Madeline's POV- October 2017

Before I could fully react, Cody's mom, Jennifer was pulling me into an embrace.

"Honey, it's been too long"

Cody's younger brother, Cole chuckled as she let go of me.

"You saw her on Friday"

He was correct.

"I did, but only for a bit because she didn't sit with us"

Cole smiled as he looked at me.

"It's nice to see you again Maddy"

He pulled me into a hug and kissed my cheek.

"Is life miserable in Toronto?"

I laughed and shook my head.

"No, I actually like it there" I replied.

"Darn, I was hoping you could get your transfer to LA or even better...Phoenix"

He wiggled his eyebrows and frowned as Ashli, his and Cody's older sister who shoved him out of the way.

"Maddy! I missed you!"

She hugged me and squeezed me as she pressed her face against my hair.

"It's been too long"

A little over 2 months.

"Toronto is treating you well?"

I nodded.

"Your 2 roommates keep their hands to themselves?"

I laughed and nodded.

"Yes, it's like I'm living with two college students. They're never there, and when they are they're either asleep or eating" I answered.

Cole laughed.

"That's the life of an athlete Maddy"

I shrugged and smiled at Cody's dad, Clay.

"Come on now, give me a hug"

I stepped forward and hugged him.

"It's nice to see you again, how's Toronto treating you?"

He gave me one last squeeze before stepping back.

"I technically get a day off every week, so I go exploring," I told him.

He smiled.

"I'm sure Cody wants to be exploring with you, but he's got baseball to worry about"

I nodded agreeing.

"Which is why I told him he'd be back in Toronto in November" I stated.

Jennifer smiled.

"Let's all sit down, and order our food"

We all followed Ashli and sat down.

"Sorry for being late, Cody told me about this about an hour ago" I told them.

Clay shook his head.

"Of course he did"

He literally woke me up as he left for practice and mentioned it. I literally had no time to be mad at him because he was gone before I got out of bed. My dad had let me borrow one of his car, which is why I was able to drive here or else I would have taken longer to get here.

"Well props to you to getting ready in less than an hour"

I was pretty darn proud of myself too.

"Do you have plans before heading to the game?"

"I actually do, I'm having dinner with Alex" I answered.

They all knew who Alex was because she was my best friend.

"Next time, I'm going to text you personally to make plans"

"Please do, Cody is horrible when it comes to giving messages" I stated.

His mom nodded agreeing.

"I know you don't want to be asked, but how are classes going?"

"There are good and bad weeks. Sometimes deadlines just overlap" I replied.

"It's a lot of time management"

"It honestly is, coffee is my best friend at the moment" I admitted.

"Well then it is a good thing I ordered you a coffee"

"Thank you" I told Ashli.

She smiled and filled up the small mug.

"No problem"

After taking a sip of the coffee, I reached for the menu.

"You do look a little thinner"

I had lost weight, a total of 8 pounds.

"My dad is sending me some vitamins to take" I told Clay.

"Ok, good because I was going to suggest you take vitamins. You're going to be traveling right now, and it's not good for you"

He then smiled and pointed at me.

"And you understand what I'm saying since you're working on your Master's in nursing"

"I know, my parents tell me the same thing" I replied.

I had yet to get sick, so I was doing something right.

"Well you haven't gotten sick, so you must be doing something right"

Clay and Jennifer looked at Cole who smiled.

"What?"

The waitress arrived so I began to look through the menu. By the time she reached me, I had decided on,

"Hi, can I get the french toast plate" I said.

The young waitress nodded.

"How would you like your eggs?"

"Sunny side up" I answered.

I watched as she scribbled down the order.

"What kind of toast would you like?"

"Wheat" I replied.

She wrote that down and looked at me.

"Bacon or sausage?"

"Bacon, and can I get a glass of water" I responded.

"Of course"

She smiled and excused her self. Brunch was nice, I got to talk with Cody's family. Surprisingly, it was not awkward. After brunch was over, I excused myself and drove towards the Matthews residence.

"Oh he's going to hear it from you when you see him"

I nodded at Alex as I followed her inside.

"He got nailed with a pillow this morning" I told her.

She laughed.

"Young love"

I smiled and closed the door behind me.

"Mom! Look who is here!"

Ema Matthews grinned when she saw me.

"Mija! It's been so long!"

She pulled me into a tight embrace and rubbed my arm.

"Auston told me that he did not know where you lived"

"Sure he does, I live with one of his teammates" I replied throwing her son under the bus.

She frowned.

"So you have seen him?"

"Of course, he pretends to not recognize me" I stated.

She shook her head and sighed.

"Well, how is nursing school going?"

"It's going" I admitted.

"You look thinner and tired"

I nodded.

"You have to take care of yourself mija"

"I know, I am" I assured her.

"Good"

She squeezed my hand before letting me go.

"And what brings you to Phoenix?"

I smiled.

"Her boyfriend plays for the Dodgers and well they're in town for Game 3 and 4"

Mrs. Matthews nodded and looked at me.

"So you're still seeing the boy?"

"Yes" I confirmed.

"He treats you well?"

"He does" I replied.

She smiled.

"Good. You deserve the world, Madeline. I'm sorry my Auston didn't realize that"

"It's ok" I assured her.

Auston and I were never an item.

"He took you for granted and he made me think bad things about you mija. I'm sorry"

"It's all in the past" I stated.

She looked at me and smiled.

"I hope my boy finds a girl as smart and prepared like you"

"Fingers crossed" I answered.

I didn't hate Auston, I could never hate him.

"How long are you here for?"

"I got here yesterday, I head back to Toronto tonight" I replied.

She nodded.

"Let me have your number darling, so I can call you the next time I happen to be in Toronto"

We exchanged numbers and I then followed Alex up the stairs. Breyana, Alex and Auston's little sister was making her way in from school, so I got the full glare from her when she saw me.

"She's not here to see you so quit being rude"

Breyana slammed the door and frowned up at her sister.

"Come on Maddy, let's go to my room"

I followed Alex up the stairs and to her room.

"Your room is a mess" I noted.

"I know, help me clean it"

So I did, and we finished cleaning just in time for dinner. Ema made chiles rellenos, and I had not had that in such a long time that I made Alex eat at home. Bre gave me the cold shoulder the entire time, and just as Alex and I were leaving it was Alex who spoke up.

"Alright, we're heading out"

Breyana scoffed.

"Finally"

Ema had enough though, she looked at her youngest and glared at her.

"Breyana"

"It's ok" I assured Ema.

I looked at Breyana.

"I'd rather have you hate me instead of your brother" I told her.

And like that, I turned away from her and hugged Ema goodbye.

"Let me know when you're in Toronto" I said.

"Of course Mija, take care of yourself"

She kissed my cheek and let go of me. I smiled at her and turned to look at Alex.

"Ready to go?" I asked.

"Yes"

I followed her out and got into the car.

"Are you spending Chrismas in LA?"

"Yes, I'll be here for New Years though" I answered.

I would be spending Christmas with my mom and her family, and New Years with my dad and his family...and of course Cody. When we got to Chase Field, the Dodgers were finishing up their BP. Team Manager, Dave Roberts spotted me and signaled for security to let me on the field. If I was going, so was Alex. The security recognized me as the team doctor's daughter so he let us through.

"Good evening" I greeted.

"Hello ladies"

Dave Roberts looked at me.

"Why is Cody hiding from you?"

I looked around and spotted Cody. He was unaware of my presence and I signaled at his teammates to not tell him. Yasiel Puig, gave me two thumbs up and went to talk with Cody.

"He gave me no notice to the brunch his family was expecting me for" I informed him.

"Well in that case, go on and make him sweat"

Alex and I excused ourselves and I made my way over.

"Belli, all I have to tell you is...run"

Yasiel turned Cody around and I smiled as we made eye contact.

"Hi babe"

I hummed.

"That's not going to work this time" I said as he tried to give me an innocent smile.

"I forgot"

I stepped forward and he stepped back.

"Should I run?"

I smiled.

"No" I replied.

He hissed as my hand found his bicep.

"I'm sorry"

I hummed as he wrapped his arms around me.

"I forgot, you know how I am with remembering things"

"You never forget to eat an ice cream bar" I shot back.

His teammates chuckled as Cody shrugged.

"I'm sorry, I'll make it up to you. Whatever you want"

I smiled.

"Hit a home run" I suggested.

Cody had the potential to hit homers.

"Or get a run" I added.

"That's a little too much, don't you think"

"You could try to do both" I challenged.

He nodded.

"Ok"

He leaned in for a kiss and I shook my head.

"Nope, I'll give you your kiss after the game" I told him.

He frowned.

"That's mean"

I winked.

"Better get that run or hit" I called out as I made my way over to his teammates to greet them.

Chris was the leadoff guy and he started the game off for his team real well with a double. Corey was walked after, and Justin lined out. When it was Cody's turn, Chris was in 3rd. He hit the ball towards first base, and even though he was out he brought Chris in. During his 3rd at bat at the top of the 5th, Cody hit a home run. As he ran to all the bases, Alex looked at me and smiled.

"Damn, how good are those kisses?"

I simply rolled my eyes as she nudged me. At the end of the night, the Dodgers swept the D-backs. Cody got his kiss, more than one actually. My weekend was over, and it was time to set back to reality...at least until the weekend.