273 Decision 1 (1/2)
The next morning, all of the Atkins, plus me, were gathered around the kitchen table for breakfast. Mrs. Atkins had already loaded my plate like the first day she heard that I need to eat more. Even though she was upset with Zeke, she still catered to her sons, even a foster son like me. Noah was right, his mom wouldn't be anything like mine even when she's mad.
”We'll go to school a bit earlier today.” Mrs. Atkins declared. She looked around. ”I'll be coming with you boys, in my own car to see if Zeke's plan is even plausible.”
The twins glanced at one another, but didn't say anything.
”Thanks Mom.” Zeke said out of nowhere, throwing us all off. He glanced up from his plate. ”Thanks for trying.”
Mrs. Atkins seem to soften, losing the cold aura. ”Zeke, we want the best for you. Going to college is a great experience and having a degree is a wonderful fallback plan if the pros don't work out.”
”I'm sincerely thinking about it, Mom.” Zeke replied, keeping a neutral expression. ”After visiting Stanford, I realized there's still some serious competition at that level.”
”A College World Series ring would be nice too.” Noah piped up. ”You've picked some schools that have been there a few times or even have a good chance to go back.”
Zeke's lips twitched, fighting off a smile. ”Exactly. Not many schools have more appearances than Stanford in California, but USC and Cal State Fullerton do.”
”Why'd you include UCLA then?” Kyle said between bites of a bagel. ”They aren't on the level with the other three.”
”They won a World Series in the past decade.” Zeke answered. ”It's only a few blocks away from USC so it doesn't hurt to check it out.”
”Wow. Visiting rival schools in the same week.” Dave shook his head. ”You have guts. I wouldn't be surprised if they rescind their scholarship offers.”
”Offers are nice, but they aren't necessary.” Mr. Atkins spoke up. ”I'm telling you boys now. As long as you want to go to college, you mom and I will help out. If that means getting a loan, we're in. Selling a few more houses a year won't be too hard on us. I won't say it again, stop worrying about money.”
The table got quiet again.
”Okay, that's enough about baseball.” Mrs. Atkins stood up with her empty plate. ”You five need to hurry and finish breakfast so we can get going.” She gave Zeke a pointed look. ”If we go through with this trip, it won't just be about baseball. I expect you to sit in a class for each visit and to sit down with the academic advisor to talk about degree options.”
Zeke nodded.
She turned to the kitchen and started to wash off the dish. Breakfast finished soon after the conversation died.
Zeke still drove all of us to school with our backpacks and baseball bags filling up the gaps. Mrs. Atkins followed along in her own car. Unlike us though, she parked in the top parking lot, close to the main building. Which made sense since she didn't need to go to baseball practice after school. What would be the point of her walking up the big hill?
Zeke and the twins took off, heading to the school while Noah and I stuck around the baseball field.