Chapter 32 Cutter
Cutter
We were three weeks into the baseball season and about to have our first scrimmage or preseason game tomorrow. These types of games were nice because they didn’t count against our record. But then, if we won, it didn’t count, either, which sort of sucked.
Despite everything going on in my life, I had a lot to look forward to.
Instead of teaching me how to drive, Toni had signed me up for a driver’s course, which was mandated by the state.
This one wasn’t sponsored by the school, so I wasn’t limited on driving time.
That meant when I was done in a few weeks, I’d be able to take the test to get my license.
If all went well, I’d be able to drive myself to school and home from practice.
There were rules I had to follow. Honestly, I’d do anything that Toni or the state told me, as long as I could drive.
It sucked, though; I wouldn’t be able to drive Eleni or any of my friends around for the first six months.
My driver’s ed teacher said it had to do with distractions and all that.
I’d be able to drive Nova, though, but I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
I think I’d be too nervous with her in the car at first.
At least I’d have a car. Toni was going to let me drive my mom’s car, which was the one I’d been practicing with anytime she took me out to drive.
The scariest thing was that she took me to Boston to learn how to parallel park.
I thought I was going to crap my pants a few times, but I mastered it, and when it came time to practice with my instructor, he said I did an amazing job.
While we were in Boston, we stayed at Toni’s. Her place overlooked the water and had a view of the city, and for the two days we were there, I sat out on her balcony and people-watched while bundled up in my winter coat, because the wind off the harbor was brutal.
Aside from the parking lesson, Toni took Nova and me to the aquarium and the children’s museum.
The latter was meant for Nova, but I had fun there, especially with her.
I think not having our mom around hurt her more than she was letting on.
Each morning, I asked her how she was doing and whether she wanted to talk, but she always told me she was fine.
I knew enough to know that “fine” was never a good thing.
Toni took us to her office. No one was there, but it was nice to see where she worked when she came to town. Nova loved Toni’s office and spent ten minutes spinning around in our aunt’s swivel chair, and we rode up and down the glass elevator. Watching the city come in and out of view was trippy.
One of the mini-vacation events was a tour of Fenway.
The team was in Florida for spring training, which was a bummer because I would’ve loved to see a game.
Toni promised we’d come back once the weather was nicer.
She knew someone who worked at the stadium and could get us tickets on the Green Monster.
On our way home, Toni let me drive once we were out of the city. The state required we have so many extra hours of drive time, and Toni felt this was a great way to get those in. Plus, it was a Sunday, and there weren’t a lot of people on the road.
The sound of my cleats clanking against the concrete had to be my favorite noise. To me, it was a sign that summer was coming. Our nights were getting longer, crocuses and daffodils were beginning to bloom, and on my list of chores for this coming weekend was yard work.
Now that most of the snow had melted, Toni wanted to map out where all the new flowers would go. She intended to spruce up the yard the way my mom would’ve wanted it. All I knew was there would be a ton more yard work for me.
When I came around the corner of the school, I saw Eleni sitting on the concrete bench surrounding our flagpole. She stood as soon as she saw me, rushed over, and left me no choice but to drop my baseball bag on the ground. The sound of my metal bag sitting on the sidewalk echoed.
I picked her up, and her legs wrapped around my waist as her lips pressed against mine. Neither of us wasted any time deepening the kiss. We rarely had any alone time as it was. Not that we were alone now, but most of my teammates had already left.
Eleni moved her head back and forth. She kept her hands on my cheeks and ground against me.
My dick was hard and pressed into her. In the times we’d been alone, we’d touched each other and given each other pleasure.
I’d never felt my body get so warm before until Eleni had wrapped her hand around my shaft.
She told me she’d read about doing this to me from one of her sister’s books, a book her parents would lose their minds over if they knew it was in the house.
The first time she let me touch her between her legs, I thought I was going to jizz in my pants. We’d been at her house in the basement family room. The upstairs door was open, but Eleni didn’t care. She straddled my legs and began rubbing against me. I was hard in seconds, but we both wanted more.
My friends always said you gotta risk it for the biscuit. I slipped my hand between her legs and felt her for the first time. It was like my body knew what to do even though my mind was nothing but a haze.
Ever since, we’d been waiting for more alone time so we could go further.
We stopped kissing when a car honked. Someone was always ruining our fun. I set Eleni down and picked up my bag.
“What are you doing here?”
“We had a cheer meeting, so I thought I’d wait until you were done with practice and walk home with you.”
“Oh. Coach is giving me a ride.”
Her face fell. I hated disappointing her.
“He can give you one too.”
Coach would insist whether she wanted one or not. He wouldn’t leave her at school or let her fend for herself.
“Did you hear about Malik and Janelle?” she asked as I sat down on the concrete bench to wait for Coach.
“Yeah, it’s pretty messed up.”
“I guess her parents are pretty pissed off at Malik,” Eleni said.
“It’s not just Malik’s fault,” I pointed out.
“No, but . . .”
“There are no buts, Eleni. They decided together to have sex. They’re both responsible.” Malik had already gotten a job to start saving money for the baby.
“I don’t want to fight,” she said as she leaned into me. “I’m not even friends with Janelle.”
That made two of us.
“Promise me when we do it, we’ll use condoms.”
“Of course we will,” I said. I had already bought a box when I was walking home from school a week or so ago.
I wanted to be prepared the first chance we were alone, even if we didn’t go all the way.
As long as I kept them in a cool, dry place, they’d be fine until the expiration date.
The last thing I wanted was to be in Malik’s shoes.
He’d confided in me about everything. He was scared and also not ready to be a dad.
Coach walked toward us, and we both stood. “Can we give Eleni a ride home?”
“Sure we can.”
We held hands and followed Coach to his truck.
If I had to guess, I suspected he’d be over for dinner or he’d come by after Nova had gone to bed.
I thought he and Toni were dating, but I couldn’t be sure.
As many times as I had snuck around the house while Coach was there, I hadn’t caught them in any awkward embraces.
When I first started playing for Coach Schmidt, I sort of hoped he would fall for my mom. Coach had always treated me well and was a great role model, but my mom had never seemed interested. Neither had Coach.
I climbed in the back and let Eleni sit in front.
This wasn’t ideal because I couldn’t shut the door for her.
Maybe I was wrong and should’ve let her sit in the back?
I guess I truly didn’t know what to do. My mom had taught me to open the door for people, reminding me it didn’t cost me anything to be kind to them.
Still, I wasn’t sure if I should be in the back or not.
Being back here, though, gave me a chance to touch her hip. I slid my hand under her shirt and touched her skin. She shivered slightly and then turned enough for me to see her smile.
On the way to her house, she spoke to Coach.
I listened, but they talked about cheer season and the competitions her team wanted to do over the summer.
I wondered how much we’d be able to see each other once school was out.
Between my summer league schedule and hers, we might not see each other much.
“This summer, you’ll have to come to Boston with us,” I said when there was a break in the conversation.
“Do you think your aunt will let me?”
I shrugged. I didn’t see why Toni wouldn’t let Eleni come with us one weekend. She could stay in the spare bedroom with Nova, and I could sleep on the couch. Although I’d like to crash out on the balcony under the harbor lights and sounds. No one would be able to get to me, that’s for sure.
We arrived at Eleni’s faster than I wanted. I couldn’t wait to drive her home, which wouldn’t be until late summer or the start of the school year. Either way, I was looking forward to it.
After she got out, I moved to the front. I couldn’t kiss her goodbye, not with her dad standing on the front porch. I watched her house as we pulled away and hoped she wouldn’t be in trouble for accepting a ride from Coach.
“Her parents are strict.”
“Sometimes that’s a good thing, but also a hindrance.”
Eleni stretched the rules as far as she could. I was usually the voice of reason because I was pretty miserable when she was grounded from her phone or from me.
I didn’t say anything the rest of the way home. Coach pulled into the driveway but didn’t shut his truck off. “You’re not coming in?”
He shook his head. “Scout’s at home.”
“Oh, right. Thanks for the ride.”
“Maybe I’ll see you later.”
I got out, gave him a wave, and made my way inside. “I’m home,” I yelled as I put my stuff down in the entryway. My mom called it a mudroom. It was far from muddy, especially since Toni made us keep our dirty shoes outside.
“Hello?”
Toni came out of the guest room, which was where she’d slept since my mom died. Before, she would sleep in my mom’s room, but no one had really gone in there since.
“Hi, how was practice?” she asked as she rubbed my pitching arm. “All good?”
I nodded and handed her a slip.
“What’s this?”
“Prom stuff,” I told her. We went into the kitchen. “Where’s Nova?”
“Girl Scouts with Mara,” she said without looking up from the slip. “So I sign this to give you permission?”
“It’s a code of conduct agreement,” I told her. “We both sign, and if I break any of the rules, the consequences are there.”
Her head moved up and down slowly. “Well, let’s talk prom. What color will Eleni wear? We’ll get your bow tie to match.”
I grimaced and ran my hand through my hair. “I didn’t ask her yet.”
Toni looked at me confusedly and held the paper up. “What gives?”
I shrugged slightly. “Can we do a promposal thing?”
“What’s that?”
I explained what they were, and, to my surprise, Toni seemed on board. “I was wondering if we could take her to Boston for the day and I can do it there. She really likes the penguins.”
“And you’re going to what, ask the aquarium if the penguins can hold a sign for you?”
Okay, so I hadn’t thought it out clearly. I shrugged. She sighed. We both stared awkwardly.
Toni signed the sheet, and then I did. “Put this in your bag so you don’t lose it. I’ll look some things up and we’ll figure out how to do something fun.”
“Thanks.”
She nodded and sat down at the table with her phone and a pad of paper. I sat across from her and started my homework.