“Stretch!” Nova yelled.
“Make sure it's slippery!” Colt yelled.
“Stay hydrated!” Camila yelled next.
“We’d love to watch!” Genevieve shouted. “By we, I mean everyone not related to you!”
Sam cackled as Forest led us out of the house. My face was so red by the time we left, the cool November air felt so damn good.All their comments were long forgotten as I was shown just how much of a daddy Forest could be.
24
sam
Coach Dalton had me sitting with the team for the game when he found out I was coming. It gave me a taste of the dream that had started festering the last few weeks. It was either going to tell me my dream was a possibility or I wasn’t cut out for it. I had been stressing about it all week because it felt like this might actually work for me. I liked helping these kids out and getting to be in hockey made me feel good.
“Good job,” I said to the first linemen. “Parker, you gotta trust your wingmen more.”
I said the last part softly because I didn’t believe in calling them out if I didn’t need to.
He sighed, but that was the only acknowledgment I received. I let Coach Dalton do all of the coaching, giving praise and some help here and there. After the second period we led one to zero and we went back to the locker for a break. A sharp loud whistle alerted me to Jude and Forest, who had been cheering the entire game. I’ve never blushed more during a game than I had here, and I didn’t think I could have done this without them.
I looked up to see them yelling and giving me a thumbs up. Jude got bold and blew me a kiss, never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would have him blowing me kisses at a hockeyrink. I pretended to catch it and put it in my pocket as I walked through the tunnel following the team with a big grin on my face.
The guys were rowdy, still full of energy and ribbing each other as they got drinks and some of them ate a snack.
“What do you think so far?” Coach Dalton slapped my back.
“I like it, a little nerve-wracking, but it feels great to be out by the ice again,” I said, feeling embarrassed for the admission. “I’ve missed it.”
“Yeah, I can’t imagine how that must feel,” he said, sounding a little sad.
“How long did you play for?” I asked, realizing I had never asked before.
“I never made it past college,” he said. “I was about to be drafted to Boston, and I was hurt my senior year. I fucked up my shoulder and well, let’s just say it was so bad there was no way anyone would ever sign me”
“Ah shit, man,” I said, feeling guilty. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s ok, took me a while to accept it,” he sighed. “I was angry, hated the world and I seriously felt so cheated.”
He talked about his dark days and what he felt the few years after. Each word made me feel more of an asshole and ungrateful. I had so many years in professional hockey, more than a lot of people and here I was struggling over getting closer to the end of December and the final nail in the coffin of my retirement.
“I mean, you kind of know what I’m talking about,” he said.
“In March, I would have agreed with you, but I had eight years in the league and I got to experience life as a professional,” I sighed. “You just made me feel like the biggest pansy in the world.”
“Aww shit, I didn’t?—”
“Nah, I needed it,” I said. “I was feeling sorry for myself, and I could have had it worse.”
“Yeah, it doesn’t make your pain any less,” he said. “You had the taste of the big leagues and in a blink of an eye, it was all gone. I think that's even worse.”
I shrugged, “Maybe, but I’m seeing that I had my time and maybe it's time for something different.”
“That’s the spirit,” he said. “Alright, boys! You got to keep your stuff together!”
Coach Dalton gave them a good pep talk and some advice before we headed back out. I waited for all of the guys to head out to the ice, then pulled on Parker's jersey.
“Hey, watch number eight, he’s got a weak right, and the goalie freaks out when there are too many of you around him,” I said.
