The competitive junior year

by Jason Southworth

Having not been there to see the Bronzestone team win the championship the previous year, Dwayne Junior goes into the baseball season of his junior year, determined to mount a comeback, and give Bronzestone their third consecutive championship. Sequel to the dangerous sophomore year.

12. Marked Thorn

We start off with Dwayne Junior narrating.

The school system, the way it is set up, is useful for helping young kids achieve their goals. And, a school sporting event, can bring out the best and worst of the students that are playing. This is the competitive Junior year.

The tugs theme then plays

Junior's POV

Our next game of the season was going to be against Marked Thorn. For the third time in a row, we were going to be the visiting team and bat first. This was the first time since the start of the season, that Bertha felt confident about our chances of winning going into the game. Everyone on the team was ready for another win.

Reader's POV

Once the national anthem was over, it was time for the game to begin. Just like the previous game, Bronzestone ended the first inning with the lead. The score was currently 9-7. But what nobody expected, was for Bertha to be underperforming. When she went up to bat in the top of the inning, she was tagged out at first base. In the bottom of the inning, she wasn't able to strike out a single player on the Marked Thorn team. Whenever the ball was thrown to her by a teammate, she was unable to catch it. Whenever she threw it to a teammate, her aim was way off.

In the second inning, Bertha seemed to be doing even worse. She got struck out, with the bat not even coming close to hitting the ball. Bronzestone was still able to get eight runs. In the bottom of the inning, her aim was getting even worse. Marked Thorn ended up getting a run, courtesy of Bertha throwing the ball outside the strike zone, 16 times in a row. By the time they got three outs, they had already scored seven runs. Bronzestone was leading them going into the third inning, with the score being 17-14.

In the third inning, things began going downhill for Bronzestone. In the top of the inning, they weren't even able to make it to first base. In the bottom of the inning, courtesy of a grand slam, Marked Thorn was actually able to take the lead. They were leading going into the fourth inning, with the score being 18-17.

In the fourth inning, thanks to Junior scoring a two run home, Bronzestone was able to retake the lead. In the bottom of the inning, Marked Thorn wasn't able to get a single run. Surprisingly, none of those outs were strike outs. Something was just off about Bertha's pitching today. Going into the fifth inning, Bronzestone was leading 19-18.

Junior's POV

For some reason, Bertha was just having an off day. Over the next four innings, neither team got a single run. In the final inning, Hudson managed to get a two run home run. In the bottom of the inning, me, Hudson, and Edward Francis took out Marked Thorn with a triple play. The game was over, we had won 21-18. It was the first game we played that season, to not end under the lights. Bertha was the only player of the nine that were on the field, to not get someone out, or get a run.

Reader's POV

Shortly after the game, Junior and Bertha were sitting at a table in the corner of a bar. Due to being underage, they ordered vanilla milkshakes instead of beers. "I don't know what you're concerned about, there's nothing wrong with me" said Bertha. "So you were just having an off day?" asked Junior. "Every athlete has one, do you think Michael Jordan won every basketball game he competed in?" asked Bertha.

Junior's POV

It turns out, nothing was bothering her. She was just having an off day. I legitimately thought it had something to with Uncle Harold's injury. Bertha told me that I just wasn't used to seeing an athlete falling off a cliff performance wise, because my favorite athlete had made the post season every year since we was a rookie. This would change in a couple of months, when something really bad would happen. But that is a story for another day.

Authors note: Don't expect your favorite sports team to win every single game. Every athlete in the world, has an off day once in awhile.

Believe it or not, there are bars that server non alcoholic beverages. Some of the ones that don't, still allow people that are underage to enter, provided they do not order anything.

What Junior is foreshadowing when he says that something really bad is going to happen, is pretty obvious if you are a diehard sports fan. You know when this story takes place, you know who his favorite athlete is. One word: CALIFORNIA

Thank you for reading and please have a great day.