Rounding Third Read Online Free PDF Page B

another
bank with the other benchwarmers.
    Hudson insisted they shower and change at the
gym. He thought there was something wrong about wearing their sweaty uniforms
home. Although there was grumbling about this, the rule wasn’t going to change
anytime soon. It was just a few more minutes of agony which Bobby found
pointless since he was going to run home and shower again anyway, but he went
through the motions with the briefest of rinses. He was never comfortable in
the shower and avoided eye contact more than usual. As he was stepping out of
the shower, Taylor stepped in his way. Bobby looked up to avoid the collision.
He tried not to look at Taylor, but now here they were. Taylor said, “What’re
you looking at, faggot?”
    Bobby didn’t answer and tried to step around
the naked shortstop, still not meeting his eyes. Taylor shoved him the chest,
which caused him to stagger back. “I asked what you were staring at down there.
Looking at a real man’s equipment? What you might hope to have someday if you
grow up? Or do you want mine now?” he asked, grabbing his crotch and shaking
it.
    Brickman and others laughed. Buff Beechler
pushed between Taylor and Bobby forcing both to step back. Buff’s body always
made Bobby do a double take--it looked as though Buff had forgotten to take off
a black sweater before entering the shower, but it was all Buff’s natural fur.
Buff looked down at Taylor and shook his head. Bobby used the interruption to
escape to his locker. He heard Buff mumble “pathetic.”
        
Bobby was barely off school grounds when he heard a car slow beside him.
Fearing it might be Taylor and Brickman, he quickened his pace. The horn honked
beside him. Bobby again sped up.
        
“Rob! Where you headed in such a hurry?”
        
The slight whistle in the S made Bobby stop and pull off his earphones.
“What?”
    Bobby trotted over to the old Ford Focus
where Josh Schlagel sat smiling behind the wheel. “I asked where you were
running so fast.”
        
“Sorry, I had my music on.”
        
“Want a ride?”
        
“I don’t want you to go out of your way.”
    “I won’t. I live out 303.”
    “You know where I live?”
    “Yeah, everybody uses your house and that
farm market as landmarks. Whenever I ask directions, I always get ‘Go past the
farm market and the Wardell house...’ Hop in.”
    Josh
cleared some papers off the front seat as Bobby unslung his backpack and
climbed in, moving the Bucks sweatshirt off the seat.
     “You from Milwaukee?” Bobby asked,
eyeing the sweatshirt. “The clothes sort of give it away.”
    “Do they?” Josh lifted his Brewer’s cap,
looked at it, smoothed his dark blond hair and replaced it on his head, this
time backwards. “My father got transferred to Cleveland last summer. He
commutes. Wanted us to have the small-town life.” Bobby looked questioningly at
Josh who continued, “He’s track supervisor for a railroad. They closed the
Milwaukee office and moved the few that got to keep their jobs.” They had
turned onto Harding Street and were driving by the office of Robert F. Wardell,
CPA. “Is that your father’s office?”
    “Good guess.”
    “I figured. There aren’t that many Wardells
around.”
    They turned onto Route 303. “If you want to pull
into the cemetery, I can show you a lot more.” Bobby pointed to the big,
wrought-iron gates rusted permanently open at the entrance.
    Josh laughed. “I’ll pass, thanks. That’s
where I live. Quail Run,” Josh said pointing to the new housing development. “Do
you have brothers and sisters?”
        
“One. Sister. Megan. She’s at freshmen track practice now.”
    “So your whole family’s fast?”
    Bobby shrugged.
    “I see you leaving Welke’s classroom after
second period. I had him last semester for Between the World Wars: the
nineteen-twenties and thirties . Best sleep I got all day,” Josh smiled.
    “I have Overview of American History. We
learned that