Page 66 of O Goalie Night
There are a lot of possibilities I’m not ready to face right now.
After closing Cody’s text window, I bring up Beth’s. The last thing she sent me was a selfie of herself in her classroom wearing a pair of antlers and a bright red nose captioning it “this is what you’re coming home to.”
All I could think was: “I can’t wait.”
Even now, I’m grinning at the screen as I think about seeing her in a couple of hours.
“Hey,” Ben says as he approaches my seat, crouching down in the aisle.
The phone slips out of my hands and I panic, attempting to retrieve it. Jesus. You’d think I was looking at naked pictures of her, judging by my reaction.
As usual, Ben doesn’t notice anything that doesn’t directly involve himself. I tuck the phone into my jeans and ask, “What’s up?”
“Are you bringing a plus one to the Christmas party?” The annual Otters holiday gala is less than two weeks away. The owners throw it every year in one of the nicer hotels in downtown Ottawa.
“Wasn’t planning on it.” I want to take Beth, obviously, but I feel like that would set off even Ben’s warning bells. Still, I wish I could invite her. Being forced to be social would be easier to endure with her by my side.
“I figured. Can I have your extra ticket for Beth?”
Well, that worked out nicely.
“Of course.”
“Thanks, man.” He gives my arm a thump with his hand. “I feel bad for ditching her on Sunday. Plus, she’ll finally get to meet Valentina.”
“How are things going with you two?” He’s been acting a bit off this week, less obnoxious than usual.
“Better, I think? She wants me to go to St. Bart’s with her for the holidays.”
I stare at him. “But you’re going home for Christmas to see your family.”
He shrugs. “I know that was the plan. But maybe I can fly them all up for a long weekend in the New Year instead.”
My face must not be doing a good job at hiding what I’m thinking because he starts to get defensive.
“Relationships are about compromise,” he says, sounding more like a self-help book than my best friend.
“Sure,” I hedge, treading carefully. “But what compromises has she made for you?”
“That’s not the point–”
“Well, maybe it should be. Don’t compromises require effort from both parties? A certain amount of give and take? I don’t know much about relationships–”
“You’re right, you don’t,” he snaps coldly.
His words hit like a physical blow, causing me to sit up straighter in my seat. I take a second to recover beforegiving him a curt nod. “Alright, man. Forget I said anything.”
“Fozz, I’m sorry. I’m really tired and in a shitty mood cause we lost. I don’t mean to be an asshole.”
It occurs to me that Ben is apologising for being an asshole a lot lately. He may claim that Valentina is the best thing that’s ever happened to him, but I’m far from convinced.
“It’s fine. The ticket is yours. I hope everything works out.” When he doesn’t move to leave I add, “Get some rest, man.” Then I close my eyes and wait for him to leave.
I don’t open them until I hear him stand and go back to his seat. I take my phone out again and look at the picture of Beth, letting her impish smile soothe the sting left by Ben’s words. Maybe I don’t know much about relationships, but for her, I’m ready to learn.
She’s talked about missing her family a few times since she got here and I know how excited she is to have everyone home for Christmas. She’ll be gutted if Ben ditches them for his girlfriend.
My thoughts are interrupted when Will snores so loud he actually wakes himself up.
