PASS IT ON
CHAPTER THREE

When they pulled into the lot by the field, the game was already in progress. They quickly parked their bikes and found seats in the bleachers. The pair of princesses scanned the field and the dugouts to find Destiny’s star player.

“There he is!” Katie cried as she saw Tommy playing shortstop and readying himself for the next swing of the bat.

When Destiny saw him, she waved and shouted. “Hi Tommy!”

Tommy turned just for the moment when he heard his name, unfortunately a moment was all the batter needed as he hit a line drive right at Tommy. He tried to recover, but the damage was done as the ball shot past his mitt and the runner was safe at first.
Tommy shook his head and turned back to face the plate.

Destiny buried her face and wished the bleachers could swallow her up.

“Now I know he hates me.”

Katie pulled her back up. “No he doesn’t.”

“Yeah sure ...” Destiny sighed as she sat up. “I probably just cost him the game or something.”

Fortunately for Tommy’s Yankees, Tommy made up for that one missed play by making two other spectacular ones in the inning and the other team never scored a run.

For the next hour the girls sat “a bit more quietly”. Katie got into watching the game and Destiny pretty much just watched Tommy. While both enjoyed what they were watching, they still were able to sneak quick glances at each other, hoping to see some sign their wishes were coming true, but sadly as the game progressed, they saw none.

Finally it was the last inning and the Yankees were up to bat. The Tigers had broken the game open by putting up three runs their last time up and led 4-1. Destiny, Katie and the rest of the Yankee fans sat on the edge of their seats hoping the Yankees could still come back to win. The first two batters made outs and it looked as though the game was lost, but the Yankees never quit believing in themselves and Destiny never quit believing in Tommy. Two singles and a walk later, Tommy was at bat with the bases loaded and needing to hit a home run to win.

Destiny was so wishing Tommy would hit the ball out of the park, and tempted to use the last wish to make sure he did. But one look over at Katie and her still “giant” fun sized body reminded Destiny that magic wishes, no matter how hard you wish them, don’t really come true, or at least not for her.

Katie was wishing for Tommy’s home run swing and watching Destiny for any signs of her wish coming true. When Tommy swung at the first ball and missed, it didn’t much look like that wish was coming true. When she saw her beautiful sister’s body still plagued with psoriasis, she pretty much lost faith in that wish too.

As the pitcher wound up to pitch and Tommy focused himself on the ball, Destiny’s enthusiasm overflowed and once again it came out in a holler. “Hit a home run Tommy!”

Unfortunately for Destiny, the noisy bleachers had quieted the moment she shouted and everyone there, especially Tommy heard her cheer. All eyes turned toward Destiny, including Tommy’s. She blushed as red as her hair and became a puddle.
A few awkward moments of silence passed and then the game began again. Katie giggled and scooped up her "puddlepated" sister.

“I can’t believe I did it again”, Destiny squeaked.

Katie put an arm round her. “It’s okay sis. He probably didn’t hear you.”

“Katie! Everyone heard me, especially Tommy.”

Katie did her best to settle her flustered friend. “Look, so what if they heard you and he heard you? You want him to know you like him don’t you?”

The blush returned to Destiny’s cheeks. “No ... I mean yes ... I mean ... oh I don’t know what I mean.”

“Look just watch the game and if he hits the game winner then you can give him a hug and help him celebrate.”

“And what if he strikes out and they lose?” Katie’s eyes twinkled with the hint of adult wisdom she had. “Then you can give him a hug and help him feel better. Either way you get a hug.”

Destiny giggled. “You’re pretty smart for a little sister.”

Katie smiled back. “I’m older than I look.”

“No”, Destiny quickly corrected her. “You’re younger than you look.”

Katie nodded and gave her wise big sister a heartfelt hug. When they broke the embrace Destiny sighed. “I just wish ... I just so wish he’d hit a home run and I’d catch the ball and he’d ask me out ... just like we dreamed.”

Before Katie could comment, the crack of the bat and the cheers of the crowd drew her attention back to the field. When she found the ball, it was in the air and flying straight toward them.

She shouted for Destiny to turn, but her sister was still lost in her dream world. Katie shouted a second time as the ball came closer, but then it was too late. Katie tried to catch the fly ball, but without a mitt, it slipped through her fingers and hit Destiny square in the forehead.

Destiny wobbled a second and then fell back on the bleachers. Her world went black.

She was Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty all in one. She felt like her fairy godmother had made her beautiful and that she was waking up from a deep sleep to find a handsome prince named Tommy gazing at her.

She smiled and called to him through the dream mist. “Tommy?”

He smiled at her and his hand took hers. It seemed so real for a dream.
“Yeah Destiny. I’m here.”

His hand was so warm. It was all too real to be a dream.
“Nice catch Des.” He said with a chuckle. I never saw anyone catch a ball with their face. You really ought to use a mitt next time.”

It was then she realized this was no dream, but a waking embarrassing nightmare.
“Oh my gosh”, she sat up and then rubbed her aching forehead.

She looked round to see that her embarrassment was shared by not only Tommy, but several of the other players and quite a few fans who’d come over to see if she was alright and to congratulate Tommy on his game winning home run.

“You hit a home run!” she squealed as reality finally hit her a few minutes after the ball had.

“And you caught it ... sorta”, he said with a laugh as he sat down beside her. “You gonna be alright?”

Destiny sat up straight, the red mark on her forehead matching the rosy red glow on her cheeks. “Yeah ... I’m cool. I’m cool.”

Tommy looked at the goose egg forming on her forehead. “I really am sorry about that. Is there any way I can make it up to you?”

Destiny could think of a million ways but she wasn’t about to admit a single one. She turned away from him trying to make it easier to answer. “No ... I’m good.”

“Well ...” he turned her back round with the sound of his voice. “You could make it up to me?”

Anger flashed in Destiny’s brown eyes. “Make it up to you! You’re the one who hit me with the ball!”

“And you’re the one who hollered and made me miss that grounder in the first inning.”

Destiny dropped her head. “Yeah ... I guess I did. So ... what can I do to make it up to you?”

By now everyone had cleared the bleacher area except for Tommy and Destiny. “You could go shoot some hoops with me this afternoon and then if you want ... we could ride over to the Dairy Queen. I’ll let you buy me a cone after I beat you in basketball.”

“Dream on”, Destiny said with fire back in her eyes. “You can buy me one after I beat you.”

Tommy nodded approvingly and then stood up. “Okay ... I’ll stop by your house about three. Is that cool?”

“Three o’clock is cool”, Destiny figured that gave her enough time to change and put on just a little make up, “but hey ...” she quickly added. Don’t come by my house. Just pick me up at Katie’s, okay?”

Tommy gave her an odd look. “Katie? You mean Alisha’s mom Katie? Crazy Katie down on the corner?”

Destiny shook her head and gave him a frustrated look. “No dude... not that Katie. Katie ... my Katie ... you know ... Katie my adopted sister who lives down the street and drives the big silver bike.”

When she saw no look of recognition in Tommy’s eyes she waved her hand over her head. “You know ... Katie ... really ... really tall Katie ... the girl I’m always hanging out with and who came with me to the game? I want you to pick me up at her house.

This time it was Tommy who shook his head and gave her a curious stare. “I didn’t know Katie was adopted, and last time I looked, she rode the same pink Disney Princess bike she’s had since last summer.”

Tommy then waved his hand at a level just a few inches below Destiny’s head. “Last time I saw her ... which was like a minute ago, Katie wasn’t tall, she’s small ... oh yeah ... ‘fun sized’ just like you are. And just when did your little sister move out? I thought you two shared a room. Wow! She must be the only eleven year old fifth grader with her own place.”

“What are you talking about? Quit talking crazy.” Destiny cried as she tried to stand up but her legs wobbled. Tommy caught her easily and helped her back down.

“I’m not the one talking crazy girl. You’re the one acting like you sister is an alien or something. I think that ball must have hit you harder than I thought.”

“Katie”, Destiny whispered and then said again a little louder with concern in her voice as she noticed her sister was missing. “Where’s Katie? Is she alright?”

“She’s fine”, Tommy said calmly “She freaked out for a minute when you got hit, but I told her you were going to be fine and sent her to get you some water.”

Tommy looked over toward the concession stand. “See ... here she comes.”

Destiny looked over and her eyes misted as she saw the most beautiful sight in the whole world running toward her: a pair of bouncing red haired pig tails attached to a freckled face, blue eyed, eleven and half year old girl named Katie who was her little sister in every way possible. Her wish had come true and with it ... somehow a whole new reality had been created.

Tommy didn’t know the giant fun sized thirty nine year old Katie, because she no longer existed and in this new reality, she never did. Katie had been Destiny’s little sister for as long as she could remember now. She was Daddy’s second little red-headed monkey that he swung around and made giggle. She was Mommy’s other little hug monster who was always sitting next to her when the family watched movies or was on the floor nearby, colouring or writing fantasy stories. She was Destiny’s roommate and playmate. They caught the same bus to school every morning and Destiny walked her to class and picked her up afterwards. She wanted to do everything Destiny did, go everywhere she went and they even shared the same dinner plate on occasions. If you saw one, you saw the other. Everything Katie had wanted and Destiny had wished for, had come true. The magic coin had worked and Destiny couldn’t be happier. Her heart felt like it couldn’t hold all the happiness she felt.

Katie carried the bottle water in her free hand and waved at Destiny with her other. She was so glad to see she was awake. She really thought her sister was hurt bad when that ball hit her in the head. Katie had cried and got all upset. Everything seemed sort of messed up and she almost felt like she’d been the one hit with the ball. For a moment ... she’d almost felt like she wasn’t herself anymore. For just a few seconds ... it was as if she was someone else ... stuck in someone else’s body and living someone else’s life. The thought of that life made her feel all cold and sad inside. She was so glad it was only a bad dream and she wasn’t really that other person. That person was lonely and hurt and broken really bad somehow. Katie was glad she was Katie, because she wasn’t lonely or hurt or broken. She was wanted and loved and happy, or at least happy except for when her brother or sisters were teasing her or she was in trouble.

A smile chased away the memories of that bad waking dream as she scurried up the bleachers toward Destiny. It was then another dream came to her, one about wishes and a magic coin Paris had given them. Katie stopped. The coin wasn’t a dream. Paris had really given it to them and Destiny really had wished the rain away and ... Katie had made a wish too. She’d wished that her sister didn’t have psoriasis anymore. She’d sat on the bleachers with Destiny watching her watch Tommy play baseball, all the time waiting for her wish to come true, waiting for the dry patches to disappear, but sadly they hadn’t.

Katie continued to climb the bleachers, moving a little slower and a feeling sad because the wish hadn’t come true, but happy that her sister had survived catching a baseball with her forehead.

When she looked up to see Destiny, a smile peeked out. Tommy was still with her. At least that much of their wish had come true. She could see both of them smiling and talking which had to be a good sign. She stopped a few sections away and watched as Tommy tossed Destiny a baseball and then ran off to join his teammates.

Katie jumped the bleacher seats as fast as her fun sized legs would allow, hurrying to catch the scoop from her sister and to be sure she was alright.

Destiny watched Tommy walk away. She looked down at the baseball she’d caught and he’d told her to keep. She felt all warm and giggly inside as she held it. Yeah, the lump on her head still hurt but a hoop date with Tommy and ice cream afterward was worth it.

“Destiny! Destiny!” Katie cried as she scrambled up the steps.

Destiny turned to see her little sister ... finally looking like her little sister and got to her feet. She opened her arms to catch her fun sized twin and Katie headed straight for them.

When Katie was about ten feet away she noticed that Destiny was missing something. She was missing her jacket, her long sleeve top and her skinny jeans. They had been replaced by a short sleeve t-shirt and Capri pants, and ... there was one more thing missing. That one more thing is what made it possible and comfortable for Destiny to be wearing those clothes. That one more thing is what brought mist to Katie’s eyes and made her heart swell with love and happiness. The psoriasis was gone! Nowhere on Destiny’s body was a single dry, red patch. She was finally as beautiful on the outside as she had always been on the inside. Katie’s wish had come true.

When Katie reached Destiny, the big sister pulled her little one in for a hug and tears fell from her eyes. “Oh Katie ... look at you. You’re little. You’re really little! My wish came true!”

Tears fell from Katie’s eyes too. “Oh Destiny you’re skin’s all clear. The psoriasis is gone! My wish came true!”

Katie and Destiny immediately pulled back and gave each other a puzzled stare.

“What wish? What psoriasis?” Destiny double checked her perfect peaches and crá¨me skin before straightening out her little sister. “There’s nothing wrong with my skin Katie and there never has been. What are you talking about?”

Katie wasn’t paying attention to Destiny’s skin, she was too busy looking at her own and wondering what her big sister was talking about. “What wish are you talking about Des? And hey! I’m just like you. I’m fun sized, not little or small ... so get it right!”

Destiny shook her head. “No Katie ... you don’t understand. I mean I wished for you to be my little sister and now you are! You don’t have to be thirty nine anymore!”

Katie gave Destiny the same curious look Tommy had earlier. “Thirty what? What do you mean you ‘wished’ for me to be your little sister? I don’t think wishing made me your little sister, I think that was mom and dad.”

Destiny rolled her eyes. “But don’t you remember? Don’t you remember being big and ... and ... having to go to work ... and ... the house you had ... and your credit card and your cell phone and ... and you wishing you could move in with us?”

Katie took a step back and looked at her much the way Tommy had earlier. “Destiny I think that baseball hit you too hard. You’re talking gibberish, girl, and not the kind you and Paris taught me. I don’t have a house or a credit card or a cell phone but I wish I did and I don’t know what you mean about me wishing I could move in. I’ve been living at home all my life.”

Katie shook her head. “I don’t know Des. I think you’re becoming a teenager because you are acting so ... weird.”

Destiny waved her arm in front of Katie. “Well it ain't no more weird than you saying I had psoriasis. You probably don’t even know what that means.”

“I do too. It means dry, patchy red skin, and ... and you used to have it all over your body ... until ... until I wished it away.”

Destiny chuckled. “You wished it away? You wished away something I never had in the first place. Wow ... that’s REAL awesome magic ... short cake.”

Katie’s blue eyes flared. “Don’t call me short.”

Destiny’s hazel ones filled with mischief and she turned her shoulder toward Katie, inviting her to take a free shot. “Do something about it, prep.”

Katie pulled back and hit Destiny hard in the shoulder. She then stepped back and waited for the can of whoop ass her big sister was about to unleash on her. The can never opened though as a smile spread across Destiny’s lips and she nodded approvingly. “Not bad, Kay Kay. You’re learning.”

It was then a warm wave came over both of them and for a moment both girls remembered the reality they’d left behind. Destiny hugged Katie and Katie hugged her back.

“Destiny ... the coin ... our wishes ... I wished for your psoriasis to go away and it did.”

Destiny squeezed Katie tight. “I know ... I know ... and I wished for you to be little and it really worked.”

“I know that too and I’m so happy”, Katie said as tears made her new voice even squeakier. “Me too!”

The pair held the hug before gently releasing it. They looked at each other and then themselves. Seeing everything they’d ever wanted for themselves and for each other made them speechless as they reveled in the magic and the moment.

To be continued …