Page 124 of Unmasking Love
Turns out the Big Guns are movies. Felix wouldn't speak to me when I got into his car and made me wait while he went into the corner market by his house to pick up snacks. When he climbed back in he tossed the bag in my lap and continued to drive home without a word.
When we got to his house he pointed at the living room with its giant wrap around couch and giant TV and commanded, "Sit."
"Felix, what is going on?"
He ignored my question. He just opened the door for the other guys as they spilled in with different foods and drinks. They gathered in the kitchen and I couldn't really hear what they were saying. I caught a few words here and there, "sloth", andthen "heist", and I'm more confused as ever when they join me on the sofa and Felix turns onSpeed.
"Why the heck are we having a movie night?" I grumble as I shove away a blanket Emmett offers me.
"Because we care about you man, that's why." He says as he tosses the blanket down next to me.
Felix pauses the movie and stands in front of the opening credits. "Listen, the six of us are the starting lineup for the D.C. Renegades. We win together and we lose together. The rest of the team looks to us for leadership. We set the tone on the ice. I am not going to sit back and let our goalie think he is in this alone."
"Especially when he's Johnny Fucking Appleseed with his assist record!" Duncan cheers and I hate that I feel proud of myself at this moment. What good does it do if I can pass the puck up the ice if I can’t stop it from going in the net? "Without his pass to me in the third we would have been shut out tonight. Vegas is really fucking good but we're better. A loss isn't the end of our season at this point but it will be in the playoffs. I remember the sting of going out early last year. And I know from experience that we perform better when we have an outlet for some of the pressure."
Felix points to Duncan, "for some of us that means fucking," he points to Crosby, "for others it means playing music. But at the end of the day, which is right now, we are a brotherhood and tonight we're going to remember what that means."
He sits down and turns on the movie again. By the time we're halfway throughOcean's 11, Duncan and Crosby are competing over who can fold themselves in half like Yen. Bryson, being the shortest of the group, said he’d sit this one out to give them a chance.
"Dude your thighs are too chunky." Duncan tells Crosby as he tries to hug his calves.
"Yeah well it's because I'm fast as fuck on the ice. You can bend tighter because you're slow," Crosby taunts as he pulls up his shorts to slap the skin on his thighs.
"As if!" Duncan yells and then he stands up next to Crosby and pulls his pants down to his ankles.
"Dude!" Emmett yells as he throws a pillow at Duncan. "Cover yourself!"
"I've got underwear on!" He defends. And I suppose technically he does. But they’re tightie whities which I haven't seen on a teammate since grade school. "Plus now you can see my whole thigh and can more easily see who is thicker."
"Let's have a look," Bryson says as he steps up to the side. He squats down and examines. Then he hums and goes to the other side of the thunder thigh duo and squats again. "Crosby’s are thicker."
"Bull shit!" Duncan complains but when he tries to take a step towards Bryson he stumbles over the pants at his ankles and ends up tripping.
"Seriously, can we get back to the movie now?" Felix asks once the shenanigans have cooled.
AfterOcean's 11we call it a night. I expected the guys to head home but instead they're racing up the stairs to fight over guest bedrooms. I get myself a glass of water in the kitchen and Felix joins me.
"So, how are you feeling, bud?" He asks.
"Fine, tired."
"No, I meant about the team."
"Oh, um, good I guess. I mean they're goofballs but they're good players."
"Yeah, and the goofball part is only because they leave their intensity on the ice at the end of the game. I still catch Bryson carrying some of it home from time to time but the rest of us have worked to separate the emotions of the locker room and the ice from life outside of it."
I look down at my water glass, knowing I haven't done this.
"What did Harper haveto say about tying the assists record?"
"Uh, nothing. I'm not sure I told her we were tracking it. I mean, she saw it at the game tonight but we hadn't talked about it."
"Really?" Felix asks. "Yikes."
"What?"
"I fucking hate this trope." He mumbles and I have no idea what he's talking about. "Okay, go to bed. Call your girl before you fall asleep and I'll see you in the morning."
