Dannythrowsa‘welcometo the team’ gathering on Friday night before my first practice tomorrow.
I get home from the gym to find Johnny, Danny, and a couple of guys I’ve not met, hanging out on the sofa, pizza boxes and beers on the counter.
“Ah, there he is!” Danny pats my back and hands me a beer. “Where’ve you been?” I take it and pop the cap off. I rarely drink during the season, but one won’t hurt since pre-season hasn’t started yet.
“Went to the gym, then stopped for coffee on my way back.” I head to the fridge and peer inside, grabbing a container of leftovers from my meal prep earlier, drawing the line at pizza. “Saw your friend Jen. I think she was on a date.” I say to Danny, casually. I hadn’t even wanted a coffee, but when I saw her inside, I suddenly felt thirsty.
“Oh yeah, she said something about that. I was going to find out more about it, actually, but I couldn’t get my ass out of bed this morning.”
“Yeah, weren’t you off for a morning run?” Johnny asks.
“Yeah, with Jen. But she’s forgiving. That’s not the first time I’ve promised her I’d help her with pace, but I struggle to wake up.” He takes a swig of beer.
“Dammit, Danny, you need to keep the workouts up.” Johnny scowls.
Danny quickly changes the subject. “Oh, let me introduce you to some guys.” Danny gestures to the others sitting down, introducing them.
“Nice to meet you all,” I say, considering them.
One of the local guys, Paul Hutchinson, who the guys call Hutch, pipes up. “I’m excited you’re here, Ryan. Sorry to fanboy, but what’s the NHL like?”
I chuckle at the question I’ve been asked many times before, and I always give the same answer. “Hard work.” I smile, “But it’s rewarding.” Hutch fires a few more questions, and I answer. We chat about the team, the rink, which I’ve only seen from the outside–and what the guys do for fun outside of hockey.
“Speaking of fun,” Jani Heikkinen, a Finnish forward, says, “Where are the ladies? Are you still fucking about with that Rochelle girl, Betts?”
Mike Betts, a winger with a few teeth missing, shifts in his seat. “Nah, she went a bit crazy on me. You better watch out, though,” he gestures to me. “She’s not just a puck-bunny. She’s a fucking bunny boiler.” He takes a pizza slice and says, “Even Danny here has had a go.”
“I definitely haven’t,” Danny says. “I’m pretty sure Rochelle was hanging with those fuckers from up the road at the end of last season,” Danny explains that our closest rival is the next city over, and they took our chance at reaching the playoffs last year.
“I’m just here to play hockey,” I say.
I’ve had my fair share of bunnies but led none of them on. Not as many as Liam, but that’s how I am. I’m a private person who likes to keep things as simple as possible.
“What about that friend of yours, Danny?” Jani says.
“Jen?” My heart skips when he says her name, and I tune into the conversation fully, entirely invested.
“No, her hot friend. The blondish one.”
“Don’t know who you mean,” Danny says, but his response is curt, as if he’s holding back.
The doorbell buzzes, and Danny gets up to answer it, welcoming a few more of the guys from the team in. I introduce myself, and we talk for a while before Johnny turns the talk to hockey.
“Right,” he says as he eyes Danny and Hutch in particular. “This season, I want to see fewer penalties.” He grabs a notepad before he whips his phone out and taps away before starting again. “Look at our friends from the North. Our second game is against them, and they hardly give us any power plays. We should be more like them.” He scribbles on the notepad and flicks through the pages.
“They were also bottom of the table last season too, all season long,” Danny says. “Yes, Johnny, let’s be more like them.”
I walk around the large L-shaped sofa and sit down next to Johnny, eyeing the page he’s on. He has a long list of stats and plays scribbled down.
“Look at this,” he says, flicking the page and pointing to a list of names, but I pull my attention away as the doorbell sounds again, and Danny swings it open.
“Oh yeah, thanks for sorting it,” I hear him saying. Johnny is talking to me, but my ears strain when I catch the voice speaking back to Danny.
“Oh, while I’ve got you, Dan,” I hear Jen say, “Do you have any news yet?”
“Maybe, maybe not. I can neither confirm, nor deny,” he says. Part of me wants to spring to my feet and bolt to the door to catch another glimpse of her, but that would be weird.
“Anyway, Jen. I’ve got to go. The boys are here.” He closes the door and tosses a bag down on the counter. Why didn’t he invite her in? Maybe if I go now, I could catch her in the lobby.