Dean glanced down at his nephew. “Yeah, little guy?”
“Put Coby down. I wanna play with my cousin,” he demanded and Dean leaned over to do exactly that.
“Be careful, he’s wobbly,” Dean warned.
“What does wobbly mean?” Chance asked with a frown.
Melissa leaned down so she was eye to eye with him. “It just means that sometimes when he runs, he’ll fall down. So don’t chase him too fast, okay?”
“Okay, Aunt Lissa.”
Chance and Coby ran around in circles between the other players’ wives and relatives. The other families gave us sad smiles, each probably convinced that Jack didn’t get any offers worth taking and that was why he was leaving. I smiled back, a huge, happy smile, which seemed to puzzle them. They didn’t get it. But they didn’t need to. This wasn’t about them. It wasn’t about anyone other than Jack and our family.
When the door swung open, I found myself shocked to see Jack waltzing through it, carrying a large duffel bag.
“Daddy!” Chance pulled his hand from mine and ran toward Jack.
“Hey, you.” He planted a big kiss on Chance’s cheek. “Did you like the game? We won.”
“No. It was too loud and it hurt my ears. And Mommy cried.”
Jack’s eyes were instantly on mine. “Why’d you cry?”
“I was moved, Jack. The way the crowd reacted to you. It was really emotional for me to watch.”
He leaned in and kissed my cheek. “It was emotional for me to watch too.”
“Did you cry?” I asked a little too loud and he looked around.
“No. Who do you think I am, Dean?”
“I heard that,” Dean called out as he chased his son around. Melissa snuck up behind Coby and grabbed him as he screamed.
“I got you!” She held on to the wiggly toddler as Dean bent down to kiss her. She reached for his hand and leaned into him, which made me smile. I loved seeing them so happy.
Gran and Gramps sidled up next to me, tears in their eyes. I nodded their way, saying, “See, I’m not the only one who was moved to tears tonight,” doing my best to divert the attention away from me.
“We’re just so proud of you, Jack,” Gran said as she allowed the tears to fall. Jack pulled her in for a hug.
“Thank you for being here. It means a lot to me.”
Gramps slapped Jack on the back. “We wouldn’t miss it for the world, kid.”
“Are you ready to go, babe?” I asked my husband and he nodded. “Jack’s ready,” I announced to our small group. “We’ll see you all at the house.”
“We’ll bring Chance with us,” Melissa offered and I enthusiastically agreed. Sometimes it made life easier to get a little break.
After another round of hugs, Jack and I walked hand in hand out of the underground tunnels for the last time. Passing by a lone reporter, Jack stopped to shake his hand, and dropped his duffel bag on the ground.
“Jack, do you have a comment? Something to leave your fans with?” the familiar reporter asked.
“Hey, Casey. You remember my wife, Cassie.” Jack introduced me to the reporter, but I couldn’t place him exactly.
“Nice to see you again, Mrs. Carter. I bet you’re excited to have Jack home full-time now.”
“You have no idea.” I squeezed Jack’s arm and smiled.
“So, how about that quote, Jack? Anything you want to say to memorialize your career?”
Jack grew silent and I knew he was deep in thought. He took a deep breath before saying, “It’s one hell of a sledgehammer to the chest when your baseball career comes to an end. It’s like you finally realize that baseball never loved you back. All the sleepless nights, the hours spent at the gym trying to stay fit, the conditioning, the training, the mental preparation, the holidays missed, the birthdays passed, the memories you didn’t get to make with your family … all for what? It’s not like baseball lost any sleep over you. She didn’t stay awake for nights on end, trying to figure out how to make you a better player. She didn’t care. Baseball’s a business. A sport. A game. And as much as my entire life has been wrapped up in it, it’s time to let it go.”
“So, is it safe to say that you’re quitting for your family?”
Jack squeezed my hand. “It’s safe to say that I’m quitting for me. I want to know what it’s like to have a life outside baseball while my body can still do the things I want it to, knock on wood. I want to experience a weekend that isn’t filled with hitting, pitching, fielding, working out, or meetings.”
He flashed me a big smile, and said, “I want to wake up in the morning and not worry about whether or not my hand is going to tighten up today or if I’m still playing well enough to stay on the team that I love. I’ve given so much time and energy to this sport, but now it’s time for me to give the same attention to my wife and son. I’m ready to have a life that includes them all the time, not just three months out of the year.”
My heart squeezed inside my chest as the blood started pumping wildly in my veins. Every single thing this man did filled me with pride and love.
“Thank you, Jack. And congratulations. You’re a hell of a player.”
“Thanks, Casey. That means a lot coming from you.”
The two men shook hands before Jack led me away from the stadium. I fought the urge to cry as we pulled out of the parking lot for the last time.