amazing grace. christian yelich (book one)

eighteen. the king

The stadium is starting to fill up as the teams warm up. I can see both my brother and Christian warming up on opposite sides of the outfield. The entire Phillies team is ready to go, ready to take the second win from the third game. But the Brewers want it too, of course they do.

Sitting by the Brewers dugout still feels weird. I tried to get tickets by my brother on the home side, but they were all sold out. But now I have kind of warmed up to it, especially being able to see all my idiot friends mess around in the Phillies dugout. And see Christian's head pop up every so often to look at me.

"Grace." Christian is standing beside the dugout with a cheeky grin. "Ready to see us win again?"

"No. I'm ready to see my team win," I say with a smirk, raising a brow. He pouts, putting his hand over his heart.  "The guys are going to see who can hit the most home runs for me.  I'd watch out because they get aggressive when it comes to being my friend."

          "I'll hit more of them combined for you, gorgeous," he smiles.  My heart skips a beat and I can feel my cheeks turning red. "What was that about not smiling because of me?"

          "Shut up," I huff, crossing my arms as I sit back in my seat.

          "All for you, Grace Kingery!" he yells dramatically before ducking into the dugout. I chuckle, biting my lip to hide my smile as fans around me stare in interest. Of course people would stare at the girl Christian Yelich is supposedly with, especially if his ex might be pregnant.

          "Hey, Grace." I turn around, seeing a teenage girl with who I assume are her friends. "Are you and Christian a thing yet?"

          "No, we're just friends. Right now," I say with a smile. They giggle at that and I turn back around.

          The game starts and I'm on the edge of my seat every second of it. My boys lead off with a solid 7-2 score, and now it's the bottom of the fifth, bases loaded with my brother up at bats. I can tell their all aiming for those home runs they promised me, and Christian hit one too in the third inning, coming back to the dugout with a cheeky grin.

          He's comfortable in the box, it's easy to tell. He's ready for a home run, no, a grand slam. "Come on, Scottie," I whisper, inching forward on my seat. The first pitch is a ball, followed by a strike. He doesn't like the low pitches, he never has.

          Then the next pitch comes and the hit is solid, soaring through the air. I scream with the stadium, everyone cheering as the ball lands deep in left center. "That's my brother!" I scream, jumping up and down as the players jog around the bases.

          Scott rounds second, coming towards third. "I love you, Scottie!" I yell, holding my hands up in the shape of a heart. He laughs, doing the same before running home.

          The game ends with a score 11-5, the Phillies all running out on the field to jump on Bryce who got the last run. The Brewers are upset as any team would be after a loss, jogging back to their dugout with slouched shoulders.

          "Hey, Christian!" I jump up, standing on the other side of the net as he stops to look at me. "You guys played a really good game." He chuckles, smiling up at me. He reaches his fist up towards me and I fist bump him through the net with a smile.

          "A real catch, Grace Kingery," he chuckles. "Now go congratulate your twin. And I'll see you at eight."

          "See you at eight," I grin before following the crowd up the steps and making my way down to the clubhouse echoing with cheers and music. I open the door and laugh at the sight. "Wow, you guys seem happy. Did you win or something?"

          Scott runs over, hugging me tightly and picking me up from the ground. "All for you!" he cheers, kissing my cheek. "Your pep talk saved me, Gracie."

          "I think you did most of the work," I laugh, letting him put me on the ground again. Bryce is next to hug me, swinging me back and forth.

          "I swear this girl is a good luck charm—most times." I laugh, nudging his shoulder with mine as he puts me down.

          "You guys just keep making up excuses for being a good ass baseball team," I chuckle, smiling at the guys. "But my brother hit the grand slam!" I jump onto his side, wrapping my arms and legs around him tightly. "I'm very proud of you."

          "Twins always stick together." I jump off Scott to face Sam, our other twin.

          "Holy shit, you got tall," I say in awe before hugging him. He laughs, hugging me back loosely. "It's been too long, kiddo."

          "We're literally triplets so stop calling me kiddo. And apparently it was long enough for you to get a baseball boyfriend."