One Chance

2011
"You like her." Cassidy smirked.
"Cass, give it up." Tyler growled as he sat on their back porch.
"Tyler, you're sitting here, looking at her cottage every three seconds. You're praying for her to come back so you can talk to her!" His little sister whined.
"What? I haven't looked over there once!" He argued.
"Yes you have. You have multiple times." Candace cut in.
"Shut up." He huffed.
"Just hit her up and ask her on a date. The summer's only so long and you're wasting time you could soon with her." She insisted.
"Is that what you want, me to go ask your friend out? Would it make you both happy?" He hissed.
"Oh, please! Don't act like you haven't been eyeing her since you were fifteen! You're just upset because she had to leave you for her brother. News flash, Tyler, you're not the only person that matters." Candace rolled her eyes.
Tyler sat with his arms crossed. He did have a bit of interest in Jordan. For one, she was beautiful. He always thought she was beautiful, but she didn't have a nice personality. Now? Jordan was sweet. She had lost everything and was still one of the nicest girls he knew. He enjoyed the time they had spent together. He let out a growl. Candace was right. He was being an asshole.
"Should I offer to drive out and see her?" He spoke.
Cassidy gasped, nodding her head. Tyler looked at Candace who was smiling. He cocked a brow at her.
"I'm just really touched to see my brother actually interested in a girl and what she has to offer and not just what she puts out." She explained.
He ignored Candace's comment. "Do I text her or c,"
"Call her. Definitely call. Right now." Candace demanded.
Tyler took a deep breath, standing up and walking off with his phone. He opened his contacts and found Jordan's name. He pushed the call button. It rang twice.
"Hello?" She breathed, sounding annoyed.
"Hey, Jordan, it's Tyler." He explained. "If you're busy, I can call b,"
"No, no, it's fine. I'm just tired. I've been up worrying about my brother a lot." She explained. "What's up?"
"I have a crazy idea." He smirked.
"Like most of your ideas." She teased. "But what is this idea?"
"I wanna drive out and see you." He stated.
"Oh, don't waste your sum,"
"It's been a waste since you went home." He cut her off.
"Tyler," She sighed. "I mean, I guess you could come stay the night but I don't want to stress out Tom."
"Do you want me to come?" Tyler asked.
"Well, it'd be nice to see you. I haven't seen anyone besides Tom all week." She admitted.
"I'll pack an overnight bag now and then I'll head down." He smiled.
"Okay. I'll text you how to get here." She said before hanging up.
Tyler did exactly what he told Jordan he was going to do. He packed a bag, told his mother he was going out for the night, and headed off. He made it to Jordan's in just over an hour. When he pulled up to her house, he felt sick. He didn't know why. He was excited to see her, but maybe nervous about her state.
He sucked it up and walked up to her front door. He knocked, waiting for the door to open. When it did, Jordan was smiling up at him. She had a sweatshirt on with a pair of tights. He smiled at her and pulled her into a hug. She hugged him back tightly. He kissed the side of her head.
He followed her inside. She guided him upstairs. He followed closely behind her. In all honesty, he was terrified of her brother. Tyler had never really hung around a girl long enough to meet any of her family. It freaked him out. She opened the door to reveal a bright pink room. He let out a laugh. She looked over her shoulder and glared.
It had been her room since she was young. It was always pink, but there used to be fluffy bedding and sparkles everywhere when she was eight to twelve. Once she turned thirteen, her mom helped her pick out black bedding and accents. It looked more mature.
She turned around to face Tyler. He was looking over his room. His eyes came back to hers and he smiled. She smiled up at him. He couldn't help but pull her into another hug. She looked so tired.
"It's good to see you." He mumbled into her hair.
"I missed you, Tyler." She confessed.
"Oh, god. I was driving Candace and Cassidy crazy because I was waiting for you to come back like a lost puppy." He chuckled, playing with some of her hair.
"I hope you're okay with staying in my room with me." She pulled back. "We only have three rooms and I wouldn't be comfortable with you staying in my pa,"
"I'm glad I'm staying in your room." He stopped her. "More time with you."
Tyler grinned. Jordan rolled her eyes, grabbing his bag. He pulled her back by her bag. She stumbled into him. He wrapped his arms around her waist before he pressed his lips to hers. Her hands rested on his chest as she kissed back.
"Ah, this is your 'friend' that was coming to spend the night." A voice boomed.
They broke apart and looked in the doorway. Jordan's eyes went wide as she spotted her brother. He was leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed. Tom rolled his eyes, standing up straight.
"Relax. You're nineteen years old. I don't care what you and your boyfriend do." He laughed at his sister. His hand extended to Tyler. "I'm Tom."
"Tyler." He said as he shook Tom's hand. "Nice to finally meet you. I guess I didn't when we were cottage neighbours."
"I was always working out. What a guy, eh?" Tom joked. "Spent my vacations training."
"Sounds like Tyler." Jordan mumbled.
Ty shot her a glare. She gave him an innocent smile. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into him. Tom watched the pair. He was glad Jordan was happy with someone, for once. His eyes met his sister's.
"Are you okay?" She stepped out of Tyler's grasp. "Did you need anything?" She questioned.
Tom shook his head. "Just snooping." He admitted, walking off.
When he turned, Tyler noticed the large bandage over his bald head. He looked at Jordan who took a deep breath. She grabbed his hand, sitting him on the bed. She closed her door.
"A land mine went off when he was raiding some area. He won't tell me the full story but he flew and hit his head really badly." She took a deep breath, sitting beside him. "He's lucky he can still walk. He's lucky he isn't brain dead."
Tyler grabbed her hand. He laced their fingers. She looked up at him. He gave her a small smile. She leaned forward to give him a kiss. He returned it. She pulled back, sitting quietly.
"You've honestly had the worst luck and you deserve nothing that has happened to you, Jord." He ranted. "It's really fucked up how as soon as you became a better person, your world fell apart."
"Karma got me good." She joked.
"Karma needs to fuck off because you were just a punk kid. You learned your lesson from everything you've done." He continued.
"You're gonna make me cry again." She whined, wrapping his arms around his waist.
"Again?" He questioned.
"About four years ago when you told me how shitty I was." She smirked.
"I'm glad I did because you're great now." He smiled, kissing her forehead.
The night went on. Tyler, Jordan, and Tom all sat around, eating and watching movies. Tom actually liked Tyler. He didn't seem like the asshole that made Jordan cry when they were fifteen. Although, he did help her become the great person she was now.
The morning came faster than Jordan and Tyler wanted. They both took a long time to get out of bed. When either did, it was because Tom was hollering for Jordan. She shot up and ran downstairs. Tyler followed quickly behind her. They got to the kitchen, which was filled with bubbles. Tom was sitting in it laughing. Jordan growled.
"What did you do?" She yelped.
"Added too many dishwasher packet things." He said through laughs.
She rolled her eyes, turning to Tyler. "You should probably go. I don't think you'll have any fun watching me clean and I refuse to let you help."
"Or he could stay while we clean it and we could all go to the cottage?" Tom suggested.
"You're not going to the cottage." She hissed at him.
"Hey, I'm the older sibling. I make the decisions." He pointed a bubble covered finger at her from the floor.
"You're hurt, Tom." She sighed. He shook his head. "You almost died!"
"But I didn't so why am I going to waste my spare life by sitting around in this shithole?" He yelled.
Tyler stood to the side. He was uncomfortable. He agreed with what Tom was saying, but understood where Jordan was coming from. They both looked at him. It was as if he was refereeing their argument.
"Uh, I like Tom's idea. I mean, who really wants to stay cooped up in a house? But at that, if Jordan does decide to bring you, Tom, you're going to have to be careful." Tyler stated.
"Obviously. I'm not gonna go off and roll around in the sand with a gaping wound in my head. I just wanna sit around a fair. I miss the cottage." Tom explained.
"Fine." Jordan rolled her eyes. "You're cleaning this up." She pointed at Tom before turning. "You're helping him." She pointed at Tyler.
He rolled his eyes as she walked away. She grabbed his butt. He looked over his shoulder to see her walking like she didn't do anything. She smiled back at him when she got to the stairs. He shook his head.
Once the mess was cleaned and the siblings were ready, the three took off. Tyler drove with Jordan beside him. She slept during the drive. Tyler checked his rear view mirror to see how Tom was. He was staring out his window. He looked and met Tyler's eyes in the mirror.
"How does the whole hockey thing work?" Tom spoke.
"I go to train at the end of summer and then the season starts in October." Tyler explained.
"You play in Boston, right?" Tom asked. Tyler nodded. "So what happens with you and Jord when you leave?"
Tyler felt his heart stop. He hadn't even thought of that. He kept his eyes on the road as he continues driving.
"I'm not trying to pressure you to like ask for her hand in marriage, but I know she's really into you and I don't want to see my sister hurt because you have to go off and do your thing." Tom added.
"I didn't expect to fall for her so I didn't think of the outcome." Tyler sighed. "I guess I'd hope that we'd continue to talk and we could see each other whenever I was in the area or had free time."
Tom stared at Tyler. "And you're not going to fool around on her?" Tom huffed. Tyler's eyes shifted to Tom in the mirror. "I've heard about you."
"I don't think I would. Ever since the first day, Jordan's been the only girl on my mind." Tyler clarified.
Tom nodded. He looked back out the window. Tyler continued to drive. He kept his hand on the clutch as a force of habit. Jordan slowly woke up. She looked at Tyler before placing her hand on top of his. Her tiny fingers crept between his. He looked at her with a smile. Jordan was all he wanted.
Weeks went by and Tyler and Jordan got closer. He had officially asked her to be his girlfriend. She said yes and they'd been inseparable since.
He had four days left of his summer before hockey took over. They were both dreading it as she laid in his arms on the back deck of his cottage. His arms were around her waist while she laid between his legs. His pressed his lips to the back of her head and started blowing.
She laughed, shoving his face away as she looked back. "Tyler, I'm really worried." She admitted.
"About what, babe?" He frowned.
"Us. How are we gonna work with you in Boston and me in the shithole?" She sat up, turning to face him with her legs draped over his.
He held onto her hips, rubbing them. "We're going to make it work. I'll pay for you to fly out. I'll come see you when I can, I promise we'll make it work." He reassured her.
She leaned forward gave him a kiss. "Lets do it then." She said, resting against his chest.