“Black beast, out in the wilderness, we are fighting to survive and convalesce… But we found each other in the dark.”


Marie smiled as she handed her ticket to the usher. She knew exactly where to go, but he seemed bored and overeager to show her the way to her seat. Behind her, Carol descended the steps slowly, wrapping her sweater around her shoulders tighter. Their seats were right up along the glass, and because her mom hadn’t been in any real rush to get moving, the teams were already out on the ice, warming up.

“What kind of business meeting could possibly go on in a place like this?”

“It’s not exactly a business meeting mom,” Marie said surveying the rink. In an instant she found Marco by the bench, stretching out on the ice.

“I thought you were accompanying Marco?”

Marie waited to respond as Marco pushed himself up off the ice. He skated up to a stray puck and shot it at the net before skating in a wide, large circle. Just as Marie was about to respond to her mom, Marco was making his way towards them. He turned his back and bumped along the glass, standing up with his name and number blocking Marie and Carol’s view.

“I don’t understand Marie,” Carol murmured staring at the back of the man in front of her.

Although Marco couldn’t hear them from the other side of the glass, he turned at the right moment and looked back at them. He tapped his fingers against it before laying his glove-covered hand against the glass. Marie giggled quietly and held her hand up, even with Marco’s, earning a boyish smile from him before he skated away to continue on with his warm up.

“He’s a professional athlete…?”

Marie nodded and sat back in her seat, still watching the action on the ice. “So he’s not using me, alright? He can get any girl he could ever want, and choosing me doesn’t automatically mean he’s using me for perverted reasons. He loves me,”

Carol shot her daughter a quick glance as the players began to file off the ice. She seemed to still be skeptical about Marco’s intentions. And Marie figured no amount of assurance would convince her mom. The only thing that would work would be for her to be around enough to see that Marco really did care for her.

When the game finally did start, Marie tried to focus as much as possible, but she found herself being drawn to her mom, wanting to see if she was as enthralled with the sport as her daughter was. But she looked bored and as the first period wore on and as the clocked ticked down to zero, it was still scoreless after twenty minutes. Already Carol looked antsy, ready to get moving, so she excused herself and walked up the aisle.

Marie hoped her mom would appreciate Marco sooner rather than later. Marco had been right when he said that her mom was an important person in her life. If she didn’t accept him, their relationship would probably never last longer and go further than just a little fling that was fun for a few years. But she really didn’t know what to say or do that would convince her otherwise.

Just as the second period was starting, Marie looked up the aisle to see her mom returning back to the seats with a cup of beer in her hands. Marie knew her mom drank, but in her nineteen years of life, she’d never seen her consume a beer. Wine or cocktails were her usual, so to see her sipping a Bud Light like a fine merlot was a bit overwhelming. The second period proved to be more exciting as the Wild capitalized twice. While Marie was proud, Marco hadn’t scored either of them, and five games in, he was still looking for his first goal of the season.

“He stood up for me, you know…” Marie looked up at the jumbo-tron as the final seconds of the second period wound down. “Against dad too, which we both know is no easy feat.” She hoped the beer would have loosened her mom up. “And you know what, I think dad was scared. He’s never had someone so willing to take a stand against him. Marco just stared at him and challenged him. And I think dad saw that he wasn’t gonna win,”

“Marie, I’m not going to accept your relationship, no matter what you say. You are at very separate places in your lives; so separate that it will never work. He’s off gallivanting across North America, and you’re expected to stay here and be the dutiful partner. But you’re only a teenager; a baby… you don’t know how to be a dutiful partner, and at nineteen you shouldn’t have to.”

“You don’t get to tell me what I know and what I don’t know. And you don’t get to tell me about being a dutiful partner, because I watched dad live two separate lives for years. And what’s worse is even when you found out, you let him run your life. Being dutiful is not synonymous with being walked over and taken advantage of. And even when you did eventually end it… look at yourself now. You’re alone; dutiful to no one but yourself.” Marie was careful not to speak too loudly. Although many people had left to stock up on snacks and refreshments during the intermission, it was still crowded around them.

It was a low blow, no doubt. In fact, it hushed Carol up for the remainder of the game. She sat sullenly beside Marie, patiently waiting for the final buzzer to ring. And when it did, earning a cheer from the fans as the home team had earned a win, neither woman in the front row got up to rejoice. Marie had resorted to an insult her dad would’ve used, and she hated herself for that. Her mom didn’t deserve it after all she had done for her daughters in the years that had led up to the divorce.

Instead of meandering through the back hallways to meet up with Marco, they agreed to meet him out back in the parking garage. It would allow them some privacy that they wouldn’t have otherwise, and Marie couldn’t wait to see him. The silence between her and her mother was getting awkward and uncomfortable. It felt like they were old friends that had lost touch through the years, instead of a mother and daughter.

But everything that had needed to be said had been. And maybe now it would cause Carol to reevaluate her harsh judgments. In the meantime, they stood side by side, silently praying that the other would break the silence.

“Hey there pretty mama,”

At the sound of his voice, Marie spun around only taking a second to see him in the suit he had left the apartment in. She bounded towards him, leaping up into his arms. Marco caught her steadily, reaching his hands beneath her legs to hold her up, and he only broke stride long enough to kiss her ear as she buried her face into the base of his neck. It hadn’t been a particularly good game for Marco and hadn’t been weeks since she’d seen him, but after spending the past three hours being antagonized and brought down by her mom, seeing him lit up her night.

“I love you so much,” she whispered against his skin.

Instead of answering, he turned his head to nuzzle against her temple. Marco slid his hands away from her and eased her back onto her feet, now standing in front of Carol. He watched her face to search for any shift in expression, but knew he shouldn’t be disappointed when nothing changed.

“Well Ms. Rosen…?”

She readjusted her purse on her shoulder, “I’m not sure I know what you expect me to say.”

Marco pursed his lips and looked down at his feet quickly, “I guess I was hoping you’d be a little less like Dr. Thatcher and a little more like the woman Marie told me about… Hope is the thing with feathers, I suppose.”

Marie looked up at him and laced her arm around his back, squeezing onto his waist gently. When she got his attention, they smiled at each other, and Marco bent down to kiss the top of her head.

“Well I’ll be on my way back to Woodbury,” he mentioned quietly, finding it gave him a reason to get out of this awkward situation. “It’ll give you some time to pack. I’ll see you before you take off,” he leaned back in to peck Marie’s lips.

“Where are you going?” Carol asked, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

“I’m flying with you to JFK. But you’ll take another flight up to Bradley, and I’m staying in New York to join Marco on his road trip.” Marie stared at her mom until she was convinced that she wouldn’t argue the point anymore. When she stayed quiet, Marie tilted her head back to look up at Marco, and stood on her tiptoes. “I’ll see you tomorrow,”

“Drive safe. Call me when you get home, will you? And no forgetting, it drives me insane when you forget. I worry about you on…”

“I’ve driven on slick roads before,” Marie interrupted, pulling on his lapels. “What do you think New York, Boston, and Connecticut have?”

“Will you just remember to call me, please?” He smiled and kissed her lips quickly. When he pulled away, Marie nodded her head and stepped back as he ducked into his car.

---

Marie pulled up to the hotel where her mom was staying and threw the car in park. “So I’ll be by to pick you up around one. We’re gonna stop by the rink first, but we’ll get to the airport with plenty of time before our flight,”

Carol grabbed onto her purse and stared at her daughter, mulling through everything that had been dished to her in the past few days. “Why him Marie?”

She shook her head and looked up at her mom, “because he always looked at me like he saw behind the mask I was wearing to guard myself. And because he calls me out on my shit when every other guy would let me get away with it. For all intents and purposes, we should’ve passed each other like ships in the night. But somehow… we found each other in the dark.”

“And he’s worth it? I mean really and truly worth it?” Carol pushed open the car door, ready to get out.

“Am I gonna go out and marry the kid tomorrow? No, you raised me cautious enough to not take that leap too quickly. But he’s a good guy; I don’t know how else to prove that to you. The happiness, and the frustration, and the anger… he’s worth it. All of it.”

She stood up out of the car and leaned against the door, preparing to shut it. “If that’s how you truly feel… I will support you. I will not put my guard down, and I will not trust him as easily as you have, but I will support you. I will also let you do the honors of telling your father about it, and if you think I was tough, I suggest you reevaluate that.”

After watching her shut the door and disappear into the hotel, Marie drove off, retreating back in her tiny oasis. It wasn’t too far and only wanting to get home and call Marco, it didn’t even seem to take very long.

Her call was picked up on the second ring and Marco was relieved that she hadn’t forgotten his simple request as she had several times before. They chatted for a while, but when Marie heard him yawn on the other end of the line, she glanced at the clock on her nightstand and mentioned she should try to get some sleep. He didn’t put up too much of a fight, and within moments, they had hung up. She was left staring up at the ceiling, mostly excited for this coming trip. It was only to New York and Boston, giving her the perfect excuse to tag along.

But then what her mom had said began to weasel its way into her mind. Her dad would be harder to convince. He had already met Marco, and with their track record of exchanges in Montreal, she doubted he’d take the news of their relationship well. While Carol’s tactic had been to disapprove of the relationship, Bill would most likely take on a more forceful strategy.

Marie knew her dad would not only disapprove of the relationship, but also request that she end it and move back to Boston. And because he was paying for everything in St. Paul, when he found out she had moved for Marco, he wouldn’t hesitate to retreat on his generosity.

Notes

"We Found Each Other In The Dark" by City and Colour.

Sooo.. I've decided that since I have so much of this story, I'm just going to update more than just once a week. No set plan, just gonna do it on a whim.

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