It Is Just A Child's Game

“Kay, get up already!” Dawson exclaimed as he sat on Cahlen’s sleeping body. “It’s nearly eight o’clock, and we are all eating breakfast downstairs! If you don’t wake up soon, dad is gonna finish all the bacon!”

“Ugh, I am up. I am up.” Cahlen slurred as she tried to turn over. “Get off me, fatty!”

“Hurry up, Kay!” Dawson said after he stood up. “I don’t want to be late to my game!”

“You wont! Stop worrying.” Cahlen blurted as she brushed her hair out of her face and started to take in her surroundings. “Now, get out of my room so I can start getting ready!”

Once Dawson was out the door, Cahlen pulled off her blankets and stretched. She was sore in various places, but not exactly sure why. She grabbed a brush from her bedside table and ran it through her dark auburn hair. She fixed into a sloppy ponytail before digging through the various clothes piles in her room. After a few minutes, she was able to find a clean pair of denim shorts and plain white shirt. She pulled on her white sneakers and slipped her ponytail through a baseball cap. Based off the sunlight peeking through her window, she figured it was going to be a bright day and grabbed a pair of aviator shades before heading down.

Frankie, Dawson, and her parents were seated around the kitchen table, plates nearly empty. She took a seat between Frankie and her dad before quickly piling food on her plate.

“You better hurry up, honey.” Her mom said as she stood up from her seat to wash her dirty plates.

As Cahlen stared at her, she couldn’t help but notice how different they were, physicially at least. A numbing feeling started to spread through her body. Realizing that her mom caught her staring, Cahlen shook her head as if to remove the odd sensation and began stuffing her mouth with food.

“Woah there, tiger.” Her dad said with a hearty laugh when she couldn’t close her mouth due to the amount of food. “You better slow down before you choke on your food.”

“Aye, aye, captain” She mumbled as she forced her mouth close and began to chew.

“No speaking with your mouth full, Kaykay!” Frankie exclaimed, pointing a figure at her.

“No pointing either, Frankeinstein!” Cahlen mimicked, kissing the little boy’s forehead.

Soon enough, they were all moving into their silver minivan that has definitely been extremely useful lately. Mr. Anderson drove towards the baseball park where they would all watch Dawson’s game against the neighboring school. As soon as the car was parked, Dawson jumped out to join his teammates and Frankie was rushing to go out so he could pee.

“How are you holding up, little guy?” Cahlen asked through the plastic door of the porta-potty.

“Done!” Frankie exclaimed as he opened the door. He reached for Cahlen’s hand but she pulled away.

“Someone still needs to wash his hands!” Cahlen said with a little laugh as the boy began to pout and stare up at her with his sea green eyes. “Come on, I am sure my mom must have rubbing alcohol or something.”

Cahlen rested her hand atop his head as a way to guide him towards the bleachers where her mom was talking to someone. They weaved their way through the crowds and eventually made it to the metal planks.

“Mom, do you have any alcohol for Frankie?” Cahlen asked, interrupting the conversation.

“Of course, I do.” Mrs. Anderson replied before reaching into the depths of her bag. “Just give me a moment, sweetie.”

“Cahlen!” Her mom’s friend exclaimed. “How nice to finally see you!”

Cahlen’s bright blue eyes fell on the woman’s dirty blond hair, lightly tanned skin, and warm smile.

“Mrs. O’Callaghan” she said, more out of shock than anything else. Of course she would be here. Shane and Dawson were teammates. “How nice to see you as well.”

But Cahlen felt the exact opposite. Although she liked John’s mother very much, more than him sometimes, seeing her would most likely mean that he is somewhere in the vicinity, and after their last encounter, she was in no hurry to run into him again.

“How have you been?” Mrs. O’Callaghan asked, starting a conversation as Mrs. Anderson helped Frankie clean up. “You’ve been here for months, yet this is my first time to see you! Why don’t you pass by the house?”

“Don’t expect that anytime soon, Jenny!” Mrs. Anderson said before Cahlen could reply. “She barely steps out of my house! She only leaves to eat or if she is being dragged by Kennedy or Garret.”

“Even more reason you should pass by then!” Mrs. O’Callaghan said with a laugh. “I do really miss the presence. It was so nice having another girl in the house.”

Cahlen put on a smile and mumbled a polite response, knowing that she would most probably never be in the O’Callaghan house ever again. Once the two ladies settled into another conversation, Cahlen sat down on a seat nearby with Frankie beside her. She pulled on her sunglasses to protect her eyes from the glaring sun, but also to be able to scan the field without being obvious. If she had to see him, she didn’t want to be caught off guard. However, after a few minutes, she had seen no sign of him. Even after her dad and Mr. O’Callaghan arrived with some food and refreshments, she hadn’t seen a glimpse of him. Not long after, the game began.

“Come here, Frankie! Let me put more sunscreen on you.” Cahlen called as the boy wandered down the seats to get a closer look at the game. It was already the sixth inning, but there was no clear winner yet. “Frankie, please! We, fair skinned, need to stick together and protect ourselves. Do you want to be a lobster again?”

With that, Frankie ran up the bleachers, terrified by a recent experience after spending too much time under the sun.

“I thought so,” Cahlen said as she began spreading the sunscreen on his already pink skin. “We need to be more careful, little one! Your freckles are popping out everywhere.”

“I just don’t want to become a lobster again, Kaykay.” Frankie said with a little pout, causing Cahlen to giggle.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of you!” Cahlen said as she continued to rub the protective lotion on his sensitive skin.

When she was done, she started spreading it on her own skin, not wanting to be a lobster either. As she was spreading the lotion on her left leg, Frankie stood up on his seat and started waving his hands like a little madman.

“Johnny boy!” At the sound of his name, Cahlen froze and accidentally dropped the sunscreen bottle, causing it to fall in between the bleachers and land in the grass with a soft thud.

She didn’t dare look up, not wanting to make eye contact with her least favorite person in the world. Instead, she tried to reach for the fallen bottle, but failed horribly. She heard him greet his and her parents, and he even gave Frankie a high five.

Her arm was in between her legs as she reached for the bottle when five long fingers wrapped themselves around the bottle, and handed it to her. Cahlen mumbled a thank you without looking at the owner of the hands.

“John, why don’t you sit beside Cahlen?” Mrs. O’Callaghan said before turning her attention back to the game.

Cahlen didn’t hear a response, but instead, heard heavy steps climb the bleachers and eventually stop beside her feet. She busied herself with the sunscreen, covering each inch of her skin at least twice. She felt her left side dip as weight was added to the bleacher. She tried to ignore him, but found it difficult to when her arms kept rubbing against his as she tried to spread the lotion.

“Johnny boy! Watcha doing here?” Frankie asked as he forced his way in between the two of them.

Cahlen let out a sigh of relief as the two shared a conversation. She finally closed the sunscreen bottle and handed it back to her mom. Then, she turned her attention to the game unfolding before her, where the opposing team was starting to get an advantage. She easily lost herself in the game, paying close attention to her brother who was fielding.

“Right, Kaykay?” Frankie asked as he pulled on the hem of her shirtsleeve.

“I am sorry, what did you say, Frankie?” Cahlen asked, purposely looking straight down at the boy.

“I said—“ Frankie started before Mr. Anderson, who was offering to buy him a hotdog, interrupted him. The little boy agreed, easily distracted by the prospect of food. He stood up and moved down the bleachers where Mr. Anderson waited for him.

Without Frankie, the empty space between her and John was very tense. Cahlen felt a pull to look his way, but resisted the urge. Their fight from their last encounter was still very strong in her head and her wounds haven’t healed just yet. Throughout the game, they stayed the same, at least half a foot apart, never glancing in each other’s direction.

When it was Dawson’s turn to bat for the last inning, Cahlen’s fingers were crossed and she was sitting at the edge of her seat. They were one point behind with two outs. Shane was waiting at second base, his body tensed to run. This could be all or nothing for Dawson, and Cahlen hoped for the bes.t

The pitcher threw a few fouls, before throwing one right down the line. Dawson hit it with a loud smack. Without seeing where it ended up, he dropped his bat and ran. Cahlen stood up as Shane crossed the finished line safely. It was all up to Dawson, now. If he could reach home, they would win. He may not have hit a home run, but he did hit it very far. The outfielders got it and threw it to third base, narrowly missing Dawson, who was aiming for the point. He was sprinting towards home base before diving down to avoid the ball and reach home.

That was it! They had won!

Cahlen jumped up and down with excitement, extremely proud of her brother. Overwhelmed and running on adrenaline, she hugged the nearest person. His arms easily wrapped around her lean frame. She could feel his muscles tighten around her and lift her and a victorious hug. A light laugh escaped her lips as she feet touched ground again. However, it came to abrupt stop when she looked up and saw that she was hugging no one else other than John.