This Wasn't Suppose to Happen

Leaving Janelle’s apartment, I felt at ease. For once I got the feeling that she didn’t want to kick my ass, which was always a positive sign. It was hard to say if that was her wonderful personality or just the pregnancy hormones, but whatever it was, it would be interesting to see what happened after the baby was born.

Boarding the plane for Nova Scotia, I leaned back in my seat and relaxed, I was exhausted from the day’s morning skate and the game in which we managed to rally a comeback from a 4 point lead. Closing my eyes, I thought back to what was happening in my personal life. The team know about the baby and everyone had my back, giving me support like I had hoped they would. Duper continued to give me tips for what to do after the baby was born, sharing stories of his first few road trips after each of his children were born.

Mario and his family were supportive and we had still managed to keep things on the down low, out of the media while we figured out how we would introduce this new change to the hockey world. It wasn’t like Janelle and I were dating and could exaggerate the length of our involvement. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if she liked me most days and if I had to really be honest, I wasn’t sure how I felt about her. Sure, I felt the desire to protect her and the baby, to keep them as safe and happy as I could; but was this someone I could see myself having a relationship with? I didn’t know. It was going to be challenging enough trying to raise a baby, I had no clue how to take care of an infant and to add in a relationship…it just sounded like one big headache for me. It was going to be hard enough to juggle fatherhood and hockey, could I actually throw a serious relationship into the mix?

Arriving home and walking into my childhood house, I instantly felt like there was a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Home was the one place where I could just be myself, no putting on a stone face and answering the same questions over and over again. It was late and I headed straight to my boyhood room and crawled into the twin bed and feel into a deep dreamless sleep.

Blinking, I wondered where I was for a moment before it registered. The sound of Taylor’s laugh brought a smile to my face and I hurried into the kitchen where I found my family sitting around the table eating pancakes and drinking coffee. We caught each other up and inevitably the conversation turned towards Janelle and the baby.

“Sid, when are you going to introduce us to Janelle?” Mom asked as she piled more pancakes onto my plate.

“I was thinking more along the lines of after the baby was born”, I told her and I felt the atmosphere shift. This was Christmas Eve, there was no reason to get into a discussion about all of this.

“It’s your call, but I would like to meet the woman who is carrying my grandchild”, my mother said in a clipped tone. “At least give her my phone number, in case she has any questions”, she added as she slammed down her coffee cup.

“I’m sure her own mother is answering her questions, but I will give her your number if that’s what you want”, I muttered and glanced at my father.

“Yes, that’s what I want”, Mom said and she came over and put an arm around me. “I just want to see you happy”, she added as she kissed my cheek.

“We’re going to leave this up to you, son, but we would like to meet her sooner rather than later”, my Dad said as he, too, got up and patted my shoulder.

After breakfast, Mom and Taylor set about baking cookies and Dad settled in to watch some TV. I took the opportunity to grab my phone and send a text to Janelle.

Sid: Janelle, Mom wanted me to give you her number so you can call her if you have any questions. Its 1 (902) 763-1266. Merry Christmas

It wasn’t until Boxing Day that I realized that I never did receive a reply from Janelle. Figuring she was busy with her family, I decided to wait until I arrived back in Pittsburgh to check in on her again.

Once I was back in Pittsburgh, things were crazy with games and practices, and I lost track of time. It wasn’t until New Year’s Day as I sat and watched the Winter Classic that I realized it had been over a week since I had heard from Janelle. Taking out my phone, I quickly typed another message.

Sid: Haven’t heard from you, are you okay?

I sat back and waited for a reply, deciding that if I hadn’t heard from her by the end of the game that I would have no other choice but go and check on her myself. Laying my phone on my thigh, I turned my attention back to the game that was unfolding on the screen.