Benny didn't really know exactly what to think when he realized the intruder to their Sandlot was indeed Andrea. He was shocked, obviously, for he had never thought about a girl being able to even throw a baseball.

No, he wasn't sexist in any way, shape, or form, he knew the great qualities a female possessed, but he just couldn't wrap his head around the fact that a girl was playing a sport originally for boys.

In a way, Benny was also not surprised. The girly outfits Andy seemed to always wear made his eyes always widen, but they didn't seem to suit her.

Looking at her now, with her Dodgers jersey in hand and her cap on the ground, Benny noticed that she definitely looked a lot better.

"How do you play baseball?" Squints demanded, rubbing at his glasses again.

She shrugged, tossing the baseball up and down again, rolling it up her arms with expert hands. "I have since I was old enough to walk."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Benny asked, still pondering over the blonde girl he was so familiar with, but suddenly felt like he was being introduced to a brand new part of her.

"Because you guys would act like this," she said simply, know Benny knew there was more to it. He didn't push it.

"I doubt she can actually play any ball, you guys," Ham turned to the others, shaking his head in disbelief. "There's no way."

"Wanna bet?" she challenged.

Ham snorted. "It's not like you'd win, Smith."

"Bring it on," she grinned with narrowed eyes. "Kenny, pitch a ball to me."

She tossed the ball to the surprised boy, before he nodded and walked up to the mound, kicking the dusty dirt along the way. Everyone stood off to the side, watching as Andrea grabbed her bat and swung it a few times, a lightning strike of wood flying past. Benny didn't even see the bat as she swung, she was that fast.

"Ready for the heater?" Kenny bent down, twisting the ball behind his back as he surveyed the batter before him preparing for a pitch.

"There's no way she can hit this one on the first try," Timmy whispered to the other boys. "Benny, even you fouled off his first pitch."

Benny nodded, remembering his surprise at the curveball. He, of course, could hit it over the fence if he tried now, but back then he barely could tip it.

"Yeah, yeah, no way," Yeah Yeah nodded, watching the girl twist her hands tightly around the handle of her bat with his sharp gray eyes.

Soon, Kenny prepared the windup, and a whip was released from his hand. The ball may have well have been on fire by the intense speed.

With their eyes too slow to follow the speed of the ball, the boys watched, or rather heard, the echoing crack of the bat as it made contact with the ball. It boomed over the field, and they searched for the ball in the sky as it flew way beyond the fence.

Homerun.

"Woo!" Andrea cheered, dropping the bat and running around the bases. She reached home in no time, doing a little dance involving her hands and hips. Benny would have smirked at her cute actions, if he wasn't still gaping at the where the ball disappeared.

"Holy shit," Benny breathed what every single boy was thinking.

Kenny slowly dropped his glove to the ground; a little puff of dust flying up around it has it hit the dirt.

Squints removed his thick glasses, wiped them, and placed them back on his nose, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Holy shit," Benny repeated again, walking toward the outfield slowly.

"What's wrong, guys?" Andy called innocently to the shocked group of boys. She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, rocking back and forth on her heels as she smiled at her friends.

"What's wrong? What wrong? Man, you knocked the snot outta that ball!" Squints exclaimed, throwing his tiny hands up.

Benny spun around, his hazel eyes sparkling. "Andy, that was incredible!"

She blushed, biting her lip. "It was nothing."

"Nothing my butt," Timmy shook his head.

"Okay, so you can hit a ball. Big whoop. The real question, is how fast you are," Ham crossed his arms, staring pointedly at the blonde girl.

"Sure," she shrugged, retying her long and wavy ponytail. Benny suddenly had an urge to run his hands through them.

"Benny, you wanna race her?" Squints turned to the eldest boy in question.

"No, man, he's too fast," Timmy shook his head.

"Yeah, yeah, he'll smoke her."

"Bring it on," Andrea repeated, already setting up at home plate in a crouched position.

Benny looked at her humorously, before glancing at his boys with a raising eyebrow. They shook their heads and shrugged, as if already feeling bad for Andrea's loss.

Though Benny had complete faith in Andrea, he realized too, that he would probably win. He hasn't lost a race since he was in diapers; agility was in his blood, no question about it. He always felt bad for outrunning his fellow teammates, but in a way, he was happy they had a figure to look up to, whether it was him or not.

Sometimes, Benny wished they treated him a little more equally, not like he was some baseball God that had to be worshiped. If only someone understood him and had the same abilities as himself, he would never know how it would feel.

He tied his shoes tightly before jogging to take the place next to his friend. She smirked at him, like she had this private secret she was never planning on sharing.

"Ready, Go!" Ham cried, throwing up a stick to symbolize a flag of some sort. Benny and Andrea had no time to think about it, for they were already off like bullets.

Benny ran, feeling the pounding of his shoes in the dirt and his heart in his chest. It was exhilarating, just like it always was when he ran. The last time he felt so full of life was when he was running for his life from the Beast two summers ago. Now, that was a good run for Benny.

Remembering he was not the only participant of the run, Benny looked over his shoulder, expecting to see Andy trailing behind the guilty feeling in his chest. What he didn't expect was for Andy to be running directly next to him, a smile on her face. Her legs moved with insane speed, probably matching his own, and her arms pumped at her side, moving back and forth.

Benny observed the way her blonde mane flowed behind her in the wind, like a field of wheat in the summer. He noticed her almost beating him as he thought these particular thoughts, so he emptied his mind as he ran ahead toward the outfield fence.

She never fell behind.

Only one thought remained in Benny's mind as he sprinted back towards the cheering boys.

'He had finally met his match.'