Page 25 of Off The Ice

Liam

Pacing around the living room, I wondered for the millionth time that day what the hell was wrong with me. There was an anxious energy buzzing inside of me that even the morning workout hadn’t burned out of me.

Usually, I was occupied. Satisfied to be at home, on my own, in the peace and quiet of the refuge I had created. If not happy, then at least content.

But today, I’d been restless. Jittery, almost. A fact which was proven when my phone dinged, and I leaped for it with the speed I typically reserved for on the ice.

Get a grip.I demanded to myself, wondering why I’d expected the message to be from Cassie.

I told myself that the irritation of it coming from Brody instead was due to the fact that he was sending yet another link to some TikTok video I didn’t want to watch.

LIAM:Can’t watch these. Don’t have the app.

BRODY:Ur so lame

He responded, and then a minute later, a downloaded version of the video came through.

I clicked on it, only for some horrendous song to start blasting over clips of me on the ice, during interviews, or even just walking down the street. It was creepy as hell, if I was being honest.

LIAM:What the hell is this?

I couldn’t fight the scowl that appeared on my face while trying to mute the horrendous music playing from the video.

BRODY:It’s called a thirst trap, of which u are the star.

LIAM:Don’t send me this shit.

BRODY:Smh. Fame is wasted on the cynical.

I slammed my phone down, disgusted with the state of humanity and the horrific misuse of technology, until someone interrupted.

“Knock knock,” a sing-song voice called from the hallway, followed by a noise that sounded a lot like a foot kicking against the door. It was all the alert I needed to know that my sister was there.

I sighed, opening the front door to see Maggie’s petite frame dwarfed by multiple bags that she balanced in her arms. They wobbled, and I watched her with an amused expression as she tried to regain balance under the weight of her load.

“Thanks for the help,” she muttered, toppling inside the apartment.

“Thanks for the new scuff mark on the door,” I countered, looking down at her craftsmanship.

“A little reminder of me.” She clicked her tongue and beamed, dropping the bags in the foyer.

“And what’s all this?” I asked, gesturing down at the wreckage.

“It’s Cassie’s stuff,” she shot me a look. “What do you think it is?”

“Cassie’s stuff…” I trailed off absentmindedly, looking down at the collection of color.

“Yeah, you know, the girl who’s living in your house?” she spelled out sarcastically. “Did you not notice that she didn’t have any of her belongings with her?”

Unblinking, I stared at my sister.

“Are you coming down to help me get the rest?”

“There’s more?” I asked, my face scrunching up in disbelief.

“Duh.” Maggie rolled her eyes. “And before you freak out, this doesn’t mean she’s permanently taking up residence here or anything. But, this way, she won’t ever have to go back and see that scumbag again. She can just move her stuff from here into her next place.”

It made sense, but the jittery feeling I’d carried with me all day only seemed to amplify with Maggie’s words.

---