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I take a deep breath, remembering the dread I felt when I realized I’d actually sent that video and not dreamt it.

I slump back against the cabinet and take a bite of my rice. Noel nudges my shoulder from where she’s standing next to me. “So what happened next??”

“Oh, right,” I say around a mouthful of rice. I swallow then start again. “He called me and told me he didn’t have feelings for me. Then he completely stopped talking to me for months.”

“Wow. What a jerk.” She settles back into the couch then furrows her brow. “But what does any of that have to do with you having an interesting day today?”

“Did I mention West went to college on a hockey scholarship?”

She shakes her head from side to side, making her blonde curls bounce.

“Well, he did. And he was drafted by the NHL. And this summer, he signed a contract with the D.C. Eagles.” I stare at her to see her reaction, knowing how crazy this all must sound.

Her brown eyes widen. “Your childhood neighbor was Weston Kershaw??” she shouts.

“Would you keep it down?” I whisper-yell. “You know how thin these walls are!”

She grimaces. “Sorry.”

“Yes, Weston Kershaw is my brother’s best friend.” I take a deep breath and blow it out slowly, causing my curtain bangs to fly up. “And I agreed to go to dinner with the Windell’s Friday evening. But they got tickets to the Eagle’s game, which means I have to be near ICE and I’ll be at West’s game.”

Noel blinks rapidly a few times and purses her lips. She looks deep in thought, probably mulling over the details I just relayed to her. “Okay, this is fine. Not a big deal!”

I narrow my eyes at her. “Really? That’s all you’ve got?”

“No, really. Listen, the Windells probably have fancy box seat tickets. Which means Weston Kershaw will never even notice you’re there, and you’ll be far away from the ice.”

“Oh my gosh, just call him West.” I roll my eyes. “How’d you even know who he was, anyway? I thought you hated sports.”

“Oh, I believe there are much better ways to spend one’s time than playing sports. Participating in the arts, reading, brushing your teeth…” She’s holding up a finger for each item on her list.

I cross my arms across my chest. “Okay, I get it.”

“But sadly, several of my students are obsessed with him. Which is the only reason I know who he—or any other athlete for that matter—is.” She shakes her head, a disgruntled expression crossing her face. “Anyway, back to the game. There’s no way he’ll even know you’re there. I’m more worried about your anxiety.”

“I’m hoping I’ll be okay with the ice thing. The logical part of my brain knows I can’t fall through an indoor ice rink… not to mention, I won’t even be on the ice.”

“Okay, but if you need me, just text and I’ll be there,” Noel says as she pats my shoulder.

“Oh, and if West happens to see you, who cares?” She shrugs one shoulder. “You’re a confident, beautiful woman. You have a cute boyfriend, a job you love, and the best roommate a person could ask for.”

I grimace. “All of that is true, except Jeff and I broke up.”

“Oh my gosh, finally.” She breathes a sigh of relief.

“You didn’t like Jeff?” I asked, feeling surprised because Jeff is the nicest person ever.

She scoots closer to me and drapes an arm around my shoulders. “Of course I liked Jeff. Who wouldn’t like him? The guy is a saint.” She wrinkles her nose. “But the two of you acted like very well-mannered siblings. There was no chemistry whatsoever.”

I worry my bottom lip. “Yeah, you’re right. I wanted there to be chemistry so bad. He was just so nice.”

“You can’t spend your life with a man you have nice feelings for,” she tells me with a smile.

I nod my agreement and we finish our Chinese food.

“Oh! Let’s cyberstalk West!” Noel exclaims, making me jump.

“Please no. You’ll just find a bunch of photos of him posing next to models.” I groan.