The noise out in the arena became a little clearer, enough that I could make out a voice: “June Wilder. Please report to the ice. June Wilder to the ice.”
“What the…” I muttered.
“I’m seriously good here,” the player said. “Go see what that’s about.”
I felt a strange sense of foreboding as I left the player facilities and walked out into the arena. I knew everything was probably fine, but I was struck with the memory of being called into the principal’s office when I was fifteen.
The arena was dark, except for the massive screen suspended above the ice. There were words playing on the screen, but I couldn’t really read them, even when I squinted. “Hello?” I called.
“Back here!”
I turned and found Rhett sitting a few rows up in the stands, waving at me. I walked up the aisle until I reached him. There was a giant bag of popcorn in his lap, and two huge paper bags on the ground.
“You were the one who called me out here?” I asked.
He raised a hand-held microphone to his lips. “That is correct,” he said, voiceboomingthrough the speakers in the arena with a half-second delay.
“Wait. Why are you here on the team’s day off?”
Rhett patted the seat next to him. “I’m taking you out on a date. What’s your favorite soda?”
“I don’t really drink soda, but… Diet Dr. Pepper.”
He reached into one of the bags and pulled out a red can. “Here you go.”
“Are you David Copperfield? How did you do that?”
“I wasn’t sure what you drink, so I grabbed one of every kind of soda from the store. Same for candy.” He held open the other bag, which was filled with bags of Skittles, M&Ms, Twizzlers, and more.
“I don’t mean to seem ungrateful, but eating junk food at work isn’t my kind of date. And I’m sort of on the clock right now. I’ve got two players in the gym right now.”
“Hurry up and sit down,” Rhett insisted, pointing at the screen above the ice. “The movie’s starting.”
“Movie?”
The text that was on the screen earlier must have been opening credits, because now the title flashed across the huge television in big font:
YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN
Starring: Gene Wilder
I whirled back to face Rhett. “You set up a movie date here at the arena?”
“Yes, and you’re kind of ruining it by just standing there.” He patted the seat next to him again. “Relax. I already told the guys in the workout room. They’re in on it.”
I finally sat down. “No wonder he was trying to make me leave.” I lowered my voice. “Won’t someone see us? And know we’re… involved?”
“I told Coach Jay that you’ve been stressed lately, and that I wanted to say thank you for helping me heal up.” He glanced sideways at me. “But you have to keep your hands to yourself, or this won’t look very platonic.”
Smiling, I grabbed a handful of popcorn from the bag in his lap. “Okay, this is actually really sweet.”
“I know, right? I’m fucking adorable.” He shoved a handful of popcorn into his mouth, spilling several pieces down the front of his T-shirt. “You know why I chose this movie, right?”
“I do.”
“Because your name is June Wilder, and the lead actor in this isGeneWilder!”
“Yes, I figured that out,” I laughed. “Are there any Reese’s Pieces in there?”
