Chapter Text
Lupe had noticed Jess right away. Of course she had. Their long, blonde plait peeking out from underneath their cap, her sharp cheekbones, the look on her face that said don’t mess with me. They were impossible to miss, really, and seeing someone who looked like her here was hardly a surprise, but still pleasant. Half the league had to be queer, but not every queer dressed, behaved, carried themselves like Lupe. They, however, were definitely cut from the same cloth as her. She raised a hand, giving them a half-grin and jolting her chin up in acknowledgement. They sized her up for a moment before turning away and carrying on with their stretches. Lupe huffed, a little irritated. This was why she never tried to be nice to people. She spent the rest of tryouts focusing purely on proving herself, and not trying to make friends. She didn’t need them. She just needed to play.
-
A girl with dark curls and light brown skin was staring at Jess. She hated being stared at - they were used to people glaring, used to people resenting them for having the audacity to exist in the same space as them. So she glowered back, feeling irritation overtake them as the figure raised a hand and smirked at them. Turning around, they carried on stretching, spitting on the ground and ignoring the panicked look it earned her from the girl next to them - Shirley. Gotta start remembering names, in case we’re on the same team, they thought. It was a when, not an if. They’d given up too much to be here, left their home and their family, and she’d be damned if she wasn’t gonna make the most of it.
-
Lupe was in! Everything, all the risks and the running, it had all been worth it. She had a team and she had her shot, and she sure as hell wasn’t gonna waste it. She looked around her, at all the people cheering and celebrating, and caught eyes with the blonde from earlier. Their rejection had stung a little - sure, it wasn’t a big deal, but she was trying to be friendly, it wouldn’t have killed them to be a little less arrogant. But the way she was feeling right now? She was willing to forgive. Her new teammates were all introducing themselves to one another, so Lupe strode up to the blonde and held out a hand. “Lupe García.”
They looked at her hand before plucking a cigarette from behind their ear and twirling it between their fingers. “McCready.” Lupe raised an eyebrow. “You got a first name, McCready?” Jesus, was this really the way things were gonna be? They had a whole season to get through, preferably without wanting to scream every time they interacted with their team members. So far, the odds weren’t looking good.
“Jess. You done asking for my life story?” and with that they turned and walked outside, lighting their cigarette as they went.
-
Look, Jess knew that may have been a bit abrupt, rude even. They were usually happy to talk about most parts of their life - hell, get them talking about their family or baseball and they’d keep you up all night chatting. But she didn’t like the way this woman had looked at her, and frankly it had been a hell of a day. A day that was about to take a turn for the worse.
When Jess found out that they’d be expected to wear skirts and makeup for games, she was…angry wasn’t the right word. Nor was uncomfortable. They felt - panicked, almost. Suffocated. Like she was wearing an ill-fitting costume. But Greta and Carson saving her from being sent home made her realise how fragile her dream was. One wrong step and they could take it all away. So, they dealt with it. Admittedly, not well - but really, who could blame them? Besides, she wasn’t the only one who was angry - even those who liked dresses and makeup were infuriated at how impractical it all was. But Jess knew she would do anything to play baseball. She just had to get through, keep her head down - and then the fun would begin.