“Dammit, Lo. I didn’t realize you were still alive,” Keno says. “Catch up already.”
“If you weren’t so preoccupied sucking dick, you’d have seen him there,” Horny teases.
“Don’t be jealous that I have a dick to suck and you don’t, man,” Keno fires back. “We’ve been over this. If you’re curious, go find a guy for a blowie.”
I grin. Horny doesn’t answer more than snorting.
When I was traded to Arizona last year, Keno Edgewood, Etna Yreka, Lund Hornbeck—affectionately known as Horny—and Hilt Callahan were players on the Arizona team. They still are. The year prior, Laurent Duval was also on the team. Laurent, whom we call Lo, was transferred to Toronto, conveniently more than a thousand miles closer to his now-husband, Caulder Haines, who plays in Buffalo. And unfortunately, at the end of last season, I was traded back to Chicago, where I’d been traded from in the first place.
I’ve never met a group of guys who are just… great. Maybe that makes me sappy or corny or whatever, but I miss that. They took me in immediately. Even Lo, who basically acted like I’d always been a part of their friendship group.
I’ve only met him a few times in person. Mostly when our teams played each other, and at Keno and Etna’s wedding, where he was the ring bearer. Which I think they might haveregretted after the fact, since he wore their wedding bands on his nipples like nip rings. Nope, not even kidding. It rivaled the funniest thing I’d ever seen. Right up there with Keno and Etna’s grandmothers using a flower cannon to shoot petals into the audience.
A smile stretches across my face as I think about their wedding. When I joined the team and the group took me in, I thought they were already together. As it turns out, they were entirely oblivious that they were practically married already. It was amusing.
But the part that always makes me smile was watching them realize how much they loved each other and witnessing them fall in love. It made me understand something about myself in a very potent way.
I want that.
I’m not going to pretend I’m old by any means. I’m twenty-two. Practically a baby. I have my entire life ahead of me. But I’ve yet to find a girl who can accept me as I am and still wants to spend their life with me.
How do you take out an ad for an asexual partner? Where would I put that up?
To the next person who tells me to try dating apps, I’m going to knock their teeth out with my hockey stick. As if I haven’t tried that already.
The last three of our teammates get ambushed by another team. There’s cursing and laughter as the screen shifts point of view between the three of them in quick succession, each viewing ending with blood spatter.
“Well, shit,” Keno mutters.
Our game blacks out, and the recap of points loads.
“Have time for one more?” I ask, picking up my controller.
“Sorry, man. We have to get to practice. It was Coach’s kid’s birthday today, so we have an evening practice,” Hilt says.
There goes four. “No worries.”
“I can play another,” Lo says. “I might be able to convince Caulder to log in, though I think he’ll die right away. Ouch.”
I grin. Horny’s laughing as he logs off.
“It’s not an insult. Just an observation. Ouch.” There’s the ruffle of noise and then Caulder’s laughter.
I wantthattoo. I never knew them before they met at the All-Stars Game, almost two years ago now, but it feels like they’re one of those couples who have been together since they were kids. Childhood sweethearts. There’s such familiarity and comfort between them.
I want all that, a quiet voice in my head whispers.
“Doesn’t look like Caulder’s going to log in,” Lo says. “My fault. Just us, Jules.”
“That’s cool. We can play with two if you’re up for it.”
“Sure.”
We go through the load screens and then wait in the lobby to be let into the next game. While we wait, Lo asks, “How’s Chicago treating you?”
“This is going to come as a surprise, but it’s windy and cold.”
He snorts. “Trust me, I get that. We might be at different latitudes, but it’s windy and cold here too.”
