1. All characters are 18+
2. No characters represent real people
3. Enjoy the fiction
*
Baseball Ch. 3 - Sliding into Home
I got on the team bus Monday morning, and my phone dinged. A text from Casey. "You should change my name in your phone to a different name, in case someone looks over your shoulder."
I replied back, "What should I call you?"
"Pick a name"
"Bambi"
She responded with a laughing emoji, followed by "something less stripper-y perhaps"
I thought about it for a bit, then texted back, "What's your middle name?"
"Anne, but I don't like that either"
"How about Allie?"
"Sounds good, you can use that. Have a good trip"
So Casey's name in my phone became Allie. I took a nap in the afternoon, then texted Allie I the evening, after we'd arrived in Scranton.
I went to dinner with a few guys, then they dragged me to a bar. Casey was right, there were several team-chasing women here. I steered clear of them as much as I could, until one of them literally plopped down into my lap.
"Hi, I'm Allie," she said with a smile.
I inwardly laughed at the coincidence. "Hi Allie, I'm Johnny, but you can't sit on me." I made her stand up, but she sat on the seat next to me.
"What, you've got a girlfriend?" she asked.
"It's complicated," I told her. It wasn't a lie. Casey and I had just committed to being in a secret relationship. She wasn't allowed to date the players of the team her father owned, or really, any baseball players at all. She was also kind of casually dating some stuffed-shirt douchebag named Landon. "But it's complicated in a way that I'm not available."
She shrugged and walked away. One of my teammates came over a minute later. "What are you doing over here on your phone?" he asked as I texted Casey.
I realized maybe I was a party-pooper. The other guys were drinking and having a good time. I was by myself at a table, eyes glued to my phone. "Sorry," I said, "I'm just not feeling it tonight."
I left the bar and headed back to the hotel. I was sharing a room with Ken, but he wasn't back yet, so I had the room to myself.
I texted Casey, "Back at the room. Can I call you?"
She called me. "Hi," she said, "how's Scranton?"
"Lame. I prefer Allentown."
"Really? Is it that much better?"
"Well, for one thing, there's a hot blonde there who I'm really into."
"You don't say."
I told her about the girl at the bar being Allie, and she thought it was funny. "What are the odds?" she said, "But I'm glad you're being good, just like I knew you would be."
"Of course. I promised I would not touch any other girls because I have an amazing girlfriend," I recited my pledge from the previous night.
"I'm glad I found my own loyal boyfriend, just like Lani."
I grimaced. It was hard think about. "About that... I'm not sure Dirk is the paragon of virtue Lani thinks."
"What? What do you mean?"
"Don't tell her, but he talks a lot in the locker room about having multiple girls," I admitted, then quickly added, "It could just be him talking a big game. I don't really have proof he's cheating on Lani."
Casey was quiet for a second. "That bastard. Lani's my best friend. I don't think I can just not tell her."
"I get that. I'm sorry I put you in an awkward situation. But if he is cheating, it's not right." I hated that I might be causing drama, but it was the right thing to do. "Listen, maybe I can poke around, find some evidence one way or the other. Then we'll know for sure."
"That sounds fair," she finally said. "They've been dating for almost a year. I guess I don't want them to break up without proof."
"Okay then. Tomorrow night, I'll tag along with him if he goes out to the bars. I'll see what he does and let you know."
Casey sighed. "You're my boyfriend for only a day and you're already looking out for my friends. I think I picked a good one."
Ken picked that moment to return to the hotel room. "I gotta go, Allie," I said quickly, "I'll call you later."
Casey knew that I was no longer alone when I called her by her alias. "Okay. Have a good game tomorrow. I'll listen to the broadcast online. Goodnight, Johnny."
"Who's Allie?" Ken asked when I'd hung up.
"Just some girl I know," I answered.
"Is Allie the reason you left the bar early? Is she hot?"
"You could say that, and yes, she's hot."
When I wouldn't elaborate, he shrugged and went to bed.
----
For the most part, I could classify my teammates into two categories. One group was the guys who were married or otherwise attached. They didn't go out for girls; their idea of a good evening was a nice meal, relaxing drink, and early turn-in.
Dirk was never in that group. He was in the group of single guys who went looking for multiple drinks and a nice-looking girl or two. If he had a girlfriend, it wasn't reflected in his actions.
Of course, 'fraternization' was discouraged by the coaches and trainers. We all had roommates in the hotels anyway. But any guy who really wanted it could find a dark corner or the back seat of a car just before curfew.
I sat out on Tuesday, then followed Dirk and a few other guys to a bar afterwards. Dirk flirted with a few women, but nothing egregious happened, and I reported that back to Casey.
Wednesday night, I played behind the plate. I got a few hits but we still lost. Again, I went out with the single guys group. This time, Dirk had a busty redhead in his lap. I got a picture of that. Then I got a quick video of them making out. And another video of them leaving the bar together, his arm around her waist.
When I returned to the hotel, I checked in with our batting coach Frank, who had pulled curfew duty that night, and was sitting in the lobby. "Hey Frank."
"Mills."
"You, uh, seen Pence yet? I wanted to ask him something."