Page 41 of Hockey Halloween

Kelli

I’m working on it

With the doors open, the kids came in, sometimes singly, sometimes in a group.

We helped them find and put on skates in their sizes.

Larry and I had to work as a team, but it was awkward.

We’d sit two kids together on a bench, but just when I’d be about to tie up the lace, Larry would move his hand and my fingers would slip off and I’d have to start again.

Did I complain? Not a bit. When would I ever get a chance to be this close to Larry Han again?

I didn’t know how many kids were playing hockey in the other rink, but we ended up with ten children, ranging in age from two to eight.

“You guys ready for some skating?” Larry asked.

The eight-year-old shrugged. The two-year-old bit her lip and looked ready to cry. Larry tensed beside me, so I bent toward the toddler. “Who wants to play a game?”

All eyes moved to me, including Larry’s.

I held up my hand, the one connected to him. “I’m Kelli, and my friend is Larry. As you can see, we have to stick together. ”

“Were you arrested? Are you criminals?” a girl around seven asked. She stared at us with wide eyes.

“No. We’re not criminals, and we weren’t arrested. It was a joke that got out of hand. Do you have a brother?”

She nodded.

“That’s how it happened. My brother was a dummy.”

“Are you going to be together like that forever?” asked a younger boy.

“That could be a problem.” Oh hell, what if I suddenly had to pee?

“Larry and I have jobs to do, and we couldn’t do it handcuffed together.

I work for a dentist, and imagine what that would be like!

” I mimed cleaning someone’s teeth, and Larry’s arm followed my movements.

The younger kids laughed, and a couple of them touched their teeth as if they were recreating the scene.

The eight-year-old stared at the handcuffs. “How are you going to get them off?”

“We’re getting a key to unlock the handcuffs, but until then, Larry and I have to be a team. So, to make things fair, we’re going to pair you guys up and play tag.”

“Tag? That’s a kid’s game.” Because eight was so grown-up.

“Are you a good skater? Cause we’re doing this on the ice.”

“Yeah. I can skate.” He crossed his arms, undoubtedly reflecting an older sibling’s attitude.

“Excellent.” I took a couple of steps, Larry following, and put my free hand on the shoulder of the two-year-old. “This is your partner.”

“What the hell?”

I held up a finger. “If you’re good, we have to handicap you. And please, be careful what you say around the little ones.”

I moved on, hoping he’d stop complaining. Once we had the pairs sorted, I volunteered Larry and me to be It to start, and the kids skated away.

It wasn’t a perfect way to handicap people.

Danny, the eight-year-old, simply picked up the toddler and skated with her, and the others had a hard time catching up to Danny.

Larry and I were faster than any of them, so that helped us to keep on top of any problems, and since we let people catch us, we made sure to tag Danny often.

We tried a race after, where the older kids had to start at the far end and the younger ones had a shorter distance to cover.

Danny won, which made him a lot happier.

He was willing to help some of the younger kids with their skating while Larry and I worked with older ones, teaching them to stop and skate backward.

We tried a big line, littlest in the middle, Larry and I on the outside, and skating in a big circle, the outer ring going faster and farther than the inside ones. I was running out of ideas, so I was relieved when the pizza break was called.

We shepherded our charges into the room where the food and drinks were laid out. The kids met up with their older siblings or cousins or neighbors, and Larry and I got a break to grab some pizza without looking out for anyone else.

He reached for the Hawaiian and I yanked his arm back. “No!”

He turned to me, brow furrowed, the makeup now streaky from where he’d been sweating. Mine probably was too. “What? Is there a problem?”

“You cannot eat pineapple on pizza.”

A grin crossed his face. “One of those, are you?”

“Those?”

“Pizza snobs. Purists.”

“It’s not being a snob to refuse to desecrate pizza.”

He extended his left arm, the one without a cuff, and grabbed a slice of Hawaiian.

“No!” I stretched past him, reaching for the offensive item. Larry didn’t move, just kept his arm where I couldn’t reach it.

I’d pressed myself against him, full body, breasts in the ridiculous costume rubbing on his fabric-covered chest. Since I was on tiptoe, our faces were almost level. I stared, and his grin dropped, something charged in the air between us.

“Hey, Hanny!” His teammate’s voice interrupted us.

I dropped to my flat feet and stepped back, only to be jerked forward as Larry turned .

“Got a cop here. If you can convince him you’re not supposed to be cuffed, he’ll unlock you.”

Suddenly the evening was a lot less fun.

Larry

The story didn’t sound any less ridiculous telling it again to the patrolman who’d been sent to release us.

My baggy costume didn’t help me seem any more trustworthy, but the guy was a Blaze fan and in a rush since it was a busy night for the police.

He pulled out his key, and fortunately, it worked.

The cuffs opened and I rubbed my wrist, enjoying the freedom.

Kelli was doing the same. There was a red mark around her slender arm. I’d tried to be careful, but skating with someone like we’d been doing made it impossible to not pull on her frequently. She’d been a good sport, and a lifesaver with the little kids we’d been dealing with.

She looked up, a smile appearing and dropping quickly.

“Since I’m free, I can get a Lyft.” She stopped. “Damn it, I don’t have my purse.” We’d left her mom’s place so quickly we hadn’t taken it.

“Do you need it now?”

She shrugged. “It’s got my phone and my keys, as well as my wallet.”

“I’ll give you a ride back to get it. It’s the least I can do after all your help.”

“But you’re not done here.”

Was she anxious to leave? I’d hoped, after that moment we’d had, that maybe something was there between us. “I can call an Uber for you, or if you’re willing to help out a little longer, I’ll give you a ride when we’re done.”

She looked away. “I don’t want to put you out.”

Relieved that she didn’t jump on the Uber option, I assured her it wouldn’t put me out (though it would). “Are you staying at your mom’s tonight?”

She shrugged. “I didn’t plan on it. I took transit from work, but if it’s too late I can stay with her.”

Or I could give her a ride to her place and find out where she lived.

“That’s settled.” I ushered her back inside.

The Hawaiian pizza was gone, so we ate the mundane ones. Kelli helped clean up the younger kids.

Crash stopped beside me. He was wearing a clown costume that fit, which meant it must be easier for him to skate, but somehow I didn’t mind my bulky one.

“Now that you’re free, do you want to play hockey? Luke or I can help with the little ones.” He was watching Kelli where she was kneeling in front of the toddler, gently cleaning off her face. “Is she seeing anyone, do you know?”

My fists clenched, and I had to relax them deliberately. “I’ll stay with the kids and Kelli. We’ve got a good system going.”

Crash smirked. “I guess I have my answer, then.”

I shot him the finger, and followed Raggedy Ann to the second rink.

This time we could split up, so she helped the kids who wanted to learn to glide and spin, and I did hockey stuff with the rest. Danny was working on figure eights while I checked his edge work, then he asked, “Is she your girlfriend?”

I looked at Raggedy Ann, makeup fading, bulky skirt ruffling as she showed a spin to a four-year-old.

“I’m working on it,” I said. He offered his hand in a high five and I slapped his palm. My interest in Kelli wasn’t very subtle.

It wasn’t late when we wrapped things up.

Some of these kids were too young to be out long, but at least they’d had an option for the night that was fun and didn’t end up with anyone in trouble.

There were bags of candy and gift cards available for them to take when they left, and I was able to weasel out of cleanup to take Kelli home.

I’d managed to pull off the seam binding tape and get out of the oversized clown costume.

Most of the makeup came off with soap in the men’s room.

We made small talk on the drive—about the event we’d been at, about our families—while the back of my brain was debating if I could ask her to come home with me.

Would she think it too fast? She wasn’t a puck bunny, looking for a player for the night, so she might say no.

But I wanted to get to know her. I wanted to see her without the Raggedy Ann costume and makeup.

With the two of us hidden behind ridiculous makeup and costumes tonight, I felt seen for who I was, not what I did.

Too often I was the Asian guy, the hockey player, not just me.

And unless I was greatly mistaken, we had chemistry, even though I hadn’t seen what she really looked like. That was new.

We pulled into her mom’s driveway. It was now or never. “I’d like to see you again.”

She whipped her head around, mouth dropping in shock. “Really?” Her voice squeaked.

“Maybe, after you get your things, I could drive you home? Or you could come to my place.”

She blinked at me, teeth chewing on her bottom lip. “I’d really like to go home and get out of this—” Her hand swept over her costume. “And I need a shower. Badly.”

“Okay.” If she didn’t want to do something tonight, maybe she would another time?

Her eyes dropped. “But if you wanted to come up…”