SUNSHINE POV

I was walking with Smalls and Squints, we were heading to the baseball diamond, Benny had gone early to rake the field and I had found some money on the coffee table so we figured we'd buy some cokes for the team. Squints and Smalls were gentleman enough to carry the cooler for me.

"This is a lot heavier than it seems." Squints complained.

"Be a man."

"You be a girl." I rolled my eyes at his immaturity, he had been in a bad mood since Wendy went to visit her friends in Miami for a few weeks. We arrived at the sandlot after a few more

complaints from Squints and the rest of the team were waiting for us.

Benny approached us. "It's about time."

Squints and smalls set the cooler down in the dugout. "It's 100 degrees out, sorry we were thinking of your hydration needs." Smalls said grabbing a coke for himself and thrusting one at

Benny with his other hand. "The field looks nice."

"Timmy and Tommy helped."

We spent the day doing what we loved to do, playing ball, the hours went by the sun rose and fell as the day went on and we got into more arguments than we cared to admit, but it was a great day.

It turned for the awkward when we saw someone approaching from the opening of the sandlot.

Ham dropped the ball, pulled off his mask and stared at the two approaching. "Who is that?" he asked through squinted eyes.

"WHO IS THAT!" Squints voice rang out from the outfield. We couldn't really tell.

Yeah Yeah, Tommy, Timmy and Grover all joined me on the pitchers mound as the figures drew closer.

"It's goddamned Smarpin!" Grover spat on the ground, "and. . . . oh god."

He didn't have to say it, once Smalls turned his head from right field to look at the couple approaching, he dropped his glove in a panic and came sprinting towards us.

"It's Hailey." Tommy laughed.

"I'm not here, I'm not here, I'm not here, I'm not here." Smalls chanted as he ran past us and into the dugout.

I turned to watch him attempt to hit himself under the bench. "Smalls she already saw you you."

"I'M NOT FUCKING HERE!" I raised my hands in defence and turned back to where they were still walking towards us. The entire team, except Smalls, was now on the pitchers mound, curious and a little confused as to why they were here.

"Hi!" Hailey sang when she got to the mound. Her eyes connected with mine and her smile grew. "Hi Tawney!" she gushed.

"Jesus Christ." I muttered under my breath, I felt a hand on my shoulder out of sympathy, it was Yeah Yeah.

Hailey's smile never faltered "How are all of you?"

"We're fine. . ." Grover said carefully as if anything he said was going to piss her off. I remembered how crazy she had been and wondered if it was the same with Smarpin, he had a bright future and thought about the future a lot as well so maybe he just didn't mind.

"So what are you doing here?" Ham asked breaking the silence.

Hailey looked back at at Smarpin who only smiled back, obviously not even noticing that we were here, or where he was, it was kinda cute, then again it was Hailey and Smarpin. "I just wanted to see you guys. I know things didn't really go well with all of us but that was so long ago, and who knows if I'll get to see you again." She seemed to scan the diamond before her eyes landed on us again. "Where did Scott go?"

"Probably to Mexico." Ham snorted, Benny smacked him in the arm.

Her eyes drifted behind us to the dugout where he had fashioned a barricade out of baseball helmets to try and conceal his body. "He's hiding under the bench?" She seemed genuinely confused.

"Oh he's just joking around." Timmy said quickly trying to keep her from getting upset. "Smalls, come on man what are you doing? Get out from under there, you little silly thing."

Smalls punched the Helmets away from him glaring at us, he painfully slowly made his way from under the bench but made no attempt to walk towards us.

"You going to come over?" Hailey asked but he shook his head.

"Nah see, I hurt my ankle."

Squints was quick to agree. "Yeah that's why he was laying under the bench, to rest his arm-Leg!"

"But didn't I see him run from the field to the dugout?" None of us said a thing. Just looked at one another.

"Okay Smalls you're on your own." I called to him, with a sigh he started to make his way over.

"Scott." Hailey started. "I'm not here to yell at you or anything. I'm happy." She grabbed Smarpin's hand and smiled. "I just wanted to say Hi."

Smalls stood a careful distance from Hailey, and slightly behind Benny and Ham.

"Are you seeing anyone new?" If he was there was no way in hell we would tell her, but he was lucky that he could tell the truth.

"Nope."

"Oh." She touched her chest as if it was the most depressing news she had ever heard. "You never moved on from me? Scott I am so sorry, but you know we just weren't right for each other and you'll find someone who is-"

"We have to go!" Tommy blurted out suddenly, we all looked at him to continue. "We gotta go but it was nice seeing you. Bye." He started to hastily walk towards the exit, and we weren't about to stay there and talk to Hailey anymore so we took off after him.

"Oh well maybe we could meet at the diner later!" She called after us.

"Okay sure!" Tommy yelled back.

"We'll be there around eight!" But we were already out the entrance to the Sandlot and walking down the street.

It was Timmy who asked "So where do we have to go?"

"I don't know, but I wanted away from her before something happened." We all laughed lightly and thanked him for his ridiculous outburst that got us out of there.

We all talked about it and decided that Smalls house was best to go, he claimed that he needed a beer and maybe an aspirin and his step dad was the only one of our parents that let him take a beer out of the fridge every once in a while.

"Someone moving?" Ham asked nodding down the street where a large moving truck sat. . . . .outside my house.

I took off running, the boys followed once they realized that it was my house the truck was sitting in front of. Benny was in front of course but I was hot on his heels.

"Hey!" I called out to a mover who happened to be carrying out a box of what looked like some old medals I won when I was younger. "What the hell are you doing?" He ignored me and placed the box in the almost full truck. "Hey I live here answer me!"

"I'm just doing my job." He snapped as he went back into the house.

I followed behind him, the boys following as well, the house was empty, there was nothing in it aside from a piece of artwork on the wall that another mover was trying to unscrew from the wall.

"What the fuck?" I called out. I pushed past the boys to go outside again, I searched the street and found Clara on the other side of the moving Truck talking to what looked like the driver.

"Clara!" I yelled.

She turned and scoffed in annoyance, then started to walk towards me. She was wearing a pretentious blue dress that was far too thick a fabric to be wearing in the middle of summer, her curls had come loose and her upper lip was sweating. "There you are!"

I opened my arms, gesturing to the entire scene going on around me. "What the hell are you doing?"

"What are they doing here?" She demanded crossing her arms, she was talking about the boys but I ignored her.

"What the fuck is going on?" I yelled at her, she only scoffed again and rolled her eyes.

"We're moving."

"The fuck we are."

"Stop cursing." she snapped before turning on her heel and walking back to the driver. I followed behind her.

"What the hell do you mean we're moving? I'm not going anywhere."

"I told you a week ago, you don't listen." she grabbed a clip board out of the mans hands and signed something on the paper, I snatched it out of her hands and threw it on the lawn.

"You haven't spoken to me in three weeks, you never told me you were moving."

"We're moving."

I then noticed that the boys had followed as well and were standing right behind me. "She's not going anywhere." Smalls snapped.

"We are moving to Florida, your Father left some money in our account, enough to get out of here. I am not going to stay here in the town I was humiliated in, get in the car we need to get

going and be there before the trucks get there."

I shook my head violently. "I'm not leaving Clara."

She sighed and stamped her foot. "You are my responsibility, wherever I go, you go."

"She's not leaving!" Benny yelled stepping up beside me. Clara narrowed her eyes on Benny and took a step forward to be standing right in front of him.

"You." Clara looked him up and down. "Another reason to get out of this town."

"She is not leaving, she's staying here with us."

"She doesn't have a choice."

"Of course she does." Benny was full on screaming in Clara's face, Clara managed to keep herself composed most of the time but now she was matching Benny's pitch, I don't think I have ever seen her face get that red.

"No she doesn't she's-"

"I'm not eighteen." I finished for her. I looked at Benny, his eighteenth birthday was months ago but mine didn't come for another couple months. My heart sank, I felt like my stomach had fallen out of my body and was now lying on my driveway, there was a lump in my throat like I had swallowed a whole ice cube. I wasn't eighteen and until I was I Clara had control over what happened to me. She was my legal guardian, I had to go with her. I had to move, I had to leave the guys, I had to leave Benny.

I looked at Benny who looked as sick as I felt, I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes, Benny grasped my face catching them before they had a chance to fall.

"Don't go." he pleaded, the desperation in his voice made me want to break down right then and there. It could be that simple right? Just stay here with the guys, stay at Benny's or even Wendy's house, stay here until I was eighteen, the government and the law would understand, you know, just tell them that Benny and I were in love and I couldn't leave him. Just tell them that I had the best friends in the world and I couldn't survive without them, it was that simple right?

But it wasn't and it couldn't be.

"Please don't go." I pulled him to me, crushing him in a hug so tight I didn't think I was ever going to let go. The realization seemed to hit him then too, and small sobs wracked his and my body.

"Oh stop it, we're going some place better." Clara snapped, Benny and I looked up at her.

"You don't understand! Theres no better place for her than here with me!" He yelled at her, his tears blinded him and he wiped at them angrily.

"You can't go." Smalls voice was so tiny beside me. I burst into a new set of tears as I reached out to him for a hug. He held me, he cried and the insecure awkward little kid I remembered him to be showed himself once again.

Yeah yeah gently took me from his hold and hugged me, kissing my hair in a friendly way, there were no words spoken as we embraced.

"We'll find a way!" Grover promised as he devoured me in his arms. "I swear to god we'll get you back, I promise you we will get you back."

Timmy and Tommy hugged me at the same time, a Timmons sandwich, Tommy was crying into my shoulder soaking my T-shirt, but Timmy was solid as rock, when they let me go he quickly moved to his little brother and held him, trying to console him but feeling so much grief himself.

Squints held my hand in his tightly before he took off his glasses and cleaned them harshly. "I hug you Toni I ain't letting go." I nodded in understanding as he turned away and took some deep breaths.

"This ain't goodbye. . . no way in hell is this goodbye!" Ham snapped as he hugged me briefly. He held onto my shoulders face red with anger. "It's not goodbye you hear me!"

"yeah." I said my voice cracking as he turned me over to Benny.

Benny looked at me for the briefest of seconds before his lips were on mine in a demanding and grief filled kiss.

This time the boys didn't gag or complain, they watched, their hearts heavy with emotion.

When Benny pulled away his tears were falling, he gripped my face and a sob escaped from him.

"I can't live without you Toni."

"It's not Goodbye." I repeated Ham's words. His lips were on mine once more, as we heard Clara honk the horn of the car.

"It's not goodbye." he repeated as he pulled away. "We'll get you back, I don't know how but we'll get you back. I love you."

"I love you too." I whispered.

We kissed once more, a gentler kiss filled with promises, anger, and pain. When we pulled away this time we kept our gaze to the ground, if we looked at each other again I knew it would be too hard to leave him. I gripped his arms tightly before pulling away.

Away from him, away from the boys, away from the Valley and away from the Sandlot.

Eyes still to the ground I ran to Clara's car, tears blurring my vision I pulled the back seat door open and jumped in.

The stood there, at the end of my driveway staring at me, I grasped the car handle ready to jump out of the car and run back to them.

It didn't feel real, did my world really just become this destroyed in ten minutes. Was I really in a care with an abusive step mother moving hundreds of miles away, leaving behind my best friends and my boyfriend?

I didn't want to, but I looked back and to my surprise there was Benny running after the car.

Without thinking I grasped the door handle but it was locked, I did my best to wrench the door open but it wouldn't budge, I raised my foot and kicked the door in frustration and desperation, that caught Clara's attention.

"What are you doing? Stop it!"

"Let me out of this fucking car!" I screamed kicking the door once more.

"Are you insane?" I kicked the door again and again, Clara seemed to panic then and yelled at me to stop what I was doing but I couldn't help but kick and scream and beat on the door. "Toni stop it!"

Coming to my senses I sat up, and reached for the lock on the door and pulled it up unlocking the door. Clara was swerving around the road trying to keep her eyes on me and the street, when she looked back she saw that Benny had made his way to the car and was now running beside my door. "What the hell is that Mexican doing!"

I ignored her and as I grasped the handle Benny did the same and the door flew open, in surprise Clara slammed on the breaks, and Benny who was still running smacked right into the door and fell to the ground.

"Benny!" I yelled jumping from the car.

He sat up rubbing his chest in pain. "Dammnit." He coughed, he looked up at me and seemed to forget that he had just rammed into a car door. "Toni you can't leave, not like this, please."

Clara had stopped the car and was now marching around the back to where we sat on he passenger side. "What the hell is wrong with you? Are you insane!? If I could leave you here I would you crazy idiot!"

"Why don't you!?" I screamed at her tears threatening to fall once more. "Just leave me here, you're not my mom, and both of us know it would be a lot better for both of us. Leave me here, no one will care!"

Clara sighed, crossing her arms. "You think I don't want to you insect? But I am your legal guardian and to leave you here is termed reckless abandonment! It also means that I receive money from the government every month so long as you are in my care. Since your father leaving is such a big legal issue government officials will be checking in on us from time to time and you have to be there." I stared at her as she continued. "You turn eighteen, believe me, you will be out of my care but until then I am stuck with you."

Benny had sat up, glaring at Clara. "Why florida? Why now?"

"I don't need to explain myself to the likes of you. Get in the damn car Toni, we're leaving." She turned and climbed back into the car once more, Benny took my hand and helped me stand up.

"You have to go." he managed to choke out.

"There has to be some kind of way for me to stay here." Benny's lifted to grip my face stroking the skin of my cheek. "There has to be, ask Yeah Yeah's dad."

"I don't want you to go Toni, I never want you to leave, and this is a fucked up shitty situation that I never expected to happen. But she's your guardian until they can figure out where your dad is. Besides, it's only a few months right?" He was trying to make himself believe it wasn't such a bad situation. "A few months, and then I'll come get you on your birthday, I promise!"

The tears began to flow for Benny and myself. "I don't want to leave you."

Benny choked back a sob closing his eyes and tried to gain control over his tears.

"I don't want you to go, but you have to. It's not forever, I am going to come get you Toni okay? In the mean time we'll figure all this out here so you'll be set to come back." As much as I didn't want to leave and wanted to kick and scream and sit on the street like a three year old and refuse to get in the car Benny was right.

I didn't have a choice and it would only be for a couple months until I turned eighteen, I could survive that and then I would be free to live wherever I wanted.

"I love you." I told him, he forced out a smile, and kissed me once more, a long lingering kiss that held the promise of him coming to get me from Clara the second I turned eighteen.

"I love you Sunshine."

With one last fleeting look I climbed back into the car and closed the door.

This time when the car drove off Benny didn't run after it, he watched from the curb he remained there until I couldn't even see him anymore.

Benny was right, my dad was no longer going to be the talk of the town. Tomorrow everyone would be talking about how Sunshine had left the Valley.

END OF PART ONE

AUTHORS NOTE

well, I don't think that words can describe how I felt writing that. To be completely honest I teared up a bit. I know that it came on so suddenly and I didn't really lead up to her leaving but that was the point. I didn't want them to have time to think of a plan to get her to stay, and its gonna lead up to a very interesting future for the Sandlot kids.

That does end this story, hold out for the sequel which is gonna be called "The Sunshine State" It's gonna be up very soon so keep an eye out.

I can't express enough how thankful i am for everyone following, favouriting and commenting, this story was a big part of my life and I'm so excited to start the next chapter of their lives and really get into some more mature themes.

Thank you again everyone, I love you all!

-LJ