Fine lines

Chapter 3

Wyatt

My head is pounding so hard. I'm so glad I have a day before practice starts back up again. I needed a break but I can't let myself lose control like that again, I don't need petty things affecting my game, the boys were right, I can save it for the ice when I see Bryson next.

I never heard from the wrong number girl again, I thought about sending her another message but maybe that looks desperate, and I said no more girls. Derek knocks on my bedroom door and enters without seeing if I'm actually awake first. "Ah good you're up, you better hurry up" dazed and confused I screwed my face up at him.
"Why?"
"Oh dude you didn't forget did you.. we said we're gonna go practice today instead of Monday" Ugh we did say that, I cannot be bothered at all, why did I agree to go out and agree to train in the middle of the day. "I'm showering first and then I'm coming, I'll drive up there myself" he starts heading out of my room to leave "Alright I'll see you there bro"
It's 11:40am I think I slept for 4 and a half hours in total. Thank god I'm not like this for picture day, on Monday we're getting new team photos taken for the new season. I hate getting my photo taken, it feels like there's so much pressure to look natural and hope it comes out normal. I try not to over analyse them and just pretend I haven't seen it. I get myself organised and get my gear and drive down in my little white BMW, it's starting to get so cold out here but I prefer the cold though. I like watching the seasons change right in front of me, I like watching the leaves disappearing, icy cold breeze passing through against my skin. Such an easier temperature to play hockey in.
I pull up out the front, hoping I don't run into Charlotte. I walk inside and love how much colder it is in the building, I walk past the rink and see some of the figure skaters in there, but don't see bleach blonde hair anywhere which is a breath of relief, honestly not even because it's going to tug at my heart strings but because I just want to avoid her now and that I don't have the energy to deal with her shit. I think the wrong number girl made me realise there's other girls out there who aren't nasty pieces of work. I always thought I did the right things towards Charlotte but she didn't deserve it. I want to text wrong number girl again, mainly to apologise while I'm sober. I quickly pull out my phone to do so, I'm not going to press her for her name, if she wanted to tell me she would.

(Wyatt) Hey wrong number girl, I just wanted to apologise again for last night's events, while I'm sober and not laying half dead in the bathroom, but also thank you for kind of being there.
Sent 12:15pm

If I don't get a text back I'll delete her number too, I don't want the distraction, even though I've thought about her on and off since 6am this morning, so within 6 hours I thought no distractions, wrong number girl and I should text her. I'm clearly still drunk. My phone pings.

(Tate) Hey mystery texter, I hope you're feeling better today. No need to apologise, I'm glad I could help clear things up last night.
Sent 12:16pm

The second I saw her number I got a stupid butterfly feeling in my gut, I tried to push it down and mistake it for my hangover.

(Wyatt) Still pretty tired, but I've got practice today so it will surely knock me out into a deep afternoon nap.
Sent 12:16pm

(Tate) What kind of practice have you got?
Sent 12:17pm

I go to reply quickly before I head in then I hear my name shouted from the entry to the locker room to hurry it up, I tuck my phone away and think about replying later.

-

"What time did you guys get home last night after you put me in the taxi?" I try to keep my conversation up with them so they know I'm okay, I know they all roll their eyes and give me shit from time to time but I know Derek out of most of them worries about me, he's never not worried. "Well tweedle dee and dumb over here tried to flirt the same girl all night and didn't even realise it" Derek pointing over at August and Kylo chuckling, making fun of them for it. I just laugh and shake my head putting my skates on, I stand up waiting for the other boys and ask the other 2 how they were feeling. Heath and Elliot left like an hour after I did, they've never been big party animals. Derek was the only lucky one who went home with someone, apparently one of the figure skater girls Maisie, which I'm not surprised because he's been telling us about her all year, I don't know if he likes her or just wanted to sleep with her but he's in quite a good mood today so maybe a bit of both.
"Alright boys!" Coach McCoy shouts "I've got no time for bullshit this season, that means no petty fights, no whining and no missing practice due to being hungover. We have recruitment coming in soon, and I won't know until the day before. So start acting like professionals for me" The room is silent but not in a negative, it's like getting a stern talking to from a Dad, tough love most people call it. He is a great coach and a great pusher when we need it, I can't fault him. "It's also picture day today instead, the joys.. Keep your uniforms clean please, and don't spill any gatorade on it for the love of god."
We all have a small laugh together. Of course picture day got changed to do, my luck truly is running out. "Not only are we taking this season team photos but I also want singular profile pictures to send to recruitment, I am going to send every single one of you in but how you choose to present yourself in every game is up to you, I'm also getting video shots at whatever you're best in as an extra because I'm feeling the extra love" I really do hate having my picture taken, thankfully it's only for recruitment and I don't have to smile.
"So remember to smile"
Dammit
"Right go warm up, I'll yell out when I need you guys for the photo" We all head out to the rink which immediately makes all the figure skaters head off the ice, wasn't til I starting skating suicides across the rink I spot Charlotte at the end staring at me with her friends, I barely look at her and skate off before I can see the eyes rolling and her walking away. I shake it off and keep myself skating to the other end, the boys and I start racing between one end to the next and mess around for a while. After last night I have no attachment to Charlotte whatsoever, she no longer means anything to me and I don't know if I have no number girl to thank for that or realising I deserve better.
"Alright boys" Coach McCoy claps to grab our attention, we all come to halt across the rink as he motions with his hand for us to come off and over the meeting room, once we walk over and into the room they've got a small grandstand seating and 5 different spotlights on it for us, we all pile in and work out where best to be seated or standing, being that I'm the Captain I get the lucky seat of being front row and in the middle. The joys.
Coach McCoy comes over and takes a seat next to me "Now boys, be on your best behaviour please for the photographer, it is my daughter after all"
Small snickers whisper through the other boys but I don't say anything, wouldn't be game to when sitting next to her Father.
"You are there aren't you honey?"
"Yes Dad I am here, you walked right past me" A young girl's voice speaks, her voice is flat but smooth, thanks to all of these light's I can't see her face. All I can see is wisps of what looks like brunette hair, it's wavy and long. She holds a hand to ask us if we can all see it to know where to look. "Okay, I'll take a few and I'll check them and go again, just yell out if you want to look Dad" She sounds so shy, fair enough being in a room with 20 different guys all technically staring at her. I can't see her face even when her camera comes into view and she's standing in the glare of one of the spotlights.
"1, 2, 3"
Flash.
Click.
Again.
Blink.
"Okay give me a second guys" I hear the heels from her boots walk away and fade into the black, I look over to Derek next to me and chat with him while we wait.
"Dad, do you want to come here and check them out for a second?"
Coach McCoy heads her way and fades into black as well.
I can hear small bickering out of one ear while Derek is talking into the other, I see the coach in my peripheral walk back towards the seat next to me.
"Okay guys apparently we all need to smile this time, that includes the ones who don't just do your best" Great, good luck getting one out of me.
"1,2, smile"
Flash.
I can see she pulls the camera down to look through the pictures, I look down towards my skates to make sure the laces are done up properly when I hear the smallest gasp come from her, my head looks up and I still can't see her.
"Everything okay?" Coach calls out to her
"Uhh yeah, you at the front, next to my Dad, you need to smile"
I pull my finger up towards my chest pointing "Me?"
"Yeah, you" She says and I can almost hear the smile spread across her face
"Sorry but uh I don't smile" kind of regret being a smartass to her in front of her Dad who is also right next to me, but yet he holds back a laugh. "Well I find that impossible being that your mouth can make it happen, and the fact it takes less muscles to smile than it does to frown" I can't help but let a small laugh escape me which makes me smile, everyone else slightly chuckles to the comment as well
Click.
"Thanks!" I've never heard anyone sound so honest and sarcastic all at once.
Flash
Murmurs travel through the boys and I'm trying to figure out who she is. Not that I need to know, just that my curiosity has peaked. "All done!" she walks off putting her camera down on the table behind her and heads for the bathroom, we all sit down and get told that we're going to get called off the ice one by one for our head shots, I start to head back with the others when the coach yells out to me to head back for mine to be done first. Don't know whether that's a blessing to have it over and done with or a pain in the ass for it to be happening at all.
I head back in the room and it's quiet, light's, camera..
"Why don't you like smiling?" there's that soft voice again
"Too much effort" I haven't moved from my spot I'm standing in, mainly because I don't know where she needs me so I'm standing halfway between the door and the mark positioned in front of the tripod.
"But it's just so easy to do.. I marked yellow tape on the ground where I need you stand" I can hear her fiddling with her camera and the flash so I walk over to the mark and wait for her
"Do you like smiling yourself?" I continue the conversation. "I guess so, when it's needed and even better when people can make me smile"
"So what makes you smile?" I ask while fiddling with my hair. I hear a small giggle escape her "Late night texts make me smile a bit" My eyebrows furrow together in confusion that it's her first thought"Okay? That's a bit random" "So are late night messages" still confused, I can't argue that. "Fair enough, you have me there"This is the weirdest conversation I've had about smiling, normally I can avoid the questioning of my hatred of taking my picture and smiling in them but she's got a hold on this for some reason."So what makes you smile?" I hear her boots slowly clicking towards me, the sound getting louder "not a lot, anything that's funny I guess" I sound a little too blunt."I reckon timing is pretty funny" confused again by her statement and the random reasoning "Why timing?" She's even closer to me now.
"Nothing special, but I reckon it could make even you smile and laugh" She suddenly steps into my view and it takes me a minute to realise who is standing in front of me, only not in a picture and not at 4am.
It's wrong number girl.
And she was right, I'm smiling now, big.