The Hitting Zone

Mr. Miller looked me up and down, clearly not impressed with what he saw. "Another freshmeat?"

"Freshman like me." Noah corrected. "But he's going to be the best hitter we have, just watch."

"I doubt it. He doesn't even have the frame to hit homeruns." Mr. Miller scoffed.

"Baseball isn't all about homeruns." Noah three an arm around my shoulders. "Just watch practice after school. You'll see how amazing this kid is."

"Uh-huh. Sure." He looked at me. "Do you not talk?"

"I do all the talking for him." Noah pulled me closer. "You gonna give us a ride to the office after being so rude to a kid?"

Mr. Miller rolled his eyes. "Blackmailing an adult will get you in more trouble than you can imagine one of these days."

I looked up at Noah, worried.

Noah just dragged me to the golf cart and pushed me on. Then he sat next to me. "Thanks for the advice Mr. Miller. I'll keep it in mind for next time."

Mr. Miller just shook his head, but didn't say anything. He started to drive the cart.

"Don't worry about Mr. Miller." Noah patted his shoulder. "He sounds and looks like a grump, but he's super nice. One time he saw the twins bullying me and sprayed them with the hose."

"I sprayed you too." Mr. Miller cut in. "You three were on the freshly planted grass. Have some self awareness."

"See? He just doesn't want to be seen as a nice guy." Noah smiled. I wasn't seeing it though. I think Mr. Miller really didn't have a sweet side, just a sour attitude. "We need to get Jake's schedule so take us to the office good sir!"

Mr. Miller only grunted. He drove us past the upper fields, the courts, the gym and towards the school buildings. We passed many students but no one said anything, just a few shouts of "Hey, Noah!" We even passed by his brothers, who were surrounded by other teenagers, but they didn't pay any mind to us. Maybe Noah and Mr. Miller did have a friendship...

"Get off. Get going. I expect to be amazed this afternoon." Mr. Miller pulled up next to the front glass doors.

I hurried off while Noah took his time. "See ya then. Be prepared. Thanks for the ride!" He stepped off and Mr. Miller left without another word. "He gives me a ride every morning." Noah told me as he waved, confirming my guess that they were close. "He's not just the field manager. He's also the third base coach for games. So he knows what's up."

Wow. I wouldn't have guessed.

"Now let's go and get your schedule. Class will start soon." He opened the door for me and I stepped in. My first step in a high school.

I took a deep breath and walked in. It was a wide hallway filled with teens in front of lockers, and doors that were wide open waiting for students to come in.

"This way." Noah dragged me through the first door on the right. "This is the front office. You can find your counselor here. If you get lost, come here. If you lose something, come here. If you're late for school, we'll come here. Anything you need at all, start here."

'Here' was a long counter with a couple of ladies standing behind it. They were chatting with each other, helping students standing in the front of the line, and papers were going from desk to desk behind the big counter. The office was filled with adults moving behind the scenes.

"They're all office people. Counselors. Principal. Vice-principal. Administrative. Receptionist." Noah pointed at different people flying by.

I just nodded. It was a busy place, and I didn't really want to be here longer than I have to.