Love at 16 Degrees F
Chaper 4
Chapter 4
Logan sat on his bed watching a rerun of Jersey Shore. He glanced at the clock to the left of his tv. He read 3:00 and sighed. He was back at his own apartment now. Still he could not get himself to call Ashley. He figured that at practice, which was at 3:30, he could just see Hertl and ask him how the night went.
“The coward's way out.” he thought in his head.
He reached to his right for the remote. Idly he surfed through the channels looking for anything good to watch.
Frustrated he turned off the tv and looked up to the ceiling. With his eyes he looked at the different patterns in the paint. His walls were the textured kind. (The ones that looked a bit like paint splatters.) As a kid he remembered watching them before he went to bed. He would look at the splatters and try to find the ones that looked like animals. He longed for those days. Now, he was busy. Busy was really the only word he could call himself. Logan; Athletic, busy, arrogant. Those were basically the only words people described him as. As a kid, he had time to just lay back and look at paint animals. He also didn't have to worry about girls...
He sat up and looked back at the clock. 3:17. Unwillingly he stood up out of bed and fetched his hockey bag. Purposefully he examined the contents of the front pocket. He found his pack of gum, a mini toothbrush, a comb he had been looking for, and last, his picture of Ashley. He had just seen the picture the day before, so he didn't really need to look at the picture. Though he was stalling and figured it was a worthy thing of procrastinating with. With one deep breath he put the picture back into the pocket. Mentally, he made a note to get something to protect it in.
After a good 10 minute drive Logan, once again, found himself late for practice. Todd glared at him as he got onto the ice. He nodded as he passed him. The last thing he wanted was a long angry speech. He skated out to center ice and grabbed a puck. Half of the team was shooting at Neimi and the other half was taking shots at Stalock. Logan looked around and found his place in between Pavelski and Wingels.
He took his place and looked to Pavs, “Hey.”
Pavelski looked at him put said nothing. He took his shot at Neimi and skated behind the net to get another puck. Logan huffed at Pavs cold shoulder. He took his own turn and shot. Neimi caught the puck mid air and threw it to the side. Sighing, Logan retrieved his puck and took his place again.
This time he decided to make his small talk with Tommy, “Hey, is Hertl here yet?”
Tommy looked up slightly confused but nodded, “Uh, yeah. I think he's shooting on Alex.”
Logan didn't have time to reply; Todd called out for them to switch goalies. Wingels and him separated as they skated across the ice to the other goalie, but came together once they got into position.
“Why do you ask?” Wingel questioned.
Logan didn't feel like explaining the whole complicated night so he just shrugged the question off.
“Him and a few of my friends went out last night and I didn't know how they got home.”
Wingels took his eyes off Stalock and gave Logan a weird look.
“That sounds more complex than you make it sound.”
Logan sighed, “It is.”
Wingles skated up and caught the pass from Marleau. He threw the pass down in front of him and score. He took his place next to Logan again.
“My night was fun.”
Logan laughed, “Really?”
Tommy smirked and nodded. He pointed up into the stands towards the spectators.
“I spent my night at Kelcie's parents house. Cool family. They love hockey. Probably know more about it than I do.”
Logan smiled, “Good. How long you guys been together now?”
Tommy answered without hesitation, “3 years tomorrow.”
Logan kept his smile. “Well congrats.”
Now it was his turn to receive a pass. This time it was from Pavelski. His shot was deflected by Stalock. He sighed irritably. The guys pared off for another drill. Tommy and him were paired.
“You still with that one girl?” Tommy asked Logan as they skated.
“No. Nobody now.”
Tommy tried to laugh it off, “Yeah, that can suck sometimes.”
Logan shrugged. The two were quiet for a while. Only skating and passing.
“You'll find someone.” Tommy stated after a while of silence.
Laughing, Logan replied, “I don't have a problem with girls liking me. They just always have something wrong. Like they are crazy, or they are homophobic, or they own a club and actually have a secret stripping job...”
Wingels turned his head quickly at Logan, “Wait, what?”
Logan sighed again. “Last night was weird.”
Tommy nodded, “Yeah, sounds like it."
Logan stayed quiet for a moment, but figured he should probably explain the last one to Tommy.
“I went out with Ashley's best friend last night, okay right?” Tommy nodded and listened.
The boys all knew about Ashley and how she was Logan's best friend.
“Well her and I broke off from Ashley, Nick and Tomas,” Logan continued, “and I found out the chick's a stripper.”
Tommy's eyes were wide.
“She stripped for you?”
He sounded shocked.
Logan shook his head, “No, she tried to when we got drinks, but I got her a hotel room. I just couldn't deal with it.”
Tommy laughed, “Cooch, can't handle a stripper? Doesn't sound right to me.”
Logan didn't laugh. The truth was, he thought it was weird too. He couldn't figure out why he had left Amanda.
“Well, Nick, Ash, and Tomas are fine. They're all here right now. I haven't seen any obvious injuries.” Tommy assured Logan.
Logan looked back at the spectators in search for his friends.
Tommy pointed, “Right by Kelcie. Ashley and her have been talking the whole time.”
Logan spotted her and and thanked Tommy. Todd called the team back towards him for a discussion. This got him closer to where Ashley was. He smiled as he approached the glass. She had a smile on her face and was looking down at him. She waved. She then looked confused when he waved back. Skating up behind Logan was Tomas. He grinned up at Ashley who was grinning back. Logan felt a sharp pain and turned away from the two.
After 10 mintutes Todd finished his speech about being physical and let them run different drills. None of which gave him an opportunity to talk to anyone, so that just left him to think. He found it weird that thinking had become so unpleasant for him lately. One thing he had noticed was that Amanda was nowhere do be seen...
~
“Ew, Nick. You're spilling the nacho cheese on your pants.” Ashley scolded Nick.
“Mom, maybe I like having cheese on my pants.”
Ashley winced at his choice of insult. “I'm sure as hell not your mom.”
Nick pinched at her cheek and talked with his mouth full. “Oh that's right. You're my baby sister. My identical twin.”
Ashley glared at him, “We're fraternal. You can't be identical and be different genders.”
Nick laughed off his stupidity, “I wasn't aware you're a female.”
“Harr-dee-harr-harr. You think you're so clever.”
Nick leaned forwards and looked to Kelcie who was on the other side of Ashley, “I'm clever aren't I?”
Kelcie laughed.
“Shut it, Nick. Don't bother flirting with her. She's with Tommy and you are in no way a better catch than him.” Ashley interrupted him.
“Ma'm, I'm pretty sure that was called being friendly,” He looked back at Kelcie, “But, I would gladly accept your number if you gave it to me.”
He winked.
Kelcie turned him down, and watched the practice again.
Pretty soon all the players collected on the side the three were seated. Ashley smiled and waved to Tomas. Someone waving in front of Tomas caught her eye. Logan. She felt shocked and stopped mid wave. Tomas came closer to the glass; his smile looking 10 times bigger than usual. She couldn't help but smile back and feel giddy. Tomas was looking at her and only her.
Meanwhile, Logan angrily turned and ignored Ashley for the rest of the practice. Todd ran the lines hard for the next two hours. When one of the guys fanned on a shot or when someone hit the puck out of play he had them doing suicides for 10 minutes. Logan was completely exhausted by the end of the practice. The boys all shuffled into the locker room to change. Logan was the last one in the room. He made his way to his cubby only to see his bag turtled.
He groaned, “Really guys?!”
The team all laughed. Logan opened his inside out back and took everything out. He was too preoccupied to realized Coach behind him. Immediately he was drenched in water. He gasped and turn around. Todd was holding a small, empty bucket. The rest of the locker room was roaring in laughter. Logan took a deep breath and tried to laugh along with the team. He failed.
“That's why you shouldn't be the last one at practice!” Pavelski shouted as he walked out of the room.
Logan faked a laugh and turned back to his bag. He flipped it the right way and started putting his things back in. He noticed some of the items were now wet. Quickly he reached for the front pocket and searched for the picture, but it was nowhere to be found.
Logan breathed calmly and turned to the remaining guys in the room.
“I had a picture in here too. Where'd it go?”
Burish, Marleau, and Havlat all shrugged.
Patrick grabbed his things while answering, “Ask Boyle or Pavs, they were the ones who were messing with your bag.”
Logan turned back to his cubby and changed his clothes. He walked towards the showers. 4 or five of his team mates were inside. Tomas being one of them. Logan walked to the shower head that was closer to Tomas. He looked up as Logan approached and nodded. Everyone kept quiet for the most part.
“Did you get to the hotel safely?” He asked Tomas.
Tomas looked to him briefly but didn't respond. He just turned his shower off and grabbed his towel. Irritated, Logan finished his shower quickly and went to his cubby. He finished dressing at the same time as Tomas.
“I just want to make sure she got in safe.” Logan tried to start the conversation again with Tomas.
He got the same response. Silence. The two guys were now walking side by side out the door.
Burns walked behind them.
“Tomas. Seriously.” Burns spoke up, “They came to my house. They couldn't get into the hotel.”
Logan now ignored Tomas. He slowed down to walk with Brent.
“Is she mad?” He asked a little quieter.
Tomas now turned to answer, “Mad. Very mad.”
He faced forward again.
Logan looked to Burns; hoping Tomas was wrong. But he got no sympathy from him.
“She's happy though. We all had a few good laughs. It's not like you ruined her trip.”
Logan was relieved his reached into his pocket for his cell phone. He pretended to text until the guys walked to their separate cars.
For real he opened his messaging app. This time he clicked on Ashley's contact name “Ashers” She had texted him 6 times the night before. The last one being, “Ashers: Obviously you're not coming back. Hope you have a great night.” He had hoped she was being sincere, but after talking with Brent and Tomas it didn't seem that was the case. He typed a message back.
“Loco: Sorry. I don't know what was wrong with me last night..."
~
“Well, I gotta wait for Tommy, but then let's all go get dinner?” Kelcie asked Ashley.
The practice had ended and Nick, Ashley, and Kelcie were now figuring out what to do. They figured it would be cool to go eat now that they had all met. Ashley's phone buzzed in her purse. She search and found it quickly.
“LoCo: Sorry. I don't know what was wrong with me last night...”
She huffed and put the phone in her pocket; ignoring him completely. Seconds later she got another text.
“LoCo: I know you read my last message. Imessage tells me you have.”
Ashley glared at her phone and angrily typed back.
“Ashers: I don't want to talk to you.”
~
Logan sat in his car and sighed. “Loco: You aren't even going to ask where we went?”
~
Kelcie, Nick and Ashley were walking out towards the parking lot when she received his text.
“Loco: You aren't even going to ask where we went?”
Her jaw dropped. She read the text out to Nick and Kelcie who both agreed he was an idiot.
“Ashers: Seriously? Go fuck yourself. I don't care where you went. I don't care where Amanda is. YOU LEFT OUT OUT AT MIDNIGHT IN THE COLD! You STOLE my car. You STOLE my best friend, and you have to audacity to act like you did nothing wrong? I slept on the floor at Brent's and I'm wearing the same clothes as yesterday because you two morons took off with my overnight bag. I had to go buy toothbrushes for Nick and I. You are so selfish it is ridiculous.”
She hit send.
~
Logan stared at the phone completely shocked.
“Loco: Feel better now?”
He saw out his side mirror Ashley, Nick, Kelcie, Tommy, and Tomas greeting. Tomas stood beside Ashley. Logan watched her grab her phone.
~
Ashley wanted to scream.
“LoCo: Feel better now?”
She replied, “Ashers: Don't make me seem like I'm being crazy for no reason.”
~
Logan looked at the group again and saw them climb into Tommy's car.
He typed his reply quickly, “LoCo: You aren't wearing yesterday's clothes. You're wearing different ones than I remember.”
~
Ashley snorted. “Ashers: Wow, Sherlock. I bet you feel pretty witty right now. No, I had to borrow clothes from Brent's wife. Happy now?”
~
Logan imagined how pissed Ashley had to look.
“LoCo: You're still upset, so no. I'm not happy.”
He waiting for her reply. Tommy's car drove out of the parking lot.
“Ashers: Since when have you cared? Last night proves that you don't.”
Logan closed his eyes and thought about her words. They weren't true. He figured deep down she knew that. But she was hurt. He had made her feel unimportant and he needed to fix that.
“LoCo: I've cared since we were 13. And all last night proves is that I'm human. I'm a human guy. I don't think before I act. Which is why I'm apologizing.”
~
Ashley found the fight leaving her once she read his text.
“Ashers: I'm hurt, but I forgive you.”
In the car Kelcie and Tommy were in the front seat with Nick, Tomas and Her in the back. She laughed as she realized this was the exact seating arrangement they had the night before. Only Kelcie and Tommy were where Amanda and Logan were. The group drove to a restaurant called Kobe's. The dinner went by pretty uneventfully. Kelcie and Ashley hit it off well and exchanged numbers. Nick, Tommy, and Tomas had plenty to talk about. They all had pretty common interests. Occasionally, Ashley would text Logan back. For the most part though, she was just enjoying the dinner with her new friends. There didn't seem to be any drama between them, and that was something she was happy for.
“Ashers: We are leaving tomorrow morning. So I need to have my car and Amanda back by then. Only one more night of canoodling for you two.”
She sent the note bitterly, but figured he wouldn't pick up on it.
“LoCo: You mean you don't have her with you?”
Ashley stopped chewing and set down her fish fillet. She looked up at the clock on the restaurant wall.
“Ashers: Um... No?”
Logan read the text and felt a little panic rising.
“LoCo: I checked her into a hotel last night. She was shit faced. I left a note and I went home.”
Ashley took a deep breath and tried to keep her cool.
“Ashers: So you mean to tell me you've lost Amanda? Also, how the hell was she drinking? She's 20. She wont be 21 for another 2 months.”
Logan replied quickly, “LoCo: She had a fake ID. So I take it you two don't go out and get crazy together then?”
Nick had now noticed Ashley not eating.
“What's wrong?” His question drew the attention of everyone else at the table.
“Logan doesn't know where Amanda is."
Nick dropped his fork, Tommy sighed, and Tomas and Kelcie just looked confused. Briefly, Ashley explained the event of the night before. (Leaving out the kissing and romance between her and Tomas.) Kelcie was now up to speed.
“Have you called her?”
Ashley and Nick both laughed without humor.
Nick replied quicker than Ashley could, “Oh yeah. I'm pretty sure we've texted and called her 1000 times. It just goes straight to voicemail.”
Kelcie looked to Tommy who shrugged. Tomas stayed quiet and just ate his food.
“We gotta find her.” Nick said quietly to Ashley.
She bit her lip, and looked at her plate. She wouldn't meet his eyes.
“What?” he asked.
She mumbled while moving her food around with her fork, “I don't want to go find her.”
Nick was shocked. He never thought that Ashley would be so insensitive.
“Ashley. She could be dead for all we know.”
Ashley took a sip of her drink coke and set it down angrily when he finished.
“That's crazy. She didn't care about us when we went missing so why should we care about her?”
Nick still looked shocked. It was uncharacteristic for Ashley to not help someone.
“What's wrong with you? She's your best friend.” He kept his voice down to avoid alerting the others at the table again.
Ashley glared at him, “I'm pretty sure best friends don't do what she did last night. If you'll excuse me, guys. I need to take a breather.”
Ashley abruptly pushed out of her chair and headed for the door. She felt the familiar sting in her eyes that she always felt before she cried. As soon as she left she felt energized by the cool air. The tears subsided and her breathing evened. No longer did she feel on the verge of a panic attack. She sat down on the bench in front of the restaurant. She took a moment to collect herself and then she pulled out her phone. She had three texts from Logan.
“LoCo: I didn't mean to make you mad by the comment.”
“LoCo: Okay... it's been 10 minutes... Are you really that mad.”
“LoCo: Ashley. I'm freaking out. Please tell me you don't go out drinking and partying with Amanda.”
Ashley smiled at his discomfort, but decided to ease him.
“Ashers: I was talking to Nick. I'm not mad. No, I do not go out “partying” with Amanda. I still don't want to drink.”
Logan had already driven home by the time Ashley had replied. The sudden reply had freaked him out more than he'd like to admit. Luckily the reply was a good one, and he didn't have to worry anymore.
“LoCo: Good. Last thing I need to hear is that you are a stripper too.”
Ashley was confused by the text, but she didn't ask.
“Ashers: Where do we go from here? Are you with Amanda now?”
She had wanted to ask the question for a while, but didn't want to at the same time.
“LoCo: No. We are not together. Where we are all at is friends. And as friends, we need to find Amanda. I remember what hotel she was in. Can I drive you and Nick to get her?”
Ashley was relieved, yet saddened by his response.
“Ashers: Yes. Tomorrow.”
“LoCo: Where are you staying?” Ashley bit her lip and looked out at the busy San Jose streets. She tried to think of where to go, so she didn't have to admit she didn't have everything together."
“Ashers: * sigh * I didn't think that far... Can Nick and I stay with you or is that too weird?”
Logan laughed at her response. He had kind of figured she was more frazzled than she had lead on.
“LoCo: Of course you can stay the night. It wouldn't be our first sleep over.”
Ashley smiled as she remembers her trip to Canada.
“LoCo: I forgot to ask about you and Tomas. Are you guys into each other?”
The smile left Ashley's face. Shame pooled in her stomach. She found herself having very mixed emotions when it came to the two. She went to reply, but her fingers felt stiff and non-complainant. She couldn't think of an intelligent answer to his question. So she replied the way any idiot would.
“Ashers: I don't know.”
Logan sat on his bed watching a rerun of Jersey Shore. He glanced at the clock to the left of his tv. He read 3:00 and sighed. He was back at his own apartment now. Still he could not get himself to call Ashley. He figured that at practice, which was at 3:30, he could just see Hertl and ask him how the night went.
“The coward's way out.” he thought in his head.
He reached to his right for the remote. Idly he surfed through the channels looking for anything good to watch.
Frustrated he turned off the tv and looked up to the ceiling. With his eyes he looked at the different patterns in the paint. His walls were the textured kind. (The ones that looked a bit like paint splatters.) As a kid he remembered watching them before he went to bed. He would look at the splatters and try to find the ones that looked like animals. He longed for those days. Now, he was busy. Busy was really the only word he could call himself. Logan; Athletic, busy, arrogant. Those were basically the only words people described him as. As a kid, he had time to just lay back and look at paint animals. He also didn't have to worry about girls...
He sat up and looked back at the clock. 3:17. Unwillingly he stood up out of bed and fetched his hockey bag. Purposefully he examined the contents of the front pocket. He found his pack of gum, a mini toothbrush, a comb he had been looking for, and last, his picture of Ashley. He had just seen the picture the day before, so he didn't really need to look at the picture. Though he was stalling and figured it was a worthy thing of procrastinating with. With one deep breath he put the picture back into the pocket. Mentally, he made a note to get something to protect it in.
After a good 10 minute drive Logan, once again, found himself late for practice. Todd glared at him as he got onto the ice. He nodded as he passed him. The last thing he wanted was a long angry speech. He skated out to center ice and grabbed a puck. Half of the team was shooting at Neimi and the other half was taking shots at Stalock. Logan looked around and found his place in between Pavelski and Wingels.
He took his place and looked to Pavs, “Hey.”
Pavelski looked at him put said nothing. He took his shot at Neimi and skated behind the net to get another puck. Logan huffed at Pavs cold shoulder. He took his own turn and shot. Neimi caught the puck mid air and threw it to the side. Sighing, Logan retrieved his puck and took his place again.
This time he decided to make his small talk with Tommy, “Hey, is Hertl here yet?”
Tommy looked up slightly confused but nodded, “Uh, yeah. I think he's shooting on Alex.”
Logan didn't have time to reply; Todd called out for them to switch goalies. Wingels and him separated as they skated across the ice to the other goalie, but came together once they got into position.
“Why do you ask?” Wingel questioned.
Logan didn't feel like explaining the whole complicated night so he just shrugged the question off.
“Him and a few of my friends went out last night and I didn't know how they got home.”
Wingels took his eyes off Stalock and gave Logan a weird look.
“That sounds more complex than you make it sound.”
Logan sighed, “It is.”
Wingles skated up and caught the pass from Marleau. He threw the pass down in front of him and score. He took his place next to Logan again.
“My night was fun.”
Logan laughed, “Really?”
Tommy smirked and nodded. He pointed up into the stands towards the spectators.
“I spent my night at Kelcie's parents house. Cool family. They love hockey. Probably know more about it than I do.”
Logan smiled, “Good. How long you guys been together now?”
Tommy answered without hesitation, “3 years tomorrow.”
Logan kept his smile. “Well congrats.”
Now it was his turn to receive a pass. This time it was from Pavelski. His shot was deflected by Stalock. He sighed irritably. The guys pared off for another drill. Tommy and him were paired.
“You still with that one girl?” Tommy asked Logan as they skated.
“No. Nobody now.”
Tommy tried to laugh it off, “Yeah, that can suck sometimes.”
Logan shrugged. The two were quiet for a while. Only skating and passing.
“You'll find someone.” Tommy stated after a while of silence.
Laughing, Logan replied, “I don't have a problem with girls liking me. They just always have something wrong. Like they are crazy, or they are homophobic, or they own a club and actually have a secret stripping job...”
Wingels turned his head quickly at Logan, “Wait, what?”
Logan sighed again. “Last night was weird.”
Tommy nodded, “Yeah, sounds like it."
Logan stayed quiet for a moment, but figured he should probably explain the last one to Tommy.
“I went out with Ashley's best friend last night, okay right?” Tommy nodded and listened.
The boys all knew about Ashley and how she was Logan's best friend.
“Well her and I broke off from Ashley, Nick and Tomas,” Logan continued, “and I found out the chick's a stripper.”
Tommy's eyes were wide.
“She stripped for you?”
He sounded shocked.
Logan shook his head, “No, she tried to when we got drinks, but I got her a hotel room. I just couldn't deal with it.”
Tommy laughed, “Cooch, can't handle a stripper? Doesn't sound right to me.”
Logan didn't laugh. The truth was, he thought it was weird too. He couldn't figure out why he had left Amanda.
“Well, Nick, Ash, and Tomas are fine. They're all here right now. I haven't seen any obvious injuries.” Tommy assured Logan.
Logan looked back at the spectators in search for his friends.
Tommy pointed, “Right by Kelcie. Ashley and her have been talking the whole time.”
Logan spotted her and and thanked Tommy. Todd called the team back towards him for a discussion. This got him closer to where Ashley was. He smiled as he approached the glass. She had a smile on her face and was looking down at him. She waved. She then looked confused when he waved back. Skating up behind Logan was Tomas. He grinned up at Ashley who was grinning back. Logan felt a sharp pain and turned away from the two.
After 10 mintutes Todd finished his speech about being physical and let them run different drills. None of which gave him an opportunity to talk to anyone, so that just left him to think. He found it weird that thinking had become so unpleasant for him lately. One thing he had noticed was that Amanda was nowhere do be seen...
~
“Ew, Nick. You're spilling the nacho cheese on your pants.” Ashley scolded Nick.
“Mom, maybe I like having cheese on my pants.”
Ashley winced at his choice of insult. “I'm sure as hell not your mom.”
Nick pinched at her cheek and talked with his mouth full. “Oh that's right. You're my baby sister. My identical twin.”
Ashley glared at him, “We're fraternal. You can't be identical and be different genders.”
Nick laughed off his stupidity, “I wasn't aware you're a female.”
“Harr-dee-harr-harr. You think you're so clever.”
Nick leaned forwards and looked to Kelcie who was on the other side of Ashley, “I'm clever aren't I?”
Kelcie laughed.
“Shut it, Nick. Don't bother flirting with her. She's with Tommy and you are in no way a better catch than him.” Ashley interrupted him.
“Ma'm, I'm pretty sure that was called being friendly,” He looked back at Kelcie, “But, I would gladly accept your number if you gave it to me.”
He winked.
Kelcie turned him down, and watched the practice again.
Pretty soon all the players collected on the side the three were seated. Ashley smiled and waved to Tomas. Someone waving in front of Tomas caught her eye. Logan. She felt shocked and stopped mid wave. Tomas came closer to the glass; his smile looking 10 times bigger than usual. She couldn't help but smile back and feel giddy. Tomas was looking at her and only her.
Meanwhile, Logan angrily turned and ignored Ashley for the rest of the practice. Todd ran the lines hard for the next two hours. When one of the guys fanned on a shot or when someone hit the puck out of play he had them doing suicides for 10 minutes. Logan was completely exhausted by the end of the practice. The boys all shuffled into the locker room to change. Logan was the last one in the room. He made his way to his cubby only to see his bag turtled.
He groaned, “Really guys?!”
The team all laughed. Logan opened his inside out back and took everything out. He was too preoccupied to realized Coach behind him. Immediately he was drenched in water. He gasped and turn around. Todd was holding a small, empty bucket. The rest of the locker room was roaring in laughter. Logan took a deep breath and tried to laugh along with the team. He failed.
“That's why you shouldn't be the last one at practice!” Pavelski shouted as he walked out of the room.
Logan faked a laugh and turned back to his bag. He flipped it the right way and started putting his things back in. He noticed some of the items were now wet. Quickly he reached for the front pocket and searched for the picture, but it was nowhere to be found.
Logan breathed calmly and turned to the remaining guys in the room.
“I had a picture in here too. Where'd it go?”
Burish, Marleau, and Havlat all shrugged.
Patrick grabbed his things while answering, “Ask Boyle or Pavs, they were the ones who were messing with your bag.”
Logan turned back to his cubby and changed his clothes. He walked towards the showers. 4 or five of his team mates were inside. Tomas being one of them. Logan walked to the shower head that was closer to Tomas. He looked up as Logan approached and nodded. Everyone kept quiet for the most part.
“Did you get to the hotel safely?” He asked Tomas.
Tomas looked to him briefly but didn't respond. He just turned his shower off and grabbed his towel. Irritated, Logan finished his shower quickly and went to his cubby. He finished dressing at the same time as Tomas.
“I just want to make sure she got in safe.” Logan tried to start the conversation again with Tomas.
He got the same response. Silence. The two guys were now walking side by side out the door.
Burns walked behind them.
“Tomas. Seriously.” Burns spoke up, “They came to my house. They couldn't get into the hotel.”
Logan now ignored Tomas. He slowed down to walk with Brent.
“Is she mad?” He asked a little quieter.
Tomas now turned to answer, “Mad. Very mad.”
He faced forward again.
Logan looked to Burns; hoping Tomas was wrong. But he got no sympathy from him.
“She's happy though. We all had a few good laughs. It's not like you ruined her trip.”
Logan was relieved his reached into his pocket for his cell phone. He pretended to text until the guys walked to their separate cars.
For real he opened his messaging app. This time he clicked on Ashley's contact name “Ashers” She had texted him 6 times the night before. The last one being, “Ashers: Obviously you're not coming back. Hope you have a great night.” He had hoped she was being sincere, but after talking with Brent and Tomas it didn't seem that was the case. He typed a message back.
“Loco: Sorry. I don't know what was wrong with me last night..."
~
“Well, I gotta wait for Tommy, but then let's all go get dinner?” Kelcie asked Ashley.
The practice had ended and Nick, Ashley, and Kelcie were now figuring out what to do. They figured it would be cool to go eat now that they had all met. Ashley's phone buzzed in her purse. She search and found it quickly.
“LoCo: Sorry. I don't know what was wrong with me last night...”
She huffed and put the phone in her pocket; ignoring him completely. Seconds later she got another text.
“LoCo: I know you read my last message. Imessage tells me you have.”
Ashley glared at her phone and angrily typed back.
“Ashers: I don't want to talk to you.”
~
Logan sat in his car and sighed. “Loco: You aren't even going to ask where we went?”
~
Kelcie, Nick and Ashley were walking out towards the parking lot when she received his text.
“Loco: You aren't even going to ask where we went?”
Her jaw dropped. She read the text out to Nick and Kelcie who both agreed he was an idiot.
“Ashers: Seriously? Go fuck yourself. I don't care where you went. I don't care where Amanda is. YOU LEFT OUT OUT AT MIDNIGHT IN THE COLD! You STOLE my car. You STOLE my best friend, and you have to audacity to act like you did nothing wrong? I slept on the floor at Brent's and I'm wearing the same clothes as yesterday because you two morons took off with my overnight bag. I had to go buy toothbrushes for Nick and I. You are so selfish it is ridiculous.”
She hit send.
~
Logan stared at the phone completely shocked.
“Loco: Feel better now?”
He saw out his side mirror Ashley, Nick, Kelcie, Tommy, and Tomas greeting. Tomas stood beside Ashley. Logan watched her grab her phone.
~
Ashley wanted to scream.
“LoCo: Feel better now?”
She replied, “Ashers: Don't make me seem like I'm being crazy for no reason.”
~
Logan looked at the group again and saw them climb into Tommy's car.
He typed his reply quickly, “LoCo: You aren't wearing yesterday's clothes. You're wearing different ones than I remember.”
~
Ashley snorted. “Ashers: Wow, Sherlock. I bet you feel pretty witty right now. No, I had to borrow clothes from Brent's wife. Happy now?”
~
Logan imagined how pissed Ashley had to look.
“LoCo: You're still upset, so no. I'm not happy.”
He waiting for her reply. Tommy's car drove out of the parking lot.
“Ashers: Since when have you cared? Last night proves that you don't.”
Logan closed his eyes and thought about her words. They weren't true. He figured deep down she knew that. But she was hurt. He had made her feel unimportant and he needed to fix that.
“LoCo: I've cared since we were 13. And all last night proves is that I'm human. I'm a human guy. I don't think before I act. Which is why I'm apologizing.”
~
Ashley found the fight leaving her once she read his text.
“Ashers: I'm hurt, but I forgive you.”
In the car Kelcie and Tommy were in the front seat with Nick, Tomas and Her in the back. She laughed as she realized this was the exact seating arrangement they had the night before. Only Kelcie and Tommy were where Amanda and Logan were. The group drove to a restaurant called Kobe's. The dinner went by pretty uneventfully. Kelcie and Ashley hit it off well and exchanged numbers. Nick, Tommy, and Tomas had plenty to talk about. They all had pretty common interests. Occasionally, Ashley would text Logan back. For the most part though, she was just enjoying the dinner with her new friends. There didn't seem to be any drama between them, and that was something she was happy for.
“Ashers: We are leaving tomorrow morning. So I need to have my car and Amanda back by then. Only one more night of canoodling for you two.”
She sent the note bitterly, but figured he wouldn't pick up on it.
“LoCo: You mean you don't have her with you?”
Ashley stopped chewing and set down her fish fillet. She looked up at the clock on the restaurant wall.
“Ashers: Um... No?”
Logan read the text and felt a little panic rising.
“LoCo: I checked her into a hotel last night. She was shit faced. I left a note and I went home.”
Ashley took a deep breath and tried to keep her cool.
“Ashers: So you mean to tell me you've lost Amanda? Also, how the hell was she drinking? She's 20. She wont be 21 for another 2 months.”
Logan replied quickly, “LoCo: She had a fake ID. So I take it you two don't go out and get crazy together then?”
Nick had now noticed Ashley not eating.
“What's wrong?” His question drew the attention of everyone else at the table.
“Logan doesn't know where Amanda is."
Nick dropped his fork, Tommy sighed, and Tomas and Kelcie just looked confused. Briefly, Ashley explained the event of the night before. (Leaving out the kissing and romance between her and Tomas.) Kelcie was now up to speed.
“Have you called her?”
Ashley and Nick both laughed without humor.
Nick replied quicker than Ashley could, “Oh yeah. I'm pretty sure we've texted and called her 1000 times. It just goes straight to voicemail.”
Kelcie looked to Tommy who shrugged. Tomas stayed quiet and just ate his food.
“We gotta find her.” Nick said quietly to Ashley.
She bit her lip, and looked at her plate. She wouldn't meet his eyes.
“What?” he asked.
She mumbled while moving her food around with her fork, “I don't want to go find her.”
Nick was shocked. He never thought that Ashley would be so insensitive.
“Ashley. She could be dead for all we know.”
Ashley took a sip of her drink coke and set it down angrily when he finished.
“That's crazy. She didn't care about us when we went missing so why should we care about her?”
Nick still looked shocked. It was uncharacteristic for Ashley to not help someone.
“What's wrong with you? She's your best friend.” He kept his voice down to avoid alerting the others at the table again.
Ashley glared at him, “I'm pretty sure best friends don't do what she did last night. If you'll excuse me, guys. I need to take a breather.”
Ashley abruptly pushed out of her chair and headed for the door. She felt the familiar sting in her eyes that she always felt before she cried. As soon as she left she felt energized by the cool air. The tears subsided and her breathing evened. No longer did she feel on the verge of a panic attack. She sat down on the bench in front of the restaurant. She took a moment to collect herself and then she pulled out her phone. She had three texts from Logan.
“LoCo: I didn't mean to make you mad by the comment.”
“LoCo: Okay... it's been 10 minutes... Are you really that mad.”
“LoCo: Ashley. I'm freaking out. Please tell me you don't go out drinking and partying with Amanda.”
Ashley smiled at his discomfort, but decided to ease him.
“Ashers: I was talking to Nick. I'm not mad. No, I do not go out “partying” with Amanda. I still don't want to drink.”
Logan had already driven home by the time Ashley had replied. The sudden reply had freaked him out more than he'd like to admit. Luckily the reply was a good one, and he didn't have to worry anymore.
“LoCo: Good. Last thing I need to hear is that you are a stripper too.”
Ashley was confused by the text, but she didn't ask.
“Ashers: Where do we go from here? Are you with Amanda now?”
She had wanted to ask the question for a while, but didn't want to at the same time.
“LoCo: No. We are not together. Where we are all at is friends. And as friends, we need to find Amanda. I remember what hotel she was in. Can I drive you and Nick to get her?”
Ashley was relieved, yet saddened by his response.
“Ashers: Yes. Tomorrow.”
“LoCo: Where are you staying?” Ashley bit her lip and looked out at the busy San Jose streets. She tried to think of where to go, so she didn't have to admit she didn't have everything together."
“Ashers: * sigh * I didn't think that far... Can Nick and I stay with you or is that too weird?”
Logan laughed at her response. He had kind of figured she was more frazzled than she had lead on.
“LoCo: Of course you can stay the night. It wouldn't be our first sleep over.”
Ashley smiled as she remembers her trip to Canada.
“LoCo: I forgot to ask about you and Tomas. Are you guys into each other?”
The smile left Ashley's face. Shame pooled in her stomach. She found herself having very mixed emotions when it came to the two. She went to reply, but her fingers felt stiff and non-complainant. She couldn't think of an intelligent answer to his question. So she replied the way any idiot would.
“Ashers: I don't know.”
I read the first chapter and so far I LOVE IT! :DDD I voted and subscribed to it! :) Can't wait to read the rest of it! :DDD And I don't know if you know this, but I did reply to your message on Tumblr ;) But awesome story! :DDDDDD
4/20/15