ɢᴜʏ ɢᴇʀᴍᴀɪɴᴇ
"𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐘 𝐂𝐑𝐀𝐏, 𝐆𝐔𝐘𝐒!" Julie Gaffney exclaimed as we passed the magazine vendors lining the Los Angeles streets. "We made the headline!"
"We're practically famous now," Averman insisted.
"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves?" Williams suggested, her eyes following to where Adam pointed. "Maybe get passed the first round?"
"I don't know, Maeve. The papers already predicted we take the whole thing--and the papers are never wrong."
I heard Connie giggle a few feet away from me. I looked over to share a laugh about the probability that Lester Averman was dropped as a baby, but found that she wasn't even in the same realm as me. She was laughing at something Luis had said. Connie rested a hand on his arm, begging him to stop being 'so hilarious'. It probably wasn't even funny.
"Trouble in Connie Moreau land?" Charlie asked.
It made sense that Charlie Conway was captain. He understood all of us. There was never any pressure or animosity with him. He could be the greatest best friend.
"You could say that," I grumbled. "Did I suffer a major coma and miss the part where we broke up? Cause she sure is making me feel that way."
"No, you guys didn't break up," he informed. "She's probably just excited to meet new people. This Luis phase will end eventually."
"Yeah, we'll see about that."
"Maybe try talking to her about it," Charlie suggested.
"She's not exactly the easiest person to talk to. She'll get defensive."
"I could give you some horrible advice right now."
"I'm all ears."
"Make her jealous back," he shrugged. "Make her see that you aren't gonna sit around and wait for her to lose interest in Mendoza."
I laughed. "I like the way you think, Conway. But, Jesus, no wonder you've never had a girlfriend before."
"Yeah, well," Charlie chuckled. "I'm sure there are more reasons than not for that."
"I could just be overthinking this whole thing, right? Like, there's a chance she's not into him and we're still perfectly fine."
Charlie nodded. "That's always a possibility."
I could tell he didn't mean that. He didn't believe that Connie was just looking for a friend. And I knew it too.
☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆∵☆
𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀 𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐇 seeded team as the second-seeded was incredibly easy, even in the Junior Olympics. I didn't mean to sound cocky (honestly, I do) but we were only halfway through the third and up 8-0. Just end the game now. But, I have to hand it to the Trinidad Tobago team--for a country with very few hockey opportunities, they were not bad. They just weren't very good either.
I think we started to underestimate them (or just stopped caring) because right when it was assumed to be a shutout game, Bellafonte crossed the blue line and scored a goal. They looked like they were having a great moment of celebration. Good for them. But it didn't last long. Two minutes later, Kenny brought the score up to 9-1. In all truthfulness, I just wanted this game to be over so I could go to my dorm room and sleep.
As the last few seconds ran out, I watched the final score blink 9-2 right at me. I grinned and looked at Adam. "Not so bad for the first game, huh?"
"Eh," he nodded, a small smile on his face. "Hopefully good enough for the scouts."
"God, Banks," I sighed. "Don't tell me you got your shit all in a twist over some scouts. You're the best player on this team--probably in the whole tournament. I can already see the scholarships rolling in."
"Are you buttering me up to get in with Maeve?" Adam sarcastically taunted.
"Very funny," I rolled my eyes, pushing the locker room door open as he trailed behind me. "I'd rather take a skate to the neck than get anywhere near her."
"That's my best friend you're talking about," he reminded me.
"And she's my enemy."
Despite being jet-lagged and tired from the game, I practically tore my equipment off. I couldn't tell if I was letting out some sort of pent-up anger by doing this or if I was just really eager to take that nap. I pulled a t-shirt over my head and lifted my heavy bag over my shoulder.
"Meet you on the bus," Jesse Hall, my seat partner for the last few years, said as he folded his jersey.
I nodded in acknowledgment and slipped through the door out into the lobby. I was about to pull my headphones over my head when I caught a glimpse of someone I never thought I'd see again. He had more wrinkles than the last time I saw him. His clothes were tighter than I remember them being. He had gotten older (obviously) and you could see it in the graying streaks of his hair--but at least he still had that.
He must have felt my stare because he met my eyes a moment later. Another moment passed before his face was overcome with realization. I didn't know what to do. Do I keep walking? Do I go say something to him?
But all I could do was stand there like an idiot, observing as he pushed through the crowds to get to me.
"Guy Germaine," he sighed. "It's been a long time. You certainly got taller."
"Yeah," I nodded, knowing that I really did not want to spend a second longer talking to Thomas Williams. "That's usually what happens in...what? Four years?"
He glanced down and rubbed his eyebrow. "Where is she?"
"I don't know if she'd want me to tell you that."
"I probably deserve that," Mr. Williams accepted. "Did you two go back to being best friends after I..."
"No."
"That's a shame."
My eyebrows knit together as I adjusted the strap hanging on my shoulder. It felt wrong to be talking to him--like I shouldn't have been the first one to see him. I had always liked Thomas Williams. He was funny and could make the best cheeseburgers in Minnesota. But he wasn't the man I grew up thinking he was. I didn't even know how angry at him I was until he was two feet away from me. I stared at the changes that come with leaving your entire family and felt heat take over my body. He was just a sad excuse for an asshole who abandoned his daughter and wife without a second thought. I hated Maeve Williams, but I hated him even more. No matter what, I think I always would. I hated him for hurting her.
"A lot of things are a shame."
The door ten feet behind me swung open. The voices of my teammates fell to a stop. I looked back at them, watching as Maeve's eyes grew wide. The same eyes as the man across from me.
"Dad?"
