Three Strikes Until Forever

Marcus's palms were sweating like crazy. Again.

"Dude, you good?" asked Ty, slapping him on the back. "Varsity tryouts are kind of a big deal."

"I'm good," Marcus lied, wiping his hands on his jeans. The baseball field stretched out before them like a green promise that kept breaking it.

Coach Reynolds blew his whistle. "Marcus! You're up. Let's see what you've got."

Marcus stepped into the batter's box, heart hammering. He'd played baseball since he was seven, but somehow this felt different. This was high school. This was everything. First base was social currency, and Marcus had been running on empty since middle school.

The pitcher wound up and fired. Strike one. Marcus's grip on the bat felt slippery, pathetic.

"Focus," someone whispered. Probably Maya, the girl who'd sat behind him in homeroom since August. The one he'd been low-key crushing on but too scared to actually talk to.

Second pitch. Strike two. The snickers from the varsity guys hit harder than any baseball could.

Then something happened. The sky, which had been brooding all afternoon, finally cracked open. Lightning split the sky like something angry and beautiful all at once. The field lit up, everything suddenly stark and real and

Marcus saw it. The ball. The rotation. The path.

*CRACK.*

The ball sailed into the outfield, past everyone's suddenly focused attention. Marcus bolted toward first base, legs pumping, heart screaming something fierce and hopeful.

Safe.

"Whoa," Ty said, eyes wide. "Since when do you hit like that?"

Marcus shrugged, trying to play it cool. But inside, something shifted. Maybe that lightning had been random weather. Maybe it had been something else.

Maya walked over, grinning. "Nice hit, Baseball Boy."

"Thanks," Marcus managed, his palm sweaty again, but for a completely different reason this time.

The thunder rolled again, closer this time, but nobody moved to leave. Some moments, you just let them happen. Some moments, you don't even care that you're standing in the rain with your whole future maybe—just maybe—finally starting.