Reunited
Him
“Who was that?”
“Talking to your new girlfriend?”
“What happened to the sexy little brunette you were with?”
“Hey, that’s my cousin.”
“Sorry, Gags, but you gotta admit, she’s a babe.”
Jordan leaned against the back of his locker with his eyes closed as the rest of the team questioned him about his phone call. He had almost made it all the way through practice without being bored out of his mind. He had been close to going to the locker room, throwing on his skates and jumping on to the ice. Instead he had pulled out his phone and called the girl from the club. He had left the bench to make the phone call in the locker room, which he now realized was a bad idea so close to the end of practice. Just as he was finishing the call, the team walked into the room, hearing the rest of what had been said.
“Where you calling that redhead back?” This time the question was quiet.
Slowly opening his eyes, Jordan looked to his left. Taylor was sitting there looking at him. There was a hint of concern in his eyes, but Jordan didn’t understand why. “Yea, I called her back.”
“Are you sure about this, man?” Taylor glanced around the room to make sure no-one was paying attention to them. The last thing either of them wanted to do was explain who the mysterious red-haired woman was. “I mean, think about it. If she isn’t your friend, Samo, are you going to be okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Jordan raised an eyebrow at his friend. “If it’s not her, at least I’ve made another friend, right?”
“Yea, unless she is just trying to get close to you so she can use you.”
“You really think someone would stoop that low? Besides, you know I don’t hand out money like its chocolate.”
“It’s not your money I’m worried about,” Taylor muttered.
Jordan ignored his comment and glanced at his phone before standing up. “I know you’re just trying to help, but seriously Taylor, you’ve got to back off. I’m going to go call Lindsay, okay?”
“I don’t think you should,” Taylor said.
Jordan sighed and sat back down beside his friend. “You better start talking.”
“What?” Taylor looked at him as if he had gone crazy.
“Start telling me what you know about Lindsay.”
“I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about, Taylor.” Jordan’s voice was low and filled with anger. “I want to know what the hell is going on.”
“There is nothing to tell, Jordan,” Taylor held up his hands in defense. “If there was something to tell, you would know.”
Standing up for a second time, Jordan made his way for the door.
“Where are you going?” Sam asked from his locker.
“Home,” Jordan replied, with a growl.
“You’re going to walk?”
“Whatever I have to do to get there,” Jordan said before he allowed the locker room door to close behind him. It didn’t take him long to exit the building and make his way across the parking lot. He barely reached the gate when a black truck pulled up beside him. He looked through the open window at the driver.
“Get in,” the diver said, unlocking the door.
“I’m alright,” Jordan told him, ready to take a step forward.
“Get in, Jordan,” the driver repeated. “You are not walking home.”
Sighing, Jordan opened the truck door and climbed in. He buckled the seat belt and sat in silence as the man drove away from the arena.
“What’s up with you?” The driver asked.
“Nothing,” Jordan replied, looking out the window. “Why do you ask?”
“You just left the locker room claiming that you were going to walk home,” the man looked at Jordan sceptically. “You live too far away to walk from here.”
“I just needed some air,” Jordan told him, trying to avoid the subject of his problems.
“I doubt that,” the man looked back at the road.
“This isn’t the direction to my house, Ales,” Jordan said, noticing for the first time that he lived in the opposite direction Ales was driving.
“We aren’t going to your place,” Ales told him. “There is something going on with you and Taylor and the first place Taylor would expect you to be is at home. So I’m taking you to my place and you are going to tell me everything.”
“What do you mean everything?” Jordan asked, raising his eyebrow.
“Everything that has been bothering you for at least the past month,” Ales told him. “I know there has been something up or else you and Taylor wouldn’t be all secretive in the locker room.”
Jordan did his best to feign innocence. “I have no idea what you are talking about, Ales.”
“You’re not any good at lying, Jordan, so give up on the act.”
“Fine,” Jordan sighed. He looked back out the window, watching the other cars on the road.
The last thing he wanted to think about was everything that was going on in his life, but he knew that if anyone could help it would be Ales. He also knew that he could trust his older teammate not to tell anyone or judge him.
“We are here,” Ales said, putting his truck in park.
Jordan followed his teammate into the house. He had been there a few times before and noticed that hadn’t changed. The white two story house had been repainted during the summer, making it look much newer than it was. He knew that Ales and his girlfriend were happy there.
“Do you want anything?” Ales asked, leading the young player into the kitchen.
“Water would be alright,” Jordan replied, looking around the room. It wasn’t overly large and had a simple layout. The fridge and stove sat across from the sink, which was situated in the island. He sat at a stool that lined the island and watched as Ales pulled two water bottles from the fridge.
“Start talking,” Ales ordered, handing Jordan a bottle.
“I’m not really sure where to start,” Jordan admitted.
“Whenever you think the problem started is probably the start.”
Jordan nodded and launched himself into the story about meeting the red haired girl at the bar. Several minutes later, he finished off his story by telling Ales that he knew that Taylor and Sam were hiding something from him, but he had no idea what it could be.
“That’s some story,” Ales said, taking a sip from his bottle. He eyed Jordan carefully. “I don’t know what to tell you.”
“No-one really does,” Jordan shrugged, taking a swig of his water. “When I think about it, I’m not really looking for advice. I think I just want to know the truth, you know?” Ales nodded, signaling for Jordan to continue. “I want to know who the girl is, whether she is Samo or not. I want to know what it is about Lindsay that Sam and Taylor aren’t telling me. I really don’t care if it is something that is going to hurt me in the end or not. I feel like my best friend is keeping a very important secret from me.” Jordan paused and took a deep breath. “And here I am, spilling my guts like a little girl who won’t get her way.”
Ales chuckled. “I think you need to take a break, Jordan. Don’t come to practice tomorrow. I’ll tell Coach that you needed the day away from the arena. Maybe go home and visit your parents and siblings. When I talk to Coach, I’m going to try to talk him into not having you come to the game either.”
“The game isn’t for two days,” Jordan argued.
“I know, but you need to get away from the team, even if it is only for a couple of days,” Ales told him. “Take tomorrow to get out of the city. After I talk to Coach, I’ll let you know what his decision is for game day.”
Jordan nodded, knowing that he couldn’t argue with Ales. He didn’t know what he was going to do with his day off, but he was certain he wasn’t going to go home. He also knew that if he stayed in the city, Ales would find out and give him hell. “Is it alright if I stay here for awhile?”
“Sure, stay as long as you’d like.” Ales turned and started toward the stairs. At the door way he turned back to Jordan. “I’m going to shower so make yourself at home. You’ve been here before, I’m sure you know where things are.”
Jordan nodded and watched his older teammate leave the kitchen. Slowly standing from the chair, Jordan made his way into the living room. He sat down on the pale leather couch and turned on the TV. It didn’t surprise him that the channel had been set to TSN. Being the end of football season in Canada, he settled for the highlights of the East Division Semi-Finals. He already knew that Hamilton had beat Montreal, which people were saying was a strange phenomenon.
“Are you going to visit your parents tomorrow?” Ales’ voice startled the young man.
Jordan looked over at his teammate. “I don’t know for sure, but I doubt it. I might go to Martensville.”
“Where the hell is Martensville and why would you go there?” Ales sat beside Jordan, glancing at the TV to see what was on. “You’d think I would understand this game by now.”
Jordan nodded at the comment. “Martensville is about six hours away in Saskatchewan. I used to play hockey with this guy in Regina and then he got traded. Anyway, we sort of kept in touch and he’s back at home with his parents deciding what to do with the rest of his life.”
“So you are going to spend half of your day on the road?” Ales asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I’m thinking about heading out tonight,” Jordan explained. “Maybe spend the night in Lloydminster.”
“When were you planning on leaving?”
“A few hours probably,” Jordan shrugged. “You have to drive me back to my place eventually.”
“Please tell me you are taking someone with you who can drive,” Ales said, watching as Jordan’s expression filled with guilt. “I’m going to take that as a no."
Jordan shook his head. “I never really thought about it. You only suggested I leave the city half an hour ago.”
“You better find someone,” Ales warned him. “If I find out that you drove six hours, with a concussion, there will be hell to pay.”
Knowing that Ales would make good of his threat, he started running through the list of names inside his head. “This could be harder than I thought. Most of the people I know are guys that are playing hockey.”
“Figure it out, Jordan. I’ll give you until I decide to drive you home. If you haven’t found someone by then I’m going to keep you locked up in my house.”
“So much for a day away from the city,” Jordan muttered, continuing to run through the list of people he knew.
“Talking to your new girlfriend?”
“What happened to the sexy little brunette you were with?”
“Hey, that’s my cousin.”
“Sorry, Gags, but you gotta admit, she’s a babe.”
Jordan leaned against the back of his locker with his eyes closed as the rest of the team questioned him about his phone call. He had almost made it all the way through practice without being bored out of his mind. He had been close to going to the locker room, throwing on his skates and jumping on to the ice. Instead he had pulled out his phone and called the girl from the club. He had left the bench to make the phone call in the locker room, which he now realized was a bad idea so close to the end of practice. Just as he was finishing the call, the team walked into the room, hearing the rest of what had been said.
“Where you calling that redhead back?” This time the question was quiet.
Slowly opening his eyes, Jordan looked to his left. Taylor was sitting there looking at him. There was a hint of concern in his eyes, but Jordan didn’t understand why. “Yea, I called her back.”
“Are you sure about this, man?” Taylor glanced around the room to make sure no-one was paying attention to them. The last thing either of them wanted to do was explain who the mysterious red-haired woman was. “I mean, think about it. If she isn’t your friend, Samo, are you going to be okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Jordan raised an eyebrow at his friend. “If it’s not her, at least I’ve made another friend, right?”
“Yea, unless she is just trying to get close to you so she can use you.”
“You really think someone would stoop that low? Besides, you know I don’t hand out money like its chocolate.”
“It’s not your money I’m worried about,” Taylor muttered.
Jordan ignored his comment and glanced at his phone before standing up. “I know you’re just trying to help, but seriously Taylor, you’ve got to back off. I’m going to go call Lindsay, okay?”
“I don’t think you should,” Taylor said.
Jordan sighed and sat back down beside his friend. “You better start talking.”
“What?” Taylor looked at him as if he had gone crazy.
“Start telling me what you know about Lindsay.”
“I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about, Taylor.” Jordan’s voice was low and filled with anger. “I want to know what the hell is going on.”
“There is nothing to tell, Jordan,” Taylor held up his hands in defense. “If there was something to tell, you would know.”
Standing up for a second time, Jordan made his way for the door.
“Where are you going?” Sam asked from his locker.
“Home,” Jordan replied, with a growl.
“You’re going to walk?”
“Whatever I have to do to get there,” Jordan said before he allowed the locker room door to close behind him. It didn’t take him long to exit the building and make his way across the parking lot. He barely reached the gate when a black truck pulled up beside him. He looked through the open window at the driver.
“Get in,” the diver said, unlocking the door.
“I’m alright,” Jordan told him, ready to take a step forward.
“Get in, Jordan,” the driver repeated. “You are not walking home.”
Sighing, Jordan opened the truck door and climbed in. He buckled the seat belt and sat in silence as the man drove away from the arena.
“What’s up with you?” The driver asked.
“Nothing,” Jordan replied, looking out the window. “Why do you ask?”
“You just left the locker room claiming that you were going to walk home,” the man looked at Jordan sceptically. “You live too far away to walk from here.”
“I just needed some air,” Jordan told him, trying to avoid the subject of his problems.
“I doubt that,” the man looked back at the road.
“This isn’t the direction to my house, Ales,” Jordan said, noticing for the first time that he lived in the opposite direction Ales was driving.
“We aren’t going to your place,” Ales told him. “There is something going on with you and Taylor and the first place Taylor would expect you to be is at home. So I’m taking you to my place and you are going to tell me everything.”
“What do you mean everything?” Jordan asked, raising his eyebrow.
“Everything that has been bothering you for at least the past month,” Ales told him. “I know there has been something up or else you and Taylor wouldn’t be all secretive in the locker room.”
Jordan did his best to feign innocence. “I have no idea what you are talking about, Ales.”
“You’re not any good at lying, Jordan, so give up on the act.”
“Fine,” Jordan sighed. He looked back out the window, watching the other cars on the road.
The last thing he wanted to think about was everything that was going on in his life, but he knew that if anyone could help it would be Ales. He also knew that he could trust his older teammate not to tell anyone or judge him.
“We are here,” Ales said, putting his truck in park.
Jordan followed his teammate into the house. He had been there a few times before and noticed that hadn’t changed. The white two story house had been repainted during the summer, making it look much newer than it was. He knew that Ales and his girlfriend were happy there.
“Do you want anything?” Ales asked, leading the young player into the kitchen.
“Water would be alright,” Jordan replied, looking around the room. It wasn’t overly large and had a simple layout. The fridge and stove sat across from the sink, which was situated in the island. He sat at a stool that lined the island and watched as Ales pulled two water bottles from the fridge.
“Start talking,” Ales ordered, handing Jordan a bottle.
“I’m not really sure where to start,” Jordan admitted.
“Whenever you think the problem started is probably the start.”
Jordan nodded and launched himself into the story about meeting the red haired girl at the bar. Several minutes later, he finished off his story by telling Ales that he knew that Taylor and Sam were hiding something from him, but he had no idea what it could be.
“That’s some story,” Ales said, taking a sip from his bottle. He eyed Jordan carefully. “I don’t know what to tell you.”
“No-one really does,” Jordan shrugged, taking a swig of his water. “When I think about it, I’m not really looking for advice. I think I just want to know the truth, you know?” Ales nodded, signaling for Jordan to continue. “I want to know who the girl is, whether she is Samo or not. I want to know what it is about Lindsay that Sam and Taylor aren’t telling me. I really don’t care if it is something that is going to hurt me in the end or not. I feel like my best friend is keeping a very important secret from me.” Jordan paused and took a deep breath. “And here I am, spilling my guts like a little girl who won’t get her way.”
Ales chuckled. “I think you need to take a break, Jordan. Don’t come to practice tomorrow. I’ll tell Coach that you needed the day away from the arena. Maybe go home and visit your parents and siblings. When I talk to Coach, I’m going to try to talk him into not having you come to the game either.”
“The game isn’t for two days,” Jordan argued.
“I know, but you need to get away from the team, even if it is only for a couple of days,” Ales told him. “Take tomorrow to get out of the city. After I talk to Coach, I’ll let you know what his decision is for game day.”
Jordan nodded, knowing that he couldn’t argue with Ales. He didn’t know what he was going to do with his day off, but he was certain he wasn’t going to go home. He also knew that if he stayed in the city, Ales would find out and give him hell. “Is it alright if I stay here for awhile?”
“Sure, stay as long as you’d like.” Ales turned and started toward the stairs. At the door way he turned back to Jordan. “I’m going to shower so make yourself at home. You’ve been here before, I’m sure you know where things are.”
Jordan nodded and watched his older teammate leave the kitchen. Slowly standing from the chair, Jordan made his way into the living room. He sat down on the pale leather couch and turned on the TV. It didn’t surprise him that the channel had been set to TSN. Being the end of football season in Canada, he settled for the highlights of the East Division Semi-Finals. He already knew that Hamilton had beat Montreal, which people were saying was a strange phenomenon.
“Are you going to visit your parents tomorrow?” Ales’ voice startled the young man.
Jordan looked over at his teammate. “I don’t know for sure, but I doubt it. I might go to Martensville.”
“Where the hell is Martensville and why would you go there?” Ales sat beside Jordan, glancing at the TV to see what was on. “You’d think I would understand this game by now.”
Jordan nodded at the comment. “Martensville is about six hours away in Saskatchewan. I used to play hockey with this guy in Regina and then he got traded. Anyway, we sort of kept in touch and he’s back at home with his parents deciding what to do with the rest of his life.”
“So you are going to spend half of your day on the road?” Ales asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I’m thinking about heading out tonight,” Jordan explained. “Maybe spend the night in Lloydminster.”
“When were you planning on leaving?”
“A few hours probably,” Jordan shrugged. “You have to drive me back to my place eventually.”
“Please tell me you are taking someone with you who can drive,” Ales said, watching as Jordan’s expression filled with guilt. “I’m going to take that as a no."
Jordan shook his head. “I never really thought about it. You only suggested I leave the city half an hour ago.”
“You better find someone,” Ales warned him. “If I find out that you drove six hours, with a concussion, there will be hell to pay.”
Knowing that Ales would make good of his threat, he started running through the list of names inside his head. “This could be harder than I thought. Most of the people I know are guys that are playing hockey.”
“Figure it out, Jordan. I’ll give you until I decide to drive you home. If you haven’t found someone by then I’m going to keep you locked up in my house.”
“So much for a day away from the city,” Jordan muttered, continuing to run through the list of people he knew.