JAROD
It was the perfect cliché. The bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, one out, and all the other team needed was two points to win the game. He caught the baseball and searched the field. He thought fast, throwing it to the third baseman, Buford, who threw it home, getting two runners out. They had won the game and the Championship! The team of seven-year-olds was ecstatic, jumping up and down and running over to pile on their coach. The 'Little Lookouts' had never won a game and now that their new coach, Coach Jarod, came in to town they were champions.
"All right kids! Wonderful pass there at the end Jason!" He laughed trying hard to stand up straight. "That was great! I am so proud of every one of you!" Pulling the last child off of his back, he looked over the team in front of him. They had been heart-broken when he had arrived. They had been a broken down team with a coach who had left them. The most heart-broken of them all was, of course, the son of the coach, Jason. Looking at him now, Jarod knew he would be all right. "How about we go get some ice cream to celebrate?" The kids screamed their agreements and Jarod laughed. "Well, go ask your parents." They ran off in all directions, in search of parental consent.
"Hello. You must be Coach Jarod." Jarod turned to see a lovely young blonde with bright blue eyes. "Your team did wonderful out there today. My nephew, Jason, is on your team." She was grinning happily and Jarod felt his heart jump.
"Thank you. They worked very hard to get where they are and I'm very proud of them." He returned the smile and thought a moment. "Would you like to go celebrate with us Miss…?"
She smiled wider at the invitation. "Oh, just call me Emily. Umm… actually, I would love to go celebrate with you, but it just so happens that I have a prior engagement."
Jarod tried not to show his disappointment as he responded. Subconsciously he searched her ring finger and then grinned when he didn't see a ring of any sort. "Well, that's too bad. Maybe some other time then?"
Emily almost bounced in her excitement but decided she probably should try to remain calm. "Are you busy tonight? I have a little vacation time coming up and I want to start it as soon as possible. I just have a few loose ends to tie up today and I'm off."
Jarod almost thought he could see the excitement brimming in her eyes. "I would love to. Where are you staying?"
"I'm staying at Julienne's Inn. I know it's not all that snazzy but it's cozy and I like it." She shuffled her feet and looked down at the ground.
He smiled when he realized she was shy about telling him where she was staying. He wanted to tell her not to worry about it, because he had seen his share of Hotels but decided against it. "Sounds great. I'll pick you up around… eight?"
She peered past Jarod and then looked back a little disturbed. "Eight it is, then. Just ask the man up front for Emily, he'll know who I am. It's been nice talking. I've got to run. Bye." And with that she headed off.
She seemed in a hurry and he decided it was best not to keep her. "Okay, bye." Jarod suddenly felt like a pile of bricks had been thrown at him. It took a moment to register that it was his team. "All right, I get the point! Which way to the nearest Dairy Queen?" The children started to clamor there way to the team van and they were off. "So what do you guys want when we get there?" An assortment of flavors reached his ear and he just smiled. "Okay, so that's eleven vanillas?"
When they had reached their destination, the boys all jumped out of the van and ran for the entrance. By the time Jarod had caught up with them they had run up a pretty large bill. "Did your mommies give you any money at all?" The group of children smiled at him angelically and he knew their answers. He looked at the person behind the cash register and grinned sheepishly.
"I'll pay the bill." When the kids had gotten their ice creams and sat down, Jarod walked over to sit with Jason. "Is this seat taken?"
Jason smiled a milky smile up at him and nodded. "You sure can, Coach Jarod. Did you see that catch I made today? Wasn't it somethin'? I just got that there ball up an' hauled it over to third base an', luckily for us, Buford caught it! We won the game all cause of… you."
Jarod gave Jason a goofy kind of 'aw shucks' grin and shifted in his seat. "It wasn't just cause of me… uh, because of me. Anyway, you kids did all the work. I just supervised."
Jason took one last lick of his ice cream and looked up at Jarod. He leaned in and arched an eyebrow. "Super-huh?"
Jarod ruffled the seven-year-olds hair and laughed. "Supervised. It means I watched and gave a few tips. All you needed was a good lineup. You and your buddies over there did all the… hard stuff."
Jason nodded at this as if he knew it was the honest truth and went back to eating his ice cream. "Coach Jarod? Who was that lady you were talkin' to earlier at the ballpark? The pretty one with the long blonde hair."
Jarod stared at the boy for a moment, confused. "That was your… She said she was your… Wait, she isn't? Emily?"
The boy looked at his coach in utter disbelief. "Well coach, if she isn't Emily what's the point in tryin' to bring it up all of the sudden. I just wanted to know who she was, not who she wasn't. I swear, coach, sometimes I think there is somethin' quite wrong in that head of yours."
Jarod suddenly got quite serious and looked down at the small child. "Believe me Jason I think there is 'somethin' quite wrong' here too." Jason went on eating his ice cream as Jarod thought about what his next move would be.
It was the perfect cliché. The bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, one out, and all the other team needed was two points to win the game. He caught the baseball and searched the field. He thought fast, throwing it to the third baseman, Buford, who threw it home, getting two runners out. They had won the game and the Championship! The team of seven-year-olds was ecstatic, jumping up and down and running over to pile on their coach. The 'Little Lookouts' had never won a game and now that their new coach, Coach Jarod, came in to town they were champions.
"All right kids! Wonderful pass there at the end Jason!" He laughed trying hard to stand up straight. "That was great! I am so proud of every one of you!" Pulling the last child off of his back, he looked over the team in front of him. They had been heart-broken when he had arrived. They had been a broken down team with a coach who had left them. The most heart-broken of them all was, of course, the son of the coach, Jason. Looking at him now, Jarod knew he would be all right. "How about we go get some ice cream to celebrate?" The kids screamed their agreements and Jarod laughed. "Well, go ask your parents." They ran off in all directions, in search of parental consent.
"Hello. You must be Coach Jarod." Jarod turned to see a lovely young blonde with bright blue eyes. "Your team did wonderful out there today. My nephew, Jason, is on your team." She was grinning happily and Jarod felt his heart jump.
"Thank you. They worked very hard to get where they are and I'm very proud of them." He returned the smile and thought a moment. "Would you like to go celebrate with us Miss…?"
She smiled wider at the invitation. "Oh, just call me Emily. Umm… actually, I would love to go celebrate with you, but it just so happens that I have a prior engagement."
Jarod tried not to show his disappointment as he responded. Subconsciously he searched her ring finger and then grinned when he didn't see a ring of any sort. "Well, that's too bad. Maybe some other time then?"
Emily almost bounced in her excitement but decided she probably should try to remain calm. "Are you busy tonight? I have a little vacation time coming up and I want to start it as soon as possible. I just have a few loose ends to tie up today and I'm off."
Jarod almost thought he could see the excitement brimming in her eyes. "I would love to. Where are you staying?"
"I'm staying at Julienne's Inn. I know it's not all that snazzy but it's cozy and I like it." She shuffled her feet and looked down at the ground.
He smiled when he realized she was shy about telling him where she was staying. He wanted to tell her not to worry about it, because he had seen his share of Hotels but decided against it. "Sounds great. I'll pick you up around… eight?"
She peered past Jarod and then looked back a little disturbed. "Eight it is, then. Just ask the man up front for Emily, he'll know who I am. It's been nice talking. I've got to run. Bye." And with that she headed off.
She seemed in a hurry and he decided it was best not to keep her. "Okay, bye." Jarod suddenly felt like a pile of bricks had been thrown at him. It took a moment to register that it was his team. "All right, I get the point! Which way to the nearest Dairy Queen?" The children started to clamor there way to the team van and they were off. "So what do you guys want when we get there?" An assortment of flavors reached his ear and he just smiled. "Okay, so that's eleven vanillas?"
When they had reached their destination, the boys all jumped out of the van and ran for the entrance. By the time Jarod had caught up with them they had run up a pretty large bill. "Did your mommies give you any money at all?" The group of children smiled at him angelically and he knew their answers. He looked at the person behind the cash register and grinned sheepishly.
"I'll pay the bill." When the kids had gotten their ice creams and sat down, Jarod walked over to sit with Jason. "Is this seat taken?"
Jason smiled a milky smile up at him and nodded. "You sure can, Coach Jarod. Did you see that catch I made today? Wasn't it somethin'? I just got that there ball up an' hauled it over to third base an', luckily for us, Buford caught it! We won the game all cause of… you."
Jarod gave Jason a goofy kind of 'aw shucks' grin and shifted in his seat. "It wasn't just cause of me… uh, because of me. Anyway, you kids did all the work. I just supervised."
Jason took one last lick of his ice cream and looked up at Jarod. He leaned in and arched an eyebrow. "Super-huh?"
Jarod ruffled the seven-year-olds hair and laughed. "Supervised. It means I watched and gave a few tips. All you needed was a good lineup. You and your buddies over there did all the… hard stuff."
Jason nodded at this as if he knew it was the honest truth and went back to eating his ice cream. "Coach Jarod? Who was that lady you were talkin' to earlier at the ballpark? The pretty one with the long blonde hair."
Jarod stared at the boy for a moment, confused. "That was your… She said she was your… Wait, she isn't? Emily?"
The boy looked at his coach in utter disbelief. "Well coach, if she isn't Emily what's the point in tryin' to bring it up all of the sudden. I just wanted to know who she was, not who she wasn't. I swear, coach, sometimes I think there is somethin' quite wrong in that head of yours."
Jarod suddenly got quite serious and looked down at the small child. "Believe me Jason I think there is 'somethin' quite wrong' here too." Jason went on eating his ice cream as Jarod thought about what his next move would be.