Coach Amos Read Free Page B

second.”
    Sparky’s lip went out. “I don’t like second. Sarah can run to second. I like first.”
    “Everybody has to take their turn on second, Sparky.”
    Sparky folded his arms. “Precious didn’t.”
    Amos sighed. “I explained that. Precious made an out.”
    Precious jerked on Amos’s shirttail. “No, I didn’t, coach. You said I was tagged.”
    Amos threw up his hands. “Okay, everybody in. Coach Culpepper obviously needs to go over the game with you one more time.”
    Amos gathered up the equipment while Dunc tried to explain for the twelfth time why Sparky had to go on to second base.
    It was the team mom’s job to make sure the kids got home after practice. So, when Dunc was done with his speech, all the members of the team piled into Mrs. Johnson’s station wagon—except Sarah.
    “Boys, boys.” Mrs. Johnson motioned Dunc and Amos over to the driver’s side of the car. “I’m sorry, I forgot to ask you if you’d help me out. Sarah’s mother phoned me this afternoon and said that her sitter would be by a little late to pick Sarah up today. I’m just in an awful hurry. I’m a reporter, you know, for the
Herald
, and I’m supposed to cover the city commission meeting in half an hour. Would you boys mind waiting with Sarah until the sitter comes? Ijust know she’ll be here in five minutes, tops.”
    Amos looked at Dunc. Dunc looked at Amos and rolled his eyes.
    “Well, I suppose, since you’re an important reporter and all,” Amos said.
    Mrs. Johnson waved as she peeled out down the street. Amos called out to remind the kids to come early on Saturday so he could give them their new caps and jerseys.
    “Come on, Sarah,” Dunc said. “Coach Binder and I will throw the ball to you until your sitter gets here.”
    Sarah was having a great time. She didn’t throw very straight, but her two coaches didn’t seem to mind chasing the balls.
    “There’s my sitter.” She threw one last ball to Amos. It went off to his right, and he trotted after it.
    Amos reached for the ball, but he never quite got hold of it. He looked up to say good-bye and couldn’t believe his eyes. There she was.
    Melissa Hansen.
    Amos stood in a trance. He couldn’t move. His feet were like lead. He watched Melissa smile her angelic smile and thank Dunc for staying with Sarah. Then she turned, took Sarah’s hand, and walked off the field.
    Finally Amos came to. He ran full blast across the field. He thought if he could hurl himself over the fence and be casually standing on the sidewalk when she passed, she would have to notice him.
    He made a wild jump over the chain link fence. His pants caught on something sharp, and he hung there, upside down. One leg was attached to the fence, and, his face was mashed into the wire.
    Melissa crossed the street before she got to him and kept on walking.
    Dunc ran up to him. “Melissa was here.”
    “I know.”
    “Didn’t you want to talk to her?”
    “No. I thought it would be more fun to hang around on this fence.”
    “Oh.” Dunc waited.
    “Are you planning to stand there all day, or are you going to help me get down?”
    Dunc smiled. He pulled Amos up by the belt loops and unhooked him. Amos fell on his head.
    “Did she mention me?” Amos crawled to a sitting position.
    “No.”
    “Well,
you
mentioned me, didn’t you? I mean, you told her I was the coach and everything—right?”
    “The conversation never really got around to you, Amos. I did find out something interesting, though.”
    Amos stood up. “What? Is she crazy about me? Does she want me to come over? What?”
    “Melissa said she might be able to come watch Sarah play her first game.”
    Amos’s fence-waffled face broke into a slow grin.

“Mr. Posey’s not here,” Jimmy Banes said. Jimmy worked part time at the sporting goods store. Right now, he was picking his teeth and watching cartoons on a portable black and white TV. “Hasn’t been here all day.”
    “We’re here to pick up the jerseys