Bush League: New Adult Sports Romance (14 page)

Beau

*****

After leaving the uncomfortable "business  meeting” with my father, I need to go blow off steam the only way I know how. Well, the second best way I know how. With Quinn occupied, I'm left to go to the batting cage to go smash some balls and relieve some tension. When I arrive it's rather empty but almost as soon as I start up the pitching machine, I hear a bunch of voices arriving.

"Looks at this, our pitcher thinks he can hit!" Enzo's voice echoes through the room. He gets some laughs by our teammates around him, some good natured ribbing that I smile and acknowledge.

"Watch me boys, I'll show you guys how it's done."

The whole group gather around and really put the pressure on for me to connect for some hits. While I miss more than I connect, I'm not terrible, surprising even myself. When I step out of the batter's box and put my arms up to surrender, my wonderful teammates give me a round of applause. Tommy, the freshman second baseman, takes the bat from me and steps in to take my place in the cage. As I walk out, Enzo gestures for me to come over.

"I can't believe we're about to do it," he says quietly as the other guys hoot and holler at Tommy's impressive batting skills. "We're gonna be champions in our junior year."

My head nods along with him. Given that it's been Enzo's job on the field to read me and react, he can tell something is wrong.

"Beau, tell me you'll be there. I know you might only be used as a reliever but we still need you. Tell me you'll be there," he pleads. What am I supposed to say? If Enzo or any of these other guys felt even half of the pressure that was being put on me, they'd collapse. I couldn't expect them to understand.

"I gotta go man," I tell him and Enzo just shakes his head in disbelief. I try to get out of there without a scene but as I'm walking out of the facility, Enzo calls out, "We'll see you at the game, Beau. You won't let us down, I know you."

He most certainly has the attention of our teammates who are probably under the impression that Enzo is just shouting support. They are blissfully unaware of what's really going on.

*****

There aren't many people in my life I can truly be myself around, who I can be honest and turn to for advice. Since most of them are in that batting cage, I'm forced to call the only one I have left. It just rings and rings, Quinn's not picking up. Without shame I dial and redial several times to try and get her on the line but she's not picking up. My truck drives aimlessly as my brain tries to figure out what the hell I'm going to do and there's no clear answer popping into my head. When I hear the alert of a new text message ring out, I pull the car over, excitedly hoping to hear from Quinn.

"Your girlfriend is here. By herself," the text reads. It's from my dear old family friend Giuseppe, texting from La Bella Rosa. Without questioning why Quinn is at the restaurant, I point my truck towards the water and race to be by her side.

*****

Quinn

*****

There wasn't a plan in place for when I got to the beach, my only need was to get away. The cab driver happily accepts the large fare and is equally as excited to get out of there as soon as I step out of the car. I'm on the boardwalk, all alone, without my books to study or any idea of what to do with my future. This beach is where Beau and I had a night all alone, a night away from the pressures tearing us both apart. We didn't have to hide or pretend that we didn't want to be together. I'm quick to realize that it was foolish to strand myself alone up here, that feelings from that night with Beau couldn't be recreated up here without him. By running away from my problems, I've only made them harder to solve. It was a mistake and before I can lose it and cry right there on the boardwalk, I see La Bella Rosa and remember the beautiful voice I had heard inside. Without anywhere else to go, I head towards the restaurant.

Walking inside, I find that it's practically empty yet again. The woman is up on stage performing and there are only a few people enjoying her performance. Beau's friend happily seats me and doesn't give any indication he remembers who I am. He gives me space to watch the performance and I am instantly mesmerized. The woman sings as if nobody is watching, stretching her range to places that she shouldn't be able to go. She has a confidence as if the poetic words leaving her come directly from her heart. She's true, genuine and my heart breaks as she sings. When she finishes a song, she doesn't wait for applause, just resetting herself on stage before getting ready for the next one. She appears surprised when she hears my dainty hands clapping together, my applause with great enthusiasm. The woman puts her flattened hand up to her forehead to block the lights and scans the crowd to find the source of the clapping. When she lands on me we share a smile before her face gets serious again and she begins the next song.

Almost instantly I feel a deep connection with the woman as she sings a song of regret and missed opportunity. The lyrics mention following the flighty fancy of her heart instead of doing what was right. Now that the singer is older, she realizes she can't change her past and is forced to live out her days by order of the mistakes of her youth. I feel as though I've been punched in the gut and am doing everything I can to hold back tears. When the music stops I applaud wildly again and the woman gestures to someone off stage before leaving the platform to come approach my booth.

"I'm not used to an audience, at least not these days," she says, extending her hand and telling me her name is "Carol". When our hands touch, I feel her light grip coupled with worn and tired hands. Carol has some miles on her; she's lived and been through hardships I can't possibly understand yet. Carol sits in my booth and orders us both a glass of wine. "As long as you're old enough," she asks me to confirm and that I am. Freshly twenty one and learning that causes her to wistfully smile, telling me she can barely even remember that long ago. It's not lost on me that I came to the beach looking for answers, for guidance, and it may well have just landed right in front of me. I'm going to give Carol the opportunity to be a mentor.

"It's not an easy life," she explains when I tell her I want to be a singer like her. "You'll be working your little ass off forever. And don't expect to get rich," she says, a statement I remember later when she outright ignores the bill for the wine we drank. "Is this what I thought I'd be doing when I started out?" she asks out loud, "No. I thought I'd be performing for stadiums full of people. I guess it just doesn't work out that way for everyone."

She's not giving me any new information but I try to put myself in her shoes. If I could be performing every night, even if it were for only small audiences, I'd still be happy. I think.

"If I could go back to when I was your age," she says, "I'd set myself up with some sort of career, something I could use to be a little more productive, make some money. The entertainment world is so fickle, you could be shunned quickly and not even realize it until it's too late. I wonder what it would be like to live the life of a banker, have a straight up nine to five, maybe raise some kids with a loving husband. I've been down the road with the cocky guys who cheat and let me tell you sweetheart, it's not a good way to live."

My heart sinks so far down I think soon I'll be kicking it around with my feet. Just when I believe she has pointed me right right towards a life as an accountant, she changes course. "But you always, always, have to follow your heart. If I had lived a life as a banker, I know I would dream every day about being up on that stage."

She leaves me with those conflicting words to ponder as I pay for the wine and start towards the door. I'm still not completely sure of which path I should take. My only immediate plan is to watch the sunset and get a cab home to start the rest of my life. When I go to pull the restaurant door open, somebody is standing there. The falling sun illuminates the body of a well-built man.

"I was hoping to find you here," he says and my body tingles upon realizing that Beau has come all the way here to find me.

*****

Beau

*****

The second I open the door at La Bella Rosa, a beautiful girl falls right into my arms. Quinn holds me tight as if I'm saving her life, as if only I can provide the comfort she needs. She doesn't know that I came searching for her because I needed the same. Her tight embrace makes me feel better right away; whatever I have to face I can do it with her.

"Where you headed?" I ask. "Wanna go watch the sunset?"

Quinn agrees to come with me and we walk down to the empty beach, a welcoming warm blanket of gold draped over the sand. The sun is at its most aesthetically pleasing point, Quinn's impossible beauty multiplied by magic hour. We find a spot just out of reach of the water and plop ourselves down, inching closer and closer until my arm is around her and she rests inside. Quinn presses her body against mine, her knees rest on my legs, her head on my chest.

"Why is everything I want impossible?" she asks out loud. "I didn't realize I'd have to get rid of my dreams so soon."

I pull her even closer into me and want to make it better.

"Quinn, there's still time. You can have it all if you want. Don't give up."

Her laugh vibrates through my body. "C'mon, Beau, grow up. Your dreams might come true but what about the rest of us? Should I spend the rest of my life auditioning, just hoping to be able to scrape together enough money to pay the rent? No, I have to be real and get ready to sit in a cubicle for the rest of my life. Not everyone gets to realize their dreams Beau, you're just lucky."

I'm not letting go of her, no matter how cynical she's acting. "I'll always be here for you," I tell her and can actually feel her body start to stiffen up.

"I don't know why I'm even trying," she says. "If you stay on my dad's team, we can't be together. If you get drafted, you'll be gone and I'll never see you again. You'll be pro before you know it and much more accomplished girls will be throwing themselves at you. I'm not gonna hold you back, this just isn't meant to be."

I'm not making any headway in trying to get through to her and I don't want to waste a sunset trying to convince her. My grasp on her never loosens though; if she's right and we don't have a future, at least we have that moment together on the beach. The air off the water is crisp and refreshing and we sit in a momentary silence to enjoy the feeling of it on our faces.

"So what's next?" I ask her, curious of her plans.

"I take my test tomorrow and if I don't fuck it up, eventually get a diploma, get a job I hate and wait to die, I guess."

I know I can't change her outlook but I still want to. I can't bear to know she's in this much pain. My finger lands underneath her chin and I gently guide her up to find me. Her eyes close and her soft lips find mine, feeling like heaven as the golden orange sun warms our faces and our lips embrace each other.

"But we have tonight," I tell her as my fingers run through her soft, brown hair.

"We have tonight," she repeats.

When I lie on my back on the sand, Quinn comes with me, landing on top of my body. Our lips and bodies are inseparable, her hand working on the button of her shorts as I liberate my lower half from my own pants. Without any concern as to who may be watching, without any worry about protection, Quinn positions herself on top of my cock and moves her body up and down, back and forth, as her wetness starts to merge onto my skin. I caress the side of her head as she positions herself just right so that my throbbing passion is placed in the exact right spot, slowly lowering herself down onto me. It's a tight fit but as our tongues dance together, Quinn takes more of me inside a little at a time. No part of me is willing to accept that this is the last time ever; she's too perfect, she's too much a part of my dreams that I'm unwilling to give up.

Quinn's muscles relax just enough so that the entirety of me is able to slide right in. She's so warm and wet. Her tightness hugs my stiff cock as she pushes me in and out. My arms grasp at her torso to feel as much of her as possible, to pull us even closer together. As I'm nestled deep inside of her, Quinn's eyes open and she looks deep into my soul.

"I love you," she says just above a whisper, as though she's telling a regretful secret to herself.

"I love you," I say back and mean it.

Quinn grinds her clit directly against the hard part of my pelvis as she skillfully moves her hips around to keep me moving inside of her. She's intent on getting as much enjoyment as possible out of this, our supposed last tryst. My mind is intent on holding my body off of completion until she has reached that point for herself. Her hand suddenly pulls my head into her soft, clothed bosom forcefully as her hips continue to swivel on my lap.

"Oh God, oh Beau," she yells out and I feel her fingers tighten on the back of my head to the point of a little discomfort on my end. I'll tolerate her clenching fingers if it will get her to the peak of her summit, I'll do anything for her. Her pussy clamps tightly around my cock, a slippery hug that I never want us to break. Her arms return to pulling my face into her chest and she lets out a gasp as if it has taken her by surprise. She presses down hard on my thickness and it's enough to get me where I'm headed and I can no longer hold out. As she thrashes on top of me, riding out the waves of her own pleasure, my dick sprays my seed deep inside of her in powerful spurts.

When Quinn disengages and falls to my side, we're both out of breath and exhausted but not nearly tired of each other. Our hands lightly caress the other's body and we trade toying kisses. The sun is nearly gone, faded quickly before we even noticed - but it will return. What is gone isn't always gone forever. Under the light of the stars and moon, we're stare at each other with a love more powerful than the tide bringing the water back home.

"So what now?" I ask, knowing I'm looking for trouble as she's already answered before.

"I need to get home to go study," she tells me. "But I kind of need a ride."

She looks up at me with begging eyes as if I'd just ditch her right on there on the beach. As we walk up the sand, the sound of the waves lapping behind us, I go to put my arm around her but Quinn twists away, hugging her chest and stepping an extra step further from me. We're silent on the walk up to the boardwalk to find my truck, the both of us dealing with too much to make small talk.

Quinn lets me open the door for her when we arrive outside of my truck and she piles in without a word. When I join her inside, she's buckled in but has her knees pressed up to her chest and her eyes are trained on the window, staring with just a blank expression on her face. I start the engine and think better of bothering her by trying to get her to say something. We drive in silence all the way back to town, only the hum of my truck's engine filling the cab.

"Um," I finally break the silence once we arrive a few blocks from her house. "Where do you want me to drop you off?" I ask.

"You can just pull up to the house, I don't care. We won't be seeing each other any more so it doesn't matter."

I do as she requests, still apprehensive that Coach is going to jump out of the bushes and kill me for having his daughter out late. Quinn opens the door and hops down, lingering a bit with her hand on the door, as if she's waiting for me to convince her that I can make this all better.

"Take care of yourself, Quinn," I tell her and she somehow manages to look even sadder.

"You too," she says before closing the door. I watch her amble up the steps to her home and once she's safely inside, I drive away for the last time.

*****