Page 122 of The Import Slot
“Hi, I’m Gary,” he waves.
Ryan and I look at one another, our brows knitted together in confusion.
“Oh yeah, this is Gary. He’s my, uh, date.”
“Oh, nice to meet you.” I step forward and shake his hand, and Ryan does the same before he goes into full-blown ‘meet-and-greet’ mode, as I like to call it. Flashing a smile, fake laughter.
Vicky lets Ryan chat for a few minutes before clearing her throat. “Right, yes. Jen, meet us over there.”
I throw my hair up in a messy bun and think, ‘fuck it’ because I’m not trying to impress anyone tonight. Honestly, I don’t want to miss anyone’s face when Vicky walks in with Gary.
“I’m ready!” I declare, grabbing my makeup bag and shoving it into my overnight bag; I can always do that later.
We head out of the apartment, and Vicky locks up behind us, tossing her keys in her bag. Gary is carrying a gift bag in one hand and a bottle of something in the other.
“Victoria tells me you’re also from Abbotsford, Ryan,” Gary says as we make our way across to the other building.
“Yeah. Where are you from?” Ryan asks politely.
“Portsmouth,” he says, swinging the bag. “Are we not taking the lift?”
We head toward the stairwell of Ryan’s building with no thought of getting the lift, breaking the news gently to Gary; by the time we get to the top, he’s sweating and panting.
“Oh, let me introduce you to my brother, Johnny,” Vicky says to Gary as Johnny exits his apartment, his Secret Santa gift tucked under his arm.
We meet at Ryan’s door, and Johnny shakes Gary’s hand, giving Ryan and me a sideways glance of confusion.
We slip through the door to find Danny, Becca, Bettsy, Hutch, Parker, and the McCoy’s mulling around. Secret Santa gifts are under the tree, and everyone mock cheers when we walk in.
Becca and Danny are wrapped around each other, which is nice to see, and everyone stops what they’re doing and stares at Gary as if he’s got two heads.
“This is Gary. My date,” Vicky announces, setting the box down.
She rummages through the box, adding a few more bits to the tree. The best item by far is a bauble with Johnny’s face on it.
“I thought she hated Christmas?” Becca says to me, freeing herself from Danny.
I shrug; I thought so too, but today she seems pretty chipper about it.
There’s a knock on the door, and Jani walks straight in, followed by a shy girl half his size. He introduces her as Melanie, his date, and everyone says hi.
“So, you guys play hockey, is it?” Gary asks, sipping a glass of water.
“Yeah,” A few of the guys say in unison to Gary, who’s standing awkwardly by the kitchen counter.
Vicky takes the gift bag from his hand and places it under the tree before grabbing the bottle from him.
“I used to play a bit myself when I was in school. Midfield was my favourite position,” Gary says.
Puzzled expressions fall on everyone.
“Gary. The guys play ice hockey,” Vicky says as if she’s stating the obvious.
Gary awkwardly smiles and mumbles something under his breath but apparently, that’s the end of that conversation.
While Ryan hands me a beer, I turn on the oven and grab the frozen food to cook.
The doorbell rings, but no one barges through this time. It sounds again, and everyone looks around before staring at the door. Ryan steps past me to open it. Everyone who’s invited would normally walk in.
