7. Sadie

"Why is it so hot in Wisconsin, for fuck"s sake?" Tia complains, pouring a bottle of water over her head.

She"s not kidding. The sun is hot as hell. I can feel the intensity of the blazing sun on my skin. The heat is almost too much to bear, but maybe it feels worse because I"m pregnant.

Ash and Donnie approach us on the field. They are clad in Nike shorts and tank tops, with baseball caps on their heads and Oakley sunglasses shielding their eyes from the sun. As they draw nearer, Ash remarks, "I thought you were from the island?"

"Listen, smart ass." Tia"s frustration from being in the heat is evident in her voice. "I was a freaking baby when I moved to Milwaukee. And even if I wasn"t, why would I want to hang outside in this heat that feels like an oven?" Her retort only succeeds in amusing Ash, who breaks out in laughter.

Which only pisses Tia off even more.

"And by the way, weren"t you two assholes supposed to be here like twenty minutes ago?" Tia says in an annoyed tone.

Ash tosses a large black bag toward the catcher"s mound and flashes her an easy smile and a wink.

Tia rolls her eyes.

"Hey, were you really waiting that long?" Donnie"s strong arms envelop me as he pulls me into his chest and looks down at me. His blue eyes are obscured by his polarized shades.

"No, she"s just overreacting. She doesn"t like the heat too much." I glance back to see Tia glaring at Ash and downing the last of her water in frustration.

Ash walks over to Tia while carrying a bat and a mitt. He holds them toward her and asks, "Bat or catcher?"

Tia grins and says, "Bat" as she takes it from him.

I giggle and ask Ash, "Are you sure it"s a good idea to give Tia a bat?"

At first, Ash looks confused, but then his face lights up with a broad smile when I say, "Just imagine what a feisty Puerto Rican in the heat with a bat can do when she"s pissed off!"

"I'm not some damn dog, Sade!" Tia snaps.

Ash wiggles his eyebrows at Tia and sprints toward the catcher's mound. "Let"s play ball!" he hollers, his eyes twinkling.

"Baby, you pitch, and I"ll catch," Donnie says, planting a kiss on the tip of my nose and handing me the glove. When I look up at him, he smiles. "Just like when we were kids," he adds, jogging behind me and taking the shortstop position.

Tia sways her hips and sticks her tongue out at Ash as she makes her way to the mound. Ash seems to be saying something to her. Whatever it was, it makes her blush. Looks like my girl Tia is sexually frustrated, and Ash is the trigger.

I give Tia a confident smirk and say, "Alright, let"s get this show on the road! Batter up!"

Tia steps up to the plate, holding her bat with both hands and swinging it a few times to warm up. She angles the bat over her shoulder, slightly bends her knees, and shakes her ass in front of Ash. She glances over her shoulder and blows him a kiss. He catches it and blows her one back.

I shake my head in amusement and take my position at the pitcher"s mound. I tuck the ball into my mitt and move my hips to get into the right rhythm and mindset.

"Yeah, Shorty. Shake that ass!" Ash"s voice reverberates across the field.

"Stop looking at her ass!" Donnie quickly yells back.

"Would you all shut the hell up so my girl can throw the damn ball!" Tia hollers.

Taking a deep breath to steady my nerves, I extend my arm as far as possible, feeling the ball"s weight in my hand. I let the ball fly, watching it soar. Tia swings the bat with all her might, but she misses.

"Strike one!" Ash shouts as the ball whizzes by.

Tia grins sheepishly. "Fuck off. That was me warming up." She shrugs.

Whatever. Tia doesn't know shit about baseball.

After a few practice swings, Tia confidently says, "I can do this."

I throw the ball, and she keeps her gaze fixed on it as it comes closer. Suddenly, there is a loud crack as the ball connects with the bat, sending it flying high up into the sky.

"YES!" Tia screams in excitement, and I can't help but join her celebration. I look back to see the ball flying toward right field. "Tia! Run!" I yell at her.

Her eyes widen. "Oh, shit!" She runs toward first base, still carrying the bat with her, and I burst out laughing.

Ash stands, pulls the helmet over his head, and barks out with a laugh, "You can"t take the bat with you!"

Tia makes it to first base and does a little victory dance. "Yeah, baby!" She dips low and back up, twirling her hips seductively.

"Dip that thing!" Ash is laughing his ass off.

The sun gradually begins to disappear behind a thick blanket of clouds, providing much needed relief from the heat. I have only thrown two pitches when Donnie abruptly pulls me off the field and nudges me toward the dugout, urging me to rehydrate. But little does he know I don't need any coaxing.

As I sit and watch Tia, I feel a sense of warmth in my chest at seeing her enjoy herself. It has been a long time since I have seen her laugh so freely, as if the last few months never happened. Today, she showed her true colors—no fear, anger, or hate. She is back to her old bad ass self. But I know better than to believe that the past can't be so quickly left behind. Nightmares have a way of creeping up on us when we least expect them, striking when our defenses are down. That"s how they find their way back into the light, reminding us that the past is never truly gone.

"Last one, and then food!" Ash exclaims, taking a swig of his Gatorade.

Donnie turns to Tia. "Ready to lose again?" he teases, his eyes glinting with playful competition.

She points the bat toward him. "Don"t go easy on me, Donnie Boy," she taunts, a mischievous grin on her face. "Bring it on!"

Donnie"s lips twitch. "Don"t say I didn"t warn you," he says, turning his hat backward and throwing a curveball. Tia swings with determination, but it flies directly into Ash"s glove.

"Striiike!" Ash shouts triumphantly, leaving Tia to groan in frustration.

Tia adjusts her stance, her eyes fixed on Donnie. "Here comes the home run, baby!" Tia sings.

Donnie chuckles, clearly amused. "We"ll see about that, Tia. I hope you can run as fast as you talk," Donnie retorts, raising an eyebrow.

Donnie wipes the sweat off his face with the bottom of his shirt, revealing his chiseled, glistening abs. One of my favorite things to do is watch Donnie pitching. He"s so focused on the game that it"s as if the rest of the world doesn"t exist for him. His arm always moves fluidly as he throws the ball, and each pitch lands accurately.

As Donnie throws the ball with all his might, Tia makes a sudden move and loses her balance, tumbling to the ground and screaming in pain. My heart races as I rush toward her.

"Tia! Are you okay?" I shout, feeling my own ankle twist as I run.

"Shorty! Stop!" I freeze in place. Donnie drops his glove and sprints toward Tia, his eyes wide with worry.

"Oh, fuck." Without hesitation, Ash rushes to her side and kneels down to inspect her injury.

"I think I twisted my ankle," Tia says with a wince. Before the guys can do anything, Tia jumps up and lets out a mischievous laugh. "Sike! Gotcha, suckers!"

Ash"s expression quickly turns from concern to anger. "Are you for real right now?" he growls.

"Tia!" I scold her. "What the hell? You scared me."

"Scared you?" Ash looks over at me and then back to Tia. "You better start running."

Tia"s face pales when she sees the fire burning in Ash"s eyes as he prowls toward her, and she yelps when he reaches out to grab her.

She screams my name and runs toward the field with Ash hot on her ass.

"Serves her right," I mumble and laugh as we watch Ash tackle Tia to the ground.

Donnie wraps his arm around me and kisses my lips. "What do you say we get out of here and get some food." He looks down and places his hand on my belly. "I bet the baby is hungry too."

"Yeah, I"m starving," I respond, loving the feeling of being in Donnie"s arms.

Donnie puts his fingers between his lips and whistles. "Yo! Let"s go!"

Donnie picks up the cooler without waiting for Ash and Tia as we walk away.

Once we reach the parking lot, I notice Tia wearing Ash"s hat while riding piggyback on his back. I can't help but chuckle at the sight of the two of them.

"You feeling okay, Tia?" I ask. Her face is flushed with heat, her neck and face coated in sweat.

"Why? You sick?" Ash glances over his shoulder. "Oh, hell no. Don"t throw up on me, or I"ll drop you on your fine ass," he warns.

Tia flicks his forehead. "You drop me, and I"ll kick you in the dick."

She climbs off his back, and he smacks her butt.

After we load everything into the trunk, we pile into the Jeep and drive off with the top down.

Suddenly, both mine and Tia"s phones buzz at the same time. I open the group chat.

Lupe: Don't forget it's movie night with the guys at my house bitches. Bring your boyz.

"Hey, do you guys want to hang out at Lupe's and watch a movie?" I ask Donnie and Ash. "The guys will be there too."

"Yeah, I"m down," Ash says as he pulls onto the road.

"Yeah, me too," Donnie says over his shoulder.

Me: We"re down. Ash and Donnie, too.

Lupe: Cool. c u later. xo

"Oh! You know what we should watch?" Tia says.

"What?" the rest of us say at once.

I look up from my phone when Tia doesn't respond and see her lips are tightly pressed together, giving her an almost robotic appearance. Her face reminds me of the character from the horror movie Smile.

"Oh, hell no." I shudder at the thought. I love horror movies, but not the ones that will keep you up all night. Which is why I watch horror movies during the day and every light in the house stays on.

The way she sits there, motionless and expressionless, freaks me the hell out even more. I can't wait to get out of this Jeep. "Tia! Knock it off," I snap, trying not to laugh and pee my pants.

Tia breaks her smile and bursts into laughter. Moments like this feel like it was only yesterday when we first met and hit it off instantly. We bonded with our obsession with anything that sparkled and made sure that every piece of clothing we wore was covered with glitter.

Tia and I became inseparable. We did everything together and even had the same classes throughout high school. But now, my best friend is leaving for college. Even though I will miss her terribly, I couldn"t be prouder of her.

"It"s pretty awesome they wanted to get into the police academy," Donnie says, turning to face me, bringing me back to the present.

I grin at him. "Yeah, I"m proud of them for wanting to do that," I respond.

"Can you imagine?" Tia muses as the light changes to green. "Gangsters who caused chaos in these streets will now be protecting them." She lets out a lighthearted laugh. "Ain"t that ironic as shit."

I roll my eyes. "Shut up. You know you"re proud of them too." My fingers poke her side playfully.

"Of course I am," she replies with a smile. "Plus, they"re going to look hot as fuck in those cop uniforms."

A deep growl rumbles from Ash"s throat.

Donnie turns to me and asks, "Looks like you're the only one who hasn't made a decision, Shorty." His eyes are a vivid blue that sparkle in the sunlight. "Have you thought more about going to school?"

"I"m not sure," I admit. Nobody knows that Ash stumbled upon a contest that offers a full scholarship to the art college in Nashville. Excited by the opportunity, I started working on my portfolio and submitted my work. Now, I"m anxiously waiting to hear back from them. Ash has been incredibly supportive and optimistic about my chances of getting in, and we both agreed to keep this news to ourselves until I get an official acceptance letter, in case I don't get accepted.

"There"s a great photography program in Tennessee," Donnie reminds me.

"I know." I offer him a small smile. Ever since he decided to go to Vanderbilt, he"s been dropping little subtle hints and reminders about the photography program in Tennessee.

"Promise me you"ll think about it?" he asks, practically pleading.

"Yeah, I promise," I say quietly, watching Ash"s eyes lock on me through the rearview mirror. We share an unspoken bond, a secret only we know. A sly grin spreads across his face, and he playfully winks at me, cementing our silent agreement.