Page 2 of Dreams
Taylor shrugged. Truth be told, she was glad to be leaving Portland. She only wished Ohio wasn’t her destination. Her dad had been retired from the NHL for fifteen years now and was finally going back, as a coach this time. After winning the Memorial Cup, he was offered an assistant coach position with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He loved his team in Portland, but the NHL was the dream.
Taylor was going with them, but her parents decided it was time for her to restart her life. They were making her start at Ohio State in September. Even worse, they were forcing her to live in the dorms. They thought it would be good for her to meet some new people. They didn’t want to know what she thought about that.
Taylor left them chatting and let her feet take her through the house, towards the stairs that led into the basement. The room was a converted living space for hockey players the family hosted.
Taking the steps slowly, she stood in the open door. Her eyes did a sweep of the familiar surroundings, but it wasn’t the same. The photo of the two of them that Danny had blown up and framed no longer hung on the wall beside the bed. The comforter was black now instead of a light blue.
The scent of cinnamon air fresheners that he loved so much no longer hung in the air.
Someone cleared their throat behind her, and she turned to find a boy watching her. He looked to be a few years younger than herself.
“Can I help you?” he asked.
“What?”
“This is my room.” He pointed behind her. “I just moved in.”
“Oh, sorry.” She moved to walk by him, avoiding his eyes.
“You’re the old coach’s daughter, right?”
The old coach. That stopped her, and she turned. Her father was no longer the coach to these guys. If this boy just moved in, he would only play for the new one.
Yeah,she thought.Things are changing.
“I’m sorry about that guy,” the boy stammered as she continued to stare at him.
That guy. People always felt obligated to say things like that, even when they didn’t know the person. This boy would play for Danny’s team and never know him. The guys that did know him were starting to move on from junior hockey.
The boy shifted nervously as Taylor stayed quiet.
Finally, she brushed by him without a word. At the top of the stairs, she turned left and rushed by people. A few called her name, but she didn’t stop until she reached the back door. The sounds from inside were instantly muffled as she slid the glass door shut behind her.
Night had fallen, but the summer air was still warm on her skin. The only light came from the full moon overhead, but it was enough.
She slid her feet from her sandals and left them by the door before padding across the concrete to the edge of the pool.
Over the years, she spent a lot of time in that pool. When she and Sarah were on the swim team in high school, they’d spend hours out here practicing. It was large, big enough for three or four people to take laps. Danny would come home from training and cannonball in, disrupting their practice. Sarah would get annoyed, but Taylor could never be mad at Danny for long.
She lowered herself to the ground, the concrete scraping against the back of her legs as she hung her feet into the water. It was a peaceful night - in contrast to the crowd inside. Taylor had grown to appreciate the quiet, preferring to be alone most of the time than with people who felt obligated to fill the space that silence created.
She slid more of her legs into the water until her butt was on the very edge. In that moment, she knew what she wanted to do to make herself forget.
Her mom would kill her. She had spent quite a bit of time making sure that Taylor’s long brown locks were curled just right. It would probably ruin her dress, but she never planned on wearing it again anyway.
The water was so smooth against her skin. It invited her in. An invitation she accepted as she slid off the edge. There was a second of suspension before her head dipped below the dark water and the world disappeared.
The pool wasn’t deep so her feet hit immediately, the water just skimming the top of her head. She blew out, and the bubbles floated by her face before racing up towards the surface. Nothing existed while she was in the water. It had been a long time since she swam, and she suddenly couldn’t understand why. It was the one place she didn’t have to think. The only noise was the blood rushing in her ears. She could almost believe that everything would be right again when she emerged. Almost.
Before long, her lungs started screaming out for a breath. She lifted her feet from the bottom and let herself float up, gasping for air as her head broke through the water. She flipped her sopping hair out of her face and dipped her head back to let the water smooth it. Her dress floated up in a circle around her as she kicked her legs to propel her across the pool slowly.
It wasn’t until she glanced back towards the house that she realized she wasn’t alone. At first, she thought she was imagining things.Danny?
No. As she peered closer she noticed this person had a bulk to his frame that Danny always failed to achieve.
The man stood silhouetted in the dark, arms crossed and foot resting back against the house, watching her.
“Who is that?” she asked, suddenly angry at the intrusion on her solitude.
