Page 85 of One More Time

“It was after you slept in my dorm, before I came here for the game night. I saw Bellamy, and he got me signed to the farm team. I wanted to be free, to be a hockey player even if it isn’t the NHL…”

I knew I looked like a blubbering fool, doing nothing but stare as I counted every time we’d seen each other leading up to Christmas. He never told me.

“Wh-where? When?” Hunter made to grab my hand, but I dodge just out of reach. I felt like I was back in that living room, dodging another flying sock on April Fool’s.

I am not entirely sure if he paused before he responded, or if time simply slowed. But when he spoke, I heard him loud and clear: I had half a season with him, then he would be in Canada. I nodded, torn between being sad for myself and happy for the person I lo—liked. The person I liked very much.

I did the math: we would have until April.

Four months.

Fifteen weeks and five days.

One hundred and ten days.

But who was counting?

More than a summer fling, yet it was less than half a year.

Again—who was counting?

Would I stay and fall more in love with him?

Or would I be nothing more than a teammate and let him go so he could follow his dreams?

“Baby, we said through whatever happened…” Hunter reminded me of the conversation we had the morning he signed that very contract. But, all I could see after those one hundred and ten days was him in Canada and me in Boston. He’d be playing professionally, and I would be here, still trying to prove myself. I barely had time to take a shit, let alone manage a long-distance relationship. Hunter had wedged himself into my life now. In a perfect mold of sex before sleep, and sex before training. I knew it was so much more than just sex, but we’d gotten to know each other in between the heat and the passion. Again, I was stuck in between the what-if's of the future and the man before me.

I needed a break. I dressed in my running gear and grabbed my water bottle. Hunter followed me to the kitchen, wearing nothing more than his briefs—which was awfully distracting. Cal entered the room, eyes wide as he took in the muscular, bruised god trying to get my attention that I was somehow ignoring. I could be childish just this once, right?

“Can we please talk about this?”

I grunted, trying and failing to sound unaffected. “What is there to talk about, Hunter? I am happy for you, This is everything I wanted for you.”

“What about us?” Hunter’s voice was practically begging, and I almost halted. Almost.

“What about it? We have the rest of the season, then you’ll be in Canada. From there, only time will tell.” I shrugged, and I tried not to take note of his hurt expression because the moment I caught a glance of it, my chest constricted.

“You going for a run?” Cal interjected, and I hoped he saw the relief on my face at the interruption.

“Yeah, want to come?”

Cal rushed back into his room to change and I prayed to whatever higher power was listening that he wouldn’t take too long.

“Baby…”

“Hunter, there’s nothing to talk about.”

Hunter assessed me, nodding but not looking any more dejected. He walked back to our room, ass looking annoyingly perfect in those undies.

“You are not going to lose him too, Tyler.” I looked to Jamie, who’d silently watched the scene unfold from his bed. I wanted to protest because I felt like I was on a tightrope about to fall the moment Hunter was gone. My body reacted, the threat of tears imminent. I used to be able to push back emotions, but the more time I spent around Hunter, the more those walls crumbled.

Cal thankfully chose that moment to reappear fully dressed. I saluted like an idiot to my brother, not even bothering to call out to Hunter.

Don’t judge me— I never claimed to be emotionally smart.

I was grateful that Cal waited for me to run out my tension before he gave me the third degree.

“Jamie isn’t wrong, you know. Hunter isn’t going to leave you.”

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