4The sun was shining brightly, the air was crisp, and the excitement was strong. Finally the early spring season had come. And everyone knows what that means. Baseball. The time for peanuts and cracker jacks. Long hours sitting in the cool air until the summer heat came as night fell upon the sky, under the bright lights. The stands filled with family and friends, while the smell of sweet grass, fresh dirt, and sunscreen filled the air.
"Remind me again why I'm awake before 9 A.M. on a weekend?" Davey asked as he kept a tight grip on the cup of coffee.
"We're here to support the fellas Davey," Jack reminded as he clapped Davey on the back. "Remember?" he asked with a cheeky smile.
"Yes. But I don't know why we had to be here the same time the team had too," Davey pointed out bitterly.
"To get good seats!" the boys, and Feister all replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"It's high school baseball!" Davey yelled out loud. "Does anything even remotely interesting happen?" Davey had witnessed plenty of pee-wee baseball games thanks to Les. So he can say with full confidence that absolutely nothing happens. Some kids trip over their own two feet, others just stand there and do nothing. There's the kids who try to slide to home-base, the ones who kick dirt, those who miss the ball and get angry about it (same goes for getting three strikes). And lastly, there's always that ONE kid who's older/taller than everyone else and obviously belongs in a different pee-wee division. And Davey should know, HE'S THE COACH. (which he didn't want to be, but Les suckered him into doing it because no one else wanted the job). He's gone home more bruised and dirty than the kids who play! So what difference could high school baseball be?
"Oh c'mon Davey this is gonna be WAY more interestin' than watchin' little rugrats run around and kick ya in the shins," Feister said with a bright smile.
"Hey! Those rugrats may be annoying elementary kids, but at least there's a fine line with respect for their coach," Davey exclaimed as his cheeks flushed a deep shade of red.
"Davey, you do know that no one in their right mind actually wants to coach the 992 division. They're a nightmare to deal with," Jojo replied. "I coached those ankle-biters two summers ago….I quit halfway through the season." he shuddered at the haunting memory.
"To deal with kids it takes a gentle hand," Davey pointed out, trying to convince Jojo that coaching elementary kids wasn't SO bad.
"The high school will literally give any poor sucker extra credit just to coach those monsters!" Jojo shouted.
"Hey! That's my team you're talking about here!" Les yelled in an offended tone. His team wasn't awful, they just weren't the best. Right now that is. Because they will get better.
"Twenty minutes in line and all that place had were hot dogs, pizza, and lots of sugar. Both in beverage and candied form," Henry said as he came back to the seats. "Now I love a good slice of old fashion pizza and soda, but….if that tiny building had a stove I'm sure they could make somethin' less grease filled."
"Oh yeah cause nothin' says baseball like a well cooked steak and mashed potatoes with little baby veggies and smiley faces," Albert said sarcastically as he walked up to the fence. Resting the baseball bat on his shoulder and laughed. "C'mon Hen, it's baseball. It's what America was built upon. Along with that ancient George W dude and the guy who wrote Hamilton."
"Albert, is this why your entire history report on Alexander Hamiton was just the plot to the musical?" Jack questioned, finally putting two and two together on why the redhead had gotten an F minus.
"….no..." Albert trailed off. "Anywho, gotta get back to practice!" the redhead added before scurrying off.
Meanwhile, Brooklyn shifted in her seat every few seconds. The reason for this was because it was her old school they were playing against. So far, she didn't see anyone from her old school. Thankfully. And if it could stay like that until the end of the game, that would be amazing. But in the sad reality of life, that wasn't going to happen. Every few moments Brooklyn thought she spotted someone from her old school, but it was really just her mind playing tricks. She really didn't want to be there, yet she knew how important moral support was.
About twenty minutes later the game finally started. The World Warriors were up to bat first, those supporting the home team cheered loudly. But the newsies' cheers were louder of course. They all stomped their feet on the bleachers as their cheers filled the air. Albert was up to bat first. He walked right up to home plate without breaking eye contact with the pitcher. The redhead tapped the bat on the sides of his shoes a couple of times. He took a few practice swings before going into his batting stance and once again made eye contact with the pitcher with a small glare in his eyes. There was a small silence in the air as time seemed to slow down. Then suddenly the pitch was made. The ball went flying through the air before getting hit by the bat. It started to sore in the other direction and without another thought Albert started running the bases as fast as he could.
Brooklyn smiled as she watched the game while waiting in line for some snacks. So far the Warriors were winning, but she wouldn't count the Bobcats out just yet. She had been to plenty of games with her….friends. Though it was more like they dragged her to go. But in time she picked up a few things. But her eyes always seemed to watch the boy who always wore his cap backwards, seemed to be the most confident and was optimistic no matter what. There was even one day she actually got to talk to the backward cap boy, she never got a name because she got pulled away by her...friends
Flashback
"So, you enjoyin' the game so far?" the boy with the backwards cap and cute-ish smirk asked as he waited in line with her.
"I guess," she shrugged. "I'm not really into baseball that much. My friends made me come," she admitted shyly. It felt kind of weird to be talking to a player from the opposing team. Especially since Brooklyn knew very well that this was the Warriors number one guy. Everyone at her school always says how he's the "worst" and talks like he's the most evil person on the planet. But he's actually really nice.
"Hey! Baseball is what America was built on. Along with that ancient George W dude and the guy who wrote Hamilton," the boy replied playfully. "So does that mean I just lost my shot at gettin' your number gorgeous?"
"First off, I'm pretty sure that's wrong. Secondly, what makes you think I would just hand over my number even if I did like baseball?" Brooklyn asked as she crossed her arms. She was trying so hard not to blush. Ugh! What's wrong with her?! Just because this cute boy is flirting with her doesn't mean she has to give into his charm. It was just another empty compliment. He probably did this with every girl he laid eyes on.
"Cause you're not like the other girls in 'Hattan," he replied quietly.
Brooklyn was about to say something when her friend Hailey came up and yelled, "Do you not see the uniform Brooky? He's one of them. As in A Warrior! A Warrior that's trying to charm you into doing I don't know what! Besides! You already have a boyfriend, remember!?"
"He's not my boyfriend Hailey!" Brooklyn exclaimed. She turned to the boy with the backwards cap. "It's nothing like that. We're not even - " why was she trying to explain her relationship to someone who just paid her a nice compliment?
"Just - c'mon! Jenny will get the food!" and with that being said Hailey dragged Brooklyn back to the bleachers. As this was happening Brooklyn looked back to the backwards cap boy and mouthed "I'm sorry".
End of flashback.
Brooklyn wasn't sure if that was a happy memory or not. After that day she decided to forget everything that happened. Besides, Albert stopped being flirtatious with her. Probably because he found out she's Mush's sister. And it was already bad enough her brother was constantly on the boys' backs about how she's "off limits". Plus, it's not like she was interested in getting into a relationship. At least, not after what happened….Brooklyn started to take a deep breath as she washed all those memories away. That was in the past now. It was time to start anew. Though it's easier said than done. There was still a little ways to go before it was her turn to order. So Brooklyn waited patiently as she watched the game from where she stood.
"Well look what we have here Jenny," said a voice Brooklyn thought she'd never hear again. "Someone got lost on the way to the ballet school?"
"Must be Hailey, because last time I checked she didn't like baseball," another voice replied.
"Hey girls," Brooklyn replied quietly as she turned around to see her old "friends".
"So what brings you here anyways Brooky?" Hailey asked as she walked up to Brooklyn with Jenny by her side. She took quick notice of the navy blue Warriors shirt instead of Bobcat red. "And why are you wearing that?" she asked, gesturing to Brooklyn's shirt. "We told you before. Blue just isn't your color. You've always looked much prettier in red."
Brooklyn looked down at her shirt and sighed. She thought moving away would mean she didn't have to deal with this anymore. Apparently even moving months ago, she has to go through this again. Today of all days. She just wanted to have a nice time watching the game with the newsies. She didn't ask for this! "I've told you before, I like blue it-"
"Brings out your eyes. We know that!" Jenny snapped. "And we've told you that your eyes aren't blue. Nowhere near blue in fact. They're grey. You just have to live with that."
"But I still like blue anyways," Brooklyn replied. Hating that she had to go through this all over again. This was one of the moments she wished she could just disappear into nothing but thin air. "I'll see you two later," Brooklyn mumbled as she started to walk away. But before she could get away she bumped into someone. "Sorry I just-" she stopped mid sentence when she saw who she had ran into.
"Hey there beautiful, long time no see."
"Just leave me alone, Colton. Besides, there's a game and your team needs you," Brooklyn replied as she tried to walk away again.
"What's the matter? I thought you'd be happy to see me again," Colton said as he walked up to Brooklyn and wrapped his arm around her. "Remember? We used to do everything together. We were the best couple the school ever had, and when you left I was heartbroken."
"We were never together!" Brooklyn said, trying not to yell. She didn't want to bring any attention to herself. "And if I remember correctly, you were too busy making out with Emma Haven to even notice I was gone, and -"
"It's in the past Brooky," Hailey spoke up. "Forgotten. Old news. The one guy who ever showed any interest in you is trying to win you back. It's romantic."
"Harassing a girl isn't what I'd call romantic," a familiar voice said walking up to the small group.
"You stay out of this Dasilva. This is between me, and my girl," Colton said in a warning tone.
Albert nearly laughed at this statement. "You can't call a girl yours if she doesn't want to. Now how about you three just leave her alone and go back to your dugout."
"Al, don't do anything that'll get him mad," Brooklyn whispered quietly. "It's your turn to bat anyways. Go ahead, I'll take care of this." she really didn't like Albert was fighting one of her battles when she can do it herself. It's nothing she hasn't handled before.
"I'm not leavein' you alone with these creeps," Albert whispered back. "C'mon, I'll take ya back to your seat," he said out loud while glaring at the trio as he wrapped his arm around Brooklyn and started to lead her back to the bleachers.
"Thanks for doing that," Brooklyn said once they were far away enough. "You really didn't have too," she added a her cheeks started to warm up. She smiled meekly before looking at the ground, ignoring the little tingles she felt where his arm rested around her.
"It was nothin'." Albert shrugged. "Sides, they seemed like jerks anyways." he wanted to ask why Brooklyn would hang around a group like that, but the coach was already yelling up a storm for him to get back on the field. "Well, it's been nice Freckles. But if you'll excuse me, I've gotta game to win," Albert said with a little smirk and a quick wink before rushing back to the field.
Brooklyn smiled to herself as she walked back to her seat and plopped down onto the bleacher with a small sigh. She brushed some hair out of her face and watched the game. Though she wasn't fond of baseball, Brooklyn found herself actually getting interested in the sport more than she has in the past. Even if she didn't understand what was actually going on, she knew the basics, plus it was easy to tell if something good or bad happened by the way the newsies would react. But, if Brooklyn was being honest with herself, she enjoyed watching Albert play the most. There wasn't much reason to back up why she liked it. She just did.
"You didn't hear this from me, but...you two would make a cute couple," Feister whispered.
"What're you talking about?" Brooklyn asked. Slightly confused at what Feister was saying. But, somewhere deep in the back of her mind. So deep that it didn't even process fully for her to even realize it. Nevertheless, it was definitely back there.
"You know exactly what I'm talkin' bout mini Meyers," Feister replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You may not see it, but little Albie has been pinin' after you since the moment you came here."
"Pining?" Brooklyn asked in shock. "No. There's no way in the world that Albert of all people would pine after me! C'mon, Feisty, let's be real here. There are tons of other girls he could spend time chasing. There's nothing unique about me. I'm just...average."
"Brooklyn. You are not average," Feister said in a sisterly tone. "Sides, I've known Albert my whole life. So believe me when I say he's hooked on ya. He's got it real bad. And I've never seen that happen to him. Ever. So there must be somethin' special bout you! That boy is stuck on ya like a bee to honey," Feister stated seriously.
Brooklyn smiled at Feister's words. But, deep inside she knew that Albert was just going the extra mile to be nice to her. Brooklyn knew that no matter what, she would always just be Mush's "little" sister. The girl who suddenly showed up after nine years. And if Brooklyn was really being honest with herself. She didn't know her own brother as much as she would like. Though they've spent plenty of twin time together, Feister would always be closer to Mush than she would ever be. But that was all beside the point. "I highly doubt it," was Brooklyn's reply.
"Been there, done that, and look how I turned out," Feister pointed out with a smug smile. "Huh, now I know how the fellas felt with me and Mush," she thought aloud.
"I will never understand why your all heart eyes for my brother," Brooklyn replied with a little shake of the head.
"Says the girl who's got it bad for the gingerbread boy," Feister scoffed.
Before anything else was said a loud burst of cheering suddenly shot through the air. Both girls looked up to see the ball had gone flying out of the park and Albert was already halfway to third base. The topic of conversation was forgotten as they both started to cheer as loudly as their lungs would let them. A small tension started to rise as the ball quickly made its way back to home plate. The next few seconds were a blur. Literally. Albert slid the last few feet to homebase so a cloud of dirt formed around him, making it hard to see what happened. Silence filled the air as everyone waited to hear the umpire's call.
"Safe!"
"So, I have to ask. Who were those girls and that butthead?" Albert asked as he waited in line with Brooklyn. The Warriors took home the victory after a rather close game. And so to celebrate that win, the newsies all headed out for froyo. Not caring at all they're about to spoil their dinner because it's froyo.
Brooklyn paused for a moment and sighed. "...they were my...friends...and that butthead was well….we were kind of a thing. We weren't dating, or anything serious, but….it was pretty close to it...ya know?" she replied shyly while walking up to her favorite flavor.
"They don't sound friends to me by the way things were going. And that butthead is a complete jerk for not seein' that you're amazin'!" Albert exclaimed. "Besides, who needs 'em anyways? You've got a better group of friends now!"
"Yeah, that's true," Brooklyn shrugged as her hand reached for the raspberry peach flavor. Which was apparently the same one Albert was going for as well. Her fingers brushed against his, causing a light blush to quickly spread to her cheeks. Brooklyn pulled her hand away and smiled awkwardly.
"Cool! We have the same taste in frozen treats," Albert said happily. "Go ahead. Ladies first and all that," he quickly added.
Brooklyn only smiled, her cheeks still pink from just moments before. "Who knew we'd actually have something in common," she replied as she filled her cup up. "Now, it would be really funny if you liked topping this off with gummy bears too." Brooklyn laughed a bit as she turned to face a rather shocked faced Albert. "What?" she asked innocently. "It was a joke. Get it? Cause-"
"I like gummy bears too!" Albert blurred out before slapping himself in the face. That was, without a doubt, not one of his finer moments. But there was still a chance for him to recover. All he had to do was play it off like it never happened. Be all cool and smoothed. "I mean whatever. Gummy bears are a good topping," he added with his voice at least two octaves lower than normal.
"Are you ok?" Brooklyn asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Never better baby," Albert replied brushing it off. "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! That wasn't calm Al! That was out right cheesy! Who says that anyways?! She probably thinks you're a creep now!" he thought. This definitely wasn't going as planned. "How bout we just pretend that never happened."
"Like never what happened?" Brooklyn asked innocently with a little smile before topping off her froyo with gummy bears. After paying for the frozen treat she found a table close to the rest of the group.
Soon enough Albert plopped down next to Brooklyn and started goofing off with the guys mostly. Making jokes and little sarcastic remarks here and there when he noticed Brooklyn had gone quite. She was always like that for some reason. If it's one on one time she's perfectly fine, but when it comes to large groups, she goes silent. "Why so quiet Freckles?" he asked. "Brighten up, will ya!" he nudged her a bit trying to get a smile back onto her face.
"Just tired," Brooklyn mumbled as she swirled the spoon around the cup. "Hey Red, what color do you think my eyes are?" she asked quietly. Brooklyn knew her question was stupid, but for some reason just had to ask. Maybe she was being her usual stupid self again.
"Blue. No questions about it," Albert shrugged. "Why? Did someone say somethin'?" he asked while clenching his fist tightly. If someone had the nerve to say anything bad about this girl Albert was going to take care of them. "Just give me a name and I'll soak-"
"Al!" Brooklyn exclaimed as she quickly put her hand on top of his clenched fist. "Relax, alright? I just wanted to know for myself. That's all." she gave his fist a tight squeeze as reassurance. "So, besides baseball, what do you like to do?" she asked changing the subject.
"The typical stuff. Video games, skateboarding, aliens, Star Wars, and...you..." Albert replied as he released his fist formed hand and let it relax so his fingers were now intertwined with Brooklyn's. It was now or never. He glanced over at the guys, making sure no one was watching before he went on. "I've actually liked you for awhile now. I dunno what it is, but you're completely different from the other girls I've met. And I like that."
Time seemed to stop as Brooklyn tried to process what Albert had just said. There was no way that, just, happened. Besides, she isn't the type of girl guys would go for. Though, that's probably an overused term, it's true. There wasn't anything that really made her stand out among the other girls. Take Feister for instance. There were a lot of times Brooklyn wished she was more like Feister. Always so sure and confident in her own skin. Not caring at all what other people think or how'd they react. So hearing that someone liked plain and simple her, it all felt like a dream. She was going to wake up at any moment. But the thing was, she wasn't waking up. So this couldn't possibly be a dream. Right? "R-really?" was all she could respond with.
"Yeah," Albert replied happily. "I mean, how could I not?"
There was no denying there was some sort of spark with the redhead. Brooklyn will admit that. But she wasn't sure what it meant. Was it because they were friends? Really good friends, actually. Or was it something else? Something more than friends? Love, perhaps? Brooklyn wasn't sure what love was supposed to be. Yes, she knew the whole premise of it, but when it came to the feeling part, well...that's where it gets complicated. It also didn't help the matter that Albert was a ladies man. Then again, all the newsies are in one way or another. And from what she's heard from Feister, whatever was happening between them would only last a few weeks. Two, maybe three months at the most. She didn't want to be just another name on the long list of girls. But, once again, there was definitely something there. Maybe she was just over thinking.
"Hey...um...c-can I kiss you?" Albert asked quietly as he rubbed the back of his neck.
Brooklyn couldn't help but giggle. She'd by lying if she said Albert didn't look completely cute when he asked her the question. "Sure. What's the harm?" she shrugged.
"Your hobbit brother would kill me," Albert replied without much thought. "But I'm willing to take that risk." he smirked.
Brooklyn smiled meekly as she glanced away for a moment while her cheeks flushed pinker than ever. Brooklyn glanced back up, took a deep breath and started to lean forward a bit. She met Albert half way. Her lips softly brushed against his. It didn't go any further than a meek little kiss. But that didn't stop the sparks Brooklyn suddenly felt flying around. And when she pulled away it was like she was floating on air. The littlest smile appeared on Brooklyn's face as her cheeks deepened in color.
After that moment, everything started to slowly change. It wasn't anything serious of course, just simple stuff like getting froyo, or pizza. Mostly on Albert's part because one, he really likes food, and two, Brooklyn's shyness often got in the way of making plans. (Though she's working on it.) There was even a time where Albert tried to teach Brooklyn how to skateboard. Key word, tried to teach. By the end of the lesson Brooklyn had a few new bruises, a numb bottom, and swore off ever stepping onto the "death trap with wheels". So to make up for it, Albert said they could get ice cream and watch the ducks in Central Park since that's something Brooklyn loves doing. Needless to say, Brooklyn didn't argue and instead grabbed Albert by the hand and dragged him to the nearest ice cream shop.
When the next baseball game came around, you better believe Brooklyn was proudly wearing one of Albert's spare jerseys. Despite it being a bit big, Brooklyn easily fixed that by knotting the front ends together. The usually quiet girl actually cheered as loud as she could with a wide smile on her face. The newsies all found this a bit strange considering Brooklyn isn't really the outgoing type. The jersey only added onto the confusion. To which the newsies started to figure out there was something more going on between Albert and Brooklyn. FINALLY! Though, Mush was in denial about the whole thing. At least he wasn't going overboard...yet anyways. Which was a good sign...more or less.
By the end of the game, the Warriors took another victory and the secret that Albert and Brooklyn were sort of a thing. How that was revealed is a story for another time. The important part is what happened afterwards. Once it was out in the air that they were somewhat together, Albert asked Brooklyn out on a real date. And before she could answer, all the newsies yelled out "YES!". (besides Mush, who was still in denial). Brooklyn said yes of course. Needless to say, everything went downhill after that. In the best way possible.
Author's note
Told you guys that the Alblyn ship wasn't going to be a slow burn, but it sure felt that way when writing it. I probably had a hard time because it was at faster pace than what I did for Feister. I also spent two years writing about Feiser, I really got to know who she is during that time. I haven't had that chance with Brooklyn yet, but it's slowly getting there. I'm hoping that I'll be able to come out with something where she'll really get to shine instead of being a little on the side lines (even though that's kinda apart of her personality). Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for reading.
