Page 138 of Facing Off
A balm to my dark soul.
His faint chuckle.
“Are you trying to suffocate me, baby?”
“Yes.”
“Thank you,” he whispers, squeezing me.
“For suffocating you?”
“For being here. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
In my mind, I sayalways.Out loud I say, “Obviously.”
We pull apart, and I’m introduced to Jesse’s dad.
“Lovely to meet you, Sonya,” he says, smiling warmly at me. “You two better get out of here, before you get bombarded by the crowd.”
Adrian’s arm goes protectively around my waist. “Are you sure?”
“Definitely, son. I’ll see you later.”
Quick plans are made for Mr. Osler to come to Adrian’s next game, and then we’re exiting through a side door.
Before we leave, we hear Mr. Osler go back on stage and tell everyone that at the hospital where Jesse passed,there’s a wing named after Jesse because of how much Adrian has donated to it. And that Adrian’s also been funding youth hockey camps around the country under Jesse’s name.
Back in the car, Adrian promises that we’ll head back to Vancouver right away. “I’ll drop you off at the studio, darling.”
He knows I’d carved time out of a rigorous schedule to be here.
I open my mouth to agree, because that’s where I should be. Practicing ballet. The audition is fast approaching. I’m stressed.
What comes out is, “This is where you grew up, right? Does your family still live here?”
“My mom and my sisters do.”
I lean closer, curious. “You don’t want to see them?”
He rubs the back of his neck. “Normally, I’d have dinner with them before heading back, but it’s a long drive back to Vancouver, and I’m already so grateful that you took time off from ballet to drive all the way here with me, plus the team is flying out tomorrow, so I’ll just catch them next time.”
“Why wasn’t your family at the memorial today?”
“They didn’t know I’d be there, but also—“ Adrian winces. “I’ve been avoiding this for so long, I made them think they needed to do the same.”
He’s looking out the window, ashamed about this, too.
I touch his knee. “It doesn’t have to be that way anymore.”
Our eyes meet. His are wide with some unreadable emotion. Gratefulness, maybe. “Yeah. It won’t be.”
“Do you want to see your family tonight?”
His eyes widen with surprise. The look on his face tells me that he does. Before he can reassure me that it’s okaythat he doesn’t, I blurt out, “Invite me over for dinner with them.”
Adrian jerks the car to a stop in the middle of the road. Thankfully, it’s a small town. There’s no one behind us. “You would come with me?”
“Ask me and see.”
