Page 40 of Hitting the Goal Line
He lets out a laugh. “Reminds me of your mom when she was your age. She would come to all of my games and threaten everyone on the ice if they ever got too close to me. Seriously thought that she was going to end up in the bin a few times.”
I smile as he goes down memory lane.
My parents had me young. They were still teenagers when my mom found out that she was pregnant and even though they tell me that it was tough, they made it work.
“I’m definitely not as bad as mom, that’s for sure.”
Dad lets out another laugh and we go back to watching the game for a few minutes. During that time, I yell out a few more suggestions toward the ice.
As soon as the final buzzer sounds out, calling the game with Montana State losing by two, my dad finally says something.
“I’ll talk to him and see if he wants to put together a few more sessions. It wouldn’t hurt. He mostly needs to tweak the basics and get out of his own head. Concentrate on finishing up the season as best he can and then he can think about the NHL.”
I give him a smile. “He’ll appreciate that.”
He gives me a nod and as we make our way out of our seats and out of the school arena, he wraps his arm around me like he has always done since I was a little girl.
“How about you? You doing okay? With the nursing program and Theo and stuff?” My dad asks, as we make it to the front of the arena. He asks those questions as if I didn’t talk to him a few days ago when I went home for dinner and told him all of that.
Either way, I humor him and give him a nod. “Yeah, I’m doing okay. I am finding my flow with nursing, it’s hard but I’m liking it. Like really liking it.”
Coming into Montana State, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. What I wanted to major in, what I saw myself doing in five years, or even what I wanted to learn. So for my first year here, I just concentrated on getting my general education out of the way. Going into this year, I sat myself down and thought about what I wanted to study and out of everything, I kept going back to nursing. That’s the one thing that called my heart, so I decide to go for it. It’s intense but I’m glad with my choice.
“Good, and the boy?” he asks, making a face at the mention of my boyfriend.
Like Blake, I’ve been seeing someone for the last year or so.
I met Theo in my psychology class last year and hit it off. At first. we would only hang out to do class assignments togetherbut then it turned into coffee dates and dinner and before I knew it, he was asking me to be his girlfriend. He’s kind and sweet but lately it feels like we’re just forcing a relationship and just going through the motions of being together, while not actually being together. I don’t even think that I’ve seen him this week or talked to him all that much.
I hate to admit it, but it might be time to end it. This type of situation isn’t good for either of us.
But I don’t tell my dad that. “He’s good. He’s a little bummed that he couldn’t make it to the game today and see you.”
It should feel wrong just how easily lies about my boyfriend roll off my tongue.
“I’ll catch him next time.”
For the next fifteen minutes or so, dad and I wait outside of the arena for Blake. It’s a tradition that whenever one of our parents comes to one of his games, we go grab a bite to eat afterwards.
But when Blake comes out with Gwen attached to his arm, I know that there’s a chance that isn’t going to be happening.
More so when Blake looks away from Gwen and gives me a smile when he sees my dad standing next to me. The girl hates it when he even speaks to me, so him smiling in my direction probably has her wishing she had lasers to shoot out of her eyes and annihilate me.
“Coach,” Blake says, detangling himself from Gwen and running over to my dad and wrapping him in a hug.
Blake has grown a lot since starting college. He’s over six foot two, and last week he mentioned that he was weighing in at over two-twenty. The boy that I met all those years ago, is all muscle now and the only thing boyish about him is his dirty blond curls at the top of his head.
“Out of all the games, you had to come today?” Blake asks when he finally lets my dad go.
Dad gives him a shrug and a smile. “I wanted to come see Vermont kick your ass,” he answers him before turning to the girl that has reattached herself to Blake. Does she always have to be touching him? “Hi, Gwen. How are you?”
“I’m good, Mr. Martinez. I’m so glad you were able to make it to the game. I know how much it means to Blakie.”
I hate that she calls him Blakie. I called him that when we’re five and it has stuck through the years. She has no right in using it.
Also, how is it that she can be sweet to my dad but not to me?
“Wouldn’t have missed it. Are you guys ready to grab something to eat?” My dad looks at the three of us and when Blake and Gwen give him a nod, I know I have to make a decision.
