Puck Off!

Chapter 19

The rest of the weekend was up and down. Ryn took great pleasure in changing the bandage on my cheek, which didn't look too bad once I saw it. It would still take some getting used to the scar, but it wasn't hideous. Just a little puckered circle. We got a new bedroom set for Ella's room, and we also endured a lot of screaming and happy giggles when I told Ella and Elske about Ryn's idea about them moving in. My mom just shook her head and smiled at the girls, just imploring me to keep an eye on Ella, which I would obviously do.

I guess she trusted me with Ryn? Or maybe it was because I was older? I have no idea, but I was glad that we weren't going to get any grief about it.

But then on Sunday we got word from Officer Swanson, who had interviewed me at the hospital, that Fisher wasn't even going to be charged over the incident. He claimed he had just been following me to talk to me, and since he was never involved in the actual attack, he was released. Thankfully, the other two were charged, and had already been kicked off the hockey team. I had no idea what would happen with them, but I was happy that at least some of them would hopefully see some jail time. As long as Fisher avoided me and Ryn after dodging an arrest, I'd be fine with it.

But knowing him, he'd feel he was untouchable instead.

It took a little time, but we got the girls moved into the apartment. It was mostly all clothes, since the furniture came with the dorm, and we had the help of a few more girls from the hockey team as well. But now more of the girls from the team knew where we lived, and I already knew I could expect some get togethers.

Luckily, Ryn put me at ease right away, telling me we didn't need to have a big party, maybe just the girls from the team over for dinners and team bonding. I could get on board with that, as they all seemed nice, and looked up to Ryn as the team captain.

I did feel bad though. I knew I needed to get better in those social situations. I couldn't ask Ryn to give those up completely for me. Maybe those team functions would help, if they were a little more low key, so I could ease into it? I'd certainly try. Even now, with our relationship growing quickly, I'd have felt more comfortable in a big party, even if I still didn't want to go.

In the meantime, I was waking up with Ryn every morning, our limbs tangled up and able to share morning kisses before we headed off to work and school. It was a pretty damned amazing life now. I was spoiled. I knew that next month she had a hockey tournament in Michigan, and I'd have to be alone in the bed for over a week, but for now I was enjoying every second I could with her.

Work wasn't too bad, even with the broken arm. Everyone understood my limitations, and I could still do most everything one handed, so it was fine. The flash drives were still floating about, and it was just a reflex now to just pick them up and turn them in. I did have to rescue Elske once, as I'd put one in the tray by the front door after picking it up after work, and she almost put it in her laptop. Luckily, I saw her in the nick of time!

Elske was easy to live with too. She could cook a little, though none of us were great at it, so between us all we started to cook a few times a week, and we didn't have to subsist on take out. All in all, that first week worked out incredibly well. And then, when Saturday rolled around, Iryna took me on a little date.

It wasn't anything crazy, but it was the perfect day. We took the harbor ferry over to the town of Hingham, where we got a rental car and went to the World's End conservation area, where she'd taken the photo that was now hanging over our bed. She'd taken the picture in the fall, when the trees were full of color, and now it was a completely different atmosphere. Snow had fallen the night before, and the trees were dripping with tiny icicles while laden with the white snow upon their branches. It was gorgeous. I hadn't made it out of the city to explore New England much, something I would have done had I someone to explore with, and I was happy to be doing this with Ryn.