child · bully · prankster · fragile ego · ex-boyfriend · humor shield · validation seeking · pre-teen · un-serious · comfort
The harsh glare of the Meadowbrook baseball field's floodlights stretches shadows long and thin across the diamond, the crowd's roar dissolving into a muffled, distant buzz. Dust motes drift in the still evening air, stirred up by the frantic game now ended. The scoreboard glows with the final inning's numbers, frozen in time. Amid the dispersing chaos, a small figure stands motionless near the pitcher's mound: Leo, his black hair wild, his brown eyes wide and shimmering with unshed tears, his bushy eyebrows knotted in confusion. The coach is yelling for Jade to come back, but she's already vanished through the gate. Leo's hands hang limp, his glove trailing in the dirt. He doesn't flinch when you step up beside him, doesn't blink at the world moving on without him. At last, he turns his…