Chapter 21: Chapter 21

When she walked outside, the familiar sounds of a squeaking bike chain caught her attention, and she turned her head to see Ryan standing in his front yard with Craig, the bike upside down, and several tools scattered on the front porch, alongside an oil can. She hadn’t spoken to Ryan since their argument two evenings ago, and she wasn’t about to start now.

“There’s your cute neighbor!” Zoey whispered, a mischievous smile on her face.

“Yeah, I guess,” Beth replied with a shrug. Ryan was staring at her with his mouth hanging open, and she was sure he wouldn’t approve of her makeover, but she ignored him and hopped into the back seat of Zoey’s Chevy Cavalier. Zoey and Dee Dee both waved at him and then started giggling before jumping in and taking off. She had no idea if he waved back since she refused to look at him again.

They pulled up to Sonic and all ordered cherry vanilla Dr. Peppers, flirting with a few boys dressed in Lockton baseball uniforms while they waited for their drinks, and then took off for the ball field. Since Zoey and Dee Dee refused to have anything to do with keeping score, Beth would be on her own until after Brittany got off work. She’d pick up Lexy and Andi and bring them over. It was just as well since Beth could do a better job of running the scoreboard and keeping up with the book by herself. She needed some time on her own anyway to process this new look. She doubted any of the ball players would even notice her until after the game, and then, well, she wasn’t sure what might happen, but she needed to be in a state to own it.

The players for the other team were beginning to arrive when Zoey pulled into a parking spot. Beth saw her dad’s truck and a few other cars she recognized, one of them being Sammy’s dad’s car. She didn’t want to see him right now, though, that was for sure.

“What number is this guy? The one you like?” Zoey asked as she turned the car off. “We’ll have to check him out.”

She’d filled them in on the situation while they were getting her ready. “He’s number 24,” she said.

“And the guy who likes you?”

Michael. She’d told them about him, too. “He’s number ten.”

“And your hot brother?” Dee Dee asked, giggling.

“Gross,” Zoey said, though she was also giggling. She knew Shane well enough to have a similar opinion about him as Beth.

“He’s number five, in honor of George Brett,” she replied, and they all climbed out of the car. “I’ll be up there.” Beth hoped she’d be able to get the scorebook from her dad without making a spectacle or spilling her drink all over herself.

“Okay. Good luck. Oh, there’s Bradley!” Zoey was already waving at one of the guys from her school, and she and Dee Dee headed off in that direction.

“Thanks,” Beth muttered. She drew in a deep breath and headed toward her dad’s truck, hoping he’d left the book inside, but it wasn’t there, and when she got close enough to him to see what he had had in his hands, she saw it nestled there, along with a catcher’s mitt he was trying to fix as he talked to Mr. Burk.

Several players were already there on the field, playing catch to warm up, and she heard her brother’s car pull in just as she stepped over to the dugout. She really didn’t want Shane to see her, not yet anyway. She was sure he’d have some smartass comment for her, and she still hadn’t quiet worked out what to say. She hurried over to her dad, deciding she’d have to interrupt. “Dad? Book?”

“Beth?” Mr. Burk said, stopping mid-sentence, his comments about quality oak furniture from the turn of the century losing meaning.

“Hi, Mr. Burk. Can I have the book, Dad?”

“Sure, honey,” Richard replied with a bit of a sigh, like he couldn’t stand thinking about his daughter all grown up. He looked at Mr. Burk for a second, almost holding the man back with his eyes, as he handed over the book. “I don’t have Lockton’s lineup yet, though.”

“Great, I’ll go get it.” She rushed off, hoping to avoid Shane, but she heard him walking up behind her as she was leaving and braced herself for the inevitable, hoping he’d be nice with her dad standing there.

“Holy crap,” he muttered, censoring himself so as not to get scolded by his dad. “What happened to you? Did a hairspray aisle throw up on you?”

Beth breathed in deeply and turned around slowly as her father chastised him for being rude to his sister. “That’s really clever, Shane. You should call Jerry Seinfeld and see if he needs a new writer. You could definitely write all of Kramer’s intelligent lines.” She smiled at him in the same sympathetic smirk she’d seen directed at her by the likes of Carly and Amber more times than she could remember.

Tiffany, who was holding his hand, began to giggle. “You look awesome, Beth,” she said, despite Shane’s look of disbelief. “Your hair looks amazing. And I love those shorts.”

“Thanks, Tiff,” Beth said. “Your hair is totally cute tonight, too. Maybe I’ll see you later, on the square.” She smiled, like Tiffany would be lucky to hang out with her, and then spun back around. As soon as they were out of earshot, she couldn’t help but mutter, “Shit, shit, shit,” as she headed toward the other team’s dugout, praying their lineup was ready to go. Had she really just said that to Shane and Tiffany? Who did she think she was?

“Holy hell!” With her head down, Beth hadn’t seen Tom and Marcus until she almost ran into them. Tom stood there with a crooked grin on his face, sizing her up. “Damn, don’t you look sexy. Who’d’ve thought chunky could look so good?”

“Cute, Tom.” Beth squared her shoulders and looked up at him. “I heard Jessica Swan didn’t quite say the same thing when she was looking at your chunky,” she gestured in the general vicinity of his manhood, “but I guess not everyone can be well-endowed.”

Marcus sputtered a laugh as Tom’s face turned red. “Hey, I was complimenting you, bitch.”

“That was a compliment?” Beth asked, nonchalantly pulling her straw into her mouth in the overly innocent way she’d watched the popular girls lure guys in so many times before, not that she was flirting with Tom, but she may as well practice. It worked as his mouth dropped open, and a bit of drool formed in the corner. Releasing the straw, she continued, “Maybe that works with the trashy girls you’ve been hanging out with, but I’m looking for a man, Tom. Not a little boy.” She shifted her head in the direction of the Lockton dugout, where she was headed already. “I hope there are some over there.” She made her voice wistful, as if she had been looking for ever so long, and continued on her way, hearing Marcus chiding his friend and laughing behind her. She was certain they were still watching her when she arrived at the visiting team’s bleachers and her friends.

“Oh my God, Beth! What did you say to him? He was watching you walk away like he wanted to pounce!” Zoey asked, grabbing her arm a little more forcefully than she probably meant to.

“Not much. I just called him a little boy, basically.” She shrugged and glanced back at Tom who was on his way to the dugout but still looking in her direction.

“He’s hot,” Dee Dee said longingly, her eyes following Tom. “I love his long hair.”

“Barf.” Beth shook her head. “I mean, if you’re in to self-righteous jackasses, then go for it.”

“I’m not saying I want to marry him, but I wouldn’t mind, you know, making out with him or whatever,” Dee Dee explained.

“I’m sure he’ll be on the square later. I’ve gotta go get the other team’s lineup.”

“’Kay. They are all checking you out,” Zoey smirked, and Beth turned to see it was true. Getting her feet to move in the right direction was difficult, considering there had to be at least a dozen pairs of eyes staring at her as every ball player who wasn’t engaged in warming up stared in her direction.

Beth kept her head up and her shoulders back, reminding herself that she was essentially playing a part here. She wasn’t Beth Monroe--brainiac, anymore. This was the new Beth—sex kitten, or something.

The coach looked up as she approached the dugout. He glanced back at the list in his hands and then back at her, his brow furrowing. “Uh, hi,” he said, and Beth felt a little self-conscious suddenly. Hopefully, this old dude wasn’t checking her out, too.

“Hi. I’m the official scorekeeper, and the scorekeeper for Barryville. Can I have your lineup, please?”

“Uh, yeah,” he stammered. “I was just… making a few changes.”

“Okay. I can wait.” She smiled at him and then turned sideways to see what was happening with her own team. Sammy was playing catch with Robby, but every time the ball came his direction, he missed it. She realized his eyes were locked on her. His dad shouted at him to pay attention, and Beth giggled.

Next to them, Michael and Kyle were also playing catch, but the look on Michael’s face was anything but approving. He shook his head in disbelief and then turned away from her, and Beth wondered what gave him the right to judge her. So he didn’t like her new look, now that she didn’t look like a schoolmarm? That was fine. She didn’t need Michael Splinter anyway.

“Here you go, sweetie,” the coach said, sliding the list through the fence to her.

“Thanks.” Beth took it but didn’t smile as she watched his eyes trace over her. Part of her wanted to throw up, and another part wanted to run, but she realized if she was going to dress this way, she would be getting attention from a lot of people, not just the ones she’d targeted. Still, she wondered if girls ever got used to that feeling of having someone’s eyes crawl up their skin.