Not that it matters. Sarah wasn’t here, which is the information I wanted.
Theo appears behind me. “You ready?” he asks, and I nod.
We rode to the game together tonight, so we say goodbye to Miles and the rest of his family, then head out to the player parking lot.
“You probably feel like you’ve been thrown into the deep end,” he says, and I let out a chuckle.
“Definitely. Thanks for backing me up.”
“You know I’ve got you,” he says. “Was Sarah at the game tonight?”
I unlock my truck as we approach. “No, she wasn’t there.”
“I wondered if she would be now that you’re a thing.”
“Maybe once we’ve officially gone public,” I say as I toss my bag into the back of the truck. It concerns me how much I hope that’s true.
As soon as we’re both in the cab, I buckle my seatbelt and start the engine. “You good with a quick detour before we go home?”
Theo shrugs. “You’re driving, so I’m not sure I have much choice.”
“We won’t be able to see much,” I say as I pull out of the parking lot. “But I want to drive by anyway.”
“Drive by what?” Theo asks. “A house?”
I nod. “I’ve been texting Shelby, talking about this onelisting. They’re refinishing the floors, so I can’t see the inside until next week, but I’ve been to see the outside twice, and I think this might be the one.” It’s the same one I found the night Miles first asked me about marrying Sarah. That was just over a week ago, but so much has happened since then, it feels like it’s been a lot longer.
Theo shifts in his seat. “You already texted Shelby?” There’s something like hurt laced through the question, and I look over at him.
“I mean, you gave me her number. Isn’t that what you wanted me to do?”
“Of course it was,” he says. “But then we didn’t talk about it again. And now you’re saying you’ve already foundthe one? And gone to see it twice? Just feels like you’re making a lot of big decisions really fast.”
I hear his words, but I also hear what he isn’t saying. I’m doing it without him.
I don’t want to hurt my brother. And Idocare about what he thinks. But it’s been nice to talk to Shelby and make decisions on my own without worrying about what it might mean for him.
I’ve never really done that before.
“I should have mentioned it to you,” I say. “There’s just been a lot going on the past few days.”
He scoffs. “That’s an understatement. Look, I already told you I don’t care if you move. But Idocare if you shut me out. You can’t buy an ugly house, man. How can I make sure that doesn’t happen if you don’t tell me anything?”
“It’s only been a week. And I’m taking you there right now.”
“Good,” he says.
“Good,” I say right back.
We ride in silence for the rest of the drive, which only seems to punctuate Theo’s obvious unease.
Our entire lives, every big decision we’ve ever made has always been a decision for both of us. Hockey has pretty much been our life since we were twelve years old, and now it’s our career. Same team. Same position. Same city. Same apartment building.
I think we’ve both been aware it wouldn’t always be like this, but knowing it and experiencing it are two different things.
And I’m ready to experience it. Ineedto, honestly. I think I’m at the point where my relationship with my brother depends on it.
I turn the truck onto a wide road flanked by sidewalks and dotted with streetlamps. On either side, enormous houses with immaculate lawns reach into the cloudy February sky.
