Ninth Inning

Will McVitch is one of the star players on his baseball team – but he'd never consider himself a celebrity. He's just an athlete. Why people are even interested in his personal life, he has never really understood – so when it turns out that a new member of the team, Canadian import Gabriel Marten, has a crush on him already, he can barely comprehend that Gabe even knows who he is. The fact that he's straight and Gabe is gay barely occurs to him, at least for a little while. As for Gabe's part, he's frustrated that this is even an issue. When he got the offer to play for this team, he was thrilled to be getting a spot on a professional US team. His career means the world to him. It was just the cherry on the cake that he'd be playing alongside long-time crush Will – and in the warm California sun to boot. But as it turns out, Will is even more appealing in person, whether he's straight or not. Tensions in the team are running high, and media interest is spiralling. But most important of all is how Will and Gabe feel in themselves. If they can't work that out, then everything else crumbles – and they're out at the first base, never mind the last.