Science & Faith

"He didn't mean it like that Anne and you know it." I ignored her and continued to grab a few items. We were in Sid's house that evening. The boys were on a road trip and were coming back in a few days. Sidney had joined them, trying to be as supportive as possible while he was injured.

Maybe I was overreacting. I didn't care. He had no right to speak to me that way. I needed to get away, and there was only one place for me to go to clear my head.

"If he didn't mean it, he wouldn't have said it." I placed a pile of shirts into a box. Greta just stood there, refusing to help me pack.

"Did I ever tell you about the fight Kris and I got in to before I ran off to Minnesota?" She stood in the doorway with her arms crossed.

I stopped packing and looked at her, "You told me he thought you cheated on him, so?"

"Kris tells me all the time how he wished he listened to me. He misinterpreted something that made him lose special moments. He didn't get to go through the pregnancy with me and he regrets it so much." She subconsciously moved her hand around her stomach. "Please tell me you'll forget all this and just stay."

I looked down at the ground. My voice was quiet, "I can't." I looked back her and she nodded. I grabbed another empty box. "Will you please just help me pack? I want to get out of here." Greta just nodded her head and joined me on the floor of the large closet.

"When do you think you're going to leave?" She folded a shirt and put it in the box.

"As soon as I finish packing and book a flight." I placed another shirt next to the one she had just laid down.

"You're not even going to tell him?" I shook my head, but she stayed still.

"Don't worry, I'll say my goodbye." We continued to work together and finished packing in less than an hour.

***

Sid got home from the road trip and the house was quiet. All the lights were off and nothing seemed out of place he set his suitcase down and took off his shoes and jacket. "Anne?"

No answer. This wasn't normal. Sid looked around the first floor before going upstairs. When he walked into their bedroom he could tell something was different. It looked cleaner, more spacious. That's when he saw it.

On his nightstand lay a folded piece of paper and a necklace. The necklace he had given Anne for Christmas. He opened the paper and started to read.

Sid, I'm sorry for leaving like this but I couldn't stay. There's so much I want to say, but I can't put it into words right now. When we really started to get to know each other I thought it wouldn't last. You had your beliefs and I had mine. When we started to learn more I knew I could be apart of your beliefs. I could see your side and I knew you saw mine.

Maybe it was only supposed to last for awhile. Science and faith can't mix. They're two separate ideas that can't me melded together. I thought we had proved that wrong. I'll always care about you. And nothing will make me forget the wonderful times we had.

Always,
Anne.

And just like that, in a matter of days, Sidney Crosby had lost the two most important things in his life: hockey and Anne.