I had forgotten what it was like to just talk to people. I can promise you this, even for an old grumpy man like myself, those kids can make you feel like you belong regardless of anything. Even for the loneliest people." I placed my hand over his and patted it. "Yes, sir."
Later on, the boys came over and by that point, Mr. Mertle and I had become well acquainted with each other. And of course, when they all rushed in they bombarded him with how the game went and what happened this week with me. I couldn't help but giggle. Growing up with no siblings wasn't as fun as everyone made it out to be. Independent was what I had to be from the very beginning. But, maybe I can be able to depend on somebody else, like these guys.