Page 28

Byron

I’m nearly in tears watching my childhood best friend–brother, really–take the ice in an NHL game. The KeyBank Center isn’t Madison Square Garden, but it’s a hostile place to play. The New York State rivalry has the arena on edge.

The friends and family box is just a meeting place for Jalen’s friends at this point. The boys and I are glued to the edge of the box, watching our former captain warm up with players we’ve looked up to since we were kids.

“I hope he gets in a fight today.” Josiah is in awe, taking in his first professional hockey game. He still can’t believe that fighting is an honored tradition of the game.

“It’d be cool to see his first goal,” Marcus chimes in. The boys get into a conversation about how Jalen’s season is going so far. I lose interest quickly when I notice Lola looking at her phone, disappointment written in her slumped shoulders and sad eyes.

“Everything okay, Pips?”

“Oh, it’s nothing you want to talk about,” she warns me. But I don’t heed it.

I don’t say anything. If it is something that bothers her, she knows she can talk to me.

“Umm, okay,” she adjusts the clip that is holding back half her hair.

“Dalton’s game ended a couple of hours ago.

He normally texts me right after the game finishes, no matter what the outcome is.

But I haven’t heard from him yet,” she takes a deep breath before adding.

“He wasn’t too happy I was coming here today, but I told him when we started dating that these friendships mean a lot to me, and I wasn’t going to end them because you guys have some childish rivalry. ”

I try and fail to suppress a smile. It has to be eating away at him that she isn’t bowing to his every demand. Any sense of joy evaporates when I notice the pile of chipped black nail polish at her feet.

“Do you want my honest answer?” She nods.

“I think this has been happening a lot lately, and maybe you should have a conversation with him about it,” I hesitate for a second, but friends are honest with each other.

“He has a reputation at home for not always being the most upstanding boyfriend and I just wanted you to know that Lo. I don’t want you to go into this conversation with him not knowing everything that I do. ”

Sighing, she lets her shoulders sag. This can’t be easy to hear. I know she feels like everyone who earns her trust abuses it and that’s why I am honest with her. She deserves so much better than him.

“Now for the real reason I came over here, our birthday party. It has to be epic. The thirtieth falls on a Saturday. The party will flow beautifully from your birthday to mine.”

Last year we cuddled in my bed after the baseball team’s Halloween party.

Lola told me she’d rather celebrate my birthday and completely forget about hers.

She didn’t need the spotlight and would rather give me her light.

That’s not going to fly anymore. If I’d known her birthday was the day before mine, she would have had the most epic birthday.

We’ll have to make up for that this year.

“Fuck it, let’s throw the best Halloween party Westvale has ever seen.”

“That’s the Lola I’ve been missing.”

She playfully shoves my shoulder and then jumps to her feet. I follow her gaze to the ice. Jalen is on a breakaway. It’s just him and the goalie. He pulls his stick to the left and then quickly back to the right before sliding the puck between the goalie’s legs.

“Holy fuck, he did it!” The box erupts. Cheering as we celebrate Jalen scoring the first goal of this professional career.

I drag Lola into a hug, and damn, I wish she was taller so I could use her to hide the tears that are stubbornly fighting their way down my cheeks.

Even in her heeled boots, Lola needs to get on her tip-toes to wipe away my tears.

“I love how close you two are. It’s nice to see a big, tough hockey player get emotional.”

I roll my eyes. I’m a little embarrassed that she is drawing attention to my current state, but if it means I get her cuddled this close to me, I’ll cry in public any day.

Jalen put our name on the list so we could see him in the locker room after the game. The three-goal victory continued the hot start the Rangers have had this season.

Jalen meets us in the hallway. I’m the last one to embrace him, so I take the opportunity to really make him uncomfortable with an extra-long hug.

“Thanks for waiting to score your first goal until I was in the stands; Mama Holloway owes me some cookies.”

“You did not make a bet with my mom about who would see me score my first goal.”

“Oh, I did, and I definitely thought I was going to lose since she has been to all your home games.”

“Lola and Dalton, huh?” No lead in. No mention of it when we were alone earlier today. Just a casual conversation to have in front of his new teammates.

“I think she is starting to realize that all that charm is just for show.” I lean against the cinder block wall. My hands tucked into the front pockets of my jeans.

“Are you going to jump on that once she does?”

“I’m just trying to earn her trust back.”

“And when you do?”

“We’ll have to hope she’ll give me another shot.” She doesn’t really do second chances.

“Just don’t have some kind of secret relationship this time around and everything will be fine.”

“If I’m lucky enough that she takes me back, the whole world will know that Lola is my girl.”