Daughter // Tyler Seguin

0.5

Sophia and I are on the way to my childhood home to visit my parents and she won't stop talking about Tyler. I'm barely listening to what she says so I just focus on driving.

"Mommy does grandma know Tyler?" She asks me and I sigh quietly.

"Yes Soph, she does."

"Can we tell her he was over?"

"Yeah sure baby. Grandma loves hearing your stories so she'll love to hear about Tyler and the hockey game."

"Okay mommy." I pull into the driveway and my dad is sitting on the porch reading the newspaper, like always.

I get out of the car and help Sophia out before she runs up to him.

"Grandpa!" She jumps up and gives him a massive hug.

"Hi Sophia, how're you doing pumpkin?"

"Good! You'll never guess who came to our house the other day grandpa!"

"Who would that be Sophia?"

"Ty-"

"Sophia why don't you go inside and find grandma." I say and lightly push her towards the front door.

"Okay mommy!" She pushes open the door and it closes behind her with a loud thump.

"Tyler? As in Seguin?" My dad asks and I sit down next to him.

"Yeah."

"Why?" He asks and I sigh, putting my hands in my head.

"He invited us to the game and wanted to see us after. He gave Sophia a bunch of presents and she loved him dad, I've never seen her so happy before. He took to her so well too and he looked so content with her and he would be such a great dad."

"But?"

"Boston, I could never leave here and I could never let her go there to see him. I don't know dad."

"Your mother and I know you love him Harley. It's all over your face when you speak about him. Hell even after he left you had that love struck look in your eye when he was brought up."

"I don't love him that way dad. He was my best friend."

"We all know it was more than that Harley. Sophia wouldn't have happened if you didn't feel like you loved him even in the slightest."

"Sophia happened because we were drinking and stupid. Tyler is Tyler and things got out of hand. I can't speak for him but I know what I felt towards him wasn't that kid of love."

"Harley, you'll realize one day that you've been wrong all along."

"Yeah sure dad, when that day comes you can say I told you so but at the moment nothing is changing."

"You'll see soon enough that things are different." My dad stands and kisses the top of my head before going inside the house.

I stay out on the porch and think about Tyler and the other day. Him staying the night and the kisses were a mistake and I shouldn't have let my guard down the way I did. I love Tyler, I really do but only as a friend and it pains me to be so far away from him all the time. Especially with Sophia being solely in my care.

My phone rings suddenly and I scramble to find it in my mess of a purse before I pull it out to see Tyler calling.

"Ty? Is everything okay?" I say right away and the other end is silent for a second.

"Uhm this isn't Tyler, it's Brad, uh Brad Marchand."

"Oh uh hi. What can I do for you?"

"Oh uh right okay, do you know what's up with Ty?"