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He’s leaned against it, holding his injured shoulder with one hand and a red-tipped cigarette in the

other

His eyes are closed They open for me, and the world curves in around us

“Hey there, Siren”

My heart turns over at the soft twitch of his lips My body flashes like a light bulb

“Hi there”

It takes me a moment to realize the particular look on his face is perhaps a bit of bashfulness

“I couldn’t watch you throwing” A grin splits my face “It worried me for Sean—the catcher”

That rin in return

Spurred by a bit of ers and take a choking drag I blow it out in circles, like that caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland

Then I hand it back and squint against the smoke “They’re bad for you, you know”

He chuckles “All the good things are”

I wink, and he says, “Come with me tomorrow”

“Where to?” I fix my face in an impassive look, as if I wouldn’t follow him to hell and back

“I thought I’d hike up to the peak”