She didn't want to go into the gym. Not after she kneed Oakland in the balls less than an hour ago. She saw the deadly look on his face when it happened. Sure, they may be pretending to flirt, but that didn't mean she was going to let him get the upperhand.

Go in there and pretend you're unafraid. Yesterday, it felt easy. She went in there in a matching sports bra and leggings, and she crushed it. Today, the pressure was on, and Oakland was ready to kill her.

Today's outfit was still sexy enough to give her an edge, but instead of giving her confidence, it made her want to hide.

Her phone chimed. It was from Larkin. Gotta come out, B.

She hitched her bag over her shoulder, flicked on her shades, then strut out. Nothing screamed bitch like wearing sunglasses indoors while popping gum. She had a part to play, and she was going to play it well.

Fake it 'till you make it, she told herself as she stroll in, putting her bag against the wall. She turned her back to the group, arranging her things, reaching for her glove. Right as her fingers wrapped around the leather, she felt a hand squeeze around the back of her throat. Her chest immediately tightened when she knew who it was.

His breath was hot in her ear. "You little bitch. I was right, you are a fighter. And you're gonna regret what you did."

Every fiber in her body wanted to freeze up and curl into the fetal position. She was never violent, ever. In fact, she was usually pretty timid and, while enthusiastic about certain things, quiet. Never had a single person gotten under her skin like Oakland Stone had.

Instead of curling on the floor into a ball, she took a deep breath and pushed her body into his, rubbing against him. She turned her head, only slightly. "How are you gonna make me pay?"

The growl in his throat was loud and low. His hand tightened against her throat, in front of the whole team. She was so very aware they were all probably watching this exchange, wondering what was happening. What was happening? "First, I'm gonna-"

"Oakland, let go of her." Suddenly, Oakland was being pulled back, and Bee turned to watch Larkin's face darken and his hands tighten into fists. "I'm going to punch you so fucking hard if you put your hands on her again."

Oakland tisked, but he was grinning. "Little Greg Larkin, standing up for the chick. How shocking."

Larkin looked like he would punch Oakland, just for a moment, but coach blew the whistle. "Whatever is happening over there, knock it off and get in line! We're not messin' around right now!"

Bee was the first to rush into line, leaving behind Oakland and Larkin, wishing her face wasn't so red. She knew she was blushing, and she knew she had been flirting. There was something about Oakland that made her want to one-up him so badly. She was beginning to hate that part about herself.

"Now, this is day two of tryouts. I think for the most part, I got a good view of everyone's skills. But, we do have a week of tryouts, and I want to give everyone a fair chance. I got a good view of the field, and it looks too wet to do much, but we can do pop flies in the front lawn. After warm ups, everyone will grab their gloves and head out."

Bee had her glove, and she wasted no time saddling up to Larkin for a partner, not trusting herself to warm up with Oakland for a second day. She put her hand on his shoulder to signify that she was okay, but the fire still burned in his eyes.

"Lark, just ignore him. He's trying to make me flustered, but we both know that won't happen. Now, did you grab a baseball?"

She didn't let her eyes linger on Oakland, who was paired with a Park School boy, his own eyes on her, glaring. He was angry that he wasn't having an effect on her, and Bee knew it meant he would try harder to make her flustered, to make her mess up.

Larkin and Bee stood a few feet away, tossing the ball, accurately but not nearly as hard as Bee had been going yesterday. For a moment, she missed it, missed how Oakland had been challenging her. Larkin would never try to make her look bad, but Bee immediately knew that because of this, she wasn't trying as hard.

Oakland challenges me... which is a good thing? She shook the thought from her head and she backed up a few steps, putting more distance between them as coach blew his whistle. She continued to focus on Larkin, who was now too far to talk to, but she found her eyes glancing at Oakland.

In that moment, he looked right at her, his face stoney. Without a single warning, Oakland pivoted his body and hucked the baseball right at her, trying to catch her off guard. She swung her body, shoving her glove forward, catching his throw. When she looked back up at him, his scowl was dark. "Oops." He called out.

Her own eyes narrowed as she threw the ball back, wondering what kind of game he was playing right when Coach blew the whistle. "Okay, go outside on the field for pop flies. I think we're warm enough."

Bee waited for Larkin to catch up with her, then the both of them jogged out to the field, her cheeks burning. She was going to stay far away from Oakland while she was outside. She was not going to let him choke her again, and she was not going to let him catch her off guard.

When she got onto the field, she tightened her ponytail and shoved her glove on. She loved pop flies almost as much as she loved fielding grounders. She bumped her shoulder with Larkin, because she knew he hated pop flies.

Coach tossed a baseball in his hand, his eyes landing on her. "Bee, go out and show them how it's done."

She heard the Park School boys snort at her as she jogged out to the field, but she didn't care. No matter how much they scoffed at her, she wasn't about to let them stop her from playing the sport she loved.

"Alright Bee." Coach threw up the ball and hit it out to her with his bat, veering to the left a bit. She ran for it, her form perfect as she stayed under the ball. It landed in her glove with a perfect thwack and then, before running in, she threw it to her coach. It was a perfect play all around; she caught the ball and without hesitation, threw it in spot on. In a game, that would have counted probably for a double play, if someone had been on second or third base.

When she joined the team, she didn't bother looking at the Park School boys. She high fived Larkin, Stephen, Benji, and John, getting in her place at the end of the line. She didn't care if the Park School boys hated her on their team - she was good.

Oakland volunteered to go next, jogging out into the field. Coach hit the ball out to him, far over his head, but Oakland was baseball perfection it seemed. He ran back to catch the ball, letting it land in his glove. In one swift movement, he tossed it back to coach, then he gave a whoop! as he ran in towards his teammates.

That was how practice went. The team caught popflies, showcasing their talent to do so. A few freshman stumbled, some Park School boys missed balls, but mostly, Bee felt her blood thick and hot when Oakland was a perfect match for her. He was more than good, he was really good. As in, he too probably played on a travelling team year round, and he too probably spent all winter practicing.

The difference was that he didn't have to prove anything, except for being from a different school. He fit in almost perfectly with the team, cracking jokes that made everyone laugh, making plays that made Coach smile, talking with her team. It made her blood simmer.

She was a hot and sweaty mess by the end of practice, watching as Oakland caught another popfly, jumping in the air to do so. "You're no match for him, girly. You're good, and I'll give you that, but he's gonna play second."

She turned to look at Oakland's right hand man, a boy Oakland called Grueller. "Second has been my position since I started varsity freshman year. Coach knows me and depends on me. I have no reason to think I won't be placed where I'm always placed."

Her voice sounded confident, but Bee didn't feel that way. At the end of last season, she had every reason to believe she would be captain this year and take her team to States, but now things were different. Now she was beginning to wonder if this was even her team anymore.

Grueller gave a shrug, rubbing his hand against the back of his neck. "Second has been Oak's spot too since freshman year."

Oak. She shook her head at the nickname. "Listen. I'm not here to cause trouble. Y'all came to our school, and you're joining our team. You have to accept that I'm a part of it."

Grueller eyed her, and she saw something soft in his expression. "I do accept it. Most of us do. I mean, yeah, at the beginning of the year when we knew about you, we were skeptical and laughed about it. But Bee, you are good, and I respect that. But you need to respect that Oak is our captain, and he deserves this too. His life is baseball and nothing else."

Our captain. He wasn't hers, though. She kicked the dirt under her cleat, her eyes hard. "You need to respect that this is my team. And I'll fight for my spot hard, just like how I know you're fighting for pitcher. This is my senior year, and I need this if I'm going to play at Harvard next year."

His jaw went slack, and he ran his hand over his shaved blonde hair. "Harvard? Shit, you must be smart then."

Her shrug was stiff. She had gotten into Harvard already when she applied Early Action. But, she was counting on a baseball scholarship, because she hadn't gotten enough of an academic scholarship to make the payments manageable.

Besides, she wanted to prove to Harvard that a girl could play on their baseball team. And if she wasn't captain, and if she spent the season on the bench, how was Harvard going to take her seriously?

"Oakland will play college ball anywhere, because he's a guy and he's good. But I have a lot riding on this season, and a stuck up, snot nosed brat like Oakland isn't going to take that from me."

Grueller was still rubbing his hair. "Harvard though? That's a... DI team."

She shot him a nasty look. "I know. I'm trying to go pro after college."

His expression was shock and nothing else. No teasing and taunting. "Wow, I uh, huh."

"Battin' Bee, why are you talking to my boy?" Oakland's voice was dark, angry, and a little bit condescending. She didn't know why he was so mad at her all of the time, but it was wearing her out completely.

She waved her hand at him in a whatever motion. "Maybe I'm hot for him." Was her response as she turned to leave, her eyes finding Stephen and Benji drinking from their water bottles at the edge of the field, talking. Benji raised his hand to her in greeting when their gazes met.

She started walking towards her friends when she felt a hand grip her shoulder and yank her back, causing her to fall to Oakland's chest hard. She looked up at him in a glare, her mouth open to yell at him, but he beat her to it. "Stay away from my boys."

She yanked out of his grip. "Should have thought about that before you joined my team."

She shot him one last look before she stomped off towards Benji and Stephen, wanting to be in the company of her supportive friends. She didn't care if Oakland hated her. What she cared about was her team and her boys and her future.