Disregard the Lies

Sadie couldn’t get out of Joe Louis Arena fast enough after the game. She just wanted to get away from anything that would remind her of Jonathan. She still couldn’t believe that he had slept with Amber. Sadie shook her head as she walked down the hallway, trying to reach the exit. She let out a sigh of relief when she got out the door without being stopped.

She was ready to drive back to her apartment and drown her sorrows in the tub of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream sitting in her freezer when she thought of a better solution. She turned at the stoplight, going in the opposite direction of her apartment.

She pulled into the parking lot of the first bar she found, just wanting to forget all of her problems. She knew that she would be able to sleep off the awful hangover she was bound to get the following day since she didn’t have to do anything for the Ice Girls. She got out of her car, and immediately she was met with whistles from guys in the parking lot. She ignored them as she made her way inside and made her way towards the bar.

However, half way there, she saw a familiar face sitting in the corner, laughing. He made eye contact with her, and she continued her trek to the bar, as he stood up and met her there. “Hey,” he told her, sitting down on the barstool next to her, as she ordered a Long Island Iced Tea. “Sadie, I’ve never seen you drink before. Are you sure you want to start out with a Long Island Iced Tea?” Jonathan asked her.

Sadie glared at him. “Don’t be concerned with me now,” she told him, taking the glass and drinking half of it immediately.

“Sadie, are you mad at me?” Jonathan asked, confused as to why she was acting this way.

“Was going out with me that bad?” Sadie asked, sadness in her eyes. “Or was it all just a joke? God, Jonathan, we’ve been going out for nearly five months. Why now?” she asked, finishing off her drink and ordering another one.

“Sadie, what are you talking about?” Jonathan asked her. “What do you mean ‘was it all a joke’? Of course going out with you isn’t a joke,” he assured her.

“Drop the act, Jonathan,” Sadie told him, taking a sip of her drink. “I know you slept with Amber,” she stated.

Jonathan’s eyes went wide. “What are you talking about?” he asked her. “I never slept with Amber!”

“I saw your number in her phone. You called her last night. You told me that you went to bed early, and now I know what you really meant. You went to bed early with her!” Sadie said, her voice rising.

“Sadie, I didn’t sleep with her,” Jonathan told her.

“Then explain to me why you called her last night. Explain to me why you didn’t pick up when I called you, and why you didn’t call me back until this morning,” she yelled.

“Sadie,” Jonathan began, trying to get her to quiet down. He looked around and saw his teammates staring at them. “I will explain everything to you. Just not here. I don’t want to get into an argument with you right now when my teammates are sitting right over there listening to every single thing we are saying,” he explained.

“Whatever,” Sadie said, downing the rest of her drink and ordering her third one. She could already feel the effects of the alcohol, as she never really drank. And, she had to admit it was exactly what she wanted, to just let the alcohol help her forget everything that had happened, even if it was just for one night.

“Sadie, I really think you should slow down,” Jonathan said, taking the glass from her hands.

Sadie snatched the glass back, glaring at him. “Why don’t you go back to your teammates and quit worrying about me and my drinking,” she told him, getting up off the barstool and walking to a table. She quickly downed another drink and a half, and she knew she was completely wasted by this time. She heard laughter coming from behind her, and she turned around to see Jonathan and his teammates laughing at something.

Jonathan looked up at her and gave her a sympathetic smile. She watched as some of the guys got up and walked out, leaving just a few of them left at the table. Sadie got up, stumbling over to them. She reached the table, giving Jonathan a sarcastic smile before sitting down in between him and Henrik Zetterberg.

“Sadie, I didn’t even know you were here,” Henrik said, and she knew he was lying. He had been one of the guys who had been staring at her and Jonathan when they had been arguing.

“Hey, Hank,” she smiled at him. “Valtteri,” she continued, seeing Valtteri Filppula sitting across from her and next to Jonathan. He said a quick hello, and Sadie continued turning her head until she got to Jonathan. She gave him a smirk before turning her attention back to Henrik. “So, you’re single aren’t you?” she asked, and Jonathan’s eyes went wide. He turned to look at Valtteri, who gave him a questionable look. Jonathan shrugged his shoulders, turning his attention back to Sadie. He knew she was drunk, but he still couldn’t believe she was asking Henrik if he was single.

“Yes, I am,” Henrik replied.

Sadie turned her attention to Valtteri. “What about you?” she asked, pointing her finger at him as she leaned across the table.

“No, I’m not,” Valtteri said with a small laugh as he shook his head. “And, actually, I should be getting home to Kristina,” he told them. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” he said to Jonathan and Henrik before looking back at Sadie. “I’ll see you later, Sadie.”

“Bye,” Sadie said with a big smile, waving goodbye to him, and finishing off her drink. She turned back around to look at Henrik. “So,” she said, putting her hand on the inside of his thigh, causing him to jump a little bit. “What are your plans for tonight?” she asked him suggestively.

Jonathan stood up, grabbing Sadie’s arm and pulling her up out of her seat and out of earshot of Henrik. “Sadie, you are making a complete fool out of yourself right now,” he said through gritted teeth.

Sadie jerked her arm out of his grasp, glaring at him. “You’re just mad that all of my attention isn’t focused on you right now,” she snapped.

“Sadie, I get that you’re mad at me. But, if you just leave with me right now, I’ll explain everything to you,” Jonathan told her.

“I don’t want to hear what you have to say,” Sadie yelled, stumbling back over to Henrik. She turned back around to see Jonathan walking out the door of the bar. She rolled her eyes at him, and sat down on the chair next to Henrik.

“So, I was thinking…since you’re single…and I’m single…” Sadie stuttered, getting close to Henrik with every word.

“Let’s go,” Henrik said, grabbing her hand and leading her out of the bar.

They passed by her parked car, and she tried to explain that she needed to get her car back home, but he just told her that she could come back and get it in the morning. He helped her climb into his SUV, and he made sure she had her seatbelt on before he walked around to the other side, getting into the vehicle himself.

Fifteen minutes later, he parked his SUV and helped Sadie out. She looked around, and then looked up at Henrik. “This place looks really familiar,” she said, trying to remember where she’d seen it, but the alcohol kept blocking her memory.

“Yeah,” Henrik replied, helping her up the stairs. He walked up to a door, and knocked on it.

Sadie looked over at him, a questionable look on her face. “Why are you knocking on your own door?” she asked as the door opened in front of her to reveal Jonathan standing on the other side. She spun around towards Henrik. “You took me to Jonathan’s place?” she yelled, suddenly remembering why she recognized the building so well.

“Thank you,” Jonathan told Henrik, who simply nodded in reply.

“Take care of her,” Henrik told her as he turned around and started walking down the stairs.

“You’re just going to fucking leave me here?” Sadie yelled after him, but Henrik continued walking. She turned to look at Jonathan, who ushered her inside, shutting the door behind them. She stared at him, saying, “Why the hell did Hank drop me off here?”

“Because I told him to,” Jonathan replied. She continued staring at him, and he explained further. “I told him about us dating,” he admitted.

“I don’t know why you did that. Because we are no longer dating. You fucked that up when you slept with Amber,” she yelled at him.

“I didn’t sleep with Amber,” he said once again.

“Then you better start explaining,” Sadie told him.

“I will,” he promised. “But, in the morning. There’s no point in me trying to explain it to you now when you’re obviously completely trashed. Why don’t you go to sleep, and we’ll discuss it in the morning?” he asked her.

“I am not staying here.”

“Sadie, you’re not going anywhere,” Jonathan told her. “Just go back to the bedroom and go to sleep. Like I said, we’ll discuss everything in the morning. And, don’t worry. I’ll be sleeping on the couch,” he added when he saw the look on her face.