29 Meeting the Atkins 3 (2/2)

Noah was next to her, then me, then Mr. Duncan, and Mr. Atkins. That left the other side of the table open for the twins and Zeke. Dave was the first to come in and took a seat next to his mom. Kyle came in next, and took a seat next to his dad. Then it was Zeke.

No one has really talked about him much so I wasn't sure what to expect. I vaguely remembered that he didn't smile in the family photo hanging on the wall. Noah also said he was strict, didn't meddle when he and the twins fought, and that he was the captain of their varsity team.

Zeke looked exactly like the photo. He didn't smile and looked very serious compared to everyone else in the family. He sat exactly opposite of me, making me slightly nervous.

”Jake, this is Zeke. Don't be scared of him. He just has face paralysis.” Noah introduced.

Zeke' eyes shot towards Noah instantaneously. ”What was that?”

Noah coughed trying to cover his laugh. ”Nothing. Just telling Jake that you're the captain of the team at school. And that maybe he should ask you for a tryout.”

”Team is already put together.” Zeke didn't even sugarcoat it. ”He can play with the other freshmen.”

I looked at Noah, unsure if I would even want to play. Let alone play with a bunch of strangers. Noah didn't even look upset or worried. He winked at me, then smiled at his oldest brother. ”What if I told you he could hit a 100mph fastball...multiple times?”

The table seemed to fall silent all at the same time. All side conversations stopped and all eyes were on me.

Zeke squinted at Noah. ”I would have to ask you to prove it.”

Noah's smile got even brighter as if he expected that response. He looked at his mom innocently. ”Mom, you didn't tell dad what happened today?”