Page 85 of What It Means To Be Found

“That Logan should ask you out. I think he said something like, ‘Worst-case scenario, she says no. Best case scenario, you have a date to the wedding.’”

I blinked, thinking back to when this was. This was before Connor and Logan came to my work that one random time, before we had ever FaceTimed or admitted that we wanted to act on our mutual feelings of attraction. The fact that my ex-boyfriend was actively encouraging my current boyfriend to make a move on me made me feel a small touch of relief. Not that Adam had recently done or said anything to make me think that he still resented me for how I acted during our relationship years ago, but it was a quiet confirmation that Adam and I were good. That we had both officially moved on.

“Wow,” I shifted on my feet, “That was so long ago.”

“The wedding isn’t until next year,” Courtney added, turning to me, and wiggling her eyebrows, “And Logan wanted to lock you down as soon as possible.”

I blushed from her teasing, but grinned and waved her off.

“It’s amazing what texting and FaceTiming can do for couples,” was all I replied.

Finally, the car pulled up, and we all climbed in. There was a privacy screen between us and the driver, so Courtney and I changed into our fan gear. We both donned Anaheim Ducks jerseys with ST. JAMES on the back in big letters. Courtney’s was way too big for her, and as we pulled out our portable mirrors to check our hair and makeup, I noticed some scribbling on the shoulder of hers.

“What the fuck, did Logan sign yours?” I asked, tugging on the sleeve of Courtney’s jersey.

“Yeah, careful! Signed merch has value!” Courtney swatted my hand away, covering Logan’s signature on her sleeve protectively as if I’d rip it off.

“He needs to sign mine,” I grumbled, looking down at my suddenly less-than shirt.

“And my hat,” Taylor added, thumbing away on their phone. They only wore the hat to the rink, deciding to stick with their white t-shirt and gray jacket instead of another jersey.

We chatted and bickered the rest of the way to the rink, me bouncing in my seat the entire drive there. Logan had no idea we were showing up to this game. I wasn’t sure if he would like this surprise or not, but I also decided that it would be worth the risk. He was new to this group of friends just like I was, except it was clear that Logan hadn’t had a community outside of his hockey team. He didn’t have anyone to surprise him by showing up to his games.

I wanted to be his first girlfriend to surprise him at a game in a different state.

I also realized as we walked through security and made our way to our front row, that I wanted to be Logan’s last girlfriend.

He probably wasn’t ready to have that conversation yet, but I found myself smiling at the ground as we side-stepped our way to the seats. I had just realized how I wanted this new relationship of mine to go.

The rink was filled with dark blues and reds, making it obvious even for a rookie like me to learn what the other team's colors were. I had to squint to see a smattering of white and orange in the crowd, otherwise I would have thought that the three of us were the only Anaheim fans in the entire stadium.

A couple Colorado fans started booing us from behind, and Courtney responded by immediately turning around to flip them off with both hands before Taylor grabbed her and tugged her back down in her seat.

“I don’t want to be hate-crimed because of aggressive hockey fans tonight, but thanks,” was Taylor’s reasoning for Courtney to chill. My heart squeezed because I wouldn’t have even thought about that had Taylor not mentioned it. Courtney immediately wrapped them in a tight hug in apology, before stealing their cap and rustling their hair with her hands.

“You son of a—” but Taylor didn’t finish their words because the rink erupted in cheers as the hockey players skated onto the ice.

Similar to where we sat last season, our seats were right near the tunnel that led to the locker rooms, so we got an up close and personal view of every player as they made it onto the ice.

When the Ducks came out, I spotted Logan immediately. Even under all the gear I was able to recognize his form, the way he held himself as he stood taller than usual due to the skates on his feet. The ST. JAMES and number twenty-nine on the back of his jersey was a helpful afterthought.

I stood up in my seat and everything, ready to shout at him to kick ass, but he didn’t see me before he skated off to run drills with his teammates before the game started. I bounced on my heels a few times before I felt fingers tug themselves through my belt loops, gently pulling me back into my seat.

“He’ll see you,” Courtney reassured me with a pat on my back, offering me some of her box of popcorn.

“Where did you get this?” I asked, glancing around as if it had magically appeared.

“The kid,” she pointed to the other side of Taylor, where there was a teenager selling boxes of popcorn and soda. I hadn’t even noticed them.

“You’re much more focused on the ice now than you were last time we came to a game,” Taylor commented with a wiggle of their eyebrows.

“I’m just interested in who is on the ice, actually.” I tugged on the sleeves of my jersey, hiding my fingers in the fabric to try to keep my body warm in the cool rink. “If I wasn’t dating Logan, I doubt that I’d care at all.”

“Makes sense,” Courtney shrugged after shoving a handful of popcorn in her mouth, she spoke around her bite loud enough for Taylor and me to hear her say, “I wasn’t into rock music before Josh.”

“But you are now?” Taylor asked with a lifted eyebrow.

“I mean,” she shrugged, “I got into Josh’s music first. Partly thanks to Beck, partly thanks to Josh himself. But yeah, I have definitely expanded my music taste since reconnecting with him.” Courtney gave a small smile after she finally finished chewing and swallowing her bite.

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