Work Text:
Lexa sighed, wiping a line of sweat from her forehead as she worked. Just because it was an easy job, working concessions and cleaning the stands after high school baseball games and practices, did not mean it was an enjoyable one. She had only taken the job because her cousin, Anya, happened to be the team's assistant manager, and Lexa couldn't let down one of the few people willing to stick their neck out for her like that. Plus, she would need all the money she could get as she headed to college in the fall, so she supposed there could be worse ways to spend her time.
A ball crashed into the bleachers a few feet ahead of her, but Lexa refused to react, used to the day's routine annoyance by this point.
“Hey Woods, a little help?” The team's idiot of a pitcher, John Murphy, sneered, pointing to where he had likely purposely tossed the ball.
“Sorry Murphy, I'd think you need to see a specialist.” She deadpanned, even as she tossed the ball across the grass to his catch partner, Coach Blake, who was already chiding him to get his head in the game.
“C'mon coach, this isn't even a game. We're talking about practice!” He whined back, and Lexa's attention was quickly focused back on her work, moving down to the next row in the stands.
Practice was a simple affair, one that not many people cared to watch, making Lexa's time there rather boring, with only a small scattering of people throughout the bleachers, most related to the players in some fashion. Today however, it seemed the stands wouldn't remain quite so empty, as a brunette girl she recognized as Coach Blake's little sister walked in, draping herself over the middle rows and calling out a cheer for the team's third baseman, Lincoln, whom she was dating.
Following the girl were two similarly attractive, yet diverse looking girls, a fellow brunette with darker skin and a limp, and a happy blonde, whose smile never seemed to leave her face as she laughed, her head thrown slightly back.
As the players lined up for batting practice, it seemed Lexa wasn't the only one distracted by the women's entrance. She noted the shaggy-haired shortstop making his way over to the group, only to be stonewalled by all three, the two brunettes sending him withering glares, while the blonde simply refused to look at him. Lexa decided that he must have truly screwed up to deserve that treatment, and attempted to resume her work.
However, it was not two batters later when she spotted one of the outfielders, a lanky, awkward boy she seemed to remember was named Jasper, making his way over, with an eager smirk on his face. He never even made it to the stands before Lincoln and Monty, his fellow outfielder, dragged him right back into line.
“Thanks, Linc!” Coach Blake's sister yelled, a similar shout directed at Monty from the other two, to which he returned a salute.
Unfortunately, the boys weren't having similar luck in the batter's boxes. Whatever intelligence Murphy had in his brain seemed to be entirely wired in to perfectly tossing baseballs, and he tended to hit his marks, striking out most of those sent up against him. The outlandish dancing and taunting he performed afterward, however, was much less impressive, at least in Lexa's opinion.
“Woo! Another one bites the dust!” He shouted exuberantly from the mound, strumming his glove like an air guitar as Lincoln left the box.
“You'll get him next Lincoln, you got this!” One of the brunettes cheered from their spot, drawing his eye to the group.
“You wish, Reyes, I'm on a roll,” he winked, “but let me know when one of you finally decides you want a piece of this, I'm not picky. In fact, I'm great at sharing.”
Murphy laughed, but Coach Blake was quick to call a water break, charging out to the mound to have a heated conversation with him before heading over to the girls.
“Come on, Raven, you guys know the rules, don't disturb the players.” He sighed.
“Seriously, Bellamy, we're not allowed to cheer on our friends anymore? It's not my fault Murphy's an ass.” Raven responded, raising her voice to allow the ass in question to hear her.
“I know, just, don't let him get to you, and then you won't have to see him until Monday.” Coach Blake said, turning back to the boys and getting them back up and running.
While the team scrambled back into their line, the group of girls got up too, moving closer to the bottom of the stands, where they wouldn't have to shout so noticeably to get the attention of the players they wanted, instead of everyone hearing them. As they got settled in, Lexa watched one of the team's largest members, Quint, drop the two bats he had been swinging back and forth. He started to head in their direction, but Lexa quickly dropped in front of him.
“Don't even think about it, Quint.” She told him sternly, glaring under the brim of her hat.
He spit something unpleasant on the ground at her feet, “You don't control me, Woods.” He growled, attempting to step past her.
“Seriously. Don't.” She repeated, sticking the handle of her broom into his stomach lightly, keeping him back. They stared each other down for a beat.
“Whatever. They're not even worth it.” He said, turning back to the lineup. Lexa watched him go, conscious of a few eyes on her back as she returned to her sweeping.
Before long, it seemed to Lexa that every guy on the team had taken a swing at hitting on the three ladies. She'd always known they were mostly idiots, but to see it so blatantly displayed was really starting to get her nerves. And of course, as always, Murphy insisted on being the straw that broke the camel's back.
“Come one, come all! Who wants one more shot at the Amazing Murphy?” He crowed, as the rest of the team was beginning to pack up their equipment. “Are there no more challengers? Are you not entertained?” He shouted to the audience.
Lexa was sure he was one step away from climbing a building and beating his chest like King Kong by the time she decided to step up to the plate.
“Woods?” He laughed. “Seriously? The only one with the balls to challenge me is a girl?” He nearly fell down laughing at his own joke. Perhaps Coach Blake needed to be a bit stricter in making sure no one came to practice drunk, she mused.
“Just pitch the ball, Murphy.” Lexa glared at him, and he sneered back. All the eyes at the field were on them by this point.
“Alright, if you think you can handle my balls.” He laughed again, and Lexa raised the bat, pointing it towards left field. Murphy smirked. “Watch out, we've got a badass over here.” He said, before hauling his arm back to start the pitch.
It was a fastball, right down the middle of the plate. He was challenging her, Lexa realized, in the few seconds before she swung. A smug smirk made its way to her own face as she watched the ball fly out towards the left field wall, just as she'd called it before.
Lexa made sure to keep an eye on Murphy as she rounded the bases, and by the time she got to second, he'd thrown his hat down and stormed off toward the dugout.
Meanwhile, most of his teammates were awaiting her at home plate, and she jumped into the middle of the pile when she arrived, stumbling under the force of many celebratory pats on the back.
Once she'd recovered, she looked up to find the three girls she'd noticed earlier in front of her. “Nice work shutting Murphy up.” The darker brunette, Raven, she remembered, smirked at her.
“Yeah, nice work, Lexa.” The other brunette parroted, before grabbing her friend and dragging her off towards her brother, leaving Lexa alone with the blonde.
“Hey, you were pretty great out there,” The blonde said, lowering her sunglasses and winking at Lexa with her ridiculously blue eyes, “maybe you could teach me some time.” She handed Lexa a small scrap of paper before sauntering off to join her friends. Lexa could only watch dumbly before glancing down at the paper to read 'Clarke- 675-829-9121'.
She felt a small, unstoppable smile start to take over her face as she shoved her broom back in the office. So maybe her job wasn't all that bad, Lexa mused. At least Anya hadn't been there to witness the craziness.