Gemma by Lauren A. Forry

Author:Lauren A. Forry
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781648210303
Publisher: Arcade Crimewise
Published: 2024-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

VERSION 3

Zadie’s still here, isn’t she? Can I see her? Why can’t I talk to her? She’s my best friend. Please.

Yeah, Sarah and I are friends, of course we are. But if we weren’t sisters? I don’t know. We’re so different. But me and Zadie? We’ve been friends since the moment we met. ’Cause of the Phillies.

You’ll think this is really specific, but the years 2008 to 2011 were probably the best years of my life. And it’s because of the Phillies.

Even before I started playing field hockey, I loved watching sports. And I’ve always loved baseball. I mean, we have the Reading Phillies right here, and they’ve been the Phillies Double-A affiliate since 1967, so not just my whole life but practically my Mom and Dad’s, too. Nana and Pop-pop used to be season ticket holders, and they talk about how they saw Mike Schmidt and Larry Bowa play there. Dad remembers seeing Scott Rolen. I was only eleven in 2008, but I remember the couple of years before when Carlos Ruiz first came up to Reading and Nana and Pop-pop told me to watch him. That he would be something special.

So 2008 was huge for me. Like, first of all, winning the World Series was the first Philly championship of my lifetime. But also the team was made up of all these guys I’d seen play right here—Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard. Cole Hamels. Carlos Ruiz. Ryan Madson. They felt like family, even though I’d never met them, you know? So those years where they were always at the top of the division and always getting in the post-season, it was just awesome.

Anyway, flash forward a few years. I’m starting college, and I decided to move myself into the dorms. I mean, Albright is right here anyway, plus my parents and I were arguing about one thing or another at the time—Mom was on the verge of another breakdown—and I was just like, I can do it on my own, and if I have to make a few trips back and forth to the house to get everything, then that’s what I’ll do. I didn’t have a car, so I tried to carry as much as I could in one trip. I mean, I was in shape then, so why not? So I had this big old hiking pack filled with clothes strapped to my back, gym bags across my chest, reusable shopping bags dangling from my arms. The driver almost didn’t let me on the bus.

“College student?” he asked.

And I could barely pant out, “Yes.”

He just nodded.

So I got to the dorm, did the check-in, and the person said, “Looks like your roommate is already here.”

I was disappointed because I wanted to get there first, claim my space, you know? But at that point, I was also exhausted and wanted to set all this shit down. It got even worse because there was only one elevator and there was this huge line with all these other new students and their stuff and their parents, and I was like, I’m not waiting.

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