Senior Year Box Set

The JV baseball team members were all excited to play in the varsity game tonight, since the entire varsity team had been suspended for fighting at St. Joe. Yesterday, there had been a half-page article in our paper talking about the fallout from that game. St. Joe had let go of most of their coaching staff, and their athletic director had stepped down.

In this morning’s paper, there was a follow-up story. It seemed my buddy, Jeff Delahey, had interviewed the coaches and players at two of the schools who’d been involved in the campaign to hit me. There was a lot of “no comment,” but I was intrigued that he’d also talked to the High School Athletic Association, which governed high school baseball in our state. Jeff inferred that they were looking into it.

I wondered if Jeff did this on his own or if my dad had a hand in putting him up to this.

I’d gone to practice last night. My dad and I had agreed that I wouldn’t make a final decision about whether I would play the rest of the year until I returned from spring break. I’d talked to Moose about that, and he was on board with our plan.

I also finally found out what Dare was up to. He wanted to replace the drone we used for the car with a flock, similar to the one he’d created for the house security system. They would be stored in the back of the SUV, and the tailgate window would open to release them.

Fritz had tweaked the design because he would rather the drones be stored on the roof when not in use. He reasoned that if bad guys watched what we did, they would know that the back window would be opened at some point.

Once the two of them had worked out the details, Fritz called Megan and gave her the go-ahead to provide Dare with the money he needed.

Personally, I suspected the little shit just wanted something to do over the break.

◊◊◊

When school finally let out, I said hurried goodbyes to my friends and wished the JV team good luck. I ran out the door and was quickly on my way to the airport. Paul had Megan with him in the car. I noticed I wasn’t the only one who’d brought more than a duffle bag.

“Hey,” Megan said shyly when I got in.

“Hey, yourself.”

After a few minutes of awkward silence, I could tell she had something on her mind.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“I’m not sure I should be going on this trip.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I understand why Cindy is going; she’ll be working on your condos. Ashley and Scarlet are sort of family, while I just work for you,” she said and then looked away.

“What about Kevin? He doesn’t even work for me,” I said as I hid my smile.

“Scarlet said he gets to go because it’s your way of paying Cindy.”

“Did Scarlet say anything that would give you the idea you shouldn’t be going?” I asked.

“No. She’s been super nice to me.”

“What about Paul? Personally, I like Manaia better. Maybe we drop him off and take Manaia instead,” I suggested.

I noticed Paul giving me the stink eye in the mirror.

“No. Scarlet and he … well, you know,” Megan said as she blushed.

“Oh, my,” I said in mock disbelief.

Megan blushed when she thought she’d just outed their relationship.

“What does the HR manual say about that?” I asked.

“Um,” was her witty comeback.

“When we get back, talk to my dad and find out for me,” I suggested.

You’d have thought I just told Cassidy she had to off her kitten by the expression that came over Megan’s face.

“Sorry, I was just pulling your chain. I actually suggested the two of them become … ah … friends.”

“Oh … Oh!” Megan said and suddenly had a smile.

“Now, you’re happy?” I asked, confused by the sudden change in her demeanor.

“No one ever takes the time to tease me. It means you like me, right?” Meagan asked, hopefully.

“Yes. And that is why I asked you to go on this trip. So, quit worrying about whether you should go, and just plan on having fun.”

She seemed reassured. I would have to make it a point to tease her some more. I couldn’t have anyone around me left out when it came to that.

Once we arrived at the airport, I discovered that Paul was a little miffed at me for saying I preferred Manaia. He made me carry my own bags.

What was he thinking? I was an Academy Award winner, after all. My uncle would say that and five bucks would buy me a cup of coffee at Starbucks. When I had to make two trips, I realized I might have packed too many bags.

After I’d hauled my load to the plane, Roy Tyro, the owner of my flight school, waved me over. He was talking to three men dressed like pilots.

“David is one of my star students. Would it be okay if he followed you around while you do your preflight check? In fact, he’s a rated pilot and could legally get a little right-seat time on the trip over if you’re willing.”

I appreciated Roy’s suggestion, and I was stoked by the idea that I might get to sit up front part of the time.

The pilots walked around the plane and explained the difference between what I usually flew and the jet we would be taking. Today we would be flying in a Bombardier Global 8000, designed to comfortably carry more than ten people on long flights.