The Hockey Life
One Week
PART TWENTY-THREE: ONE WEEK
“Hey loser, wake up. It’s a morning practice today, remember?” The first few times Tess said it, the phrase was muffled and unclear. Once I was awake enough, though, I realized that it was morning. After such a good sleep, I didn’t want to leave my bed, but I knew Tess would literally pull me out of bed if I didn’t get up myself. She had done it before.
Usually our weekend practices weren’t early since most of us on the team loved sleeping in. However, this practice had to be in the morning, since there were youth hockey events going on for most of the rest of the day.
Morning practices never sounded good to me, but they weren’t that bad. I actually liked the fact that they woke me up. Sometimes I needed that. I wondered if Patrick felt the same way when I realized that my practice was happening at the exact same time that his was.
Practice for me was actually pretty good. Surprisingly, our team was very awake and on-task. We did have a game the next day, though, so maybe that was why. I couldn’t be sure, but that was my guess.
“So, what do you and Patrick have planned for today?” my teammates asked in the locker room. Tess, of course, had told them all about Patrick and I. It didn’t surprise me at all. She was usually the messenger of all of my news at practice.
“Tess, are you ever going to just let me tell them things?” I asked her.
“Why would I do that? Me telling them for you just lightens your load. I’m only trying to make things easier for you,” she said. Every word was BS, but I didn’t even care. I would have to talk to my eager-to-listen teammates about my new relationship status anyways.
“We don’t have anything planned for today. I don’t know if we’ll even have time to hang out at all. He’s got a game in Vancouver tomorrow and I’m pretty sure the team is leaving tonight, but I don’t know when,” I admitted.
“Ouch. That whole long distance thing from October to June - give or take a few weeks - won’t be fun,” Jordan said.
“Well, I’ve already dealt with a week of only away games. That was pretty brutal, but for the most part, home and away games are pretty scattered. I’ll still get to see him a couple times a week for the most part,” I said. I figured I should get used to the hectic schedule right away. I had to brace myself for more lonely away game phases and learn to cherish days when we would have even just one hour to see each other.
“I’m sure you guys will work out times to be together. It’ll be fine. Maybe you can even travel sometimes to see him, too,” Carly suggested.
“Yeah, that’s true,” I answered. As soon as everyone was done discussing my love life, Tess and I headed out to my car. We carpooled whenever possible, and this time I had driven. When my phone told me I had a message, she had to answer it for me. Sometimes it was nice to have her act as an assistant for me while I was driving, but this time it was unfortunate.
“Patrick texted you. He says he wants to hang out if it’s possible. Hm. I wonder how I should reply…”
“Don’t be stupid,” I warned her. I tried to keep my eyes on the road, but I couldn’t stop myself from glancing over at her every few seconds. I didn’t like that she had my phone and she could type whatever reply she wanted.
“Oh babe, I’d love to hang out! I’ve missed you so much, please don’t keep me waiting!” Tess said in a ridiculous voice, pretending to type the words out.
“I swear to god, I will turn this car around right now!” I said sternly, reminding Tess that her life was in my hands.
“Okay, okay. What do you want me to say?”
“Just ask him where and when. And don’t add any pet names or anything. You ruin my life on a daily basis already.”
“Fine.”
By the time we got home, I found out that I was going to his place. I showered quickly and made myself look presentable. My favorite sweater, ripped jeans, and boots seemed like the perfect outfit to me. “Alright, I’ll be back later!” I shouted to Tess before I headed out the door.
It felt nice to be back at Patrick’s place when I got there. I honestly wished I could live there. It was only my second visit there, but I still loved the space. It was the apartment in the city that I had been dreaming of having. The fact that he lived there only made it better.
“So, what do you want to do in the five hours we have to kill?” Patrick asked after letting me in.
“Um…You got any video games?” I asked. I wasn’t very good at video games, but I enjoyed playing them anyways.
“Of course I do. They’re all right here,” he said, directing me to a section of shelving in his entertainment center. I found a bunch of familiar games, but one specific one caught my eye.
“You have Guitar Hero? As in the original, before Rock Band even existed?” I commented, taking the game off the shelf.
“Yeah, I do, believe it or not. Is that what you want to play?” he wondered.
“Yes! This was always my favorite game!” I said, suddenly giddy. Brian and I never got Rock band, but we had the original Guitar Hero games, and we loved them. I couldn’t actually play guitar, but I was good at the game. Brian and I always had competitions, and I beat him more often than he beat me.
Once Patrick and I started playing, I was a little rusty at first. It had been a while since I had played, and I had to remind myself where the buttons were. After a couple songs, though, I got back into the groove and it felt like my childhood again.
“Jesus, have you been practicing or something?” Patrick asked after I beat him three times in a row.
“No, I haven’t played in a few years. I guess I’m just a natural,” I said, smirking at him. After I beat him at a few more songs, I think he got a little frustrated.
“What the hell? You have to be cheating. I’m not that bad at this game!” he raged.
“How does one cheat at Guitar Hero? I mean, seriously. You’re just jealous. It’s okay, though, I understand why. I’m pretty much a rock star,” I laughed.
“Yeah, you’re right, I can’t handle the truth. Let’s play something else.”
“Do you want to play something you’re really good at so I have to be jealous of you?” I asked.
“Yes.”
Next we played Super Mario Brothers. I used to have that game for my Nintendo D.S. years ago. I loved it, but I was never very good at it. Brian had to help me beat quite a few levels. As it turned out, Patrick was much better at Super Mario Bros than he had proven to be at Guitar Hero. Even though it was just a game, for me it was still frustrating to continuously be dying while he would move on with ease.
“Okay, okay. We’re even now,” I decided.
“No we’re not! We haven’t played this nearly as much as we played Guitar Hero!”
“So…” I knew he was right, but I wouldn’t admit it.
“Fine, I know what would make up for it. Come here.” We actually had been on opposite ends of the couch, so he made me scoot over to his side. “You know, you haven’t kissed me at all today. Now you have to make up for that.”
I sighed dramatically to make it seem like it was a real hassle for me to have to kiss him. In all honesty, though, I felt something every time our lips collided. It was some kind of spark that I didn’t recall ever experiencing before with any of my previous boyfriends. When I kissed him this time, I felt it again.
We spent the remainder of our time being lazy. We snacked a little bit while watching shows on Netflix and we kissed here and there. When I had to leave, he had to leave too, so he could go to the airport. He would only be gone for a day and then he’d be back again. But then he’d have to leave again two days later and then come back after he was done with yet another away game. Although traveling could be fun, in my eyes the worst part of being a professional athlete seemed to be traveling. It happened so often and after a while, I knew every player had pretty much seen everything interesting that they wanted to see in the downtime they got. It seemed so exhausting and stressful. Patrick didn’t let it get him down though. I figured it had to effect him, but he brushed it off because he was used to that lifestyle. I wasn’t, because traveling for my team never meant going to a whole different state, let alone Canada or someplace on the other side of the country.
I thought the week would go by very slowly, but it wasn’t that bad. Every time Patrick was in Chicago, he made sure he got a chance to hang out with me. I actually started to feel bad about it, because I felt like he didn’t have a personal life. It seemed like he was constantly hanging out with me and nobody else. I even told him that, but he couldn’t believe I would ever think I was ruining anything for him. He still had time to work things out with friends, and when he couldn’t because he was with me, he assured me that they understood.
By the end of the week, I was just glad that things were working out so well for us. However, I remembered that for someone else, things probably weren’t working out so well. It had been a week since I had last talked to Dylan. A week since I had visited him at his practice. I didn’t know if he was ready to talk yet, but I didn’t want him to think I didn’t care about him or his feelings, so I decided to text him.
>Hi
Thank god, he actually replied. It was just a two letter word, but it was better than nothing. In my mind, it was a good start, since he could have easily just ignored me.
>I’m alright. You?
>Yeah
>Sure. Skype?
He did just that, so I took a deep breath and got out my laptop. This conversation could easily be just as bad or worse than the last one, but we had to try to fix things. I felt reluctant to hit the call button after adding Dylan to my Skype friends list, but I forced myself to hit it anyways, and before I could change my mind, he was already answering and coming into focus on my laptop screen.
“Hey loser, wake up. It’s a morning practice today, remember?” The first few times Tess said it, the phrase was muffled and unclear. Once I was awake enough, though, I realized that it was morning. After such a good sleep, I didn’t want to leave my bed, but I knew Tess would literally pull me out of bed if I didn’t get up myself. She had done it before.
Usually our weekend practices weren’t early since most of us on the team loved sleeping in. However, this practice had to be in the morning, since there were youth hockey events going on for most of the rest of the day.
Morning practices never sounded good to me, but they weren’t that bad. I actually liked the fact that they woke me up. Sometimes I needed that. I wondered if Patrick felt the same way when I realized that my practice was happening at the exact same time that his was.
Practice for me was actually pretty good. Surprisingly, our team was very awake and on-task. We did have a game the next day, though, so maybe that was why. I couldn’t be sure, but that was my guess.
“So, what do you and Patrick have planned for today?” my teammates asked in the locker room. Tess, of course, had told them all about Patrick and I. It didn’t surprise me at all. She was usually the messenger of all of my news at practice.
“Tess, are you ever going to just let me tell them things?” I asked her.
“Why would I do that? Me telling them for you just lightens your load. I’m only trying to make things easier for you,” she said. Every word was BS, but I didn’t even care. I would have to talk to my eager-to-listen teammates about my new relationship status anyways.
“We don’t have anything planned for today. I don’t know if we’ll even have time to hang out at all. He’s got a game in Vancouver tomorrow and I’m pretty sure the team is leaving tonight, but I don’t know when,” I admitted.
“Ouch. That whole long distance thing from October to June - give or take a few weeks - won’t be fun,” Jordan said.
“Well, I’ve already dealt with a week of only away games. That was pretty brutal, but for the most part, home and away games are pretty scattered. I’ll still get to see him a couple times a week for the most part,” I said. I figured I should get used to the hectic schedule right away. I had to brace myself for more lonely away game phases and learn to cherish days when we would have even just one hour to see each other.
“I’m sure you guys will work out times to be together. It’ll be fine. Maybe you can even travel sometimes to see him, too,” Carly suggested.
“Yeah, that’s true,” I answered. As soon as everyone was done discussing my love life, Tess and I headed out to my car. We carpooled whenever possible, and this time I had driven. When my phone told me I had a message, she had to answer it for me. Sometimes it was nice to have her act as an assistant for me while I was driving, but this time it was unfortunate.
“Patrick texted you. He says he wants to hang out if it’s possible. Hm. I wonder how I should reply…”
“Don’t be stupid,” I warned her. I tried to keep my eyes on the road, but I couldn’t stop myself from glancing over at her every few seconds. I didn’t like that she had my phone and she could type whatever reply she wanted.
“Oh babe, I’d love to hang out! I’ve missed you so much, please don’t keep me waiting!” Tess said in a ridiculous voice, pretending to type the words out.
“I swear to god, I will turn this car around right now!” I said sternly, reminding Tess that her life was in my hands.
“Okay, okay. What do you want me to say?”
“Just ask him where and when. And don’t add any pet names or anything. You ruin my life on a daily basis already.”
“Fine.”
By the time we got home, I found out that I was going to his place. I showered quickly and made myself look presentable. My favorite sweater, ripped jeans, and boots seemed like the perfect outfit to me. “Alright, I’ll be back later!” I shouted to Tess before I headed out the door.
It felt nice to be back at Patrick’s place when I got there. I honestly wished I could live there. It was only my second visit there, but I still loved the space. It was the apartment in the city that I had been dreaming of having. The fact that he lived there only made it better.
“So, what do you want to do in the five hours we have to kill?” Patrick asked after letting me in.
“Um…You got any video games?” I asked. I wasn’t very good at video games, but I enjoyed playing them anyways.
“Of course I do. They’re all right here,” he said, directing me to a section of shelving in his entertainment center. I found a bunch of familiar games, but one specific one caught my eye.
“You have Guitar Hero? As in the original, before Rock Band even existed?” I commented, taking the game off the shelf.
“Yeah, I do, believe it or not. Is that what you want to play?” he wondered.
“Yes! This was always my favorite game!” I said, suddenly giddy. Brian and I never got Rock band, but we had the original Guitar Hero games, and we loved them. I couldn’t actually play guitar, but I was good at the game. Brian and I always had competitions, and I beat him more often than he beat me.
Once Patrick and I started playing, I was a little rusty at first. It had been a while since I had played, and I had to remind myself where the buttons were. After a couple songs, though, I got back into the groove and it felt like my childhood again.
“Jesus, have you been practicing or something?” Patrick asked after I beat him three times in a row.
“No, I haven’t played in a few years. I guess I’m just a natural,” I said, smirking at him. After I beat him at a few more songs, I think he got a little frustrated.
“What the hell? You have to be cheating. I’m not that bad at this game!” he raged.
“How does one cheat at Guitar Hero? I mean, seriously. You’re just jealous. It’s okay, though, I understand why. I’m pretty much a rock star,” I laughed.
“Yeah, you’re right, I can’t handle the truth. Let’s play something else.”
“Do you want to play something you’re really good at so I have to be jealous of you?” I asked.
“Yes.”
Next we played Super Mario Brothers. I used to have that game for my Nintendo D.S. years ago. I loved it, but I was never very good at it. Brian had to help me beat quite a few levels. As it turned out, Patrick was much better at Super Mario Bros than he had proven to be at Guitar Hero. Even though it was just a game, for me it was still frustrating to continuously be dying while he would move on with ease.
“Okay, okay. We’re even now,” I decided.
“No we’re not! We haven’t played this nearly as much as we played Guitar Hero!”
“So…” I knew he was right, but I wouldn’t admit it.
“Fine, I know what would make up for it. Come here.” We actually had been on opposite ends of the couch, so he made me scoot over to his side. “You know, you haven’t kissed me at all today. Now you have to make up for that.”
I sighed dramatically to make it seem like it was a real hassle for me to have to kiss him. In all honesty, though, I felt something every time our lips collided. It was some kind of spark that I didn’t recall ever experiencing before with any of my previous boyfriends. When I kissed him this time, I felt it again.
We spent the remainder of our time being lazy. We snacked a little bit while watching shows on Netflix and we kissed here and there. When I had to leave, he had to leave too, so he could go to the airport. He would only be gone for a day and then he’d be back again. But then he’d have to leave again two days later and then come back after he was done with yet another away game. Although traveling could be fun, in my eyes the worst part of being a professional athlete seemed to be traveling. It happened so often and after a while, I knew every player had pretty much seen everything interesting that they wanted to see in the downtime they got. It seemed so exhausting and stressful. Patrick didn’t let it get him down though. I figured it had to effect him, but he brushed it off because he was used to that lifestyle. I wasn’t, because traveling for my team never meant going to a whole different state, let alone Canada or someplace on the other side of the country.
I thought the week would go by very slowly, but it wasn’t that bad. Every time Patrick was in Chicago, he made sure he got a chance to hang out with me. I actually started to feel bad about it, because I felt like he didn’t have a personal life. It seemed like he was constantly hanging out with me and nobody else. I even told him that, but he couldn’t believe I would ever think I was ruining anything for him. He still had time to work things out with friends, and when he couldn’t because he was with me, he assured me that they understood.
By the end of the week, I was just glad that things were working out so well for us. However, I remembered that for someone else, things probably weren’t working out so well. It had been a week since I had last talked to Dylan. A week since I had visited him at his practice. I didn’t know if he was ready to talk yet, but I didn’t want him to think I didn’t care about him or his feelings, so I decided to text him.
>Hi
Thank god, he actually replied. It was just a two letter word, but it was better than nothing. In my mind, it was a good start, since he could have easily just ignored me.
>I’m alright. You?
>Yeah
>Sure. Skype?
He did just that, so I took a deep breath and got out my laptop. This conversation could easily be just as bad or worse than the last one, but we had to try to fix things. I felt reluctant to hit the call button after adding Dylan to my Skype friends list, but I forced myself to hit it anyways, and before I could change my mind, he was already answering and coming into focus on my laptop screen.
@hockeygirl07
Thank you so much! :)
11/1/14