Page 17 of Crazy Pucking Love
“Not as bad as over Christmas,” Cassidy said, “but yeah. Mom’s taking extra shifts, and I think it’s as much to avoid Dad as it is about money.”
Guilt rose up. I’d been in such a hurry to get back to Boston, away from their stress and the possibility of running into Jazmine again—seeing her and how rough she’d looked had thrown me for a loop. I’d known it was bad, but at the same time, I had no idea.
I told myself that I was doing the only thing I could to help them financially—giving my all at a chance to go pro while working on a fallback education if I failed. School had never been my thing, but I did what I had to do to play. Take away that, and I wasn’t sure I’d be qualified for much more than a paper-pushing desk job, which was about my absolute worst nightmare. When I realized that last semester, during my shitty-revelations-about-myself black hole, I’d decided to switch my major to Kinesiology, in the hopes that if I couldn’t play hockey, I could be involved with it in another capacity, either coaching or training, or even physical therapy.
If I thought I could hold a job with school and hockey, I would do that to help out, too, but I could hardly keep up as it was. “I’ll call Lissa. Have a talk with her first and then go from there.”
“Thanks.” Cassidy’s relief carried over the line. “She’s always listened to you, so please, please talk some sense into her. I can handle everything else if you can take care of that.”
I knew what it was like to be the oldest and attempt to pick up the slack left from overworked parents and a lot of kids. I probably should’ve warned her, but it wouldn’t change much. It’s not something you’re ever ready for, so I’d tried to give her as much of a childhood as I could when I’d been at home.
But if it would make Cassidy’s life easier, I’d suck it up and call Jazmine. I was just really hoping it didn’t come to that.
Chapter Nine
Megan
Dane never called for math help, which didn’t really surprise me, even though I was still disappointed. I mean, he could’ve at least used the excuse of math to hang out. I’d been so sure he felt the same spark I had—that he’d crack.
Thanks to a week of only a couple of hours of sleep a night, I’d had way too much time to overanalyze it and replay all our moments together, too. You’d think eventually my body would give up the fight and decide to sleep. In desperation, I’d almost resorted to pills, but I knew it’d only throw off my sleep for the rest of the week, and with college classes, I couldn’t afford to be groggy. Or worse, sleep through my alarm.
By the time I made it to Kelly Rink on Saturday night, my limbs dragged and my eyes burned. Since the nap I attempted earlier failed to take, I’d answered Lyla’s text about going to the game with her and Whitney, and told her I’d meet them there.
After all, my brother was on the team, and Ilovedhockey. I wasn’t going to give up cheering for the home team and my brother just because it meant seeing Dane, which would probably only reiterate we were doomed to go nowhere.
My limbs dragged a bit more as that thought settled in.
As soon as I found Lyla and Whitney, excitement bubbled up, taking away the crappy feelings and reminding me how awesome my life was right now. I could attend games without having to fight my aunt first, and the freedom I’d craved for so long made everything rosier.
“This is the only team that’s beat them this season, right?” I asked Lyla as I sat in a maroon plastic chair.
She twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “Yeah. It came down to overtime last time, and they’re hoping to avoid that this game and just beat them.”
The game started, the loud buzz piercing the air, and right away the other team scored.
“Damn it.” Whitney scribbled in the open notebook on her lap.
My chair squeaked as I shifted forward. “You write down what happens in the games?”
“Yeah, I cover them for theHeights.” She explained how it started as an assignment she originally took on as a front for another piece, but that she learned to enjoy sports writing, and did it in addition to other interest articles for the paper.
Dane got a fast break and I gripped the armrests of my seat. He passed to Hudson, who passed to Beckett. Hudson then set a pick for Dane, who cut to the middle. With Dane now wide open, Beckett passed to him, and he shot.
A sense of pride filled me as the red lights flashed, signaling a point for us, and I told myself not to get carried away. I didn’t do anything to help them score, and while I was proud of Dane, he was only… Could I even call him a friend? Were we even that?
I need to start focusing on my other checklist items to help distract myself from thinking about how perfect he’d be for number five if he’d just change his mind on the relationship thing.
I knew just the one, too.
4. Discover all the best places to go in Boston
Exploring the city should keep me plenty occupied and help break up the days and nights better. Sure, having someone to go with would be nice, but if I had to do it on my own, I would. I wasn’t some helpless, fragile girl who needed constant companionship. In fact, it’d be a good way to hit another list item and make more friends.A two-for-one type deal, always a bonus.
A few minutes before the end of the first period, Lyla turned to me. “I keep meaning to ask how things are going with your roommate.”
“We get along okay, but honestly, we don’t talk much. She’s almost always with Justin, who’s apparently not her boyfriend but her sex buddy. And since we share a bedroom, and I’m a light sleeper…” As much as I wanted to confide in Lyla, I was sure if she knew how little I slept she’d tell Beckett, and he’d go into overprotective mode, and I was trying to prove I was a strong, independent person who didn’t need help. “Anyway, I’ve woken to hooking-up noises way too often. Or I get back to my room to find itocupado. At least then I can find something else to do instead of pretending I’m still asleep.”
“Ugh, sorry. That’s rough.”
