Page 35 of The Tape Job
“You okay, Vic?” I say, almost in a whisper.
“Yeah, just some shit with my dad,” she says, wiping her tears away with her hand.
I don’t even have a fucking tissue to offer her.
“Let me know if you wanna talk about it, yeah?” I completely ignore the fact that I’m supposed to be leaving her alone. But she nods and heads into the washroom.
I head over to the guys, giving them a look which tells them to not ask questions.
“Yo, where’s my coffee, bud?” Ryan asks, coming to a stop beside me.
“Shit. Sorry. Don’t ask,” I say, heading back to the queue.
This time, I order our drinks, and a blueberry muffin for Vicky. I drop it onto her lap as I walk past her on the coach. I don’t make eye contact or anything, not wanting to make it into a big deal. But as soon as I get to my seat, my phone vibrates.
Vicky
Blueberry is my favourite, thanks.
I know it’s her favourite. I remember all her favourites because it’s hard to forget when someone is so much in your head.
By the time we get to the rink, I revert to plan ‘A’ and stick to my word and keep my distance again. I’m careful to avoid any eye contact, but when we’re playing that evening, it’s difficult not to notice Vicky’s camera stuck on me the entire time.
Chapter 9
Vicky
I’m hiding out in my bedroom, my laptop open on my bed while I wait for all the pictures from last night’s game to load. I couldn’t face going into the office and risk seeing Liam, even though there’s no practice today. I’m not up for socialising. It’s the perfect day to work from home.
Today’s main task is releasing the game night report written by Springy, the assistant coach. After adding some photos, I have to share it on social media by noon.
Over three-hundred photos pop up on my screen, and I pull my laptop towards me, sliding my finger along the touchpad to scroll down. An audible gasp escapes from my throat; I can’t believe I took so many photos of Liam. I double click on the first in the list and quickly skim through the slideshow, searching for a shot of my brother Johnny who was the expected ‘Man of the Match.’ His plus-minus of plus five and impressive blocks made him an easy choice. Iconsider using the worst photo of him, but then I remember he could easily embarrass me, too—so I decide against it.
As soon as the first close-up of Liam pops onto my screen, my stomach does a somersault. His face is a picture of concentration, he looks, well … I probably spend longer than necessary admiring the view before moving on. I’ve captured a good action shot of him firing at the net, so I pick that to use halfway down the report. I eventually find a decent image of Johnny checking someone into the boards to use as the primary image.
Editing the photos is quick, and by eleven-thirty, everything is ready. I ping an email to Jen with the content so she can get it on the website, and I wait for a link back so I can post it on our social media accounts. I’m just about to reply to an email when my phone rings. It’s my dad trying me for the first time today, and I surprise myself by answering.
“Victoria, I didn’t expect you to answer,” he says, his tone bright. I didn’t anticipate him calling during the middle of the night, but here we are.
“What can I help you with?” I try to sound passive to get a reaction, but he doesn’t bite.
“How’s Johnny? And Liam?”
My dad loves Liam, which makes my whole situation even more frustrating because I guarantee he’d pick Liam as a son any day over me as his actual daughter.
“Fine,” I sigh, not bothering to give him an update on my wellbeing this time.
“Has your brother told you about my plans to visit?” he asks.
“Yep.”
“Will you be happy to meet Jayne? She’s really excited to meet you both.”
“Yep,” I say again, because I know there’s no escaping it.
I honestly believe that I’d be more accepting of my dad’s girlfriends if he’d gone about the whole thing differently. Hehad been secretly having affairs for years. My mom knew things were heading towards a dead-end for them, but it was still painful, and my dad continued to lie.
He’d made a point of choosing to spend time with his girlfriend over Johnny and me. I felt shoved aside. I felt like an annoying fly that my dad couldn’t swat away. While Johnny focused on hockey, it took me years to discover joy in photography.
