Page 23 of Must Love Hockey
Okay.
Well.
That was not the sort of response I’d been looking for. I touch the icon to call him. And I can feel my temper rising.
“Hello,” he says, and his voice is wary. Maybe he’s already regretting that response. He ought to be.
“You know what?” I say without a greeting. “You always try to make me feel like I’m in training. As if I’m here looking for life tips on how to get ahead.”
“Getting ahead is always my focus,” he says.
“Iknowthat,” I snap. “God, I know. But what if I want more out of life than that?”
“But thatishow you get more!”
“It’s not,” I insist. “Sometimes you can do things just for fun. Or just becausesomeone you lovethinks it’s fun.”
“I can’t afford fun,” he says. “Not yet. But there will be time for fun later. And I really need you to be onboard for the whole ride.”
Tonight, I’m not onboard.
But saying so would bring me too close to a cliff that I’m afraid to jump off. So I mumble something conciliatory and tell him I need to go.
“Love you,” he says as a sign-off.
I’m too grumpy to repeat it.
EIGHT
CORPORATE ZOMBIES OF DOOM
James
After the game, I wait, and I hope. But it doesn’t look good.
“She’s not out in the corridor with the families. I’m sorry,” Heidi Jo tells me as I carry sticks to the van. Every time I duck outside to the loading dock, I look up and down the block, hoping to spot her.
But she never comes.
Instead, I get a very nice thank-you text the next day.
Emily: That was so much fun! Thank you for giving me a ticket.
James: You are welcome. No boyfriend at the game last night? Delilah said she was your date. She thanks you for turning in the extra ticket, BTW.
Emily: No boyfriend at the game. He was going to come, but then he bailed at the last minute.
I argue with myself for a good half hour before responding. Does she need my opinion? No. But, fuck it. I give it to her anyway.
James: Just saying—if you were my date, there’s no way I’m bailing at the last minute. Unless the zombies got me. Did the zombies get your man?
Emily: You know what? His job in finance sometimes makes it feel that way. The corporate zombies of doom often have him tight in their clutches.
Now I feel like a dick. Her guy probably hadn’t made it because he was called in to work. My own job has bonkers hours. There’s a reason I’m still single.
James: I hope things get better for both of you.
Emily: That is really nice of you to say. And it bears repeating—I had a great time last night. Thank you!And now I’m off to study for finals.
