The Perfect Kind of Leader

         “PERU!!!!”

         “AHHHHH!!!!!!”

            As if the massive gathering outside the stadium wasn’t enough, defining roar of the crowd inside made it impossible for Jonathan Jones to hear his teammate and best friend Kyle Narsavage only a step away. He finally quit and continued people watching. His teammates were all bunched together like sardines near the front of the U.S. delegation. After sitting in the adjacent arena for more than two hours, he was just happy to be approaching the stadium.

Countries R through U packed in between the arena and the Olympic Stadium waiting to be called in. Tall silver lamps lined the sidewalk around them. A fence blocked all fans from coming close to the athletes. It didn’t stop some from leaning over the fence with camera’s flashing. Security quickly put a stop to that.
          “CAMDEN, STAY WITH THE GROUP!” Coach Gaynor yelled.
            Camden put his hand to his ear, trying to mask a slight grin.
          “Cam! Come on man!” Jonathan shouted.
          Jonathan shrugged his shoulders at Kyle and watched Camden stay still for a total of ten seconds before following a couple of Swedish girls away from the group.
          “I’ll handle it” Kyle muttered shaking his head at Jonathan.

          As the newly voted team captain, some offered their suggestion on how best to lead.
              “Focus, discipline, focus, discipline; you gotta lead by example.”
            He guessed leading by example didn’t work in Camden’s
situation.

He was different though. Jonathan could have stood here all night and into the next day. This is where he wanted to be. Two years earlier when he was selected to the National team, he could have only dreamed he would one day be standing in this very spot. Hard work and determination put him here. Now he was the captain of a team that was projected by many to win a medal. Those projections made him stand a little taller that day.

Kevin Jarcho stood arms crossed next to him. His shaggy brown hair made it tough for his hat to stay on.
“Look at how tall those guys’ are. They must be basketball players” Kevin said.
Jonathan glanced to where Kevin pointed. Above that large white poles intersected in every which way and created an arch running along the top of the stadium. Sometimes Jonathan wondered why he didn’t refer to Kevin as his best friend. Sure he and Kyle had known each other all their lives, but Kevin was the one he could truly talk to without fear of judgment.
“Relax, Jon. Everything will be fine.”
Jonathan took a deep breath but suddenly swallowed it.
“What’s wrong?” Kevin asked.
Jonathan tried to look in a different direction.
Maybe the sky? See how many countries you can identify. Is Camden making trouble again?
No matter how determined he was Jonathan could not get his eyes to move. Kevin Jarcho soon noticed why.
“Oh…” Kevin whispered. He squinted, “Is that…”
“Mmmhhhhmm” Jonathan said.
Directly across a makeshift path way that cut through the middle was a delegation whose primary colors were red, yellow, and blue. Jutting out was a wide spiral walkway that extended high into the air. It appeared to be spiraling around a building size Olympic Torch. Standing at the base of the torch was a girl with wispy light brown hair.
Jonathan continued to stare. He felt a rush going through his stomach, his knees, his brain.
Focus, discipline, focus, discipline…
He sighed and finally forced himself to look elsewhere. Kyle had returned from dealing with Camden and noticed something was up. Camden was at his hip as if he were a little kid.
Kevin looked toward the girl.
“We still have a while to wait…why don’t you say hi to her?”
Immediately he looked at Camden and Kyle.
“I…” Jonathan started.
“What girl? Camden shouted.
“A girl Jon? Seriously?” Kyle added.
Jonathan wanted nothing more for his friends to leave him alone but he knew there was no way his friends were letting him get off easily.
“The girl from the magazine” He muttered.
Kyle shook his head, but Camden gleamed with pride.
“You should definitely say hi then. Where is she?”
He pointed to the spot where she stood now fully in view. She was a diamond in a crowd of rocks. ASN magazine did not do her justice.
Looking at Kyle, Jonathan responded, “No I am not going to talk to her. I need to focus.”
While Kyle nodded in approval, both Kevin and Camden looked at him as if he had lost his mind.
“Since when” Camden argued.
“Now” he sighed “Camden just drop it.”
Each word fell and crumpled to the ground.  At that moment, the last thing he wanted to do was to stay focused.




GIVING IN
(Picture of Me and Anda talking among the craziness)

“Prepare to be unfocused.”
With a friendly smirk, Kevin shouted these words over the boisterous crowd screaming for yet another country.
Jonathan glanced to his left to see the recipient of a countless number of looks the past hour walking up the path. The only thing that separated the two of them was a thick white rope designed to keep the only walking path from being overtaken by the mob. Any minute now, she would be passing right next to him on her way to wherever. With the thousands of people here, there is no telling whether he would ever see her again.
Focus, discipline, focus, discipline.
In a matter of seconds, Jonathan slipped under the rope, and stumbled directly in front of the girl. She froze, looking up at what suddenly blocked her path. A few thin pieces of hair fell to her forehead. The girl’s startled expression caused Jonathan’s heart to pound even harder.
“Hi” Jonathan said, or at least he thought he said.
The girl gave a confused look. A terrible thought came to his head. Did this girl even speak English?
Her intoxicating scent nearly caused Jonathan to go weak.
“Hi” he repeated.
“Oh, hi! How are you?”
A follow-up question? He thought. Jonathan should have thought this through a little better. His friends were surely witnessing this epic disaster. He took one huge deep breath.
“Nervous…”
Had he really said that out loud? Regardless, the girl giggled and smiled. She wasn’t running away so things weren’t so bad.
“You would be crazy if you weren’t nervous.”
Jonathan wondered if they were talking about the same thing.
“It’s the Olympic. Everyone is probably nervous.  By the way, I’m Andreea” she said.
“Jonathan” he responded.
Their eyes came to each other’s. A jolt went through Jonathan’s body. She was shorter than mostly every girl he had known. Still this girl was beautiful.
“Well I have to get back Jonathan. It was very nice meeting you.”
“You too” he said waving as she stared to walk away.
Andreea stopped and turned her head. The crowd roared but Jonathan barely made out her words.
“Hopefully I will see you again.”

Here we go!
(Picture of Coach Gaynor looking back at us as we are about to enter the stadium)

“Not bad buddy” Kevin said with a nudge.
“I feel like a total idiot” Jonathan responded.
Kevin chuckled and continued to move forward. They were now up to the gigantic torch walkway. The buzz from the crowd was now consistent. Andreea’s smile played over and over in Jonathan’s head. Coach Gaynor looked back one last time screaming something at his team. It was impossible to hear him though as we moved closer to the illuminating light.
“THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!!!!”
They stepped onto the brown cushioned track and into complete euphoria. Jonathan was a speck in the middle of a whole new world.
The explosive assortment of colors were far more impressive than anything Jonathan had ever seen. All the fourth of Julys back home were tiny compared to this.
His feet struggled to find rhythm and balance as he tried to keep pace with the rest. Vibrant colors and flashing lights jumped from the stands. High across the stadium a massive screen showed a section of the delegation waving flags at a feverish pace.
“Where is mine?” Jonathan said, finally snapping out of his trance.
“CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS!” Kevin said.
“Unreal. Absolutely unreal!” Jonathan acknowledged.
There were more people than he ever thought was imaginable. As the majestic opening ceremony moved on the U.S. Baseball Team found themselves lost in the moment. How was it that a group of teens assembled two years earlier were now in position to challenge the world’s best. After being voted captain, Coach Gaynor put the responsibility of keeping the team mentally ready on Jonathan’s shoulders. The fireworks that leapt from the crisscrossing white arches high above the stadium and the glowing Olympic torch turned the night sky bright red. As Jonathan looked around at what he was in charge of leading his team through, his excitement turned into sheer panic.


Without Warning
(Picture of us gathered around an injured Craig Stinson)

PING!
The white rocket raced through the air and smashed into the chain-link fence in center field causing nearby spectators to scramble.
PING!
This missile sent Heath Anderson back to the wall in left field, barely making the catch without losing a hand.
Jonathan stepped from the batter’s box, feeling the hard dirt crunch below his left foot. He wiped the sweat from his face, before digging back in. Coach Gaynor rocked and fired a fastball to the inside corner of the plate. Jonathan took a smooth step whipping his bat violently.
PING!
Sean Holamon took one step at shortstop before being nearly decapitated by the ball.
“Way to kill the ball” Camden said once he returned to the outfield.
The comfortable late-morning temperature was a welcomed surprise to Jonathan, who was used to scorching Texas mornings. He flipped his glove around his hand, readying to catch bullets from catcher Craig Stinson.
The practice field was tucked in a section of Olympic park with the other practice venues. It was quite a distance away from the main venues so the crowds were fairly thin.
“Look alive Camden, just like in the games” Jonathan said.
Camden shuffled away a few steps and got into his ready position. Jonathan surveyed the rest of the outfielders to make sure they were doing the same.
“AHHHH!”
Jonathan stood up straight and searched for the source of that gut-wrenching screech.
All around, people rushed toward home plate. Jonathan squinted through the dozens of runners and saw someone curled up on the ground in front of Coach Gaynor. Jonathan tore in from the outfield and pushed past his teammates.
“AHHH MY ARM! COACH!”
Coach Gaynor was trying to get Craig Stinson to calm down. Craig was rolling side to side gripping his left shoulder.  Jonathan stood like a statue surrounded by other statues. The team trainer kneeled down next to Craig, closely examining every inch of his arm. He asked him questions that Jonathan could not hear. He saw his mouth moving but all he heard was the buzz of a now growing crowd outside the chain fence that surrounded the field.
“Guys let’s give him some space. I have to get him to the hospital.”
Walking back to his position, Jonathan could feel the panic from the night before returning. To make matters worse, as every eye now fell on him, he knew that his teammate were looking to him to make the situation better.



Back in the Village
(Picture of Jonathan walking down the hall toward Oana)

Jonathan hung around the end of the hallway for a little while longer. Craig’s scream and the reporter’s insistence on the team’s medal chance’s being severely damaged played over and over like one of those old vinyl records. A tear started to fall, but Jonathan quickly swiped it away.
“I have to get myself together” he said.
Jonathan pushed himself down the bare hallway, lost in countless worries racing around in his head.
Suddenly the ground came fast.
SMASH! CRASH!
“Oh my god!”
Jonathan tried to regain his bearings. He saw a smashed coke bottle beside him and a huge stain that he was now a part of. He quickly flipped around to see a girl grabbing her foot.
“I am so sorry” Jonathan said.
The girl’s foot was red with multiple blisters dotting her heel.
“You are the one who nearly fell to your death” the girl responded. I looked over my shoulder to at the railing. It overlooked the lobby below. A couple of athletes had seen what happened and were still staring in our direction.
Jonathan looked at the girl’s foot again, “Did I do that?”
She pulled her foot up to her face and smiled, “Nah, the price of being an Olympic gymnast. Seriously, are you okay?”
Jonathan nodded. If she was in any pain her wide, unassuming eyes hid it. Each time she opened her mouth, her jagged teeth were revealed. They gave her an attitude that she may or may not have deserved.
“I should have been paying attention anyway. Got a lot on my mind right now.”
“Does it have anything to do with what you were talking to yourself about down there?”
If Jonathan could blush, he would have been as red as this girl’s shirt. His suite was only a few doors down. Inside, his friends would surely want to talk about Craig, which he had no desire to do.
“Duty calls” he muttered.
“What?”
“Nothing. Well sorry again for stepping on you.”
Jonathan moved toward his door. He was reaching for the knob with his wet hand when the girl yelled to him.
“Hey wait!”
He turned to her.
“Aren’t you the guy Andreea was talking to at the opening ceremony?”
Jonathan froze, the words stuck in his throat. The girl finally got to her feet and walked towards him. She was only a few inches shorter than Jonathan.
“Yep, that was definitely you. You were like the first guy she talked to since we came here. Puts you in pretty exclusive company!”
“Really?”
“Is that a blush I see? Even though you are African I can still see you blush.”
Jonathan nearly collapsed from laughing so hard. He had no idea who this girl was.
“I am definitely not African. African American maybe but I haven’t even been to Africa. That’s like me calling you Chinese.”
The girl pointed to her pasty colored face. Her dark brown eyes looked at me seriously, but her pursed lips held back the laughter.
“Do I look Chinese?”
Jonathan’s loud laughter caused the door behind him to pop open. He thought the door opened because of his body convulsing against it. However, when he turned around he saw Kyle glaring back at him.
“Hey Kyle” Jonathan said.
“Hey Kyle!! I am Oana.” the girl repeated, causing Jonathan to laugh even harder.
“Hey. You didn’t introduce yourself to me.”
Jonathan tried his hardest to frown but the essence of this girl would not allow it.
“Hello. My name is Oana” she said with a curtsy.
Kyle appeared totally caught off guard by what was happening. Jonathan quickly remembered why.
“Well Oana it was nice meeting you.” Jonathan wondered if he would regret his next words. “Tell Andreea I said hi.”
Oana smiled brighter than she had before.
“Why don’t you tell her yourself?”
A flutter went through his body. Kyle sighed and slipped back inside the room.
“What?” Jonathan asked.
“I will be right back.”

What They Need
(Andreea and I sitting on a bench among trees)

“That is so amazing!” Oana said.
She gripped her bowl of grapes to her chest. After insisting on a visit to the cafeteria, Oana led them past another dormitory building.
“I know. Our town back home is just like that” Kevin said.
“What about you girls?” Jonathan asked. “How is Romania?”
“It is nice…” Andreea said, trailing off toward the end.
         Oana was looking at her, but Andreea made it a point not to do the same.
         The Olympic village was massive. Dozens of five-story buildings hugged two main roads that ran parallel through the complex. It was sealed off from the rest of Olympic Park by an imposing but elegant black steel fence.
         “What are you talking about?” Oana said. “It sounds nothing like where you guys are from. Heck, you guys are nothing like people back home.”
         “What do you mean?’ Jonathan asked.
         “Well..” Oana started.
         “Oana…” Andreea shook her head.
         The four of them came up to the only gate that led out to the rest of Olympic Park. As far as they could see, people walked in every which way. Jonathan stood there and marveled at one thing only, the girl standing to his left.
Once Kevin had motioned for him to relax, conversation had taken off with Andreea. She had seemed to also shake off a brief awkward period. When Jonathan turned away from the metal fence, Oana and Kevin were nowhere to be found. Getting to know Oana over the past two hours, this was probably by design.
         Andreea soon realized they were alone.
         “Where did they go?” She asked, frantically looking from side to side.
         Jonathan shrugged his shoulders, his back now against the barrier. As a small team of athletes past the two of them, Andreea stared intently at Jonathan.
         “When we came to your room, it seemed like something was wrong with your friends.”
         Jonathan hesitated. Ever since they left the building, he kept reminding himself of what awaited him in a few hours.
         “Yeah, just team stuff” He answered.
         “Oh…”
         Jonathan sighed looking at the side of Andreea’s beautiful face. Many trees littered the grounds proving a nice sitting place for athletes who wanted to enjoy the beautiful weather, yet still avoid the droves of spectators.
         “We had an injury in practice earlier today. One of our best players, it didn’t look good either.”
         “Oh, I see” Andreea said.
         “And I feel like everyone is expecting me to handle it.”
         “Why?”
         Jonathan walked away from the gate and underneath a nearby cluster of trees. He spotted Oana and Kevin sitting on a bench behind a row of neatly trimmed bushes. He turned back to Andreea who was standing there looking into his eyes. It took him a while to remember the conversation.
         “Because I am the team captain. Because I am supposed to be focused, be confident, be in control.”
         “Ah…” Andreea acknowledged.
         “I didn’t ask to be captain. I feel like there is so much pressure on me to be a certain way. Captains are supposed to be focused.”
         Andreea lifted her back from the fence and fixed her hair, all the while her eyes were still fixated on Jonathan.”
         “I know my teammates are wondering where I am right now. Two hours before our first Olympic game, a couple hours after losing one of our best players, I am out here talking to girls.”
         Jonathan didn’t want to sound harsh in any way. He was mainly mad at himself for what he was feeling. His crazy rambling now seemed embarrassing. He was spouting off like he was talking to Kevin or Kyle, but he had just met this girl yesterday.
         Andreea walked past him silently. Jonathan dropped his head. He had made a completely idiot out of himself in front of a beautiful stranger. When he turned around to face his shame, Andreea was sitting on a nearby bench motioning for him to join her.
         When Jonathan reached the bench, he noticed Andreea looking directly at Oana and Kevin shaking her head. A subtle smile arose from her lips.
         “Obviously Jonathan, you were chosen as team captain for a reason. You teammates would not have picked you if they thought you were bad.”
         This was the last thing Jonathan expected to here from her, a beautiful stranger.
         “Did you get here and suddenly change into a bad guy?”
         “No” he said, struggling to follow where Andreea was going.
         She noticed the expression on his face, “You became team captain by being the person that you have always been. Your teammates love and respect that person, or else they wouldn’t have picked you.”
         Jonathan suddenly realized how close they were to each other. To his surprise, Andreea made no attempt to edge away.
         “All I am saying is that there are no perfect models of what a team captain should be. It depends on your team and what they respond to. Obviously your team responds to you. My advice to you, do not change a thing.”
         Andreea patted Jonathan on the leg. She looked far off into the distance, maybe to the Olympic Stadium, maybe to back home, maybe in her thoughts. Jonathan’s mind was running rampant about only one thing.
Those glistening eyes and heartfelt words… this girl is incredible.
Jonathan thought maybe they had met in a previous life. That could be the only explanation why he felt so comfortable. That could be the only reason why neither of them noticed her hand was still planted on his leg.
         “After my game, do you want to go for a walk or something?”
         Andreea snapped from her thoughts and stared straight ahead. Momentarily something had changed. Her chest was rising and falling as if she had just run a marathon. This was only for a moment though. She soon turned to him, trying so desperately trying to contain her smile.
         “Sure…” she answered.





The Moment
(Us in a huddle before we go onto the field)

“The U.S. baseball team begins their quest for their first ever Olympic medal. All eyes will be on the potent one-two punch of Todd Frazier and Jonathan Jones at the top of that order and twelve year old phenom Sean Holamon. With so many talented teams in this tournament can they win a medal?”
Jonathan continued to listen to the television as he threw on his white jersey with red and blue stripes.
“They can win a medal, although it will be much tougher with the loss of Craig Stinson. However, it will most likely be the silver or bronze. Cuba is too good and Japan, Canada, or Chinese Taipei will give the Americans a run. To their credit, this team is more than just those three players. Mark Sauls is an unbelievable pitcher. He is fifteen years old, but throws like he is in the Major Leagues. He has a blazing fastball and great off-speed pitches, and he might be the best pitcher in this tournament. Even though his role is somewhat debated, Clete Thomas is very important out of pen, especially when they play some of the better teams. Also, look for Brandon Monk to play a prominent role coming off the bench.”
The announcers went on to recap the Cuba game earlier in the day. By that time, most of the team had already left the clubhouse.
“I know we can compete with Cuba” Sean said, trailing behind Jonathan.
“Sean, just worry about the Netherlands tonight” he said.

Jonathan stood on the top step of the dugout. Unlike the practice field, the Sydney Olympic baseball stadium had no imperfections. The dugouts were cut out of the stands with half below field level, just like in the big leagues.
“How was your walk?” Kyle asked.
A few of the Netherlands players were beginning to get their gloves and emerge from the dugout. At the same time, the home plate umpire signaled over to Coach Gaynor.
“Alright…” Coach Gaynor started.
Jonathan popped out of the dugout with his bat.
“Guys, out here in front of the dugout lets go!”
Coach Gaynor retreated to his spot on the bench, staring intently at the group of players forming in front of the dugout. The crowd noise was beginning to build. Jonathan looked around for one last time before finding himself engulfed by his teammates. He closed his eyes, remembering back to his conversation earlier.
“Hey! We are here! Olympic games! Feel the moment, enjoy the moment. But remember, the moment isn’t bigger than us!”
Jonathan was screaming as loud as he could over the standing room only crowd. He looked around at his teammates. Every eye was focused on their captain.
“The moment isn’t bigger than us, it’s not bigger than our country. This team is stronger than anything. No one can beat us if we have faith, support, and back each other up. This is a statement game! LET’S SHOW EVERYONE WHO THE TEAM TO BEAT IS!”

FASTBREAK
(Picture of Jonathan blasting the ball to left field)

         The first pitch to Todd was a curveball that spun low for a ball. Jonathan’s insides were going wild from the on-deck circle. The next offering hit the glove perfectly on the outside corner of the plate.
“Stay patient Todd!” Coach Gaynor yelled from the dugout. He was right on the mark as the Dutch ace Bastiaan Boudewijn missed wildly with his next three attempts. Todd trotted to first.
Jonathan approached the plate, swinging his bat around. He dug his cleats firmly in the batter’s box. On the first pitch, Jonathan faked a bunt. The pitch sailed in for a strike. Both the shortstop and third baseman crept in a couple of steps…exactly what he wanted.
Coach Kennedy flashed the “hit and run” sign from third base. Jonathan glanced at Todd and saw him give a subtle smile. Bastiaan tried a curveball toward the outer half of the plate, but he was ready for it. The bat met the ball squarely and it soared deep to left field. For a second, Jonathan’s heart nearly stopped at the thought of a home run. As he rounded first base, the ball sunk fast and smashed off the padded wall just beyond the left fielder’s glove. Todd had already rounded third base and beat the throw home by a couple seconds. Jonathan alertly tore for third, sliding into the base without even a throw from the catcher.
“Way to get it started!” Coach Kennedy yelled. Todd pointed at Jonathan, as if to echo the coach’s words. Jonathan pointed back at him, never cracking a smile. The crowd was on their feet. Team USA’s bench could hardly be contained.
“C’mon Kyle, keep it going!”
He strolled to the plate. On the very first pitch, Bastiaan grooved a fat one right down the middle.
PIIINNNNGGG!
The sound of his bat crushing the ball resonated through the ball park. Jonathan threw his arms up, watching the ball sail way over the centerfield fence. Bastiaan looked like he had been hit by a steamroller….a USA steamroller!

The Ace
(Picture of Mark pitching)

         The fervent start to the game kept the crowd chanting throughout the bottom of the first. Just like that, the score was three to nothing. After a lineout, Sean Holamon slowly walked to the plate. A huge roar went up for the twelve year old. His eyes were focused on the pitcher and nothing else. Coming up to the top step Jonathan wondered if Sean really could handle the pressure of thee Olympics. He was three years older than Sean and it took a lot to calm his nerves.
He took the first pitch right down the middle for a strike. The same pitch he regularly killed in Florida. Sean proceeded to flail wildly at the second pitch. No one had ever seen Sean swing so bad before.
“Sean, just relax!” Jonathan yelled.
Bastiaan spun a nasty curveball on the next delivery. Sean started his swing, but nearly fell over trying to stop it.
“BALL!” the umpire bellowed.
Sean regained his balanced and cracked a smile, knowing how silly he must have looked.. The following pitch was a change-up in the same spot as the first pitch. This time he was balanced. His left-handed swing looked so smooth. The ball shot off his bat and into the outfield. Sean hustled around first and eased into second with a double. The loud approval from the fans failed to draw even the slightest grin.
Riding a three run lead, United States took the field. The dugout had been buzzing with anticipation because of how great Mark Sauls looked warming up before the game. The infield huddled at the mound, probably discussing scouting reports for the first few batters. After they went back to their positions, Mark peered in at the new catcher Terrence McConn for the sign. He delivered a blazing fastball for a strike, then another one. He stayed with the fastball to strike the first batter out.
The next batter, Harold Gotthard failed to get the bat off his shoulders. Mark burned three fastballs by him too. Nicolaas Schuyler took the first two fastballs for strikes. On the next pitch Mark made him look ridiculous with his changeup. Nicolaas nearly fell flat on his face trying to hold his bat from crossing the plate.
“Wow! What a start!” I yelled.
He walked off the mound with a confident look. The fast start signaled that this night would be great, but just how great?


Blowing them away!
(Us celebrating)

Twilight fell over the stadium, turning the sky brilliant colors. The game moved into the later innings. Jonathan looked at his spot in centerfield. One patch of grass looked worn away. This was the patch he had not left the entire game. United States had stretched their lead to 6-0. Heath Anderson added a solo homerun in the third; Todd contributed with an RBI single and a sacrifice fly in the seventh; Brandon Monk put the game far out of reach in the eighth inning with a titanic
three-run homer.
Overshadowing the team’s offensive explosion was the fact that Mark still had yet to allow a base runner. As the game drifted into the ninth inning, every pitch moved Mark closer to the impossible.
The first batter spanked a hard ground ball to Sean. He bolted in front of it and threw the runner out. The leadoff hitter could do no better and popped up to short center. Jonathan camped under it and made sure the ball was securely in his glove before throwing it back toward the infield.
Two outs!
The noise grew to deafening levels in eagerness of Mark’s next hitter.
‘POP!’ “Strike one!”
The batter argued to no avail before stepping back in. The second pitch sailed high for a ball. Terrence had to jump to snare it. Harold fouled the third pitch off for strike two. The crowd was relentless now. The right-fielder flashed Jonathan a few hand motions, letting him know to move in a few steps. Verbal communication in this atmosphere was nearly impossible.
“Come on Mark, you got this” Jonathan yelled from the outfield.
He gazed in for the sign. Terrence called for a curveball, but Mark shook it off. Jonathan knew he wanted to end this game with an exclamation point. He swung his arms, rocked back, and uncorked a missile toward the outside corner. The hitter nearly screwed himself into the ground swinging as hard as he could…
WHOOSSHH…. HE MISSED!!!

An Exclamation Point
(Andreea and Jonathan walking)

A few steps out the door, the coolness of the mid-September night wiped away the intensity of the past few hours. The slow pace of their walk palled in comparison to how Jonathan darted all over the base paths, much to the chagrin of an overwhelmed team from the Netherlands. Still he floated beside Andreea like a feather in the breeze.
“How did your game go?” she asked.
“Great, we won. Your talk really helped me.”
Andreea smiled as she looked down at the ground, “How?”
“I just did what you said.”
“Good.”
Jonathan wondered how words came so easily earlier in the day. The more Andreea drifted closer to him, the farther words were jammed down in his stomach. Things were quiet around the Olympic village. Only a few athletes lingered. Outside the high metal fence, the glowing lights of the stadium illuminated the night sky. Jonathan and Andreea showed their IDs and walked through the gate. Jonathan exhaled, finally the words uncovering themselves. He turned to Andreea.
“Excuse me?”
Jonathan rolled his eyes, turning away from her. A small kid with a pearl white baseball stared with wide eyes at him.
“How can I help you little man?”
“Could…you sign this for me?”
Jonathan smiled and started neatly signing his name on the ball. Suddenly, he thought of something way cooler.
“Tell you what. If you make it out to the field before our game tomorrow, I will try to get the whole team to sign it.”
His face lit up almost as bright as the stadium.
“Wow, thanks!”
Jonathan watched proudly as be bounced back to his mother and headed for the crowded metro station.
When Jonathan turned away from the boy, Andreea stood a full foot closer to him. His knees began to shake. Now it was impossible for him to escape her sparkling eyes.
Jonathan assured himself this moment was not happening. He had to be back in Spring, Texas dreaming the night away. But as he closed his eyes and felt the soft touch of Andreea’s lips, Jonathan became certain this was no dream. As the crowd roared off in the distance, Jonathan opened his eyes to a beauty gazing back at him, totally entranced. This moment was real.