Physical Therapy

"Ugh, come on!" I groaned, banging my fists on the steering wheel as I was cut off yet again. Even with the AC cranked all the way up, the car was still a sauna in the Fort Lauderdale humidity and I could feel my thighs sticking to the leather seats in Reilly's Jeep.

"God dammit, what is the hold up?" I asked, fiddling with the radio to find a station reporting anything on why traffic was so bad. Finally hearing the word 'jam', I stopped and leaned back, taking a moment to listen before closing my eyes in frustration. "Shit, shit!" I reached across the front seat, digging into my bag for my phone. I shot Jillian a text, begging her to save me a seat in the WAG's box and telling her I'd be late.

Sure thing girlie! Where the hell are you? Warm-ups are almost over

I told her I was stuck in traffic, something about an accident right by the BB&T Center, and how I'd get there as soon as I could.

Oh, okay... drive safe! our boys look good on the ice ;)

I giggled, picturing her cheering loudly for Jason during his pre-game ritual skate. He'd joined the team a few weeks ago, bringing Jillie to Florida with him and giving me a new best friend in the box. She was such a great girl, knowing how it felt to date someone always on the road.

Speaking of the road- the car ahead of me had just begun to move and I squealed in excitement, watching the ETA on my GPS drop from forty-five minutes to less than ten. Finally, I thought, seeing the arena come into view as my exit came up.

I shot through security, my parking pass proudly hung on the mirror noting that I was a player's guest. Snagging a spot next to Jillie's Audi, I locked the car and skipped through the garage.

The halls buzzed with activity, players already on the ice as I found my way to the family box. A few of the wives shot me smiles as I dropped into the empty chair saved for me, slipping my hand onto Jillian's knee and squeezing lightly.

"You're here! Just in time, they're about to drop the puck."

"Who's starting?" I asked, leaning closer to look for Reilly's number on the back of the jersey's I could see.

"The usual suspects," Veronika offered, "Your man is next to mine." She pointed out Jaromir and I could see Reills next to him, tugging on his glove and looking around the crowd. He'd seemed nervous when I talked to him this morning, understandably so. The last time he'd met this line-up, he'd gotten knocked out of the rest of the season.

"How's he feeling about starting tonight?" Lauren asked, holding up a juice box for little Harper.

"Good, I think. His doctor cleared him awhile back and he's been training like crazy. I just wish we weren't facing the Bruins tonight."

The ladies nodded, Jillian putting her arm over my shoulders and squeezing me into a hug. "It'll be alright!" she promised, a bright smile on her face.

And it was, it was an incredible game until four minutes into the third quarter. I could hear the commotion on my way back from the bathroom, shouting in the family box. I pushed open the door, met by panicked looks and wide eyes. "What?" I asked, turning to the group that had suddenly grown quiet. "What happened?"

Lauren pushed towards me, baby Everly on her hip and Harper in tow, her brow knit in concern. "Shay, it's Reilly. He- they're getting him onto a stretcher. We should go down to the-"

I didn't hear her final thought, my eyes looking behind her to focus on the scene in the middle of the rink. All I could see were the trainers, five of them, standing around an downed player. The teams had gone to their respective benches- a sign of a true emergency- and two more medics were rolling a stretcher out of the tunnel.

"That's- no, that's not... Reilly? What happened?"

"He took a check straight into the glass, grabbed his side and fell over."

Jillian grabbed my elbow and pulled me towards the door, "Shay, c'mon, let's go. We'll meet them downstairs."

I followed her lead, my mind racing with worry. She slammed the elevator button, pulling me inside and right into a hug as soon as the doors opened. "It'll be okay!" She cooed, wiping tears from my eyes with a napkin she'd swiped from concessions. I nodded into her shoulder, hoping she was telling the truth but not necessarily believing a word she was saying.

Notes

Whew, so hold on tight y'all! It's gonna get good soon.