I press mute and whisper-hiss to Taevin, “See, that’s how my brother should’ve answered the phone.”
Unmuting my phone, I say, “Hey, G. Yeah, I’m good. Not much, just getting ready for bed. You?”
“Ah, man, I feel like it’s early for you. Are you sick or something?”
I smile at how much of adadhe’s become to the group. “Nah, just been tired is all.”
“Right, that makes sense. How’s Taevin doing after surgery? Have you guys tried the chicken pot pies yet?”
“We ate them last night for dinner and they were bomb—perfect amount of flaky crust on top while not being dried out in the center. Not sure how you did it, man.” I pause, eyeing Taevin as she shifts to get comfortable. “Tae’s doing good, resting up and healing.”
“Nice! I’m glad they turned out. And that’s good to hear about Tae. We’ve been thinking of you guys.”
Tears of gratitude well in the corners of my eyes when I think of how great of friends I’ve got. Clearing my throat, I say, “Thanks, G. How’s staying at the cabin and working at Camp Katie? Sorry I couldn’t make it up this year.”
“It’s going really good. We’ve got a few new counselors and we just kicked off the figure skating camp. It’s filled up to capacity already in year one, so that’s great news.”
“That’s awesome!”
“Yeah, it’s pretty awesome to see what Kenna and Carson have come up with to honor Katie. Anyway, I think I got us off topic. Why’d you call again?”
My attention is momentarily pulled back to Tae when she gasps. Clearing my throat, I answer, “I was really just calling to say goodnight, man. And that I miss you.”
Griff sniffs on the other end of the phone. “Fuck, buddy, I think you might make me emotional.”
“Don’t go crying over me calling you,” I tell him, chuckling because he’s not giving me shit right now, he’s being completely serious.
“I won’t, but I miss you too. Say hi to Taevin for us. We’ll be back in the city in time for training camp and Bennett’s cookout in a few weeks.”
“Sounds good, bud. I’ll let you get back to the fam.”
“Thanks, J. Love you.”
“Love you too, G. Night.”
“Sleep tight, fucker,” he says, and I chuckle as I hang up the phone, stopping short when I see Taevin has tears streaming down her cheeks.
Panic flares in my chest at the sight of her in pain. “T, what’s wrong? Fuck, I said I shoudn’t have called him.”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Then what is it?” I press.
“It’s just, I didn’t realize the camp you were missing for me to be here was a camp dedicated to Katie’s memory. When did they start that?”
My heart sinks thinking about Katie’s accident and her funeral. Both of which happened only days after I left for my freshman year of college. Swallowing past the emotion swelling in my throat, I run my fingers through my hair. “Carson and Kenna, uh, they started a summer sports camp in honor of Katie. It’s up north on the lake where we spent the Fourth of July with them. They bought a former resort that had closed down and fixed it up so the cabins could house the campers and counselors.”
I take a deep breath to combat the weight of grief pressing down on my chest before continuing, “I believe this is the sixth summer. They originally started by offering only hockey, golf, and volleyball camps. I’m pretty sure Katie played a hand in the fact that there just so happened to be an older hockey rink down the road from the campsite. McKenna made it a priority to have both beach and court volleyball offered the second summer. From there, it’s grown year after year. It sort of went viral and got all sorts of attention last summer when Nathan Connelly filmed part of hisHockey Visionarydocumentary there after he was drafted.”
Tae’s breath hitches. “Wow. That’s a beautiful tribute to Katie—to continue her legacy in a way that benefits young athletes.”
“Yeah, I agree. And they’ve made it their mission to make the camp accessible to kids from all walks of life. There’s a scholarship program where a professional athlete can sponsor kids, or even entire teams, to cover their fees and travel expenses.”
She catches me off guard when she asks, “What’s been your favorite part of working the camp?”
I scratch the scruff covering my jaw as I think about my answer. If I were being honest, I’d tell her that working with the kids is undoubtedly my favorite part, but I don’t know if that would upset her. So instead I respond with my second favorite part. “I love being back at their family lake house. That’s where I spend most of the offseason. It brings back good memories.”
Taevin inches closer to me, giving me a dreamy smile, and the sight has me feeling like I’ll never be more victorious than when I’ve earned one of her smiles.
