Page 9 of Rain Delay

I shake my head. We both know I wasn’t one to break the rules. I was not going to be the one to fuck up a reputation; I’ll leave that to some of my teammates.

“They’ll give you more information later, but we wanted to get this out of the way before the game…Which you need to be getting ready for. We’ll talk more later.” Coach says to me before nodding toward the door.

I nodded, standing up out of my seat. “Thanks.” I say before I make my way back to the clubhouse.

Someone was moving into my house. Not visiting. Not stopping by to say hello. But living there. In the one space that belonged entirely to me.

I guess I should’ve enjoyed my alone time more, seeing as that’ll be a thing of the past once this stranger moves in.

I glanced down at my phone to see the email come through, and it suddenly made things feel official.

To optimize player branding and streamline content production, you have been assigned a dedicated social media manager for the duration of the season. Due to scheduling conflicts, this individual will be residing on-site at your home beginning tomorrow…

“Fuck that,” I mumble.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow?

I already pictured how this was going to go.

Day One: Awkward introductions. Making sure they got a sense for what they could and couldn’t touch in my house. I was particular about my things, so I definitely needed to set boundaries on day one.

Day Two: This person would start pushing for some “authentic content” or “something the fans wanted to see.”

Hard. Fucking. Pass.

“Unbelievable,” I muttered as I got back to my locker.

Liam looked at me as I sat down in front of my locker, looking for my glove. “Wait, are you packing your shit right now?” he asks. “Don’t tell me they traded your ass.”

“No,” I look up at him. “Better, I’m getting a roommate!”

I witness Liam’s face morph into confusion. “I’m going to need you to explain this to me.

So I do. I explain to him the entire situation, watching his facial expressions shift with each wild statement I told him.

“I mean, I get why they picked you,” Liam says. “But, the thought of them living in your home? That seems…invasive. What if they lied on their application and they’re actually some lunatic serial killer?”

I pull on my sweatshirt, following behind Liam as we made our way to the dugout. “Well, they’re apparently still finalizing details, so I’m still in the dark about everything.”

“Right…” Liam drags out. “Because that isn’t sketchy at all.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” I pinch the bridge of my nose.

“Hope my room is cleaned!” Liam chimes, earning a laugh from me. “I left that thing spick and span, so they’ll be moving into a nice room.”

“Woah, Wyatt’s getting a new roommate? Since when?” Miles, my other best friend and our first baseman butts into the conversation as we walk.

Miles has also been one of my closest friends since I came to Milwaukee. He was one of the guys that welcomed me with open arms. Him having a son is an added bonus too; Isaac is everyone’s built-in best friend. Whenever that little man was around, the clubhouse felt more alive.

He also gave me the kid fix that I needed without having my own kids. I was perfectly fine with not being a dad for a few more years. I’ll leave that to my friends.

Liam lived with me until two years ago, when he finally decided to get his own place. And now, someone else was going to be occupying that space.

“I’ll have to explain to you over some drinks or something, dude. It’s too complicated to talk about right now. Bring the little man by and we can hang and I’ll talk.” I tell Miles.

Miles nods. “Any excuse for Isaac to see his Uncle Wyatt, he’s in,” he chuckles. “Just don’t let it ruin your mojo, we got a big game today.” He pats my shoulder before walking past me and back into the clubhouse.

“But seriously,” Liam continues after Miles walks away. “Did you clean up that space? I couldn’t even tell you what was in there when I left.”