646 V2 ch118 (1/2)

We made it safely back to our room with Landon in tow. Noah made sure to lock the door behind us and then sat on one of the beds. I sat on the other.

Landon awkwardly stood in the center of the room, unsure of where to sit.

Noah gestured to the end of his bed. ”Go ahead and sit on mine. Jake doesn't like being too close to strangers.” Landon sat down at his appointed spot. Noah kept the conversation from stalling. ”Has your roommate showed up yet?”

He shook his head. ”Not yet, that's why I was just roaming. Looking for some approachable people. It'd be kind of weird if I just went to bed before the other guy showed up.”

Noah waved his candy. ”I appreciate nice people like you. You really have no idea what you saved us from.”

I nodded in agreement.

The guy laughed. ”I'm starting to think your brother is a killjoy.”

”He is.” Noah deadpanned. ”The guy doesn't know what fun is.”

I made a face at Noah. ”That's not true. He had fun pranking you on Friday.”

”Correction then. He has fun torturing others. Beware.” Noah said.

I couldn't argue against that.

Landon laughed. ”What's his name? That way I know which counselor to avoid.”

”Zeke.” Noah told him. ”He's going to be a freshman in the fall.”

Landon's jaw dropped. ”Zeke? As in, Zeke Atkins? The dude that turned down the Minnesota Twins? That's your brother??” The guy looked stunned.

Noah grinned, looking slightly proud. ”Yep. That's our brother.”

I sat up straighter. That's right, Zeke's my brother too.

Landon looked back and forth between us. ”Do you guys even realize how famous your brother is among baseball players?”

I shrugged.

Noah chuckled. ”I reckon a few people might know his name after he chose college over the MLB.”

”A few? No.” He corrected. ”Almost all high school players know his name. Heck, a few of the guys that chose to come here for this camp, came for Zeke. Zeke Atkins and Bradley Thompson at the same college. Just amazing. I think a lot of players want to see what Stanford has to offer to be able to steal such great players from the Majors.”

”A good education.” Noah answered.

”No duh.” He rolled his eyes. ”But what else? Are they paying him on the side? If it was just education, then he would have been able to afford that himself after signing with the Twins as a first round pick.”

”For the experience then.” Noah shrugged. ”Zeke isn't one to follow the norm. He probably wants to win a championship at the college level too.”

”He plans to stay for only two years.” I added. ”He took some summer classes already.”

Landon looked at me. ”Two years. Wow. He's insane. What happens if he flops for both years. He'll drop in the draft, if he even gets drafted again. What a gamble.”

”Meh.” Noah wasn't worried. ”I'd bet on him. Zeke isn't normal.”

Someone tried opening the door, but couldn't get in because it was locked. A knock came at the door. ”Noah, Jake, I know you're awake. The light is on.”

It was Zeke!

I pushed my candy under my pillow while Noah stuffed his trash in his pocket. Noah got up and opened the door, revealing Zeke. ”Hey Zeke, we were just about to go to bed. I swear. We were just getting to know one of the guys we ran into.”

Zeke nodded at Landon as he walked into the room. He glanced at the small trash can by the desk. Then he looked at me. I quickly looked away.