Page 35 of Zero Pucks Given
“It was… fine,” I said. “Uneventful. We were convincing, or so Manny says.”
Mason gave me a strange look, then aimed a finger at me. “Wait a minute. Do you actuallylikeher now?”
“Of course not.”
I tried to leave the kitchen, but the rookie blocked my path. “You do! I know that look! You totally have a crush on her now!”
“No,” I snapped. “I don’t like her.”
I paused.
“But… I don’t think I hate her anymore.”
17
Josie
“I didn’t hate it!” I told Sharon. “That’s what’s so weird about it!”
We were at work the next evening, pouring beers at the concession stand for the line of waiting patrons. Rather than a Surge or Spurs game, there was a concert playing at the Frost Bank Center tonight. Some indie band I had never heard of before. I liked working concerts because the fans were always easier to deal with. If the Surge or Spurs were losing badly, the fans got grumpy and tended to take it out on the staff, but the patrons at a concert werealwaysin a happy mood.
“Why is that weird?” Sharon asked. “You’re notsupposedto hate sitting courtside for an NBA game with one of the hottest, richest guys in town.”
“He’snotone of the hottest guys in town,” I replied.
Sharon gave me a look. “The point is, you should have had a good time! Anyone would have!”
“I didn’t expect it after the first date. That’s all.”
Our conversation was put on hold for a few minutes when we got a rush of food orders.
“Did anything interesting happen on the date?” Sharon asked thenext time we were both at the register together.
“LeBron fouled out in the third quarter,” I said. “He got a technical foul for arguing with the ref.”
“Anything else?”
I glanced at my best friend. “Damnit. You know about the kiss, don’t you?”
“YES I KNOW ABOUT THE KISS!” she hissed at me. “When were you going to tell me?”
“This is the first time I’ve seen you since the date.”
“Exactly! You’ve had almost a full day to text me about kissing San Antonio’s most eligible bachelor, and you’ve said nothing. I had to pry it out of you.”
“It wasn’t a big deal,” I said. “It was a quick, fake kiss to get the crowd to leave us alone.”
She whirled toward me. “That kiss didn’t look fake to me. You two were sucking face for like ten seconds!”
“How did you see the kiss? It happened during a commercial. They wouldn’t have shown it on TV.”
“Kyle saw it on ESPN this morning! He said the kiss was one of the SportsCenter Top Ten plays!”
“I don’t know what that is.”
“Me neither! But apparently it’s a big deal! You were the number seven highlight, ahead of a hockey fight but behind a really cool dunk by LeBron James.”
“That explains why my channel views are exploding today,” I said. “They spiked this morning and I couldn’t figure out why.”
