Mr. Atkins slowly nodded. "Right. Okay. Mr. Cameron is a good man; he didn't give you a hard time..did he?"
"Not at all. Very straightforward." Zeke answered. "He only talked about the game. Asked how Jake was. Wanted to talk to Noah-"
"But he declined!" Noah rolled his eyes. "This was a chance for me to be famous."
Mr. Atkins chuckled and I smiled.
"He even said he would help me get some information on our next opponent once they set the playoff schedule." Zeke continued as if Noah's interruption didn't happen.
"That's nice of him. Make sure you thank him properly." Mr. Atkins told him.
"I will."
We went back to eating and eventually Mrs. Atkins came back down. She didn't say anything about Kyle, but you could tell she was still upset with Dave by the disapproving looks she would give him.
"Be careful in the shower." Mrs. Atkins told me after dinner as we cleaned up. "Don't soak the stitches and make sure to pat them dry."
I nodded.
"Dave, homework. Noah, bed."
"But Mom-" Noah groaned. "It's only 10pm. One more hour."
"No. Go to bed and get some rest. It's not the weekend." She lectured. "A healthy mind leads to a healthy body. You did so well in the game today, don't ruin it."
Noah pouted. "I did so well and yet, didn't get to pick dinner."
"You can pick tomorrow night." She said warmly. "Now go to bed."
'Knock, knock.'
All eyes shifted towards the front door, one suspicious gaze at a time. Only Noah was carefree, hurrying to open the door. Mr. Atkins was right behind him, wondering who could be knocking at this time of night.
"Mr. Cameron?" Noah asked after opening the door, revealing the high school sports reporter. "I thought you were going to call Zeke? Or message him. You didn't have to come over."
Mr. Cameron was flushed in the face, a mix of red in his normally pale face. "I wanted to see you guys in person." He looked right at Mr. Atkins. "It's important."
Mr. Atkins opened the door a little wider. "Come on in. We were just getting ready for bed. Can I offer you some coffee?"
"Maybe later." Mr. Cameron gave a tight smile, walking in and closing the door behind him. "You might kick me out soon enough, after you hear what I came to say."
"It's not about the playoffs?" Zeke asked.
"No, well yes, I do have some info for you, but this is bigger." He answered.
"What is it?" Mrs. Atkins asked. "What could be so important that you have to make a late night visit?"
Mr. Cameron gave her a slight glance before facing me. He looked me in the eyes with a knowing look. My stomach dropped and I started to feel nauseous. This can't be happening.
"Jake, you know I haven't pried too much in your life. I don't ask too many questions and just report the facts on your baseball skill." He started, inching closer. "You can probably guess why I'm here, right?"
"You know?" I asked, scared of what was coming.
"I do." Mr. Cameron nodded. "You're Jeremy Patterson's little brother."