Page 194 of Pucking Strong

He was a dream. Now he’s my home. And I will fight for him too. I’ll fight for our little girl and the life we’re building. Because he’s right—we belong together, the three of us. Family.

Cheryl, the social worker, sits at the kitchen table across from me, her fingernails clicking on her keyboard. She wears rings on all her fingers and bangles on both wrists that clink faintly each time she moves. She’s interviewing us for our second home study report. We’ve been at this for an hour, with no end in sight. Teddy has already refilled each of our coffee mugs twice. On his third attempt, Cheryl covered the top of her mug with her hand. “Any more java, and I’ll be cartwheeling out of here.”

Now he sits next to me, his knee bouncing with nervous energy. He had his time in the hot seat yesterday. She interviewed him for over three hours, asking a range of questions about his early life, his upbringing, his current relationship with his family. She quizzed him in detail on his connections to his nieces and nephews, his experiences as a parental figure.

They talked of Karolina, of what she means to him. I listened with pride as he spouted off everything from her favorite food to her second-favorite ballet position. He then provided Cheryl with a rank order of Karro’s preferred stuffed animals, which included all their names and magical abilities.

So far, she’s asked me similar questions. I’ve spoken of my young life in Sweden, my relationship with Petra, my early hockey career.

“From what we’ve found, your sister made no will,” she goeson. “In the event of her passing, did Petra want you to have custody of Karolina? Do you believe that was her wish?”

“Without question,” I reply.

“Why?”

I consider for a moment, unraveling the threads of my grief from the facts of the case as best I can. Next to me, Teddy squeezes my hand in encouragement. “I loved my sister with all that I am. She was the older sibling, but she relied on me.”

“How so?”

“She never had the patience for organization. And she loathed anything so mundane as the routine of paying bills or planning ahead. Even before her death, I was already caring for them both.”

“In what ways?”

“I paid for her apartment, her car, Karolina’s school. I made sure they wanted for nothing. As our parents’ health has declined, I’ve cared for them too. Petra knew that if anything happened to her, I would continue to care for Karolina. Since her death, all that has changed is geography. Now, Karolina lives in the home with me.”

“And how are you liking the change?”

I swallow a sip of my coffee. “Pardon?”

“To go from being her uncle, paying the bills, to becoming her live-in guardian is a huge step for you both. I’m asking how you’ve weathered the change. Have there been disruptions to your life, your patterns of behavior?”

“Every pattern of my life has been completely disrupted. But it doesn’t follow that such disruptions are unwelcome. And they’re not all her fault,” I add, glancing at Teddy.

“Can you give me an example of how a pattern has changed and how you’ve reacted?”

I consider for a moment, setting my coffee aside. “My nighttime routine has certainly changed.”

“Can you explain?”

I smile, leaning back in my chair. “Before Teddy and Karolina came to live with me, I lived alone. My nights not traveling or playing hockey were spent quietly in my apartment. I may have listened to a podcast while I exercised on my stationary bike. Afterwhich, I stretched and showered. Then I brushed my teeth, and it was lights out by ten o’clock.”

“And now?”

I glance to Teddy again and he chuckles. “Just tell her, babe.”

I turn back to Cheryl. “Now, my nights home are full of baking, bedazzling, and bath time, in that order. And Karolina and Teddy each have a nightly hair- and skincare regimen that would rival a Hollywood starlet.”

Cheryl laughs. “And do you participate?”

“Oh, yes. I’ve been enrolled in the Teddy O’Connor School for Uncles Who Can’t Do Hair.”

She laughs again. “My, that sounds serious.”

“It’s grueling,” I reply. “Compared with learning to braid hair, competing in the last Winter Olympics was a breeze.”

“Would you consider these new routines an unwelcome change to your daily life? Do you ever resent them?”

I stare down at the table, my mind filling with the sounds of Teddy’s and Karro’s laughter and singing, echoing around my bathroom. Teddy standing at the sink, spritzing his locs. Karro sitting in the shower with Barbies on her lap, her casted arm and leg carefully wrapped to keep out the water. “No. The chaos they bring to each day is now more precious to me than any cheering crowd, any professional accolade.”

---