Page 34 of Damsel in Defense
Throwing the towel I was using back over the bench, I clench my jaw.Start showing her my crazy, huh.Yeah, I could do that.
One slow, long kiss at a time.
With a bit more hope thumping in my chest, I push off and join the defensive drills again, finally feeling more like myself.
***
Back at the hotel later that night, I make a half-assed attempt to join the team in the lounge.There’s a poker game happening at one end, mostly rookies trying to make an off-ice impression, and what looks like a video game competition at the other.
I last ten minutes before ducking out, exhaustion and anticipation getting the best of me.
I’m dying to text Victoria and start testing the water.
My phone’s already in my hand by the time I get back to my room.Jumping onto my bed, I pile up all the pillows I have behind me and settle in for what I hope will be an enlightening chat.
Opening her contact, I scroll up and reread our last interactions.Basic stuff.Telling her I arrived, and I’ll see her in three weeks.Her asking if she can come up to my condo to watch aTitanicdocumentary since I have the bigger TV.Simple things, but all communications that hint at us being open and very comfortable with each other.
When I notice that my hands are literally shaking, I decide I need a bit of a breather before I come up with the perfect text.
So, like an idiot, I open my social media.
Horrible idea.My feed is immediately flooded with sports predictions for the upcoming season that have a pit growing in my stomach, videos of stupid dances…and my ex-girlfriend.Shit.I thought I unfollowed her when we broke up.
Quickly tapping into her profile, I unfollow, then get the hell out of there.I’m careful and precise with my movements, not wanting to accidently like or click into anything I don’t want to see.
Needing to cleanse my palate from all the flash content, I search and click into Victoria’s profile.It’s all soft colours and dreamy landscapes.I instantly feel better.
Best thing of all, she’s posted something in the last hour.A smile grows on my face as soon as I see her.She’s stunning.
Her bright blue eyes are shining up at the camera, red hair flowing wildly around her, and I can tell she’s seconds away from a belly laugh.Her guitar is in her hands, balanced on her lap, with a notebook not too far off.She must be in the studio working on something.
I zoom in on her face, screenshotting the picture so I have it with me always.I’m so thrilled she’s back in the studio, feeling creative again.
She’d mentioned to me the night before I headed out to training camp that she was experiencing writer’s block.The words and melodies that used to come to her so easily had been silent.And that scared her.
I understand that kind of fear.Even though our careers are vastly different, there are striking similarities at times.If she couldn’t write, something that was part of her brand, then her career would likely suffer.Same with me—if I hurt myself and didn’t recover fully, my career would suffer, and I’d be put out to pasture before I was ready.
So seeing her back in the studio, happy, is like a bolt of lightning to my system.
Back to hearing voices and sweet, sweet melodies.
Even the caption makes my smile grow.
My need to connect with her is overwhelming now.Tapping back into our text chain, I send the first thing that comes to mind.
MASON:Yay to hearing voices again!Studio time paid off…finally!
My heart is beating overtime as soon as I press Send.Eyes glued to the screen, I wait to see those three magical dots dance, letting me know she’s writing back.
But I wait.
And wait.
Fifteen minutes of me flipping through TV channels later, and still nothing from Victoria.A strange feeling starts to build in my gut.This isn’t like her.
She could still be writing and focused, her phone across the room or on silent…but even that doesn’t sit right with me.It’s almost ten.Her day at the studio should have ended hours ago.Or do artists really burn the midnight oil if their muse is still talking to them?
Crap.I’ll have to ask Victoria about that.Yet in the time that I’ve known her, she’s been pretty adamant about getting good sleep.It helps with her anxiety.
