~One night leading to a lifetime (ice hockey)~

The day after the night before

Chest heaving up and down to the sounds of Liams gentle snores which filled my ears, my head was pounding but the sounds leaving his mouth calmed me. I turned over to get my phone and realised I had 45 minutes to go home, get packed and catch my flight to New York. I quickly wrote him a note as I wasn't sure wether he regretted last night or not, saying to text me when he wakes up as I'm going to be out of service for a few hours and will reply when I can and left the note on top of his phone, quickly petting Bruce. Before putting a pair of his sweats on and grabbing my dress, running back to my house to start packing my suitcase in a hurry. 

I just about makes the flight. The first two weeks of my holiday I'm spending with an old acquaintance from my past, her name is Rachel and she also left the posh Chelsea circle for the states, but she left because she fell in love with an American businessman who lives in New York, I will be staying with Rachel and her partner David and their 3 year old child Sierra. The whole flight I spent wondering wether the thing I had with Liam last night was the alcohol talking or real emotion.

2 and a half hours later, I'm scanning over the sea of people in the search for Rachel, when a very familiar tall brunette girl catches my eye over near the Costa with two coffees in hand. I rush over to her and wrap my arms around her and ball my eyes out, "aww babe, I know this isn't just because you missed me", "I have but, it's just, when did life get complicated?" I rhetorically ask, "when we left our predetermined lives to make it on our own", we giggled before walking to her Audi R8 and taking off for the big city. 

"So, spill why the tears?", "I slept with my best friend last night and I think he regrets it as he didn't text me, we live next door to each other and the last two years we've grown so close and now I feel like it's been ruined by one drunken night", a few tears escaped, I felt Rachel's hand on my knee letting me know she there, "I'm sorry your feeling like this, but we have two weeks to forget about everything and then go back and face the music". 

And that's what we did, for two weeks I spent everyday with Rachel, David and Sierra just smiling and enjoying everything, one night they trusted me enough to babysit Sierra, who was a delight, we watched my little pony all night dressed as princesses eating popcorn, until she fell asleep and I notice Liam posted on instagram a picture of him and his family smiling so I liked it and posted on my story a picture of the back of Sierras head as she watched my little pony with the caption 'babysitting this little angel', and noticed Liam viewed it immediately. 

Waking up my smile grew ten fold just thinking about last night, but the smile is removed from my face when I patted her side of the bed and found it empty, "ABBY, ABBY" I call out but got no reply, Bruce wonders into shot "morning bud" I put some clothes on and walked to the kitchen only to find my 24 year old housekeeper Tabitha, "hey, Tabitha, did you see a girl here this morning?", she turned around, the piece of paper in her hand now put into the bin bag in her hand, pulling her blouse down to reveal more of her cleavage, "no sir, why is there a problem I could help with?" She non discreetly looks at my now covered dick and flirtatiously winked at me, "no, nothing you could help with, but please leave and don't come back" she huffed and went to walk away, "WAIT" she turned back around taking small steps towards me "I knew it you feel this as...", "no, I was going to ask for my key", "your seriously sacking me" I nod and hold out my hand, rolling her eyes she reluctantly handed me the key, before exiting. 

Leaving me completely alone with my thoughts, did Abby regret last night?, did I hurt her?, crap. "Hey bud, I need to relieve some stress meet me at the arena, in 10", "sure thing bro".

10 minutes later James pulls up, "so what happened?", "I slept with my best friend last night and I think she regrets it as she didn't text me or leave a note, the last two years we've grown so close and now I feel like it's been ruined by one drunken night, which I for one didn't regret. And now I can't find her, her cars not at her house and no lights are on." We walk through the rink doors to the locker room to retrieve our skates, "She's gone to New York to visit a friend for two weeks, so she probably didn't get time to tell you this morning", I finishes lacing up my skates and grab a puck and two sticks, "maybe but why didn't she leave me a note or text me?", I hand him a stick before heading out on to the ice. 

"Look, don't overthink this, you're going to see you family tonight, think about the positives and when you get back, deal with whatever happens, this could just be a misunderstanding. She hasn't seen this friend since she was 16 so they have a lot to catch back up on, she might be having a social media detox".

Being with my family always brings a smile to my face but right now I just need some motherly and sisterly advice, we're sat on the sofa watching dirty dancing for the millionth time this week with Bruce asleep on my lap. "I messed up with a girl back home" I piped up before both head flung towards me, "shit bro, what did you do?" They stared at me intently, "I slept with probably my closest friend and we haven't spoke, or text since. I worried she regretted it as she's had bad experience in the past and now I'm scared I lost her, she means so much to me", they both looked at me sympathetically, until mum piped up "post a picture on the thingy apple (app) and if she sees it and likes it your still with in a shot." 

I posted a picture of us at the airport, they held a sign which read, 'Captain Archer has returned', when Abby liked and then posted on her story my heart skipped a beat, she doesn't hate me at least, but I want to speak in person when we're both back home. 

So I message her 'when we're both back, can we meet up, I've missed you x', to which the reply is 'missed you too, sure thing, let me know when your back x'. "I'M IN" I scream, "bro, you got it bad", I shake my head "don't I know it".