Choices (Book Four)

Chapter 12

Shawn

Bailey and dad dropped me off at the bus station an hour ago and now I'm sitting next to the puppy crate with my new best buddy sleeping inside of it. We are only half an hour into our five hour trek and already I'm restless as I try to stretch out in the tight packed seating. I admit I was a bit concerned they might not let me on with a puppy but as long as he was in the crate they said I was good to go. I'm sure there will be a mess in there to clean up when we get home, but I couldn't be more excited to introduce him to his new home in a few hours. We never had a dog growing up and I had always wanted one, but the idea hadn't crossed my mind the past few months even the nights when the house was so quiet and empty by myself I thought I might go crazy.

Bailey had teared up a bit as we said our goodbyes, but she is road tripping out with my dad in two weeks to watch one of my games so I assured her we will see each other soon. I myself got a bit choked up saying goodbye again, the visit felt like such a tease to get to see them for just two days barely. I peek into the front door of the kennel to check on my pup and find him snoozing away bundled into the two old blankets we found in the house and stuffed in there for him to be cozy. They sure picked a damn cute puppy for me.

I open Instagram again and watch Lyla's story for probably the twentieth time today. I don't even care at this point, I only have a few more hours to look at it before it expires. I don't get to see new pics of her much anymore and the only ones that come up are on Will's page and usually he accompanies her in them so I don't bother looking at them long. This picture is just her. Her loose curls pooling out underneath the Santa hat. I can see the excitement in her eyes and it's contagious. The girl loves Christmas, no doubt about it.

It's about nine o'clock now so it'll be a late night by the time I get back to the house. I also know this is about the time Lyla's family gears up to head to the bar soon. I've been a nervous wreck today worried about her. I know she's got people with her and she's more then capable of knowing her limits for what she can handle, but I still wish I could know that she was safe. I still haven't replied back to her last message from last night. After the chat with my dad yesterday I've come to realize I've got nothing to lose and everything to gain when it comes to Lyla. She might be seeing someone new, but it doesn't change that I love her still. It doesn't change that I want to make sure she is going to be okay tonight. Plus I don't care much for Will anyway so I could give less of a fuck if he's sees that I'm messaging her. I pull up our chat on my phone and type out a small message that I send to her.

I shift again in my seat, already feeling my ass starting to fall asleep and groan in annoyance that my Christmas break is already over. The three days off went so fast. I already have practice tomorrow bright and early and then a game tomorrow night, right back into the grind of things. As much as I wish I had more time with my family, I'm excited to get back on the ice. This season has been phenomenal so far. We have been annihilating everyone for the most part and are basically unstoppable on the ice. We've only had three losses so far and are well ahead in points for our division. Not to mention I've been playing great this year too. My stats are in the top three for the team and it hasn't gone unnoticed by the coaches who have congratulated me numerous times and told me to keep up the good work.

My phone vibrates in my hand and I quickly open it only to be disappointed it's not a text from Lyla. It's from the team group chat which is already blowing up with everyone's plans for New Years. Apparently a few of the guys share a house and have offered to host a big party. All players must be in attendance according to the team captain. There's already numerous memes and smart ass comments circling in the chat that I chuckle at. I can only imagine this party will go down in history and there will stories the guys will tell for years to come from the night.

I'm not looking forward to another holiday without Lyla. Especially this holiday in particular. A day in the year I had reserved for declaring my love to her for the first time. I can close my eyes and be back in that hotel room with her again in an instant. I can smell her perfume, see the dress she wore that hugged all her curves, see the surprise on her face as she walked into the room. I can even still feel my heart racing in my chest as I prepare to utter those three little words I had never been more sure of telling someone in my life.

An announcement is made over the intercom of the bus that there will be a pit stop in about another hour and people will be able to get off the bus if they choose to stretch their legs. I hadn't expected a stop but it kind of works out now with the puppy, I can take him out for a quick pee break hopefully. I pull my headphones out of my bag and plug them into my phone as I queue up one of the movies I downloaded from Netflix for the ride. I'm only about fifteen minutes into the movie when a text pops up on my screen and I almost swipe it away instinctively, thinking it's the guys from the group chat again, but I see Lyla's name and quickly open it.

'I will be.'

A small sense of relief washes over me at the three small words. It won't keep me from stressing still the rest of the night, but it's good to hear from her. At least right now I know she's still okay. I close out of the message and return to my movie, trying my best to focus on it and distract myself for imagining what Lyla is up to this very minute. I picture her dancing away on the dance floor, all on her own like she used to. She's carefree, smiling and laughing away, her head is tilted back as she laughs. It's euphoric to watch her dance, watch her be so free in the moment, it was always my favourite thing to do when we went out. Just to watch her was enough for me. She was always enough for me.