Emerald City Boys

 

CHAPTER 33

 

BUSIER BOYS

 

SUNDAY, JULY 11

 

<The Stampeders>

 

The Stampeders had a rare Sunday game scheduled. Madison had spent the night with Logan. Madison thought it was wicked how Logan made him feel so awesomely good him by rimming, finger fucking him to an orgasm, and then going sixty-nine until Logan had an orgasm and he had a second orgasm.

 

Their opponent was the Lake Washington Blue Sox at the youth baseball complex in Kirkland, which was on the east side of Lake Washington. Madison’s mother, Laurie, picked up the boys and drove them to the game.

 

And then there was the game, of course. The Stampeders edged the Blue Sox 7-5 in an exciting eight inning game. The Stampeders were trailing 5-2 going into the top of the seventh, but a bases loaded double by Bailey tied the score. The Blue Sox didn’t score in the bottom of the inning, sending the game into extra innings.

 

Andy Grayson, who made the last out in the seventh, was the ghost runner on second when the eighth inning opened. With nobody out, Madison walked to put runners on first and second

 

With nobody out, Madison walked to put runners on first. Pedro Martinez bunted the runners to second and third. Luke Chung then lined a single to right to knock in both runners. The next two batters struck out to end the inning. Pedro pitched a 1-2-3 inning, giving the Stampeders a big 7-5 win, improving their league record to 7-3.

 

After the game Madison, Logan, Bailey and Andy were treated to lunch by their parents at The Habit Burger Grill in north Seattle. It was Bailey’s birthday and Liz, his mother, brought a cake which she served after they finished their burgers. Madison’s mother, Laurie, bought four cups of soft serve vanilla ice cream for the boys. Before digging into the birthday dessert, the families sang happy birthday to Bailey and were pleased when some of the other customers and a couple of employees at the counter joined in. Bailey was now officially twelve years old.

 

“Bailey gave himself his own birthday present,” Madison said as the boys ate the birthday dessert with gusto.

 

“What was that?” Andy asked.

 

“An epic double in the top of the seventh to tie the score which, like, started us on the way to a birthday win.”

 

Madison spent the night with Bailey. After retiring for the night the two of them stripped naked, kissed deep and with passion, and finished Bailey’s birthday sex with Bailey humping Madison until he had an intense dry cum followed within seconds by Madison shooting squirts of clear semen over the two of them.

 

<Vipers>

 

The Vipers lost 3-2 in ten innings to the Shoreline Slammers. Kurt played second flawlessly but went oh-for-four at the plate. Eddie went one-for-three with a walk and caught Vance Jenkins who pitched all seven regular innings. The Slammers scored on a two out solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to earn the win.

 

MONDAY, JULY 13

 

<Falcons>

 

The Falcons traveled across Lake Washington for a game against the Kirkland Ravens. The game was a battle, but Trajan’s hat trick and two goals by Levi helped lead the Falcons to a 14-11 win.

 

“Our bird was tougher than their bird today,” Denny Wolfe, the team captain, grinned after the game ended and handshakes were exchanged.

 

“And faster,” Trajan said. “Everybody knows Falcons are the fastest birds around. So, for sure, they’re faster than Ravens.”

 

“Says the guy who got a hat trick,” Jack Johnson.

 

“I didn’t get that by being slow.” Trajan had warmed up to Jack some since they met at Trajan’s first practice. But he couldn’t bring himself to really like his teammate.

 

“Remember guys, we play them again on Friday,” Denny said. “Those dudes have a good team and the Ravens have a reputation for being smart birds.”

 

“Fast beats smart in Lacrosse.”

 

“Unless it doesn’t,” Jack said. “Let’s have a good practice tomorrow since we play Bothell on Wednesday and they gave us a tough game.”

 

“Which we won by four points,” Trajan said. 

 

“Which means we’ll have to work harder and play better since they’ll be out to get us,” Denny said.

 

“I’ll be there ready to do just that,” Levi told them. He and Trajan traded high-fives and they went to the parking lot together to meet with Levi’s parents.

 

Trajan spent the night at Levi’s, sharing his bed as he usually did on their overnights.

 

<Vipers>

 

The Vipers had an easy 14-3 win over the last place Bothell Ospreys. The game ended after four-and-a-half innings as the umpires invoked the ten-run mercy rule. The Vipers now had a 9-3 record with two games left. They were going to have to play the Ospreys again the next day to make up a rainout. They would then play the second place Lynwood Eagles Friday.

 

If the Vipers defeated the Eagles and the Kirkland Wolves beat the Renton Raves, the Vipers would take first place and would play in the postseason tournament starting Monday. The big game of the two for the Vipers would be the Lynwood game. The three games in four days would put a strain on the Vipers’ pitching, however. Since the Ospreys were a weak team, Coach Peters would be able to save his two best pitchers for the Lynwood game.

 

TUESDAY, JULY 14

 

<Drake and Pierce>

 

Natalie was sitting at the patio table on the deck relaxing with a glass of iced tea. She had just finished preparing a bowl of her gourmet potato salad. It was 3:00pm when Pierce rode up the driveway. He parked his bike and came over to Natalie - she stood up and welcomed him with outstretched arms. In the six months she’d known him, Pierce had grown and filled out noticeably - his pink tank top, white shorts, and rainbow striped flipflops complemented his blond hair and tanned body perfectly.

 

“Hey, Mom,” Pierce greeted. “Beautiful day to be outside - and you picked a beautiful day for a cookout.”

 

Natalie hugged the boy who had virtually become another son to her. “Hey, sweetie. What all have you been up to today?”

 

“My dad and I did some work on the pool deck this morning,” Pierce said. “It was good to work together with him on a project. He hires so much of the yard work done around the house that we don’t do much together out there.”

 

“Keegan and Drake and I have worked a lot together on our outdoor area this year,” Natalie said. “It’s really shaped up as a nice place to entertain. This year we added that small refrigerator under the counter. When we first built the deck, we didn’t want to spend the money and didn’t think we really needed it. But then we realized we were doing a lot of running back and forth into the house, so we installed it. It really comes in handy.”

 

“It’s beautiful,” Pierce said. He pointed to some shrub-like plants with blue flowers. “Those hydrangeas are gorgeous.”

 

“Yes, they are. They’re blooming beautifully this year.” The look on Natalie’s face said, ‘How did you know what kind of flowers they are?’

 

“Come on, Mom - don’t look so surprised,” Pierce said with a grin. “All gay boys are born knowing how to cook and how to grow flowers.”

 

Natalie burst out laughing. “If that’s the case, your boyfriend sure missed out on that gene. He’s never shown any interest in either cooking or gardening.”

 

Pierce almost said, ‘Well, maybe not but he makes up for it by being an incredible fuck’ but he caught himself. “Maybe not but if I ever need any repair work done on my bike, I know I can count on him. I’ve never been any good with wrenches and screwdrivers. And if I have a problem with my laptop computer, I can count on him to fix that, too.”

 

“Between your cooking and gardening and Drake’s mechanical and computer abilities, it sounds like a perfect match.”

 

“It is a perfect match, Mom,” Pierce said seriously. “Trust me. It is a perfect match.”

 

Natalie nodded. “I kinda get that feeling,” she said with a smile. “You want a glass of iced tea? Or there’s Dr. Pepper inside in the fridge.”

 

“Thanks - I’ll get a DP.” Pierce went into the kitchen and grabbed a Dr. Pepper out of the refrigerator. “Speaking of boyfriends, where’s mine?” he asked as he came back out on the deck.

 

“He and his dad went up to Trader Joe’s to pick up a couple of things. Actually, knowing them, they’ll probably buy more than just a couple of things. They should be back any minute. Jim and Jenny Hanover from next door are going to join us in a little while - she’s bringing coleslaw and a pie with ice cream.”   

 

“Oh, I remember them - they’re great people,” Pierce said as he sat down. Almost immediately, Fido jumped up into his lap. “Aww, it’s my favorite beagle,” Pierce cooed as he stroked the dog’s long ears. “You’re such a good dog.” After much licking and tail wagging, Fido jumped back down on the ground.

 

As it turned out, Keegan, Drake, Jim, and Jenny all arrived at the same time - greetings and hugs were exchanged all around. Jenny put her slaw and dessert into the little outdoor refrigerator.

 

“Hey, Pooka,” Drake said as he hugged and kissed his boyfriend on the lips. “Hope you’re in the mood for brats - we got some great ones fresh from the deli.”

 

“I am in the mood,” Pierce confirmed with a smile.

 

The sight of two teenage boys showing deep affection for each other was an everyday event for Keegan and Natalie and they thought nothing of it. For Jim and Jenny, it was something they had come to admire. After finding out that Zach, one of their grandsons, was gay, they had had several long and much appreciated conversations with Keegan and Natalie on the subject. Their initial reaction had been forced tolerance but when Zach told his family that he had a boyfriend, they began to realize it takes more than tolerance, it takes acceptance. They had accepted Zach’s gayness and were glad they did.

 

“Let’s go inside and work on our invitation list for the Magnolia Madness event,” Drake suggested. “I don’t think it’s going to be very complicated.”

 

“I don’t think it’s going to be complicated at all,” Pierce replied as the boys went into the kitchen. “It’ll basically be the same group that was at the Fourth of July party at Chase’s house only this time there won’t be any females there and we’ll spend a lot more time naked.”

 

“Kind of the same as the Cousin Dozen Blowout except not as many really young dudes - and all Emerald City Boys.”

 

Pierce pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Right. So, here’s the list of everybody who was at the Blowout - you, me, Chase, Dillon, Eddie, Curt, Logan, Tony, Aiden, Nolan, Darnell, and Madison. Then there’s

Nathan, Trajan, and Levi - they weren’t at the Blowout but were at the Fourth party. As far as I know, Trajan’s going back home so he’s out of the running.”

 

“Let’s start putting ages on those names,” Drake said. He grabbed a pencil off the kitchen counter. “Madison’s 11, Logan’s 12, Aiden’s 12, Tony’s 12, and Levi’s 12. Too tweeny. Eddie’s 13, Curt’s 13, Nolan’s 13, Darnell’s 13, and Nathan’s 13.”

 

“Levi’s actually 13, too,” Pierce pointed out. “We sang Happy Birthday to him on the Fourth.”

 

“You’re right - I stand corrected.”

 

“Okay,” Pierce began. “We’ve got you, me, Chase, and Dillon.”

 

Drake nodded. “So far so good.”

 

“Ya know, I still want to get a four-way going with you, me, Chase, and Dillon,” Pierce said with a leer.

 

Drake couldn’t help chuckling. “Let’s keep our mind on the invite list.”

 

Pierce smiled and kissed Drake on the cheek. “Yes, my love. Okay, now we get to the thirteen-year-olds. There’s Eddie, Curt, Nathan, and Levi - they’re all Emerald City Boys and Levi is a sexy redhead. Nolan’s 13 but he’s not an ECB - same with Darnell. I think the list should be you, me, Chase, Dillon, Eddie, Curt, Nathan, and Levi. The same guys who were at the Fourth party except for Trajan.”

 

“That sounds good to me,” Drake agreed. “We said it wasn’t going to be complicated - and it wasn’t.” He went to his bedroom, got his laptop, booted it up, and connected it to the Wi-Fi. He already had a group set up in the address book of his email app that included the boys Pierce mentioned.

 

“Should I send an invite to Trajan, too? Just in case?”

 

“Might as well,” Pierce said. “If he can’t make it, he’ll let us know.”

 

Drake added Trajan into the group of recipients, typed the invitation with the place, date, and time and showed it to Pierce. “Does this look OK?”

 

“Looks good to me.”

 

Drake clicked send. “Invitation sent,” he said. “Do you think Walker will want to impose the same set of rules that he set up for the blowout regarding having sex in the house?”

 

Pierce shrugged. “I’m sure he will. I’ll talk with him about that. It wasn’t a problem at the blowout, and it won’t be a problem this time.”

 

“Cool. Let’s go back outside - I smell brats cooking and I’m starting to get hungry.”

 

“Hey, Drake,” Natalie called. “There’s a big bowl of my potato salad in the fridge - will you bring it out, please?”

 

“You got it, Mom.”

 

While the boys were deciding on their invitation list, Keegan had gotten the brats onto the grill and Natalie and Jenny set the table and got the rest of the supper organized. Jim had spent a number of years as an over-the-road trucker which made trucking one his and Keegan’s favorite subjects.

 

“So, are trucks any easier to drive these days than they were thirty years ago?” Jim asked.

 

“Actually, modern trucks are really pretty easy to drive,” Keegan said as he turned the brats on the grill. “They’re all air conditioned and many of them are automatics now. But the traffic is truly miserable a lot of the time and that doesn’t make the job any easier.”

 

Keegan put the brats on a serving platter while Natalie opened the package of buns and got a big pitcher of lemonade out of the refrigerator. Keegan’s brother Phil had worked to teach him how to prepare lemonade - Keegan’s version wasn’t quite as good as Phil’s but it was close. Supper was officially served.

 

While they were eating, Natalie brought up the subject of the Alaska cruise Drake and Pierce were going to be taking soon.

 

“You guys mentioned buying a hoodie to take on your cruise. What would you think of the idea of waiting and buying a hoodie after you’re on the ship - it could be a souvenir of your trip. I’m sure there will be a shop on the ship selling them.”

 

“I like that idea,” Pierce said. “What do you think, Duck?”

 

“Works for me,” Drake said. “I like the idea of it being a souvenir.”

 

“And you can count on there being at least one shop on the ship selling hoodies,” Jim remarked.

 

“That’s for sure,” Jenny added. “Jim and I have been on four cruises, and we’ve always found everything you could want on the ship - especially souvenirs.”

 

As supper wound down, Jenny served her marionberry pie with rich, homemade vanilla ice cream. Jim, Jenny, and Natalie also had a cup of coffee. Everyone said it was the best pie they’d ever eaten.

 

“This pie is awesome,” Pierce complimented. “My dad has a recipe for marionberry pie and we’ve made it a couple times but his is too sweet for me. This has just the right amount of tartness to go with the ice cream.”

 

“Thank you, Pierce,” Jenny said with a smile. “I agree with you on the sugar - I only put in about half of what the recipe says. I got the marionberries last weekend at the Farmer’s Market - they really are delicious.”

 

After two hours of relaxing, after-supper conversation, Jim and Jenny said they were ready to head for home. They thanked Keegan and Natalie for hosting as they left. Drake and Pierce helped gather up the dishes and get things into the dishwasher. Natalie changed Lincoln and got him ready for bed while Keegan and the boys watched ESPN SportsCenter. By ten o’clock, Pierce and Drake were ready for bed.

 

After brushing and flossing, the boys went to Drake’s bedroom, and got naked. They exchanged a gentle, passionate kiss.

 

“Damn, that pie was good,” Pierce said.

 

“For sure.”

 

“Pooka’s a tired dude tonight,” Pierce whispered.

 

“Duck is, too.”

 

They climbed into bed. Pierce arranged himself with his back against Drake’s chest, his ass against Drake’s groin, and Drake’s right arm over his body - it had become their classic fall-asleep position. After whispering “I love you” to each other, they were asleep in no time.

 

WEDNESDAY, JULY 15

 

<Vipers>

 

The Vipers hammered the Ospreys 21-3. Once again, the Vipers’ pitching got a break since the game was called after five innings when the mercy rule was invoked. The Ospreys obviously were not excited about playing again and showed up with only nine players. While they all liked playing baseball, playing for a miserable team took away a lot of the fun of playing. But as badly as they were getting clobbered, the Osprey nine played hard; they just weren’t very good.

 

<Jammers>

 

The Jammers had all arrived at the Highline Sports complex by five-fifteen for their six o’clock playoff game against the Peninsula Pilots. The Pilots had arrived a few minutes earlier and were getting their equipment into the first base dugout. The dugouts had been assigned by the tournament committee at the coaches’ meeting on Monday, which was held virtually. The matchups were drawn as well.

 

The Jammers drew the Pilots and the blind draw indicated they would be the home team. They would be playing on Field 1. The other two teams in the finals were the Redmond Chieftains and the Bainbridge Bears who were preparing to play on Field 2.

 

Karl would be the starting pitcher for the Jammers and Dayton Guild would be his catcher. The infield would consist of Coco Richards at first, Justin at second, Marco at shortstop, and Rick Butler at third. From left to right the outfield would be Joey Rizzo, Sonny Kwan, and Cole Richards. Since the league used a bat-around rule everyone would bat and the substitutions in the field would be fluid.

 

At exactly six o’clock the plate umpire signaled Karl to pitch. He threw a called strike, and the game was on. The first four innings was a 0-0 pitchers’ duel between Karl and Warren Rogers, the Pilots’ pitcher. Karl had allowed two baserunners; one a one out walk in the second and the other a two out single in the third. Warren gave up a one out single to Justin in the bottom of the first, walked Marco to lead off the second, and gave up a one out single to Julio Perez. Karl then put the Pilots down in order in the top of the fifth, striking out the side.

 

The ice was broken by the Jammers in the bottom of the fifth. Sonny doubled to lead off the inning. Dayton then singled in Sonny on the next pitch. Cole flied out to left before Julio Perez tripled in Dayton to make the score 2-0. Karl pitched a 1-2-3 sixth, ending the game with his tenth strikeout. He allowed only three baserunners on two hits and a walk. Both teams played errorless ball, a rarity at that age level.

 

The Jammers shook hands with the tearful Pilots, whose season was over, and then celebrated with hugs and dancing and jumping around. The coaches told them to focus their attention on Field 2 where the other playoff game was still going on. They would be playing the winner on Friday. The winner ended up being the Chieftains who knocked off the Bears 8-5.

 

<Falcons>

 

The Falcon story was a simple one: they got thumped 11-7 by the Bothell Fury, a team they had defeated 13-9 on June 30.

 

“I think we got ourselves so worked up about playing the Ravens again on Friday we forgot about the Fury,” Trajan moaned.

 

“Coach warned us that could happen,” Levi said.

 

“Yeah, he did. He was like, ‘don’t go getting big heads and looking past the Fury,’” Denny said. “We played like we practiced yesterday.”

 

“In other words, we played shitty,” Jack said.

 

“We better be ready for a great practice tomorrow or we could end up not making the playoffs.”

 

“And we all worked too hard to let that happen,” Trajan said.

 

Everybody agreed and the impromptu post-game meeting broke up.

 

With each team having an afternoon practice the next day, Trajan had arranged to spend the night with Levi. This was becoming so routine that Marne and Arlene joked that the two seemed to have become brothers from different mothers. Levi’s parents and the boys enjoyed a late mac and cheese dinner and talked about the game and also about their upcoming game on Friday against the Kirkland Ravens. The boys headed for Levi’s room at around ten o’clock.

 

They stripped naked and made out, hugging, kissing, and feeling up each other’s cock, balls, and ass. The result was two horny teen boys jerking each other to orgasm and squirting over themselves and each other. They went to the bathroom, cleaned up, pissed, washed and brushed, and went back to settle in Levi’s bed.

 

“Thanks for the fun,” Levi grinned. “I’m so happy you came here for the summer.” What Levi didn’t say was that he was having moments of sadness knowing his new and very good friend would soon be leaving for California and home.

 

“So am I, Levi. So am I.” Trajan gave Levi a long kiss. After the kiss ended, Levi turned off the light on his nightstand and the teens settled under the covers to sleep.

 

Trajan squinted to make out Levi in the dark. He couldn’t recall having had feelings like the feelings he now had for Levi. He thought of young Derek, a horny tween who had been his boyfriend for a brief and tumultuous time. Things between them, as well the boys (and the men) he’d had sex with, was just that, all about sex. Trajan had never had these strong feelings about any of his East Harbor friends, or about anybody.

 

‘Is this what love is about?’ he wondered. ‘If it is, I want more of it. I wonder if he has feelings like this for me?’ He couldn’t remember ever being so happy.

 

Then he came back to Earth, remembering the situation he was in. With school starting on August 19, he would have to return home in a couple of weeks. As much as he loved his parents, he truly didn’t want to return home. Uncle Luigi and Aunt Marne had been wonderful to him, making him feel like they loved him and that he belonged in their house. And his cousins Tony and Marco were so accepting, especially with Tony being an incredible horn dog.

 

He thought of how the big difference between Tony and Derek was that for Derek sex was dirty and nasty fun, which is why he liked it. For Tony it was an experience that felt good. It wasn’t nasty, it was something that made the cousins feel close to each other.

 

He wished there was a way he could stay in Seattle. Other than his parents there was nothing for him in East Harbor. Here he had the world’s two best cousins, he had the new friends he’d made playing on the Falcons, and, best of all, he had Levi.

 

THURSDAY, JULY 16

 

<Stampeders>

 

In a big game for the Stampeders the Addams Guardians avenged a 4-3 loss with a 6-4 win. The game featured a personal rivalry between Tony, who played for the Guardians, and Logan, who played for the Stampeders. The two played up the rivalry by trading texts, phone calls, kisses, a jerk off race, and lots of trash talk. Along with their 8-5 loss to the Tukwila Titans on Tuesday the Stampeders were 7-5 and all but out of the postseason race. The Guardians had been eliminated on Tuesday and were now 6-6.

 

<Trajan and Levi>

 

Trajan described his morning wakeup surprise as being wicked. Levi had aroused him with a series of kisses along his morning wood.

 

“Damn, Levi, you’re becoming more and more sexy. What a wicked wake up call!”

 

“Whatever I can do to make my friend and teammate happy,” Levi grinned. Levi had almost blurted out “my boyfriend”. He wondered where that thought had come from. “Anyway, it’s ten past nine, so let’s get up and have some breakfast. Mom and dad are at work, so we don’t need to get dressed.”

 

“Oh, good, then I can perv over your beautiful body. And what is your mom doing at work? I thought she had the summer off.” Trajan knew that Levi’s dad, George, was teaching a graduate school seminar and an undergraduate summer school math class. He would be home by dinner.

 

“Mom will be home by lunch and can drive us to practice. She’s checking to make sure her assistants got all the camp stuff put away and is doing her evaluations, or whatever they’re called, of their work.

 

The two friends enjoyed being naked together as they took care of breakfast and the cleanup. During the cleanup, Trajan couldn’t keep his hands off of Levi and, when his hands weren’t full, he enjoyed petting his friend’s ass, chest, balls, and hard cock. 

 

They sat on the couch in the living room and exchanged deep, sloppy kisses with lots of tongue.  Trajan worked his left index finger up Levi’s ass as he passionately kissed his friend. Levi started jerking Trajan. Trajan grunted with pleasure and removed his finger from Levi’s ass. He then put his hand around Levi’s cock and the two boys masturbated each other. They loved being naughty by being sexy in the living room instead on Levi’s bed or in the shower. Levi used Trajan’s precum as lube.

 

Levi came first, shooting a few drops of clear cum on his belly and bare pubis. Trajan followed quickly, shooting thicker teen cum. After the friends came back to Earth, they decided to shower together. Both of them were boned up but they didn’t go after seconds—at least not then.

 

After showering they went downstairs and sat out on the back deck. Trajan stared out into space and said nothing. Levi decided to break the silence.

 

“What are you looking at?” he asked.

 

“At the view in the gap between your neighbors,” Trajan replied.

 

“You love Mt. Rainier, don’t you?”

 

Trajan nodded. “There’s nothing like it in East Harbor. Ever since I saw it from the plane flying here, I can’t get enough of it. And that field trip made it even more awesome.”

 

“If you had the model we made in camp, you could take it home with you and have Mt. Rainier in your bedroom,” Levi said.

 

“I wish I could just keep the big original.”

 

“I don’t think it would fit in an airplane, let alone in your back yard.”

 

“I guess I did a bad job of telling what I wanted. That wasn’t what I meant. What I meant was, I wish there was a way I could stay here and not go back to East Harbor. I’m feeling more at home here with my cousins, and my teammates, and especially with you. If I could stay here Mt. Rainier would be staying here and I could always see it.” He looked over at Levi and grinned. “Except when it’s cloudy, of course.”

 

“Of course.” Levi sat quietly for a few seconds. The silence had Trajan wondering if he’d said too much. Then Levi surprised him by planting a kiss on his lips. “I wish you could stay too,” he said quietly.

 

Trajan ran his hands through Levi’s hair. “I love your red hair.”

 

“I think I love all of you,” Levi whispered. 

 

The boys looked into each other’s eyes for almost two minutes. Levi broke the standoff by standing up and walking into the house. Neither one could figure out how to handle the situation they found themselves in and decided to walk away from it—albeit, together.

 

They dressed and decided to help out Arlene by vacuuming the living room and straightening out the rec room. They said nothing as they worked, both of them lost in their thoughts. The two young adolescents had been overwhelmed by a warmth for each other they couldn’t comprehend and wondered what they were supposed to do about it.

 

<Justin>

 

Justin wished he and Marco could have slept together the night before, but his dads and Marco’s parents both refused to give permission for a sleepover.

 

“All your focus tonight should be on the game,” Daddy Donkey Mike said. “This is the championship game, and you don’t want any distractions.”

 

He didn’t believe what he had just told his son. His personal feeling was that the best thing Justin and Marco could do was spend a relaxing evening enjoying each other’s company. But Papa Dawg Ryan disagreed. He felt the boys had to take the game one hundred percent seriously without distractions. Mike felt that young kids like Justin and Marco should treat the game like any other game and should just go out and play. Mike finally gave in because some of what Ryan said was true, even though most of it wasn’t. Since Marco’s parents looked at the game preparation the same as Ryan, Mike realized that he had to concede so that parental disagreements didn’t produce a bigger distraction than a sleepover.

 

Justin tossed and turned before falling asleep. He didn’t understand why he and Marco couldn’t spend the night together. He felt they were always good about going to bed on time and sleeping when that was strongly suggested. “Marco and me won’t even sleep together. He can sleep on the floor in a sleeping bag,” Justin had pleaded. It did no good. Mike and Ryan decided that this wasn’t a good time to correct Justin’s grammatical faux pas.

 

FRIDAY, JULY 17

 

<Falcons vs Kirkland Shooters >

 

There were times Trajan and Levi worked so well together it felt like they were the only two players on the field. Levi ended up assisting three of Trajan’s four goals as the Falcons pummeled the Kirkland Shooters 14-8.

 

Denny Wolfe, the Falcons’ team captain, grabbed them in one big hug after the game. “Fuck, do you guys spend all day practicing in Levi’s backyard or something?” he grinned.

 

“No, we go swimming in Levi’s pool,” Trajan replied. “But we talk about the Falcons a lot and we’ve become good friends.”

 

“It was just one of those things,” Levi said. “It’s all about what we do in team practice. Just ask coach.” He had just noticed the coach approaching them and decided to give credit where credit was due.

 

Denny didn’t see that Coach Vincent had walked up behind him. “That would be correct. Good coaching is one key, but players who like each other and work well together is another.”

 

“Which makes the Falcons a pretty good team, right coach?” Trajan asked.

 

I’d say so. But it all comes down to us beating the Fury on Tuesday,” Coach Vincent said referring to the Bothell Fury in their final league game. The schedule for the final league game of the season was based on the standings as of the end of the day. The Fury and the Falcons were tied for the third and final playoff spot. The coach had just learned that the Queen Anne Royals had won its game against Mukilteo to finish second and clinch a playoff spot.

 

The winner of this Tuesday’s Fury-Falcons game would face Queen Anne who would be playing the first place Mercer Island Islanders next Tuesday. No matter who won that game, Mercer Island would finish first and Queen Anne second. The first playoff game would pit the winner of the Fury-Falcon game against Queen Anne in a best-of-three playoff series.

 

 

<Rainiers>

 

Chase was the starting pitcher for the Rainiers against the Lynwood Lions. He threw a dominant game in a 3-1 win. He gave up three hits and no walks, while striking out ten in a seven-inning complete game. Pierce got the game winning hit with a two-run double in the bottom of the sixth to break a 1-1 tie. The celebration was loud for winning first place, but short. The boys knew that the postseason would be starting next Wednesday and that was where the true league championship would be won.

 

<Highline Sports Complex>

 

The Jammers had all arrived by 5:00 for the 6:00 league championship game against the Redmond Chieftains who had arrived by 5:30. Because they played in different divisions, the Jammers and the Chieftains hadn’t played each other during the league season.

 

Coach Wood knew that the Chieftains had only two losses and were an athletic team with a number of players who were big and strong for their ages. What he told the Jammers’ players was they needed to remember that the Chieftains had won their division championship, which meant they were good. “But you guys are here in the championship game right along with them, which means you’re a really good team, too.”

 

The Jammers lost the coin flip to determine the home team. The Chieftain starter struck out the first two hitters as he threw a 1-2-3 top of the first. He was the hardest thrower the Jammers had seen all season.

 

Justin was the starting pitcher for the Jammers. The Chieftains were unquestionably the best hitting team he had pitched against, and they hit some balls hard against him for hits, but his teammates also made some outstanding plays behind him. They scored two runs off three hits and a walk in the bottom of the first. Joey was the catcher and at the end of the inning he reminded his friend to remember he was a good pitcher.

 

Justin settled down after that, but the Jammers were down 4-1 at the end of the fourth. Justin had thrown more pitches than was usual for him in four innings and Coach Wood brought in Julio Perez to pitch since Karl wasn’t eligible to pitch that day. Julio threw hard, but he sometimes had problems with his control, and this was one of those times. The Chieftains scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 6-1 lead. The Jammers answered with two of their own in the bottom of the inning, but it was too little, too late, and the Chieftains ended up with a 6-3 victory to win the South Sound League championship.

 

It was an emotional loss for the Jammers, but they accepted their second-place trophies with grace. As Coach Wood told them, they were a good team and had a good season. “But most importantly, you played the game with sportsmanship and style. You were a pleasure to coach every practice and every game. It was a great season in a lot of different ways,” he concluded.

 

SATURDAY, JULY 18

 

<The Boyer residence>

 

Justin, Marco, Karl, and Joey spent the night in Justin’s bedroom. Joey getting permission to stay was the big surprise, but Joey’s mother actually felt sorry for him after the disappointing loss in the league championship game. If Joey had been hoping for a lot of sexual things to happen, he would have been disappointed. But he wasn’t thinking of that, he just wanted to wind down and enjoy the incredible privilege of having an overnight.

 

The four boys spent some time talking with Mike and Ryan about the game and the disappointment of losing the championship. But they also talked about the thrill of being in that game. Ryan had baked oatmeal raisin cookies for the evening, which were quickly devoured. Everyone agreed that the Chieftains were the more talented team, but the Jammers might have been the better team as far as their knowledge of fundamentals. The results of the constant drill work their coaches ran during practice showed. The Chieftains knew their stuff, they simply weren’t as crisp as the Jammers.

 

The boys then played a couple games of Uno before heading off to bed. They were tired and ready for bed. They took care of their evening business, stripped to their underwear, and crashed. Marco slept with Justin. Karl had his own air mattress and Joey had one that belonged to Justin. Mike had blown up both mattresses with a bicycle pump. Karl and Joey had brought sleeping bags and tucked themselves into them.

 

If the boys had been in puberty their hormones might have had them release the tension of the day naked and with each other. But the only boy of the four to hit puberty was Karl, who was on the cusp. The subject of messing around was never brought up. They had enjoyed playing in their first ever league championship game and appreciated that the four of them got to spend the night together for the first time. The loss was the only negative (and it was a big one) on what was a memorable night.

 

TUESDAY, JULY 21.

 

<Game results>

 

The Magnolia Vipers beat the West Seattle Steelheads 9-2 to earn a playoff spot in their league. Eddie caught the game and had two singles. Curt played first base and had two doubles and a single, scoring two runs and knocking in two more for a big game. Dwight Lucas pitched five innings and Vance Jenkins pitched the last two to finish up the game. The Vipers would be playing Farber Motors in a play-in game Wednesday. If they won, they would continue on in the league tournament—if they lost their season would be over.

 

The Magnolia Stampeders defeated the Ballard Locks 5 -3. The win put them into the postseason tournament on Friday.  Madison and Bailey spent the night at Logan’s house. They were happy to learn that Eddie and Kurt would be in their league’s playoff tournament and the same was true for Chase. He and Dillon would be spending the night with Drake and Pierce at Pierce’s house.

 

The Magnolia Rainiers, which Chase, Dillon, and Pierce played for, won their division championship and would get a bye in the league’s postseason tournament on Friday. They would play the winner of Friday’s game between the Kirkland Wolves and the West Seattle Commodores in a modified two game playoff for the league championship on Monday. If the Rainiers won, they would be champions. If their opponent won, they would then play a second game, which would be winner take all. Dillon, Pierce, and Nathan were Chase’s teammates.

 

A big part of the day was that wins by the Miller brothers would lead to all of them participating in their respective league tournaments. The only one of the Millers feeling some disappointment was Logan because Tony’s team did not qualify for the postseason.

 

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