The Hero Two Doors Down by Sharon Robinson Read Free Book Online Page B

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    â€œYou’ve got to hit the ball against the corners of the step and catch it before it bounces. Like this,” I said, then demonstrated the perfect hit.
    Jackie and I battled it out for over an hour. He was a natural. I also found out how competitive he was! Luckily, we didn’t keep score. I was finally starting to feel comfortable around him!
    As the season progressed, a friendship between our two families grew. Sometimes I’d visit the Robinsons alone. Other times Mom came with me. A couple of times the Robinsons came to our house for dinner.
    The shyness I initially felt around Jackie passed. One night, over steak and baked potatoes, Jackie brought up fan mail.
    â€œQuite honestly, I’m overwhelmed by all the fan mail,” he told us. “I just don’t have the time to answer each and every fan.”
    â€œJack, I think I can help,” my mother offered.
    â€œSarah, are you sure?” Rachel cut in.
    â€œAbsolutely, I’d love it,” Mom said.
    â€œArchie, do you have any objections?” Jackie asked.
    â€œIt’s fine with me,” my father replied.
    I sat back, listening to the adults talk, thinking this was too cool. Maybe I’d also get to read fan mail for Jackie. What a treat!
    Some evenings after a hard Dodgers game, I’d wait on my stoop, hoping to chat with Jackie when he got home from Ebbets Field. I kept up with all of the team’s batting averages and stolen bases so we’d have something specific to talk about.
    One afternoon I was at the Robinsons’ house building blocks with Jackie Junior when Jackie showed up. I watched as he bent down and scooped his son into his arms. Little Jackie squealed with delight. I couldn’t take my eyes off the two. As Jackie set his son down, I very nearly expected to be picked up next. I smiled up at Jackie as he patted me on my head. “Hello, Steve. What have you and Jackie been playing today?”
    I looked down at the half-built house, then back up at Jackie. “A house in the country,” I told him. “We’re going to make a barn, too, so the animals will have a place to live.”
    Jackie chuckled. “Funny, that’s my dream. Well, maybe not the animal part, but I’d like a house with enough land so Jackie could have a dog.”
    When Rachel walked out of the kitchen, Jackie hugged her and asked, “What smells so good? I’m starving.”
    Rachel chuckled. “I’m making a roast and baked potatoes.”
    â€œSteve, can you stay for dinner?” Jackie asked.
    â€œI have to ask my mother,” I said, following Rachel into the kitchen.
    â€œCall your mother, Steve. I’d be happy to talk with her,” Rachel offered.
    As soon as Mom gave the okay, Jackie and I cleaned up the building blocks and chased each other around the house, playing tag until dinner.
    â€œRachel tells me that you have a birthday coming up,” Jackie said to me after he’d blessed the food and served our plates.
    â€œI’ll turn nine on June nineteenth,” I replied.
    â€œNine,” Jackie repeated. “You’re in third grade. How are your grades?”
    â€œPretty good,” I replied. “I even got satisfactory grades for my behavior! Did you ever get into trouble when you were my age?”
    Jackie laughed. “When I was your age, I joined a gang. We called ourselves the Pepper Street Gang. We didn’t do anything really bad . . . stole some golf balls and sold them back to the golfers . . . took fruit from the stands. We got lucky. A young minister came into our lives and helped turn me around. I got out of the gang. Reverend Downs stayed on me through my army days. Later, he married Rachel and me. I loved that guy and didn’t want to disappoint him. I never knew my father, Steve. Reverend Downs died recently. I was crushed. He was still a young man. That news hurt me deeply, as if I’d lost my best friend . .